highplanesdrifters

Sorry to interrupt but SILVERSEA ARE YOU LISTENING? Mutiny on the Cloud We have just been informed by reception in a very insulting way that we are not on the charter flight from Tromso to Oslo at the end of the cruise. Only passengers who booked Door2Door directly with Silversea are on the charter. We were told our Travel Agent was supposed to book this flight independently. Crazy. You can't make this up. FYI, There was no Port2Port option. It clearly stated that the flight was included. Passenger revolt starting and Travel Agent heads are exploding. Stay tuned. I do not want this to reflect badly on Expedition and wait staff. The deserve their own glowing report to come later.

You are very welcome. I have enjoyed so many of yours. Just trying to support the team.

Iona, Scotland 20220604_075939.mp4

You are very welcome. I have enjoyed so many of yours. Just trying to support the team.

Iona, Scotland The Birds

Iona, Scotland Landing and hike. Not a bad one. Slightly steep in places and just occasional bits of mud.

June 4 Iona, Scotland This is the day that travel dreams are made of. Except for the early rise, 5:30, ouch. We awoke to a sky so blue it might crack, sea of glass, light breeze, and temps already in the high 50's. Perhaps I'm still dreaming. Iona is a spit of land in the middle of the sea with wonderful seabird colonies. I'll let the pictures tell the story. Will attempt to post videos. 20220604_082238.mp4

Yesterday, June 3. Port of St. Mary's, Isle of Man. A sleepy southern port. We have been in the North previously. A quick stop here to the Rushen Abby. The 90 minute tour was 75 minutes too long. I heard the same about the train tour. Nice stroll through the town though. We have been slackers trying to catch up on sleep and find some energy. The day worked for perfectly for us. Isle of Man has so much to offer, stepped in Viking and Neolithic history. The TT motorcycle races started the day after we left. The Isle is worth an extended trip.

Thanks all for spellcecking me and helping with pronunciation! Phones...gotta love them.

Tresco Gardens, Isle of Sicilly. A bit of the Mediterranean just off the coast of England.

Thanks, I feel like you're paving the way!

I've wondered that myself. I speculated that things are a but more is because the countries we are visiting are very open (no tests to enter & no masks). Who knows!

Masks: Not required on the overseas flight. An occasional mask was spotted in London. Folks have told us that it is rarely in the news. Not many masks on the ship although crew are wearing them. I do not know if there is any covid on board. Temperature checks every day.

There is internet at the moment on our way to Isle of Man. Will try and post more. Transit to London from the U.S. was a challenge. Missed connections caused an overnight in Denver due to short staff and weather. Lines and chaos reigned. Our Goddess of a TA scored us seats next to each other in UA Polaris following day and a room at the Westin Denver Airport. We felt very lucky to get those. Westin room service took 2 hours. Positives: A stop at baggage claim before our flight confirmed our bags were in the correct bin for our flight. We flew through security with TSA/Clear in 5 minutes, yes 5 minutes. Polaris service was much better than it has been, food was landfill. E gates in London worked perfectly. Our luggage was first off. Things going our way, YES. Goddess TA procured early check in and upgrade at SS Hotel Waldorf Hilton. Goodness, this hotel is a dump. What is Silversea thinking? I've already ranted about D2D pricing, another reason to switch.Our couch was so disgusting we requested a sheet to throw over it. Complaints from others were rampant. Goddess TA also procured us a private car to the ship to escape the busses which were late. Pre Jubilee traffic. We were on the ship with cabins ready by 2:15.

@jimdee3636Thanks for sending us closer to an answer answer on the mosaic. Best guess from our query on board was "don't drink and row", pictured with a Chinese junk and luggage trollys on either side. Wrong AND careless is what I fear.😉

@jimdee3636 Don't worry old Cloud vesteges remain, the showers leave a lot to be desired. 😉 There is still smoking allowed in The Pool Grill area. Would I have been convicted for throwing the chain smoker overboard? And bizarrely many of the public rooms reeked of cigarette smoke when we walked around the ship. No one could answer why. On to happy things. Bryher- quick trot around the island with spectacular weather for the a.m. expedition. Local boats were used to tender. Nice treat.

We boarded yesterday after a challenging journey. Will attempt to post details at some point. SS has been excellent so far. Our first time on the Cloud. Although I have read less than stellar reports of her condition, I must say she is a sight for sore eyes and looking lovely. The ship is full. This is surprising as we only booked 2 weeks ago and there was plenty of room available. We are pulling into Bryher and Tresco, Isles of Scilly. Must run for some fun. Bonus points and free drinks to the person that can explain the mosaic. The last photo is of Solentfortes near Southampton. It has been turned into a corporate retreat.

Thanks for the positive report! We board her in Oct.

I have been wondering how many people like myself are a captive audience with SS due to a build up of FCCs. When my FCCs are gone I will not be booking SS unless this pricing D2D is gone. My questions: How much of this FCC buildup has factored into SS pricing? Do they realize how many previously loyal clients are and will be jumping ship because of it? Will the crazy pricing go away once FCCs are used up? Will it be too late to get those previously loyal clients back as they have found excellent alternatives?

Might have to steal that line. 😀

Cooler Crew...thanks for all the London dinning suggestions. We will not leave hungry.

SS are using Waldorf Hilton as part of our upcoming trip. There was no option for Southampton. I did have a rez at the Southampton Harbour Hotel on a previously canceled cruise. It was not a SS hotel. Sorry we didn't get to try it.

"If they wanted"! That's the key. Let's see if the Saudis drag the luddites forward.🤣

OK London foodies thanks for getting me excited for some Fish and Chips. Staying at the Waldorf Hilton (Covent garden area) pre Cloud cruise on Monday. Any suggestions for that area? Dives to 5 star works.

Amazing that Seabourn can have someone on a ship with enough IT skills to block CC. But as we all know their website is.....well best not to use an expletive. Seabourn, how about throwing your IT resources toward something useful.