ssawjo

13 hours ago, GK95 said:

Was so excited about this and almost had our travel agent on standby and then realized that that’s around the time our youngest will be starting college. So we can’t go 😭 Will have to hope to do a river cruise for the 2027 eclipse in Egypt.

That would be a very interesting alternative to an ocean cruise.  Love Egypt.  I may think about that also!

8 minutes ago, bladerunner6 said:

The point of a TSE cruise is to be mobile.  My assumption is that eventually Cunard will come to understand that and make it a sea day for the eclipse.

 

That being said, here is some info on the weather prospects for Iceland.

 

https://weatherspark.com/d/31501/8/12/Average-Weather-on-August-12-in-Reykjavík-Iceland

 

I am not giving advice to anyone but I personally would avoid Iceland.

 

We were in Iceland two years ago in August and I was never so cold.  Did not see the sun the entire time we were there!  Hopefully, August 12 is a sea day with Princess.  The exact itinerary hasn't been released yet as far as I know.  Thanks for your response.

21 hours ago, phabric said:

I plan on booking this cruise, normally I would book when Elite opens up.
 

My agency has a  Princess 3 day usually Thursday-Saturday the first week of June with $$$ OBC. I was hoping to book at that time to the extra OBC but now with everyone says it might sell out before the agency’s sale in 10 days later.

 

 

Sorry, I forgot to add Punta Arenas in Costa Rica as a port stop.

9 hours ago, bladerunner6 said:

While I am thinking about this eclipse like many others, it should be noted that this is a particularly tough one.  Aside from much of the eclipse being out in the North Atlantic it is relatively low in the sky and is descending as the eclipse progresses.

 

 

Bladerunner, based on chart for the upcoming TSE, would you or do you think a cruise out of Iceland would be better to view the eclipse? Cunard has one leaving Southampton and ending in New York, via Iceland and Greenland, and will be in Reykjavik the day of the TSE.  Just curious.

Thanks.

19 minutes ago, phabric said:

What ports did you visit?

LA, Cabo, viewed the TSE, Huatulco, transited the Panama Canal (new locks), Cartagena, Grand Cayman, and Ft. Lauderdale.

6 minutes ago, phabric said:

What did Princess do to make it an amazing cruise beside what they normally do on a cruise?  I have taken 30 cruises with Princess.

 

It is the weather -heat/humid in August in Europe , I am thinking about.

Princess made it possible to view the TSE, along with Discovery, in the ocean directly in the path of the TSE.  It took a lot of planning, from what I was told by some folks involved, including the ship captain.  They also provided special glasses in order to view the eclipse.  

Agree that weather is always the X factor in these situations.  We, fortunately, had excellent viewing weather.  In Europe, who knows.  

On 4/19/2024 at 6:35 PM, PhD-iva said:

Not sure whether CEOs respond to complaints. Don’t they have minions for that?

I agree that RSSC & sister cruiseline Oceania have atrocious communication policies. 
You haven’t given me enough information to understand your concerns, but I can guess (given recent history) that you have at least one leg to stand on….

Definitely agree about Oceania.

We were on the Emerald TSE sailing, and it was amazing!  We are definitely planning on this Sky Princess sailing in two years.  Don't delay if you are interested in going.  

14 minutes ago, TheMichael said:

 

I think the responses understood your question. The advice they gave was that there's not much in the way of "special deals" booking a specific cruise while onboard vs. waiting for an email offer, the only advantage is in making the FCD so you get the OBC when you do book. (There's no time limit on when the cruise sails, only on when you book it.)

 

For example, when we sailed on the Emerald recently, the Future Cruise rep told us the best "deal" he could do is 35% off. We got off the ship to find an email offer for that PLUS a room upgrade, so we'd have likely had a worse deal if we'd booked onboard.

 

Thank you.  This was the answer I was looking for.  

Not really talking about FCD's.  For example, on Oceania, if you book a cruise while onboard, you receive a reduced deposit and OBC to be used on the present cruise or on the newly booked cruise.  There is also a slight price reduction for booking the new cruise onboard.  Besides, the cruise I want to book is two years away and a FCD would expire.  It doesn't matter how far out the cruise sails.  

