Viking Expedition Nordic Balcony Junior Suite Review | Is It Worth the Price?

[@Eatsleepcruise1]

How much are you willing to pay for upgraded accommodations on a cruise?

[@alanmoore2197]

You aren't paying only for the upgraded accommodations - you are paying for a small, luxury, all inclusive expedition ship with unusual itineraries, with shore and ocean activities including submarine excursions. You do need to put the price in that context. This is not just a typical cruise.

[@johnfitzgerald6746]

$25k PP for a two week voyage seems very high. I like to look at the daily cost when evaluating a cruise or land vacation. $50k for a 14 day cruise works out to almost $3,600 per day. Ouch! My wife and I are booked on the Viking Octantis this fall for a 40 day cruise to Antarctica from NYC also in a Nordic Junior Suite on deck 4. Our fare is $46,495 PP which works out to $2,325 per day. (We also earned an early booking discount of $4,500 each which brings our daily cost to $2,090 per day for both of us.) Personally, I wouldn't go higher that $2,500 per day for any vacation.

[@Eatsleepcruise1]

Thanks for sharing the price breakdown. Interesting analysis.

[@KSguitarmusic]

Really tempted to do one of the Great Lakes cruises, but I just have a hard time accepting the fact that - for the high cost - there's no "real" balcony. One of my favorite parts of cruising is having that private space on the outside of the ship. Yes, you can put down the window in these rooms, but that also invites the bugs, etc. into the living space. So I'm very torn on doing this or going with another ocean cruise instead. One of the first things I do when I get in the (balcony) room on any ship, is to go out on the balcony and look around (even while still in dock)! I'm just worried that I''d really miss that part of it since DW and I use the balcony alot. Somehow standing at the window just doesn't seem the same as sitting out on a real balcony.

[@daryllafferty]

We are booked in this exact same suite (4026) on the Octantis later this year, so this was especially interesting for us. Expensive, yes, but Antarctica is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity so we "bit the bullet". We haven't cruised for a couple of years due to COVID and my wife's hip replacement, so averaged out over 3 years, it's not so expensive! 🙂

[@daryllafferty]

My mistake: We are in 4028, but it should be identical. I noted that Viking lists 4026 as "wheelchair accessible", but it didn't look that way in your video.

[@danielnewgarden4708]

Just wondering about how you and your wife enjoyed the cruise given her hip replacement. I am considering taking my mom on the Antarctic Adventures cruise and she has some mobility issues (nothing major, just a little bit of bad balance and she’s on the heavier side) and I want to make sure that she’ll be able to enjoy the cruise as much as possible. I hope you two had/have a great trip!

[@daryllafferty]

@@danielnewgarden4708 We haven't gone yet, we leave home on December 24th for the December 26th cruise. But my wife's hip has healed wonderfully, she can easily walk for a couple of miles with no pain, limping or any other problems. I'm sure she will be fine

[@daryllafferty]

My wife did fine on the cruise. Her recovery from her hip replacement went extremely well. She can easily walk 2-3 miles without any pain. But a couple of things to keep in mind: To fully enjoy the cruise your wife will need to be able to climb down into a Zodiak boat. The crew will help with this, and there were people heavier and less agile than my wife doing OK, but something to think about. There was a lot of fairly deep snow in places (maybe 18") and it's easy to lose your balance if you are not used to walking through snow. And there are weight and strength limits for the submarine . Viking does have easier excursions than walking through snow or climbing into a Zodiac. There is another boat (I forget what it is called) that you can just step into from the ship. This boat cruises around to see whatever you can without getting off. I'm sure she would have no trouble with this, but you should reserve as early as you can. We had one reservation, but excursions were cancelled that day because of weather, and we were unable to schedule another time. Fortunately we didn't really miss it because we did several Zodiak excursions. Over all, this was the best cruise we have ever been on. Amazing scenery. Once in a lifetime.

[@ghabicht8586]

I am taking a Viking Neptune cruise in2026 for their northern light Norway destination. Wondering if anyone has taken this type of cruise and tips tricks advice. First Viking cruise.

[@Eatsleepcruise1]

We have done a few Viking Ocean cruises, but not to Norway. But, all Viking Ocean ships are essentially the same. Have you sailed with any other cruise line?

[@thomess]

Hi, completely a newbie here when it comes to cruise. I was planning to go on my first cruise trip. There were a few things that I wanted clarity on. I was thinking of Aida cruises from Germany. 1. Is the food included on the cruise ticket ? 2. There's quite some price difference if we choose the cabin and the provider chooses the cabin. What's the catch here If the provider is choosing for me. 3. Do we get wifi in the cruises for free or is that a paid feature ? Thanks in advance !!

[@Eatsleepcruise1]

We have never sailed with Aida, but in general there are usually a variety of complimentary dining options. Of course, there are usually also some specialty restaurants that will cost money (like steakhouses, etc.), but you don't have to pay to eat here if you don't want to. When the provider chooses your cabin, you usually won't know the room assignment until right before the cruise. If you have a preference to where on the ship you would like to stay then you should pick the room. We have opted for the lower fare on many occasions, and it's worked out fine as well. Finally, WiFi is usually an extra cost unless you are sailing with a more luxury cruise line like Viking. Again, not 100% sure about Aida specifically though.

[@texasboy5117]

The cheapest room is 15K PP and this is one of the most expensive places to visit. At 25K PP is very expensive but for an extra 10K PP it might be worth it for a special once in a lifetime trip. We would go with a few extra thousand more for a mid range room. (16K PP)

[@Eatsleepcruise1]

Yes, sometimes the extra money is worth it.

[@tyranyperry3910]

nice

[@Eatsleepcruise1]

It was a great cabin! Thanks for watching.

[@TM-li7bl]

50k…., cost of a car 😳🙄