Buckeye94

Okay. Yesterday was a roller coaster, and I thought the rolling wouldn't start until we were at sea! 

The day started beautifully. I ventured up to the rooftop bar for morning pictures of San Cristóbal Hill to complement the sunset ones from the night before.

Then, I met up with Jan from the Roll Call for our shared transport to Valparaiso with a stop for a winery tour and lunch at Casas del Bosque on the Casablanca region. It was a lovely drive, fantastic tour and tasting with Christopher, lunch at Tanino, and then the rest of the drive to the port.

That's where things got rocky. You probably saw my earlier post of the 1.5 hour line to check in. I don't know why this is so difficult. My last cruise in Nov out of Fort Lauderdale had tech issues, too. At least there, they had Celebrity staff with water. Here, it was hot and noisy with little info as to why there was such a delay.

We were delayed departing Valparaiso for 3 hours. That, combined with weather overnight is delaying our arrival into Puerto Montt by 2 hours. Thankfully, they've extended our stay for 2 hours as well, so no missed port time! 

59 minutes ago, Beachlover1989 said:

Looks like a long line.  So you had to take a shuttle AFTER you checked in at the port??

Yes. Valparaiso is a commercial port. Very easy, though. Go through the metal detectors, out the door, and onto the bus that dropped us off at the ramp to board the ship. They had 3 or 4 buses running the loop, so there was no wait. We've been told the same will happen when we disembark in BA.

Really wanted that glass of welcome sparkling wine after scaling the ramp, but that appears to have been eliminated. I don't recall it on my Nov Beyond cruise either. 

Never fear, the Martini Bar was open! 🍸😃

1.5 hours to check in. Now I'm on the shuttle bus over to the ship. Unreal. Still better than a day in the office, but my patience is in my checked bag. 😂 First thing I'll unpack. I knew I should have put it in my carryon.

I feel like Princess Anna. It's Embarkation Day! 

Wish I could have seen more of Santiago. Next time! 

34 minutes ago, $hip to $hore said:

Quick question on the information about the QR codes and the need for data to use them - do you have an international data plan, or did you purchase one while you are in Chile? If you purchased one, where did you get yours from. I'm from Canada and our data packages internationally are ridiculous. Likely the highest priced cellular plans on this planet. 

I get slow data, 2G, internationally on my plan. Lomit's offered a copy when they thought I was having problems with the code. I'm sure they'd find a way.

2 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

Love the pictures.   Looks like you are having perfect weather.

As an expert reviewer, a technical question. To share pictures, I added/uploaded them. After I insert pics to my post, can I remove them from uploaded files or are the images in the post linked to the upload?  

¡Feliz Año Nuevo! 

I made it to Santiago! First note for those who are considering this itinerary. If you are in Santiago for NYE reserve your NYE dinner/event early, and pack carefully. Very few stores were open yesterday, banks were closed, and many restaurants were booked or closed. Today, is a national holiday, so my winery tour booked almost a year ago was cancelled (months ago so not a surprise, just a disappointment). Very, very few restaurants outside of hotels are open.

But, that didn't stop me from having a wonderful day. I'm staying at Solace Hotel Santiago https://solacehotel.cl/santiago/ in the Providencia area. Nice spot near the embassies, shopping (any other time of the year), and restaurants. Today, I walked to the Sculpture Park.   https://santiagochile.com/parque-de-las-esculturas/  Peaceful outdoor setting with lots of benches and shade. Each sculpture had a marker with a QR code to learn more about the piece and artist. Fascinating! 

Food! 

Yesterday, I had lunch at Lomit's (https://lomitsrestaurant.com/) which was featured by Andrew Zimmern on Bizarre Foods. Kind of bizarre, but not outrageous, I enjoyed the chacarera which is pork loin with tomatoes, peppers, and shredded green beans. It was delicious, and so was the pisco sour.

Today, I ate at the pizza place I had hoped to try last night (https://www.lapizzanostra.cl/). I enjoyed a beer from Punta Arenas as a preview to the days ahead.

Both restaurants accepted debit cards. Not sure about credit cards. Yelp only listed debit and my Spanish failed me on this subject. I had heard that BA favored debit cards, so I opened one with a limited balance before I left home.

Fun fact: Santiago closes some main streets every Sunday for recreation. Bikes, runners, families out enjoying the day walking down the middle of the road. 

Interesting trees:

Re: shore excursions

For this cruise, I am sticking with Celebrity excursions for a few reasons. 1) I'm traveling alone really far from home and my Spanish is iffy. 2) Lots of tender ports. 3) Important sailing days between ports. I'd hate to miss the Chilean Fjords and Strait of Magellan because I missed the last tender at Puerto Montt, or sailing around Cape Horn because I was delayed in Ushuaia.

