What the h*** on June 17 Viking, Castles & Kings

OK, I know that I don't post here often, but give me the benefit of the doubt. I'm on my sixth Oceania cruise, Nautica's Vikings, Castles & Kings voyage from Southampton to Southampton. This is the first time I've really begun to question what the heck Oceania is up to...

First, we were told well AFTER we sailed from Akureyri that we would have a change of destinations because of ice in Greenland. What? You didn't have any idea of the ice conditions in Qarqotoq and Narsaq before you sailed? Thanks to your decision, Oceania, we have now spent way too damned many days at sea, going around the south of Greenland to Nuuk, then detouring through the ice on the way back and getting to Reykjavik later than expected. Not to second guess the geniuses at Oceania, but why not spend more time in Akureyri, then visit another site in Iceland before spending a few more leisurely days in Reykjavik. No, instead we've had day after rough day at sea, seeing nothing.

We're finally getting to Liverpool tomorrow - of course, we are NOT going to Londonderry because of our detour to Greenland. Tonight, we get this weird announcement from the Captain that since we have a "medical emergency" onboard, they're heading at top speed to Liverpool and we'll arrive early... And there will probably be changes in shore excursions. If it's a true medical emergency, why not stop at either Belfast or Londonderry, which we're passing right now? And why are shore excursions being rescheduled? Is Oceania so cheap that they're going to leave before our scheduled departure?

I've been on 26 cruises and I understand that occasionally you're not going to make a particular port because of weather or other conditions. But the conditions in Greenland were known before we left Iceland, so why even try to go there? This has turned into the "cruise to nowhere". And don't make up stories about medical emergencies if they're not so serious that you don't divert to the nearest port and save the patient twelve hours of distress.

Seriously not happy with your decisions, O. Your staff, as usual, is amazing but I am seriously wondering about the front office and Captain Vasily.

Yes, I know that port visits can be canceled at any time. But Oceania should have been aware of the ice conditions in Southern Greenland before we left Akureyri - if a passenger could find this information on the internet, why couldn't the bridge crew and why couldn't they have stayed in Iceland rather than taking us on the crazy train to western Greenland? Sure, we got to visit Greenland. But I - and many other pax that I've talked to - would have been much happier keeping all of our other ports and shore excursions intact and skipping the long detour to Nuuk.

Not touching this one with a 10' pole. Questions are asked -- of us? What do we know?

If OP gets any answers we'd like to know. Sailing on Insignia in 3 weeks. Similar stops in Iceland and Greenland.

Maybe O scheduled this cruise too early. In past it was a July/August cruise when there would be less ice. My guess the southern passage was still icebound.

In some years, Greenland may be easier accessible in June. I wouldn't count on it and therfore recommend going to potentially ice bound places with a ship built for ice such as Ponant's L'Austral. It's luxurious, not just a bare bones expedition ship.

As someone who has done many-a expedition voyage in Polar Regions, including 30 days in Greenland ... Yes, it is entirely possible that the bridge team didn't know about ice conditions when the ship left Akureyri. Ice conditions can change within hours if winds start blowing so that it starts to push ice in towards the shoreline. Combine that with sea currents, and the waters can become ice-clogged very quickly. Where an ice-hardened expedition vessel may be able to get through by pushing the ice around, a vessel like Nautica would be unable to do so ... simply too dangerous to risk passengers and the vessel.

Not to second guess the geniuses at Oceania, but why not spend more time in Akureyri, then visit another site in Iceland before spending a few more leisurely days in Reykjavik. No, instead we've had day after rough day at sea, seeing nothing.

You're assuming that there were docking berths available in Akureyri or Reykjavik or any other port - captain can't just decide to stay in port if other ships are scheduled to come in.

Not touching this one with a 10' pole. Questions are asked -- of us? What do we know?

I didn't ask you anything. As far as I know, I didn't address this to Hondorner. Even today in Liverpool our planned departure was moved up by two hours, allegedly because the QM2 is coming in and needs the berth. Interesting, since the Cunard schedule board says it's actually coming in tomorrow.

Just commenting on what appears to be a string of odd decisions on the part of Oceania.

Good answer! Thank you for the reply.

You're assuming that there were docking berths available in Akureyri or Reykjavik or any other port - captain can't just decide to stay in port if other ships are scheduled to come in.

The next ship into Akureyri was the MSC Splendida on Saturday, June 27 - four days after our visit. There is more than one berth at Akureyri, as well as spots anchoring.

As for Reykjavik, if we had arrived early (i.e., not taken the buggy ride to Nuuk), there was only one other ship in port on June 25 and 26, none on the 27th-29th (our original arrival date was to be the 29th), and three others when we arrived on the 30th.

Isafjord, which would have been a wonderful alternate port, had just one ship in port on the 26th and 27th, none on the 28th.

This is all publicly available information.

