Viking Mars Magnificent Panama Canal & Central America Cruise
Contributor Jackie Sheckler Finch recounts her Viking Mars experience, sailing through the Panama Canal and Central American ports.
When I first boarded Viking Mars and stepped into the ladies’ room, I thought a window must be open. I heard birds singing.
But the bathroom has no window. Instead, the music of seabird songs is piped in for the pleasure of passengers.
That is a very small thing, perhaps, but it is all the big and small things together that make Viking such a standard for cruising excellence. I’d like to share some of those special touches that I discovered on my 15-day “Panama Canal & Central America” cruise.
Viking Cruises Founder Torstein Hagen’s Vision
Launched in 2022 as Viking’s seventh ocean ship, the 14-deck Viking Mars has a capacity of 930 guests. We had 849 guests on our cruise. And Viking has the boarding process down to perfection. Walk on board. No long lines. Head to the delicious lunch buffet. Stateroom ready with a cabin attendant greeting us.
Viking vessels are realizing the vision Viking Chairman and Founder Torstein Hagen conceived in 1997. He envisioned creating adults-only ships for “Exploring the World in Comfort” for “The Thinking Person” who appreciates Viking’s cultural and historical focus.
Let’s start with what Viking Mars doesn’t have:
- No casino
- No interior staterooms
- No zooming slides, soaring rides and water parks
- No children under 18 allowed
- No fees to dine in alternative restaurants (Except for The Kitchen Table, where passengers help the executive chef prepare their dinner)
- No art auctions
- No photographers trying to sell photos
- No pushy spa staff bugging you to buy expensive products
- No decks devoted to multiple shops (Viking Mars has three shops)
- No fee to use the spa and workout center
And What’s Included in the Cruise Fare:
- Every stateroom has a balcony
- Complimentary wine, beer and soft drinks at lunch and dinner
- Complimentary shore excursions at every port
- Free Wi-Fi
- Coffee, tea and bottled water at all times
- Daily afternoon tea at no charge
- Multiple no-extra-charge restaurants
- Free self-serve laundry
- Free use of computer stations
- Port taxes and fees
Also on More Time To Travel
Packing for a Viking Ocean Cruise: What Not To Pack
Cruising Roundtrip Out of Fort Lauderdale
Shortly after we boarded the ship, I chatted with a couple from Texas. Matt and Eleanor were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary and had long dreamed of taking a Viking ocean cruise.
What worried them was the thought that all Viking ocean cruises sail from some far-away port. Matt and Eleanor couldn’t face the drudgery and expense of a long overseas flight to board the ship and then to fly home at the end of the cruise.
They were surprised to discover that Viking has cruises in America – the Mississippi River on the Viking Mississippi ship, to be exact – and round-trip from other American ports, like the ocean cruise we are on, round-trip from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Our Panama Canal & Central America Itinerary
Our Panama Canal & Central America itinerary was a pleasing combination of cruising days and port stops. Our first stop was Montego Bay in Jamaica, followed by Colon in Panama, the Panama Canal, Puerto Limon in Costa Rica, Roatan in Honduras, Belize City in Belize, and Cozumel in Mexico.
Each port stop had interesting shore excursions, some with no extra charge and others with reasonable charges. One of my favorites was Rose Hall Great House, an elegant late 18th-century Georgian mansion in Montego Bay, Jamaica.
But the reason most visitors want to visit Rose Hall is to hear the story of Annie Palmer, the “White Witch” of Rose Hall, whose voodoo powers supposedly murdered three husbands and an unknown number of slaves.
Karma caught up with Annie when the White Witch of Haiti murdered the grandniece of a former slave named Takeo. In revenge, Takeo strangled Annie. She is supposedly buried in a tomb on the grounds, but legend says her ghost roams free at Rose Hall. Truth or fiction?
Annie was once immortalized in the 1970s song “The Ballad of Annie Palmer” by Johnny Cash.
Johnny and June Carter Cash lived in nearby Cinnamon Hill Great House for about 40 years and were revered for their generosity and friendship.
Warm ‘Hygge’ Atmosphere on Viking Mars
Viking cruises strongly reflect the Nordic heritage of founder Torstein Hagen. The ship’s décor features understated elegance and modern Scandinavian design, with light woods, clean lines, neutral-hued fabrics, leather, high ceilings and plenty of natural light.
Birch tree sculptures and arrangements from nature take the place of artificial plants.
Cushions and warm blankets are everywhere, even in the Star Theater. The cushions showcase the faces of famous Scandinavian actors such as Marlene Dietrich and Greta Garbo. Flip the cushion over to see the star’s signature.
Books on a wide variety of subjects are plentiful. Finding something to read is easy. Just pick up a book. You don’t have to check it out; just read and return.
The whole atmosphere aboard Viking Mars reminds me of the Scandinavian concept of hygge – creating a warm space and enjoying the good things in life with good people. Being content and living in the moment.
My Deluxe Veranda Stateroom on Viking Mars
Opening the door to my cruise home-away-from-home, I felt a thoughtful touch that let me know my stateroom would have considerate extras, part of the Viking luxury philosophy.
The stateroom’s opening door handle was covered in leather, like most handrails on the ship. A small thing, perhaps, but a hint at all that Viking does to make passengers comfortable and happy.
One of my favorite stateroom features was the 270-square-foot private veranda with two chairs and a table. But then all 465 staterooms on Viking Mars have verandas.
Another item I really liked was the mini-fridge, which was stocked with six cans of complimentary soft drinks and two bottles of tonic water, along with snack candy and nuts. The fridge was replenished once a day.
My king-size “Viking Explorer Bed” had luxury white linens and pillows with a traditional Norwegian Marius-weave blanket draped across the bottom of the bed.
