Just back! Our VIKING SKY-mazing 7 day Ancient Mediterranean Treasures - 6/25 to 7/2/2022. Full trip report with tons of pix!

[Sleep7]

Hellooooooo to all the Viking fans on the board! 

We are just back from an absolutely fantastic 7 day "Ancient Mediterranean Treasures" sailing from Athens to Istanbul.  Just flew home yesterday and the smiling has not stopped.  Although exhausted and jet lagged.. I am truly anxious to get started on the incredibly happy tale of our absolutely SKYMAZING seven days on the Sky.

It's 2am here in New York.. Due to the 7 hour time change and the fact that I couldn't make myself stay up past 7:00pm last night I'm up and ready to write!

Come sail with us!

[Sleep7]

Well what a difference 6 months makes!  We had sailed on the Sky last November (first cruise on Viking Ocean) and the days leading up to our departure were filled with filling out online forms and making appointments for COVID tests.  These were not only for the ship but for our entry into Spain as our cruise left from Barcelona. 

I had packed a large Ziploc bag of masks and hand wipes and even a pulse oximeter. More than a few times I googled "medical evacuation in case of COVID overseas."

Once on board we were tested every day (which I was very happy to do) and carried passenger locator necklaces with us at all times. Daily we took "face temperature" tests and filled out our "how are you feeling" questionnaires on the Viking app. Even with all that going on back in November 2021 we still had the BEST cruise ever!

Well I'm very happy to declare that all or most of those protocols have been put aside (for now and hopefully forever) and cruising, for the most part, has returned back into what it was pre-pandemic.

The biggest shift from our two post COVID cruises last fall, was (we thought) no pre-cruise testing required.. more on that later though.  

For the moment we were transported back to 2019.  Just pack your bags.. check in online and you are good to go!  And that's just what we did.

 

Terminal Four at JFK.. we are ready to roll!

 

 

 

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Checked out two lounges.. the Amex Centurion Lounge and the Delta Sky Club.

We ate, drank and were very very merry.

 

 

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Didn't know you could track your bags on a real time map.😃

 

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Delta flight 202.. nonstop from JFK to ATH.

Boarding soon!

 

 

 

 

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We still wore masks on the plane.  I looked up that you didn't need to be vaccinated or have a negative COVID test to enter Greece so I thought that "masking up" for the flight was a good idea.

 

 

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Next up to take off!  Goodbye Long Island.. see ya in a week.👋

 

 

 

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Flying time just under 9 hours.

 

 

I love seeing that thin sliver of dawn that appears just a few hours into a transatlantic flight.. it means that Europe is up and has started it's day already.🤗

 

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Almost there!

 

 

Goooood morning Greece!!

 

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As always.. a truly welcome sight to bleary eyed travelers. 

The friendly and very helpful Viking representatives there to meet and greet us with a smile.

 

 

Edited July 3, 2022 by Sleep7

[Sleep7]

Hello to our old friend Viking Sky! We missed you!

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

Now this was the unexpected part..

Even though Viking didn't require a negative COVID test to board the ship.. the Greek government did.  When we arrived at the port we were asked if we had taken a COVID test within the last 24 or 72 hours.  We had not, so they very swiftly and politely moved us to the testing area a few yards away, where we were swabbed, and then waited for our results.  We looked at each other with sleep deprived eyes thinking that wow.. this vacation might be over before it had even begun.  There was instant comradery amongst our fellow  "testees" and within a few minutes we all thankfully tested negative and were on our way to check in.

 

 

 

 

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No lines at all.. quickest check in ever!

 

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A quote from one of my favorite movies.. "It's all happening!!"

The absolute BEST time of a cruise.. when you are walking up the gangway for the very first time.

You know you have the whole week ahead of you to enjoy!

 

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Our own personal safety demonstration which must be finished in the cabin on the TV.

 

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Cabins not ready yet so we headed upstairs to the World Cafe for Breakfast? Lunch? 

Not sure.

Coffee? Wine?  Not sure about that either so how about a little of both!

 

 

 

 

Very tired and wearing grungy "overnight flight clothes" but still smiling..

Sat at my favorite dining spot on the ship.. the tables just outside the World Cafe.

 

 

 

 

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Logged into our personalized daily planner.😃

 

 

 

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1:45 and the cabins were ready!!

Cabin 4111.. a slight downgrade from our first Viking cruise cabin last fall. 

On that sailing we had received an email from Viking a few days before we left asking us if we would like to upgrade to a Penthouse Veranda cabin from our Deluxe Veranda cabin for only $199 a person, which we jumped on right away.  I loved the extra space and was slightly disappointed we weren't offered the same upgrade this cruise. 

HOWEVER.. the disappointment almost immediately disappeared once we got in the cabin. After putting away all of our stuff, it was yes maybe a drop smaller, but just as functional and lovely as the PH Veranda from last fall. So this cabin story does have a very happy ending.

Even happier was that our suitcases were waiting for us inside!

 

[Sleep7]

Here is a side by side comparison of the two cabins.. first a our Penthouse Veranda from last year.

 

 

And here is our Deluxe Veranda.

 

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Also a direct comparison from last fall..  that the hand washing station at the entrance to the World Cafe doesn't have the face temperature reading machine anymore. Yay!

 

November 2021

 

 

 

June 2022.. yay!

 

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Besides our luggage.. the first Viking Daily was waiting for us too.

Ahh.. it's GREAT to be on board a Viking ship again! 

Also met Burhan and Melpha our incredibly sweet and helpful cabin attendants.😍

 

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💁‍♀️No spit tubes this cruise but passengers are still provided with masks and hand sanitizer.. thanks Viking!😷

 

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We unpacked, showered and changed lickety split then hopped onto the first shuttle bus we could catch from the ship in Piraeus to Athens.

Here is the schedule of the shuttles embarkation day.

 

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Oranges that weren't oranges (they are called Neranzties) on the trees.  Our guide the next day said they are very bitter and are only eaten when cooked with sugar like marmalade and are traditionally served to guests.

 

 

 

We stopped to see the Evzone Guards at the Parliament Building in Syntagma Square.  There is another soldier that mops the brow of the Evzone who must be sweating up a storm in that wool outfit however doesn't move a muscle.  #dedicationtoduty

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

We also used the facilities of the stately Grand Bretagne Hotel on Syntagma Square.  Very fancy and nice.. I would like to redo my master bathroom just like that.🤩