MV Discovery - interior photos 2010

MV Discovery photos interior shots only: 2010 Grand Voyage

http://picasaweb.google.com/travellergal/MVDiscoveryInteriorPhotos201002#

Thanks for the photo share.

Sorry it is such an unlabeled mish-mash collection of photos, but it is helpful to see what the ship and its passengers really look like compared to sometimes overly-glossy and posed brochures than can intimidate rather than entice.

No one is quite as thin or as elegant in their everyday activities as one finds even in the MV Discovery brochures. But rather as the photos suggest just regular people enjoying themselves for a wonderful adventure cruise.

I am sorry I only had pictures from the breakfast buffet, because the Lido offerings throughout the day were very good and highly varied.

Thanks for sharing the photos, which give a real feel for the ship.

I have often looked at this ship, as I like their interesting itineraries.

Thanks for sharing!

The words that come to mind for me most about the MV Discovery is solid, functional and serviceable. Glamour and deluxe are not part of the equation though the brochure and company video tries to give this impression. This it is not. But it is very serviceable and does best what it does best, and this lily does not need to be gilded any further with any additional aura of glamour. That might make it an oversell.

It goes to interesting ports around the world, it provides superb enrichment lectures, it appeals to well-traveled and engaging people, it feeds and entertains you very adequately, it gives you memories you will never forget and more often than not gets you off the beaten track.

That works for me. This is ship travel; not cruise travel. And they do a very good job of this.

Thanks for bringing back all the memories !

She's one hell of a ship ! It is hard to believe that it was a year ago today I was sitting here anticipating what turned out to be a wonderful voyage ! I leave tonight on another adventure :)... time does fly, doesn't it ?

SwissMyst...my compliments to you for a job well done!! Since I just signed on for the November Voyages of Discovery cruise and also had sailed on the original Ocean Princess years ago, your pictures did a splendid job of acquainting myself to the refurbished mv Discovery ship. My present plans are to take the early November sailing, which includes Libya, and then fly from Malaga to Cairo to join the Voyages to Antiquity cruise, which includes Lebanon and Syria, three ports not seen on most of the traditional cruises. Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful and informative pictures!! Joni

Thank you very much for sharing your pictures with us. There are 2 pictures I have questions about. Where are those pink chairs? in The Yacht Club maybe? Also, did you buy the small clothes rack or was it in your room when you arrived? I guess this is not the only clothes rack, am I right?

I am dreaming about a cruise aboard the MV Discovery, especially the Grand Voyage of Exploration, but the solo-occupancy rates are unfortunately too expensive for me. Really, it would be a dream cruise for me for so many reasons, among them:

- Always wanted to see the pyramids and the Sphinx

- Many days at sea to enjoy playing bridge and watching the sea go by

- Relaxing days of Carribean Sun to end the trip

One day, I WILL travel aboard MV Discovery :)

SwissMyst...my compliments to you for a job well done!! Since I just signed on for the November Voyages of Discovery cruise and also had sailed on the original Ocean Princess years ago, your pictures did a splendid job of acquainting myself to the refurbished mv Discovery ship. My present plans are to take the early November sailing, which includes Libya, and then fly from Malaga to Cairo to join the Voyages to Antiquity cruise, which includes Lebanon and Syria, three ports not seen on most of the traditional cruises. Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful and informative pictures!! Joni

Hi Joni, I am on the Voyages to Antiquity sailing to Lebanon and Syria also. :) Looking forward to these unusual stops. I wish I could do the Discovery Libya cruise -- maybe next year.....

MV Discovery photos interior shots only: 2010 Grand Voyage

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/travellergal/MVDiscoveryInteriorPhotos201002#

Thanks for posting these. The ship reminds me very much of the smaller ships I remember sailing years ago. I think I've gone over to the dark side as I'm now strongly considering a cruise on the Discovery in 2011. :D

Thank you very much for sharing your pictures with us. There are 2 pictures I have questions about. Where are those pink chairs? in The Yacht Club maybe? Also, did you buy the small clothes rack or was it in your room when you arrived? I guess this is not the only clothes rack, am I right?

......

