Cru Doll

We are also taking this cruise in February/March, 25. We would welcome all comments and suggestions. Thanks.

Thanks. We’re sailing on the Seabourn Quest. It has a max of 450 passengers, so it should be able to pull into a smaller port area.

Could you tell us on what cruise ship you are sailing into Stockholm??

QUITE SIMPLY, SEABOURN IS FOR YOU!

Are you booked on the Seabourn Encore, October 1-22? We are on that sailing. Anne Marie

I’ll keep digging!

Thanks for your help. Yes, I did see that post. Now I will need to determine the time needed to reach the ticket machine. I’ll keep d. 😊

Oops. I was referencing mickeysgal’s question which included using the tram. We are concerned about meeting a tour on time. We’ll be docked at Galataport, so will need to purchase tram tickets after going through the very large port. Any suggestion about the time we will need? We dock at 12 noon for an overnight visit. It looks like we are the only ship in port that day.

May I ask when you will be there? We will be there overnight as well, October 4-5. I have a similar question about using the tram. Thanks.

lincslady,I agree. I should have been have been clearer in my comment. When I mentioned other venues, I was referring to entering the Grand Salon, Club, hallways, etc. No computers are available on the spot. All that has happened within the first few days on board.

We enjoy being greeted by name. It makes our experience more personal and friendly. That is one of the reasons we sail with Seabourn. We are also impressed that they then greet you in other venues by name. They seem to have amazing memories! As for the first visit to a dining room, when you are asked for a suite number, your name appears. And yes, they always keep a record of your preferences.

My understanding is that Ross will be celebrating his 40th birthday on the Encore for one week in October. We’re sailing on the Encore from October 1-22. Looking forward to wishing him a happy birthday! 🎂

Yes, we have. If it’s just breezy and cool we try to get a table under shelter near the Colonnade windows. In all our cruises with Seabourn we only needed to sit inside a couple of times. If the MDR is open, that’s where we’ll have breakfast. I haven’t requested anything special at lunch. I like the fish of the day. Never a problem. All served. The staff is always accommodating. Whenever I attempted to carry my own plate from what I ordered at the patio grill to the veranda, a staff member always insists on taking it for me. I’m sorry that I can’t be more helpful with lunch requests.

I always make my request on the spot on the veranda. The staff are very accommodating and the Chef seems happy to have a deviation from the usual. Once I was asked if I would mind changing my order for avocado toast because the new shipment of avocado still wasn’t ripe enough. I appreciated his wanting the order to be good. Of course, we always ask a day in advance for any main restaurant requests. Hope this helps.

SLSD, I also do not like buffets and manage to avoid them most of the time. My husband and I enjoy having breakfast outside on the Colonnade veranda, but I rarely use the buffet. I special order whatever I want on the spot and am always pleased. In fact, on a couple of occasions the chef offered it as a daily special the next day. Once the server returned from the kitchen and asked if I minded waiting a few extra minutes because the Chef needed to gather the ingredients for my request, a Croque Monsieur. Also, we have repeated itineraries and have always found different directions to explore, including the Norwegian fjords. Enjoy!

My husband always wears a jacket in the Restaurant and in the TK Grill. We have found that many men do.

So do we! Purchased on Amazon. We attached when we collect the bags at the airport.

Could you describe the horrible hotel arrangements for us?

Yes, we have. To begin, this was the second time we visited the Cinque Terre. The first time we were alone doing a car trip through Tuscany in the month of April. We managed to walk along the trail for the distance of three towns, stopping in each town. On the way back we had lunch in a picturesque cliff side restaurant. It was a lovely, breathtaking experience. Not so on our second visit. That time we took a Seabourn excursion. To be fair, that excursion was in August, the height of the tourist season. We thought this would be a good opportunity to visit the other two towns which were offered on the ship’s excursion. Unfortunately, we were herded on a public ferry and then tried to follow the guide through the crowds. Needless to say, we couldn’t even hear her or adequately see the sights. It was not the type of experience we had the first time. All that said, if you have never been there, it’s worth the visit. If you are going during the summer season I would take the ferry on your own and see the towns at your own pace. Those passengers who did it on their own had a much better experience.

We have had excellent service and pricing using Flight Ease. After our TA notifies Seabourn that we would like to add airfare, we contact Seabourn directly to arrange first/business class seats. Seabourn has always either matched or offered a lower price than what we could do on our own. If the airline changes its schedule, we are notified and the appropriate changes are made to our preference. In fact, just this week there was an unsatisfactory change in our flight to Athens in September. We were very happy that Seabourn changed it for a non-stop at a lower price! We have also had the misfortune to miss a flight last fall. We were supposed to fly out of RSW from our Florida home to begin a South Pacific cruise in Vancouver. Unfortunately, hurricane Ian hit Southwest Florida that week. RSW was closed for two weeks. Seabourn handled getting us a flight out of Ft Lauderdale the following day. We not only missed Vancouver, but arrived in Seattle in the evening. We were quickly picked up and assured that the ship would be waiting for us. Two wonderful members of the dining staff saw us at the port inspection and carried our carry ons up to the ship. Seabourn Square said that we were the last to arrive and that Earth and Ocean would be expecting us for a late dinner. Seabourn service at its best! BTW, we were generously compensated for our (necessary) change of airport inconvenience, and since we had Seabourn cruise insurance, were compensated for two days fare.

We are booked on Seabourn’s Encore March 16-April 21, 2024. The sailing begins in Singapore and continues to Athens, “Arabia, Egypt and Holy Land.” A true bucket list voyage for us. If you are only interested in two or three weeks, there are two segments available.

We will also be in Istanbul overnight in October. Our ship arrives at noon on October 4, and are thinking about cruising on the Bosphorus Straight that afternoon, with perhaps another stop that day. At this point it looks like October 5 would be a good day to do a full day sightseeing tour. We enjoy joining others for small group tours. When will you be in Istanbul? Anne Marie

Thanks for the good advice. We’ll certainly purchase the return tickets.

Thank you, John Bull, for the detailed information about the Bosphorus Straight. I appreciate the time you spent to respond to my question.

We are booked on a 21 day sailing, Athens to Athens, that includes an overnight in Istanbul on October 4th. Since our ship docks at noon on the 4th, we would like to take an afternoon cruise tour on the Bosporus Straight. Is it reasonable to plan a 2pm excursion if we are docked at Galataport terminal? If so, what is the best way to get to the excursion port, tram, walking ? I’ve read that traffic can be heavy, has anyone used a taxi? I have been unable to find a tour operator who will pick us up at the port. Our ship does not offer an afternoon excursion on the Bosporus. marymount, can you tell me the name of the excursion you reserved.