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Bringing your own wine


marmom18
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They don't care. You can bring the bottle with you to dinner and I think they'll help you with it. Or you can work on it in your cabin. There's a corkscrew in the shelf above the little fridge and wine glasses.

 

 

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Edited by CharTrav
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What is the Viking Ocean Cruise policy on bringing your own wine upon embarkation and from the various ports?

 

Very liberal. They encourage sampling the local wines and beers. No corkage fees for bottles consumed in the dining rooms. Wine glasses are yours for the asking.

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My guess is they allow it for two reasons:

 

1 - If you bring your own wine, they do not have to provide it free of charge at lunch of dinner.

 

and

 

2 - It makes their cruise experience more valuable. No corkage. No scanning for bottles when you board. No naughty room like on some ships to confiscate your bottles.

 

We may or may not bring some on this cruise. Depends. But just knowing it is not an issue is great. We did bring some onboard our river cruise.

Edited by garycarla
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My guess is they allow it for two reasons:

 

1 - If you bring your own wine, they do not have to provide it free of charge at lunch of dinner.

 

and

 

2 - It makes their cruise experience more valuable. No corkage. No scanning for bottles when you board. No naughty room like on some ships to confiscate your bottles.

 

 

I think it has more to do with 1) not needing to nickel and dime their guests and 2) treating their guests with the respect.

 

I don't think that the few bottles that are brought on board make an appreciable difference in the amount of wine served at meals and I don't think that free wine and beer is one of the main reasons that people are willing to pay Viking's prices.

 

For the most part, guests who do take the time to buy wine while in port are more interested in sampling the local vintages than they are in saving money.

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Thank you Peregrina. My sentiments exactly. And why I like Viking. Their policy is not driven by anything more than what you said. After our one and only cruise experience on another cruise line, where we were nickel and dimed for everything, it was refreshing to experience a cruise line (river and then ocean) where they didn't. And why we'll never do any other. [emoji2]

 

 

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Edited by CharTrav
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I think it has more to do with 1) not needing to nickel and dime their guests and 2) treating their guests with the respect.

 

... I don't think that free wine and beer is one of the main reasons that people are willing to pay Viking's prices.

...

 

Having free wine may not be the main reason, but it is surely a factor with winos like ourselves. Being able to have many glasses without thinking about the cost or signing slips, etc makes for a more relaxing trip.

 

I do agree with the respect - though I think both #1 and #2 in your post are tied directly to the marketing philosophy they have implemented . In the end, they may love and respect us, but they are in it to sell cruises.

 

Enjoy!

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Not connoisseurs, but I really like Moscato which I knew they didn't carry from our previous cruise on the "Star". We also wanted to be sure we had a Malbec and husband's favorite Chardonnay. The CVS across from the docks in San Juan had a fairly large selection and we boarded with 5 bottles. Took 3 to dinner in The Restaurant that night and they uncorked and kept in a "special place" for us. A bit confusing depending on which restaurant we were at, but they always managed to locate our wines with a smile.

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  • 3 weeks later...
Are you allowed to bring bottles of alcohol on board or just wine? is there a limit?

 

You can bring whatever you want alcoholic or otherwise--wine, beer, liquor, liqueurs, bottled water, soda/pop/tonic, etc. If you can manage to get it to the ship, you can bring it on board. Moreover, you are not restricted to hiding in your cabin to drink it.

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I love this policy of Viking. They treat their passengers like the adult travellers that we are.:)

I plan to buy some cava and other good Spanish wines on our ports of call in Spain.

Love to sample the local wines whenever I travel.

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Having free wine may not be the main reason, but it is surely a factor with winos like ourselves. Being able to have many glasses without thinking about the cost or signing slips, etc makes for a more relaxing trip.

 

I do agree with the respect - though I think both #1 and #2 in your post are tied directly to the marketing philosophy they have implemented . In the end, they may love and respect us, but they are in it to sell cruises.

 

Enjoy!

 

Well, the wine served isn't really "free", but is "price included". While I'm not a wine expert, I found that the bottles served were very respectable and wondered why anybody would go to the trouble of bringing their own bottles aboard. Viking is also okay with your bringing spirits onboard. Agree, I like their approach to the passenger, at least thus far. Let's hope it doesn't evolve like some of the other cruise lines have over time and that are now "mass market", the passenger beware.

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The only reason I ever like to bring my own bottle is to enjoy a nightcap or pre-dinner drink on my balcony. My husband and I love the peace of sitting on the balcony in those plushy robes watching and listening to the waves. What better way to unwind!

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 5 months later...
You can bring whatever you want alcoholic or otherwise--wine, beer, liquor, liqueurs, bottled water, soda/pop/tonic, etc. If you can manage to get it to the ship, you can bring it on board. Moreover, you are not restricted to hiding in your cabin to drink it.

 

In Italy they have those “wine on tap” places, where you fill your own container. Is it safe to assume that I’d be okay in trying to bring a “spare gas can” of wine on board? :o:confused:

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In Italy they have those “wine on tap” places, where you fill your own container. Is it safe to assume that I’d be okay in trying to bring a “spare gas can” of wine on board? :o:confused:

 

As long as it doesn't say "petrol" on the side. All kidding aside, IMHO, I would not assume on this one or even play "poll the audience." Not worth buying a gallon of wine and then finding out that we have gotten it wrong. This is one of those questions where you should contact Viking directly and ask.

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As long as it doesn't say "petrol" on the side. All kidding aside, IMHO, I would not assume on this one or even play "poll the audience." Not worth buying a gallon of wine and then finding out that we have gotten it wrong. This is one of those questions where you should contact Viking directly and ask.

 

Ha!! I'm sure that would raise quite the alarm. Thanks. If I might give that option a try, I'll ask them before I do. No point in having a quantity of great wine and not be able to bring it aboard (I'd have to give it away I guess)!

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Ha!! I'm sure that would raise quite the alarm. Thanks. If I might give that option a try, I'll ask them before I do. No point in having a quantity of great wine and not be able to bring it aboard (I'd have to give it away I guess)!

 

And don't buy more than you can consume prior to departure because, for sure, you cannot bring it on to the plane.

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