frantic36

7 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

First time I took a bus on my own from Lisbon and spent the day there.

I'm tossing up between a bus (more frequent) and a train (less scheduled but can walk more easily)? My husband has developed a back issue that flares up occasionally but he was curious as to the views from the bus as that would help a lot?

Sorry @HarryLake34 for going off topic on your thread. I envy you spending days in Porto as we will only get one port day. I hope to get a chance to spend a few days there on another visit. 

20 hours ago, bennybear said:

Not sure I’d find enough myself for four nights on Lake Bracciano.  

Thanks for chiming in bennybear. We have visited Viterbo before and it is charming.

We are planning to mainly relax around Lake Bracciano. The first day we will use Rome Cabs to go to Cerveteri and explore there and have lunch in Ceri, thanks @marazul, and by the time we get to our apartment it will be after three and time for an afternoon nap followed by a late dinner.

Day 1 explore Trevignano Romano including climb the hill, a swim, late lunch, nap, late dinner.

Day 2 & 3 catch the water taxi to Bracciano and Anguillara explore and have lunch return for a nap, late drinks and dinner. 

Day 4 is Sunday where there is a market in TR so we will check that out then enjoy our last lunch before a transfer to Civi where we board the ship.

This allows us to explore without needing to have a car.

I found it great that on the Rome Cabs website they had quite a good amount of information both on Cerveteri and on Trevignano Romano. 

1 hour ago, slidergirl said:

Maybe I'm dumb and blind, but I don't see anything new nor nefarious here, except maybe some data collection of minors.   I've been asked for name, address, passport, credit card more times than I can remember all over. 

You're neither dumb nor blind. I know you have worked for hotels for many years and trust your information. 

I think some are over-reacting as every hotel I have ever checked into or booked has always required financial details, I use a credit card. That is for both here in australia and overseas.

5 hours ago, TS Von said:

which should be easy enough to get whether a smaller ship (2000-3000 people) or larger one (3000-4000).  It's just 12 people.

@Vineyard View is on a Seabourn ship which is at most 650 pax and I think he is sailing on the 450 pax ship so much harder to acquire 12 passengers. 

Vineyard I saw just recently that a roll call group for Sojourn sailing in February, they over a period of a few months just announced they got the required number for a tour. Also Seabourn Sailors may help, not that I do social media, I did meet one of the moderators on Odyssey recently and he was very nice.

@marazul thanks for the extra information. I was looking to book Rome Cabs as we have used them before and know they are good. Since our flight arrives in the morning the trip to Cerveteri and the Castle will be a good way to spend the time before we can check in to our apartment.

2 hours ago, labonnevie said:

You make some interesting points. I certainly agree that after the entertainment ends on Regent (10:30), in many cases, there is not much going on. It may be that you are younger than the typical Regent cruiser. We have found that, especially if we went on a morning excursion, or have one the next morning, we are done by that time. 
The included excursions vary greatly (we have been on 12 Regent cruises). Some are very popular and the buses wind up 2/3 or 3/4 full. Last year we went on an included tour for lunch with a farm family in Montenegro that had 4 people. And everything in between. 
Question: (sincere) how do you feel the Regent included tours compare to the tours you purchase through Seabourn? 

I'm not big into shows though we did do three on Regent mainly because it was so boring in the clubs. In clubs after 9.30 there would be lucky to be half a dozen people there. The Observation Bar on Regent was the quietest out of all of them. We are in our mid 60s so not spring chickens and many people we chat to in the Obs Bar on Seabourn after 10pm are older than that. 

It isn't just that the buses are 2/3 to 3/4 full we found there would be 3 or 4 going to the same spot and so the large tourist groups was overwhelming. This was in Japan.

We rarely do tours with Seabourn as we prefer to wander or book private tours. I do a lot of research pre cruise and we have plans for most ports. The last one we did on Seabourn was an Oyster tasting in Alaska in September and there was only about a dozen people. It was very good and we enjoyed the scenery, the drive out to the Oyster farm and the oysters. 

I think my husband and I are just not the Regent Demographic as we prefer smaller boutique hotels and not bus tours but we wanted to try it and I'm glad we did. Pricing for Regent in Australia is high unless you can snag a good deal with upgrades and sale pricing. We also don't get any included air or transfers.

Edited to add I remember now the Oyster tour actually specified the maximum was 12 guests which was another reason we were happy to book it.

@Mallisa Thank you for your detailed information. I decided to look further into booking as mid August is still holiday time and already there was of number of places booked out. Based on your message and reading blogs and watching videos I have booked an apartment in Trevignano Romano a delightful looking town on the lake. As it is Summer we will be able to use the ferry to visit other towns on the lake so I will make sure to try gelato at Bar del Molo.

@marazul and @cruisemom42 Thank you for the recommendation of Frascati as I now have it on my list of places to stay for a few days rather than stay in Rome.

20 hours ago, Topgun44 said:

Iam sorry, I don’t recommend getting scammed out of my money, plus heard that other countries try the same thing from other tourists in have heard from.

You are confused. Rome Cabs is not the standard taxi it is a private company that you can book transfers and tours through. I do understand why you thought people are referring to normal taxis due to the name  but this discussion is not about normal taxis.

7 hours ago, labonnevie said:

I believe Explora is part of MSC. 

Regent is part of Norwegian and, in or view, doing extremely well. 
On our three post Covid Regent cruises, we have seen no noticeable cutbacks in service, staff or luxury. In fact, the new ships have taken it up a notch. 
Conversely, our one post Covid cruise on Seabourn was disappointing on many levels. Although pre Covid we felt the two lines were equivalent, we no longer feel that way. We’ll probably try Seabourn again, but it is unlikely to be soon. 

Everyone likes different things. My recent Regent cruise was on a lovely ship and the food and wine was good apart from their revenue wine selection was poor. However I would have to find a really good deal on a transatlantic as I found I really don't like going on included excursions. 

For included excursions it was fairly full buses and multiple buses going to the same place. I felt I was back in school following a teacher on an excursion. For our post cruise land tour we actually ended up doing part of the first day and skipping the rest as we disliked being rounded up like school children so often. Our guides were lovely and we were never late for the bus when we did go.

Also in the evening we are used to going up to the Obs Bar after a late diner and/or a show and chatting with people and staying up until late. We couldn't do that for the most part on Regent. There was hardly anyone in the bars and those few were in their own groups isolated so it made it hard to chat. In the last few days we met two lovely couples from Mexico who joined in when I finally decided to just dance anyway as the Duo in the Explorer lounge were very good.  

Explora is the luxury arm of MSC which is owned by the Aponte family. The Aponte family also own the world's largest shipping container line so they have deep pockets.

5 hours ago, Hobar said:

How many times may Solis be booked in advance for a 14 day cruise? 21 day? Etc.?  (Not asking about adding rezos once on board - just asking about booking in advance of sailing.)

A booking every 7 days per suite. For example my upcoming cruise is a 12 day + 14 day booked seperately. I was only able to book Solis online once on the 12 day cruise but twice for the 14 day cruise.

40 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Esteril

Since I have quite a few days pre and post cruise in Lisbon next year I am looking at different day trips. So I googled searched Esteril and all I got was the Spanish translation "sterile" 😲. Further searching and putting in Portugal I found the town. It looks nice but more of a resort which I think in March would be too cool for me. 

Have you been to Evora? It looks interesting with the architecture and history and wineries.

1 hour ago, HarryLake34 said:

Oh, so it's a self-serve buffet. I understand. Thanks.

There is a small classic menu plus fish of the day and pasta of the day you can order for table service at the Colonnade at lunch. I often have the fish of the day with a starter salad from the buffet.

There is also the Patio grill which is around the pool area. Again it has buffet items but it also has the  same order at the table menu. In September some of us ordered a couple of pizzas to share with different toppings at the Patio Grill at lunch time. This was out of Alaska and northern Japan so yes the weather was cool but we rugged up.

Just now, markham said:

My point when bemoaning the cutbacks and maintenance issues at Seabourn re their 4 classic ships and loss of all momentum is that there are better luxury line choices out there. And yet many seem reluctant to accept any criticism of Seabourn management, onboard practices and strategic direction (there doesn’t appear to be any).

