WanderlustJourney

I was onboard for a ship tour of the Riverside Mozart last month in Vienna while cruising through on Uniworld and I've booked "A Taste of Christmas" for November. Can't wait to sail the Riverside Mozart, also looking at booking the Riverside Ravel for next October,

I’m currently on the Encore, but I am only doing the LA to Vancouver portion. There are 2500 onboard for our cruise, fully staffed. There were some who did back to back and stayed on, they mentioned they had a great cruise. I’ll try to see if I can get more details, however Panama Canal is not popular with families typically as it’s a longer sailing, you will have a few family with kids onboard but not many (especially school aged children). There aren’t many children on our sailing either right now.

Currently on the Encore and unfortunately they do not exist. They do have “Miami” and “Florida” mugs, saying this as we cruise into Vancouver today for the Encore to start her Alaska season on Saturday out of Seattle lol

The active excursions seem to be really popular on most river cruises nowadays (especially the bikes onboard), it’s one of the reasons I personally love river cruising. You can make it as active as you want it to be. 

5 hours ago, tulok said:

Enjoy Uniworld. It so far is our favorite line. Personally. I have never had an excursion we wanted fill before we reserved our place. We do tend to take the active excursions. I have been on the Beatrice and it is a lovely boat. SS Catherine is my favorite but that’s an opinion. It was on Beatrice that I had my first champagne with Bombay drink, French 75. My favorite to have on board now. 

Our cabin was a french balcony, which gave us plenty of storage.
We tend to book later than earlier so we usually have our docs emailed. 

I get up very early and I love having a guest laundry, and fitness center. 

I’ll definitely have to try a “French 75”, sounds delicious! I am also an early riser, I’ve heard they have a good fitness program onboard with yoga/stretching classes offered, etc. 

5 hours ago, bubbulz said:

I’m coming up on my fifth Uniworld cruise, and until now I’ve always had the same experience as others regarding booking onboard. However, when I went on my.uniworld recently and looked specifically at the day-by-day itinerary I noticed that there was one ‘Masterpiece Collection’ item listed for a bike tour. It had this note on it: “Masterpiece Collection Optional Experiences can be added to a booking up to 6 days prior to the cruise/tour start date if space allows. Some venues are limited in the number of guests they can accommodate. Guests can book onboard (space permitting) and pay in Euros. Pre-booked Masterpiece Collection Optional Experiences are refundable up to 48 hours prior to the cruise/tour start date; if inside of 48 hours they are non-refundable. Select Masterpiece Collection Optional Experiences require a minimum number of participants and are subject to cancellation (with full refund) if minimum is not met. Masterpiece Collection Optional Experiences are non-commissionable. Prices are subject to change.”

 

Since there was another tour I knew I’d be interested in but didn’t see it listed, I called Uniworld to inquire. I was told that only certain tours were available for pre-booking and all of the others would be offered once onboard. You may want to go into your specific itinerary and expand each day to check, or just call Uniworld and ask if any are available for pre-booking for your trip.

I think that’s why I was a bit confused, I was told that the excursions are booked onboard and then saw this and was worried I missed something for the included excursions.

17 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

For those of you who have booked the thermal suite package on Konningsdam, is there anywhere to relax/lay that isn't heated loungers? I am seeing a possible clamshell in the T-pool area but that looks a bit dark. Is it policy to allow those with thermal spa packages use the relaxation room for the spa for relaxed reading?

Yes, most of the non-heated loungers were in the room where the hydrotherapy pool is. I believe you can also use the relaxation room (I didn’t), however this can be busy at times with guests waiting for treatments. I’ll actually be onboard the Koningsdam again on May 6th, so I can double check this.

The loungers that overlook the main pool like others have said are first come first serve and no charge to use these “cabanas”. There is a paid area called The Retreat, but those are outdoor up on Deck 12.

The hydropool is part of the Thermal Suite which is a wonderful place to relax on the Koningsdam. Definitely less busier than other areas, however when I sailed to Alaska on the Koningsdam last year, I had no problems finding a hot tub to myself at certain times of the day.

3 hours ago, Ritabob said:

We received our documents from Uniworld via email about three weeks ago for the cruise we will be on this Saturday. Our TA also got the same information. 

We have never experienced maximum limits lifted to allow for additional participants, but have seen tours or events canceled when minimum numbers are not met.

