Fieldofdreams

katlew - So sorry to hear about your experience, we are on the Mars end of Feb. Sydney to Auckland so following your thread closely. In addition to partial reimbursement through Viking, not sure if you might have coverage through any Travel Insurance. I realize that it is not a substitute for missing the ports and experiences you spent so much time planning, but thought I would share just in case it might help. Sounds like Viking should have been well aware of this issue for this itinerary and taken presumptive measures. I do hope that you can enjoy the remainder of your trip.

Thanks Mimiya

Thanks for adding this additional info.

Sorry, have you tried calling Viking directly, think they may have access to more inventory

How did your bookings for your reservations go? Interesting, wonder if days 1-8 were completely booked?

Our upcoming cruise in February are reservations for just the four of us

We are traveling with another couple so reservations are for four. We were asked if a table of 6 was available would we be willing to share, we declined and they were able to find reservations for the four of us. I will say you have to be somewhat flexible on reservation time.

Our cruise, a 15 day Australia/New Zealand cruise embarks Feb. 21st 2023

Thanks for that information. The Viking representative shared the same info with us about the Viking Voyager app. Great info.

In earlier posts I mentioned that I would provide an update on booking dining reservations at the two specialty restaurants Manfredi's and Chefs Table. My Experience: Reservations for our cruise were supposed to open 8:00pm Pacific Time 11:00 P.M. Eastern Time today (12/23/2022). Received notifications on MyVikingJourney last night that reservations were open for booking however when I went to make an actual reservation for each restaurant it stated that reservations were not yet open. When I got up this morning to check, most reservations were taken, all Sea Days were booked and no availability with times on any days before 8:30 pm. I did call Viking and explained the situation and the first representative was not at all helpful. I called back and was able to get a great person who was able to book days and times that worked for us including two Sea Days, and yes obviously some reservation inventory is held back. When I explained what happened to the second agent there were no surprises, they are receiving lots of calls regarding booking at Manfredi's and the Chefs Table. My learning experience and advice is the check 24 hours in advance and keep checking even throughout the evening. Folks on CC have been so helpful and generous with their experiences, thought I would take the time to share and help others out as well.

Thanks Heidi - Just had some email exchanges with Chris the owner. Tour name changed but all else seems the same, and yes meeting location at cruise terminal is a 3-4 minute walk from ship. About to book. Thanks for sharing, incredibly helpful.

