Jade Live- Norwegian fjords from Hamburg to Southampton.

Pricing on this trip was crazy. We first booked a guarantee balcony for $999 and were assigned a hull balcony. Then pricing on oceanviews dropped to $649 so we downgraded. I then bid for an upgrade and "won" the bid at $70pp. We were assigned cabin 9632 which was perfectly located between the aft and mid stairs with rooms above and below. We also had great weather so we spent hours on that balcony. I was able to sit outside in a light T-shirt and sweats all the way until Flam. In Flam and Gieranger I added robe, but it was never ever cold.

EAch morning we sat outside Sipping coffee and eating a light breakfast of fruit and yogurt delivered. We never once made it to breakfast outside the room. It's true that the coffee on Jade is terrible. We solved the bad coffee dilemma by using 3 pods of coffee per pot. Seems extreme, but it worked. Our room steward kept our coffee supply filled the entire cruise. While not the most outgoing, he was very efficient. I think he was just tired as ours was his last cruise of the contract. While the room

Lacked Vertical Space and wasn't as big as other standard balconies,

We had zero complaints about the room and were thankful the bid process worked in our favor.

One thing that took me by surprise was how long the sail into and out of both Flam and Gieranger were. It was hours and hours of nothing but eye candy. Seriously amazing scenery.

Here are some photos from the room:

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

More photos from the balcony

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ok- done for the night, I don't want to bore anyone. Are there any questions or photo requests?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thank you so much for so many wonderful pictures and so much great information BB. Enjoy the rest of your evening.

Cheers,

Stunning pictures. Thanks so much for your review and information!

Pictures are awesome!!!! The prices for our TA next year just keeps climbing! We're in an obstructed Oceanview..the insides are now going for $1,939 the last time I looked. Yow!

I do have a food question. Can you order escargot in the dining room, or is it only available in the Specialty restaurants?

Sent from my SM-T350 using Forums mobile app

Really enjoyed this post, just checking back in see if you've arrived home from England and are able to give me some more information about the train from Amsterdam to Hamburg?

Hi Hey Tina :). I was a complete novice on trains in Europe and had great advice from people on the forums or I'd have botched this up. Here is what I did (I'll try to be specific, but feel free to ask questions).

1) I prepurchased first class tickets. Book early as they were only $39. I highly recommend first class for this portion (we did not purchase first class from Southampton to London and were fine). The train from Amsterdam to Hamburg was extremely packed in coach with some people sitting on the floor. It's a 4.5 hour journey so well worth the $5 extra for first class assigned seats.

2) We also pre-purchased bicycle locks based on a recommendation from here and I highly recommend this also. There were several announcements from Amsterdam to Osonobruk that pick-pocketers frequent the train and to be careful of your belongings. Since we had to store our large cases at the end of the train car well out of our view, we locked them together. There is a place overhead for your carryon's, but large luggage will have to be stored at the end of the cars and could be out of sight.

3) This is the ONLY part I screwed up. Pay attention to the carriage number assigned on your tickets. The carriage numbers are not well displayed on the trains themselves. You will find the carriage numbers on a small digital display near the doors to each carriage (knee height). I would have thought they were in large letters/numbers along side the train but this is not the case. It's also hard to see them as people crowd around the doors to the train. I'm sure others notice the carriage numbers right away, but we did not. I asked a train worker where we would board for carriage 7 in Amsterdam and he said around the letter "M" on the platform, so that is what we did. Unfortunately, after much confusion, we found we had boarded on carriage 12 not 7. Luckiely it didn't take us too long to figure our our mistake and we were able to exit the train, walk along the platform, and enter at carriage 7. If the train departed before we figured out our mistake, we would have actually has to make our way to carriage 7 while ON the train (not the platform) with all our luggage and that would have been a nightmare given all the people in the aisles. My one big piece of advice, FIND THE CARRIAGE number before entering the train (and don't necessarily listen to the workers giving advice as they weren't overly helpful in Amsterdam).

3) The transfer in Osonobruk was only 12 minutes and I was a bit hesitant about this short of time to transfer trains, but the trains run very punctual and as long as you don't dilly-dolly you will be fine. In Osonobruk we had to carry our luggage up stairs to get to the correct platform. Just be sure to look at the assigned platform and head there straight away.

