Steeler Nation At Sea

On 3/21/2024 at 8:03 PM, LobsterStalker said:

I may be 1 too many drinks in tonight , but isn't Savor an NCL restaurant ?

If so using your vouchers there will be a challenge

 

Cheers

True, but, I'm certain the OP meant Sabor, since he specified Harmony.😉

7 minutes ago, TeamCan said:

We took the same private tour with Blue Puffin… loved the stop to see the reindeer

and the incredible views at North Cape. We were lucky as we had a beautiful clear, warm and sunny day… didn’t even need our down jackets. 

28 minutes ago, pstone1 said:

We took a private tour with Blue Puffin and visited several cool stops plus the North Cape!  Would definitely do the same again, as it was foggy at North Cape!  Great photos, but would also like some photos on a clear day!

Interesting.  I'll look it up.  Wondering if it's actually doable in the 4.5  hours on shore that the MSC itinerary is effectively allowing.  Not that I'm likely to book another MSC cruise, but, I never say never.

6 minutes ago, pstone1 said:

We thoroughly enjoyed this change on our Jewel B3B in August 22.  We enjoyed traversing the locks and sail-in through the canal to Amsterdam during daylight hours on our balcony, something you would normally not get to experience.

Sailaway was also in daylight.  I stayed up on deck the whole way out.  I was sad to skip Guernsey on that one. 

Just now, Saab4444 said:

Yes, it is the time of the midnight sun in Northern Norway so this is the perfect time to visit with daylight at midnight. 

I get that. I'm just thinking when does one sleep?  And the townspeople running tours are up all night, too? Not sure I could do it.

Sorry to go so far off topic everyone.

2 minutes ago, Saab4444 said:

You tender and go by bus to the North Cape. Issue is that big ships like Preziosa have a high chance to skip ports like Spitsbergen and North Cape due to weather and it is very crowded with so many people. I would do those beautiful ports with much smaller ships.

Thanks for the response. Did you note the hours in port? 

29 minutes ago, little britain said:

RCI never offer anything like this! 

What does one actually do on that Honningsvag stop?  🤔

6 hours ago, twangster said:

 

With the incoming emission restrictions for some Norwegian fjords it's introduced a change to the Northern Europe deployments.  We are still waiting for a few ships to have their deployments announced despite the posted timeline.  It's unclear if there will be ship there.

 

 

In Aug. '22, several sailings from Amsterdam were altered last minute due to Port traffic restrictions caused by low water levels. I was on the Jewel and we had to skip our last port, and speed back to make an assigned lock time.  We overnighted in Amsterdam instead and disembarked next day as scheduled. Everyone received OBC for the altered itinerary. I suppose it's possible that RCL will consider this when looking at future  Amsterdam departures. 🤔 

7 hours ago, orville99 said:

And the Dubai to Greece segment is 18 nights. While they potentially could cancel the Dubai to Greece segment, they would still have sufficient time to take the WC around the horn from Dubai back to Greece for the following segment. Who knows, they might even have time to throw in a port stop in Joberg.

Jo'burg is an inland city.  South African larger ports are Cape Town and Durban.  Other cruise lines often include planned stops in the Seychelles, Mauritius, Madagascar and Reunion Islands on the East side of Africa.  On the West, Walvis Bay, Accra, Dakar, the Cape Verde Islands and the Canary Islands are often called.  So many port options, but, to fit into the time frame to get to Athens would surely be a challenge.  

Let's hope it doesn't come to that, and not just for UWC, but, so that all the unrest, shelling, mayhem, loss of life and  heartbreak in the region can end  peacefully,  as soon as possible, and for all involved.

54 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

For some reason I had imagined Serenade being all by itself in that part of the world. I'm not sure why I pictured it that way.

 

37 minutes ago, RFerrington said:

I had the same misconception 

People are traveling to Antartica in record numbers the past 2 years, over 100K each year up from 70K pre pandemic.  Much is being written lately about the danger of overtourism in such a fragile environment.  It's such a short cruise season and with the increasing demand, there certainly are a lot of ships sailing.  I'm surprised to see 8 ships in one day in such a small area though.  No wonder people are concerned.  