Heidi - Did you go on one of the Back to Nature tours in Dunedin, Now looking at the Otago Peninsula Tour based upon your suggestion. It is a 9:45 - 4:45 tour. Currently booked with the Viking on their Great Houses tour. Itineraries for both are below. Recognize that they are entirely two different tours but would like your opinion (and others on CC) for which one to take. Seems to me that we would miss out on the beauty of the Otago peninsula if we did not take the Back to Nature tour. One consideration is how easy it is to get to pick up location for Back to Nature. Have an email in to Back to Nature to see if they pick up at port, otherwise a 20 -25 min taxi ride? Thoughts/Opinions/Comments all welcome. Itinerary for Great Houses: Scenic Coastal Drive and Standout Architecture of Historic Dunedin Travel the coast to see this Victorian city’s architectural highlights, and tour an Edwardian mansion and a castle. Departing the port by motor coach, admire the seascapes as you journey to your first stop. You will see the city’s historic architecture, passing an impressive collection of Victorian buildings including the University of Otago, Dunedin Law Courts and Otago Boys’ High School, as well as the magnificent Dunedin Railway Station. Stop at the Olveston House and tour this 35-room Edwardian mansion filled with treasures collected during businessman David Theomin’s travels around the world. Continue on to Larnach Castle, a unique neo-Gothic structure and New Zealand’s only castle, with breathtaking views and an intriguing history. It took over 15 years to complete its construction. Enjoy a guided tour and an afternoon snack of delicious scones in the castle’s ballroom, followed by free time to stroll the gardens before returning to your ship. Itinerary for Otago Peninsula Tours City Highlights The notable architecture of the historical buildings is equally as impressive as the natural beauty found along the coastline in Dunedin. This tour allows you to admire both! Dunedin was once the leading industrial and commercial centre of New Zealand and has retained many of its early buildings. Our tour begins with a scenic drive into the city to admire the largest collection of Edwardian and Victorian structures. We also visit Baldwin Street, the ‘steepest street in the world’; the University of Otago, New Zealand’s oldest university; and the Historic Dunedin Railway Station. Before heading farther along the bay, enjoy the city’s central plaza with its octagonal layout. Otago Peninsula The journey continues out onto the Otago Peninsula, where the southern rollers pound our coastline and rare wildlife comes ashore regularly throughout the year. We visit Larnach Castle gardens, where a unique collection of specialised gardens can be explored and some of the finest views of the Otago Harbour can be seen. Please note that lunch is not included; however, you will have the opportunity to purchase something from the Larnach Castle Ballroom Café or later on during the tour. If you have any dietary requirements, please let your guide know on the day of the tour. Portobello & Tidal Inlets After your Larnach Castle experience, we follow the winding gravel roads towards Portobello, the main township on the Otago Peninsula. On the way, we visit the Tidal Inlets and learn about this fascinating ecosystem and the waders and waterfowl that rely on it. View native birds of New Zealand feeding on rich mudflats and see some of the finest scenery along this rugged coastline. Yellow-Eyed Penguin Reserve Continuing on, we spend the afternoon viewing the unique and treasured penguins and other native wildlife that call the coasts of New Zealand home. We take an adventurous journey through a series of tunnels and hides to get unrivaled viewing of the ‘critically endangered’ yellow-eyed penguin. We also see little blue penguins, NZ sea lions and NZ fur seals who come ashore regularly. Grab your cameras — you can expect to see at least two of these species during the afternoon! This Dunedin penguin tour provides you with fantastic photographic opportunities and introduces you to arguably the rarest penguin in the world. The 90 steps to climb and 600 meters to trek take approximately 90 minutes, and the rewards are immeasurable. Taiaroa Head Our final stop is at Taiaroa Head, where the Northern Royal Albatross can often be seen gliding around the headland. Our guide will tell you the story of a truly amazing bird that spends most of his life at sea and chooses the tip of the Otago Peninsula to breed. The surrounding area is also full of interest, and it’s a perfect way to finish the day before taking the low road back to Port Chalmers. City Highlights The notable architecture of the historical buildings is equally as impressive as the natural beauty found along the coastline in Dunedin. This tour allows you to admire both! Dunedin was once the leading industrial and commercial centre of New Zealand and has retained many of its early buildings. Our tour begins with a scenic drive into the city to admire the largest collection of Edwardian and Victorian structures. We also visit Baldwin Street, the ‘steepest street in the world’; the University of Otago, New Zealand’s oldest university; and the Historic Dunedin Railway Station. Before heading farther along the bay, enjoy the city’s central plaza with its octagonal layout. Otago Peninsula The journey continues out onto the Otago Peninsula, where the southern rollers pound our coastline and rare wildlife comes ashore regularly throughout the year. We visit Larnach Castle gardens, where a unique collection of specialised gardens can be explored and some of the finest views of the Otago Harbour can be seen. Please note that lunch is not included; however, you will have the opportunity to purchase something from the Larnach Castle Ballroom Café or later on during the tour. If you have any dietary requirements, please let your guide know on the day of the tour. Portobello & Tidal Inlets After your Larnach Castle experience, we follow the winding gravel roads towards Portobello, the main township on the Otago Peninsula. On the way, we visit the Tidal Inlets and learn about this fascinating ecosystem and the waders and waterfowl that rely on it. View native birds of New Zealand feeding on rich mudflats and see some of the finest scenery along this rugged coastline. Yellow-Eyed Penguin Reserve Continuing on, we spend the afternoon viewing the unique and treasured penguins and other native wildlife that call the coasts of New Zealand home. We take an adventurous journey through a series of tunnels and hides to get unrivaled viewing of the ‘critically endangered’ yellow-eyed penguin. We also see little blue penguins, NZ sea lions and NZ fur seals who come ashore regularly. Grab your cameras — you can expect to see at least two of these species during the afternoon! This Dunedin penguin tour provides you with fantastic photographic opportunities and introduces you to arguably the rarest penguin in the world. The 90 steps to climb and 600 meters to trek take approximately 90 minutes, and the rewards are immeasurable. Taiaroa Head Our final stop is at Taiaroa Head, where the Northern Royal Albatross can often be seen gliding around the headland. Our guide will tell you the story of a truly amazing bird that spends most of his life at sea and chooses the tip of the Otago Peninsula to breed. The surrounding area is also full of interest, and it’s a perfect way to finish the day before taking the low road back to Port Chalmers. City Highlights The notable architecture of the historical buildings is equally as impressive as the natural beauty found along the coastline in Dunedin. This tour allows you to admire both! Dunedin was once the leading industrial and commercial centre of New Zealand and has retained many of its early buildings. Our tour begins with a scenic drive into the city to admire the largest collection of Edwardian and Victorian structures. We also visit Baldwin Street, the ‘steepest street in the world’; the University of Otago, New Zealand’s oldest university; and the Historic Dunedin Railway Station. Before heading farther along the bay, enjoy the city’s central plaza with its octagonal layout. Otago Peninsula The journey continues out onto the Otago Peninsula, where the southern rollers pound our coastline and rare wildlife comes ashore regularly throughout the year. We visit Larnach Castle gardens, where a unique collection of specialised gardens can be explored and some of the finest views of the Otago Harbour can be seen. Please note that lunch is not included; however, you will have the opportunity to purchase something from the Larnach Castle Ballroom Café or later on during the tour. If you have any dietary requirements, please let your guide know on the day of the tour. Portobello & Tidal Inlets After your Larnach Castle experience, we follow the winding gravel roads towards Portobello, the main township on the Otago Peninsula. On the way, we visit the Tidal Inlets and learn about this fascinating ecosystem and the waders and waterfowl that rely on it. View native birds of New Zealand feeding on rich mudflats and see some of the finest scenery along this rugged coastline. Yellow-Eyed Penguin Reserve Continuing on, we spend the afternoon viewing the unique and treasured penguins and other native wildlife that call the coasts of New Zealand home. We take an adventurous journey through a series of tunnels and hides to get unrivaled viewing of the ‘critically endangered’ yellow-eyed penguin. We also see little blue penguins, NZ sea lions and NZ fur seals who come ashore regularly. Grab your cameras — you can expect to see at least two of these species during the afternoon! This Dunedin penguin tour provides you with fantastic photographic opportunities and introduces you to arguably the rarest penguin in the world. The 90 steps to climb and 600 meters to trek take approximately 90 minutes, and the rewards are immeasurable. Taiaroa Head Our final stop is at Taiaroa Head, where the Northern Royal Albatross can often be seen gliding around the headland. Our guide will tell you the story of a truly amazing bird that spends most of his life at sea and chooses the tip of the Otago Peninsula to breed. The surrounding area is also full of interest, and it’s a perfect way to finish the day before taking the low road back to Port Chalmers.

