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World Cruise Mistakes and Horror Stories


JustOneDay
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My experience with Regent Seven Seas is that they take care of everything. You are not being charged for a glass of wine, a specialty restaurant, nor most tours. When I compared all the things I would have liked to have on a mid tier line with the cost of having everything I got on Regent I feel I came out better with the Regent Cruise. I also think the staff is better trained on the premiere line. It is about convenience for me. I don’t have to worry about flights, luggage, visas, drinks, or excursions. I know in my 30’s I was happy with a lesser level of service, but now I appreciate it, and it makes for a better experience.

For those who drink alcohol, the all-inclusive cruiselines make sense. But for those of us who do not drink alcohol, choosing an all-inclusive line means wasting money on something we won't use (and subsidizing those who will). That could also be said for the included ship tours....those who rather do all private tours would be wasting their money.

 

That was part of the selection process that we had when choosing our world cruise. We wanted nearly everything, except alcohol, included so we looked at cruiselines that met that criteria. Each person has certain things that they need/want while on a ship for a long time and luckily there are quite a few cruiselines that they can choose from.

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Which currencies do you carry and how much of each currency?

 

It obviously depends on how many ports in a given country. Lots of European ports, take Euros. 8 Japanese ports, buy yen. If it is just one port in a country and I am doing a ship's excursion, I will not take local money at all. Guides on those tours accept $ US as tips and I really don't need another trinket from a street vendor. We use ATM machines for local currency.

 

How much depends on your buying habits. For large items (silk bedding in China), we use a credit card. By the way, those silk comforters are worth their weight in gold.

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How much do the gratuities total up to on a World cruise?

Which currencies do you carry and how much of each currency?

 

Can't comment on the gratuities, as on both our World Cruises they were included.

 

For our next World Cruise, we will carry:

- US $, probably couple hundred in small bills

- UK Sterling, same

- Aus $, same

- NZ $, same

- Each other country we visit we will take about CAN $20, converted into their currencies, at least the ones Royal Bank of Canada can supply.

 

Where possible, we always use Visa, for the points and generally will not use an ATM unless it is in a bona fide bank in a developed country.

 

We invariably have foreign currency left over. We will retain the US & UK, but exchange the rest back into Canadian. Yes, you lose, but that is just the cost of cruising.

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As the previous poster mentioned, my gratuities were included in my WC booking, but I did take US$ along purposely for additional gratuities for shipboard personnel as warranted.

 

I always attempt to obtain some local currency for any ports I am visited prior to my cruise. Not always able to do so, but I try. (Most recent problem was Argentina.)

 

Some will disagree at what I do, but I also buy some American Express Traveler's Checks to take with me as "just in case I need some money and the ATM isn't working or it "ate" my ATM card". Difficult to use in stores and restaurants any more, but hotel Front Desks usually will cash small amounts and the ship's Front Office will cash them as well. That is another way of obtaining some local currency as one cruises, if you want it.

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  • 1 month later...

OK...dug out some info on our HAL reservation for 2020:

Ocean View Cabin, midship, Dolphin Deck (1) $31,500 per person

Includes: prepaid gratuities, $500 pp OBC, shipping 2 bags per person ahead to ship.

Our TA includes 1 night hotel and transfer to ship plus party, several cocktail parties on board, and their own excursion programs which we found in 2018 were much cheaper (and fewer people) than ship excursions. Our 4-day safari was several thousands less than private tours and ship tours were (and IMO we seemed to have better safaris.)

Now, if we pay the total on or before May 31, 2019, we can deduct 3% off the total fare.

 

For add on excursions for 2018, we paid about $1000 total for each of us for HAL tours,and about the same for private tours we had arranged ahead (much cheaper). Our BIG splurge (and worth it) were two overland: 4-night safari in the Kruger, and a 3-night trip to Cambodia to see Angkor Wat (amazing!). Total for those two for both of us was less than $10,000. Expensive, yes, but first class all the way...and, we thought (ha ha) that this was going to be the trip of a lifetime...silly us. We caught the bug (it’s contagious) and signed up for the 2020 WC immediately.

 

We hadn’t realized how “different” a WC is compared with “a normal cruise.” The days were filled with excellent classes, lectures, etc. We kicked ourselves at the end that we didn’t make use of the drawing or painting classes...outstanding teachers...and FREE! Everyday (sea day) there was some kind of craft class...and not talking crummy stuff!

