highplanesdrifters

Welcome home Ms. M. I would say that you have been missed, but your posts from a delightful* journey keep us sated. *except for the journey home

Thanks for taking us along. Skagway looks like a ghost town!

@wren2We had similar problems with SS on our last cruise except it was the "included in country flight". Also brought documentation to reception desk. It was an unnecessary 6 day battle which eventually got sorted. Others were not so fortunate and were duped into paying for the "included" flights themselves. Word to all future travelers - Tripple check all docs. Along with your TA, be an aggressive advocate for yourself early and often.

More progress. It will be interesting to see what if any supply chain issues will mar her first voyages. We joked with friends that perhaps we shoulde bring our own linens. 😀

I agree. We are also looking to return. But what ship? I would like an itinary that does more than 3 days in South Georgia. Hard to find.

My thoughts exactly. If the Crystal staff was guaranteed to come with it bids would probably be even higher. 😃

Will do my best to report once we board. Internet will be spotty once we leave Longyearben. Perhaps someone on the first leg will post.

You may have already done this, but here is the step by step. Sign in and go to My Bookings and select this cruise. Click on Docs, upper right just after Prefs. Check in for cruise. Select 'Print Final Documents'. My Air info was on Page 9. I hope this helps. They sure don't make it easy.

The refurbished Wind will replace the Explorer. But it would be wonderful if they added the Endeavor.

@AussieBoyTXto the rescue again. Yes, our friend is well versed in GF management. Some luxury cruise lines take it more seriously than others. Ponant looks to be very well versed in GF. Thanks again for taking the time to help.

Perhaps the used Luxury Ship market is going the way of the used car market.😃

@Rothko1Third times a charm.

Perfect! 🤣🤣🤣

Sorry about the sloppy screenshot.

About to book our first Ponant trip. We will be traveling with a friend who has Celiac and will need a Gluten Free diet. Can anyone comment on Ponants menus and approach to GF diets. Thanks!

In Illinois the possibilities of it ending well are slim and none. The Illinois Constitution’s pension-protection clause that states pensions may not be “diminished or impaired,”. Here is a little peek into the problems there. https://www.thepolicycircle.org/minibrief/rundown-on-pension-crisis/

Lois - sending good vibes for a speedy recovery. 😃

@kimanjoThanks for posting the very interesting video.

@cruiseejGreat minds! Your post does a much better job of explaining the current state of things. @texanaust Just posted that Handre (cruise director) has just left Sojourn to join Venture. Very positive news for us. @ChicagoAlli Thanks for the heads up on cruise docs. I see that our charter flight is now listed. Have you ordered your parka yet? The process is a bit hidden. Friends on this trip called Seabourn to find out about boots. They said they will be onboard. Hmmmm, I'm a bit concerned that they will have correct sizes for everyone.

@texanaust Thank you for your excellent thread! We are on Venture August 7, so for us it was good to hear that Handre was headed her way. By chance do you have any other Venture news?

Would join you in a heartbeat, but we are already booked on a B2B in the same region on SS Explorer for that time period.

Your information is so very helpful and has given me a lot to ponder. Many thanks for taking the time. A zodiac for strong swimmers....sign me up! Had a few trips moved to calmer waters because a few people were uncomfortable. Drift snorkel on the outer reef, yes there will be current. 😃 In the end I was pleased everyone got a safe experience.

@AussieBoyTX Thank you for your thorough reply, very helpful. I figured I could count on you! Not divers, but big snorkelers. The 4 sea days caught my eye, and might be the one things that boots this trip. The trip is in 2024 so hopefully Sri Lanka will be calm by then. Our May trip there was canceled. On the trip under consideration, we may spend more time in Sri Lanka, or B2B on to India and hook up with friends. I've missed Manta Ray's twice this year due to canceled trips. I figure it will happen when it supposed to happen.😀 We are looking for a trip in January of 2024, preferably warm, so this migh fit the bill. If we miss something and like the area we can always pop back and do a more extensive trip. We are in the 2-4 international trips a year phase with domestic fillers. The other trip under consideration, which is not warm, Dunedin to Dunedin hits the sub artic islands. We've been in southern NZ before and happy to go back. Thanks again! Hope it wasn't TMI.

This seems to be Standard Operating Procedure for many cruise lines these days. We had flight problems with Silversea expedition in June. If you read the CC boards you'll see that there is a mix of their usual excellence and disorganized chaos across the luxury lines. For the most part customer service lines are being answered by inexperienced warm bodies. This is where a good TA come in. If we get past the one month before departure mark, July 7, I'll rest a little easier about the prospects of the trip actually going. I suspect the 8:15 time on the August 7th is our approximare flight time to Longyearben. I also suspect we will get our departure time for the airport at the hotel the night before. If the trip does go belly up, I would spend as much time in the Faroes as you can. 😉 But hope to see you on board!

Thanks for the great pictures and accompanying story. Sorry to hear of your travel delays. It seems to be the rule not the exception these days. Glad you are now safely enconsed in the lap of luxury. Enjoy and thanks for taking us along.