FieldstonEagle

Sailing through the Arctic’s unexplored wilderness aboard a luxury polar cruise ship

The Arctic may be off limits to humans for the most part, but when Ponant’s Le Commandant Charcot comes gliding over frigid waters, the unexplored wilderness feels compelled to reveal itself in its full resplendence.

https://www.vogue.in/culture-and-living/content/sailing-through-the-arctic-unexplored-wilderness-aboard-the-le-commandant-charcot

I have found that the staff of PONANT, both onboard and on shore, to be very responsive to constructive criticism, so long as it is well informed, knowing that there will be  changes to such an itinerary out of control of the cruise line. The service staff, including dining room waiters, are not French and are English speaking, so long as the guest appreciates that it is their second language. So the one time issue with the  cappuccino sounds like unfair knit picking and undermines the other criticisms in this review. Same for the beers. 

The Paul Gauguin underwent a major refurbishment last year and is beautifully maintained. Their loyal guest facing crew, including no doubt some from your last trip remain. I think you will find it better than ever and a much better choice than Windstar.

Looking forward to experiencing the caring service and superb amenities of the Star Breeze on her transpacific cruise, embarking from Seward, Alaska on August 25, 2020 and disembarking in Yokohama, Japan on September 10, 2020.    https://www.windstarcruises.com/starplus/

Am booked Vancouver to Yokohama and will try to attend the LGBT get together if it doesn't conflict with dining reservations.

I'm sorry, but only Neptune and Pinnacle suites receive priority embarkation/disembarkation and access to the Neptune Lounge. The Signature suites do not. Below is HAL's description of Westerdam's cabin/suite categories and their included amenities:

 

https://www.hollandamerica.com/pageByName/Resp.action?requestPage=ships_msWesterdam&showHeader=true&showFooter=true

Thanks. That's what I suspected, but wasn't sure. (The only perk I'd value would be the priority disembarkation, a process I have avoided in recent years by traveling on small ships, like Ponant and Windstar).

I'm sailing on the Westerdam in September, 2018 in a Signature Suite. I thought I had read that suite guests (and assume Signature Suites are considered suites for this purpose) receive extra amenities, such as priority boarding and disembarkation as well as a dedicated"lounge", however I do see such a lounge on the deck plan. Is there anything else I'd be entitled to as a suite guest on the Westerdam? Thanks.

Thanks for all your helpful responses.

According to HAL's web site, even evenings designated as formal, it is acceptable for a man to wear a collared shirt and slacks, not needing a jacket or blazer. Most recently I've been sailing on cruise lines ,such as Azamara,which have a "country Club Casual" dress code for all evenings. If I were to wear a button down long sleeve sport shirt and nice dress khaki slacks on HAL formal nights would I be out of place in the main dining room or Pinnacle Grill?

Also, when making online reservations in advance of the cruise for the Pinnacle Grill and/or other premium restaurants, can one reserve a table for 1, dining alone?

I'm thinking of booking the March 2018 Koningsdam transatlantic.

Thanks!

Hello - well I pulled the trigger and I am officially now on this Nov TA cruise from Lisbon to San Juan. Anyone else on board this cruise besides you and vanderefalk? I am planning on getting in the day before. Any recommendations on hotels in Lisbon? Looking forward to my first SD experience ! Cheers...

 

-Tushar

 

 

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Happy you decided to join this sailing. I always enjoy visiting Lisbon (and Porto), so plan to stay for 3 nights before my cruise (which also helps in getting over the jet lag from the West Coast). There are any number of good hotels, though I usually stay at the Sofitel.

I echo all the Ho Hum has stated. We are on the TA this fall but on SD I this year. We usually are partial to SD II but due to schedule and itinerary (have been to Lisbon, want to see Barcelona), we opted for SD I this time. You'll have a great time and don't let Hum scare you off, he's actually a pretty nice fella (but don't tell anyone).

Sorry you won't be on this sailing but am sure you will enjoy spending some time in Barcelona before your cruise. I'm sure there will be an interesting group of people on my transatlantic. Have formed no opinion on Hum. On the larger ships, I avoid the Cruise Critic Meet & Mingle events as find those attract a lot of incestuous gossips and complainers.

Is anyone else here still on this transatlantic cruise?

TripAdvisor own Cruise Critic ???

Your sources, your sauces ?

 

Hum has immediately recovered dear chum.

No offence remains.

Hum has made a full recovery.

Hum wishes you well and if you are so inclined, Hum would like to say a friendly hello to you on the crossing.

And if not, again no offence will be taken.

Hum respects people's privacy.