 

Yes, entertainers were coming and going in each port...some good, some not so good...Food was a notch above the usual for HAL...more choices (sandwich bar!)...had no complaints.

 

Looking forward to 2020 since it will again be in Africa (looking forward to another safari) and Antarctica, one of my favorites.

Altogether for our 2018 trip it cost about $$85,000, but that included a last minute upgrade to a verandah cabin. (Note, we don’t drink much, so about 5 bottles of wine did it.). HAL is a true WC, too...begins and ends in FL, so cheap air.

 

So, the mistake we made? Taking our first WC...it won’t be the last! (Sorry, kids...you’ll have to earn your own retirement.)

 

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I made a couple mistakes on our 2016 WC that I won't repeat for our 2019.

 

I forgot to check auto payments and credit card expiration dates, I had an obscure yearly payment on an expired

card -- long story.

 

I didn't take enough clothes and shoes, if that is possible -- I didn't predict wear and tear on clothing, and the generally hatred of clothes and shoes that I had worn 2-3x a week for 6 months.

 

I had my home mail forwarded, which lead to multiple problems, missed mail, mail sent back to sender, and junk mail/flyers still delivered to my home. It didn't work the way I expected.

I

We bought too much on the trip -- souvenirs, etc. -- for family, that I am sure was only appreciated for the day they received them! Was more expensive to ship back (from our first return USA port) than the total price of the goods! I plan to get more specific about gifts next time! I did have fun shopping tho!

 

I took more "supplies" than I needed -- this time checking how long that shampoo, toothpaste, etc. lasts before we go.

 

I did't plan on how to spend nonrefundable OBC! We ended up scrambling to spend the $$ the last couple days.

 

I'm sure I'll add to this mistake list after our next WC, luckily no horror stories! We did have friends with medical and dental emergencies on board.

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I made a couple mistakes on our 2016 WC that I won't repeat for our 2019.

 

Thank you for sharing!

 

I forgot to check auto payments and credit card expiration dates, I had an obscure yearly payment on an expired

card -- long story.

 

I didn't take enough clothes and shoes, if that is possible -- I didn't predict wear and tear on clothing, and the generally hatred of clothes and shoes that I had worn 2-3x a week for 6 months.

 

I've been wondering about this. I'll be keeping it in mind when I pack.

 

I had my home mail forwarded, which lead to multiple problems, missed mail, mail sent back to sender, and junk mail/flyers still delivered to my home. It didn't work the way I expected.

 

Hmm...how can it be done differently?? I'm planning to have my mail forwarded to my daughter (lives close by, but is in a different post office area). What specific problems did you have with it?

 

We bought too much on the trip -- souvenirs, etc. -- for family, that I am sure was only appreciated for the day they received them! Was more expensive to ship back (from our first return USA port) than the total price of the goods! I plan to get more specific about gifts next time! I did have fun shopping tho!

 

I stopped buying gifts/souvenirs for my family years ago...same reason. But I do have some specific things that I'm looking to buy for myself during our world cruise. I try, if possible, to have the store send them to my home (well, my daughter's home) if it's something large. I'm leaving plenty of room in one of my suitcases for small items.

 

I took more "supplies" than I needed -- this time checking how long that shampoo, toothpaste, etc. lasts before we go.

 

I've already logged how much toothpaste, deodorant and other items that I'll need and am buying them when on sale. But I'm planning to use Oceania's shampoo, shower gel, and lotion so I can save some money and luggage space. I'm not picky about things like that.

 

I didn't plan on how to spend nonrefundable OBC! We ended up scrambling to spend the $$ the last couple days.

 

 

I'm sure I'll add to this mistake list after our next WC, luckily no horror stories! We did have friends with medical and dental emergencies on board.

Medical emergencies don't worry me as much as dental ones....there's a doctor and "hospital" onboard, but I've never heard of a dentist on a ship. ;)

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There's a crazy cheap price on the Jan 3 2019 world cruise from Chennai (Madras), India to Langkawi, Malaysia.

 

436 nights on the classy Queen Mary 2 of premium line Cunard at just $47 per day, including port fees and taxes.

 

Even cheaper through an online TA, who may either give a discount of up to 10% or equivalent OBC.

