Viking China (Part 2)

[recyclelady]

Last week we booked Imperial Jewels for Sep 2013 with a $1,000 downpayment. Now Viking is asking for the full balance by Aug 31. Is that their normal policy?

 

I am on the Nov. 2012 Cultural Delights tour. I booked this at least a year ago. I seem to remember having to pay the balance WAY in advance too. It was surprising at the time. Now it is kind of nice to have it all paid off.

 

I've been on several big cruiseline cruises where the final payment is not due until about two months in advance of the trip. So I was not fully prepared for this either.

[dsulli]

I am on the Nov. 2012 Cultural Delights tour. I booked this at least a year ago. I seem to remember having to pay the balance WAY in advance too. It was surprising at the time. Now it is kind of nice to have it all paid off.

 

I've been on several big cruiseline cruises where the final payment is not due until about two months in advance of the trip. So I was not fully prepared for this either.

 

This is our first river cruise after numerous ocean cruises. We have never paid the entire balance in advance. However, the discount is significant and my TA sent me a copy of the contract, showing we can get everything but $200 back if we cancel within 120 days of the cruise. We also have insurance. I was going to cancel but thanks to the input received on this thread, we are going for it! Thanks to all the responders!

 

Dennis

[Lori Dobson]

Get a good night's sleep! It is going to be almost non-stop now until you get back on the plane! Have a great trip!

 

BTW, the buffet in the ShangriLa is huge and you have to go all the way back to find the omelet bar and to check out some of the other non-American breakfast food stations. There are more food choices than you can even sample in a single meal!!

 

 

 

Boy, you weren't kidding about breakfast - I have never seen anything like that in my life!

 

1 hour down time before dinner and acrobat show. This trip is EVERYTHING everyone said it was and more. First class all the way. Loving everything so far!:D

[Peregrina651]

Boy, you weren't kidding about breakfast - I have never seen anything like that in my life!

 

 

We are in truly international hotels, especially in Shanghai and Beijing, and they try to cater to the tastes of ALL their guests. That means an array of breakfast foods. I am not adventurous at 7AM and I stuck to bacon and eggs but those who are can sample Chinese, Japanese and other breakfast staples.

[CTGirl]

Boy, you weren't kidding about breakfast - I have never seen anything like that in my life!

 

1 hour down time before dinner and acrobat show. This trip is EVERYTHING everyone said it was and more. First class all the way. Loving everything so far!:D

Enjoy your cruise. I look forward to hearing about it. We don't go until next April but I am so excited.

[Lori Dobson]

Enjoy your cruise. I look forward to hearing about it. We don't go until next April but I am so excited.

 

You are right to be excited- this trip is a dream.

 

The acrobat show was fabulous- I wished I wasnt so tired but we still enjoyed it! It is about 7:20 AM right now, just had another Shangri La breakfast (they have a MAP at each table to help you find your way among the different bars!) waffles with caramel and mango creams, topped with whipped cream - among many, many other things! Unbelievable pastries, mango and raspberry smoothies, fresh watermelon juice - the chocolate fountain.... I could go on forever!

 

Just about to leave for the bus to the airport - off to Xian!:D

[caribill]

You are right to be excited- this trip is a dream.

 

 

Thanks for sharing the trip with us.

 

Enjoy the warriors.

[CTGirl]

Just about to leave for the bus to the airport - off to Xian!:D

Right now I'm living vicariously through you. Xian is one of the major reasons I want to go to China. We saw some of the warriors in DC a couple of years ago and they were amazing. I can't imagine what a room full of them would be like. Enjoy!!!

[Lori Dobson]

Minor calamity! Our 10:30am flight to Wuhan was cancelled by the military - had to go to another airport and take 3 separate flights for our group- some didn't get to the ship til after 10pm - Viking reps moved heaven and earth to accomplish that! Missed all the stuff in Wuhan, ship left late so we didn't get to go to the school today - the kids came on board for a half an hour instead.

