Viking Legend

[no fuss travel]

How does it feel to be the only source in the world right now that seems to be posting or have posted any first hand information about the Viking Legend!

 

I am thinking that you said there was open seating. Does that mean you can go to eat anytime you wish... or are there set seating times and you have to sign up for one?

 

DDean, we were thinking of just bringing a 3-to-2 adapter connected to a power strip and using the 110 v 60 Hz rather than our adapter on the 220 European circuit.

 

Bill

 

For breakfast you could eat between certain hours in the dining room, lunch was roughly the same idea. Dinner was a set time and they asked if you would be on time to make it easier for the kitchen. We found we sat with the same people for dinner each night after the second night as we enjoyed sitting with them, but did sit with different people for lunch and breakfast. You do not have to sign up for a meal time.

 

A bit of advice. The table that is closest to the kitchen gets served faster than the tables in the middle of the restaurant for dinner. If a passenger makes a nuisance of themselves, the staff tends to feed them as quickly as possible so that they will not complain any more. We had a mother/daughter team that most people on the ship tried to avoid so that we did not have to listen to their complaints. They were always served first. You can guess why.

 

I hadn't really thought about being the only poster. When I mentioned this website to a few people aboard the ship, none of them had ever heard of it.

[bbsiming]

We are booked on the Viking Legend Sailing from Amsterdam on August 30th. My wife has some mobility problems and I was wondering if anyone has any advice for someone in a wheelchair. She should be able to navigate the boat OK but I'm curious about how practical it would be for her to use a wheelchair or a walker on the shore excursions. Did you see anyone using a chair on any of the Viking boats? Does anyone have any experience/advice?

 

Scottsdale Bob

[no fuss travel]

We are booked on the Viking Legend Sailing from Amsterdam on August 30th. My wife has some mobility problems and I was wondering if anyone has any advice for someone in a wheelchair. She should be able to navigate the boat OK but I'm curious about how practical it would be for her to use a wheelchair or a walker on the shore excursions. Did you see anyone using a chair on any of the Viking boats? Does anyone have any experience/advice?

 

Scottsdale Bob

 

Bob

 

There is no elevator on the Viking Legend. Marin, the cruise director is not very good about letting you know how rough the streets are for walking. To be honest, most of the small towns have cobblestones that are quite difficult to walk on if you want to keep up with the tour. You might be able to see some areas on your own. Some of the Abbeys and castles had elevators that people with walking problems could take so that they could see the sites. I think she could manage okay in the bigger cities, but you may have problems with the smaller ones. We had people with walkers on our cruise and they did have problems keeping up. Some of the people with mobility problems arranged for their own private tour guide and that worked for them. In several of the towns they had horse drawn buggies that could take you around town.

 

Hope this helps.

[ddean52]

Bill

I take it that a u.s. power strip will work in europe with the proper plug adapter?

[ddean52]

No Fuss,

While I like many aspects of RCL the food in their dinning rooms is not one of them. Actually we prefer the windjammer's food where a wide selection tries to make up for quality, and some times succeeds. Thanks for the info. on the ice cream! Is there a afternoon tea service?

[nordski]

We are booked on the Viking Legend Sailing from Amsterdam on August 30th. My wife has some mobility problems and I was wondering if anyone has any advice for someone in a wheelchair. She should be able to navigate the boat OK but I'm curious about how practical it would be for her to use a wheelchair or a walker on the shore excursions. Did you see anyone using a chair on any of the Viking boats? Does anyone have any experience/advice?

 

Scottsdale Bob

On the Viking Spirit this spring, a son and daughter aided their mom who was in a wheelchair.

 

The cruise staff functioned extremely well in guided the family as to which parts of the tours would be accessible and they would meet us at various locations on a tour after using public transit or perhaps private means to avoid the areas which would be overly challenging. We shared dinner with her and her daughter one night, and she was loving the trip and planning her next. Her spirit was really inspirational.

 

On another cruise, a gentleman with a walker would simply go with us as far as he could, and then turn back.