Cruise Critic was started as a early discussion forum on AOL, from which it became independent and in 2007 was acquired by Trip Advisor, which was then owned by Expedia from which it was spun off. Cruise Critic's founder retired several years ago and, within the Trip Advisor companies, is part of the Smarter Traveler subgroup.The management of Cruise Critic reports to David Krauter, President of Smarter Traveler and Independent Traveler (Cruise Critic's legal entity), who, in turn, reports to Steve Kaufer of Trip Advisor who issued this statement on behalf of the entire company.

"TripAdvisor, Inc. (NASDAQ:TRIP), through its subsidiaries, manages and operates websites under 23 other travel media brands: http://www.airfarewatchdog.com, http://www.bookingbuddy.com, http://www.citymaps.com, http://www.cruisecritic.com, http://www.familyvacationcritic.com, http://www.flipkey.com, http://www.thefork.com (including http://www.lafourchette.com, http://www.eltenedor.com, http://www.iens.nl and http://www.dimmi.com.au), http://www.gateguru.com, http://www.holidaylettings.co.uk, http://www.holidaywatchdog.com, http://www.housetrip.com, http://www.independenttraveler.com, http://www.jetsetter.com, http://www.niumba.com, http://www.onetime.com, http://www.oyster.com, http://www.seatguru.com, http://www.smartertravel.com, http://www.tingo.com, http://www.travelpod.com, http://www.tripbod.com, http://www.vacationhomerentals.com and http://www.viator.com.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/PressCenter-c6-About_Us.html

https://www.wearesmartertravel.com/company/

No politics allowed !

Hum is offended .......boo-boo, boo-hoo

Sorry to offend. I assumed it was allowed after reading the statement issued by the owners of Cruise Critic:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/tripadvisor-condemns-executive-order-refugee-muslim-nations-kaufer?published=t

We completely agree with the above postings.. especially on the one from

Ho Hum. He is certainly an expert on these. I think that we have sailed on 8 SeaDream TA voyages, and they are certainly our preference. Just prepare to relax and enjoy. Also, the Fall ones are the best because you will gain about 6 hours over the voyage with time changes. We will be on the one that you are booking, so see you then.:)

Thanks. I've probably travelled ta's pretty equally in both directions, particularly since I worked in Europe (Paris & the Principality of Monaco) for 12+ years. Now that I'm back in the US, west or east doesn't matter that much, though, depending on other obligations, usually opt for a late spring eastbound which gives me a chance to add a week in Paris in late April or May, when the weather tends (but not always) to be better than November.

I have always found the sea to be transcendent in and of itself and this is a great way to catch up on my reading. (And this year it will have the added pleasure of taking my mind off of Trump and his mayhem).

I loved the Tere Moana, though only holding a maximum of 88 passengers, from a business viewpoint, think Paul Gauguin Cruises was prudent in selling the vessel. With less than 20 guests on my voyage it was truly a yachting experience, though the food, while excellent, was not up to the preparation of that on the Tere Moana in the South Pacific. The officers were more interesting than the guests and the staff was terrific, as caring and professional as one can get.

Thank you for your thoughtful response. I'm looking forward to catching up on my reading, and relaxing. On my last transatlantic on the Tere Moana there were only 17 guests (and 90 crew), so I'm a bit sorry to learn of how popular this voyage has become.

I'm planning to book the November 8, 2017 SeaDream 2 transatlantic from Lisbon to San Juan, PR. However, I can't find a roll call for this cruise. I've sailed transatlantic on such small ships as Paul Gauguin's Tere Moana (now sold), so am not concerned about the weather. I'd welcome, though, any feedback from those who have in recent years experienced a SeaDream transatlantic, in terms of the variety of fellow guests, lectures, etc. Any advice would be welcome and, if in fact there is a Roll Call for this voyage, please let me know before I start one. Thanks.

This will start a G&L Roll Call for the Azamara Quest April, 2, 2017 transatlantic from Miami to Barcelona, which I've just booked. This will be my third Azamara cruise, having previously been a guest on the Journey.

Have booked the Norwegian Getaway April 30, 2017 transatlantic cruise from Miami to Copenhagen.

I'm planning to book a post cruise hotel in Tokyo and would welcome suggestions on transport from the port. I don't want to have to deal with my luggage on a train, but private limos seem to be charging around US $350 for the door-to-door transfer. Has anyone checked with Celebrity to see if they will be selling transport arrangements to hotels in Tokyo and not just the Tokyo airports? Any other suggestions would be welcome. Thanks.

I will be arriving in Yokohama on the Celebrity Millennium's transpacific cruise and booking a post-cruise hotel in Tokyo (Shinjuku). Since I'll be traveling alone and have several pieces of luggage, how would you suggest I arrange to make the transfer? I've checked limo services and they seem to charge about US $350, which is too pricey for one person. Yet I don't want to lug my stuff on the train. Any suggestions? Thanks!

Have just booked this cruise.

Gig103, Thanks, but I had read somewhere that the outside deck 3 cabins were noisy, so that would concern me. I'll do some more research!