In This Issue

  • What Do You Do with 8 Sea Days?
  • The Print Compass Name/Address Glitch
  • New Itinerary Highlight: Iconic Western Europe
  • October 2025 Specials
  • Guess Where We Are? Contest Winner
  • New Contest: Solve This Riddle!
  • Join us on Explora Journeys, February 24-March 3, 2026
  • EES for European Countries
  • Update on UK and European Union Visas
  • Links to Past Newsletters
  • The Last Laugh


What Do You Do with 8 Sea Days?

However, between Kodiak and Sapporo, Japan were 8 sea days. I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about that much time on the water, but it turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip.

First, of course, there’s the food. Viking always does a great job with variety—whether it’s room service, the Restaurant, the World Café, Chef’s Table, Mamsen’s or Manfredi’s. Afternoon tea in the Wintergarden became a favorite, complete with live music and scones, tea sandwiches and a variety of sweet treats. They also added in some impressive and fun themed meals, such as a Taste of India (the chef was from there), a Tex-Mex lunch, an absolutely amazing brunch spread, and even a make-your-own ice cream sundae bar.

​We traveled with three other couples, so meals could be extended to really visit with our friends and family. Some of my favorite moments were simply sitting around the table talking about what we’d each done that day, plans for the future, or just relaxing and enjoying an extra cup of tea or cappuccino because we weren’t in any rush.

Of course, after all that eating, it felt good to balance it with some movement. The gym has big windows overlooking the ocean, so you can walk the treadmill while keeping an eye out for dolphins and then enjoy time in the spa after a good workout. Cherise liked the hot tub on the Aquavit Terrace, and one day in Valdez we enjoyed it with mountains in the background.

Viking also keeps things light and fun—we had a great Program Director who taught guests how to do the Charleston, and later pulled together a passenger choir that performed for everyone. Games were another draw, with trivia competition attended by those that were not only knowledgeable, but seriously competitive! Another guest favorite was Baggo, which pitted guests against the Viking officers as to who could get the most points hitting the targets at the bottom of the stairs. It was great fun watching everyone enjoy the competition.

The enrichment side of things was just as good. There were lectures from historians, naturalists, and astronomers, plus a planetarium show at night (on our Orion and also Viking Jupiter ships.) Workshops included everything from how to use binoculars to spot wildlife or various types of Japanese birds. One session was an Officer’s Q&A session with the Captain, Chief Engineer and General Manager.


Here were some of the questions asked:

  • How they came to work for Viking (stories varied, of course) and how Viking promotes to the top positions (they usually rise up in the ranks, and the General Manager was once in the kitchen wait staff.)
  • How long their contracts were (which vary, about three-four months for the Captain with one-two months off. For most of the crew, it's a six-month contract and two months at home.)
  • Can family come with them (yes, for some officers, such as the Captain, they can bring a family member if they have a single cabin, but no children under 18!)
  • What do they do with all the leftover food (they put it in the garbage and send it to the Chief Engineer). Then the Chief Engineer said they have composters onboard that pulverize the food, then when they are a minimum of 12 nautical miles offshore, it becomes fish food.)
  • Why are there itinerary changes from what is on the original schedule? (While Viking tries to alert guests as soon as they are told of itinerary changes, they are not usually told the reason behind them. Sometimes there are local regulations that cause the changes, such as if they have too many ships in port, and weather disturbances that prevent docking safely.)

If you enjoy crafts, you could join others working on projects they brought from home or try a new craft in a Viking-led workshop. I stopped by to see these industrious ladies and commented on one who was tatting. I mentioned that my grandmother used to do all types of handwork, including tatting. She had made me a Christmas snowflake, and someone discarded it with our Christmas tree one year. She promptly pulled out this beautiful star and gave it to me to remind me of her!

If you wanted something lower key, there were always puzzles set up, game tables with cribbage, bridge, and mahjong, or you could just settle in with a book and nap in between chapters. Some afternoons I simply walked laps on Deck 8, especially at sunset, which was hard to beat.

