highplanesdrifters

I hear ya! Thanks for the quick review. Just sent an instajam request.😉

Hot diggity dog @kimango!!! You're leaving it on the field. I love it. This will be out 3rd expedition trip with other domestic trips for filler this year. Now I feel like a slacker. 😃 You're my hero! Where are you headed next week? And I would love to hear more about your favorite parts of your SA trip if you choose to share. I don't think anyone would object if you posted here. Especially beach bumming Columbia. Our beloved beach shack in Sanibel was wiped away. We usually spend a month or two there, easy to invite family. Time for a plan B. I think we're headed back to Antarctica in 2024. Cloud has a nice itinerary that has 5 days in South Georgia and drops you in South Africa. But I do love being a beach bum.

Exactly! Thanks @kimanjo for putting your thinking cap on. Having given up on Silversea, we've booked a private transfer tour and first night at Hotel Casa Real - Vina Santa Rita. It is an old wine estate south of Santiago. We will then transfer to the Mandarin Oriental for some post cruise chill time and perhaps a few touristy things thrown in. Fortunately we booked MO ages ago for some decent pricing. We really like Santiago. Anyone traveling these days knows about the challenges out there. Even though we've paid for them, the less we rely on Silversea for transfers and hotels the better. I'm sure the trip will be just lovely once we are onboard!

Thoughts are with you @CruisinPashmina.

Good call and thanks for your response@kimanjo Its the tours and transfer we're trying to navigate. The TAs suspect the hotel will be near the airport. So we'll just carry on and slip Valparaiso and the airport hotel.

In 2018 there was not. On the Venture this summer the photographer Daniel Fox emailed photos he took of us. A interesting, talented and wonderful person. Just google Daniel Fox Photography. Nice book called Feel the Wild. Hopefully he will be on your trip.

Calling all CC Intelligentsia. We are booked on the Wind - Puntaranas to Valpariso, 10-26 to 11-18. Does anyone know what hotel Silversea is using Post cruise? They have been less than forthcoming with information. Multiple TA's are trying to gather this intel for our group. They can't even tell us what city. We know what hotels they have used in the past. Unfortunately that is the past and doesn't help now. We are booked at the Mandarin Oriental for 3 nights starting on 11-19 and are trying to figure out where to plan our transfer and tours from on 11- 18. Or if we even want to stay in the Silversea hotel. We will not use the Silversea transfer. Busses = Covid, ;-). Thanks much!

I was thinking the same thing.

This was pre pandemic but FWIW, Priority Pass Lounge passes were not honored when we were there due to the lounge being near capacity. Some very angry people outside.

Wishing you a speedy recovery!

Exactly!

The OP has every right to be concerned. On the Venture our bathroom outlet was unable to handle large wattage devices like curling irons. However there were other outlets in the cabin where it did work.

Good call! At a minimum I wear my down vest around the ship.

@gogo65looking forward to more of your reports!

After sailing on Venture this summer we thought it was such a fabulous ship, how bad could the NW passage be on it. Esentially it's a repositioning cruise. A substitute for the transatlantic crossing. Only with ice, maybe a polar bear, and at tripple the price tag. Others we have asked have echoed the OPs excellent reporting. Like you, I think we will use those travel bullets elsewhere.

You are just killing it with excellent photos!

Agree with Shark b8. Our Antarctic trip in 2018 was a Holiday cruise and it was quite dressy on formal night. New Years Eve party was fabulous. On our recent Arctic Venture trip there were two formal nights. A healthy mix of tuxes and sport coats. More casual folks were dressed smartly. No fashion police to the best of my knowledge. For the most part it was much more casual than a traditional cruise.

I agree. We had two great expedition leaders this summer. Also important is their relationship with the Captian so they can actually make a Plan B or C instead of another sea day. Thanks again for taking the time to report and answer my queries.

@10987654321has a great thread over on the Ponant boards about their NW passage experience. I think we'll skip it too. 🙂

@10987654321Thank you so very much for all the details. Immensely helpful. We did two trips back into the arctic this year and loved both. One on SS Cloud, and one on the new Seabourn Venture. We were pondering the NW passage on Venture next year as friends are going but were reluctant. Final decision made thanks to your help. Back to the southern polar regions it is!

Thanks for a great report. I know it's difficult to separate the cruise experience from the NW Passage experience. If possible could you comment on the NW passage experience envisioning a better ship product. In other words would the trip be worth the money or is it just to long and boring? Thanks.

Delightful

@shark b8 "oh no, it's Sauternes all over again" 🤣🤣🤣 Great story, I love when lexicon from any entertaining interlude becomes part of your everyday language and continues to entertain. Off topic, but here goes. Twenty years ago we had a sommelier who poured perfectly even glasses of wine. We asked how he did it. He replied " Walgreens" and walked away. Never saw him again and have no idea what he meant. We use that word to this day when pours are even. Should they be uneven we shake our heads and say "CVS".

Greetings from Oslo. It took 2 days and three legs for us to get here. All went seamlessly. We apparently traveled in an alternate universe of no lines and uncrowded airports. Even our bags were at the hotel before we arrived. The dreaded Heathrow was a delight. Polaris lounge had plenty of seats. Minor hiccup, no airport transfer from Seabourn showed up at OSL. Fortunately taxis at Oslo are easy. For those of you joining us on the Venture please feel free to join the thread. The more the merrier, however "rules of civility" shall apply. Lovely view from the Grand Hotel Empty Houston Twilight Zone Immigration at Heathrow. I told you it was a alternate universe. Skoll VID_59010201_004904_030.mp4 This is the subway tram at IAH. It was more like a Kidde Car ride to the petting zoo.