Edited by drsel
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There's a crazy cheap price on the Jan 3 2019 world cruise from Chennai (Madras), India to Langkawi, Malaysia.

 

436 nights on the classy Queen Mary 2 of premium line Cunard at just $47 per day, including port fees and taxes.

 

Even cheaper through an online TA, who may either give a discount of up to 10% or equivalent OBC.

436 nights??? Langkawi to Chennai is only 3 days.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Wow, 104 nights! That's amazing!!

1) How did they manage 104 different shows? Was there a show every night?

2) What about the other gameshows and entertainment for 104 days? Was it different every evening?

3) How many champagne art auctions? How many champagne bottles as prizes?

4) How many theme parties? How many pool parties?

5) How many comedy shows? How many gameshows?

6) How many formal nights with lobster and steak?

7) How many countries? How many visas? How many blank pages are required in your passport for visas?

8) What was the (cruise only) cost per person? How much did you spend in all?

 

I have great difficulty convincing my wife to come for even a 29 night cruise I booked at an incredible price. She says a 7-10 night cruise is ideal. She even found a 14 night cruise to be too long and tiresome. Even boring. I really envy you!

Pardon me for all the questions and thanks again for for the information!

 

 

 

Well I’ll try to answer your questions :

My answers are based on a 141 day WC taken last year

1. Most every night there was entertainment and MOST shows where quite good . As a note, we didn’t book the WC for the nightly entertainment , we booked it for the daily experiences we experienced.

2.Yes it different and not all shows where on the main stage . You have to remember that we where in most cases 1/2 the world away from where we started. Most of the entertainers came from the States and England

3.NONE ! Thank you Very Much and No Art Auctions -Nor photographers taking your pictures ! THAT WAS LIBERATING! To say the least. .

4. Only a few and they where optional but fun. The celebrations involved many of the very hard working crew members as they left us for well earned vacations. The one celebration that I remember well was when we crossed the equator and we all had to kiss the fish and jump into the pool to become shell backs ! Something I never thought I’d do at the age of 70. In addition , they gave us an official cruise certification of being a shell back. Just a lot of Fun-Even the Captain went along and participated in the celebration minus the grog we had to sample .

5.Not going to answer that stupid question. REALLY -you rate,a cruise on how many comedy shows you get to see. You need to learn how to entertain yourself and not wait for others to do it for you.

6. NO FORMAL NIGHTS IN 141 night . What a breath of FRESH AIR. Sports jacket and tie is about all I can muster! Plus my wife doesn’t want to PUT THE DOG ON either . At my age who am I trying to impress.?

7. 60 plus countries, if you go on a Good Cruise line they

Will arrange for visas and entry information and have the additional costs worked into the price. Start out with a BRAND NEW PASSPORT. If you are going on a TRUE World Cruise

you don’t NEED to count the pages on the NEW PASSPORT, the visa service will inform you if you don’t have enough .

8. First of all ,it’s none of your business what I or anyone else pays for something is their business not yours. If you need to ask what something costs ,maybe you can’t afford it. That’s what my DAD TOLD ME!

 

 

Find a GOOD HONEST HARDWORKING TRAVEL AGENT . Plan and worK with that person and only with that person. They will work their tails off for you !

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
Well I’ll try to answer your questions :

My answers are based on a 141 day WC taken last year

1. Most every night there was entertainment and MOST shows where quite good . As a note, we didn’t book the WC for the nightly entertainment , we booked it for the daily experiences we experienced.

2.Yes it different and not all shows where on the main stage . You have to remember that we where in most cases 1/2 the world away from where we started. Most of the entertainers came from the States and England

3.NONE ! Thank you Very Much and No Art Auctions -Nor photographers taking your pictures ! THAT WAS LIBERATING! To say the least. .

4. Only a few and they where optional but fun. The celebrations involved many of the very hard working crew members as they left us for well earned vacations. The one celebration that I remember well was when we crossed the equator and we all had to kiss the fish and jump into the pool to become shell backs ! Something I never thought I’d do at the age of 70. In addition , they gave us an official cruise certification of being a shell back. Just a lot of Fun-Even the Captain went along and participated in the celebration minus the grog we had to sample .

5.Not going to answer that stupid question. REALLY -you rate,a cruise on how many comedy shows you get to see. You need to learn how to entertain yourself and not wait for others to do it for you.