 

Internet is truly terrible, first time I've been able to connect since on board. Still having a great time, ship is beautiful, food is great. 3 gorges tomorrow!:D

[CTGirl]

Minor calamity! Our 10:30am flight to Wuhan was cancelled by the military - had to go to another airport and take 3 separate flights for our group- some didn't get to the ship til after 10pm - Viking reps moved heaven and earth to accomplish that! Missed all the stuff in Wuhan, ship left late so we didn't get to go to the school today - the kids came on board for a half an hour instead.

 

Internet is truly terrible, first time I've been able to connect since on board. Still having a great time, ship is beautiful, food is great. 3 gorges tomorrow!:D

Oooh the only thing I can say is what a relief that you didn't have to make the arrangements. What a headache that must have been.

 

I am enjoying your reports. Keep them coming. :D

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Thanks for the info ...

[Turtles06]

Minor calamity! Our 10:30am flight to Wuhan was cancelled by the military - had to go to another airport and take 3 separate flights for our group- some didn't get to the ship til after 10pm - Viking reps moved heaven and earth to accomplish that! Missed all the stuff in Wuhan, ship left late so we didn't get to go to the school today - the kids came on board for a half an hour instead.

 

Internet is truly terrible, first time I've been able to connect since on board. Still having a great time, ship is beautiful, food is great. 3 gorges tomorrow!:D

 

Sorry about the changes, but glad you have a terrific attitude and have been able to roll with the punches. Keep enjoying this amazing journey!

[Peregrina651]

Minor calamity! Our 10:30am flight to Wuhan was cancelled by the military - had to go to another airport and take 3 separate flights for our group- some didn't get to the ship til after 10pm - Viking reps moved heaven and earth to accomplish that! Missed all the stuff in Wuhan, ship left late so we didn't get to go to the school today - the kids came on board for a half an hour instead.

 

Internet is truly terrible, first time I've been able to connect since on board. Still having a great time, ship is beautiful, food is great. 3 gorges tomorrow!:D

 

Wow! This has been a tough season on the Yangtze. Thank heaven for Viking's China staff to take care of all the details and handle all the changes of arrangements. If for nothing else than having someone to handle the bumps in the road, traveling with Viking is worth every penny.

 

Agreed, internet on the river is less than stellar. At least there won't be any surprises on that score--unless of course you actually have internet. :eek:

[recyclelady]

I am pretty sure this has been covered many times on this board. Please bear with me!

 

We are flying to Shanghai on American Airlines. It appears that we can each have one checked bag at 50 lbs. or under. We can also take a carryon at 40 lbs. No problem. This is what we would do no matter what.

 

We will, of course, be taking the intra-China flights AND we are going for the 4-day add-on in Hong Kong/Guillin. It looks like the allowable weights are decreased within China to 44 lbs checked and 11 lbs. carryon.

 

Should I be concerned? Should I aim for getting my initial weights down to the 44/11 lbs. weights?

 

My normal check-thru bag (when empty) weighs in at a whopping 16 lbs. I am trying to decide if it is worth it to buy a cheaper, lighter suitcase for purposes of this trip.

 

I appreciate any words of wisdom you might all have on this!

[MKKruiser]

I am pretty sure this has been covered many times on this board. Please bear with me!

 

We are flying to Shanghai on American Airlines. It appears that we can each have one checked bag at 50 lbs. or under. We can also take a carryon at 40 lbs. No problem. This is what we would do no matter what.

 

We will, of course, be taking the intra-China flights AND we are going for the 4-day add-on in Hong Kong/Guillin. It looks like the allowable weights are decreased within China to 44 lbs checked and 11 lbs. carryon.

 

Should I be concerned? Should I aim for getting my initial weights down to the 44/11 lbs. weights?

 

My normal check-thru bag (when empty) weighs in at a whopping 16 lbs. I am trying to decide if it is worth it to buy a cheaper, lighter suitcase for purposes of this trip.

 

I appreciate any words of wisdom you might all have on this!

I have been thinking the same thing. I am not sure I would want to take a chance and go over the 44 pounds. I have read they are very lenient with carryons and bags of things you have bought!

