Martina2662

So thanks to @57 varieties noticed that Luxor disappeared i once again had my agent call ss. After several calls and supervisors etc the story went from deny deny to similar offer others reported. No cancel but 1k obc to stay or will move to a different cruise but will not transfer perks to new pricing. No refund, no saving as fcc to use when there is a sale So hmmm they never informed anyone but the cracks are appearing and it seems they are making money from this by waiting until post black fri pricing so now can charge rack rates for switching if someone noticed and pushed hard enough Since I'm solo and have now lost my reduced solo supplement to rebook its going to cost big bucks and be a downgrade cabin.. Has anyone emailed Barbara Muckermann? Guess they are trying to limit losses and turn it into a money-making opportunity to see how badly we want to bail it will cost us.

Glad you were able to work something out. Hope you have a wonderful alternative trip and in hopefully more peaceful times by then.

Just to be clear. Should have put in my post. They just booked my d to d flights for 1/6 cruise from Aqaba and including pre cruise extension in Jordan to Petra . And say itinerary for 1 /6 has not changed. SHIP: Silver Moon DURATION: 10 days EMBARK: Aqaba (Petra), Jordan EMBARK DATE: 1/6/2024 DEBARK: Muscat, Oman DEBARK DATE: 1/16/2024 VOYAGE: MO240106010

Well SS just booked my d to d flights. Original itinerary including pre cruise petra. They say no changes, no offers for cancel and no extra obc if I stay. Cruise is as normal. They know nothing re others getting offers or itinerary changes So @Kauaijim you must be special cause looks like I'm going as booked no options

@Kauaijim I'm on the 1/6 and just yesterday ss again told my agent no changes were planned 1/6 leaving aquaba as planned to muscat. Was wondering Is there something like an email or writing or a new itinerary on your booking from SS that you have re this new itinerary and offers and catches you are considering ? Or was this just verbal via your agent.

So here is a dumb question. If everything is included including shore excursions.... what are you expecting to spend $1000 obc on ? Never done ss before. What is there extra? Giftshop and gambling? I know there probably will be upgrades for shoreex but that's alot to blow if no other options present. Any advice? Is this a red herring?

Embarking means getting on the ship with your luggage the very first time. In transit means you leave the ship for the day and come back to your same ship

Thanks for that detail as I wonder if that's more than the 72 hr transit visa allows maybe for all the days between as is the morning of day 6 to the evening of day 9. Only speculation. That gives me hope yet Ours is one stop 1 day so that may be a difference hopefully for me. Silversea continues to say for me one stop one day they will get a quick stamp. Crossing fingers. Still haven't heard back from the embassy myself but either way I have no option except to cancel as the logistics don't work for me At all for various reasons.

@mr_cruiser8 I am wondering if you are transiting through ( and how many ports / days in Egypt you are doing ) or if Egypt is the start or end of your cruise?

Update for MY situation. My trusted travel agent just heard back from the cruise company Silversea that just replied via email from their port agent dated today re my concerns. Apparently, the rules re who needs what kind of visa re transit or visitor etc are different depending on different situations and how long the ports, how many and start/end of cruise etc etc etc. Our stop is only one day, one stop in Egypt. Apparently, the rules re cruises and who needs a visa are so complicated that this is why alot of cruiselines say they will take care of visas for Egypt. Also apparently the rules re who needs a visa have not changed just how you need to get one if you do need one. The port agent said basically with the new situation and for my cruise in January there is no extra requirement for me to obtain an independent extra visa even for Canadians and if there is they ( the cruise line ) will take care of it which is what they said in the cruise documents from before still stands. So that might explain some of the conflicting information. At least now my TA has something in writing so if I get denied or have to cancel later with penalty at least I have some sort of official or quasi official stmt from the cruiseline other than a website info page and my TA has written info to support me with cruiseline recourse ( along with all her other clients in this boat ) So... still haven't heard back from my email to the embassy but thought I'd share that tidbit Unfortunately official sources seem to be far and few between. get things in writing if you can.

check out the facebook post of the ECBN - Egyptian Canadian Business Network and the Embassy of Egypt in Ottawa (this link was posted on another group I belong to) Read all the comments on this post as they seem to have some information in the comments However they don't mention the link to any form in the ECBN post. and they don't say how long the visa's are valid for But they do say they will post answers to questions on Tues when they can find out more. I find it concerning that the official source of info at the embassy is not actually publishing official information and all we get is second hand Note I'm not an official source either. just passing along what I've found. I'm still waiting to hear back from SilverSea. And I also have an email sent to the Egyptian embassy but so far ...crickets. There is a link to A form on the Egyptian Embassy facebook page BURIED on a May 10th post. I have no idea if that is the correct form for the new process but that is the only "official" source for anything I have seen and it is older. Note you have to be on a laptop to download their form. people are saying it doesn't work to their phone There is a big info graphic on the Egyptian Embassy facebook and if you read the comments there, there are some phone numbers and a way to bypass the "message" prompt when phoning. I received an email response back from the e-visa "contact us". they say they can only comment on e-visas. so no joy there Embassy of Egypt in Ottawa otSrpodnse3m3t5c0 cl31y1ua51t5M88ha9h44m80i8cmffa7i82t00510c · ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ECBN - Egyptian Canadian Business Network dspretSoonaa uiAuhM923hg37mf14 P6a8tsat69h0 4:414 hggf04ugut · ***Alert for those travelling to Egypt after October 1st, 2023 If you are a non-Egyptian travelling to Egypt , you will not be able to get a visa at the Cairo International Airport as was the case in the past. A travel visa must be obtained before traveling either from the: 1-Egyptian Embassy in Ottawa. 454 Laurier Avenue East, Ottawa, k1N 6R3 Opening hours, drop off 10-12am, pick up 2-4pm 2-the Egyptian Consulte in Montreal. 1501 Ave McGill College, 10th floor, Office 1000, Montreal H3A 3M8. Opening hours 9:30am to 12:30pm Monday to Friday. Indoor parking is available at the building from the side street. You will need to bring your passport, 2 pictures, a confirmation of the hotel reservation. $50 for a tourist visa or $150 for business or other purpose. Payment in cash. The process should take a couple of days. Please note that this message does not apply to Egyptians travelling with Canadian passports. Thank you.

There is a Facebook page for the Egyptian embassy in ottawa.( Look for the flags on their picture. There seems to be a second unofficial one. ) There is a post from may 10 that has a link to a form to fill out. Lots of chat in the comments of the posted diagrams some from people who have paid 50 and some 150 dollars. On my cruise in January there is one port of call in Egypt. I haven't yet seen anything with an official process. Some hearsay in those comments that says you can mail it in but nothing published official that I've seen Following this post

I think probably not available but thought I'd ask. Anybody been on Celebrity Silhouette recently in the Caribbean. Wondering if there are beach towels available to take off the ship in port? Or do people just take a pool towel with them for the day? Or do they check at ports? I like to pack light