Cruise
Viking Octantis – We Set Sail
Article and photography by Michael Morcos
In this second part of a two-part article, we set sail for the best of the Caribbean islands where we would start in Barbados and end our journey in New York City. Along the way, we would frequent the beautiful tropical islands of St. Lucia, Saint Kitts, Saint Barts, Virgin Gorda of the British Virgin Islands, San Juan, Puerto Rico and then after three days at sea end our journey in mid-town Manhattan, New York City.
This Viking itinerary is called the ‘Caribbean Connections’ , and is considered more as a repositioning cruise, as the Viking Octantis spends its winter in the southern hemisphere sailing from Ushuala, Argentina to Antarctica, while it’s summers are on the USA and Canada Great Lakes. This is quite the journey, as the Octantis heads from the South Pole to the interior of North America by travelling by Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, the Caribbean, the north-east of the USA, maritime Canada and the St Lawrence Seaway. In 2023, the Octantis will journey from the Great Lakes while still visiting a limited itinerary in the Caribbean and will instead pass through the Panama Canal and visit the western countries of South America including the Galapagos Islands, Peru and Chile.
More exciting news from Viking is that the Polaris will be joining its sister ship the Octantis on similar itineraries in North and South America to discover the best of these two fantastic continents in comfort and style!
In the first part of our article (still posted on our website and found on our online eMagazine kiosk) we talked about the incredible advanced technologically of the Octantis, it’s fabulous, modern décor, spotless service by the crew, the beautiful and functional cabins, delicious meal options, and the many spacious public areas.
So now, let the sailing begin.
Saint Lucia
Having left Bridgetown, Barbados we headed north on an overnight sailing and in the morning found ourselves viewing the incredible and iconic UNESCO site of the Deux Pitons of Saint Lucia. What a sight to behold as these two mountain peaks jet majestically out from the ocean. After a good night’s sleep and a tasty breakfast, we headed to the Viking tailored tour of the island. It started with a Gros Piton hike where we encountered many friendly and laid-back locals and viewed unique flora and fauna of the region. Twisting and turning and climbing ever higher, we would reach a spectacular view of the other Piton, the surrounding island of Saint Lucia, the beautiful blue sea, beaches, and a fabulous view of the amazing Octantis. This was a great start to our journey.
St Kitts
Hats off to Viking. Our original itinerary included Montserrat but due to pandemic restrictions we would have to skip this island and, with the good work of the crew, we instead visited the island of Saint Kitts which is part of St. Kitts & Nevis. Our options for this country were varied but we chose to chill out on Saint Kitts’ gorgeous sandy beaches. It was a quiet time, sitting under a beach umbrella, taking dips in the gentle and warm waters of the ocean, catching up on reading while sipping local and imported refreshments. We could have gone sea kayaking but opted out as the view from our beach lounge chairs was exactly what the doctor ordered. This would be our second day and, needless to say, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and upon returning to the Octantis, we had a whole slew of things to do like using the spa and exercise room as well as indulging in supper and drinks.
Gustavia, St. Barts
Saint Barts is like a piece of France in the Caribbean. French language and culture are dominant and a stroll on Gustavia’s main street reflects what you might find on the Champs-Élysées as evidenced by the high-end luxury brand stores. The beautiful harbor was filled with a multitude of boats that included expensive super yachts and the streets were lined with high-end luxury cars that gave proof that this is an opulent island for the rich and famous. Very neat, proper and well-kept, this French paradise is special to the Caribbean and a good sight different to the many other Caribbean islands and a stark contrast to places like Cuba and the Dominican Republic. In this overseas French department, we especially loved the small boutiques that had unique and charming decoration ideas that we brought home as a reminder of this beautiful destination. On our trip back to the Octantis, I could not help but think that this was a remarkable cruise, to be on this magnificent ship and to tour these wonderful destinations.
Virgin Gorda, BVI
This being our first cruise through the Caribbean, we would be treated to many different island destinations. This statement would be proven true through our visit to Virgin Gorda in the archipelago of the British Virgin Islands. As an included tour with Viking, we started our discoveries on a bus that took us along the highroad that circumnavigates the whole island. The many stops along the way gave us spectacular views of neighboring islands, including the private islands of Sir Richard Branson, he was well set up to say the least. For us, the greatest highlight of this day was a visit the baths at the Devils Bay National Park. Here we would take a path towards the shoreline lined with many incredible rock formations and small pools of water that were ankle to knee deep. This is one remarkable adventure having to negotiate through caves and ascend and descend the terrain. For us, the most memorable of all was Devils Bay beach. Having visited many tropical paradises around the world, including the outstanding beaches of South-East Asia, the Devils Bay beach was like a beautiful dream, one of the best I have ever visited. Not a big beach, it was framed by massive natural boulders on both sides with clear aqua-blue waters and amazing fine sand. With blue skies, the sun shining bright, and a gentle breeze blowing, a dip into the warm salt waters led us to bliss, there wasn’t a worry in the world!
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Another day and another new island visit. This time we would be visiting Puerto Rico, the last one on Vikings itinerary of the Caribbean before heading to the open ocean towards New York City. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the city of San Juan is modern looking and well built up, and the island as a whole looked prosperous. We would leave the metropolitan area to head to the rainforest for a relaxing morning of horseback riding through lush greenery and discover the best of natural settings in Puerto Rico. We were taken to another beautiful location with lush forests to observe the flora and fauna and have time to dip our feet in refreshing mountain streams as well as by local food and refreshments at a wooden style food stand. All in all, we would experience yet another dimension of the beautiful Caribbean.
New York City
Having visited New York City many times, our approach by sea would give us a totally new perspective of the big Apple. At the break of dawn, it seemed like most of the ship’s passengers were up early and standing at the aft of the ship for our approach to New York. First came the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, shortly afterwards, as the sun would rise, we would have an amazing view of the Statue of Liberty on the horizon lit up in golden hues. The skyscrapers of Manhattan stood out spectacularly and the whole view was an incredible sight to behold and a memorable way to conclude our cruise on the Octantis.
Of all the cruises we have been on, we could easily say this just might be our favorite one. The itinerary and tours were perfect and very well planned by Viking. And the Octantis was the star that made the journey complete. Having said all that, the major purpose of this expedition ship is the challenging aspects of cruising through the Antarctic. We are hopeful that one day we will have that unique experience with Viking and journey to the ends of the world.