 

Others may feel differently, but I think it is doable if you are realistic about the limitations that will be encountered and flexible concerning solutions.

[pacmom]

Viking's Clara Schumann has a lift chair to all decks. This option would make all their ships much more accessible. On the Sun in April we had a lady fall and break her ankle. She was not able to leave the 3rd deck. Her husband brought her her meals. We did see her in the lounge. If your wife can't climb stairs, you will have a problem. There are lines with elevators. Pat

[ddean52]

looks like we are going on legend..travel documents arrived at t.a. this morning, after Wildbill's experience with his documents, i was.....interested in receiving ours!

 

so lets see, mediocre food, faulty ship...all the components for a miserable experience <S>..just kidding!

[no fuss travel]

No Fuss,

While I like many aspects of RCL the food in their dinning rooms is not one of them. Actually we prefer the windjammer's food where a wide selection tries to make up for quality, and some times succeeds. Thanks for the info. on the ice cream! Is there a afternoon tea service?

 

 

Yes, the Windjammer's food did give you more selection. We found on our last RCL that the food quality had dropped considerably. Viking's was better than the last RCL cruise.

 

Yes, there is an afternoon tea service. That was the plum cake that I was writing about. YUMMMMMMM. I had to watch what I ate there as the majority of the desserts offered at tea time had nuts in them and I have a nut allergy. If anyone has any allergies, ask to talk to the chef right at the beginning of the cruise and he will accommodate you. He made several desserts for me without nuts which I very much appreciated. They will also give you a fruit plate for dessert if you do not want the cheese plate. Some of the cheeses have nuts in them as well.

 

The only problem with the afternoon tea service is quite often you were not back in time to partake if you really wanted to see the towns that we were docked at. A lot of us stopped at bakeries in town and ate their pastries. Wertheim has particularly good bakeries. You can also buy local wines and bring them on board. We were buying wines for 7 Euros and less and they were good. We would ask the locals which wine they preferred and generally found that their recommendations worked for us. Remember to take a corkscrew with you, otherwise you will have to pay the corkerage fee to have your wine opened.

 

Now that you have your tickets, the excitement starts. We are tossing ideas around for next year but think we might give Europe a miss for next year. Haven't quite decided where we will go yet.

[no fuss travel]

The cruise staff functioned extremely well in guided the family as to which parts of the tours would be accessible and they would meet us at various locations on a tour after using public transit or perhaps private means to avoid the areas which would be overly challenging. We shared dinner with her and her daughter one night, and she was loving the trip and planning her next. Her spirit was really inspirational.

 

On another cruise, a gentleman with a walker would simply go with us as far as he could, and then turn back.

 

 

This is where the cruise staff on your ship was better than the cruise staff on our ship. The cruise director was not realistic in letting people with walking deficiencies know what was doable and what was not. We thought one poor man was going to have a heart attack pushing his wife along in her chair. The local guides try to accommodate the less able but it is hard when you have very active people in the group and those that are not capable of keeping up. I think it would be a great idea if Viking actually had a special group for those with a walking disability so that they would not feel that they were holding everyone else up on the tour. Quite a few people mentioned this on our tour.

[ddean52]

No Fuss.

Next year we are doing Alaska in September. We have been putting this trip off for years and we feel we have to do it now,,before it melts away<S>! However, i have come to truly love spending 3-4 weeks in Europe each year and will very much miss it! unless.......we do a Euro trip in early spring...dont tell Alice<S>

 

Regarding plum cake, its one of my favorites! By the way I was catching up on Viking reviews of "pride" and there were some disturbing references to food and service. Hope this doesn't turn out to be a mistake. I'm wondering weather Viking (and other cruise lines) are watering down their product in order to cut costs? If so they are following a flawed business model because in the long run they are negating future repeat business!

[southport101]

Dean, when you say reviews of Viking "pride" are you referring to the ship Viking Pride? If so could you relay the information you have. We are sailing on the Pride this coming Sunday from Nurenberg to Budapest and would be very interested in any news.

