ggo85

As of yesterday, if you book a suite, you must put down 10% of the cruise fare that is non-refundable. Per X, if you can't take that cruise on that date, you CANNOT use that deposit or any portion thereof for another cruise. It's just gone. The amount used to be $500 -- now it can be thousands. Yes, you can get insurance at booking, but my TA said the cost can be as much as the deposit. So, for example, if the deposit is $2,000 and insurance costs $2000, you're out $2000 either way if you need to cancel. (Obviously, insurance helps after final payment.) I fully understand that they want passengers to have some money at stake so folks don't just book up all the suites and then cancel late in the process. Still, that's a lot of money that could be lost -- and when you book a cruise many months (or more than a year) out, it's hard to know what will happen between now and then. Rethinking a booking we were going to make today. Almost certainly will choose another line with a more reasonable policy. SS has a similar cruise -- 3 extra days, same price, better cancellation / rebooking policy.

The one thing I'd recommend re Kaiseki is to check out the dinner menu before you show up. If you're expecting to walk into an upscale version of your local Japanese restaurant (lots of sushi/sashimi, tempura, teppanyaki, etc.) or an Imu Ima / Nobu equivalent, you're going to be at least surprised, if not disappointed. Not saying the food isn't tasty, it's just a bit eclectic and the options somewhat limited. If the dinner menu appeals to you, then go for it and enjoy!

We did Kaiseki for dinner on Dawn last summer. I’ve also had many meals in Japan and didn’t find the meal particularly authentic and definitely not memorable in terms of cuisine. It was ok but IMO not worth the surcharge at all. Lunch was good, but limited menu. We didn’t do either meal on Moon a few weeks ago. Kaiseki is usually fully booked for dinner and yet always looks at least half-empty. My personal view is that SS is missing an opportunity with this restaurant. But if they’re fully booked and raking in the surcharge, I guess they’re not going to change.

We did La Dame on Moon about 10 days ago. Underwhelmed. Ordered Dover sole and told it was a “house specialty.” We had the exact same thing prepared the exact same way that tasted just as good at Atlantide 2 nights later. Soup and dessert courses were literally not memorable - as in I can’t remember what they were. The wine pairing menu costs $10-25 more pp per course, though you can apparently get included wine pairings. I think they might have more options for caviar than other venues, but since we’re not caviar fans, can’t say for sure. More personalized service. However, our server forgot our one request — side order of white asparagus — and left bones in the fish. If it were free, we might try it again. But in our opinion, not worth the extra $$ unless there is something on the menu you really want and that Atlantide can’t provide.

If you’re changing airlines, allow yourself plenty of connection time. We changed from United to Lufthansa to go to Copenhagen with a 3-hr connection. We didn’t see our bags for 2 days. Thankfully, we had planned to spend 3 days prior to departure. Probably not as much of an issue if on same airline.

For MBP above, as my DH and I both say: it’s great to be on a ship when you’re not driving. We get it. A couple of postscripts. When we got our final bill, I realized they’d not applied $30 of onboard credit. It’s complicated but they’d applied my DH’s credit to only one charge on “his” account leaving a credit balance, which they zeroed out. All other charges and additional credit were on “my”account. They claimed we’d not specified that we were on the same account, which simply isn’t true. We were specifically asked at embarkation and I remember a short discussion. DH said, “We’re married.” Hostess said, “Well, some married people want different accounts.” We said we wanted one account for both and signed something to that effect. Oddly, the one charge they attributed to DH, I’d signed for. SS did sort it today, but it’s not great customer service to blame the customer (especially when not our fault). And a reminder always to check your bill. We were off the ship earlier than projected. My suitcase wasn’t there. When I reported it, the FiRST thing the SS host said was, “You didn’t put your luggage outside your cabin this until morning, did you?” I said we’d put both bags out at 8:30 pm (11 pm deadline). The next thing someone said was, “Are you sure you put the colored tag on it?” We’d put 2 on each bag. When another 6 people showed up missing bags. SS realized something was amiss and another hostess called the ship. About 10 minutes later, more bags were brought out, including the missing ones. Clearly, they let our group off before all bags were out, which can happen. However, again the first instinct was to blame the customer. One final point for dessert lovers out there. The dessert menu in Atlantide NEVER changes. There is a special each night but the other desserts stay the same. That was a bit disappointing. We’re not huge dessert people but would have loved to have had SOME variety. On the plus side, we’re staying at a lovely boutique hotel in Lisbon — the Memmo Principe Real (associated with Marriott). Right in the heart of the city. They couldn’t do enough for us when we arrived. Flawless English. Breakfast was fantastic, room ready by 0930, taxi ordered for tomorrow morning, and they set us up for a private tour of Lisbon this afternoon. Not the cheapest or yours”typical big American hotel,” but a real gem.

