is viking cancelling 2021 cruises?

Viking is also expanding its Mediterranean program by adding 5 new itineraries visiting Istanbul. 29-day Mediterranean's Iconic Shores, also sailing between Barcelona and Istanbul and including visits to Croatia and Montenegro. Cabin sizes vary between 21 m2 (Nordic Balcony / French Balcony) and 114 m2 (Owner Suite with 73 m2 Terrace Garden). On January 11, Norwegian Cruise Line informed passengers that near-term sailings on additional ships would be canceled, primarily for departures over the next two weeks (details below). Viking's website shows a concerning pattern of "sold out" cruises that were not there a few days ago. Help requested: Cancelling a Viking Cruise The soaring peaks of the peninsula are home to twenty monasteries where monks work to preserve a vast collection of liturgical works and art. Which means that some passengers will change ship and date. We are Budapest to Bucharest, August 23 -September 2. Everybody please keep reporting. It is fitted with benches and has dark stone walls illuminated by blue light. No one expects to have to cancel a cruise. The company is responsible for vessels berthing (cruise terminal arrangements), logistics, freshwater supply, customs, crew changes, passenger disembarkation/embarkation. Started June 21, 2021, By The strong demand led Viking to open 2024 cruise dates sooner than expected. In March 2016, Viking OCEAN confirmed the order of three more ocean vessels, which was increased to four in 2017 (December). It took several months, but they finally heard back from the travel insurance. Viking Ocean Ships Currently Sailing: Viking Jupiter Viking Orion Viking Mars Viking Neptune Viking Saturn Viking Sea Viking Sky Viking Star Viking Venus The VIKING cruise travel brand was officially inaugurated on August 5, 1997. Most voyages are cruisetours and include river cruising, land tours, and hotel stays. Just looked at the new Malta and Adriatic sailings. They offered a $250 per person onboard credit for the inconvenience. Optional (exclusive) deals include private jet travel (to any airport in Europe) for 1 day at the price of USD 30,000 pp. Published on May 21, 2021. While in port, passengers can walk the waterfront promenade with its many restaurants and cafes, or head outside the port city to the remains of the Macedonian kingdom of Alexander the Great. And it all started in the not-so-distant 1997 with the establishment of the modest Viking River brand founded by a consortium of Scandinavian and Dutch investors, with only 4 second-hand riverboats bought in Russia. Ten days later, on March 30, Viking announced the cruise was canceled and 100% cash refunds would be given to customers but only for those who hadnt canceled previously. https://www.vikingcruises.com/oceans/cruise-destinations/eastern-mediterranean/malta-and-adriatic-jewels/pricing.html. The 7-ship "virtual" naming ceremony was via satellite connections and held in 4 riverports - Basel Switzerland (Sigrun and Einar), Rostock Germany (Ullur and Sigyn), Brunsbuttel Germany (Vali and Tir) and Oporto Portugal (Helgrim). Copyright 19952023 The Independent Traveler, Inc. Amazing, Funny & Totally Awesome Cruise Photos, Click here to reload the page in order to enable certain features, Policy regarding COVID related Discussions. Previously, Viking Egypt operated the Nile River and Lake Nasser itineraries with two chartered ships (Steigenberger Omar El Khayam and Mayfair). In addition, Viking announced 3 new departures (in October, November and December 2021) of the 15-day "Panama Canal and Central America" itinerary roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale (Port Everglades, Florida). The first boat (Viking Mississippi) starts operations in August 2022. Could be US only, as we have no itineraries listed under Welcome Back. We both have autoimmune conditions. One thing that isn't clear to me is if you must use all of the voucher on a single cruise. The Queen Elizabeth will operate U.K. cruises for locals this summer. The other 4 longships were named via live video link with the shipbuilding shipyard in Neptun Werft (Rostock, Germany). The largest cruise ship to ever sail on the Mississippi River is scheduled to set sail after June 2023. I hope I'm wrong but all the signs point to another round of cancellation--and I would rather be wrong than offer you false hope. Viking Mississippi - As of January 23, 2023 Due to damage from substantial river debris to the Viking Mississippi 's propulsion system, the ship will undergo repairs requiring the cancellation of upcoming departures. Hope this is right as our September Amsterdam to Bergen no longer shows on Viking website. Look for a link at the bottom of this page or in our privacy policy where you can withdraw consent. 