Christel

[ddean52]

Dean, when you say reviews of Viking "pride" are you referring to the ship Viking Pride? If so could you relay the information you have. We are sailing on the Pride this coming Sunday from Nurenberg to Budapest and would be very interested in any news.

Christel

 

 

Southport,

Yes, I was referring to the Viking's (ship) Pride! Well first let me state that when ever I read a negative review or posting a bout a ship/travel experience that I am about to "enjoy" I take a lot of it with a grain of sand! Negative postings make for huge headlines and noise. And in most cases the negative has been way over done!! Having said this, yes there were references to Pride's staff being less than responsive..etc. Rather than trying to paraphrase the reviewers I think it best for you to go to ship reviews and read 'members reviews" for Pride! And take them for what they are;someone else's 'opinion'.

Dean

[no fuss travel]

Bill

 

I can't put in all the signs they have in Czech, but this is a restaurant that we ate at near the centre of Prague. Food was good and the beer and wine reasonable.

Restaurant U Cerveneho Pava

Address: Kamzikova 6

Praha 1

 

websie http://www.ucervenehopava.cz

 

This may give you a map on how to get to the restaurant. Their decor was quite interesting and the restaurant was full of locals which is a good sign. It is about 2 blocks from the centre where the Astronomical clock is.

[no fuss travel]

No Fuss.

Next year we are doing Alaska in September. We have been putting this trip off for years and we feel we have to do it now,,before it melts away<S>! However, i have come to truly love spending 3-4 weeks in Europe each year and will very much miss it! unless.......we do a Euro trip in early spring...dont tell Alice<S>

 

Regarding plum cake, its one of my favorites! By the way I was catching up on Viking reviews of "pride" and there were some disturbing references to food and service. Hope this doesn't turn out to be a mistake. I'm wondering weather Viking (and other cruise lines) are watering down their product in order to cut costs? If so they are following a flawed business model because in the long run they are negating future repeat business!

 

 

Dean

 

Make sure you are there when they first put out the food. Some people are a little ***** when it comes to helping themselves. We found if we arrived 10 minutes after they put out the tea, you usually had very little choice.

 

They have ice tea and ice water available 24 hours. They also have 2 machines which make different types of coffee, hot chocolate and hot tea. They have a good selection of tea so you can have green tea, herbal tea or regular tea. This is also available 24 hours a day. Half way through the cruise they put out a bowl of apples that you could eat at time of the day as well.

 

You will enjoy Alaska. I have been in September and the only recommendation I would make is bring a toque and gloves as well as a warm coat. It can be cold at the glaciers especially if you are used to warmer temperatures. Mind you I saw people arriving at the Vancouver airport heading for Alaska when we came home and they just about died when they stepped out of the airport. It was in the high 80'sF and they were dressed for low 40's or 30's F. We have been watching the ships sail by and the pools are quite busy as the ships are leaving Vancouver. Unusual weather for us to stay this hot this long.

[ddean52]

No Fuss,

did you do Alaska with RCL? if so would you tell me about the dock? im told rather than using Canada Place (dock) RCL uses a remote, hard to get to dock (name of dock begins with a B____) and im told you can not drive up to it ( we will have a rental (Seattle) and was hoping i could drop it off at or near the RCL dock....

[bbsiming]

On the Viking Spirit this spring, a son and daughter aided their mom who was in a wheelchair.

 

The cruise staff functioned extremely well in guided the family as to which parts of the tours would be accessible and they would meet us at various locations on a tour after using public transit or perhaps private means to avoid the areas which would be overly challenging. We shared dinner with her and her daughter one night, and she was loving the trip and planning her next. Her spirit was really inspirational.

 

On another cruise, a gentleman with a walker would simply go with us as far as he could, and then turn back.

 

Others may feel differently, but I think it is doable if you are realistic about the limitations that will be encountered and flexible concerning solutions.