I’m a huge believer in people getting on the right cruise so they’ll love it and become another dedicated cruiser. I like to say: there is no perfect cruise line— each has its pluses and minuses. However, certain lines, ships and itineraries are better suited for some than others. It’s finding the best match.

To finish out this story, wanted to reflect on some of the things we love about SS. 1. They treat you like adults. There aren’t endless reminders, notices, and announcements. They tell you what you need to know and then are available if you have questions. They trust you to read the “daily bugle.” 2. No constant attempts to separate you from your money. You could easily come on board, have a fabulous time, and spend not a penny extra. If you don’t do spa and don’t want fine wines, it’s actually hard to spend money on board. We love that. 3. No photographers hounding you as you get on and off the ship, at meals, on formal nights, etc. 4. So many dining options. We’ve always found many things we wanted to order and never had an other than excellent meal. 5. Beautifully designed ship that doesn’t feel remotely crowded even when sailing at or near capacity. Lots of nooks and crannies where you can relax on your own and venues where you can meet others. 6. Included excursions that run on time and are as described. A nice touch that separates SS from most other lines. And most of all . . . 7. Service. We’ve had excellent service on many cruise lines and ships. On SS, there’s a level of refinement that makes it special and keeps people coming back. You get the sense the crew really wants you to have a great vacation. It’s sophisticated, terrific and memorable. It’s a great product and we’re looking forward to our next SS voyage later this year. i hope you’ve enjoyed taking this journey with me. I thank those who’ve read and who’ve commented. I appreciate your indulgence of my musings. And I respect those whose opinions differ from mine. May you all have fair winds, following seas, and a bon voyage on your next cruise!

That’s why there are lots of choices in cruising. Not saying “my way” is best, only that it would be preferable for us to have more options. if SS can sell out with the status quo, then there will be no reason or impetus to change. And we’ll be back, but probably for more port-intensive itineraries, since we can then be more casual for dinner. BTW, I’ve cruised for nearly 40 years (started right out of college) so not a spring chicken but younger than almost everyone onboard. Cruised with SS, Cunard, NCL, Princess, Crystal, Celebrity, Viking River, and Norwegian Coastal. Never counted number of cruises, but a lot. 😀

Long post! Today’s reflections — things I’d like to see change on SS. This is my personal view. But I’m the age demographic that SS wants / needs to attract and, while I don’t claim to represent everyone who’s my age, I do think some changes would help them attract younger cruisers while not alienating their loyal fans. 1. Limit early booking of dining reservations, especially at smaller venues. 2 cruises and we’ve yet to do SALT, Silver Note, or Hot Rocks because we can’t get reservations for the (early) time we want. We got Kaiseki last cruise only after being WLed for a week and still not our preferred time. Some reportedly book one or more restaurants every night and then cancel once they get on board. IMO that’s unfair and deprives fellow passengers, especially new cruisers who don’t know the “game” or those who book later. While you can WL once on board, it’s nice to be able to plan / look forward to something rather than getting a call (literally) 2 hours before dinner that thenWL cleared . Another option is to charge for any meals after the first one at the popular restaurants. 2. Offer early (6 or 6:30 pm) dinner at some venues. We like to eat early and, currently, the only option is pizza. Having some venues open at 6:00 would also increase the number of reservations available for those restaurants. While this limits “turn time” for the crew, they could close those restaurants an hour earlier at lunch. 3. Introduce music between 7 and 9:30 pm. We enjoy music after dinner. But, when we finish eating at 8:30 (or earlier), there’s nothing to do for the next hour+ other than Silver Note (bar has only 5-6 seats and you have to watch others eat). 4. Start more shows earlier than 9:45. We only went to 2 in 10 nights, primarily because of the hour. This is exacerbated by the fact we were losing an hour some nights and there’s nothing to do after eating. So, once you’re back in your cabin, it’s a lot easier to put away your “informal” attire (more on that later) and just relax, rather than going out again for a show that won’t end until close to 11pm. The two shows I attended had maybe 100-150 in the audience. Sad, because the shows were good. Of note, they did have a “pre-dinner” show last night. Didn’t go because it was “Queen.” I’ve seen the SS show and the Crystal Queen show and the Celebrity Queen show . . .and I don’t even like the music. 5. (Realize this one is sacrilege to SS loyalists). Relax the dress code. I’m not for a moment suggesting jeans or shorts at dinner. But it’s VACATION. For those of us who work, that means relaxed dress with a couple of nights to dress up. Wearing a jacket almost every night gets old. It’s also becoming a caricature with men wearing white T-shirts, golf shirts or Hawaiian shirts under their jacket and tennis shoes or walking shoes on their feet. It’s really casual dress with a jacket, so why not just lose the jacket? And if you want to wear a jacket. — or a tux or a long gown — every night, go for it! Other options are allowing collared shirts (no jacket) after dinner or making least one indoor restaurant casual dining nightly. Cruising is all about options and the current dress codes will turn away younger passengers. Loyalists may not care, but any business must attract new devotees. SS has been helped by the Crystal situation (it’s why we came to SS). But Crystal is back, new luxury lines are coming (e.g., Explora), and other lines like X are expanding their “all-inclusive” options. My personal view is that SS needs to evolve to compete. But I could be wrong. We’ve loved our cruise and are doing SS again this year. But next year, we’ve booked other lines, partly due to itinerary but also due to the items mentioned above.

There are a couple of jigsaw puzzles in the Observation library on Deck 11. I have my own on my IPad. There is a daily crossword available in the Arts Cafe. It’s challenging but not insurmountable. This ship obviously won’t handle seas as well as the Queens. That said, the stabilizers work well and we’ve been ok in sea state 2-3. I think you’ll be fine on this itinerary if you don’t have a storm or high sea state. We did a southern crossing. I think Moon would have more challenges in the North Atlantic this time of year, which is why most cruise ships don’t attempt it.😀

This was marketed as a TA. However, for SS, that means a repositioning. That’s the only time they do them. IMO, the number of activities is the same as a sea day on a regular cruise. However, on a “regular” cruise, there are lots of port days, so a sea day without a lot going on is a refreshing change. On this cruise, it’s almost all sea days. We’ve never done a Cunard TA. However, they are much shorter and the ships much larger, so more going on. Not saying it’s better than SS — but some may prefer that approach. We wanted the longer, more relaxing cruise, so we were happy. For the most part, what we expected is what we got. So definitely met our expectations. My only surprises were that there were somewhat fewer activities during the day and fewer musical options in the evening than I’d expected. But in no way a major issue for us. I got through a lot of books and jigsaw puzzles!

They did a movie in Venetian - yesterday, I think. Only time this cruise. Quite a few movies available in your cabin. We watched Top Gun Maverick.

Today is our eighth sea day and second to last cruise day. 🙁 Weather is pleasant but cool — too cool for the veranda although you could sit in a sheltered locale and be ok. Got me thinking about advice for those who’ve never done a TA and are considering one. The below are my views — YMMV. 1. You must LOVE sea days. Look forward to them. The kind of person who often stays onboard when the ship is in port. 10/12 days is a lot of time at sea and many TAs are longer. We’ve absolutely loved every minute, but I’ve heard a few passengers saying it was too much and, but for the really nice days at the outset, would not have enjoyed it. If, for you, sea days are just a break between fascinating ports, you’re probably not going to like a lengthy TA. 2. You must be able and willing to entertain yourself. This means reading, doing puzzles, watching movies, doing needlepoint or knitting, binge-watching that (downloaded) series you’ve never had time for, etc. You need to make at least some of your own fun. 3. The above is especially true on SS. The reason it’s a long trip and, as most know, there is no indoor pool, no putt-putt golf, no big screen, no glass-making, etc. that are found on larger ships. As I’ve mentioned previously, there are many hours during the day when there are zero scheduled activities. So, you need to find ways to keep yourself occupied. I’m happy just watching the waves, but some would be bored out of their minds. 4. You can’t count on good weather to help you out. We were blessed with 5 days of gorgeous weather and no rain on sea days. It could just have easily been crappy weather the entire time. 5. Ports are chosen mostly because they’re en route, not necessarily because they’re interesting. If you like unique and interesting ports, a TA probably won’t give you that. Of course, you can do a B2B or spend time in your destination/arrival area. But the TA ports are mostly a break from the monotony and a chance to resupply. The above is not in any way meant to disparage a TA. We loved it so much that we just booked another for next year! (not on SS as the itineraries/schedule for 2024 didn’t work for us). We love simply taking a break from the mundane of home and work and love being at sea. But a TA isn’t for everyone. Definitely consider YOUR preferences before taking the plunge.

