Weather —> must skip Gdańsk

[SempreMare]

I am budgeting 15 minutes to allow myself to be devastated.  The captain just announced the Viking Homelands / Viking Jupiter can’t safely proceed into the Gdansk Poland port due to weather conditions. 
 

We are now proceeding on to Copenhagen. 
 

I was surprised because I feel so little turbulence on the ship. Some yes, but nothing major at all.  
nothing that compares to the massive ship jostling felt between Stavanger and Bergen last September on British Isles Explorer. 
 

we had a full sea day yesterday.
I felt very ready for a CityWalk fitness walk.
 

plan b

hit the weight  room.   I’m definitely eating at a calorie surplus so good time to try to use that excess nutrition to add muscle.

 

what did you do on your unexpected sea days?

 

 

[chengkp75]

It's not necessarily the weather outside the port, but the wind speed and direction that affect a large ship while in the confined channel when inside the port.  Looking at photos of the Gdansk cruise terminal, it appears the major port area is all low lying (no wind breaks), and only protected by a small breakwater, so navigating the turns to get to the dock with the wind pushing the ship away could be beyond what the port authorities allow.

[duquephart]

"We are now proceeding on to Copenhagen." Skipping Bornholm & Berlin?

[CCWineLover]

So sorry for your loss.  Some grieving time will help.

[janetcbl]

I am so sorry…you will just have to plan to come back some day. Reading posts from recent Homelands, I realize how really fortunate we were last summer that we had to miss no ports….wish I could pass of whatever “good luck weather charm”, I must have had.

[Goosebear Mum]

We are on a cruise currently in the Baltic (P&O, not Viking yet!) and we were in Kiel today. It took a long time for the tug to help pull Aurora off the dock at the EOD, with the choppy waters. We’re now on our way to Helsinki, and conditions are supposed to ease tomorrow 🙂 We kept being told in Kiel by our tour guide, that these are unusual conditions for Kiel.  Enjoy the enforced rest, and watching the sea 🙂 

[loriva]

Also onboard the Jupiter.

 

At noon, the captain (Thomas Larsen) announced we would also be skipping Bornholm (Ronne) due to the high winds.  He decided to sail directly to Warnemunde instead of having a third sea day in a row.  We were estimated to arrive at 0900 hours, but the CD (Richard Green, who was confined to his cabin "under the weather" for the start of the cruise) just announced it would be around 0930 hours as we need to wait for another ship to clear our scheduled berth.  We will overnight here.

 

The excursions team did not lay on any extra excursions for our extra day.  There is a shuttle that will run from the Warnemunde Cruise Terminal to St. Mary's Church (Marienkirken) at Lange Strasse approximately every 20 minutes.  There is also an offer for a free beer at Restaurant Hopfenkeller from 1200-1700 hours.  Not sure if that is every time a Viking ship is in port, or just today.

[duquephart]

It seems like Bornholm is regularly missed. One must wonder why they keep trying. We were backing in to the port when they gave up. We then sailed around the island for the day.

[janetcbl]

7 hours ago, duquephart said:

It seems like Bornholm is regularly missed. One must wonder why they keep trying. We were backing in to the port when they gave up. We then sailed around the island for the day.

Wish the new Homelands route would skip either Bornholm or Åaland and add Visby instead….much more interesting IMO.

[SempreMare]

On 5/5/2023 at 2:23 PM, duquephart said:

"We are now proceeding on to Copenhagen." Skipping Bornholm & Berlin?

Your correction was accurate when you posted it.

 

And then…

 

 

[SempreMare]

I am beginning to realize that when thinking about a cruise cost and itinerary, 

And the value I expect to receive for the amount I spend,

I need to feel the value I anticipate I’ll receive is worth the cost  if I ONLY see the departure and arrival city. 

 

Because with cruising, seeing any other port besides those 2 is really a roll of the dice.

Much more risk of value destruction than a DIY land-based fly-in-via-airplane method. 

 

When I think about the last 25 vacations or so, when change was needed in land vacations, I received a full refund / all value returned.

That doesn’t happen with cruising.   When Tallin, Helsinki, and St. Petersburg were deleted from this itinerary, we received a $250 credit.  Now Gdańsk and Bornholm gone.   None if those removals is Viking’s fault. 

 

I just wonder if I had known the actual end result itinerary if I would have opted to purchase at that price vs do a DIY to specific locations.

[Ulsteinvik]

On 5/5/2023 at 9:17 PM, Goosebear Mum said:

We are on a cruise currently in the Baltic (P&O, not Viking yet!) and we were in Kiel today. It took a long time for the tug to help pull Aurora off the dock at the EOD, with the choppy waters. We’re now on our way to Helsinki, and conditions are supposed to ease tomorrow 🙂 We kept being told in Kiel by our tour guide, that these are unusual conditions for Kiel.  Enjoy the enforced rest, and watching the sea 🙂 

Yep I saw your maneuver yesterday in Kiel because I live there. It was a very uncommon but interesting maneuver, I thought that Aurora will skip Kiel but thanks to the experienced captain he did not, so I could make great photos 🙂 

 

[LibertyBella]

 

 

When I take a cruise (or a land tour) that has a certain itinerary I really like, I try to travel when weather conditions for those places are at their ideal.  My favorite mantra from a cruise is, "the sea is calm, the sky is clear."