 

This is what I was hoping to hear. We want to get the most from the cruise without anyone hurting themselves or causing any issues with other cruise members by becoming a burden. We have traveled extensively in Europe and feel comfortable with the idea of fending for ourselves but we would like to be able to particapate in as many activities as we can. I'm sure we can do this with a little cooperation from the tour staff.

 

Thanks

[southport101]

Thanks Dean! Good advise! We are not high maintainance travelers and can overlook alot of the small stuff. Many times it's the quirkey unexpected things that make a vacation special and memorable. :p

[bbsiming]

Bill

I take it that a u.s. power strip will work in europe with the proper plug adapter?

 

I am finding that more and more electronics sold in the US actually have the ability to work on both US (110v 60 Hz) and European (220v 50 Hz) power. The only requirement is that you use an adaptor to plug the device in. Take a moment before you leave and look at the chargers for your cameras, phones, and other devices and you will probably see that they are capable of runnning on 220v 50 Hz. The two most common items that probably won't accept the European power are hairdryers and electic razors but the boats usually have one 60 Hz socket for that purpose and they have hair dryers.

 

Bob

[ddean52]

Bill

i agree! i have a monster 6 outlet slim line power strip, and monster says its good in europe...i just get my arms around the concept!

[no fuss travel]

No Fuss,

did you do Alaska with RCL? if so would you tell me about the dock? im told rather than using Canada Place (dock) RCL uses a remote, hard to get to dock (name of dock begins with a B____) and im told you can not drive up to it ( we will have a rental (Seattle) and was hoping i could drop it off at or near the RCL dock....

 

Ballantyne Pier and no it is not the greatest area of town. You should be able to drop it off at a company fairly close to the pier and have them drive you to the pier. I would not go wandering around Vancouver on your own in that area. You are very limited on how you can access that particular dock as since 9-11 they have closed down a lot of the access to our port.

 

No, we have done Celebrity, HAL and Princess to Alaska. Of the three we liked HAL the best.

[no fuss travel]

We are booked on the Viking Legend Sailing from Amsterdam on August 30th. My wife has some mobility problems and I was wondering if anyone has any advice for someone in a wheelchair. She should be able to navigate the boat OK but I'm curious about how practical it would be for her to use a wheelchair or a walker on the shore excursions. Did you see anyone using a chair on any of the Viking boats? Does anyone have any experience/advice?

 

Scottsdale Bob

 

Scottsdale Bob

 

Push Marin, the cruise director for all the help he can give you. He is a little bit green for the job but he will help you on this one. Some of the local guides are incredible with those who have problems walking. Some of them were not so good. There is a lady by the name of Agnes who works with the cruise staff as well. If Marin is not helpful enough, ask Agnes.

[bbsiming]

That is exactly the type of information I was looking for.

 

Why has no one posted any pictures of this boat (or am I just too dumb to be able to find them)?

 

Bob

:rolleyes:

[no fuss travel]

That is exactly the type of information I was looking for.

 

Why has no one posted any pictures of this boat (or am I just too dumb to be able to find them)?

 

Bob

:rolleyes:

 

We had a computer crash and are still retrieving our photos from the trip. Our cruise was the first one leaving on July 5th from Amsterdam, hence the reason why you will not see any pictures yet. We just got home on July 22nd and are still playing catch up with the house and other responsibilities. We do have photos of the ship that I don't think Viking will be too pleased about. Black smoke all along the sides of the ship and crushed bumpers from going through the locks. The ship does not look brand new anymore.

 

Not to be negative totally, we had a good time and enjoyed our cruise despite the bumps, screeches and breakdowns. We did feel that Viking should have compensated us for the fact that things were not working the way they were suppose to and the fact that we did miss one of our scheduled ports. We also felt that there should have been better communication between the ship personnel and the passengers. If they simply told us what had happened and that the problem had been fixed to the point that it would no longer affect the cruise would have been nice. The ship personnel kept telling us that they didn't know what was wrong and that everything was okay. That just doesn't fly when things keep breaking down.

[billinyucatan]

bbsiming.

 

We are in 310 leaving in a few days.