One day, I WILL travel aboard MV Discovery :)

The pink chairs are in the entrance waiting area for the Yacht Club. Plus the photo of the Yacht Club was during the day and not all dressed up for the specialty dinners when it looked far more formal as a small, elegant dining club room. During the day, the Yacht Club was available for Lido breakfast and lunch buffet diners to sit there.

The photo of the cluster of things were what we bought to make the room work for us during our 42 day cruise. There were two small closets as well.

I have a series of other Discovery posts on this forum if you search for "Discovery" threads, where I set out a lot more cabin detail - how may drawers, cabinets, inches of storage space, and how many coat-hangers could fit in the closet.

I found I had way overpacked for the 42 day trip so I over-loaded the room's storage capacity. But the extra rack we bought (since we had one of the larger, lower Coral deck rooms there was space for this) just made life in cramped spaces a lot easier.

When we left I asked the front desk if there was any way I could let any on-coming passenger know about all those little cabin things we had collected in case anyone else wanted them. And the asst. purser immediately pointed to herself when I said extra hanging clothes rack and made sure she got first dibs on the whole pile. So I have fond hopes our little collection is making someone else still happy out there on the dear MV Discovery.

We were lucky because our first long stops were in Hong Kong and Singapore where we were able to shop easily for all these things. They know how to make do in small spaces and had lots of things to choose from. That two-tiered drying rack for our 42 day laundry was the best and I was so sorry there was no room in our luggage to take it home. I have never seen another one like it.

Hi Cynthia..I look forward to meeting you during the upcoming Voyages to Antiquity cruise, and we can both weather the improving "growing pains," which appear to be the topic of recent reports. Interestingly, these kinds of cruises can sometimes offer the possible makings for some of the most memorable kinds of life experiences. Enjoy your HAL Westerdam cruise!! Joni

I must be psychic. Two days ago I pointed to an ad in Cruise Travel magazine for Discovery Cruises and told my sister that it was the MV Discovery, and that DH and I had spotted it in Istanbul. From the sun on the bow to the pretty lines, we knew it had to be the old Island Princess. I spent many happy days and nights aboard the Pacific Princess as a passenger and the Island Princess as a temporary crew member. Thank you for letting me aboard the IP again, and for your intelligent comments about small-ship cruising. We might just look into this line when we're in a position to book another cruise, though it may be hard to go without our beloved balcony!

I agree that the singles prices are high BUT it's too good a trip to pass up so I took a big gulp and I booked a single and am going on the Voyages of Discovery in November Cairo to Caribbean!!! I'll be on the Bali deck..inside. Just got back from a Studio on the EpicTA and discovered I CAN cruise alone and have a good time. Hope to see you on board the Discovery in November.

I agree that the singles prices are high BUT it's too good a trip to pass up so I took a big gulp and I booked a single and am going on the Voyages of Discovery in November Cairo to Caribbean!!! I'll be on the Bali deck..inside. Just got back from a Studio on the EpicTA and discovered I CAN cruise alone and have a good time. Hope to see you on board the Discovery in November.

Tell us more about your itinerary. How many sea days across the Atlantic. Our first discovery of the Discovery was because I had always wanted to go to Tristan De Cuhna in the South Atlantic and a few years ago the good old Discovery (tried to) stop there as it was coming up from the Antarctic starting a grand voyage from Buenos Aires and then up eastern Africa and into the Middle East. Wow, but we could not arrange that one because it was leaving at the wrong time for us.

And sadly now it looks like the Discovery can no longer do the Antarctic because it is single hull so I wonder if she will ever get back (try to get back) to Tristan De Cuhna. If she does, I know exactly what cabin number has my name on it.

I must be psychic. Two days ago I pointed to an ad in Cruise Travel magazine for Discovery Cruises and told my sister that it was the MV Discovery, and that DH and I had spotted it in Istanbul. From the sun on the bow to the pretty lines, we knew it had to be the old Island Princess. I spent many happy days and nights aboard the Pacific Princess as a passenger and the Island Princess as a temporary crew member. Thank you for letting me aboard the IP again, and for your intelligent comments about small-ship cruising. We might just look into this line when we're in a position to book another cruise, though it may be hard to go without our beloved balcony!