This is a link to the thread where people were helping me out, so it might be a good read in case I left anything out.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2486968&highlight=amsterdam

Hope this helps! :)

Pictures are awesome!!!! The prices for our TA next year just keeps climbing! We're in an obstructed Oceanview..the insides are now going for $1,939 the last time I looked. Yow!

I do have a food question. Can you order escargot in the dining room, or is it only available in the Specialty restaurants?

Sent from my SM-T350 using Forums mobile app

We only found escargot in Le Bistro this cruise. In the past, we have had it in the main dining room also. It is possible it was served in the main dining room on one of the evenings we dined specialty and we just missed it. They do serve a scallop dish that comes like escargot on embarkation lunch (I always get this). We have absolutely no complaints about the food, but the menu's are getting more and more limited as the years go by.

Thank you! I had a feeling that escargot wouldn't be offered daily in the dining room🤐. I've been spoiled by other cruise lines..I would have it as my appetizer nightly....I don't think it was offered when I was on the Breakaway 3 years ago. Ah, well, it's not like it's going to spoil my cruise next year! Thank you for answering so quickly!

Sent from my SM-T350 using Forums mobile app

I would love to see photos from the RodneFjord cruise.

 

 

 

Great Report BTW!

We did the 10 am departure. Cost was $65.00 pp. I selected this because I wanted to get different perspectives of the Fjords. The views from the cruise ship are terrific, but in my opinion, you are missing something if you don't get up close and personal with the fjords. We elected Rodne's in Bergen and a RIB ride in Gieranger. Both provided different perspectives and I'm glad we selected each.

Our rodnes tour was 10-1 leaving us lots of time to explore Bergen. Our plan was to hike to the top where the flobean lets out but this was our only real cloudy day and the top was covered by clouds most of the day. We went for plan B to just stroll around Bergen and the fishmarket. We docked at the far pier (starts with a J) on the opposite side of town but IMO there is absolutely no need to purchase a HOHO bus unless you have walking difficulties. Bergen is very compact and super easy to do on foot. The walk from the ship to the fishmarket was less than 20 minutes. We walked up to the church and then wound our way back down through cobblestone neighborhoods. Very easy day.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hi BermudaBound2014,

following along your wonderful and informative review. This Cruise is on my bucket list for the hopefully near future. Your posted pics and detailed information really got me hooked.

As i am sure many people will take your information as a brillant idea to search for trains, timetables, fares etc. so please allow me a little correction for your post about the train ride from Amsterdam to Hamburg. The place for changing trains you named "Osonobruk" is called "Osnabrück" and might be easier to find that way in an online search.

Hi Hey Tina :). I was a complete novice on trains in Europe and had great advice from people on the forums or I'd have botched this up. Here is what I did (I'll try to be specific, but feel free to ask questions).

 

1) I prepurchased first class tickets. Book early as they were only $39. I highly recommend first class for this portion (we did not purchase first class from Southampton to London and were fine). The train from Amsterdam to Hamburg was extremely packed in coach with some people sitting on the floor. It's a 4.5 hour journey so well worth the $5 extra for first class assigned seats.

 

2) We also pre-purchased bicycle locks based on a recommendation from here and I highly recommend this also. There were several announcements from Amsterdam to Osonobruk that pick-pocketers frequent the train and to be careful of your belongings. Since we had to store our large cases at the end of the train car well out of our view, we locked them together. There is a place overhead for your carryon's, but large luggage will have to be stored at the end of the cars and could be out of sight.

 

3) This is the ONLY part I screwed up. Pay attention to the carriage number assigned on your tickets. The carriage numbers are not well displayed on the trains themselves. You will find the carriage numbers on a small digital display near the doors to each carriage (knee height). I would have thought they were in large letters/numbers along side the train but this is not the case. It's also hard to see them as people crowd around the doors to the train. I'm sure others notice the carriage numbers right away, but we did not. I asked a train worker where we would board for carriage 7 in Amsterdam and he said around the letter "M" on the platform, so that is what we did. Unfortunately, after much confusion, we found we had boarded on carriage 12 not 7. Luckiely it didn't take us too long to figure our our mistake and we were able to exit the train, walk along the platform, and enter at carriage 7. If the train departed before we figured out our mistake, we would have actually has to make our way to carriage 7 while ON the train (not the platform) with all our luggage and that would have been a nightmare given all the people in the aisles. My one big piece of advice, FIND THE CARRIAGE number before entering the train (and don't necessarily listen to the workers giving advice as they weren't overly helpful in Amsterdam).