8-day "Heart of the Delta" from New Orleans to Memphis. On March 20, 2013, the newly renamed company "Viking Cruises" launched 10 ships at one time, thus entering Guinness Book of World Records. It takes them a few days to get their ducks in a row before they send out the cancellation notices. Viking's Nile River cruisetour is themed "Pharaohs and Pyramids". As part of new measures, Austria has paused leisure travel . Viking River boats operate on the European inland waterways Danube, Rhine, Main, Mosel, Seine, Rhone, Saone, Douro, also in Asia (Mekong, Irrawaddy, Yangtze), Egypt (Nile, Lake Nasser), Ukraine (Dnieper), Russia (Volga, Svir, Neva, Lake Ladoga, Lake Baikal) and in the USA (Mississippi). Just phoned Viking UK as still locked out of My Viking Journey and informed that there is nothing to worry about, Cruise is still going ahead on 3rd August and that MVJ page will be accessible in another 48 hours it is just being updated. Worldwide, Viking Cruises hires over 2,500 staff and crew. These boats are with modified longship design ("baby Longships") with only 2 decks (1/4 lighter) and capacity 98 guests (46 cabins). Fourteen new sailings for Iceland have been added as of this morning. Travelers can explore its Byzantine churches and Venetian homes, take a drive to the imposing fortress towering over the city, Palamidi, or travel to the Peloponnese peninsula. I argued a bit, but nobody knows anything--maybe upper Management. These riverboats are also chartered by other major European lines, like AmaWaterways, Avalon, and Uniworld. Explorers Lounge (Decks 5-6, bow-facing) is 2-deck, circular-shaped, glass-covered and walled indoor observation lounge with wraparound windows. The launch platform features a 26 m (85 ft) wide rollers-covered slipway (boat ramp) that allows safe and sheltered embarkation on the RIBs inside the cruise ship. Baltic Sea routes offer visits to 8 different countries, with a total of 11 cruisetours (all complimentary, included in the Viking Baltic deals prices). You kind of knew it was coming, but that doesn't make it any less disappointing. When more than one cruise is booked, deposit and payment policies apply per Cruise Fare. 15-day "America's Great River" from New Orleans to St. Paul on nearly the entire length of the Mississippi River (multiple sailing dates in June, September, and October 2023) prices start at US$11000 per person, with discounted airfare from US$200 per person. All Viking Cruises Longships are named after Norse mythology gods and entities. MS Mayfair (Nile River, Egypt) is a privately-owned hotelship operated by Viking under a charter. The onboard cuisine is traditional Chinese (dishes prepared by Szechuan and Cantonese chefs) plus European dishes by Michelin-star chefs. Later on 7/15 we got an apology email stating they made an error and that we would indeed be on the 9/3 cruise - in a different stateroom and our prebooked excursions were gone as well. The slower growth was partially related to the reduced demand for cruises in Russia. Till the end of 2014, the fleet grew to 52 riverboats. Started October 12, 2018, Copyright 19952023 The Independent Traveler, Inc. The longer/71-day itinerary visits 33 ports (10 countries, 3 continents). Viking Cruises Extends Suspension Until June 2021 Could all be perfectly benign, may not be. Their claim was denied and the couple let Viking know. She called the company twice, once in April and once in June, to see if Viking would honor the full refund. Note: CruiseMapper's Viking ship schedules show departure and call ports (including towns and cities visited on shore excursions), themed voyages (holiday, itinerary themes) and port times (arrival-departure / port stays and overnights). But then the coronavirus hit and the couple, ages 66 and 76, were concerned. Not sure on the UK site. The Viking Ocean brand was introduced in 2015 with Viking Star, which started operations with mostly one-way itineraries in Baltic Sea (Scandinavia, Russia) and Mediterranean Sea. Please try again later. " Fleetwide operations were planned to resume on October 1, 2020. (We paid for Air+) I am really unhappy with Viking. Patience. In Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos) Viking River Cruises charters riverboats from the Pandaw fleet - including the ships Katha Pandaw (as Viking Mandalay), and Orient Pandaw (as Viking Orient). "Viking World Cruise 2019" prices started from USD 90,000 per person (with double occupancy). In the UK, Viking OCEAN ships are homeported in London-Greenwich England. In November 2020, Viking Cruises announced investments from its minority shareholders TPG Capital (fka Texas Pacific Group) and CPP Investments (Canada Pension Plan Investment Board) that added ~USD 500 million net proceeds to support Viking's development. The inaugural cruise itineraries of both expedition vessels are 13-day polar voyages - one in Antarctica, the other in the