Today in Ponte Delgado. Morning weather was rainy and cool. I did the Fire Lake excursion. Not the best excursion, but no one’s fault. We first stopped in Ribiera Grande, a town square with buildings from (I think) the 18th C. Easy walk around but not great for those with scooters. Then onto the lake. However, one of the two buses broke down on the way there. So, our bus took on all of the stranded passengers. Every seat was full and the hosts and one guide had to stand. Took about 20 minutes to make the change. By the time we got to the cauldron, the lake was obscured by clouds. I got one pic sort of but it was a lost cause due to weather. I’m sure it’s beautiful when the weather cooperates but nothing to see when it doesn’t. We then traveled to a pineapple plantation. Indoor pineapples. Actually pretty interesting and included a taste of pineapple liqueur and actual pineapple. Both were quite good. The best news is that another bus had arrived, so the stranded folks could go back to their own bus and both groups could spread out. There was a gift store at the pineapple place and my first thought was: Oh no, tourist trap. But it was very high quality stuff and prices were decent. I actually wish we’d had a bit more time there. Back at the port, not much is open Saturday after 1 pm (and the delay due to the bus issue meant it was 1:00 when we got back). After lunch, I walked around town for a bit - easy walking distance from the ship. Interesting architecture, but the town was dead due to day / time of day. Will try to post some pix later. Two more sea days and we’re done.

They were broadcasting some games on “ESPN Caribbean.” Men only. First Sat/Sun only. We know because we watched a bit of it and it was definitely ESPN on SS. Assume some arrangement among the networks to broadcast ex-US. No ABC, CBS, etc at all. For news, FOX and MSNBC on the US side. Lots of UK channels. For chicken in Atlantide, be aware most dishes have been Indian. For example, last night was peri-peri chicken. I’ve not seen basic roast chicken or chicken cordon bleu, etc., at least in Atlantide. I would think that, if you requested a basic chicken dish a night in advance, you might be able to get it, since they obviously have chicken.

We’re on Moon now. Did Dawn last year. You see the full range. MOST women wear cocktail attire on formal night. For most, that’s either a cocktail dress or dress pants with a very dressy (think sparkly) top. Some wear long. Some wear pants and a nice top (maybe silk) but definitely not dressy. My first cruise I wore lightweight black wool pants with sparkly tops. This cruise I brought 2 cocktail dresses just b/c I had them and wanted to wear them. It was all ok. For informal, it’s all over the place in terms of what women wear. Some wear cocktail but slightly less dressy than formal. Most wear either a dress or slacks/skirt and a top that you’d wear to a nice afternoon party - like a baby shower or rehearsal dinner. Some wear slacks and a blouse— not very dressy. One night I wore black slacks with a cashmere sweater and was perfectly fine. If want to pack less, bring 2 pairs of slacks. Bring one top for every 2 nights that are formal or informal (no one cares or notices if you wear the same thing twice). Casual night runs the gamut from cocktail (yep, some still dress up) to super casual pants and almost anything goes for a top. One guy showed up in jeans and no one said anything, but he was alone and they’re supposedly not permitted (other than very last night when there is super flexibility). Bottom line: women have a lot of latitude. Common sense prevails. Also, there are always casual and informal venues. For men, minimum for formal night is jacket and tie. Informal is jacket. My DH wore dark khakis with a jacket and tie on formal night an no one said a thing. Some men wear tuxes. SS is definitely more formal than most lines, but I see a more casual approach slowly creeping in. JMO.

