GeneBK

Thanks....helpful. I was unaware of the optional "Seabourn Ventures"---kayak and zodiac tours. I guess we took the "Route of the Vikings" one year too early.

However, these are still not quite what I was hoping for. For the most part, they are Seabourn "shore excursions" in the usual ports common to most cruise ships. (There are a two or three exceptions in Greenland, and one, perhaps, in Norway.)

True, the Seabourn sea kayak excursions would be more convenient that the typical kayak shore excursions offered by most cruise lines, and probably with more qualified, although not local, leaders.

Similarly, Zodiac tours are mostly (exceptions noted) boat rides past local scenery and perhaps local wildlife, but again offered in common cruise ports serviced by many cruises and offering many local excursion options.

"Excursion cruises" go where other cruise ships do not go, and offer Zodiac looks into directions where docking a tender or an excursion boat is not possible. Northern Svalbard, east coast of Greenland, Northern Alaska, Hudson Bay, Northwest Passage, etc. Not practical to offer for an entire season, but I'm guessing two or three excursion offerings in succession would sell out fast (witness the response to Crystal's Northwest Passage).

Years back, we were excited by the news that the Quest was being modified and refitted, to permit itineraries with more “expedition” character. We immediately booked onto its inaugural season in Antarctica, and we were absolutely delighted with the experience. We had wanted to explore more remote places, but we preferred “expedition lite” on a small cruise ship rather than “expedition serious” on an even smaller, expedition ship. The Quest answered the need perfectly.

We were so delighted with the Antarctica experience that we have booked a return on Quest in December 2017.

We hoped that the Quest’s capabilities would mean at least a few expanded itineraries in the summer as well. Perhaps Northern Svalbard (polar bears!) or remote areas of Greenland. Maybe even the Northwest Passage, since the Quest is certainly as well or better suited than either Crystal Serenity or Regent Navigator, both of which are scheduled through the passage. But, so far, nothing has developed.

We followed our Antarctic cruise with a 2014 voyage on the Quest from Dover, England to Montreal, by way of Iceland and Greenland. It was a delightful cruise and we thoroughly enjoyed it; but even when we were unable to go into Ilulissat harbor due to ice, the Zodiacs remained slumbering and dreaming of Antarctica. That was understandable; there were no members of the expedition team on board.

Now, I read an article in the May issue of Travel+Leisure, describing the essentially same “Route of the Vikings” on the Quest, presumably 2015. And, in Ilulissat, there was indeed use of a Zodiac in the midst of the ice, and Robin West was aboard. Something new I was unaware of?? Was it for a small group only, or available to the entire ship?? When others read the article, it may whet their thirst for that kind of experience.

I realize their are tricky economic considerations. Expedition teams cost money, and may not be available for short periods.

But I'd like to believe where's a will, and demand, there's a way. With the Encore coming into the picture, I still hope better use will be made of the capabilities of the Quest. Silversea seems to think the niche is there, based on the plans to modify the Silver Cloud for expedition capabilities. I wonder if their “expeditions” will also be Antarctica-only, or used in other seasons as well?

Thanks for the responses! Helpful!

We enjoy good food, but we do not travel for the culinary adventure. Privacy, on the other had, is the main joy of our travels; so, a table alone is important to us.

Meldrum--I was pleased to read that they managed to provide a table for two, regardless of how large the table was. Do you know if your cruise was full, or nearly so? I am wondering if this accommodation would be generally be possible.

thanks to all!

Thanks for the replies. Sounds like I better not count on it, but I may give it a try.

I'm admittedly new to this; haven't used a dock before. Is it just an audio feed, or is there video as well? Is it just one of the channels on the TV selection, or does one change TV input select?

Thanks

As I recall, there is a Ipod dock mounted beside the TV.

I know the TV/sound system has been changed from time to time.....does the Ipod dock still function, and how does one adjust the TV to use it?

Thanks

We are considering an Arctic cruise on the Boreal, specifically with Abercrombie and Kent. We have also been looking at other cruises from Ponant.

Our main uncertainty is in dining. We cruise often, and it is our one chance as a couple to "get away" together. Dinners alone, at a table just for the two of us, is important.

Is this feasible giving the dining arrangements on these ships?

Thanks!

More Options!! Excellent.

We cruise Silversea; we cruise Seabourn. We enjoy the size and options of the 300-400 passenger ships.

We chose to cruise Antarctica on Seabourn Quest, because we preferred that ship size and style to the smaller Expedition ships. The are compromises, but entire team, led by Robin West, did a wonderful job. The rotation of times for zodiac landings worked fine, and gave us all the landing time we wanted.

I'm expecting that conversion of the Cloud will add to our options, and give us more choices of Arctic and Antarctic itineraries.