Have a great cruise Wanderlust Journey. We look forward to your review 😉.

RB 

 

 

 

Thank you! I hope you have a wonderful cruise yourselves! 😊

7 hours ago, jpalbny said:

We sailed on River Beatrice (before she was upgraded to SS Beatrice) on a similar itinerary - Budapest to Passau. That was in 2016 so obviously things could be different now...

 

Yes, the CD gave a talk about all the excursions as part of an overview on the first night. That was SOP on all of our Uniworld cruises. Hope you enjoy Uniworld as much as we have!

Thank you! I was just worried that the excursions wouldn’t have enough spaces for everyone.

7 hours ago, mozfoz said:

I have not sailed on the SS Beatrice, but have sailed on Uniworld twice. In both cases,  you are correct about  selecting your excursions once onboard. Some have a guest maximum, but  usually seen to have the maximum limit lifted, if enough guest sign up. Only the onboard Progressive Dinner option, which is limited to 10-12 guest, and only offered for only one night, needs to signed for immediately after the first night presentation talk is completed. Snooze and you'll lose.

Thank you! I’ll be sure to try to book the dinner as soon as I arrive to the ship.

Hello Cruisers!

I’ll be sailing on Uniworld for the first time in June from Nuremberg to Budapest on the SS Beatrice.

I’ve sailed with Avalon and Ama before and just curious on a few things?

I believe documents are just delivered as edocs, do they mail anything out in advance? Some river cruise lines do and some have stopped.

I understand that Uniworld is a bit unique that you actually select your included shore excursions once you get onboard the ship and not before? Is there a presentation on the first night as part of the port talk on the options for the entire cruise, or is it best to have a chat when I first arrive then submit my choices?

If anyone has also sailed on the SS Beatrice and has any tips they’d like to share about the ship, please let me know!

Thanks!

Ariane

I’ve also arrived to the port just over an hour early on my POA cruise last year and was never asked about it. Have a great cruise!

Following along, I'll be boarding the Encore in 33 Days. 

I just got off the Queen Elizabeth yesterday on a seven night voyage to Alaska. The pools were on the cooler side for me, it didn’t feel like they were heating them very much, if at all. Only a couple people used the pools on some of the warmer days we experienced in Icy Strait Point and Sitka.

Only three of four whirlpools were working on our sailing (only one at the aft of the ship was in operation) and the temperature was kept at 36C or 37C.

Hope this helps!

On 5/12/2022 at 8:59 AM, markkw07 said:

Sounds Awesome!

 

I will definitely  be following along, on your journey, to see if anything has changed since I was on POA a week ago and to get your point of view on things!

 

Just a FYI, I didn't use the ship Wi-Fi but a couple of times, like when the ship actually sails far out enough from the islands, so I was on my cell provider 95% of the time(even on the ship). I see you are from Canada, so not sure how that works with your cell provider, but my brief experience with the ship wifi was pretty slow.  Just in case you were planning to upload anything from the ship. On the islands themselves, I had 5G or 4G. 

 

Looking forward to your review

 

 

Mark 

Thanks so much Mark! The premium wifi onboard seems to be pretty good so far, just had some initial issues getting connected however we did get it sorted out. I’ll be interested to see if it stays a good strength throughout the week, but we are at just under 50% capacity so it should work good. 

8 hours ago, Linsuesue said:

Which specialty restaurants are open?

The only specialty restaurants open are Jefferson’s Bistro (Le Bistro) and Cagney’s. 🙂

On 5/13/2022 at 2:27 AM, amyh13 said:

This makes me so HAPPY!  We will be on the very next sailing! Thanks you!

If you have any specific questions let me know! 🙂 

Good morning from just off the coast as we approach Maui!

I brought my aunt along for this cruise, so it’s her and I travelling this trip. I will also preface this and say that I am a hosted guest onboard along with others, this cruise is a rescheduled POA “Inaugural” cruise from January.

The port and check in experience was quite smooth. We arrived to the port from The Royal Hawaiian (just over a $17 cab ride), at 10:15am. At 10:30am it looked like they opened security. Our documents were checked, we then went through security and lined up for the check in. Check in was also quick, and received “Boarding Card A”. They had two local Hawaiians playing live music which was great and by 11:00am they were boarding the ship.

