stretchcruz

The TA should have told you about onboard credit and it should be on your invoice. Here is what they are allowed to offer from Viking:

• Agents will only be allowed to offer non-cash marketing incentives if the incentives are able to be redeemed and used onboard or if the retail value of the incentive does not exceed $100. For the onboard gifts, the incentive can’t exceed: $150 per guest for seven-night sailings, $300 per guest for eight to 14-night sailings on a Viking vessel and $500 per guest for 15-night plus sailings $500 per guest.

For our upcoming back to back cruise, we are getting $1,000 onboard credit for the first one (18 days) and $600 for the second (9 days). So $1,600. That's a lot of money.

I don't know if you can switch TAs at this point. You could cancel and rebook with a new TA. There's $100 pp cancel fee but normally they give it to you as a credit. Good luck.

4 minutes ago, Liz Masterson said:

A friend on a recent Northern Lights cruise was asymptomatic but tested positive and was quarantined on board in a room by herself on level 3 till she tested negative. Her roommate never tested positive and remained in their cabin. I think it was 2 or 3 nights? That was her experience. 

Was her roommate confined to the cabin?

4 minutes ago, florafun said:

When we embarked in Fort Lauderdale last Wednesday, March 9, we had to give a saliva sample for testing but we did not have to wait in our cabin for the results. We were told that we could go about the ship right after we provided our sample. Daily saliva samples are still being collected along with temperature checks and filling out the health survey. Masks are now "strongly recommended" onboard but not mandatory. Masks are required though when going ashore.

We embark the Orion on March 23 and we sure hope that we aren't in cabin lockdown after the PCR tests. It's my birthday, we have reservations at Manfredi's at 6:30, so we are hoping for the best. Masking doesn't bother us, in fact I prefer it, so that's not going to be a problem. Hopefully your cruise will remain covid free and we will be under the same rules!!

Just realized this is the World cruise thread, didn't mean to get off topic, but I think he was addressing your blog about the laboratory, which was extremely interesting!!

We always tip $2-$4 for room service. Just because. We bring a lot of singles with us. We also tip favorite bar waiters throughout the cruise. I know, not necessary, but I feel that they deserve it. They work so hard. And they are so friendly. And when we go ashore we bring stuff back for our stewards or waiters (just little things like local chocolates, or if one of our waiters said he likes Pringles we get those...silly stuff) We always ask our stewards if they need anything...toothpaste, etc, and have been taken up on it more than once. I just try to be kind and appreciative, and if a few dollars helps, so be it.

 We are cruising on March 23 followed by April 9. For March 23 we got a Manfredi's reservation for the first night (my birthday), hopefully we will be let out of the cabin by 6:30 after the PCR test. For the second cruise,  April 9, there was NOTHING available to book AT ALL. I looked at the Restaurant reservations, but, on both cruises, even when available, they were at 8:30 or after. I'm in bed by then. But I'm not worried. We've never had Restaurant reservations in the past and recent cruisers say not necessary. Hopefully we'll be able to get Manfredi's once onboard. It's very strange the way they are doing this.

1 hour ago, deec said:

We are currently aboard the Jupiter.  we have been told 245 passengers.

You made it!!!! Yay!!!

I'm so glad th

5 hours ago, vslparis said:

 

He fractured his humerus in about a dozen places ; not a pretty picture ! Mara from Guest Services was very helpful , sending someone from housekeeping to help me pack, and was a pit bull in dealing with the local port agent and customs officials  ( I let them duke it out and told them when they figured it out they could find me at the Living Room bar  🤣) . Yes, this was a major disappointment and going to doctor’s appointments and taking him to PT was not how I planned on spending my time ,but we are thankful that he didn’t hit his head or had any kind life threatening injuries. He still has one good arm to hold our grandson ! 

I'm so glad that he's on the mend. Humerus fractures are so painful! Glad Viking took care of you.

1 hour ago, vslparis said:

Unfortunately , we had to get off in Puerto Vallarta because my husband tripped and fell in the WC 😬. Viking medical arranged for him to see an orthopedic doctor there so I checked him into the hospital and myself into an all inclusive hotel about 5 minutes from the hospital . He had surgery and we had to stay in PV  about a total of 10 days before flying home to DFW . Not the way I planned on spending the first 4 months of the year .

now I am hoping that he will be OK to travel in June when we have a Greek Is.es trip with his sister and brother in law.  On the plus side , we were home when our first grandchild was born last Saturday 🥰

Oh no!! I am so sorry!! Was it his leg? Arm? I'm glad that they took good care of him in Puerto Vallarta and I sure hope that you are able to do the trips that you have planned for the future. What a disappointment, but I'm glad that he is on the mend.