Additional topic for today: the internet! We have premium service included. We’re allowed 2 devices connected at a time per person. Additional devices cost extra. Service has been decent. Obviously, it’s nothing like home or even a decent hotel. That said, I’m generally able to access most sites without huge delay. Certain sites apparently require too much .. . whatever . . . and won’t load at all. There are glitches with others. But never a time when I couldn’t get on and have even been able to send pictures. So . . . Overall, it’s been Ok. I brought a MiFi. I knew it wouldn’t work at sea (at least mine doesn’t), but it did work today in port and was faster than ship service and able to access all sites. So an option. An unrelated note for sports fans out there . . . we lost ESPN around Day 4. So no March Madness for us. Only UK sports channels with lots of soccer and tennis. And all the UK news channels carried the Gwenneth Paltrow trial live! (No, I didn’t watch it).

Today we did the Caldeira and volcano tour in Horta on the island of Faial. It’s mostly a bus tour that covers most of the island, with several short stops. We started with a picture stop. (First pic). Then went to the Caldeira, which is aptly named as it looks like a cauldron. (Second pic). Then a bathroom break at a non-descript coffee shop. (No pic). Finally onto land created by an underground eruption in 1957 (third pic). Overall, a decent tour with an informative guide. Total time off bus was about 75 minutes. I realize they want to offer a restroom break, but it felt like an unneeded 30+ minute stop with nothing to see or do, especially for those of us who didn’t need the break. Not much walking but several times on and off the bus. It’s ok for mobility challenged but IMO isn’t the best tour for someone in a wheelchair. Doable, but might not be fully enjoyable. The “town” was easy walking distance but not a lot to see and do as this is a small island. (Population 15,000). And the weather was quite cool and overcast, so we opted to return to the ship. The guide said that sperm whales can be seen year-round and blue whales this time of year. We didn’t do that tour here. It is in zodiacs and I believe sold out quickly.

The Atlantide menu changes every 2-3 days. It’s 4 pages long, not including the daily specials. I usually don’t take my phone / camera to dinner. Main courses are generally similar and include: strip steak, filet, several types of fish (e.g., sea bass, salmon, trout, turbot, cod), prawns or lobster, maybe lam or veal chop. There are also at least 2 vegetarian options both for starters and main course. Sides don’t change and include parsley potatoes, Vichy carrots, asparagus, mushrooms, steak fries, mashed potatoes, wilted greens and maybe a couple others. Within reason / limits, you can order things not on the menu. For example, Caesar salad or baked potato. The daily specials vary greatly. Last night was sea bass and an Indian chicken. One night it was Wienerschnitzel. We haven’t tried SALT, so defer to others on that.

Another topic for today . . . the spa. First, I recognize that the only thing more subjective than food is spa. People have very different goals and expectations. I know that someone doing the same treatments with the same person on the same cruise could have entirely different perspectives. But I can only comment on my experience, so here it goes. While SS doesn't permit a hard sell on products, there are attempts to separate you from more of your money. When you sign in, they offer you various additional services (all $19 each) either with a piece of paper or verbally. I just said no thanks. There is a soft sell on products, but nothing a polite, "no thanks" or "I'll give it some thought," won't end. I booked a deep tissue massage on line. I like / need deep tissue that leaves me sore the next day. Short term pain for long-term gain. It's the only type of massage that works for me. What I got was . . . awful. It was at best a Swedish massage with a tiny bit of pressure on occasion. Very light strokes, nothing "deep" about it. Waste of time and money. I did bring it to the attention of the spa manager. (I've never, ever complained about a massage before this, so it wasn't just mediocre, it was bad). To her credit, she rescheduled me for another deep tissue the next day. It was the best or second best of all deep-tissue massages I've ever had. Absolutely fantastic. It was 20 minutes longer than the first one and there was no charge. I felt SO much better after and even the next day. This masseuse is not for the faint of heart, but for a true deep tissue, there is no end to superlatives. I also had a facial. It was good. Nothing special but no complaints and my skin certainly looked better and was more hydrated. I do think their facials are pricey as compared to high-end land spas. They were offering a 10-20-30 promotion. It's kind of annoying b/c you don't get it if you book on-line. That said, on-line booking gives you a better chance of getting your preferred day/time and that's important to me. (Perhaps I could have cancelled and rebooked, but not worth the effort). Just keep it in mind if you're flexible on timing. All in all, a positive experience. A TA gives you plenty of opportunity to "spa" and I took full advantage!