Lest you wonder why I'm bringing this up, there are a lot of people on this ship who are a bit miffed that they are spending $1,000 a day per person to have unplanned sea days.

Maybe O scheduled this cruise too early. In past it was a July/August cruise when there would be less ice. My guess the southern passage was still icebound.

Totally agree. Once again, it seems like a bit of an oddball decision on the part of Oceania to schedule it this early. I wish we had known...

I have said this before...of all the lines I have cruised Oceania has far more port cancellations and alterations than any other. I know there are always unforeseen conditions but why does Oceania encounter so many more than other cruise lines?

this seems to be true.on the insignia last august-med.high summer,we had Sardinia and amalfi cancelled.supposedly bad weather but the sea seemed calm to me.amalfi was replaced by naples,but the other was a day at sea!

angelina

Similar complaints on HAL ships, not restricted to one cruise line. On a Riviera cruise, one of our Caribbean islands was cancelled because the swell was too much for taking so many passengers ashore. Same thing in Australia on a Princess cruise. The ocean looked calm, but the swell is not always visible from the ship.

On the freighter Aranui, they will take you ashore in the swell. The sailors sometimes lift passengers out of the whale boat onto the rocky pier. Expedition ships also 'risk' much more than ordinary passenger ships.

.supposedly bad weather but the sea seemed calm to me.

 

angelina

Did it, dear?

If you were looking at the sea from outdoors on the Insignia, then you were forty or fifty feet above the surface on a Thirty thousand ton, stabilized ship.

Things often look different when viewed from the exposed tender dock at sea level; particularly when dozens of elder......er.....Middle Aged!......passengers must walk up and down an exterior staircase in order to enter a small boat (This IS an R ship tender dock).

I'll post when we get back whether we were able to make these ports on Insignia in July.

Maybe you'll have to book this cruise.

Regards

Lou & Marsha

According to Liverpool port movements the QM 2 was due to dock at 2115 on Friday....being à large vessel with a deep draught timing is everything with the Mersey tides being somewhat unforgiving.

According to Liverpool port movements the QM 2 was due to dock at 2115 on Friday....being à large vessel with a deep draught timing is everything with the Mersey tides being somewhat unforgiving.

That's a very valid point and something people tend to forget. The Mersey is indeed tidal with a relatively narrow window for getting in and out, a phenomenon rarely encountered in, say, the Med.

That's a very valid point and something people tend to forget. The Mersey is indeed tidal with a relatively narrow window for getting in and out, a phenomenon rarely encountered in, say, the Med.

As a passenger on the cruise in question, I can attest to the QM2's arrival in Liverpool on July 3 circa 10 PM. Nautica left earlier than scheduled that evening because the dock was to be decorated for QM2's arrival as part of the 175th anniversary celebration of Cunard Lines.

Furthermore, there was a genuine medical emergency on board that prompted an earlier than scheduled arrival in Liverpool, as an ambulance was at dockside on our arrival.

While OP is free to carp about missing the two original ports of call in Greenland, I wld. venture to say that he's not speaking for most pax, who appreciate the efforts of O mgt. and Nautica's Captain in finding a way to get us to Nuuk, the capital city, where we spent a full day under glorious blue skies and temps around 60 degrees. Missing Londonderry was for us no big deal, and two port calls in Iceland certainly were sufficient. Iceland and Greenland were the clear attractions, not another port in Northern Ireland.

I am also curious about his concern over spending $1000 a day for too many days at sea. Maybe it's the cost of the Internet to post on CC?

I would agree with others that O shld. look more closely at the calendar and take into account climate change when planning a similar cruise in future years. Locals at virtually every port have stress the late arrival of spring this year in northern areas (even in Scotland where rhododendrons were finally blooming a month late). Next year's starting date in July seems to make sense.

Here is a You Tube from an attempted transit thru Christian Sound (southern most straight).. Date is 29 July 2013 -- and icebound.. I end Captain goes around.

Best way of doing this is in an Expedition ship.

Here is a You Tube from an attempted transit thru Christian Sound (southern most straight).. Date is 29 July 2013 -- and icebound.. I end Captain goes around.

 

 

Best way of doing this is in an Expedition ship.

(underscoring mine)

...and here is the other side of that coin :)

Now if only we could hear the captain's point of view, we would have a more complete picture of what and why.

We were on this cruise. At the cruise director's Q and A session, the revised itinerary was discussed. Per Ray Carr, Oceania felt many passengers had booked this cruise to visit Greenland and the revised itinerary included Nuuk, Greenland to satisfy the passengers.

Paulchili, thanks for posting video

Paulchili, thanks for posting video

You are welcome but the video was posted by PaulMCO, not me :)

You are welcome but the video was posted by PaulMCO, not me :)

Paul I am looking for your video :D.

We went through the sound last year on the similar O cruise on Nautica. It was a very beautiful scenic trip.