 

Oh, well… That said the Venture class ships are a triumph and our cruises in summer 2023 and 2024 were equally fine. And we will selectively choose a classic cruise when the itinerary and low pricing suit us. I know what to expect in large part.

 

My suggestion is for everyone to do their homework about other lines and make sure you stay on the sunny side of the street/ship.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

 

 

You and I know each other so I do wonder why you keep questioning my taste. I am trying other lines but I keep finding myself happier on Seabourn.

Maybe I will try Silversea new ships and I appreciate your recommendation but.

7 hours ago, highplanesdrifters said:

So maybe Ningaloo reef for more whale sharks, the theme of 2026..

The whale shark season runs March to July in Ningaloo so September is too late in the season. There will be Humpbacks only.

I'm Just waking up and am going away for a few days but will write up that flight from Darwin to Kakadu National Park. I really enjoyed the flight and the boat ride on the Yellow River. We saw lots of Crocodiles from the boat.

 I think I have an answer. There was just a shake up in the company.

https://hotelsmag.com/news/aimbridges-new-ceo-is-busy-fixing-the-company-hes-doing-it-with-a-rolling-pin/

In Summary so you don't have to read the whole article published in June 2024:

What does this excavation project look like? Well, for one, there is no longer a global president. That position, which was occupied by Mark Tamis, is gone; so, too, is Allison Reid, who was chief global growth officer. Eric Jacobs, another longtime Marriott executive and Smith confidante, joined Aimbridge in June as chief global growth officer.

No more speculation, it's business as usual.

1 hour ago, adoctor said:

He departed from Aimbridge in Spring 2024.

But why? I know they have also done some restructuring over the last 12 months or so and of course people change careers for all sorts of reasons. 

One positive, I hope, is that being President of Global Operations he is au fait with hotels working to keep their clients happy?

I have been reading about Mark Tamis and I am still trying to digest why after being President of Global Operations of Aimbridge he has decided to move over to Seabourn?

https://hotelsmag.com/news/aimbridge-is-the-largest-third-party-operator-is-it-big-enough/

You know from my posts I am wary of speculation but this has me puzzled.

38 minutes ago, MacMadame said:

I find misinformation here but I find a lot more there and it doesn't get corrected as well due to the nature of how comments work there. Also, you get way more people repeating info because they miss comments. This happens here too but it's worse elsewhere.

Another good reason to avoid social media like FB.

We will be in Mindelo next March and I looked at a few Green Line tours but didn't know anything about them so this is very reassuring.

5 hours ago, jjs217 said:

That statement is the equivalent of saying, "We like Pacific Rim (for example), but found it too Asian centric".  The whole point of TK was to be an American Steak House.  Just thought I would throw that into the discussion.

True, but the whole concept got stale for those of us to whom an American Steak House is not the be all of food. I very rarely visit a Steak House on land, last time was when I visited Argentina. 

1 hour ago, texanaust said:

Loved TK, Hated Solis.

I enjoyed the ambience in TK but found the menu boring, repetitive and too American centric. We went there as the chance to have a more intimate restaurant and we enjoyed the interaction with the staff.

With all the endless speculation and doomsayers here I have begun to think they just want drama to spice up their lives.

2 hours ago, 2SailingNomads said:

true lux line

If you mean Regent then I beg to differ that it is the "true lux line" compared to Seabourn unless you mean dull?

1 hour ago, caviarforme said:

 

 

 

 

No way to run a business!!!!

 

I have found that when onboard and even when booking and sorting out an issue with Seabourn Australia through my travel agent they do aim to solve problems. It might not be instantaneous but fairly quick.

I am writing less on this board because the doomsayers and complainers have increased. There are some lovely people but. I won't go to FB because some of the people who first got me into enjoying SB cruise critic are the worst complainers. I have sailed with them and the cruise they complained about was one I sailed on and loved. I am over it.

And I do sometimes use my TA for flights because her consortium has reduced fares with some airlines. It doesn't always work but why not check?

4 minutes ago, mraven said:

Cruise has 22 days in Indonesia after Kimberley and I booked the kayak when it was still offered. I had assumed the kayak would be after Kimberley. 

I assume you are correct. Certainly no kayaks on our Kimberley Pursuit cruise earlier this year.