Mackdogmolly

The river cruise and wine tasting in Porto was fun too! And very entertaining to hear the Lisbon guide trash talk Porto and the Porto guide trash talk Lisbon. And of course they both hate Spain!

Backing up a bit. We arrived in Lisbon a couple of days in advance of the cruise, staying in a small, unpretentious hotel on top of one of the many hills. After sitting in a jet lagged daze for awhile in the square across the street, we embarked on a two hour tuk tuk tour of the city, just to get some of the highlights, since we have never been here before. After, the driver dropped us near a seafood place called Bastardo Fish Bar, where we shared a most delicious lunch. The next day we got a hill workout finding our way to the meet up point to an afternoon food tour. On the way, we discovered the Museu de Teatro Romana, the ruins of a Roman theater, now a museum. The food tour , by Treasures of Lisboa, I would highly recommend. Only 70 euros pp, it was scheduled for 3.5 hours (ran for 4) in the Alfami district. Only 10 people. Went to a series of tiny restaurants, were we were seated and served a several tastings, from olive oil, to sardines, to octopus salad, to codfish cakes, Churico, wines, pastries, etc, etc. The guide was funny and charming and knowledgeable.

Definitely no problem getting a table at Discoveries last night.

Me too, Phil. Hope we get to meet on another!

Boarded Quest in Lisbon yesterday. Went very smoothly, had a PCR test stateside with results on my phone, so no trouble at the pier. The ship feels empty at only 310 passengers. Beautiful sail away, but then encountered some rough seas en route to Porto. Fortunately, neither I nor DH are prone to seasickness. Met up with some Aussie friends for dinner in an almost empty Discoveries. The food is as good as I remembered. In Porto now on our way to a river cruise with wine tasting. It’s 8:45 am!!! More later!

I’ll say one thing for Captain Tysse. On our Quest Christmas cruise, he was very straightforward about announcing daily COVID case counts, and it was much appreciated.

That’s where I always ask.

That’s the plan! 😀

The cruise we are looking at is in 2023, but we will know when we book if it works

I may be booking a new cruise while onboard my upcoming one and it is very unclear to me whether I will benefit by trying to use my 2 free days. We shall see I guess.

I saw that. They have been shown as available ever since I submitted my bid. 😬

Quest June 19

Which cruise is this? I am t minus 4 days and still have heard nothing about my (admittedly weak) bid

It is very unclear whether you can enter Portugal from the US with just a CDC proof of vaccination. An EU proof of vaccination is acceptable. Anyone come from the US recently with only vaccination card and no testing?

I see that Azamara can accept bids up to 72 hours before sailing. If your bid is accepted within that tight time frame and you do not have updated luggage tags, how is this handled at the pier?

They are the far aft cabins. Bigger balconies, wonderful wake views. The same ones on 6 are great too.

Speaking only for myself, the only time there has been a bottle of fizz in my cabin is when someone has gifted me. I don’t think it’s standard practice. At least in the standard cabins

Yes. How does that even happen? It would take some effort. It’s not like you can just “fall” overboard.

Yes, the aft ones are the only ones I would pay extra for.

I would put it in a laundry basket!

Thank you! Very reassuring!

My loyalty tier gets me 35% off internet and 1 bag of free laundry every 7 days. Do I have to ask for these discount? And if so, who do I contact?

The Patio wasn’t open for dinner during the Quest Christmas cruise

Interesting. I am hoping for Lisbon they will accept the 3 day PCR test since as long as you are fully vaccinated, Portugal doesn’t require testing at all.

I booked my upcoming flights through ChoiceAir, but did my seat selections directly through AA