Tender Ports

[Host Jazzbeau]

How do you know which ports on your Viking itinerary will be tender ports? I don't see any indication on the website or my invoice.

[Dauntless]

How do you know which ports on your Viking itinerary will be tender ports? I don't see any indication on the website or my invoice.

For my cruise, on page 3 of my invoice the itinerary has an anchor in red beside the port we tender. If your invoice doesn't have one, then I assume you don't tender.

[Peregrina651]

How do you know which ports on your Viking itinerary will be tender ports? I don't see any indication on the website or my invoice.

 

JB, from experience with Viking at four of the ports on your itinerary:

 

Bergen will be docked.

 

Edinburgh will be a tender if you are schedule for Newhaven but docked and a long ride into Edinburgh proper if you are scheduled for Rosyth. Tendering may be lousy but in Edinburgh it is much better to tender than to have the long commute into Edinburgh proper from Rosyth (imho).

 

Lerwick or Kirkwall will be docked if there is a berth available but it will be a 10 minute shuttle ride into either town. Otherwise, it will be tendering. On Day 1 of the cruise we were told we would tender into both of these ports but ended up docking in both. Go figure.

[Host Jazzbeau]

JB, from experience with Viking at four of the ports on your itinerary:

 

Bergen will be docked.

 

Edinburgh will be a tender if you are schedule for Newhaven but docked and a long ride into Edinburgh proper if you are scheduled for Rosyth. Tendering may be lousy but in Edinburgh it is much better to tender than to have the long commute into Edinburgh proper from Rosyth (imho).

 

Lerwick or Kirkwall will be docked if there is a berth available but it will be a 10 minute shuttle ride into either town. Otherwise, it will be tendering. On Day 1 of the cruise we were told we would tender into both of these ports but ended up docking in both. Go figure.

 

Hey, I'm the host of the River Cruising forum -- I know these things are controlled by the Harbor Master and last minute changes are always possible! And yes, I know of several ocean ports where it's more convenient to tender into the middle of town (as long as the weather cooperates!). Maybe I need to take my own advice (to river cruisers) and "go with the flow" ;)

[Peregrina651]

Hey, I'm the host of the River Cruising forum -- I know these things are controlled by the Harbor Master and last minute changes are always possible! And yes, I know of several ocean ports where it's more convenient to tender into the middle of town (as long as the weather cooperates!). Maybe I need to take my own advice (to river cruisers) and "go with the flow" ;)

 

 

 

 

Yes, and a good host at that!! So, you know that you aren't the only one reading--with eager anticipation:D -- the answers to your question. In any case, IMHO, forewarned makes the flow-going easier.

 

Oh, and London because you will be docked in the middle of the Thames at Greenwich you will also be tendered/shuttled from the dock in the middle of the Thames. If you look carefully in this picture you can see the lights and structure at the side of the ship, which is the dock. Also, I think that a trip to Google maps will also show the floating berth at Greenwich. This photo is from the article in the Daily Mail about the naming ceremony this past May. What a hoopla!

 

 

 

 

So, while we are talking about your ports, we might also point out that your cruise into the other ports on your itinerary may be Vikings first visit to any of those ports.

 

Okay, now some other things you need to know about your cruise that will help you in your planning. The big one is that because your cruise begins in Bergen, there is no Custom Air available, period, end of discussion. There is one deviation available that has you flying into Oslo the day before, but that is it. If you get your air from Viking, you are stuck with whatever flight plan that they give you and those flight plans may very well include multiple stops and round about routing. Bergen is a small airport and not well served.

 

Also, on our cruise, I heard about some of the flight plans that some folks had to endure and to be honest I think because of the scarcity of business and first seats, it was the folks who paid for the better seating who got the worst flight plans--but I have no proof of this statement, just anecdotal evidence. On the other hand, we flew economy direct to London our embarkation city and then Bergen-London and London non-stop home. So, before you finalize flights with Viking, do your homework and look into doing your own air arrangements, especially if you are flying one of the premium classes. It might be worth your while to pay a couple of hundred more to guarantee direct routing.

 

Other thoughts, as long as you are doing your own air arrangements, extend a night or two coming in so that you can recuperate from the jet lag and start your cruise refreshed; your itinerary is port-intense with no sea days until the end of the cruise. It doesn't matter if you fly into Oslo and take the train to Bergen or if you fly right into Bergen. When you are doing the pricing, look at breaking it into two tickets. One ticket RT to London and then a separate ticket for the London to Bergen. At least, price it out.

 

Okay, that's enough hijacking. JB, if you want to copy these comments to your roll call, be my guest.

 

Save

[Host Jazzbeau]

Yes, and a good host at that!! So, you know that you aren't the only one reading--with eager anticipation:D -- the answers to your question. In any case, IMHO, forewarned makes the flow-going easier.

 

Oh, and London because you will be docked in the middle of the Thames at Greenwich you will also be tendered/shuttled from the dock in the middle of the Thames. If you look carefully in this picture you can see the lights and structure at the side of the ship, which is the dock. Also, I think that a trip to Google maps will also show the floating berth at Greenwich. This photo is from the article in the Daily Mail about the naming ceremony this past May. What a hoopla!

 

So, while we are talking about your ports, we might also point out that your cruise into the other ports on your itinerary may be Vikings first visit to any of those ports.

 

Okay, now some other things you need to know about your cruise that will help you in your planning. The big one is that because your cruise begins in Bergen, there is no Custom Air available, period, end of discussion. There is one deviation available that has you flying into Oslo the day before, but that is it. If you get your air from Viking, you are stuck with whatever flight plan that they give you and those flight plans may very well include multiple stops and round about routing. Bergen is a small airport and not well served.