21 hours ago, latebuyer said:

If you are retired or can pick up and go the 16 day princess antarctica cruise on jan 20 this year is not a double single supplement. For reference cost is 1700 cdn (without taxes) and 2590 with supplement. Sorry don’t know american cost but that is pretty cheap and even cheaper for americans. Is anyone else finding on cruiseplum princess doesn’t show up for solo deals? I think somethings wrong as i saw an alaskan cruise that doesn’t have the full supplement as well.

$2310 USD Standard

$3270 USD Plus

1 hour ago, dbancroft said:

My grandaughter always has her cat when she cruises also .

Very cute! You will have to take her on the Hello Kitty bullet train in Japan or on Taiwan's EVA Air Hello Kitty plane. 😺 

42 minutes ago, lovesthebeach2 said:

I remember that! We were on our balcony when we hit it

Same.  This was the broken bit that floated past me on the starboard side.

2 hours ago, lovesthebeach2 said:

it’s so cool (literally lol) to see the huge chunks of ice. When we did the Arctic Crossing in 2022 and did a day cruise on Prins Christin Sund, the crew was all outside with us the whole time. I was so happy to see them enjoying it as much as us. I’m trying to attach 2 pics. Not sure if this works.. one night during dinner the captain announced for us to go out and see the train of icebergs, and the sun was setting at the same time.  Sorry, I can’t get the iceberg one to post… 

 

IMG_5258.heic 861.51 kB · 18 downloads

I was able to download and view your 2nd file.  Here it is.  I was on the Voyager Arctic crossing in '22 and remember thinking that to me , and from a longer distance,  that you wouldn't know you weren't looking at a city skyline filled with tall buildings.

I have some video of whale spray in front of that scene, too.  Magic.

On 1/7/2024 at 11:34 AM, Engineroom Snipe said:

Another hot topic item rears its ugly head again, "Give me freedom, or give me free pizza!"

 

I tend to find it interesting that many items are "floated for questioning" by Royal surveys which almost beg for "can we get away with this without people getting upset?"

 

Enough people go into meltdown over the "it is just a question, we do not intend to do it yet" finds them saying it was never intended to be and "nothing to see here cruiser, please move on."

 

🤣

I think I've received one or 2 of those surveys.  The part that makes me LOL is I'm pretty sure they ask you to agree to non-disclosure of the contents.  Obviously, non-binding, yet still, it is absolutely stunning how fast the outrage appears on CC and FB. Makes me chuckle.  😃 

1 hour ago, island lady said:

 

Yeah I suppose I could check it out...but I am really not into the drugs thing, since the first time I was on a cruise ship many years ago, and found out the Dramamine patches made me sick...I don't even try.  Guess I am not much into the meds things...more of a "natural" girl I guess.  

 

My apple/banana smoothie today...was just the thing for a butterfly tummy.  Perfect.  😉 

Be sure to seek the advice of your doctor.  The patches are contraindicated with some pretty common health conditions, as is dramamine, for those with heart problems.   In other words, don't take meds based on us armchair docs on a cruise forum using similar! 😉 

1 hour ago, pstone1 said:

Yes!  Definitely felt those violent shudders - loud too!  We’ve also slowed down a bit!  I think the ship will keep adjusting the course slightly to whatever’s most comfortable.  It’s still pretty wavy and rocky though!  Right now, we’re just hanging out watching!

 

Edited to add:  another big shudder!  Feels like we’re driving through a pot-hole!

Hearing them in some of the FB videos posted.   And the creaking! Kind of exciting and wishing I was having the experience live!

2 hours ago, leisuretraveler223 said:

I am a food enthusiast (I HATE the term "foodie"!).  And I will travel great lengths and not blink an eye at a cost for a unique or exceptional meal.  That's not to say I don't love basic food as well.  The thing is, I don't find the specialty dining to really be all that special anymore.  There isn't a specialty meal on a Royal, Celebrity, Carnival or NCL ship that I now find to be anything but a pale reflection and far inferior version of that same meal on shore.

I could not agree more with your assessment.  When specialty dining first began with supplemental fees of $10 to $25ish, it was a very nice change of pace from the MDR and held value for me in both the quality of food and the elevated level of service.  The price of the experience aligned with my expectations.  Nowadays, at $60 a head  for a barely elevated experience,  not so much.  I have long held the opinion that Chops is possibly the most overrated restaurant at sea.  I've had better steaks at Outback and that red velvet cake that people love is the worst red velvet I've ever tasted, consistently.  If I want to go to a spendy steakhouse, I'll do it on land and get far better quality for my money.

