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KenC
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Posts posted by KenC
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6 hours ago, roeco9084 said:
The Marella Dream is now their too on other side of the ship beside Horizon. And their is some speculation that Horizon and Zenith could be used for a Pullmantur re start?? But will have to wait and see.
Zenith no longer belongs to Pullmantur and Horizon was probably sold for scrap at the same time as Sovereign and Monarch. Why drag old tonnage back into business when RCI and Celebrity have more modern ships available for Pullmantur to lease?
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55 minutes ago, aussie cruzer said:
A bit hard to run a cruise line with no ships.
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats-for-sale/type-power/class-power-cruise-ship/
There also at least a dozen newer RCI and Celebrity (including the Millenium Class) ships up for sale plus many from Carnival and HAL. Not many buyers around though so they sail on. Pullmantur must have been delighted to sell Zenith to make room for more modern tonnage.
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Hi Tim
Guess it's a Facebook link that won't work for you - here's a copy of the text
PULLMANTUR PLANS FOUR SHIP DEPLOYMENT FOR 2021Pullmantur, the Spanish cruise operator that is part of a joint venture with Royal Caribbean International, has announced a broad, provisional outline of it’s deployment intentions for 2021.With the current fleet of three ships downgraded to a cold layup status as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the line is now looking long term, towards a hopefully brighter 2021.The as-is, three ship fleet-Horizon, Monarch and Sovereign-will be joined in early 2021 by Royal Caribbean’s current Grandeur of the Seas. Sailing simply as the Grandeur, that ship will debut in the Baltic, sailing Baltic Capitals and Norwegian Fjord itineraries between Trondheim and Warnemunde, and vice versa. Like the rest of the fleet, she will be given the blue hull and white livery that is now the company’s trademark.One of the major factors in employing Grandeur here-as opposed to the intended employment of Monarch in this role-is that the newer addition has an exhaust gas cleaning system already installed, which allows her to comply with stricter environmental regulations that are already in force across a broad swathe of Scandinavian ports.While no winter deployment has been announced, it is likely that Grandeur will also sail week long itineraries around the Canary Islands out of Tenerife, after redeploying from Northern Europe in mid September.Meanwhile, Sovereign-formerly the very popular Sovereign of the Seas- will again be based out of Barcelona for most of the year, offering seven night itineraries that take in the best of the Western Mediterranean, with calls at Livorno, Naples and Villefranche. These cruises will also allow for the additional possibility of embarking at Rome’s port of Civitavecchia, as well as at Marseilles. Likely as not, the ship will then reposition to Brazil for her usual winter charter role of short, three and four day cruises for the local Brazilian market.Smallest of the fleet, the 46,000 ton Horizon will offer seven night, round trip cruises from Piraeus to Istanbul, Izmir, Mykonos and Santorini for much of the high season. In addition, the ship-which made her debut in 1990 as the first, purpose built ship for Celebrity Cruises-will also offer a brace of seven night, Holy Land sailings that will take in Ashdod, Haifa, Limassol and Patmos, and an additional pair of Adriatic sailings that will showcase calls to Dubrovnik, Katakolon, Kotor, Santorini and Sarande. Again, these will sail round trip from Piraeus.In the winter, the Horizon is expected to shift to a program of three, four and seven day cruises around the waters of the United Arab Emirates.Last, but not least, the Monarch-twin sister of the Sovereign-will sail year round in the Caribbean, offering seven night itineraries that allow passengers to embark in both Curacao and Colon. Typical calls en route will include Aruba and Bonaire, in the Netherlands Antilles.Pullmantur offers all inclusive fares, with drinks and most meals covered in the on board cost. Though the ships are offered predominantly to Spanish passengers, they also cater to British guests as well.As ever, stay tuned for further updates -
We were on the cancelled March 2020 Dubai - Athens sailing. Hoping to do the 2021 sailing if it happens. In the meantime trying to claim our fare back via VISA as we are not happy with a future cruise voucher (even if they are generously throwing in a $150 obc hahaha) - at the time of cancellation Pullmantur were offering 150% future cruise credit or refund!