I will be going on for over three weeks after the Viking trip, so I am going to buy two 24-25 inch bags. I am researching and probably found what I will buy with each bag being just a bit more than 9 pounds. I am not excited about the cost of checking two bags but better than paying for oversize and overweight.

[caribill]

We are flying to Shanghai on American Airlines. It appears that we can each have one checked bag at 50 lbs. or under. We can also take a carryon at 40 lbs.

 

This does not answer your question about intra-China, but you are each allowed two checked bags from the USA to China per the AA web site:

 

 

Two bags checked. No charge

Size and Weight Per Bag Allowed

 

45 in/115 cm (carry-on)

 

62 in/158 cm (checked)

50 lbs./23 kgs (checked)

[recyclelady]

This does not answer your question about intra-China, but you are each allowed two checked bags from the USA to China per the AA web site:

 

 

Two bags checked. No charge

Size and Weight Per Bag Allowed

 

45 in/115 cm (carry-on)

 

62 in/158 cm (checked)

50 lbs./23 kgs (checked)

 

Guess I need to go back and look at AA. I thought I had read just one bag internationally.

 

But then, I could be in a lot of trouble on those intra-China flights! I think we will stick to one checked bag per each of us. It is just those weights that I am worried about. And I seem to remember reading that the flight on the four day extension to Hong Kong is a real stickler for weight restrictions.

[caribill]

Guess I need to go back and look at AA. I thought I had read just one bag internationally.

 

 

 

Only one bag allowed to Europe.

[Turtles06]

Guess I need to go back and look at AA. I thought I had read just one bag internationally.

 

But then, I could be in a lot of trouble on those intra-China flights! I think we will stick to one checked bag per each of us. It is just those weights that I am worried about. And I seem to remember reading that the flight on the four day extension to Hong Kong is a real stickler for weight restrictions.

 

You did read it; I'm one of the folks who wrote it. :) That was last season (2011), and I was conveying what our Viking escort told us (I did not actually go on the Hong Kong extension).

 

To recap our experience with checked bags and carryons on the intra-China flights, NOT including Hong Kong (again, this was May 2011, I hope some folks traveling this year will provide current info):

 

1. The rule is a limit of ONE carryon per person of 11 pounds max. In reality, the carryon rules weren't enforced at all. No one was counting or weighing bags on any of our three internal flights. But our Viking escort made a point of telling us that if the security folks were in a bad mood, they could have enforced these rules. (FWIW, I don't recall anyone on these threads ever reporting a problem with carryons on the internal flights.)

 

2. Checked bags limited to 44 pounds; my understanding is that the Viking bags were all weighed together. Probably not a good idea to abuse this rule, but I think if you are a little bit over, there won't be a problem.

 

Our escort did tell us that the rules *were* strictly enforced on the flights to Hong Kong. I can't say from personal experience whether this was true, but I can't believe our escort was steering people wrong. Again, this was last year.

[recyclelady]

You did read it; I'm one of the folks who wrote it. :) That was last season (2011), and I was conveying what our Viking escort told us (I did not actually go on the Hong Kong extension).

 

To recap our experience with checked bags and carryons on the intra-China flights, NOT including Hong Kong (again, this was May 2011, I hope some folks traveling this year will provide current info):

 

1. The rule is a limit of ONE carryon per person of 11 pounds max. In reality, the carryon rules weren't enforced at all. No one was counting or weighing bags on any of our three internal flights. But our Viking escort made a point of telling us that if the security folks were in a bad mood, they could have enforced these rules. (FWIW, I don't recall anyone on these threads ever reporting a problem with carryons on the internal flights.)

 

2. Checked bags limited to 44 pounds; my understanding is that the Viking bags were all weighed together. Probably not a good idea to abuse this rule, but I think if you are a little bit over, there won't be a problem.

 

Our escort did tell us that the rules *were* strictly enforced on the flights to Hong Kong. I can't say from personal experience whether this was true, but I can't believe our escort was steering people wrong. Again, this was last year.