 

3) The transfer in Osonobruk was only 12 minutes and I was a bit hesitant about this short of time to transfer trains, but the trains run very punctual and as long as you don't dilly-dolly you will be fine. In Osonobruk we had to carry our luggage up stairs to get to the correct platform. Just be sure to look at the assigned platform and head there straight away.

 

This is a link to the thread where people were helping me out, so it might be a good read in case I left anything out.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2486968&highlight=amsterdam

 

Hope this helps! :)

Wow, you (and that thread you linked) helped IMMENSELY! Thank you so much for everything, especially the carriage number info. Can you confirm what class you purchased? In the other thread you said you did 2nd class w/reserved seating for 39€ and here you said first class for 39€ but I notice first class starts at 69,90€ ....? Also, in the other thread you said you purchased a ticket on IC145 (Amsterdam Centraal -->Osnabrück Hbf) & IC2226 (Osnabrück Hbf --> Hamburg Hbf) (per your screenshot & current bahn.de schedule) but then said "I really like that the 2nd train goes directly to Altona without a transfer in Hamburg-Main as it will make the trip easier." so I'm confused about where you actually ended up?

Wow, you (and that thread you linked) helped IMMENSELY! Thank you so much for everything, especially the carriage number info. Can you confirm what class you purchased? In the other thread you said you did 2nd class w/reserved seating for 39€ and here you said first class for 39€ but I notice first class starts at 69,90€ ....? Also, in the other thread you said you purchased a ticket on IC145 (Amsterdam Centraal -->Osnabrück Hbf) & IC2226 (Osnabrück Hbf --> Hamburg Hbf) (per your screenshot & current bahn.de schedule) but then said "I really like that the 2nd train goes directly to Altona without a transfer in Hamburg-Main as it will make the trip easier." so I'm confused about where you actually ended up?

Many continental stations have information on the platforms about trains and where each carriage will be .... but this is not always the case in the UK.

Many continental stations have information on the platforms about trains and where each carriage will be .... but this is not always the case in the UK.

Yep, I noted that the OP said the carriage numbers will be on a small digital display around knee height near the doors to each carriage.

Yep, I noted that the OP said the carriage numbers will be on a small digital display around knee height near the doors to each carriage.

Yes, it's quite easy for a foreigner to travel with Deutsche Bahn here in Germany, even if you'll have only one stop to change trains in Osnabrück. Very reliable and very comfortable. Personally I'm not a big fan of Deutsche Bahn, but the travel from my hometown to Hamburg-Altona went very smooth and on time, my wife had different concerns [emoji6]

Wow, you (and that thread you linked) helped IMMENSELY! Thank you so much for everything, especially the carriage number info. Can you confirm what class you purchased? In the other thread you said you did 2nd class w/reserved seating for 39€ and here you said first class for 39€ but I notice first class starts at 69,90€ ....? Also, in the other thread you said you purchased a ticket on IC145 (Amsterdam Centraal -->Osnabrück Hbf) & IC2226 (Osnabrück Hbf --> Hamburg Hbf) (per your screenshot & current bahn.de schedule) but then said "I really like that the 2nd train goes directly to Altona without a transfer in Hamburg-Main as it will make the trip easier." so I'm confused about where you actually ended up?

Hi Tina, I had multiple screen shots up as Oliver and Tina (the other tina lol) were helping me decide. We went directly to Altona. I would highly recommend this if your ship leaves from Altona. There are three piers in Hamburg, so you need to be careful. If you ship leaves from another pier, Altona might not be your best bet. It's possible our tickets weren't first class, but just assigned seats? I thought they were one in the same, but I could be wrong. I know we had 'coach' unassigned seats from Southampton to London and assigned seats from Amsterdam to Altona.

We loved Amsterdam, and flights into amsterdam were significantly less for us. It's a very solid option to use the train.

I believe you are sailing MSC? I've sailed Divina both fantastica class and Yacht Club. I posted live threads from both that may help.

Yes, it's quite easy for a foreigner to travel with Deutsche Bahn here in Germany, even if you'll have only one stop to change trains in Osnabrück. Very reliable and very comfortable. Personally I'm not a big fan of Deutsche Bahn, but the travel from my hometown to Hamburg-Altona went very smooth and on time, my wife had different concerns [emoji6]

Hi Oliver~!! Hope you have made the transition back to work life successfully. It took us a few weeks to get back to normal. I'm not sure if that's because we were traveling nearly 4 weeks or because we're just getting older. I sure did love our Jade cruise!