The itinerary that includes Geiranger and Eidfjord wins for me....more fjord scenery, waterfalls, etc. And, I prefer Alesund and Bergen to Oslo or Kristiansand. More Norwegian character.

I haven't been to Alaska (yet!), but I'm quite sure it has more snow than Norway, even early in the summer. There will be snow on the mountaintops that surround the fjords. You won't be disappointed. (For dramatic snowscapes, you would need to go further north into the Arctic Circle....Tromso, Hammerfest, Halstad, and especially to Svalbard.)

For mountain hiking, September. Less snow to encounter and firmer footing. May is moist and squishy.

For breathtaking scenery, May. Snow on mountains surrounding fjords, waterfalls gushing with spring snow melt.

For best weather, say a prayer. It's a matter of luck.

We have been on eight Holland America cruises in recent years. Our experience---

Perhaps we're been lucky, but smoke has never been a problem for us on the balcony.

We don't frequent the casino, so I can't comment on that.

We have never been bothered by a sense of smoke in any indoor area. The outdoor smoking area is well placed in the back and secluded.

We have been on other lines that have more restrictive smoking policies. Their problem---MORE people smoking in outdoor areas, often around the pool and outside lounges....these have sometimes been more annoying than we encounter on HAL. Lucky perhaps, but I for one think the current policy is working well.

In the past, we have also been confused whether it was one bag per cruise or one bag each seven days.

In May, we were on the Quest, specifically asked at Seabourn Square at the start of the cruise, and were told it was one bag each seven days. That's what we happily did.

Not sure if it was just being generous---one of us was silver at the time, one of us was gold.

If you're doing it for GERD reasons, you can ask your steward if they can put it up on blocks a bit...pillows for that are a no-no...adds more pressure to your abdomen which makes it worse. (GI doc wife with GERD.)

In the past year, we have started requesting, in advance through travel agent, the bed be tilted by elevator blocks at the head for medical reasons. So far, we have done this on Regent and Seabourn; both did a very nice job.

Have yet to make the request to HAL, but will be doing so in January. We'll see!

I found the following link:

http://www.stopthestomachflu.com/Home/which-hand-sanitizers-kill-stomach-flu-viruses

The paragraph at the bottom, specific to Clorox Hand Sanitizing Spray is of interest. The brand certainly seems reputable. Note the link to test data.

Can't hurt....I ordered the item from Amazon, where it is described as "Clorox 02174 Bleach-Free Hand Sanitizer Spray: 4-Pack of 2 oz Bottles - kills Norovirus (Feline Calicivirus)."

Ottawa Traveller

Thank you so much. I am among many on Ryndam cruises in the following weeks, and we will be following progress with obvious interest.

Have they given you an approximate idea of how many passengers were actually stricken? It would be helpful to understand how widespread this kind of thing is.

Any updates as your cruise unfolds will be greatly appreciated as well.

Here's hoping your next segment will be healthful and wonderful!!

Yes, it would be helpful to know how many passengers have been six.

For those of you boarding Saturday, I hope you'll keep us updated. I, for one, am boarding the Ryndam for 21 days in August. Here's hoping your cruise coming up now is healthy and wonderful!!

Last year, I was on the Ryndam, in port in Stavanger from 8:00am to 5:00pm. I made the Pulpit Rock hike independently. Two others from the ship also did the hike. It was a beautiful day and a wonderful experience, the highlight of the cruise.

So, it is doable. It depends on the length of time in port and the specific times or arrival and departure, and how they coordinate with the ferry schedule.

It was discussed in length last year in roll call: July 19, 2014, Midnight Sun Cruise, Ryndam, which I'll try to link here:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1929056&highlight=pulpit+rock+hike&page=3

Note post #49 (this details the specific travel times and progress of my day) and post #74

If you want to send me your email I am happy to forward my daily diary from my last trip to Japan, I sent home emails to hubby and kept them as a diary. That trip wasnt the traditional site seeing areas, as we had been only a year earlier so decided to get right out away from the tourist areas.

unfortunately i dont have any records from my previous trips as my computer died and I wasnt smart enough to back up, and still dont...... yes i am bad but I am very technology challenged.

 

Forgot to answer your question re luggage, you could either store your luggage or use the luggage forwarding service.

I actually phoned Japan yesterday to get all the info on that. We will be dropping our suitcase at a 7- 11 store in Odawara before heading up to mt fuji hakone area, it will be 1,404 yen to have it delivered to the airport hotel. When daughter was at school her friends would send home their dirty washing when away on school camps. they told me to send it 2 days before but it generally only takes a day.

 

gran.of2athotmaildotcom

Tara Jane,

Thanks for your reply and offer. I've never sent my email address to another member....how is this done? is there a way to do it privately, or must it go in a regular post?

thanks

We are a retired couple, who have enjoyed the luxury of traveling extensively over the past decade---mainly in Europe, South America, and Australia/New Zealand.