Sorry I was not clearer in my original question as to what I was looking for information wise.

I was wondering if I booked a future cruise onboard, are there any advantages to doing so?  For example, reduced deposit, OBC, etc.

Thank you.

On 1/7/2024 at 10:51 PM, Borna said:

if I go to the canopy walk in Kakum national park, will I see animals and which ones?  I've seen some videos of the canopy walk, but no one seems to see any animals.

 

You have to get there very early in the morning in order to see the forest elephants.  There may be monkeys hanging around, LOL, but the forest/jungle itself is fascinating as is the canopy walk.  

Also, strongly recommend visiting the castles along the coast.  A lot of history there, mostly sad.  Unfortunately, you probably wouldn't have time to do both, Kakum and/or the Castle.

Try the Star Beer if you can.  It is very good.

Just now, dmwnc1959 said:

From the US State Department website

Thank you for the update.  When we were there, December 2022, we walked past it with the usual police presence outside and a flag waving.  Long way to go or call if you have a problem in Sao Tome!

There is also an US Embassy in downtown Sao Tome.  If things were that bad, they should have gone there for assistance and/or the port agent.  Also, not having a credit card, preferably Visa, then they were incredibly stupid.  I was in Sao Tome in December 2022 and found it to be a third world country with a colonial Portuguese legacy.  Some interesting colonial history.  They also enjoy practicing voodoo even though it is a Catholic country.  However, the people were very friendly and helpful if needed.  We were on a Regent sponsored tour, so no worries there.  The tender dock is nothing but a set of stone steps that are very slippery.  It was an experience and I am glad we visited but that is all.

1 hour ago, julig22 said:

So I saw the GMA report - and, other than the fact that they actually ran the story, I didn't feel that they were sensationalizing or taking the side of the poor mistreated passengers. And the moderator's responses were along the lines of "don't be late"  - not sympathy for the passengers or any mention of how terrible is was for NCL to just leave them.

 

Anybody else notice the change in the newest reports in the description of the passengers left behind. Before it was a parapalegic, someone with a heart condition and a pregnant woman. So thinking that now the parapalegic has transformed to an elderly lady after some fact checking. Since the original info seems to have come directly from the couple that went to the press, puts more doubt on the credibility of other things they have said.

 

One would think that they were left in the middle of the jungle with no way out according to one poster here. There is a hospital on the island if they need medication. There is an airport to fly them to the next port. No different than if they had missed the ship in the Bahamas.

 

4 hours ago, CanadianBurger said:

The Promenade Grill outside on the port side of Deck 9. 
 

The five dispensers on the right side will eventually have the condiments. 
 

 

 

I see that there is no grilled chicken sandwich on offer.  Too bad.  It is a nice alternative to a burger.

On 3/6/2024 at 2:59 PM, MVPinBoynton said:

I have just posted a review to my website with lots of photos of the Islands to Indonesia cruise on the Oceania Riviera.  It was an amazing cruise through Southeast Asia starting in Singapore and ending in Bangkok.  It was such a wonderful adventure, and we were able to spend three nights before the cruise in Singapore and three nights after in Bangkok.  Two cities that I have looked forward to spending more time in since my first visit in 2010.  I also have the menus from the restaurants, spa and lounges.

Although the Rivera lost one of its engines, we didn’t lose too much port time in any of the ports other than Manila.  While in Singapore we stayed at the amazing Marina Bay Sands Hotel with a massive infinity pool on the top of it.

 

 

We also were able to see the Supertree light/sound show at the Gardens by the Bay right next to the hotel.

 

 

 

 

In Bangkok, we saw a mesmerizing display inside of a massive stupa.

 

 

 

 

We saw so much beauty and history in SE Asia, so it is a long review.  The review is located on my website, which is linked to in my signature.  You can also just Google “Mike and Carol’s/Cathy’s Cruise Reviews” to find a link to it I hope it is helpful for those of you that are planning to cruise on in this part of the world; or if you have been there, I hope it brings back some fond memories.