6. NO FORMAL NIGHTS IN 141 night . What a breath of FRESH AIR. Sports jacket and tie is about all I can muster! Plus my wife doesn’t want to PUT THE DOG ON either . At my age who am I trying to impress.?

7. 60 plus countries, if you go on a Good Cruise line they

Will arrange for visas and entry information and have the additional costs worked into the price. Start out with a BRAND NEW PASSPORT. If you are going on a TRUE World Cruise

you don’t NEED to count the pages on the NEW PASSPORT, the visa service will inform you if you don’t have enough .

8. First of all ,it’s none of your business what I or anyone else pays for something is their business not yours. If you need to ask what something costs ,maybe you can’t afford it. That’s what my DAD TOL

Find a GOOD HONEST HARDWORKING TRAVEL AGENT . Plan and worK with that person and only with that person. They will work their tails off for you !

 

 

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Great answers! Any insights how to find this GOOD HARDWORKING HONEST TA who specializes on WC? Unfortunately none of our friends or relatives ever took WC so none can offer any referrals or suggestions. We plan our first WC so finding a trustworthy and knowledgeable TA is a must.

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So many great comments on different experiences! Not many horror stories, so far.

 

Here's one. A vocal Cruise Critic poster and cruiser, whom I had met once onboard a Regent ship, talked for a long time about a WC on Oceania. The one he originally booked was cancelled for some reason, can't remember why--damage to the ship I think, or involvement in a hurricane? So he was moved back a year, and sadly, died onboard, somewhere in Asia. Not a great experience for his wife I think.

 

The cost per person of the 5th Jan 2020 Costa Deliziosa world cruise (112 nights, Venice to Venice) is $14719 + $440 taxes + $1400 mandatory service charges, for an inside cabin, with $1675 OBC

The Viking world cruise is over 5 times more expensive.

How would you compare the two, w.r.t. pricing and value?

 

Ugh, sorry to sound snobbish, but never would do Costa. Tiny cabins, nickel and diming, lots of add-on costs.

 

Let me back up. We're considering doing a Regent WC in 2021. All inclusive, including most excursions, the usual inclusions like all alcohol and tips, ship laundry, pressing and dry cleaning service, a visa package, free doctor's visits, ...what have I forgotten? Oh, Business air back from Europe, and First class air in N.A., pre-cruise hotel in Miami, wifi, luggage service, obc's, etc. All that comes at a price, of course. Standard cabin is 250ft plus a 50ft balcony. I've been on the ship so know what to expect. Passenger to space ratio is 50, better than Viking. Wonderful public spaces in Mariner.

 

But I've been looking at the 2020 Viking package as well--similar itinerary, although more emphasis on Asia and less on Europe--pros and cons for both as far as itinerary goes. Smaller cabin, not as many inclusions, lower pax to space ratio but still sounds good.

 

The Regent excursions alone make this an outstanding value I think, compared to Viking. Not all excursions are included, you can purchase special value-added ones, but most are included, and in the past we've enjoyed these. But for the price of the Regent minimal cabin, we could get a PH on Viking, marginally bigger than Regent.

 

My question to Heidi is, how comfortable to you feel taking a WC on a line you haven't taken before? I guess it helps that you've taken other world cruises on lesser lines. I have thought about Viking in the past, but not sure I would be that comfortable with a completely unknown quantity, regardless of how good the reviews are.

 

Nice to have these choices, eh?

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My question to Heidi is, how comfortable to you feel taking a WC on a line you haven't taken before? I guess it helps that you've taken other world cruises on lesser lines. I have thought about Viking in the past, but not sure I would be that comfortable with a completely unknown quantity, regardless of how good the reviews are.

 

Nice to have these choices, eh?

 

Wendy - As you noted, taking a longer cruise on an unknown Line, especially a World Cruise, is both unusual and a bit of a risk.

 

However, for a variety of reasons, we are very comfortable with our decision. The length is not an issue for either of us, as I worked at sea for 40 + years and DW has completed numerous longer cruises (> 1 month) + we have 1 previous WC completed.

 

We wanted 2020, since it is a significant anniversary and the schedule did not permit a quick cruise in the interim. I also note that Viking's WC's are significantly different from their regular cruises, so taking a short cruise may not have given a full assessment of what to expect.

