alexandra cruiser

and all have essentially the same cruise,,ports.Just different amount of money for them and different times.But all in Dec.to Feb.period.

Some have better perks ,but they charge for them.

Trying to stick to lines I ve been on and liked.

So will probably just go with the Jan.6 Seabourn,,since no real obvious reasons WHY NOT,right.??

Was tempted to go on Celebrity,but DH prefers to spend a bit more and not deal with large ship,mass market line issues.For this trip of a lifetime,so to speak.:)

$3,000 total??THat s a lot of money, may have to just "deal with"crowds and chance of rain.

Now if I could get the AU discount price for Jan.22,not sure if that would even be possible.:confused:

ea ship in ea line can be very different.

Have been on different ships(in same line)and noticed the difference.All was GOOD,some just GREAT IMO of course.

PS.managed to gain weight on ALL of them,whew.

PS.just a note,the best service I ever received was on a Seabourn ship(bordered on over board,haha) .Escorted us to dinner table,even back if you left for restroom,odd. Seadream was also fantastic but dining room very small and limited outdoor dining.Regent,loved it too,but service was not as attentive on the 2 ships.So it VARIES.;)

kids on SB.So not really worried about that.

But ,,odd,that Jan 22 less in AU.Never knew they switched prices between countries.

Not sure about airfare at that time,but seems should be LESS than the Dec.cruise(over Holidays).???

Anyone go at these times and able to shed some light on this?:confused:

in Prague to Budapest tour.Plus, lots of areas of interest in Prague per se.Jewish cultural area,cemetery,etc.

We went and sad,but very informative.

Plus ,great cruise company.Top of the line,IMO.

Choice of Burt Wolf of Travel Channel.;)

hurricane season down here in FL.Always something,I guess.

BUt the lines I ve been looking at only offer this cruise in those 3 mos.

Just was wondering WHY the Jan.6 booking was so much cheaper.??

May just go with that if weather the same,vacations not much of a concern on these ships.

Is it possible to turn the A/C off in your room? I would rather have the A/C off and the door open. (In moderate or cool climate of course). I hate sleeping in heated room.

in the 10 river cruises so far,have NOT been able to turn it off.

So strange because most have sticker to keep door closed,but if you look at any of the brochures,,what do you see,,right,people standing looking out or on balcony with DOOR OPEN.

Even when I turn if HOT so it wont cool,it STILL HAS FAN RUNNING.Waste of energy and a real nuisance.

Lets get that petition=started.HOW??:confused:

I asked this on AU thread,but not about this specific ship.

See Jan .6 is a lot less than others?

Is it just due to the vacations over there at that time?(which was suggested)

Weather seems similar,after HOlidays,,just not sure??:confused:

and funny thing is your wife looks a lot like ME.Admit,little younger but same hair,glasses,build,SO FUNNY.

Have decided,since I ll be on ship in Nov....can just use your GREAT pics as my own.Too bad YOU look nothing like my DH.Oh well.

PS.glad you got the library,could not find good photos of it.Looks fine,but not quite as cozy as Insignia,et.

THANKS:)

looking at luxury,premium lines and dates tend to be only 4 times in those 3 mos.So sort of limited.

The Jan.6 date is listed as $1000 per pr.cheaper and was wondering WHY?

Guess its just vacation time,not sure.

Only have 18 days total vacation time,so that's the reason why time limited.

Would LOVE to spend more,but not retired yet.

The HOT weather is no problem,can see we re from FL(used to it).

Was just worried about the rough Tasman sea over to NZ,but can t predict that.

Taking a Scenic cruise with lots of Aussies in June,can pick their brains for more details too.;)

and good to hear Uniworld has that option on some boats.

Glad to hear others feel same way,like to be able to turn off AC and open doors without bugs.:)

and look forward to finding out how this above plan will work.on my first Scenic cruise in June.

BUt a plain screen door across entrance would help.Could shove out of way for view,etc.

I see on a few itineraries that the Jan.one is cheaper.WHY?

Is it just weather,vacations,sea conditions ,etc..

Have so many choices and only 18days max.for whole thing.May have to just take the 16 day one I m leaning toward(Seabourn) and have day pre and post in Sydney and Auckland.

Not till end of 2015 or early 2016.

Ideas??best time??Help:confused:

and LOVED it.Yes, we did dock up next to others for short time.Not overnite,so able to enjoy it.

But taking Scenic this yr.Looked at brochure and seemed to have best of both worlds.Very similar to Regent(luxury,with all inclusive).