On the wall across from the bed was a 42-inch flat screen LCD TV with a remote control.
The TV displays a wealth of information – date, time, temperature, where we are, along with a section to access my onboard account and personal itinerary.
Closet door handles were also wrapped in leather and the closets had motion-activated lights: Open the closet door and the light comes on. Our stateroom had umbrellas, robes and slippers, a shoehorn, a hair dryer, a safe and plenty of USB ports as well as European and American electrical sockets. The desk had a pop-up makeup mirror and binoculars tucked inside.
The bathroom featured a spacious glass-enclosed shower, a heated floor and an anti-fog mirror. Bottles of Freyja toiletries had easy flip-open tops and extra-large print, which made it simpler to read without eyeglasses.
The Ship’s Viking Heritage Museum
I learned a surprising bit of trivia in the Viking Heritage Museum onboard the ship. That’s right, Viking Mars has a museum on the ship.
The museum showcases the logo for a very famous piece of modern-day technology. The logo is composed of two runes for the name of a 10th-century Viking king who united parts of Denmark and Norway into one nation and converted the Danes to Christianity.
Know who that is? Harald Bluetooth.
Yep, today’s Bluetooth that unites the PC and cellular industries with a short-range wireless link. Jim Kardach, an Intel engineer working on wireless technologies, figured old Harald Bluetooth was an ideal symbol for bringing competing parties together.
Not only that, but Kardach used the initials of Harald Bluetooth, written in Scandinavian runes, for the omnipresent blue oval symbol for Bluetooth devices. You never know what you might learn on a Viking cruise.
Multiple Dining Options
Dining options on Viking Mars are varied, with excellent menu choices. Cruise fare includes all restaurants except The Kitchen Table, which features a shore excursion to shop for fresh ingredients that the chef and his team prepare for that evening’s meal. I didn’t do that one, but heard compliments from those who did.
The Restaurant is the main dining room. No reservations needed. The World Café is the ship’s buffet-style restaurant for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The Pool Grill is a casual eatery.
Manfredi’s Italian Restaurant is truly authentic Italian. Reservations are required there and also for The Chef’s Table, which changes its menu every three days. The five-course menus at The Chef’s Table focus on a certain cuisine or region of the world. No menu choices, just items representing the culinary dishes and traditions of a particular region, like California or Korea or China.
Shipboard Programs
The main stage on Viking Mars is the Star Theater on Deck 2, which also doubles as a movie theater. Arrive early, pick up a drink and some popcorn at the bar outside the theater, cozy up with a cushion on a padded chair.
Fascinating guest lectures covered a wide array of subjects. Experts onboard shared info about wildlife, the Panama Canal, space flights, pirates and treasure hunters, sunken treasures, NASA, the universe and others.
We also had port talks each day before docking. A nice touch was that the port talks were recorded and available on-demand on our stateroom TV.
Other Public Spaces
Mamsen’s
I don’t know what I liked best about Mamsen’s: The beautiful décor with sofas adorned with fur throws and soft cushions, the flickering light of a fireplace (safely burning on hot vapor) or the ever-changing sea scene outside the floor-to-ceiling windows.
Or was it the delicious Nordic comfort food? Or it could be the lovely story behind Mamsen’s name. Mamsen was what Torstein Hagen called his humble and hard-working mother, Ragnhild Hagen. Her kitchen was a family safe harbor in any storm.
Mamsen’s in the Explorers’ Lounge on the Viking Mars is a loving tribute to the family matriarch serving food Torstein Hagen enjoyed as a child. There is no extra cost to dine at Mamsen’s.
The dishware in Mamsen’s is the same design as the set Torstein Hagen remembered from his childhood. Coincidentally, the pattern was called “Tor Viking”—maybe a foreshadowing of what would come.
Paps’ Explorer’s Bar
In another nod to family history, Paps’ Explorers’ Lounge Bar is named for Torstein Hagen’s father. From his family’s little red house in Nittedal, Norway, Paps became a CPA by correspondence course. Every day, he bicycled from his home to the historic Rotnes Bruk estate where he applied his accounting skills.
Paps’ favorite brandy is served in the lounge’s bar for $5. The drink calls for one-third brandy from Norway’s Vinmonopol, two-thirds hot water and one packet of brown sugar.
Relaxing Nordic Spa
I should have known better. The sign clearly said, “Cold bucket shower.” But I pulled the chain, and it was definitely cold—very cold.
But not nearly as cold as the snow grotto. On a ship, for goodness’ sake. The small room with snowfall and chilled air is part of the old Nordic tradition of alternating hot and cold treatments.
The Viking Mars spa has the same relaxing décor—muted colors, birch twigs and a long entrance wall filled with birch tree design—as the rest of the ship and can be used by passengers without charge. It features a thermal deep thalassotherapy pool, jetted hot tub, sauna, steam room, showers, padded loungers, heated ceramic loungers and plenty of towels and drinking water.
Excellent Entertainment
Nothing flashy about the entertainment on Viking Mars. Rather peaceful, in fact. The resident pianist played some musical interludes; the guitar entertainer shared acoustic favorites and the classical duo often performed Norwegian music on the violin and cello.
The house band and resident vocalists offered a wide variety of music. All Viking Mars entertainers were quite talented and their performances were well appreciated.
A Wonderful Way to See the World
All too soon, our cruise ended. On my way off the ship, I saw the anniversary couple, Matt and Eleanor, and asked what they thought of their first cruise. “Heavenly,” they said. In fact, the two were planning to book another Viking cruise round-trip from an American port.
I asked, “For a special anniversary or birthday?” Nope, they answered, just a way to celebrate life and enjoy the world’s treasures while cruising on a luxurious ship. Sounds like a great idea to me.
Disclosure: The author was a guest of Viking, but any opinions expressed in this post are her own.
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