The Blog below is more considered thoughts about Pullmantur's position through next year than the alarmist tosh copied above.
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On 4/13/2020 at 9:58 AM, aussie cruzer said:
I see the Horizon had a outbreak of CV and is still in Dubai.
No it didn't - we were due to sail from Dubai on 15 March and assured by Pullmantur up to two days before that the cruise would go ahead albeit with an altered itinerary. It was cancelled late on 14 March due to the State of Alarm being declared in Spain on 15 March. Originally promised a 150% refund, we are currently being offered a future cruise credit to the value of the cruise plus some onboard credit - not impressed!
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Where did you hear this?
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Hey Mike and Gerry - has my thread turned into a dating site 😂
Seriously, stay safe guys and hope we all get back to sea soon
Cheers
Ken & Phill
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On 2/28/2020 at 8:46 PM, gerryuk said:
Wont be on your ship, I will be flying from my home in Gran Canaria to join the Costa Diadema in Abu Dhabi, then a 24 day sail to Savona, the ship will be docked in Dubai on the same day as yours, I will give you a wave.
Hi Gerry
how far did you get to Abu Dhabi?? We spent 6 days in Dubai before the cruise with Pullmantur saying yes it's on, even changing the itinerary to no stops until a few stops in Turkey and Mykonos. Then with less than 24 hours notice it was cancelled and we had to scramble round for flights back to Malaga!
Not sure what compensation we will get as we booked through a US agent and Pullmantur won't talk directly to us.
How are you doing in lockdown? Looks like the infection rates in the Canaries is quite low - marginally better than those here in Andalucia. Wouldn't want to be living in Madrid right now, it.s a nightmare!
Cheers
Ken
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Anyone sailing from Dubai to Athens - lots of lovely warm sea days and an all inclusive cruise at remarkable rates!
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5 hours ago, BillHoo said:
Do they re-christen the ships when they get acquired by Pullmantur?
Not since RCI acquired an interest in the Spanish cruise line in 2006. Sovereign, Monarch and previously Empress were all ex Royal Caribbean ships that just dropped 'of the Seas'. Zenith and Horizon retained their Celebrity names minus the 'Celebrity' prefix. It is anticipated that Grandeur of the Seas will become 'Grandeur' when she joins Pullmantur in 2021.
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Hi there,
The only extras are the taxes (usually around the same amount as the fare) and gratuities (which are compulsory). The all inclusive brands are quite acceptable or you can upgrade for a small extra per drink. Food is excellent as is the entertainment. Spanish is the first language on board but the crew all speak English and announcements are made in Spanish, English and any other pax language required. Ships are obviously older RCI and Celebrity models, with Grandeur of the Seas joining the fleet in 2021.
All in all we would recommend Pullmantur as excellent value for money and we've done over 40 cruises on various other lines. The airfares to Europe or elsewhere are probably going to cost you more than the cruise hahaha!!!
Try it!!
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Time running out for this great itinerary
Some agents are giving these cabins away 😅
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One week to go - Zenith's last but two cruises for Pullmantur!
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Phill and I did this cruise in reverse with a great gang of guys last year, so here we go again!
Anyone else on this great itinerary - all inclusive unbeatable price!
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Here we go again around the Canaries on Pullmantur - antone fancy a cocktail?
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Another cruise around the Canaries for Phill and me!! Any friends on board?
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Hi Susan
didn't realise we were such close neighbours - we live just outside Mijas Pueblo!!
See what you mean about the Wifi not being available for the second cruise - it's just not there is it??? Perhaps they are wary about offering wifi in advance for the Middle East in case the satellite link is unreliable - they might want to control expectations better on board the ship. We don't book wifi in advance.
The excursion email should have a Bono or voucher, you need to print the pdf attachments (BonoShorex###) and bring with you - probably need to exchange for tickets once onboard.
