SrTrPro

Hi Rosethorn -

DW & I leave DC this evening for our Viking Odin RC - Prague to Paris. Our 1st RC and looking forward to a great time. We are staying an extra week in Paris after the 2 nights at the Paris hotel (Le Meridien) - rented an apartment for a week.

Glad you enjoyed you trip - we hope to do the same.

Bruce

Thanks all - on the way in 4 more days - Bruce

Does Viking serve lunch to those who might stay aboard when lunch is "on your own" if you are taking a tour?

Also, asked in a earlier thread with not reply: Can you get change for higher amount Euros (20's & 50's) aboard ship. I know that you cannot exchange currencies>

thanks - Bruce

I too factored in the cost of "tipping" when setting up a budget for our cruise and plan to tip the suggested amounts with maybe a little extra for anyone who goes "above & beyond".

My understanding is that the "pool" tip could be added to your bill at the end of the cruise and paid by credit card. Can the tip for the PD also be added to the bill and paid by cc or must it be in cash? Just trying to be sure I have enough Euros on hand if needed to be in cash.

Leaving next Wed (Viking COL - Prague to Paris) - DW & I are really looking forward to our 1st RC and the extra week we will spend in Paris after the cruise is over.

Thanks,

Bruce

Speaking of large denom. Euro Bills (20's & 50's), am I correct in understanding that Viking will make change (Euro to Euro) to help break up larger bills?

Thanks,

Bruce

We are in a French Balcony on the Odin, so we will skip the shoe bag.

Will look at the review and pics. Thanks for the info.

Bruce

On our last 2 Ocean Cruises, we took a hanging shoe bag to hang on the bathroom door to store "odds and ends".

Our upcoming Viking Cruise is our 1st RC. Will the shoe bag work on the Viking bathroom doors?

Thanks,

Bruce

Thank you Peggy T. Also thanks for your detailed "blog" on the COL cruise. Lots of good info.

For our 2 nites in Prague, we plan to dine at the Café Imperial, and the Sivovarsky Club.

Where did you dine in Paris for the 2 nites you were there (Le Meridien??)?

Bruce

JP-

We also have the BofA Travel Rewards VISA card (just received with our upcoming trip in mind). Got it as it has no FTF. It is chip and sign. With it we also got a 4 digit PIN that indicates that it would be used for Cash Advances (I think any it could be used at any "Cirrus" ATM). I do not plan to use it for cash unless for some reason our ATM card was compromised.

Am I correct to understand that you have been able to use that PIN # when making purchases with that card instead of signing?

Thanks,

Bruce

About what time did you arrive at the Hotel in Paris?

Anyone??

We will be on the City of Light Cruise - Prague to Paris in a few short weeks.

We will travel by bus from Trier to Paris on Sat, Apr 4th.

What time does the bus usually arrive at the hotel (Le Meridien)?

Just trying to plan out our late afternoon / evening.

thanks,

Bruce

Thanks Max - useful info

Interesting tip about the "Nyquil" - I have "cheated" at home on occasion with Nyquil if I wake up in the middle of the night and can't get back to sleep. My Dr. also said that "allergy" pills with antihistamine can work also.

Just remember, if you want to take your dose on the plane, it has to be in your "3-3-1" bag in your carryon if you plan to use the liquid form. I think Nyquil comes in tablet form also.

DW and I may try this tip on our upcoming flight from Dulles to Prague (thru CDG) in a couple of weeks.

Bruce

We arrive late morning on 26 Mar and then leave for Nuremburg on the morning of the 28th - so only 2 nites there.

Thanks BP - looked at the area around the hotel on Google Maps and did write down the Pivovarsky Club as a possible.

Bruce

We are not at the "Old Town" Hilton, but the "Pobrezni" Hilton.

Bruce

We begin our Viking RC in Prague then transfer by bus to Nuremburg / Bamburg. We plan to get a small amount of Koruna at the Prague airport (ATM), but are not planning on purchasing any Euros prior to our trip.

We would like to get some Euros sooner rather than later from ATM once we are in Germany. Any issues finding an ATM when we get off the bus to tour Nurmenburg?

Thanks,

Bruce

We will begin our Viking "COL" cruise in Prague with 2 nights a the Prague, Hilton (Pobrezni). Any recommendations on where to eat dinner the 1st night and / or 2nd night other than at the hotel?

How do prices compare at local restaurants with the hotel?

Thanks,

Bruce

Only 3 weeks left till we leave on March 25th.

Taking to heart all of the good advice offered by the kind people at CC, we now have the following in addition to our AX card (2.7% FTF) and "old" MC (3% FTF):

New BofA VISA card - chip and sign - No FTF - this will be our primary card.

New Capital One 360 (online bank) ATM / Debit card (MC logo) - no chip, but 4digit pin. This card also has no FTF although MC may (or may not) charge a 1% fee. In addition, there are no "network" ATM machines for the card in the CR, Ger., or FR., so I would be liable for whatever fee is charged by the network the ATM machine is on. We will use this for our cash needs - probably no more than 3 or 4 withdrawals. We will start with $1500 in the acct, but can transfer more if needed even while away.

We have never used ATM cards, before, but I will be using it a couple of times before we leave to get comfortable with it. Even though on the same account, my wife's ATM card has a different # on the card then mine and a different pin. If by chance either of the cards were compromised (and CO notified), would the other card still be good to use?

Looks like according to one of the posts above, the VISA card my work in the automated kiosks even though no pin associated with this card. This card would also be backup cash card (high interest I know).

We will also carry several hundred USD with us.

Thanks,

Bruce

If you think that Viking (or any cruise line) is just sitting on your money until you take the cruise, I have some nice property in the Everglades and a bridge somewhere in NYC for sale.

They are using that money for "cash flow" and paying current expenses out of future money.

Bruce

HK - I see you believe in the "if I have $2000 left when I die, I died a week to soon" retirement theory.

Bruce

Last July, we paid in full for our Viking "COl" cruise (26 March) through our TA using AX. There was no transaction fee even though our AX card charges 2.7% FTF. We live in the US.

For our trip, which includes an extra 7 nights in Paris (on our own) we have a no FTF Visa card to use as our main CC (AX for backup).

Bruce

Hi Valley Girl,

Where in the SV are you located? We live 1/2 way between Front Royal & Winchester - been here just over 3 yrs - love it.

Bruce

I was well aware that there would be additional expenses. Have done 5 ocean cruises, but this is first RC. Just wanted to get a feel for what others have experienced.

We expect to spend in the $4500 to $5000 range for extra expenses including about $1300 for our 7 night apartment rental in Paris post cruise,

Thanks to all who have responded.

Bruce