I know many people who do independent, and in the Med where ports are close and less meaningful sea days, I do independent. Here, they got me with the peace of mind.

More expensive, you bet. Maybe next time. 😀

But, yes, I will share my perspective on the excursions. Penguins, 

sea lions, toninas, on my! 😀

2 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

 

None of us on this board expect you to sacrifice your enjoyment of the cruise because of live posting responsibilities. 

 

Thanks! I don't know how some people do it! 😀 

Hotel Praktik Rambla. Fantastic location, taxi stand nearby. Great boulevard with restaurants and cafes.

https://www.hotelpraktikrambla.com/es/

That happened to me once. I upgraded prior to the sailing and had both PALL and CALL on my card (solo traveler). They offered me Classic wines first in MDR until I complained and eventually went to Guest Relations to get a new card with only Premium designated. Very frustrating.

Save the hassle. If you see a short line at Guest Relations, get a card with only PALL.

Here's a link to my post with menu photos of the WCB on Beyond. I didn't take pictures of the page with beer and wine, but they are offered. 

The WCB overlooks the Martini Bar. It has more traffic than S-class with that location, and can get a little loud during the silent disco nights and martini flair demos, but I never had a problem finding a place to sit. It has more energy than S-class and is busier. Different, but still refined and creative.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2892936-beyond-world-class-bar-menu-photos/?do=findComment&comment=64281061

On 11/30/2022 at 12:05 PM, Jim_Iain said:

Please do a Live.   I was a bit reluctant to for my first.    I'm sure no one would believe it but I can be a real introverted extrovert.    The fun part is that you get to meet so many of the CC folks we probably would never get to meet otherwise.

I can be an extroverted introvert at times! 😀 My attempt will be limited only by the wifi. I am so excited for this trip! Only wish I could join the B2B group for Antarctica, but I need to retire first. Goals! 

Yay! Excited for another live review with you guys! I wish I had connected the dots to know you were you when we were on Edge in the Greek Isles in 2019 (?).

You and @GenerationX are inspiring me to attempt a live review of my Valparaiso to Buenes Aires cruise on Infinity in January.  I had such fun on Beyond with Charla and  @hcat and @julia and the rest of the Gatsby ladies (and a couple gents)! 

Happy sailing! 

Julie

Maybe someone from Beyond can confirm, but they had a Full Moon party on the 11/7 sailing and suggested wearing white, silver, or gold. I didn't attend, but that's what I recall.

The Aqua Class slippers are yours for the taking, too. They are a lovely reminder of sailings and spa as I work from home and dream of my next cruise. 😀

To @GenerationX @julia @hcat and all the other Cruise Critic regulars I met (but don't remember your screen names), THANK YOU!  I usually interact on the roll call before sailing, but this time it was so nice to meet the people I've followed and relied upon for advice for so long onboard, IRL! 

I hope our travels intersect again! 

Charla, you have inspired me to write a live (or post-cruise, depending on the wifi) review of my "only a veranda" Patagonia cruise in January.

Until then, happy travels and travel planning! 

Julie

So glad they added World Class Bar to Beyond!  I couldn't find a menu when I was doing my pre cruise planning, so I'm sharing pics now LIVE from Beyond. Sorry if this is redundant, but more search returns, if it is! 😀 Stop by and see Bojana! 

Cheers! 

Julie

Omigosh! That path to Blu! I was sober and it was a challenge! 

Captain Kate is here! I didn't recognize her with her hair down and no stripes! 😂 She's a guest on this sailing. 

I have a feeling we are boarding and high tailing it outta here! Give those stabilizers a good test. Whew, windy! 

32 minutes ago, GenerationX said:

Ok guys, things are looking up: I’m at my gate. 10 minutes to boarding.  We have a plane and we have what looks like a full flight crew waiting to board. All signs pointing to wheels up soon! 🤞🏾

We'll see if they can hold the evening cocktails for you! Much more likely than a ship! 😜

Yay! I'm looking forward to a short break from work and meeting @GenerationX  ,@hcat and others I've followed here for advice on board. See you at the Gatsby party! My accessories arrived just in time! 😀

I can't speak to Delta, but I can share my American Airlines experience. I have used Flights by Celebrity for at least three international business class flights with similar experiences. If you reserve online, call to speak directly with a FBC agent. They can select seats for you as long as the airline has released them even before payment. Until the flights are paid, I haven't been able to make any selections on the airline's site. I could see the trip, but when I clicked to select seats, it directed me to contact the travel service blah, blah, blah, i.e., Call Celebrity. After payment and the flights were ticketed, I could go into my reservation on AA and change seats.