European Arctic. Of those, 6 are Longships (Einar, Sigrun, Sigyn, Tir, Ullur, Vali) plus one modified Longship design Douro River cruiser (Helgrim). Yes, you must use the entire voucher on one cruise -- and you must use it before you sail for cruise fare, gratutities, shorex or drinks package. This morning, we got the email that Italian Sojourn (Aug 1) has been cancelled, 125% voucher, yada yada. The company dedicated two longships, on which the primary onboard language is Mandarin. . But Keyles wasnt ready to accept such an offer. As we watched the COVID pandemic expand and followed the news about the cruise ship outbreaks, we knew we would not be going on our upcoming trip, Claire Keyles said. I still have not received their e-mail, I expect it will be in a day or two, so I will have to work with it and figure out how to shift the two weeks worth of hotel rooms and the Avalon cruise on Dec. 9. My Danube Waltz on 11-22-21 on the Embla is gone and my Viking Journey is locked. CC Help Jenn In May 2017, Viking celebrated its 20th anniversary. Beer, soft drinks and wine by the glass are included with lunches and dinners. I know a lot of this was not their fault and up till now I have been very pleased with how they were handling things, but this is just biting the hands that feed them! No phone person is going to give you anything but the party line. As part of the event, the Travelers hoping to enjoy a holiday voyage instead found themselves stranded off the Australian coast due to a fungus outbreak onboard Viking OCEAN's Townsville QLD (Queensland Australia) welcomed its first major cruise ship in 2+ years after Viking Cruises' ship Viking Orion visited the Port last 1 person died and 4 were injured after a giant wave broke several glass panels of an Antarctic Viking Cruises ship that was sailing south of Cape Viking Ocean Cruises announced it is taking US$1.5 billion in financing on 4 ships. This Arctic-themed facility is part of the ship's thermal suite (within the spa complex). At additional cost are only spa massages, beauty salon services; specialty beer, premium alcohol (wine and spirits), and some shore excursions. Each of the swimming pools is at a different temperature. Viking Cruise News: Expedition Cruise Ships To Have - Cruise Critic Viking's first river voyages in the USA had been highly anticipated when they were announced in April 2020, and a number of sailings have already sold out through the 2023 season. Viking refusing to refund given COVID risks! - Review of Viking Cruises (Viking's 2021 world cruise is scheduled to depart December 24.) Most passenger staterooms (189 total) are with French balconies, excluding only Deck 6's Suites (OS-Owner, ES-Explorer). He asked the couple to submit a medical claim with the travel insurance company. In 2017, Viking signed a sponsorship with National Geographic Society for shooting NatGeo's "Genius" (anthology series). Beginning on March 17, 2014, Viking christened 16 new boats over a 24-hour period, again setting an industry record. They are operated along the: All itineraries have at least one tour or guided shore excursion per day - all included in the fares. The final balance is due based on offer at 8-day "New Orleans and Southern Charm" roundtrip from New Orleans. I had an online chat with Viking yesterday, where he said that our cruise had not been cancelled (yet) and to check back in 24-48 hours when MVJ is back online. By. Viking Expeditions ships operate in Arctic-Antarctica, Great Lakes, USA and Canada), Viking Ocean (global). Started June 21, 2021, By Just looked it is still showing on the UK site but looking again at My Viking Journey I now get " Your booking is currently locked for updates. Departing on December 22, 2022, from Port Everglades (Fort Lauderdale Florida), Viking World Voyage 2022 visits ports in Central America, follows Panama Canal transit and sailing up North America's West Coast. Due to the COVID pandemic, Viking suspended passenger shipping operations fleetwide (ocean ships and riverboats worldwide) by canceling all voyages with pre-scheduled departures in the period March 12, 2020, through July 2021. In the wake of Austria imposing a country-wide lockdown as part of an effort to break a fourth wave of COVID-19 infections, river cruise lines in Europe have announced changes and cancellations to various itineraries, bringing the final weeks of 2021 to a sour close. Viking's Antarctic roundtrips are from homeport Ushuaia Argentina, with prices starting from USD 15,000 pp (fly-cruise packages from Buenos Aires with included overnight hotel stay prior departure and return flights to Europe-USA-Canada-Australia). Viking Shores and Fjords - SEPT 2021 - Cruise Critic Community Ok as I predicted, all sold out cruises have been dropped from Viking as of this morning. Wehad been locked out of MVJ for several