Heidi - As we get closer to cruise time and re-visit our options in ports this is great information that you provided. Thank you

Katlew - Just wanted to provide an update to you and everyone else in CC community. We were able to book all of the excursions we wanted except for one. Pricing was the same that you mentioned in you 10/17/2022 post. Actually less stressful a process than I thought it would be. Next up booking restaurant reservations on Dec. 23rd. Will let everyone know how that process goes. Enjoy your cruise if you are currently on the ship.

Thought I would provide some feedback to the CC community since so many on CC have been helpful in navigating the Shore excursion booking process on MyVikingjourney. We are in a DV4 cabin on a 15 day Australia/New Zealand cruise late February 2023 so we were able to book excursions 67 days out from the cruise. Many folks on CC suggested we prioritize the excursions with associated fees, pay for each and move on to the next. After the excursions with charges, then tackle the free excursions. That approach seemed to work out rather well. Of the excursions with charges that we wanted to go on, there was only one that was not available. When we went back to book the free excursions, some of the time slots were gone but that was ok because our priority was on the excursions that had an associated fee. Hope this helps others trying to navigate this process. Next up in a few weeks, the specialty restaurants, which I will provide feed back on.

Thank you for providing helpful insight

Thank you

Thank you, that is what I understood but your confirmation is great to know in advance.

Question - when you booked your excursions through My Viking did you enter your credit card into My Viking, make all of your selections then pay through the My Viking website with the associated credit card or did you make each selection and pay for each and move on to the next selection. Any advice from folks that have been through this process would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks - this does help

Thank you for the follow up. The September cruise is already completely sold out except for Owners Suite. Think we will stay with our current status. Our agent did mention that when we get back he will apply the welcome back credit, thank you for confirming this.

Hi - Wonder if I could get some additional info/clarification. We are currently booked and fully paid for a VO15 day Australian/New Zealand cruise at the end of Feb. 2023. We also booked a VO 15day cruise Italy/The Adriatic/Mediterranean for September 2023. We currently only have a deposit on The Adriatic cruise and I was going to ask onboard our February Australian cruise if we could get any additional discounts for our September cruise, particularly the Welcome back discount. How would the certificates/vouchers play into any of this and is there a maximum amount for the certificates/vouchers one can purchase? Thanks to anyone who can help on this.

Perigrina651... Thanks so much

Thanks Linda

CCWineLover.... Based upon your experience have you found the CT flexible enough to accommodate one who has allergies to gluten and fish? We will ask once onboard, but would like to hear your opinion. Thanks