 

Had a great time in Saigon with you and Cathy.  Very good review and the pictures are great.  Take care, Bill and Kathi

On 3/6/2024 at 9:34 PM, tryan70 said:

Was engine trouble fixed?

Actually, the engine problems started in Mumbai where we boarded and continued up to our disembarkation in Bangkok.  

43 minutes ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

 

All Princess ship have smoking areas in their Casinos.  However on Formal nights they often designate the Casino as non-smoking.  That said the residual odor still lingers.

Uh, ya think?

2 hours ago, dides said:

Some menus for Lido Grill, Lido Tacos and Lido Greens - credit Jackie C on FB.

 

 

 

Too bad they no longer offer a grilled chicken sandwich.  

We will be on Emerald Princess in April and will be in Cabo until 10 PM.  Looking for a recommendation for a bar/restaurant near or within walking distance of the tender location.  I saw that there were a lot of bars and restaurants nearby and some are good and some are not so good.  We do not want to go to Cabo Wabo.  Thanks for your advice.

17 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

 

Well, the fact that you believe they just cancelled the port "arbitrarily" doesn't make it true.. Many people believe they know better than the captain.. doesn't make it true and doesn't mean they have to compensate you.

Fine, whatever.

3 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

 

Sorry, I'm confused. Isn't visa a government requirement? Why Oceania would offer apology or  compensation for something that is required by Indonesian authorities? 

 

As for trust - if I stopped doing business with every company I don't trust, I would probably be sitting on the floor of my house, naked, starving and miserable. Definitely not travelling..

My point was that Oceania, IMO, arbitrarily cancelled the port call to Bintan claiming "operational" reasons and did not explain what those were.  Therefore, they should have at least offered some type of compensation.  It was not a lot of money for the visas.  It was a time consuming process to obtain.  

By the sounds of things, you don't trust a lot of companies.

31 minutes ago, Vallesan said:

We should have been on that cruise but unfortunately had to cancel a week before. 

I’ve read such mixed reports, and having been to all but two of the ports before, I’m almost pleased we were unable to go.

 

As far as Bintan is concerned believe me you missed nothing!

You are probably right about Bintan.  But the issue was that Oceania required all of us to obtain Indonesian visas and have them in hand before boarding.  They are inexpensive but time consuming to obtain on line.  No apology or offer of compensation.  I would have preferred to have spent the day at Port Klang as a sea day or head to Singapore for another day there.  But the Singapore idea was not considered because the port was full, maybe?

Otherwise, the cruise was nice.  We had not been to many of ports before, so there's that.  However, my opinion of O has changed from excellent to ?.  I don't think I can trust them to fulfill their commitment to the passengers.  

2 hours ago, Queen of DaNile said:

We enjoyed Riviera for the two weeks we were on her in SE Asia a few weeks ago. Ship, service, food were all very good. The remodeled bathrooms are lovely.

As long as you're flexible about the times you are in ports, you should be OK. There were major changes to times in all but one port due to a mechanical issue that was never revealed. Don't count on "upper" management to be transparent about changes to your itinerary. If you're comfortable with that, you'll love your cruise.

We were on the same cruise.  Agree with the statement above.  However, I personally felt that we were not treated as adults regarding O arbitrarily changing port times.  This led to several headaches regarding our private shore excursions.  We were on board for 35 days (Mumbai to Bangkok) and I estimated that we lost about 25 hours of time in port.  Some ports, no big deal.  Losing four hours in Manila was bad (it was actually three) especially for the Filipino crew members.  If the staff had been more forthright about the "mechanical" issues, which they termed "technical" issues, I believe that the passengers would have been more understanding.  The lack of transparency was frustrating. It seemed we either arrived late or left early or both in several ports.  One port, Bintan, was eliminated entirely for "operational" reasons.  Instead we spent an extra day in Port Klang, a 24 hour working container port.  

Just a bit of a rant.  Otherwise, great cruise, etc.