days prior to this. The 65-day itinerary (March 2 through May 5, 2023, on Viking Octantis) visits 29 ports (9 countries, 3 continents) departs from Buenos Aires Argentina, visits the Antarctic Peninsula, continues northward around Cape Horn, along South America's coast (Chile, Peru, Ecuador), passes through Panama Canal, then up to Mexico, Florida USA, NYC New York, Canada (Nova Scotia and Quebec) and via St Lawrence River to Ontario and via Detroit MI, ending in Milwaukee WI. Here's how to cancel or postpone a cruise due to COVID-19 - MSN Provides us a link to sign up for notifications as they become available. When Will Cruises Resume? - US News & World Report I usually praise Viking but I think they should definitely offer a "lift and shift" maintaining the same price for a similar cruise to that which they have cancelled. This is a parallel situation I had a month ago when my Ukraine river cruise was cancelled just days after I paid the balance. I said on the Rhine (where it is in the middle) and meant to imply with other itineraries some on the Danube (where a section is almost in the middle). Today, 1/22/22 I contacted Viking Cruise lines about canceling a river cruise to France for this June, plenty of days before the cancellation date, and was told that I could not get ALL my money back. Scenic cruising: Mt Athos: On sea days, passengers will sail past Mt Athos, the "Holy Mountain" (UNESCO Site, the spiritual capital of Orthodox Christianity). CC Help Jenn This was the reason for modifying the parent company's name to "Viking Cruises". The new domestic travel brand (China Coastal Cruise Project) was scheduled for inauguration in 2021-Q1 with Viking Sun - transferred to the joint venture (news 8277). On 7/15 I got an email that said our cruise was going as scheduled. Disney Cruise Line . In April 2004 Viking expanded in China with cruise tours on Yangtze River. No idea about other rivers. https://www.vikingcruises.com/oceans/cruise-destinations/baltic/icelands-natural-beauty/pricing.html. The lack of communication is extremely disappointing! Thanks for the update! This ensures prime docking locations, easy passenger access and ability to walk into town directly. Ultimately she said that she would honor his statement, even if he wasnt authorized to make any offer to us, and would offer us a $500 cash settlement as a gesture of goodwill, Keyles said. Starting in 2018, Viking River Cruises is the first non-domestic company licensed to operate cruise ships on the Nile River in Egypt. However, due to ongoing travel restrictions in Europe and the USA, as well as Canada's and Australia's ban on cruise shipping, Viking canceled the entire 2020 program (river+ocean) in mid-August. Disappointed with Viking Cruises cancellation policy. MV Viking Star became world's ever-first ocean ship with a "snow room". The reason for. Pricing starts at US$4,000 per person with discounted airfare. It imposes restrictions on where USA-based ships can navigate and how to be staffed. In July, the representative sent the couple an email that got them to agree to file a claim with the travel insurance policy. Viking Cruises - Ships and Itineraries 2023, 2024, 2025 - CruiseMapper During the 2015 christening, 8 longships were in Amsterdam. We are bookedon the Viking Kari Aug 25th Paris to Normandy sail. . The liners will be developed by VARD Design (Norway) with hulls constructed in Romania (. I just paid for a cruise using a voucher. I am sure I will get the dreaded e-mail today or tomorrow. Thessaloniki, Greece is the 2nd-largest city in the country and offers a mix of modern life and ancient culture. Aula Auditorium (Deck 2 aft) is a glass-walled auditorium (with tiered seating) hosting lectures, media presentations, itinerary-themed port talks, live entertainment programs. The snow on the floor is kept at sub-freezing temperatures. The ship design features several spacious open-deck areas, including Promenade Deck and bow-located Observation Deck (forward on Lounge Deck). 10 more were launched in 2013, and additional 18 launched in 2014 (including 2 smaller ships purpose-built for Douro River in Portugal). Traditionally for an expedition vessel, each Viking Expeditions ship has its own fleet of inflatable Zodiacs (speedboats used for passenger tendering and shoreside cruising), rigid-hulled inflatable boats (large-capacity unsinkable boat with a rigid bottom) and sea-kayaks. Its always still sailinguntil its cancelled. Viking Ocean's port agent for China is Wallem Ship Agency China. Viking River Cruises - Cancelation of cruises - ComplaintsBoard.com Journey with the world's #1 river cruise line. Compared to similar-class vessels operated by other companies, Viking OCEAN itineraries feature fewer sea days, longer port stays and many overnight ports of call. In the mid-1990s, the company's founder, Torstein