Live silver wind vietnam - hong kong to singapore

[UKCruiseJeff]

John and Kathy,

 

Lovely to read of your trip .... thanks. Your summary sounds well balanced and thoughtful.

 

:)

 

 

Jeff

[WesW]

Thanks for taking us along on y'alls Asia sojourn John & Kathy. Merry Christmas!

[wripro]

Upsetting to read that SS is trying to welch on its obligations with Amex Platinum OBCs and amenities. If enough people do not complain over the course of the year it saves them a lot of money. This is only exceeded by the immoral charge for the charity posted to everyone's account, agin hoping few people will complain or have it removed.

[Silver Spectre]

There are small reductions in amenities that we have noticed throughout the past years. No fruit in the cabin, no flowers in the cabin, sparking wine rather than champagne – (we ask for the Pommery and do get it), a lack of berries and other fresh fruit at breakfast, no replaced toiletries, lesser wines. Each is a small cut, but when taken in total along with other issues, show an economic strain.

 

Sad to hear this, but interestingly on our recent Shadow voyages we had Orchids in the suite (could have been the location) and fruit every day. Other than strawberries, other berries were also scarce. There were some available but hidden out of sight, and you had to know to ask.

 

Its a shame that the Reception staff were so unresponsive, what happened to the Guest Relations Manager?

 

Thanks very much for taking us along and for you comprehensive review of the pros and cons of the voyage.

[Silver Spectre]

This is only exceeded by the immoral charge for the charity posted to everyone's account, agin hoping few people will complain or have it removed.

 

Agree wholeheartedly, this is just a stupid rip off.

[jpalbny]

Upsetting to read that SS is trying to welch on its obligations with Amex Platinum OBCs and amenities. If enough people do not complain over the course of the year it saves them a lot of money. This is only exceeded by the immoral charge for the charity posted to everyone's account, agin hoping few people will complain or have it removed.

 

Odd. We've expected to have to fight for the AMEX Platinum privileges, but 3 out of 3 times it's worked perfectly without ever having to mention it. Once on Explorer, and twice on the Cloud. The Dom is always waiting in our suite when we arrive and there's a card notifying us of the OBC. Couldn't be easier.

 

The OBC is excellent to have; on Silver Explorer, we could even use it to purchase the expedition DVD. And on other cruises we've used OBC to raid the connoisseur's list for some expensive bottles. All at no extra charge. Maybe we've ruined it for the rest of you? (Sorry...) :o

 

The charity charge still ticks me off too, but on the plus side, it's not been a problem to have it removed. I do wish they'd get rid of it, but I guess we can't have everything. I am finding that everyone nowadays is trying to tack on a charity charge to your hotel stay. The Rubens at the Palace in London, the Grande Bretagne in Athens, etc - all within the past year. And everywhere you shop in the US, they harass you at the register to donate an extra dollar to this or that. So while SS is annoying with this charge, they are certainly not unique.

 

I keep hearing (and have heard for years) that the folks at the reception desk are very unfriendly. Have yet to experience this, though they are not as friendly as say, the waiter who keeps my wine glass full. But I've always found them willing to help me when needed, or they will point me in the right direction.

 

But back to this trip - very nice review by harbormaster, and glad to hear that you had a good time. Very much enjoyed reading about a part of the world that we have not yet visited.

[UKCruiseJeff]

Several posters with varying experiences highlights the overriding problem. It is inconsistency. Quality shouldn't be a lottery. It shouldn't be patchy. Quality is something you pay for, and once you have paid it you should receive it. Not some people, some of the time. All of the people all of the time.

 

:)

[brimary]

Upsetting to read that SS is trying to welch on its obligations with Amex Platinum OBCs and amenities. If enough people do not complain over the course of the year it saves them a lot of money. This is only exceeded by the immoral charge for the charity posted to everyone's account, agin hoping few people will complain or have it removed.

 

The compulsory charity charge annoyed us when first introduced many years ago.We always state through our agent when confirming booking it is subject to removal of the charity charge imposed on our account without our prior agreement.It never appears! SS not honouring obligations OBC etc is a worrying development which sends out signals of cash flow problems which is surprising as they take full payment 120 days in advance of cruise.( used to be 90 days not long ago).hope our future bookings for 2015/2016 are safe.

[oregon50]

HOTEL DIRECTOR sounds like the source of the problem on this cruise. He might smile to your face and fix a problem after hitting him over the head, but that is the puppet master pulling the strings. It's often hard to tell with this company if it is headquarters or the HD responsible for the slights. On my scorecard they have two very poor hotel directors and one excellent. If I never see the HD, it's been a good cruise.

Edited December 25, 2014 by oregon50

[Cardinal Gal]

We are going on the Wind in mid-February. We read your posts with great interest.

 

We have also booked tours in Vietnam and Bangkok with Ann Tours based upon your reviews and others.

 

How much would you suggest to tip the guide and driver? Did you pay them in US dollars?

 

Thanks!

[duct tape]

Thanx for taking us along. We have multiple bookings on the Wind and I look forward to them. It would be better if Gianni Dotti was aboard and Helmut was on vacation, or gone.

[brimary]

Totally agree but sadly our last word on Gianni was his return to the Cloud postponed until Nov 2014 was further delayed due to illness.