Love to have you share your stories about what it was like to be a temporary crew member on the Island Princess - all the IP port plaques were still proudly hanging in the stairwells. When we only see the front side of the ship and are the focus of all the staff attentions, we can't help but be curious about what it is like in the back of the house that keeps this operation running 24/7.

When I was much younger I was on a ship (Galilleo Galillei) with other young people and we always managed to end our evenings well after midnight and took a detour through the main dining room where we could smell the fresh bread getting baked in the wee small hours before breakfast and always managed to talk ourselves in to a few panini for ourselves from the hard working all-night staff. As we merrily rolled off to bed, while kept working so we could enjoy our breakfast in a few more hours.

One comment for any future Discovery cruisers.All cabins on decks 3 and 4 are portholed, not windows.Any one who is claustrophibic should be made aware that at the first sign of "heavy weather" the portholes are locked down.Apparently during some recent trips the glass in 6 portholes collapsed allowing ingress of water.The resaraunt is on deck 3 as are some cabins, deck 4 is all cabins. We have just returned form the Sptizbergern-NorthCape cruise and we had our portholes closed for some 5 days and nights due to "heavy weather", meaning my wife who is claustrophbic had to sleep in one of the lounges for 3 nights.

We have been on other ships with portholes ,in rougher waters, and have never had to close them up.

The ship is certainly showing her 40 odd years of age.

The port holes are also closed when traveling through pirate areas, primarily off East Africa in the Indian Ocean and up through Suez. And all other curtained windows are also required to be fully draped as well from dusk to dawn. Plan your room choice accordingly.

We were on the lowest deck and while we did not like this, we worked around it. Bathrooms are closed interior rooms and people keep using those rooms, claustrophobia or not. And most of the time one is in the cabin one is sleeping in the dark, so decide how many actual hours you will be realistically affected by any temporarily closed porthole windows, which you can't open for air or use to go outside anyway. So if the very thought of them being closed over for a few daylight hours is beyond capacity, be advised this can happen.

Can't see why having them closed at night when there is no light or anything to see out of them anyway should matter, but to each their own level of comfort. Having them closed during rough seas should be comforting; not frightening. Our only minor complaint is we were paying for an outside room that became de facto a cheaper inside room with no discount for such.

SwissMyst Whilst I accept your comments, 1) We paid for an o/s cabin and was told by the Hotel Manager when we asked about the porthole closure "You should have booked a cabin with a window or a balcony"(there are no balconies on this ship). 2) Anyone with claustrophobia will tell you it is NOT a thing to take lightly.My wife has , through mental strength, managed for years to fly, preferably with a window seat.However when the panic hits, it hits with a vengence.We were on the NorthCape cruise with ALL daylight.Previous cruises, at night we ALWAYS open the curtains, as there is always a glimmer of light from the ships lights or sea luminousity.Even at home we open the "drapes" during the night. People who do not suffer this trauma do not understand it.I have been married for 44 years so I speak from experience of what this thing can do to the Beloved.Our compalint was not a flippant attempt to get a beter cabin, as some may think, but a definite medical requirement.

How does one use the interior bathrooms on a ship if they are claustrophobic? Not making light of panic attacks, but they can be helped by desensitization as well as preventive medication which I assume any one suffering from claustrophobia would carry at all times.

I am no friend of claustrophobia either and avoid closed cramped spaces that offer no sense of escape too -- like the narrow passages in the underground passages in tombs or underground cities in Ireland, Turkey, Egypt, or Naples - Yuck, couldn't deal with it.

But if the experience of a covered port hole in one's own cabin triggers this response, I think I would assume I would be carrying appropriate medications for this contingency. That is all.

My husband and I just joined Cruise Critic and we are taking the Voyages of Discovery Cruise starting in Alexandria and continuing on to Libya in early November. How do we get on to Roll Call so that we can contact others who are booked on the above cruise so that we might arrange some private tours?

My husband and I just joined Cruise Critic and we are taking the Voyages of Discovery Cruise starting in Alexandria and continuing on to Libya in early November. How do we get on to Roll Call so that we can contact others who are booked on the above cruise so that we might arrange some private tours?