 

Prior to booking we spent many months planning and researching, developing a statement of requirements and budget. We researched each luxury and premium Line, as we have no desire to return to mainstream lines, even the ones with special classes of cabin. Viking ticked the most boxes, so we research them fairly thoroughly, although I have been following them since 2015.

 

So to summarise, yes it is a risk, but with research, we are comfortable with the decision.

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Great answers! Any insights how to find this GOOD HARDWORKING HONEST TA who specializes on WC? Unfortunately none of our friends or relatives ever took WC so none can offer any referrals or suggestions. We plan our first WC so finding a trustworthy and knowledgeable TA is a must.
Yes, he should know the visa requirements for cruise ship passengers (of all nationalities), for each and every country that is accessible by cruise.

He should be able to get you the best deal, in terms of a discount or OBC.

He should also watch out for price drops and automatically pass on the benefit of any price drop.

Maybe I'm asking for too much[emoji6]

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Any insights how to find this GOOD HARDWORKING HONEST TA who specializes on WC?.

Since we are not allowed to name TAs here on CC, you should ask experienced cruisers you meet on your next cruise, (especially those who have been on long cruises); and then analyze their advice.

You could also ask on TripAdvisor, where there are entire threads on cruise TAs recommended by others. You have to discern which recommendations are genuine and which are posted by the TAs themselves (or their employees).

Self advertising is also banned on TripAdvisor, but genuine advice is allowed in the forums.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The Oceania incident that Wendy referred to was their inaugural world cruise in 2015 - about 5 weeks before the cruise the ship had a engine fire while docked in St Lucia. Once the ship was repaired it sailed empty to Singapore missing the first 71 days of the 180 day voyage but continued from there. My wife and I and many others scheduled to be on the 2015 voyage switched to the 2016 voyage and a passenger did pass away on a sea day after Madagascar. While on the 2016 voyage another passenger had a friend on the HAL w/c- they reported several deaths in the first month.

 

Besides the death, there were other injuries and passengers being victims on crimes along the way which can happen on any cruise.

 

We also had one passenger that instead of taking complaints to the GM, thought the best way to communicate his displeasure was to yell, scream and demean staff - he got kicked off part way through a 180 day voyage.

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The Oceania incident that Wendy referred to...

 

We also had one passenger that instead of taking complaints to the GM, thought the best way to communicate his displeasure was to yell, scream and demean staff - he got kicked off part way through a 180 day voyage.

 

Good! Glad to see the staff had the gumption to do this. We once had a guy who was staying in the Owner's Suite on Regent Voyager who was obviously at least verbally abusing his wife, a "captain of industry" sort, and who got belligerent one night and clocked another passenger, punching him in the face and knocking him down. Luckily for him, it was almost the end of the cruise, so he only had to stay locked up in his (very expensive) cabin for one night.

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  • 1 month later...
On 9/3/2018 at 10:16 PM, drsel said:

Yes, he should know the visa requirements for cruise ship passengers (of all nationalities), for each and every country that is accessible by cruise.

He should be able to get you the best deal, in terms of a discount or OBC.

He should also watch out for price drops and automatically pass on the benefit of any price drop.

Maybe I'm asking for too much[emoji6]

Or she. Just sayin'😀 But that's all I have to say about that.

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On 9/15/2018 at 8:28 PM, Waynetor said:

The Oceania incident... My wife and I and many others scheduled to be on the 2015 voyage switched to the 2016 voyage and a passenger did pass away on a sea day after Madagascar. While on the 2016 voyage another passenger had a friend on the HAL w/c- they reported several deaths in the first month.

 

Besides the death, there were other injuries and passengers being victims on crimes along the way which can happen on any cruise.

...

 

Do you happen to remember which ports were involved where pax were victims of crimes?

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The 2 robbery incidents I remember from our world cruise were: Female passenger got mugged in Fortaleza, Brazil.  She was walking along the sidewalk when a motorcycle pulled up, the passenger got off, pushed her over and grabbed her bag.  She received some scrapes.  The mugger lost his glasses and thongs in the process of running away.

In Leon, Nicaragua in the colonial area outside a church some youth were dressed in colourful outfits.  When several members of our group gathered around them to take pictures, one lady had her wallet taken from her purse. There may have been others I did not hear about.

 

Injuries included 2 broken foot bones - 1 from stepping in an animal hole and a head injury getting off a tender. 

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