Congratulations on your new grandbaby!

Love World Cafe. On our 5 week NZ/Australia cruise I think we ate in the Restaurant maybe 3 or 4 times. The rest of the time Manfredi's, and World Cafe. So nice to be casual and pick what we want and how much. We also had room service a couple of times in our jammies. They bring beer/wine (at the time we just had the included) and the chicken breasts and potatoes etc were hot, fresh, and good!!

33 minutes ago, GKTV32162 said:

Word Cruise Day 52/152 - Montevideo, Uruguay - Sacramento and Los Angeles - what?

 

https://kolbsontheroad.blogspot.com/2022/02/word-cruise-day-52152-montevideo.html

Love your blog. Not a fan of football. Just watched the halftime show. Not a fan. On to reruns of Dick Van Dyke

7 hours ago, TayanaLorna said:

We got email upgrade offers twice within a few days of sailing.  One was $400 for a DV6 to PV1 (on our first Viking cruise) and the other was $299 for a DV5 to a PV2.  Both pricing well under the difference had we bought a PV when we originally booked.  We have seen the DV to PV price difference when originally booking between $700 and $1200.

I'd love to have that offer!!!

Rose's blog said that they have a positive case now. I must have missed it. And 2 contacts quarantined for 10 days?

3 minutes ago, OnTheJourney said:

Wow...so it IS a lottery....flip a coin...

Look at the Viking Jupiter roll calls. Dec 5 is interesting talking about how many people were taken off. And somewhere in there is the daughter talking about her parents being in a hostel in Chile.

2 minutes ago, Jim Avery said:

And how "sick" were these folks?  Asymptomatic but positive?  How long will people spend thousands of hard earned cash (after using FCCs up) continue to take this bad bet?  Probably has a lot to do with 200 or 300 on a voyage. 

From what I've read here and other places, most were asymptomatic, or, at worst, sniffly.

1 minute ago, CCWineLover said:

 

And how about the woman who tested positive in Ephesus, Turkey but was allowed with her husband to disembark in Rhodes - where they "won" the quarantine lottery.  They stayed in a wonderful villa and were treated like royalty, getting out for walks, and having great meals.

So I guess it totally depends on the country.  Truly a lottery.

It's nuts!!!!

That is my huge fear. I read the account of the couple offloaded from the Jupiter in Chile, separated, and put in a youth hostel. Also the 2 couples in Malta quarantined for almost 2 weeks, and the couple in Turkey with broken glass in their room.  It's a hard decision to make. We are extremely careful here at home.

To be honest, I felt that I ate less in the World Cafe than anywhere else. I know it sounds ridiculous because it is a "buffet", but I could get a salad or made to order chicken, or whatever, or just skip that and get a small portion of whatever I wanted without feeling the pressure of bread, appetizer, etc. You'll be fine no matter where you eat, just tell them what you want and they will comply. I actually lost 10 lbs on a 6 week cruise. I was walking and exercising every day, not having to worry about cooking, etc. Not stressing at home. March 2019 before pandemic!!

The last cruise that we were on was in 2019-Auckland to Bali. On March 23 (my birthday) I remembered following your saga the best that I could. And now we are booked for our next cruise on March 23. We'll see. It would be really hard to plan to go on a cruise in 3 months in the midst of a pandemic. Especially if you were still working (I was, in 2019, I'm retired now). I can imagine that a few of your fellow passengers may still be working and unable to get time off on such short notice. I used to have to put in at least 6 months in advance. Good luck with whatever you decide. It's a great gesture on Viking's part, for sure. 

22 minutes ago, OnTheJourney said:

Andy, thanks for your kind and thoughtful words. I'm admittedly a bit dismayed over receiving some less than encouraging and amiable comments relative to some of my responses regarding the timing of this cruise. I never meant to offend anyone, and yet have received what I perceive to be some unjust criticism due to my pointing out about the short notice. I looked forward to having sufficient time - as was promised - to think about whatever emerged in the way of a rescheduled invitational cruise, but instead DW and I feel very much under pressure to make a quick decision that is somewhat complicated due to many different circumstances, but I suppose these words as well will meet with some measure of fault-finding. CC can be so nice and helpful, and yet such is not always the case. Given the positive slant that is present here with (thus far) all regular participants jumping at the chance to go, I don't think I should put my two cents in this thread any further. It has run its course. I guess I must not be very easy to please as was pointed out. One thing that is still very uncomfortable for DW and I in the face of this extensive and more complex a  trip is that covid is still very much present. I'm even leery at the thought of doing our upcoming 8-day cruise, and that's simply along the US coast, let alone the prospects of international travel at the present time. As said, I won't be adding anything further to the thread, but please know that I DO appreciate Mr. Hagen and Viking coming up with this plan. I never intended to convey otherwise. 

