Bronwyn

Hours are usually 12 noon to 6 pm. On our current Quest Antarctica cruise it has been mostly closed due to inclement weather. However on our Odyssey cruise across the Pacific last year it was openjust about every day and very popular. It’s a nice spot for sail away, early evening drinks or to sit at lunch time if the Patio grill area is busy. The smoking area doesn’t really impact much as the smoke tends to blow away. We are non smokers and we didn’t find any problems using the Sky bar. (Often😀)

Re the seals - in the evening briefing/recap last night, the seal expert member of the expedition team said they had all thought about possible ways for the seals being there and the most likely hypothesis was that there must be sloped areas in other parts we didn’t see which enabled them to slide down to the water and haul out again. She said judging by the speed some of the were moving across the ice, they weren’t emaciated or starving. We came across the iceberg on our way to South Georgia. It has been a highlight in an otherwise mostly disappointing cruise weather-wise. The Antarctic part had few landings, high winds, rough seas and poor visibility. Now in South Georgia but no zodiacs today due high winds and not much scenic viewing due low clouds.

Artlee, it was quite unbelievable to be honest! We even saw whales just off our balcony between us and the iceberg.

We saw several seals on the top

Hopefully this is is better 720p_30fps.mp4

Sorry don’t know why it is so overexposed; probably a file format thing. Will have a look at converting to another format so I can edit … but after lunch😀

It was an amazing sight! Difficult to capture the scale. Short video attached; impossible to see both ends. A23a iceberg from Quest 9 Feb 24.MOV

As you have now gone for the Penthouse Spa suite, this info is not so relevant this time around, but might be useful to know anyway. We sailed in a Penthouse Suite on Odyssey (915) for 6 weeks across the Pacific earlier in 2023. The curtains in the bedroom are semi-sheer, they provide privacy from someone in the lounge area looking in, but they do not block out all the light. Also, the glass doors which open from the bedroom onto the hallway have no curtains; they have an etched design, but that doesn't block out light. We enjoyed the space and the layout overall (the separated toilet, the walk through wardrobe etc) but that curtain/block out issue was a bit of a pain. Having said that, we have booked again in 915 on the Quest this coming January.😀

Hello SueWheldon, Just back from a NZ-Aus cruise on Odyssey. As mentioned above, the classes were usually around 7 or 8am - yoga, pilates and then again around 5pm - stretching, yoga, pilates. Nothing very vigorous. You sign up at the spa reception desk. I use the Les Mills on demand system and followed some programs I had downloaded on my iPad, using hand weights in the gym. The gym is reasonably well equipped, but not very spacious; there is some space at one end to do your own thing, away from the treadmills, steppers and bikes. You can also use the Motion Studio (which has a rack of hand weights) if nobody has a private session in there - just ask at the spa reception desk. I had that to myself and it was much better than the squeezy gym area.