 

Thanks, Turtle, for your recap.

 

Does this mean (on the checked baggage) that a couple could have 3 bags as long as each is under 44 lbs?

[Lori Dobson]

sailing through the Three Gorges yesterday and today - amazingly beautiful! The locks are fascinating - so huge - the dam was a treat to see. Weather is sunny and warm, we got lucky. Doing tai-chi at 7 am on the back deck was surreal - a lovely, cool morning with jaw-dropping scenery in the background. How lucky we are to see this magnificent place!:D

[caribill]

sailing through the Three Gorges yesterday and today - amazingly beautiful!

 

Were you able to take the excursion up the Lesser Three Gorges?

Edited September 4, 2012 by caribill

[Peregrina651]

Thanks, Turtle, for your recap.

 

Does this mean (on the checked baggage) that a couple could have 3 bags as long as each is under 44 lbs?

 

NO.

 

This is what I found on the Viking website in regard to luggage. While the airlines may allow you two checked bags per person, the intra China flights are different. From the website (my highlighting):

China travelers

 

You will travel on domestic China flights during your trip. Viking River Cruises monitors luggage restrictions for these intra-China flights and luggage allowance is very limited and strictly enforced. On intra-China flights, a guest may carry on one piece only; with dimensions not to exceed 8” x 16” x 22” (20 x 40 x 55 cm) and the total weight not to exceed 11 pounds (5 kg). You are also permitted

one checked bag

, dimensions not exceeding 16” x 23” x 39” (40 x 60 x 100 cm). Total baggage weight cannot exceed 44.2 lbs (20 kg). Items in excess of restrictions must be checked and will incur charges of up to $4 US per kg, based on weight and distance traveled. Alcoholic beverages are not permitted in carry-on luggage.

 

On intra-China flights, it is currently recommended to lock checked luggage. Therefore, we suggest you bring a luggage lock for each bag you will be checking.

 

 

While we know from the reported experiences of past travelers that the carry-on rule is not enforced (we had five pieces at one point), we also know that it could be enforced at any time. Therefore, if you decide to play the odds (as we did), you need to understand that you may be traveling on the day that they decide to enforce their rule. In other words, be prepared.

As for the checked in luggage, note that the intra-China restriction is ONE 44 lb bag per person. While they talk about fines for overweight luggage, so far only folks whose luggage has been egregiously over-weight have been asked to pay up. If you can't lift it, then you know you are in trouble.

IMHO--PACK LIGHT, especially on the way over and especially if you are a shopper. The less stuff you have to worry about on the transfers, the happier you will be--especially in Chongqing and even more so if it is raining. The good thing about Viking is that you don't need two outfits per day. You don't need formalwear and men don't even need a sports jacket. Dress is casual and there is laundry service on-board the ship. The less you start out with, the more room you will have for shopping. If you are a shopaholic, bring an extra bag (it is easier than trying to shop for one at the last minute, when you realize that you have over done it and it won't all fit!!:eek::eek:)

I can't repeat this bit of advice enough: In Chongqing, use a porter. Let him carry your bags, especially if it is raining.

[caribill]

 

 

I can't repeat this bit of advice enough: In Chongqing, use a porter. Let him carry your bags, especially if it is raining.

 

You do not need this for your 44 pound piece of luggage as Viking takes care of it.

 

You do need to carry (or have a porter do it) your hand luggage up (or down) those steps.

[Lori Dobson]

Were you able to take the excursion up the Lesser Three Gorges?

 

 

Yes, we just got back from that - gorgeous! I have a good pic of the hanging coffin. Weather is very clear and sunny.

 

We got little gifts from Viking upon our return to the ship today. I got a dress made at the tailor - it was done in less than a day - and it is beautiful! When we come back from an excursion, the crew greets us with hot towels and juice - lovely! Anyone who has not taken this cruise yet and are wondering if Viking is the right company to go with, I can only tell you we have been very, very satisfied with them - everything is first class and has been terrific.