Once onboard we headed straight for the Restaurant Reservations desk to get those sorted for the week, “Jefferson’s Bistro” aka Le Bistro and Cagney’s are the only two specialty dining restaurants open this sailing. Once we did that, we secured some more shore excursions.

Afterwards we headed up to the Aloha Cafe (the buffet) for some lunch. We actually ate outside at the very aft of the ship, it was covered and with the breeze it was a perfect temperature. Food was good and I enjoyed what I picked out. We are at just under 50% for this sailing. No issues getting drinks at the bar and staff have been great so far and very friendly!
 

Rooms on our deck (deck 9) were not quite ready on our sailing until around 4pm, luggage was delivered shortly after 5:30pm. We have a balcony cabin and they’ve definitely refreshed them. Brand new carpets, balcony doors have been replaced and are brand new, throw pillows and foot runner are also a great new pattern. 
 

We had a very special sail away cocktail party. Harry Sommer (President and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Lines) hosted a group of us as we sailed away from Honolulu.

Afterwards we headed to Jefferson’s Bistro for a lovely dinner to wrap up the night.

This is my first time on the Pride of America, and my overall first impressions are positive. There were some initial hiccups with the internet, however we got those solved quickly with some help from the Internet Manager, Robert. The premium internet is okay and is a good speed for uploading to Instagram I’m 

finding. I’ll see how it works later in the week for a work zoom call I need to be on lol.

I am posting live stories on my Instagram which you can find the link in my first post above 🙂 

Hello everyone!

I'll be sailing on the Pride of America from May 14th to 21st, 2022.

I will be trying to keep this as up to date as I can along the way. I will be filming my experience for my travel YouTube channel and on my travel blog (where I will be posting the Dailies, lots of photos and menus) which will be live once I return.

Please feel free to ask any questions and I'll do my best to answer each day, and/or follow me on Instagram @wanderlustjourney.ca as I'll be posting lots of live stories there.

Thanks!

Ariane

1 hour ago, MacII said:

Please consider writing your own review...(while on board!)

I am considering doing a live review, this will depend on time, etc 🙂

I will be filming my experience for my YouTube channel and in a proper blog post on my website with menus, photos, etc.

21 hours ago, markkw07 said:

There was some entertainment on board, but not a lot. All the pools and the gym were open. The gym is open 24 hours so anytime workouts!. The gym was remodeled so it was very nice and all brand new equipment. 

 

Enjoy the cruise, regardless of the negatives you hear! Always going to be people to complain and B%#$% about things….dont get caught up in all that.....enjoy the time...its Hawaii after all!

Thanks so much! I board on Saturday and I'm really looking forward to it 🙂

6 hours ago, markkw07 said:

I did not do any ship sponsored shore excursions. We did not have the greatest weather on our cruise either. A lot were being canceled due to weather. We made the best out of it though! A little rain and

wind cant but a damper on things, it is after all Hawaii!!

 

We rented a car on each island, We did not rent a car in Kona, as we were just there last year. 

 

We zip lined in Kauai and went to the Luau, same one the ship goes too, but we booked separately. 

You will need a car to get there, so if you don't have a car booked, or not comfortable taking a uber/taxi ride, then def book through the ship, as that will provide bus transportation. Ubers/taxis are hit or miss on Kauai. We took a taxi from the port to the airport to pick up our rental car. We flagged the taxi down as we were walking out of the port area. Taxis are around, just not as abundant like in Maui/Oahu. 

 

There are tons of snorkeling/sightseeing excursions... As i stated before, I cannot recommend any of the ship ones. 

 

There are independent vendors in each port also selling excursions, but everyone has their own level of comfort booking though these vendors. 

 

There is tons to do!..just not enough time to do everything of course! 

How much was the taxi to and from the airport to collect your car rental on Kauai?

I think we're going to be renting a car ourselves as it just seems like a better option.

Was most of the entertainment onboard still taking place? Were any of the pools or fitness facilities closed?

Boarding on May 14th and looking forward to the cruise!

On 5/2/2022 at 10:45 AM, *Miss G* said:

 

Very exciting!  This will be our first river cruise, too, so I would be really interested to read your thoughts on it once you’ve completed your cruise.  We don’t go until October.

 

 

I agree with @Kenster.  Traveling through ZRH is a breeze and a pleasure.  Very clean and very well organized.

I'm planning on filming my experience with Avalon for YouTube and writing a detailed travel blog 🙂