Can’t say we hear much noise, if any. No deck chairs or trolley carts rolling. Nothing that keeps us awake. There’s definitely some squeaking and groaning from the ships motion, but you get that anywhere. I’d be fine booking our cabin again. Coke zero is definitely different than Diet Coke. Supposedly, they weren’t able to onload any in FLL. Last time I checked, there was lots of Diet Coke in Florida, but whatever. Won’t spoil my cruise. I just find it weird that SS has such a tough time getting sufficient quantities of Diet Coke when passengers obviously are asking for it. I glad at least some folks are enjoying my posts. Sorry so few pics. I don’t like taking pix of my food and, with 7 straight days at sea, not too much else to photograph that isn’t already in a brochure. I am attaching photo of orchids in our cabin. Wish mine at home looked like this! If there’s any topic someone want to hear about, let me know and I’ll do my best.

We did this last year. Very enjoyable. Do read up on the weather ahead of time and believe it! Most of the passengers, including us, assumed that it would be warm in mid-July and assumed forecasts had to be wrong. They were right and we were wrong. Temps in the 50s and cloudy. At the first port, we were all buying sweatshirts. 🙂 The week before, it had been in the 80s - go figure. Many of Norway’s cities are landlocked. Thus, seeing by ship is optimal. We did a cruise on Hurtigruten 20 years ago (when it was Norwegian Coastal voyages) and still feel it’s the best way to experience the Norwegian fjords. But it’s a very different experience than SS. If you’re doing a traditional cruise, SS is great. Of course you’ll see the fjords from the ship. Land tours from the ship will allow you to experience even more sights. Be flexible - one day the weather was so bad that we couldn’t dock. Had an extra day at sea. Rare, but it can happen.

Today will talk about enrichment lectures. There are 3 speakers. One is doing politics (e.g., U.S. - Russian relations), one is doing history (today, Christopher Columbus) and the third topic is ships. There are typically 2 lectures per day which last about an hour. They’re typically in the morning. For various reasons, I’ve only attended the ship lectures. I’m very familiar with the topic but still found them interesting. They’ve been well-attended given some people are still at breakfast and there are competing activities - probably 50+ people at each lecture I’ve attended. I’m not sure if the lectures are recorded as they were on Crystal; will check on that today unless someone who knows beats me to it. i also did an origami class yesterday. Sparsely attended but fun. One of the fellow attendees raved about the art classes. I might attend today. I was in a lounge (working) when a dance class started up. There were at least 20 participants and I later heard a fellow passenger say it was terrific. The afternoon activities-especially early afternoon- are uniformly sparse. Really nothing from noon until bingo around 4. Maybe folks are napping? Or eating? Weather is still good. Too cool for sunning but it’s not raining, so all good. They’ve apparently run out of Diet Coke but do have Coke Zero. This happened on our last SS cruise, also about halfway through.

First, I’m well aware of the effect of the time change on the crew. It sucks, but I can’t change that. I’d read posts from passengers on past TAs who’d mentioned the time change was “disorienting.” I travel hundreds of thousands of miles each year internationally — by air. This was my first time doing it incrementally by sea. I was explaining for others, like us, who’ve never done an eastern TA. I was not complaining. Sorry if some people took it differently. Apologies for the time issues re DST in Europe. I’d (erroneously) assumed Europe moved to DST in early April. I was wrong. I mentioned the two issues in LA Dame because they occurred. They did not ruin our experience, but I was giving a full perspective. Others likely have different experiences depending on when they dine, their servers and what they order. We had Dover sole in Atlantide tonight. I could not tell any difference in quality between that and La Dame. The vegetable presentation in La Dame was much more beautiful, but the fish itself was the same portion and cooked identically. This is why we personally would not pay extra again for La Dame. But that’s OUR choice. Others may find certain menu items irresistible, love the presentation, enjoy the more personalized service, want a more intimate atmosphere, etc. You folks are a tough crowd!