 

I have been on cruises that missed ports, due to late departure from home port, or racing a storm, and I must say that I do not like it at all, and I find the compensation usually a bit pitiful.  Therefore, I try to avoid those types of poor outcomes which could be caused by weather.  I also avoid certain cruise lines that have a reputation for being sloppy with their itinerary stops due to issues other than weather, unless I travel on them just for the enjoyment of the cruise.

 

Finally, unfortunately, there are some challenges that are beyond anyone's control, such as mechanical failures, picking up migrants at sea, freak waves, death, illness or man overboard, etc., etc.

 

Sea days for me mean sitting by the pool in the sun with a good book and just relaxing. However, the Baltic usually means indoor activities.

 

By the way, so sorry you missed Gdansk--we visited Malbork castle at that stop, a very special place. At least Viking tries to address the issue of missed ports, which many other cruise lines do not.

 

I

[SempreMare]

3 hours ago, LibertyBella said:

When I take a cruise (or a land tour) that has a certain itinerary I really like, I try to travel when weather conditions for those places are at their ideal.  My favorite mantra from a cruise is, "the sea is calm, the sky is clear."

 

To that point

On day 2 of our current Viking Homelands Cruise, I had a chance to ask the second officer in command about the extreme turbulence “corkscrew effect”, the Viking Mars experienced between Stavanger and Bergen during British Isles Explorer. I asked what is the likelihood of experiencing same on this cruise.

 

He knew exactly of what I described, and immediately said that the Bering sea in August and September tends to be very rough. He made this motion with his hands that was reminiscent of what I felt. [ gah ]…

 

But he said in May the Bering Sea is unlikely to experience the same conditions.  RAH 😁

 

So our timing is at least good for that.

fyi to my roll call buddies now in Viking Jupiter:

@loriva @lisiamc @AnneinCO @Azulann. @Lewis & Clark @ColoradoCruiselover

 

fyi that side to side rolling that we experienced going into Gdansk was nothing like the ships motion in the Bering Sea. That didn’t bother me in the least.

 

For me and others on BIE that created a full day and night of feeling sick during the vacation.

[SempreMare]

:: sniff :: 😢

[Azulann]

Looks like the weather  on the Baltic Sea is not being very cooperative on this sailing. 

Thank you for posting the missed ports and the extra days in other ports. 

I will go into upcoming   cruise "Scenic  Scandinavia"  June 12-22 with an open mind.

I pray we get three stops in Denmark ending in Copenhagen. 🙏

What didi you do in Copenhagen? 

If you have time  could  you   post who the Cruise Director and General Manger is , if you get a chance? 

 I will email them about a meet and mingle in a couple of weeks. 

Enjoy your cruise till the end! 

[loriva]

18 hours ago, Azulann said:

Looks like the weather  on the Baltic Sea is not being very cooperative on this sailing. 

Thank you for posting the missed ports and the extra days in other ports. 

I will go into upcoming   cruise "Scenic  Scandinavia"  June 12-22 with an open mind.

I pray we get three stops in Denmark ending in Copenhagen. 🙏

What didi you do in Copenhagen? 

If you have time  could  you   post who the Cruise Director and General Manger is , if you get a chance? 

 I will email them about a meet and mingle in a couple of weeks. 

Enjoy your cruise till the end! 

 

@AzulannThe CD is Richard Green and the GM is Daciano da Silva.

 

When I heard about Viking doing Meet and Mingles again, I sent an email to the ship directed to the CD and GM.  It was only 72 hours before our embarkation as the thread on this did not come up until it was almost time for our sailing.  Sadly, I received no response.  Hope your luck is better.

 

We did the included walking tour in Copenhagen in the morning and the trip to Roskilde for the Viking Ship Museum and Cathedral in the afternoon.  A long day, but both interesting--even for someone who had been to the sites previously (albeit over four decades ago!)

 

Aalborg also turned out to be excellent and a charming small city.  There was a wonderful brewpub (Sogaards) and found out the beer-tasting excursion Viking offers is offered by the pubs themselves.  It is called the "Beer Walk" and you buy a tasting glass at one pub (Sogaards being one) and then you get vouchers for beers there and at other bars.  It cost DKK 159 (U.S. $23ish) to Viking's $109.  Aalborg is easy to walk around, no guide needed.  Also, Aalborg has the Danish Emigration Archives that has historical documents for Danes who emigrated from Denmark in the late 1800s/early 1900s).  The staff were very nice, but sadly, could not find records on my family (although I had names, birthdates and places, and the year they left Denmark).  But if records do not exist, they cannot be found.

[Cienfuegos]

 Parts of southern Denmark were incorporated into Germany in the 1860s, and remained part of the Empire until 1918.  Some of these residents migrated to the US and Canada.as Germans during the 50 years of occupation.

 

 

 

[CCWineLover]

12 hours ago, Cienfuegos said:

 Parts of southern Denmark were incorporated into Germany in the 1860s, and remained part of the Empire until 1918.  Some of these residents migrated to the US and Canada.as Germans during the 50 years of occupation.

 

 

 

I know that story, as my great-grandparents were among those that did that!  (Denmark/Germany to Iowa and Minnesota). 🙂