 

This is an excellent point. Hopefully we've all 'recovered' in whatever way we each had to deal with the aftermath, but any wound leaves scars, so glad you pointed this out. 

 

I know...believe me. This is going to be foremost at least in the back of my mind nearly every moment of every day until I arrive at a decision. Thanks again for being so understanding not to mention encouraging - especially from someone like yourself who wasn't even part of the trip. Most commendable. 

 

Well, as of now, my TA received an email indicating that we need to pay for this cruise by 2/20.  However, my TA called Viking and they indicated there is no cost for the cruise which, of course, I assumed, but it was still unsettling. She is going to look into what happens if we don't go and/or cancel. I'm assuming "risk free" applies to this sailing. 

I, like Andy, hope that you manage to be able to go, but I also totally 100% understand your hesitation. We are booked on March 23 Ft Lauderdale to Vancouver, after canceling 3 cruises, and we are still kind of leery. We have been so so so careful and quarantining and so far we've not been sick. We booked this cruise because it's close to the US. Hopefully nothing happens and we can go. On the other hand, I think that our friends and family will think that we are crazy because we skipped a Christmas get together that we deemed too large with a few unvaccinated people, we don't eat inside of restaurants, and do all of our shopping online except groceries. So cruising kind of negates all of our policies. There are a few other reasons for us wanting to go now. So we'll see. But I understand. I, also, would never fly to Europe for 8 days. I think that the least amount of days we've gone there has been 2 weeks. It's a long trip.

4 hours ago, OnTheJourney said:

Have fun. Unfortunately I think I'll pass on this. Biggest thing I have to straighten out is the nearly $9k bill I'm supposed to pay for this. Has to be a mistake. Going to Rome with Viking in January, so I think I can easily wait till then. Hopefully the covid situation will be significantly lessened by then with less worry about possible quarantine, etc. Hate to pass this up but I'm not inspired for several reasons. 

I'm confused about what the $9,000 is for?

49 minutes ago, Clay Clayton said:

I agree with Tanya, based on the language of the voucher, if the passenger cancels you don’t get a new voucher or the existing one reinstated. Andy has said in their case they were able to have theirs reinstated but I wonder how much of that is because he is a World Cruiser and/or his phenomenal travel agent and/or the luck of the draw. 

I'll contact them again tomorrow but I have it in an email. Clay, we use the same TA.

Clay, I'm interested in this answer. My vouchers say once redeemed cannot be reinstated but my TA states that if I cancel within the risk free guarantee that they will be reinstated.

9 hours ago, GKTV32162 said:

Per the cruise director, all of them had to go through multiple tests before they were allowed to board. No details were given other than that. Given how strict Viking is, I'm sure they were heavily vetted for compliance to Viking's standards before they were booked to perform.

 

As for the saliva test, I usually am up earlier for a...let's call it comfort visit...and do mine then. Then, I get Arlona up just before 8, she does hers, we put them on a magnet clip and slap it on the outside of the door and climb back in bed for another 30 minutes or so.  We've seen several rooms that put them out before they go to bed. You just can't eat or drink anything nor brush your teeth 30 minutes before doing the test.

Great news that we can do it the night before! We aren't early risers. Thanks!!!

2 hours ago, GKTV32162 said:

World Cruise Day 41/152 - I go, you go, we all go, to Santiago!

 

https://kolbsontheroad.blogspot.com/2022/02/world-cruise-day-41152-i-go-you-go-we.html

I love the blog. Question....the 25 entertainers that they brought onboard...how did they handle Covid testing and protocols? Do you know? Also, you said that normally you aren't up until after 8 in the morning. You don't have to do the Covid tests before 8? We are on the Orion March 23 to April 17 and I'm dreading having to get up that early. Thanks!! Enjoying your reports and pictures!

Question if you could find the answer...any idea who the CD or captain will be the end of March? 23 to be exact...we are on for a month. Just curious! Thanks!