[harbormaster]

Hi Cardinal Gal. Most everyone takes US dollars in Vietnam. We never changed currency while there and the guides preferred dollars. We did not want to carry a huge wad of money so I arranged to pay for the tours with each company right before we left, via Paypal. Tipping is not expected in Vietnam, but we felt our guides and drivers were so good they deserved it. It really is up to you and based on what you are being charged for the day or the half day. We tipped both guide and driver. They never asked nor acted like they expected tips.

 

I will say however, that this cruise was the first on Silversea where the crew actually aggressively stood around expecting tips. Every bar waiter and the pool waiters especially. We were kind of shocked at how obvious they were. But I think they also were not the Silversea regulars we have known. We always give to the crew fund to be fair to all.

[Observer]

I will say however, that this cruise was the first on Silversea where the crew actually aggressively stood around expecting tips. Every bar waiter and the pool waiters especially. We were kind of shocked at how obvious they were. But I think they also were not the Silversea regulars we have known. We always give to the crew fund to be fair to all.

 

I have had this experience as well, though I would not call the solicitation "aggressive." Perhaps the crew expectations of me are higher since I am generally on longer cruises. I have recently taken to contributing to the Crew Welfare Fund early in the cruise. Apparently, my name (and photo?) are posted in the crew quarters, because several random crew members whom I barely know stop me to thank me for the contribution. I never see the crew in the laundry or engine room or the galley. Thus, I think the Crew Welfare Fund is the way to go, and I try to ignore solicitations for tips.

[CruisinPashmina]

Harbormaster, Your reports have been, hands down, the best, most informative and evocative reports I have ever read on CC. Thank you!

Vietnam is a fascinating country with so much to experience. We have visited several times and your report makes me want to sign up yet again.

 

On the troubling side: the problems you had with Reception are inexcusable. (Might be an idea to contact the AMEX Plat. Card offices and explain the situation).Plus, the continuing outrage with the "Charity Charge" makes my blood boil. We wish every future passenger would join us in contributing to the Crew Fund at the same time they demand to have the charity robbery removed from their bill. We always warn newbies to check their bills, get the charge removed and to consider the Crew Fund. Fortunately we have never felt solicited for tips from anyone in the crew. As suggested, maybe donating to the Crew Fund is an indication to leave us be.

 

I want to end on a positive note: LOVED your trip report. Thanks for taking us along...I could almost taste the Pho!

[Emtbsam]

We agree totally about the Crew Welfare fund. We have always made our contribution out of our on board account although I do know some passengers pay it in cash.

 

My question is this: can we pay in cash with a currency other than US dollars? We will most likely have New Zealand and Australian dollars left over and would like to be able to use them for part of the contribution.

[brumagin1]

We have not been aware of this fund. When taking back to back cruises, do you contribute for each leg, or only at the first leg? Do you have a "per day" amount that you use to guide you in your donation?

[harbormaster]

CruisinPashmina. your remarks make me blush ! Thank you.

 

We agree on the crew welfare fund. There are more people working to make our cruise enjoyable than we see. They also need to be rewarded.

 

I truly believe all efforts to have Silversea stop the charity charge are falling on deaf ears. The continuing film, on one of the few tv channels provided, promoting the "charity" over and over serves as proof. Wonder cynically if they will raise it to pay for the new included shore excursions (tongue in cheek).

 

Seriously however, we are so surprised at the number of people onboard who are totally oblivious that their money is being taken automatically.

[AtMaui]

Brumagin1: You're charged $1/day for the donation. I just did a b2b (8 day and 10 day) and was charged $8 for the first cruise and $10 for the second one. I just went to Reception and asked for the charges to be removed. I think the response was "certainly" since I'm sure they are asked this quite often.

 

Jaci

[brumagin1]

Thank you, Jaci. I am definitely taking the charity donation off. Did you contribute to the Crew Welfare Fund? If so, did you contribute for each leg of your cruise,or just during the first for the entire trip?

[Emtbsam]

We generally make a single contribution to the Crew Welfare fund during the first leg of back to back cruises. I generally do it on the day we receive information about the "charity" charge so that I only have to make one trip to reception.

[harbormaster]

Thanks for your comments everyone.

 

We do still have one question from our original post here and perhaps someone can give us an answer. On this Wind cruise, we missed Nha Trang. In the past on other cruises, we have been given compensation for the missed port - on Regent a while ago $150, and even on Princess. If nothing else, our port charges for that location were returned. When we asked, we were told, "nothing back'" by reception.

We don't blame anyone for missing the port as it was a combination of weather and schedule, and it happens, just wondering why the difference from other lines.

[CanadianKate]

I've never received anything for missed ports on SS. And never really thought about it, since unlike some other cruise lines, it is included in the fare I book (was just looking at another line and the port charges struck me by surprise.)

 

Didn't get anything back from Norwegian when we missed ports with them.

Edited January 26, 2015 by CanadianKate

[Herman The Cat]

I would just add that when we make a contribution, we go to the reception desk to do so. The contributions need to be made in cash; they cannot be charged to your room or a credit card..at least that has been our experience.

[oregon50]

Your experience would be different than mine, and probably most.