I suppose a colour photocopy of your passport may be necessary if the ship holds onto our passports to get customs clearance in the middle east ports. We always travel with laminated copies of the ID pages just in case.
Yes, the weather is chronic right now - must be nearly 10 deg C below normal??? The last time we sailed out of Malaga on a transatlantic we were looking forward to sailing past our bit of coast but the weather was bad then too! I'm sure it will all calm down again by November.
Cheers
Ken & Phill
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Hi there Holiday mood.
We normally check-in online with Pullmantur and yes we print our luggage tags on normal A4 paper - the best thing to do is use plenty of sellotape around the ends as well as the top when you put it on your case so that it won't tear when your case gets manhandled!
Don't know about the wifi packs online, we normally get one onboard as I think they give extra discounts sometimes once you've sailed! Stupid question, but are you using the correct booking reference to get access to the online facilities to the second cruise - it's easy to get them mixed up and I'm sure everything is available for booking by now. I will check in the morning out of curiosity.
By the way, what's your name and where are you from?
Cheers
Ken & Phill
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Send your booking numbers and names to me at gregg907 at yahoo dot com and I’ll have our agent put together a table if possible.
Sent from my iPhone using Forums
Perfect! Will email you with details on Sunday.
Cheers
Ken and Phill
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That's great. Can you organise a table through your agent? We are booked through a US agent and are currently away from home for the weekend. Can provide our booking reference on Sunday evening if you're able.
We will be booking the Petra excursion too, but will skip the Cairo visits as we were there for the umpteen time a couple of years ago. Most of the European ports we like to explore for ourselves.
Looking forward to hearing from you guys.
Cheers
Ken and Phill
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I will be on the Horizon this year for Halloween, curious if anybody knows if Pullmantur does Halloween parties. I know its not celebrated as wildly in Europe as it is in the US, but curious if I should dump a costume in the pack.
Thanks
Chris
The Spanish love Halloween - All Hallow's Eve. The following day, All Saints Day, is a Bank Holiday. Expect a party!
Ken & Phill
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Hello there
We are Ken and Phill living near Malaga in Spain. We are on this and the previous cruise from Malaga to Athens. This will be our 4th cruise on Horizon and really looking forward to it.
Got nowhere with Pullmantur customer services regarding visas, who firmly put responsibility on the passenger which is a little unfair as normally special rules apply to cruise passengers. As far as I can make out, all necessary visas are obtainable at the point of arrival and should be free of charge for cruise passengers. That's for UK passport holders and I would assume it's the same for US and Canadian passports too.
If anyone has questions about Horizon we will be happy to help. One thing we would say is that they try to push a drinks package upgrade as soon as you are onboard - unless you are a drinks brand oficionado, don't bother as it's an expensive option. If there is a particular drink you prefer you can buy it one at a time for a small upcharge.
Looking forward to a Cocktail get together - first round is on us LOL.
Ken & Phill
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Hi guys
Got nowhere with Pullmantur customer services, who put responsibility on the passenger which is a little unfair as normally special rules apply to cruise passengers. As far as I can make out, all necessary visas are obtainable at the point of arrival and should be free of charge for cruise passengers. That's for UK passport holders and I would assume it's the same for US passports too.
One thing to say about cruising on Horizon is that dining companion mix can be quite fraught due to English speakers being in a small minority!! Last two tables were dire - anyone fancy a LBGT table?? We are on First sitting (7.30pm) which corresponds to second sitting on non-Spanish cruiselines LOL.
At least Cocktails will be more fun with some company onboard!!
Ken & Phill
Pullmantur Horizon No More?
in Pullmantur Cruises
Posted
Pullmantur are aware of the misinformation on their website but have refrained from doing anything about it.
The following two quotations are from Pullmantur head office earlier this year in response to my queries.
"We are working on a business plan to be able to resume our activity as soon as possible and we will inform you of how that return will be. We are here for any other questions." - July 2020
"Hi Ken, our idea is to navigate as soon as the health situation allows. We will inform you. Greetings and take good care of you" - September 2020