Hagen enjoyed a river cruise in Russia and was so excited that decided to create his own river cruising company. Passengers can experience the exciting scenery of Meteora, with its medieval monasteries, or explore the religious center of Dion, situated on the foothills of Mt Olympus. Pax Global Media. Viking Ocean Cruises was voted Best Large-Ship Ocean Cruise Line by Travel + Leisure readers in the 2016 World's Best Awards. A visit to a Nubian village is also included. Viking River Cruises holds 1/2 of North America's market. Aft-located (at the stern) indoor-outdoor pool deck lounge (Aquavit Terrace) with 3 infinity pools - positioned side by side and covered by a retractable glass roof. All affected bookings received a 125% refund in FCC (future cruise credit) with rebooking or 100% monetary refund. Deliveries were scheduled for 2026 and 2027 (2x units) and 2028 (2x units). The next day, they got a phone call. Changed to Aug 29. Posted elsewhere, but we received our official cancellation email this am from Viking for our Oct 4 Trade Routes Bergen to Barcelona. We reached out to the company to ask it to reconsider, especially because some of its customers did indeed receive full refunds. Viking's main competitors on the US market are American Cruise Lines and American Queen Voyages (fka AQSC). Century Legend and Century Paragon are the Yangtze River cruise ships in China. Viking's Canada cruises visit NYC New York, Halifax NS, Gulf of St Lawrence (scenic cruising, Cape Breton National Park), Charlottetown (Prince Edward Island), Magdalen Islands Quebec (scenic cruising), Cap-aux-Meules (Quebec), Sept-Iles Quebec, Saguenay Quebec (zodiac cruising through Saguenay Fjord), Quebec City, Trois-Rivieres Quebec, Montreal Quebec, Seaway Locks (transit to Lake Ontario), Toronto Ontario. But on Mar 11 (9 days later), a notice on Viking site stating all cruises cancelled and offering full refund or 125% voucher and refund if not used in 2 years. Note: "Longship" is a new patented ship design. Environmental impact is further reduced through the ship's membrane water treatment plant. The new ship was scheduled to start operations with a World Cruise 2022-2023. Debuting in June 2023, the 15-day Great Lakes Collection itinerary is due to sail between Toronto (Ontario Canada) - Duluth MN (Minnesota USA), providing passengers with a complete view of the region and call ports in all 5 Great Lakes. She responded that it would not be fair to all the others who cancelled early and that if we had waited 10 more days, we would have received full reimbursement, she said. Via this exclusive partnership, on every voyage scientists from the Institute undertake on the ship and also share with the cruisers their expertise. LauraS On March 22, 2015, Amsterdam (Holland) witnessed the naming ceremony of 12 longships. This looks to me like a lot of cruises that they have been taking reservations for and collecting payment for may be cancelled. The Viking riverboats Ra-Osiris-Aton cruise only on the Nile portion (roundtrip from Luxor). Unless the low water area is more-or-less in the middle of the route, this practice doesnt enable ship swaps. Viking's Arctic cruises visit Tromso Norway, Svalbard Islands Norway, Polar Ice Cap (scenic cruising), Spitsbergen Island (Barentsburg, Smeerenburg, Barentsburg, Alicehamna/Alice Harbour, Hornsund, Nordfjorden, Liefdefjorden), Bjornoya (Bear Island), Barents Sea (cruising). Viking's Great Lakes cruises visit ports and destinations in Canada's Ontario state (Thunder Bay, Toronto, Welland Canal, Niagara Falls, Point Pelee NP) and the USA's Minnesota-Michigan-Wisconsin states (Detroit MI, Alpena MI, Mackinac Island MI in Lake Huron, Apostle Islands WI, Houghton MI on Lake Superior, Traverse City MI, Milwaukee WI on Lake Michigan, Duluth MN) and feature passing through Soo Locks at Sault Ste Marie (Lake Superior - Lake Huron transition). And while the travel vouchers are good for 24 months, given the state of the pandemic, the couples medical conditions and age, they didnt think they would be traveling any time soon. All excursion programs ashore are organized by Viking River Cruises. Oh, sorry to read that. Copyright 19952023 The Independent Traveler, Inc. Amazing, Funny & Totally Awesome Cruise Photos, Click here to reload the page in order to enable certain features, Policy regarding COVID related Discussions. Next is the Viking Yangtze River (China) cruise itinerary map that shows all ports locations (along Yangtze River) as well as the domestic flight connections (Beijing-Xian-Chongqing and Shanghai-Wuhan). It is of course for low water scenarios, I did not say that explicitly. Cruise Lines Begin to Cancel Sailings Further Into 2021 The Risk-Free Guarantee allows guests to change their cruise date up until 14 days before their planned departureand Viking will waive any fees.