One of the most entertaining activities was the ship-building competition. Guests had to make boats from recyclable materials found onboard. The test was whether they would float, and then whether they could hold six cans of soda without tipping. The captain, general manager, and chief engineer served as judges, and the whole thing was hilarious to watch, and the creativity was amazing!

And of course, sea days are also a great time to think ahead. Viking has some great deals when booking your next cruise while you’re on board, and it’s always fun to leave with another trip on the calendar.

Looking back, I realized I never once felt bored during those eight days. Between the food, activities, learning, and downtime, they ended up being some of the best parts of the trip!

The Print Compass Name/Address Glitch 

Thanks to all of you who emailed that there was an incorrect name added to your correct mailing address on our print Compass newsletter.

We’re not sure what happened in the world of technology, as I’ve been sending out these newsletters for about four years and that has never happened before. The only thing we can think of is in the sorting, the name field tripped over the address line and causing a lot of confusion. (Some of you even ended up with new spouses – yikes!)

Be assured that this information mix-up is unique to the print Compass only. It doesn’t at all impact any information Viking has about you or your upcoming vacation.

Hopefully this random glitch is just that – a one-time, head-scratching anomaly.

Thanks for your understanding!

New Itinerary Highlight: Iconic Western Europe 

The new Viking itineraries and this month we're highlighting Iconic Western Europe (19 days, Barcelona to London). This sails in September in 2026 (sold out), April and September in 2027, and March, April and June in 2028.

Why should you be thinking of 2027 and 2028? Because Viking guests know:

  • Prices tend to increase each month as the sailing gets closer to departure
  • The best shoreside staterooms go first
  • Overall ability shrinks (2026 is sold out)
  • $25 per person deposit solves all of the above problems!

Plus, if you have an existing reservation, we can extend final payment to six months prior to departure!

October 2025 Special Offers​

As always, we’re going to bring you the best deals and unadvertised promotions. Here are the latest offers for October. (Only available by contacting us at Carol@ImagineGoingThere.com...special pricing will not show on the website!)

(These offers are only available as capacity allows,

​and can be withdrawn at any time, so act fast!!)

Free International Airfare + $1,000 SBC per stateroom


Pharaohs & Pyramids (12 Days, Cairo to Cairo)
Starts at $6,999; Jan: 16, 23, 30; Feb: 6, 13, 20, 27; Mar: 6, 13, 20, 27; Apr: 3, 10, 17, 24 2027 - Jan: 1, 8, 15, 22, 29; Feb: 5, 12, 19, 26; Mar: 5, 12, 19, 26; Apr: 2, 9, 16, 23, 30

Magnificent Mekong River Cruise (15 Days, Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City)
Starts at $6,999; Jan: 2, 9, 16, 23, 30; Feb: 6, 13, 20, 27; Mar: 6, 13, 20, 27 2027 - Jan: 2, 9, 16, 23, 30; Feb: 6, 13, 20, 27; Mar: 6, 13, 20, 27

Free Stateroom Upgrades, Free International Airfare* & Included Gratuities on these Ocean sailings 2025-2026; Offer expires Oct 5th

Jewels of Japan & China (15 Days, Beijing to Tokyo; or Tokyo to Beijing)
Starts at $5,999; Nov: 14

Australia & New Zealand (15 days, Sydney to Auckland)
Starts at $6,799; Dec: 14, 28

Cities of Antiquity (15 Days, Rome to Athens)
Starts at $3,999; Dec: 7; 2026 - Jan: 28

Greek Odyssey (11 days, round-trip Athens)
Starts at $3,999; 2026 - Feb: 17, 25

Iconic Western Mediterranean (8 Days, Barcelona to Rome)
Starts at $2,799; 2026 - Jan: 3, 4, 12, 13

Journey to Antiquities (8 days, Rome to Athens)
Starts at $2,599; Dec: 30; 2026 - Jan: 11; Feb: 5, 10, 27

Malta, Morocco & the Mediterranean (16 days, Barcelona to Barcelona)