Go back to the home page for Cruise Critic and scroll down the "boards" section until you get to the roll call for each cruise line, but there will not be one specifically for MV Discovery - too small so look for "All other cruise lines". That being said, there is very little MV Discovery action on Cruise Critic so not sure if your request on Roll Call will generate any responses. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=72

Since MV Discovery often goes to ports not on the usual cruise ship agenda, there are not as many private options available and often the MV Discovery ones are the best available. Additionally because it is a smaller ship it often goes to the closer ports that allow you to walk around on your own.

We found doing internet searches for private companies worked, but one time at the last minute they had to change the port schedule which totally fouled up our pre-arrangements in Sandakan, Borneo but that company learned about it and were at the dock waiting for us and were able to work around the last minute changes in plans.

Lesson one: making plans ahead of time and paying for them online might not work when you actually get to port. Lesson two: we did not save any money in these more remote spots doing things on our own, and had to also worry about not getting back to the ship on time.

Lesson three: the ship excursion was sold out which is why we had to plan on our own, so if you want to see things in these places sign up for the ship excursions early, rather than later.

The port lectures provide information for those who want to do things on their own so I think you will quickly find others who would want to share visits once you get on board. It is a small friendly well-traveled group and many are very adventuresome on their own. Just ask around while lunching at the Lido and sharing tables or at the port lectures afterwards. Ask the port lecturer if he/she can put you in touch with others so inclined. Always good to ask the crew how they get around when they get to port as they know the cheap ways to see things.

Dear SwissMyst,

Thanks so much for your most helpful reply to my questions about Roll Call and My Discovery excursions. We had just started investigating private excursions for our Nov. 5th cruise and the work appeared to be daunting - so many ports, so little time.

Our only other cruise experience was on a large Princess ship and we were totally turned off by their tours. So many people on that cruise had made private arrangements and saw so much more than the rest of us did.

Do you know if Voyages of Discovery lets you book excursions before the departure date of the cruise? There doesn't seem to be anything posted yet.

I heard that their tours were quite pricey.... however, we will take your advice and hope that we meet up with like-minded travelers who want to share.

Thanks again,

Staub

The variety of ship shore excursions was very good and not mass tourism options at all. It is not that kind of ship. Almost no "folklore" and shopping stops and really good fellow passengers to come to learn and listen, and not be late.

We signed up for some ahead of time and others while we were on board. They groups were fairly small so there is a risk you might not be able t to get the ones you want if you wait too long, which happened to us in Borneo.

The only really bad one on our Hong Kong to Capetown Grand Voyage was the Maldivian Airlines overflight of the Maldives Islands - everything went wrong with the scheduling, the timing and the total experience. That was a painful expensive mistake, but it was also one of those things where the ship only rarely comes into this port. However the arrangements for those not taking this tour were fabulous so that was our one and only regret.

Additionally, we could have done better in Columbo and Kandy on our own instead of the ship overnight excursion, but how do you know these things ahead of time. Others made their own arrangements and they got much more out of this than we did as a large group with little free choice about the time spent at various places.

We also spent an arm and leg for the ship's overnight safari trip in South Africa, but it was sooooo good and so deluxe (Phinda Lodges) that we had no regrets whatsoever bending our budget big time for that one. It was the biggest wow experience of this entire terrific trip, so we are glad the ship took care of all those arrangements for us.

Depending on how long you will be traveling, they break up the trips in two week segments and you get three days in those intersegmental ports which really allows you to do what you want because you don't have to worry about getting back on time for at least two nights. We arranged a day trip to Malacca on the local bus from Singapore on one of those three days and it was great to not worry if something happened we would not get back in time. (Nothing did)

So if it is possible, I'd start saving up to take at least some of the ship excursions. And it is a nice way to get to know some of your fellow passengers better too in a smaller setting. There is nothing "Princess Cruise Lines" about this ship -- both good and bad even though she was the sister of the Princess Love Boat a long time back as the Island Princess. Hard to believe the romance of cruising for US TV audiences started with this humble little boat.