miko1025
6 de diciembre de 2023
My wife and I thought about a Viking cruise for some time. We initially thought we’d do a river cruise with Viking, but this travel opportunity popped up and we couldn’t say no, so we joined a Viking ocean cruise titled, “Cities of Antiquity & the Holy Land.” Sounds great, right? We were very excited! Of course this was a few weeks before the horrific fighting started in Israel and Gaza. After the war broke out, we wondered what was going to happen to our itinerary. We didn’t have to wait long to find out. Our tour was scheduled from November 16 – November 30, 2023. Regarding the adjusted itinerary: All the Israel and Holy Land stops were removed. Instead we got some time in Cyprus and Malta. Given the circumstances, I don’t feel right beating up Viking for any itinerary changes they had to come up with. It’s not there fault and I am sure they did the best they could given the situation. Yes, it was a bummer we couldn’t go to the Holy Land, but we didn’t cancel the trip either. The rumor mill informed us that around 30% of the clients had in fact, cancelled their trip due to the itinerary change. This made sense as the boat was hardly full, which we thought was really nice! Our itinerary, however, continued to morph as we progressed on our journey. These changes were not due to war, but to weather and specifically, wind! Apparently 40 knots of wind is too risky for a cruise ship like Neptune to be pulling into and out of slips, so sadly, our Greek island stops at Mykonos and Rhodes were both cancelled back-to-back. Ugh! Weather is one of the risks you take when booking on a shoulder month, which is what we did, so again, can’t blame anyone for that, just the weather gods. Note also that we added 2-days in Athens up front to get our biological clocks adjusted, then 2-days in Rome at the end, just because it's Rome, a city we love. Also note that Viking charges bloody murder to get a taxi from the port in Rome to a hotel somewhere else in Rome. We saved a bunch by using our hotel transport, but a port taxi would be reasonable, too. The ship: This was our first Viking cruise experience and it did not disappoint! The ship is beautiful! It’s decorated in what I described as “comfortable with style”. By this, I mean someone put a lot of thought and care into decorating the entire ship, making it feel warm and welcoming without appearing the least ostentatious or gaudy. There were places everywhere for getting away to have a quiet moment. That said, we did find it irritating that guests would seek out a sun deck chair, put their stuff on it, then go wander off for lunch or whatever, all the while hanging onto their seat. Grr! This appears to be a common thing, but it still pisses me off. The crew: I was very impressed with how well the entire ship was run! So many different processes have to be carried out and the crew did so quickly and quietly. With 1 crew member for every 3rd passenger, finding someone to help you if you need it, was
Traducir