Hi Oliver~!! Hope you have made the transition back to work life successfully. It took us a few weeks to get back to normal. I'm not sure if that's because we were traveling nearly 4 weeks or because we're just getting older. I sure did love our Jade cruise!

Yes, indeed I've made it [emoji6]

It was the greatest cruise ever: great ship, great people on board, great staff, great iterinaty so really nothing to complain.

Just counting the days until the next cruise but nothing decided yet, only some ideas and some cruise next certificates in my pocket [emoji4]

Cheers Oliver

Wow, you (and that thread you linked) helped IMMENSELY! ?

Hello Tina,

I've tried to figure out on which terminal the MSC Meraviglia will arrive and depart in 2018, but it isn't scheduled yet. As already mentioned by Cheryl there are three terminals in Hamburg and only if MSC would use the Altona Terminal it would make sense to us a train until Hamburg-Altona. For the other two terminals (Steinwerder, which is used by MSC mainly this year and Hafen City) it would make sense to choose the train trip only until Hamburg Hbf (main station).

If you are in the 'uncomfortable' situation to have Steinwerder as your terminal, there are two options: one by car (taxi) the other by shuttle bus (departure at S-Bahnhof Veddel). The cost for this 15 minutes ride is 2,50€ and it departs between 07:30 and 11:30 every hour on half an hour.

Hope that helps...

Cheers Oliver

Hi Tina, I had multiple screen shots up as Oliver and Tina (the other tina lol) were helping me decide. We went directly to Altona. I would highly recommend this if your ship leaves from Altona. There are three piers in Hamburg, so you need to be careful. If you ship leaves from another pier, Altona might not be your best bet. It's possible our tickets weren't first class, but just assigned seats? I thought they were one in the same, but I could be wrong. I know we had 'coach' unassigned seats from Southampton to London and assigned seats from Amsterdam to Altona.

 

We loved Amsterdam, and flights into amsterdam were significantly less for us. It's a very solid option to use the train.

 

I believe you are sailing MSC? I've sailed Divina both fantastica class and Yacht Club. I posted live threads from both that may help.

Thanks for clarification on the price and final destination. From what I understand if you paid 39 euro as your base fare that's 2nd class. I'll make sure to spring for the assigned seat. I'll check out your live reviews!

Hello Tina,

 

I've tried to figure out on which terminal the MSC Meraviglia will arrive and depart in 2018, but it isn't scheduled yet. As already mentioned by Cheryl there are three terminals in Hamburg and only if MSC would use the Altona Terminal it would make sense to us a train until Hamburg-Altona. For the other two terminals (Steinwerder, which is used by MSC mainly this year and Hafen City) it would make sense to choose the train trip only until Hamburg Hbf (main station).

If you are in the 'uncomfortable' situation to have Steinwerder as your terminal, there are two options: one by car (taxi) the other by shuttle bus (departure at S-Bahnhof Veddel). The cost for this 15 minutes ride is 2,50€ and it departs between 07:30 and 11:30 every hour on half an hour.

 

Hope that helps...

 

Cheers Oliver

Thanks for the tip, I had no idea there were multiple options. Where were you able to find the info on where MSC is currently sailing from? I know 2018 isn't scheduled but if I knew where to look I could keep an eye on it also.

Where were you able to find the info on where MSC is currently sailing from?.

http://www.hamburgcruisecenter.eu/de/estimated-ships

http://www.hamburgcruisecenter.eu/de/estimated-ships

Thank you

Have been seriously studying your posts. A great resource! When you took the bikes at Flam, what did you ride on? Looks like maybe a local road? Can't imagine buses going through that tunnel. Probably not a bike path but maybe. :confused:

Thank you Augustsunshine, glad you found this useful. From Mydral down to the goat farm it’s a bike path with loose gravel (see picture with the switchbacks). No way a car can fit. About half way down you start to share the road with cars, but it’s one lane. Here the Gravel is more hard packed. We didn’t see any cars on the path until we got much close to Flam where the path becomes blacktop, and even there it is rarely traveled. You are in for such an amazing adventure!! Let me know if you have other questions, I love reliving our trip by sharing with others. :)

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk