I'm also not going on this particular sailing, but sailing the Star Clipper in late August through Greece to Venice as a solo female in her 60s. This will be my first small-ship sailing and I'm very excited for the experience. 

16 hours ago, Klagenicht said:

We will be on Star Flyer next Saturday Aug. 19th embarking Piraeus and sailing to Rhodes, Bodrum, Darien, Santorini, Hydra and back to Athens.  I am surprised that I do not get a lot of emails from them like one gets from the bigger cruise lines. I like to decide on the excursions before the cruise but here one is told to sign up when you get on board.  Also one does not get any times for arrivals and departures at different ports.  Is that what other people who have cruised with them have experienced? 

Following - it is a bit unique to not see arrival/departure times. My sailing isn't for a year, but I like to do some deep dive planning/looking into things - Sounds like I'm going to need to lower my expectations about that. 

On 7/14/2023 at 1:26 PM, guintama said:

I have been intrigued to go on a Grecian sailing in 2024.

I just placed my deposit as a solo female traveler for the Athens to Venice sailing in Aug 2024. I've read that Star Clipper will go to dry dock before then. I hope so, but I will will make the very best of it regardless. The itinerary is what sold me. I will meet a friend afterward and we will continue by land to Barcelona, Beaucaire (France) and Paris. 

I must have ticked them off...I get no e-mail from them. I'm ok with that actually, it would only make me want to cruise and honestly I'll be among those that wait and see before hopping aboard again, (that actually makes me sad).

11 hours ago, vinsheer said:

Am I the only one? I am feeling more and more foolish and can't seem to keep track of Cruises Cancelled and Rebooked. Usually I am really on top of these things. However, I've just gone through a long list of emails trying to figure out which Cruises have been rebooked, whose names they are under, how we rebooked them, etc. As of now I know I still have a Jan 2021 cruise to answer Yes or No to refund or FCC and I just did the online reimbursement form to transfer my April 2021 cruise to my Nov 2021 Cruise.  Pretty sure my May 1 Cruise will be cancelled as well so getting ready for that.  I'm hoping I can call Carnival and they will have all this information if I just give each of our 3 names! Does anyone know if this is true? I feel so dumb!! I blame it on all the confusing emails, hahaha

If you know how to use Excel, I highly recommend it for this task. I have a spreadsheet that has separate tabs for all my travel details, and looking now, I see that goes back to May 2016 - my archived sheet goes back to 2000. 

Trans-Pacific passenger learns of positive COVID-19 test after landing in Honolulu

https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2020/10/27/trans-pacific-passenger-learns-positive-covid-test-after-landing-honolulu/

This is what I would be concerned about with going on a cruise right now.

I know people have fudged (dare I say "lied") on those health forms we're all given before boarding. There is no reason whatsoever a die-hard cruiser would give up their cruise. All you need to do is read the boards on a regular basis to know this is true. Every scheme for skirting every rule has been discussed on here, at length. From stupid stuff like chair hogging and "sneaking" liquor on board to more serious issues - shows how desperate some are and will do desperate things to get on that ship...at all costs...including the health of their fellow cruisers and the crew! 

Is there a date when this (these) are to be announced?

We sailed on Earth Day - decorates our door as we like to - no tape, all magnets 

On 9/13/2019 at 11:49 AM, susan1957 said:

...but we don't go to bed at 9:00 either.....INPUT?

I'm not a bed at 9:00 person either...except...on our Alaskan cruise the sun rose at 4-4:30 and we DID get up for sunrise. There are plenty who are still tooling around after 9, but it's a different cruise experience overall. More casual dress in the evenings, tends to be an older passenger, the pools are (usually) not usable so parties by the pool do not exist, most events are indoors - it gets COLD outside at night. We found dancing at night but nothing like the Mexico/Caribbean cruises.

All that said...we LOVED our Alaska cruise and hope we can go again! 

There's a very good chance it won't show up until you're on the ship. That happened to us some time ago. Keep all documentation handy of said credit, and if you find it doesn't show up, take it to the ship's customer service desk and speak with someone there. 

No reformers - mat based, and were only held very early in the morning - before 8. I'm a reformer (and yoga) person myself, and don't care for the yoga or pilates classes on the ships - I feel like they are very advanced for the average person, and that (in my opinion) can lead to injury if not done properly. I do use the gym on board, almost daily. I've borrowed yoga mats and do my own yoga...usually on the very top outdoor deck (where there used to be topless sunbathing). Very peaceful and not a heavy foot traffic area.  

There’s a very interesting and sad article about Peter Max (the renowned 60s artist) in The NY Times May 28th (I’m not certain I can post a link so I won’t) - here’s a brief excerpt: Peter Max, the iconic psychedelic artist, has dementia and can no longer paint. But for some, his decline meant a lucrative opportunity. They hired street painters to churn out art in his style, and told Max to sign it. And they turbocharged sales via a never-ending series of cruise ship auctions.

I’ve known for years how slimy the art auctions are (after overhearing 2 gallery workers on a ship talk about needing to get ready for the “next group of suckers”) but this article makes me feel awful for even looking at the “Peter Max” art on ships. 

Here's a question - if you were on this ship (The Splendor) and it was having engine issues, how would you feel about continuing the journey into (in this case) Mexico?

I've been on ships that couldn't leave port (weather) and so never was concerned about the viability of the trip once we got started, but mechanical issues? I'm not sure.

1. It’s a ship at sea

2. The Cloud 9 spa

Future cruise planner 😊

Layers are your friend on this itinerary. And ear covering. I'm envious. Alaska is likely the most beautiful sailing, and completely different than any other.

21 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

 

Be careful what you send to be cleaned. All laundry is washed in hot water so I would not send anything nice to be cleaned. My wife and I are both Platinum and the only items we send to laundry are underwear, socks, gym clothes and bathing suits. 

For me it's gym clothes exclusively (although my friend does sent her tees, capris and undies as well). 

Thank you!

We rented with Enterprise, and dropped the car at their office in Galveston. They shuttled passengers to the ship.

Hmmmm, well that's still ok. 

The search engine is acting up (again)...

We're thinking about a B2B on Vista (different ports for each sailing) - I would go from gold to platinum on day 1 of the second half. Does anyone know if that would mean I'd be platinum for the entire trip, or only the second portion on the B2B?

For us it would mean we wouldn't have to purchase FTTF, and we'd have laundry privileges (less packing!).

Thanks all!

Halloween door on the Magic.

3 minutes ago, 3smithboys said:

If you bring wine, do you just ask your cabin steward for wine glasses? We are going back and forth between Cheers and not getting it. We are now thinking it may not be worth it and might just bring a couple of bottles of wine with us. We have a balcony and thought it might be nice...

 

 

There will be wine glasses in your cabin upon boarding and will be replenished with clean glasses when needed. And yes, sitting on your own balcony with a glass of wine is hard to beat.

Yes, excursions in Alaska are expensive, because they're in the US and have insurance and safety regulations to abide by.

Pay the rate, take a helicopter ride and land on a glacier to hike for a once-in-a-lifetime mind-blowing experience. Book independently, not through the cruise line. 

The visuals in Alaska are unlike anything anywhere. 

The geology and wildlife life lessons are not to be missed.

 Ketchikan has the most authentic Alaskan art and artifacts. The Yukon steam train ride in Skagway is a journey to some other time and place. Juno is your friend for helicopter tours. 

if you can find a ship with a good spa, take it. Steam rooms and saunas perfectly complement Alaska, especially after a day exploring.

Layers are indeed your friend. Ear covering, a warm coat, fleece vests, gloves and boots will save you. 

Yes, 110% different than the palm trees of the Caribbean and a trip you will never stop talking about. We cruised Alaska in 2010 (early May, first sailing of the season) and STILL talk about it. A lot! 

Now one I want to go again! 

That I wasn't able to do everything I "planned" on doing.

I thought "one week, that's a lot of time to fill"

Reality "not enough time to do it all"