[garrykolb]

Originally Posted by Heartnsoul

Would love to do Asia next yr but can't say I'm not nervous to book something with this uncertain world we are living in. See a beautiful one on Viking. Has anyone used Viking for ocean cruises?

I am currently on the Viking Star world cruise that left Ft. Lauderdale on 12/24. We feel that this is the safest place on the planet. We are PCR tested every single day and the ship has been COVID-free for weeks. The handful that caught COVID were isolated until recovered and life goes on.

But, things do change. We were supposed to head west from LA to the south Pacific and Asia, but they were all closed to cruise traffic. Viking pivoted and we headed east and south around South America, across the Atlantic, and into the Med. We are currently in Souda Bay, Crete, Greece, and are heading south tonight through the Suez Canal to arrive in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.

If COVID and the world has you nervous or scared, I recommend staying home. But...you don't get more years added on to the end of your life by doing so. We chose to embrace the adventure and travel and have not regretted a second. We booked Viking's Vancouver to Sydney adventure for next year.

[garrykolb]

Originally Posted by Kahuna32162

We have friends on a Viking world cruise right now and their itinerary has been changed dramatically twice now. They were not allowed to stop anywhere in SE Asia or Australia. They diverted to S. America instead and then onto Europe. All scheduled stops in St Petersburg have been cancelled. The world’s kind of a scary place right now.

And...as that aforementioned friend, I can say that while the itinerary changed, and we would have loved to see those ports, we are seeing amazing places that we didn't expect and are having a terrific time. Wouldn't change a thing - except it is a lot colder in the Med in March that where we were supposed to be. That will change as it will be 95 in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday... :-)

[Arctic Fox]

Originally Posted by vinricci

Heard a lot about Viking river cruises so tried one of their ocean itineraries. It was not good at all. The ship was beautiful but most of the time the food was not hot and repetitive, entertainment sub par compared to others we’ve experienced.

Interesting. Mrs Fox is always trying to get us on Viking but I doubt that cruises costing twice as much per day offer twice the reward, so we have generally stayed with Holland-America Line. Sadly, now that they have sold all of their smaller ships (especially our favourite, the 800-passenger Prinsendam) they are becoming more generic. Still, we love cruising and there are some great bargains to be had.

[mike1946]

There are litteraly 100's of cruise lines out there ...we have done over 60 cruises with most of the majors ...for river cruises you just cannot beat Scenic a 5* outfit or Emerald their 4* subsiduary.
An example - we did the 15 day Jewels of Europe cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest - there is a well known pinch point on that route which boats cannot get by if the water is too low (rocks) and cannot get by if the water is too high (low bridge). It came to pass that this happened (as it does regularly) however Scenic despatch a boat from both ends timed to meet at the pinch point - so in the morning we put our bags out and went off on an excursion. When we came back our bags were in the exact same cabin on the other sister ship so we were able to continue our cruise. The Viking ship next to us - customers were given the option of continuing by bus or going home. I wonder why the poster is such a Viking only fan ...does she have financial involvement ?? Small ship cruising around the UK and Europe ...take a look at Fred Olsen or Saga (no children and all inclusive) Do your research ...Viking is not the be all and end all of cruising !!

[Villages Kahuna]

Yes, we have. Wonderful! If there was one cruise line I would trust given the current world uncertainties, it would be Viking. The line is privately-owned by an old Norwegian, Torstein Hagen, who runs it as he wishes. Small ships, clean, simple Scandinavian decor, great food, no kids, no gambling, no art or watch sales, daily educational presentations by real experts, well-planned shore excursions…wonderful! As they describe themselves, they are the “thinking person’s cruise line”. Check out the many videos on their website.

[Heartnsoul]

Can u define their over the top?

[fdpaq0580]

Originally Posted by Heartnsoul

Would love to do Asia next yr but can't say I'm not nervous to book something with this uncertain world we are living in. See a beautiful one on Viking. Has anyone used Viking for ocean cruises?

Dear friends,
The world has always been uncertain. The younger we are, the more that uncertainty looks like adventure/fun. As we get older we see that uncertainty as danger.
My advice is go now, before the fun and adventure turns to fear and worry. The longer you wait, the less likely you are to fulfil your dreams. My biggest fear is that my last words will be, " I wish I would have .....".

🚢 🇺🇸🇮🇹🇪🇸🇫🇷🇬🇧🇩🇪� ��🇵🇺🇸

[Laraine]

Originally Posted by Heartnsoul

Would love to do Asia next yr but can't say I'm not nervous to book something with this uncertain world we are living in. See a beautiful one on Viking. Has anyone used Viking for ocean cruises?

I was just on a Viking Ocean in Jan/Feb to Norway to see the Northern Lights. This was my first time on Viking and was impressed with many things. We were still in height of Covid and we were checked daily via saliva tests, temperature and questionnaire. Staff wore masks continuously and guests except when eating/drinking. Very clean & safe. As things are lifting the traveling will get more pleasant but Viking is #1 in protection.

The food was great, staff was exceptional! The ships are all clean, Scandinavian design. Polished without all the glitz and glamour. The entertainment was sub par. I don't know if this is because of cruising just getting started again and perhaps it's harder to get good entertainment right now. Had the same experience with another line I went on back in October.

Viking is considered small-medium range for Ocean cruising with a little under 1,000 passengers. They do have a good staff-passenger ratio though, so good attention.

As for Asia, you could book for 2023, but I would make sure of the cancellation policy. I am still leery of Asia in general right now and would consider someone else if you have other areas on your bucket list. In full disclosure-I am a Travel Advisor-living in the Village of Bradford. I've been in the business for over 40 years. Please feel free to reach out to me if you have other concerns or questions. Let me know and I can send you my contact info.