Next spring, we are booked to depart Tokyo on a trans-Pacific Silversea cruise to Vancouver, via Russia and Alaska. We would like to spend 7-10 days in Japan beforehand, but we find the prospect more unsettling than when we travel to “western” countries---

Language---most of the travel world where we’ve been speaks English, and we can manage French and Italian, a bit of Spanish, and can decipher signs in German or even Greek. BUT, are there added difficulties in Japan??

Safety---obviously, one has to be wary in any crowded city situation, but, alert and cautious, we like to wander and explore on foot, in cities and in villages and in the countryside. How does Japan safety compare to other advanced, civilized countries?

Train travel---we would like to leave our main luggage at a hotel in Tokyo, and explore by train with light luggage for a week or so. Safe, convenient, and easy to understand??

Suggestions on where to go???---we enjoy being physically active, exploring, and observing life as it is now, or perhaps hints of how it was. We prefer countryside, smaller communities and villages…..or cities with “old-town” character in spots. Museums, historic sites/monuments, temples, etc. are not as interesting. (We prefer a day walking the hills of Cinque Terre to a day of tours of the Duomo or Pitti Palace in Florence; we’d rather a pubic footpath in the Cotswold’s to a tour of Westminster Abbey; we’d rather get lost in the streets of Paris than spend the afternoon at the Louvre.)

Any comments or suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

We've read this thread with special interest---we're boarding the Quest in less than two weeks....much of the staff/crew undoubtedly continuing.

In the past, we've been so impressed with dining room management...notably on our last two cruises on Quest, both with Jullian in charge. Forewarned is forearmed---do you remember the hostess's name??

Thanks

Itineraries for the Sojourn and Odyssey for Sept-Nov 2016 have been out for several weeks, but nothing for the Quest after Sept 11 Montreal.

Any insight or thoughts??

Can't help much on this one. We took the Beagle Channel Catamaran, partly because it was shortest, and we wanted time in town. The excursion was just okay, thanks to a beautiful sunny day. Nice distant scenery, but the two islands didn't excite us.

The rest of the day we were glad we had some time in town....which has a good range of retail, both practical (pharmacy and grocery) and outfitters and specialty shops. Even though when we started we had felt we had everything we needed, by the time we got to Ushuaia we had a short list of "just in case" items, remembering we wouldn't see civilization again for sixteen days!

On previous cruises, we have done both a coach trip to Otway Penguin Reserve (with Regent at the time) and taken the speedboat to Magdelena Island (last year with Seabourn). Both are worth it and rewarding, even recognizing the penguin encounters ahead in Antarctica. On both trips, you are walking among Magellanic Penguins (you won't find them in Antarctica), in snow-free, nesting environments. Their behavior, and "songs", are unusual and amusing. As mentioned by Roxburgh, the speedboat also passes close to an island filled with sea lions.

Agreed.....Punta Arenas as a town does not have a great deal to offer.

We've been on two lengthy cruises recently, and smoking was not a problem on either.

As mentioned by others, there was very little evidence of any smoking at all. And, I believe most smokers are very self-conscious and considerate. We had no experience of smoke from neighboring balconies.

One would hope that increased awareness of the concern would prompt the diminishing number of smokers to be especially careful to avoid bothering others.

Last year, we had a slight itinerary adjustment which resulted in three days at SGI.

On arrival day, we had zodiac tour (no landing) of Cooper Bay, getting right up against rocks filled with Macaroni Penguins. In the afternoon the ship cruised into Drygalski Fjord.

The next day was landing at Grytviken, which was mostly walking around the historic settlement and former whaling station.....mud/snow underfoot, regular rental boots were fine. Seals and King Penguins were unfazed by our visit.

Final day was the magic of Salisbury Plain, with fortunate weather permitting landings all morning, beginning at 5:00 a.m. (apparently weather is not always so cooperative). Again, snow/gravel/poop mix everywhere.....rental boots were perfect.

Hope your weather is favorable....enjoy.

I am on an upcoming cruise, which is stopping in Stavanger for nine hours (eight and a half hours passenger time off ship). Based on the ferry/bus schedules, I can in theory attempt to go up to Pulpit Rock, with 4:45 on foot for the roundtrip hike (I am experienced and energetic). That would put me back in Stavanger 40 minutes before “all aboard”.

My concern is the consistency of the ferries and buses to be on schedule. (IF this trip depended on regional jets flying through Newark, I’d forget about it instantly. High probability of delays. If it depended on Swiss trains, I’d feel comfortable.)

Can I trust the schedules to be followed “like clockwork”?

Thanks