 

Also, on our cruise, I heard about some of the flight plans that some folks had to endure and to be honest I think because of the scarcity of business and first seats, it was the folks who paid for the better seating who got the worst flight plans--but I have no proof of this statement, just anecdotal evidence. On the other hand, we flew economy direct to London our embarkation city and then Bergen-London and London non-stop home. So, before you finalize flights with Viking, do your homework and look into doing your own air arrangements, especially if you are flying one of the premium classes. It might be worth your while to pay a couple of hundred more to guarantee direct routing.

 

Other thoughts, as long as you are doing your own air arrangements, extend a night or two coming in so that you can recuperate from the jet lag and start your cruise refreshed; your itinerary is port-intense with no sea days until the end of the cruise. It doesn't matter if you fly into Oslo and take the train to Bergen or if you fly right into Bergen. When you are doing the pricing, look at breaking it into two tickets. One ticket RT to London and then a separate ticket for the London to Bergen. At least, price it out.

 

Okay, that's enough hijacking. JB, if you want to copy these comments to your roll call, be my guest.

 

Thanks Peregrina, this is all very helpful. We had learned about no Custom Air for Bergen and have read about problems with poor itineraries on standard air, so we are planning to fly n/s to Oslo and take the train to Bergen the next day. [Cruise starts with overnight in Bergen so little risk of missing it! And we will be doing Bergen on Azamara next month so no big sightseeing agenda there.]

 

No Roll Call yet -- CC hasn't set up for Viking Sun [not built yet] or 2018. I keep checking :)

Edited July 13, 2016 by Host Jazzbeau

[NavyVeteran]

Other thoughts, as long as you are doing your own air arrangements, extend a night or two coming in so that you can recuperate from the jet lag and start your cruise refreshed; your itinerary is port-intense with no sea days until the end of the cruise. It doesn't matter if you fly into Oslo and take the train to Bergen or if you fly right into Bergen. When you are doing the pricing, look at breaking it into two tickets. One ticket RT to London and then a separate ticket for the London to Bergen. At least, price it out.

 

Check carefully before you purchase two tickets - especially if you have luggage. If you purchase a ticket from US to Oslo or Bergen with a plane change in London, then the luggage rules are the trans-Atlantic rules. If you purchase separate tickets, then the luggage rules on the London to Oslo or Bergen flight are the more restrictive European rules. You may find yourself having to re-check bags instead of being able to check them through. If you purchase a low-cost London to Oslo or Bergen ticket, you may find yourself paying quite a bit extra to check your luggage on that flight and you may find that the weight limits are different than on the trans-Atlantic flight.

 

Also if there is any delay with your trans-Atlantic flight and you miss your European flight, the airline may have no obligation to rebook your European flight. You may have to purchase a new last-minute ticket.

[Peregrina651]

 

No Roll Call yet -- CC hasn't set up for Viking Sun [not built yet] or 2018. I keep checking :)

 

And you don't have enough pull with the management to get Viking Sun added sooner rather than later now that Viking is actually booking for those dates and folks are chomping at the bit to meet fellow pax???????

 

Save

[Peregrina651]

Check carefully before you purchase two tickets - especially if you have luggage. If you purchase a ticket from US to Oslo or Bergen with a plane change in London, then the luggage rules are the trans-Atlantic rules. If you purchase separate tickets, then the luggage rules on the London to Oslo or Bergen flight are the more restrictive European rules. You may find yourself having to re-check bags instead of being able to check them through. If you purchase a low-cost London to Oslo or Bergen ticket, you may find yourself paying quite a bit extra to check your luggage on that flight and you may find that the weight limits are different than on the trans-Atlantic flight.

 

Also if there is any delay with your trans-Atlantic flight and you miss your European flight, the airline may have no obligation to rebook your European flight. You may have to purchase a new last-minute ticket.

 

Good points. Never thought of any of that when I saw that Viking had booked our flight as two separate tickets--BOS-LHR round trip and the Bergen to LHR as a separate ticket (which it booked as a group so no one could check in early and everyone had to stand in line in Bergen to get boarding passes while BA was in the midst of a computer upgrade and the line moved very slowly, to put it mildly).

Edited July 13, 2016 by Peregrina651

[TravelerThom]

If your home airport is served by Icelandair , IME the fastest AND cheapest route to Bergen is connecting in Iceland. It has been several years since I have done this, and there are now several other options, but it is worth checking out the small airlines.

 

Thom

[roothy123]

Regarding tendering versus docking: Often you can google and find a website for each port you're going to. About half of the port websites I've found will tell you exactly where you'll dock (or whether you'll anchor and tender, and if so, where). Sometimes, however, the actual dock assignment is only available a month or two pre-cruise - and often not at all. Of course, it's possible the location will change from the time Viking prints its brochures/posts on its website and you cruise, so keep that in mind.

 

It sounds like you're going to Lerwick, Shetland Islands. If so, you can check the port site here: http://www.lerwick-harbour.co.uk/port-information Almost all ships the size of Viking Star/Sea tender in the inner harbor, but there is an occasional surprise. Also, I believe I read that Lerwick is building a long pier for cruise ships, so depending upon when you travel, you might end up docking.

 

Edinburgh has a port website that's helpful: http://www.lerwick-harbour.co.uk/port-information

 

However, the easy answer to the question of whether you'll tender is exactly as others have said - noted with an anchor on the itinerary document you receive when you book.

[roothy123]

Oh, sorry, here's Edinburgh port site: http://www.cruiseforth.com/content/ship/

 

I notice they use the term "docking" lightly, so that may not tell you whether you have to tender or not. For example, I see they mention docking at South Queensferry. That's not what we did when we were there on another line, and I doubt very seriously any cruise ship can dock there at the short pier they have.

Edited July 23, 2016 by roothy123