Even has cabins with tub,room service, free transfer to ship,and on and on. about Tauck,would try as soon as they get full,not FRENCH balcony.

Know its a deal breaker for me too.

BUt those would be the closest to top end on river lines,IMO.

but glad I did it ONE time,just to say I did.BUT,and a big one.IF YOU CAN find one on own and same time,go for it.I tried and could NOT.My DH hated it and snoozed thru most(typical).

So on last one,we passed and went into town for dinner on own.Got a taxi to ship and back,very easy.Some just stayed on board,but dinner was early that nite due to concert.

So, a choice,I m afraid.;)

that is see thru and plastic,will help a little.

Can close it part way,get fresh air,and less room for bugs to be attracted to lite in cabin.

At least,that s what I m thinking.Just hate the constant drone of AC and inability to turn it off.Never been on one that needed doors shut for it.

;)

but on MOST of both,we got bugs of some type when we leave door open at nite.Days ok.Even with drapes on top.

Did Mekong,and no screens on ours.Told AMA about it,did NOT know at time that Avalon had them.

Yes, aware it screws up AC,but why not ability to turn off in room?Would solve that problem

If that s the case,wish SOME would become ALL of them.Esp.on the new ships being ordered,,

Just a nice perk and would sway which line I took,just for convenience and comfort.

Others>??:confused:

I mentioned this on a thread.AMA said none of them do.So I guess none of them WILL??

Know it would be an expense,but would be great.Love to have door open for fresh air esp at nite.But SO MANY BUGS,yikes.

Know Scenic has enclosure of balcony,but no screen.Same with Ocean cabins,but not as big a problem when out to sea.BUt then AC stays on,no matter what.

Does this bother anyone else?Or am I just nit picking?Personally thought it was a GREAT idea.:)

last yr.I d stay at least an extra day in Budapest.Great city and sorry I didn't see more.So I ended up booking another cruise this June ,Budapest to BUcarest and it stays 2 days in ea.city(in hotel).

Then you can just get off and go to hotel.:)

for many of us,that has NOT BEEN FIXED.

The smoke from them easily goes right into the next one.Also, a real fire hazard,I fear.

Almost rather have smoking in room,can close balcony door and KEEP it in there that way.Just smells after. Sorry, nothing personal.

ask at front desk and they will tell you where rest is(back of ship)and times avail.to book.

Yes, open every nite,but some open early due to pm events(ours was Vienna concert)so check.

I found food similar to what was in main dining room(just nicer presentation) and service.And NO SUBSTITUTIONS.

BUt very loud,wooden floors?,not sure.Plus menu is displayed in front and never saw it change.I didn't see it before and found out there was very little I could eat(too fancy,odd choices,etc)_but that s just me.

Some people liked it,but I d pass or check ahead of time on menu.;)

price. I ALWAYS search that,other internet site,etc.for BEST PRICE before I even contact my TA.Then ASK for that price,plus then get my perks and cash back for total cruise. Also, if price falls(rare on river,but has on ocean ones)I let TA know and given that discount too.

Am very pro active,get the best of both worlds that with,but does take a little work before,during,etc. At end feel I got the very best deal I could,plus they handle any little,questions,details,advice.Have done it both ways in past,and now ALWAYS use TA,Never have regretted it.

:)

and suggest you read the sticky under cruise flights here on CC.Gives a lot of info re.these along with the pitfalls.Learned a LOT and now book own flights and get refunds .Much better for me to control all the details.

Took 1 Viking cruise flight thru them and awful with many layovers,etc.

Others like the convenience,but sounds like many options for you to think about.;)

I acknowledge that other lines' payment policy is different and this also applies to ocean cruises. However, we all pay 100% up front for airline flights.

 

Just a thought.

and since many river cruises must be booked SO FAR AHEAD to get a particular cabin.Your money may be tied up MORE than a yr.ahead.Sorry, NO WAY. Have deposits down now on one for 2015(but don t have to pay in full till 90 days prior.

PS.Have taken 1 Viking and seemed fine.Not luxury,but above average.

And WOULD AGAIN,if itinerary right and they FIXED ABOVE POLICY>but with all those :confused:willing to go along with it,they seem to be doing just fine.Oh well.

with one of US based river cruise com.like Avalon or Uniworld,etc.?Since they seem to be using similar boat,itinerary,no?

Seems like less hassle.

Nothing against Scenic,am using them for next one in fact.Also my TA hi ly recommended them.

Feel its much too complicated for you to deal with and chances of problems may arise .Seems odd your TA does not deal with Scenic,many others do.:confused: