Belgian cruiser1

My DW and I were on Explora 1 when she passed through, and yes we were disappointed to go into the new locks. Nobody on the ship had told us anything, so what I've read about the ship's beam being 2 feet over the limit ... is the first bit of explanation we've got. And yes, the heat was oppressive. Every time I went out on the balcony I felt like I was turning into crispy bacon.

I believe my wife and I have just completed the sailing after this one, leaving NY in the pouring rain on the 25th of sept. (which makes sailing past Lady Liberty a whole lot less marvelous). We stayed in a (not-Haven) Penthouse suite on deck 14 and were very pleased with the cabin. We had made a bid on the Haven equivalent, but didn't win that bid. I am however surprised that the Haven bar is such a disaster. On our sailing we quickly discovered that the Observatory Lounge (which can be packed in the morning or on rainy afternoons) has a lot of free tables and quick service as soon a s people start going to dinner, so that was often our place to go from 18h00 onward - especially as other customers didn't play the sickly game of outbidding each other (in the literal sense - throwing a bunch of dollar bills on the bar counter) to get served first by any of the bar tenders.

This sounds as if you have encountered similar problems yourself ? Was it with Ponant as well ? So far - almost 7 weeks after the cancellation - I am still waiting for my reimbursement.

Can I just ask - did you board the ship in Fusina ? If so - how did Silversea arrange that - where was the check-in, luggage drop-off etc ?

No offense taken, ann1965 - bygones. But no, we didn't see one euro yet, and I've talked to my lawyer to see if we can do something. You are absolutely correct that this is not worthy of a company that mentions the phrase 5 star luxury every time you give them a call. They cannot apologize enough for this, and I don't mean that I blame them for the problem with the ship - it is the lack of a prompt settlement that brings about my displeasure most of all. Almost anyone would get a fine if they were this late with their payments, but Ponant seems to think that the law doesn't apply to them.

Looks Great. We are non-German speakers but do understand the language well enough to get by when we visit their country - so we may be giving this cruise company a shot in the near future. Does anyone know if they have a loyalty program ?? Haven't been able to find anything about that.

on another note - the ship is actually sailing now, en route to Portsmouth at a leisurely pace - probably without paying passengers, but maybe with reporters or travel agents => I'm sort of amazed we haven't seen anyone put up a video on Youtube, except for a 2 minute short that only shows the lobby and people perusing it on the day it was officially handed over to the company

Whether I am a glutton for punishment or not (can't say I really like that insinuation, but I will try to set a better example by remaining polite) - things are looking up. We've established a satisfactory contact with someone at Ponant in Brussels, and it looks as if we're getting some honest compensation (which doesn't mean that we've gotten our money back - but that takes time I guess). So yes, it took us some effort whereas I would've liked a bit more initiative from the other side, but if it ends well. In regards to future sailing on Ponant ships ... I can definitely say that the only one that is still on our agenda (and had been partially prepaid) will be the absolute decider.

Ouch - that's a bummer Ann1965. We convinced another couple to join us on a Celebrity cruise years ago, and felt so guilty when things didn't run smoothly. As to Ponant, well - we gave them a first chance to impress us in 2020 (before Covid) and they failed, due to arrogant people and sloppy service in the main restaurant. The second chance we gave them, was another miss - as they suddenly switched a number of major aspects of the cruise and never bothered to inform us. Their third opportunity to prove that they truly are 5-star, was this cruise that got cancelled.

That I understand Host Jazzbeau - but I'm sure they have the identities of all the passengers that were booked on the cancelled cruise, no ? So they could've used that information to contact us, instead of us having to take the initiative here.

Okay - hadn't expected a reply from Ponant, but that is welcome. I am surprised to read however that we should contact the company, whereas good service would mean them contacting us - no ? Soit - while I prepare a mail to the "aprèsvoyage" (not really appropriately named, as we haven't even done the voyage, so it can hardly be called "après") in my best French, could we please get some information here on what sort of compensation we can expect to get ?

My wife and I were already in Bergen to begin our 7 night fjord cruise (embarking July 17th) when we were informed that the cruise was cancelled because of technical issues with one of the tenders/life boats. We know the ship then went to a shipyard near Bergen. Does anyone know more ? Was any of you on the ship when it ran into these problems while anchored at Loen (near Olden on July 14th or 15th ? Does anyone know if Ponant is helpful or difficult when it comes down to getting your money back ? Any input is welcome.

and people who booked a cruise in august, will not have expected that to become the inaugural either

and you have every right to - we've also had to move heaven and earth to get some rightful compensation, and this ... is peanuts (beats me how they expect to build loyalty this way, whereas they did hire so-called top executives from rival companies ... or maybe that was all smoke and mirrors ?)

I would wait before booking extra cruises on Explora too. I've got one booked for March, but ever since they canceled the whole Alaska season in 2024 and so forth ... I'll see what that gives before letting myself be "lured" into an additional booking. The postponed launch keeps reminding of the sayings posted months ago on this forum - which basically comes down to "let the Italians do the cooking, decorating, designing and making love ... but don't leave the organizing in their hands"

on another note - Yacht Club is getting too big to be exclusive, which is why I didn't even bother booking YC on the World Europa two weeks ago. Even the butlers from the YC we talked to on that voyage, said that their guests are "escaping" the cramped pools and the one jacuzzi on the YC sundeck.

That last phrase you quoted from their CEO doesn't inspire much confidence. They made such a big deal that they hired so many experienced top people from other luxury cruise companies, so those people should know what sticks and what doesn't. I don't like the idea of paying 10.000+ € to be their lab rat or guinea pig while they "discover what sticks" - for these prices, one chance is what they get and if they botch it up ...

There's always a pecking order. Some companies are simply more "open" (or honest) about it than others. It remains to be seen if Explora will be forthright about this approach of course. They haven't been exactly been the most transparant company so far - but I'm booked to sail in the spring and will give them the benefit of the doubt (every company gets a shot at "wowing" me at least once, and I really hope they manage to deliver on the big promises they've been making ever since announcing their line).

@daleandrews is that only for cruises in the first few months ?

Well - if you've never been to this part of Europe, Bruges itself is a must see and an excursion that only lasts 6 hours will hardly scratch the surface of this medieval town. Chocolates or beer galore, but any excursion they organise will be focused on getting you into the shops they collaborate with, and that often means losing time you could better spend elsewhere in the city. If - like a lot of people - that is the one and only part of Belgium you've already seen, go out on your own and just take the tram that passes right outside the port and go to Ostend. This is the biggest town on the coast, with a nice mix of beaches, shops, architecture, musea, pubs and restaurants. With the tram you'll never be far away from anything - even the Atlantic wall bunker complex from WWI and WWII (some 5 kms past the city of Ostend) is easy to reach.

My wife and I have almost always chosen to arrange excursions and transfer on our own (not using the cruise company) ... but over the past 18 months we have noticed that some cruise lines are trying to make things more difficult for independent passengers, even going so far as making them wait very long to get off the ship at several ports. That things were easier/better towards the end of the Covid-era is quite true in my experience (traveling with MSC during those months was a joy - but it didn't last and they don't seem to have learned the valuable lessons they could've taken away from that time).

Sorry to disappoint you all, but don't forget this is MSC we are talking about. I have cruised with them often enough, and if you aren't in YC ... service or reliability (as in what you booked is or isn't what you get) is usually a hit-and-miss thing, often to be sorted out at the discretion of the staff you talk to. I wish you all the best, as I too have a future sailing on this ship in a few months ... but don't get your hopes up.

Got confirmation that chef's table and Anthology are the only two restaurants with an extra charge. How much it will cost, seems to depend on who's menu's they are doing, as Anthology will change every three to four months - and will offer a menu based on a different Michelin-rated chef's concoctions every season (so that chef's decisions and selections will probably determine the price).

I didn't like the Infinity balconies when I was on Celebrity Edge, but that was - in part - because I compared them to normal balcony cabins, which cost about the same price on Edge or Apex. On the MSC World Europa I had initially stumbled upon this type of cabin because (partly because of the price) I thought they were ocean views with a full length/height window - similar to cabins on some of the larger Oceania ships. If MSC were to sell these at the same price as a normal balcony, I would've gone for the classic balcony ... but at this reduced price and with the extra interior space, I'm not regretting my choice (so far 😇

Hello Bea. We are booked on this ship this June when it sails from Marseille. We too are in an Aurea Infinity cabin. Did I miss anything about it on this thread, but I though Aurea guests had their own restaurant on deck 8 - called Les Dunes ?