The one thing that I know for sure is that I will never starve on a cruise eating the included food. Fortunately, I'm not a picky eater, but,  I'm pretty careful about what I order in MDR to avoid disappointment with a poorly cooked cheaper cut/grade of protein.

Not at all.  MSC was unique, in my experience this past fall on 2 different ships.  Even when I informed someone a hand sanitizer needed refilling, it went empty for days.

12 hours ago, xpcdoojk said:

Yep, naked eye they are white, when you take a picture they are a rainbow of color.  Our eyes can’t account for them as each moment is a snapshot, the camera is slower view, hence more color.

12 hours ago, xpcdoojk said:

Way more beautiful and impressive, haven’t been to Victoria, but I can’t imagine they are better.  The falls in South America go on and on.  It is not just one set of falls they are across a wide area, and are stacked on top of each other.  They cover a very large area.

 

jc

Been to Vic Falls a few times and the mist from the falls while in flood is quite impressive.  It can be seen from 25 miles away, can be heard from miles away, creates it's own rainforest surrounding the falls and once a month at the full moon, displays the rare moonbow phenomenon.  This is also best seen with a camera rather than the naked eye, like Aurora Borealis.  My phone camera photos from that event aren't great, but, if you Google it, you'll see some impressive photos taken from far better cameras than mine.

The falls themselves are very impressive.  I hope to one day get to Iguazu, as well.

36 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

I was just thinking of something like the Costa Concordia. When they are off duty are they completely on their own time or would they have responsibilities in such a situation. I totally get that they deserve their down time. I was just wondering.

I wonder if @chengkp75 could possibly be so kind as to explain what happens to crew that are too intoxicated to perform their assigned emergency duties in the event of a real emergency.  I imagine they must report in to someone above them who makes that assessment upon arrival? 

26 minutes ago, Oceansaway17 said:

I think not. My impression is the weather has caused issues and not quite so smooth sailing for the WC

You tube has quite a few videos from the ship and they were all posted in the last day or so.

they even mention the weather near Brazil.  I think flooding in the gym area and those wet carpets would cause some mold.  

 

Not interested in arguing I just mentioned what I saw on line.  

It was your observation that "half" of the cruise has been impacted by bad weather that I took to be an exaggeration and I don't believe that's accurate.  They are on day 27.  Bad stormy weather beginning in Brazil was only a couple of days ago and the photos from both Montevideo and Iguazu Falls today look like the sun is shining again.

10 minutes ago, Oceansaway17 said:

just watched a you tube video about all the bad weather and it showed the water stained carpet in the gym area.   So far it sounds like the weather has only be nice about half the time.

Hoping for the best as you go around the horn and down near Falklands.

 I think you have an entirely inaccurate impression. I've been watching plenty of videos since this began and they have had typical tropical weather with occasional heavy rain showers and clearing.  The day of the flooding was the first full day of indoors only weather that I can recall.

One of my friends posts the daily weather forecast on his FB every single morning! 

16 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

Their Best chances of seeing the Northern Lights won't come until August when they are in Iceland and Greenland.

 

How come we aren't seeing any pictures of the IGUAZÚ FALLS ? on this thread yet? That was todays highlight wasn't it?

Those WC cruisers aren't back on the ship yet.  Still on their way according to some other social media posts.  Long day of travel for them.

Long Caribbean cruises are not yet released. Due on Feb. 12th.

2025-2026_Deployment_Opening_Schedule.pdf

5 hours ago, ONECRUISER said:

Was on a PreCV 12n Repo, we had 6 go ashore for Medical during Cruise not counting Family Members. Happens, been on Dozens Cruises where we Helo'd passengers off, speed up or turn around with Sick passengers. Longer the Cruise more likely happen and not to mention Family Emergencies. 

Similar to my repos, as well, all but one on  much larger ships with a much higher passenger count than Serenade currently has.  That's why it seemed worth wondering about.  Think I've seen helicopters on 8 of 9 TA's and returned to previous ports or sped up countless times.