Bilbo

You, like I, need to get out more.

Didn't you know that the yanks have piles of disposal income?

Last October we were in the Turks and Caicos which are owned by us but overrun by Americans. I passed an Estate agents and saw a beautiful villa for £130,000, I wandered in and mooted the possibility of viewing.

The agent asked me how many weeks I would be interested in.

Weeks? I said. I want to buy it........for £130,000.

I had to crawl out looking very shabby as they told me that was the weekly rental.

You don't have that problem in Morecambe!!!

"Good service is hard to find, and too many people make mistakes."

That's piffle, NYC food blob.

At the higher end, training and customer awareness unbelievably attentive. We've stayed at Thai hotels where the staff bring you ice cool towels at the slightest sign of you glowing.

I've had hotel staff come out by launch and advise us that the anchor holding was not good in a certain area of the bay just off their hotel.

I've come across hotel managers who drive to the airport to return the phone that you've left in the room prior to departure. They retain your flight number to know what time you fly.

I agree most of the world doesn't give a damn but when you pay $10,000s for a cruise, it comes with expectations.

Nycsnob , first you have no idea how much money i have , but i perhaps value it differently than some , 15000 dollars is not the kind of money i personally would spend on a week , but if i chose to, i could. The point was i am careful with my money so i do researh and due diligence when spending it, i am grateful to have everything i want in life and do not take my earnings for granted.

I suppose some folks need to advertize their wealth to feel good about themselves, i have never understood buying a 1000 dollar pair of shoes when a 100 dollar pair could do fine. That is my feeling but need not be others but lets get straight what op is upset about and what i am commenting on.

Op wasted 15000 because they CHOSE to let a bad flight arrangement color their entire vacation.

Its like a bride who says her wedding was ruined becasue the florist sent tulips instead gardenias.

Secondly the op did not appear to really lose out money ( not much anywyas) they lost some time and ease, but i would never allow a small loss like that affect my entire vacation. Seems wimpy and glass half empty to me.

The complaint should really be directed to the issue , bad flight arrangements( which none of us even know for certain was Vikings fault or a miscommunication) .

I wonder how the actual cruise was ?(which is where the bulk of the investment was)

If the good doctor returns to this post, I'd be interested in what flight arrangements the three other couples from Savannah made?

Did they also book flights thru Viking, or make independent plans?

<i><font color=#555555>"you have no idea how much money i have"</font></i>

And nor do I care. Your quote speaks volumes, though.

Hey British Caicos, don't feel bad. We stopped in Florida at a community under development (not near the water) with prices starting in the mid 200s. Turned out that was for the building site!

Weeks? I said. I want to buy it........for £130,000.

I had to crawl out looking very shabby as they told me that was the weekly rental.

You don't have that problem in Morecambe!!!>>

there they pay you to take it off their hands!

Snob's comment is the best comment of the day.
Coming from a wealthy businesswoman who comes to all the threads mentioning money we finally learn she doesn't care about money.
Maybe she is a commie too.

I had a similar problem when I used a well-known OTA (it was my last time using said OTA - online travel agency.) In that case I wanted to use email but was required by the OTA to do all business regarding itinerary changes by phone. Long story short, the whole matter ended up a fiasco - a rather predictable state of affairs, given the insistence on oral communication. I ended up having to contact a consumer ombudsman to resolve it. Now I try to avoid middlemen as much as possible.

OP, as you have discovered, simply specifying 'Savannah to Amsterdam business class for the cheapest price' is not enough. Sometimes, there is a good reason why a flight itinerary is priced more cheaply. It is also a good idea, as I discovered, to book directly with the airline wherever possible, so that in the event of difficulty you can deal directly with any agent of the airline as opposed to being obliged to try and get ahold of the middleman to handle the problem for you, be it Viking or any kind of travel agent.

Chalk it up to experience and try not to let it affect your trip, or your more positive memories of same.

Nyc it was in reply to your snotty jab. I should have said " you have no idea how much money i have...or don't have" so why dont you just go have intercourse with yourself, god knows no one else wants to.

<i><font color=#555555>"why dont you just go have intercourse with yourself, god knows no one else wants to."</font></i>

What a kind, thoughtful, generous human being. And she has the audacity to malign Paris by adding it to her username. What a selfish troll.

Wow I think having active mods is not a bad thing..at least crap like that would be gone

justine: >>The complaint should really be directed to the issue , bad flight arrangements( which none of us even know for certain was Vikings fault or a miscommunication) .<<

I thought that was what it was about. Picking out a phrase or two about a ruined vaca and contending that's what the post is about just isn't correct. And I assume people who post are telling the accurate story. If I assumed they weren't, there would be no point in reading any recommendation or complaint.

This is common sense..you want exact flights book on your own..you want what they tell you is a great deal on business class fare you take what they give you..simple. I am 100% sure that is the way the contract reads they cannot guarantee what seats the airline gives them..the passengers agreed to this by taking this option. Frankly anyone spending that kind of money on a cruise should know better. Also it is not uncommon for you to get same deal calling the airline on your own..have to check all options.

I did spend $16,000 on a Viking cruise and felt I received good value and had a great trip.

That was for my wife and I, along with my 2 20 something daughters in the next room, in the cheapest cabins.
2 week cruise, Amsterdam to Budapest, including coach airfare from NYC.

Booked 2 months before sailing after receiving an e-mail from them. But yeah, you get the fancy cabin, 2 balcony, yadda yadda. It costs crazy. A lady was griping about they spent so much for their cabin, why couldn't they get the front row of the bus every time? Never, ever happy. Us, very happy.

I was fine in steerage.

Nysnob , nope, i am never selfish, and defentinately not a troll ( do wish some of you older folks actually knew the definition of the word when used to malign someones elses postings)

Snobby you stick rude snobbish jabs in most of your posts and i have no tome for your snide remarks, i am blunter perhaps than some can endure , but its better than being a snake.

Ps i am not so sure New York is delighted to be attached to your screen name...and not sure why one would choose to use the word " snob" so proudly when describing oneself in any way.


As for OPs post/ complaint, honestly it comes under much ado about not very much . If the cruise itself was unacceptable for some reason i might be more persuaded to avoid Viking, but this compliant ( which btw posters like OP never come back to ) annoys me as it is really not clear from this second hand account who is to blame( op did not make booking his wife did) and the hyperbole shown claiming an entire holiday ruined over a bad flight is ridiculus.

If i choose to post a compliant or rant than i would not run away from clarification. I dont like boards being used to make anno. complaints , i think one needs to be wary .

It is to be noted that the good doctor never came back to his thread.

<<It is to be noted that the good doctor never came back to his thread.>>

Yes, but with justine and NYC FS fully engaged, that's now irrelevant.

The good doctor did not come back which was a 50-50 proposition at the outset. But now he has filed formal charges with his state Medical Ethics Committee against us for abuse.

LOL, laverendrye!