Live(ish) - Serenade - 7 days in Norway departing 15 May

[TulipBee]

So, I decided I would try to do live updates for my Serenade daily that departed Sunday, but the quality of the Internet on Serenade had other ideas. Having a miserable time trying to upload photos here, so have instead put them on my blog. The link to day 1 can be found here - http://belindabypopulardemand.blogspot.com/2016/05/day-1-of-serenading-seas.html

 

I'll post more updates as the crummy Internet allows.

 

p.s. To call an Internet package 'streaming' is false advertising if it doesn't even load photos on websites!

[chadbt]

Love it! Thank you so much. Will watch for updates. :)

[NickAndysMom]

Thanks so much for posting about your Serenade of the Seas cruise. We will be on Serenade in July for a Baltic cruise, round trip Stockholm. I will definitely follow your blog, along with anything else you happen to be able to post to Cruise Critic.

 

I'm so sorry to hear that the internet continues to be a big disappointment on Serenade. I've heard terrible things about it, but I was hoping they might get it working properly before our cruise. I'm not going to hold my breath!

[July4]

Will be following. Will be doing cruise in August. Was hoping internet would be better, guess the Voom is not installed or working that far North.

[reney313]

Yay! One of my favorite cruises to date was our 8 night Norwegian Fjord cruise last August. I would love to relive it through your review :)

[Kellie in Texas]

We're on the Serenade on May 29, I'll be following, for sure!

 

Are you by any chance going to Stockholm? If so, does the ship have a shuttle bus from Frihamnen cruise terminal to the Vasa museum, Gamla Stan, etc.? I looked at the shore excursions a few months ago and there was one at the time, but I haven't seen it lately.

 

I'd also be interested in hearing about the weather; it looks cold!

[TulipBee]

Hi everyone - have posted another update http://belindabypopulardemand.blogspot.com.au/2016/05/sea-stavanger.html

 

To answer a few questions, yes! It is cold! Today was a max of about 10 degrees Celsius. Yes, Internet is rubbish, am actually quickly updating this before we depart today port today whilst I can use 3G and not have to rely on the ships Internet.

 

Kellie In Texas - this ship doesn't go to Stockholm, but I was there last week. I saw an NCL ship that was parked near the photographic museum and that was a very easy walk to Gamla Stan (less than 10 minutes, we did it to visit the museum - which I highly recommend as an amazing place to have lunch or a famous Swedish pastry - the cafe overlooks the whole town). From there public transport is super easy to places like Museum island. Stockholm is quite compact and very easy to get around on your own.

[surreymum]

Not sure of your itinerary but we sailed Serenade last summer stopping at Stavanger, Bergen, Alesund and Geiranger. Alesund library was just across the road from where we docked and offered free (and fast) wifi. We asked at the reception desk and were given the code by a very helpful and friendly young man. It was very useful, after a day out, to check emails and post to Facebook etc.

Hope you enjoy the rest of your cruise.

[mek]

Hi - we sailed on Serenade last month and will be on again in a couple of weeks - 6/5. I was wondering what the movies are on your sailing? We hare hoping that they have changed. Would you mind telling me what is being shown in the theater? We may have to load some on the iPad if it looks like they are the same.

 

And yes, the internet service was terrible for us also.

[TulipBee]

Hi - we sailed on Serenade last month and will be on again in a couple of weeks - 6/5. I was wondering what the movies are on your sailing? We hare hoping that they have changed. Would you mind telling me what is being shown in the theater? We may have to load some on the iPad if it looks like they are the same.

 

And yes, the internet service was terrible for us also.

 

So far we have had Concussion, Spectre, The 33 and tomorrow is Star Wars the force awakens.

[mek]

So far we have had Concussion, Spectre, The 33 and tomorrow is Star Wars the force awakens.

 

Well that is good news - we had Spectre and The 33, but not Star Wars or Concussion, so maybe in a couple of weeks they may all be new.

 

Thanks for letting me know.

[Ladyarli]

Hello,

Thank you so much for your posts. You are answering several of the questions I had. Your pictures are terrific too. I'm sorry to read that you have a cold, but you seem like the kind of person who won't let that ruin their vacation. Please let us all know if you see any shows, and how you like them if you do. Also, is there karaoke? Looking forward to your upcoming posts, and hope you feel better soon.

[Clarea]

Nice photos, following.:)

[TulipBee]

Okay, we have a new update http://www.belindabypopulardemand.blogspot.com/2016/05/a-tale-of-two-lookouts.html

 

I am pleased to report that after a trip to the pharmacy in Bergen yesterday I am starting to feel like I am on the mend (probably will feel great next week when I have to go back to work! :rolleyes: ). Thanks for the well wishes though.

 

@ladyarli - yes, there is Karaoke in the compass.

 

For anyone doing this cruise, a piece of packing advice - moisturiser! The weather here is really dry. I never normally need it, but have had to go buy some in town today out of desperation.

 

Long day in port today(almost 12 hours), but it is a small town, so those of us who have exhausted our to do list are all finding sunny spots on the ship to simply enjoy the spectacular view we all have at the moment.

[Ladyarli]

I enjoyed it so much I printed out the blogs for future reference, LOL. I'm glad to hear you were able to get something at the pharmacy to give you relief. Thanks for the moisturizer tip, and for the answer about karaoke. Do you know when the second formal night is? On most cruises I've been on, it's been on the second sea day, but I believe it's up to the Captain, and every ship and itinerary can be different. Thanks again for your blog. It's excellent!

[mek]

Thanks for the pictures and narrative. Your comments are very helpful for us and are giving us an idea of what to expect in each port.

 

I know the weather can change in a few weeks, but I'm very pleased with my decision to book an OV for this cruise. We were in 8586 last month and it looks like you are close to where we were on the hump.

[TulipBee]

I am back in the land of Internet and did a final update http://belindabypopulardemand.blogspot.dk/2016/05/fjords-and-food.html

 

Port wise they well and truly saved the best til last. Friday's port was worth the entire price of the cruise and it is up there as one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.

 

A few summary observations from me (it was my first time on Royal):

 

- I didn't appreciate that my cabin attendant would not let me in my room whilst it was being cleaned (particularly the day I was unwell). I paid for it, I can use it whenever I want!

 

- Everything I pre-booked on Cruise Planner was either cancelled or moved to a different day by Royal. In one case they cancelled a tour just to make us all come and re-book so we 'understood what the tour was'. That was a frustrating waste of time (and annoying that it has to be refunded on my credit card - 10 day wait - but I had to repay on my sea pass!).

 

- It would be nice to have little snacks in the bars like chips or pretzels. This is the first cruise line I have been on that does not do this. It is also near impossible to get a drink in the windjammer if you are not on a drinks package. Buy it at a bar and bring it in with you.

 

- People on CC are right, on the final day the crew (waiters in the MDR etc) hound you about what rating you will be giving them. I felt really uncomfortable about this. I had no issues with my waiter until that moment.

 

- if you want to sit by yourself at breakfast in a half empty MDR put your foot down. One day they insisted on putting me at a table with people who did not speak the same languages and me and then made me wait until they had all come in and were seated to take orders (which took about 20 minutes). I ended up having to leave without eating as I would be late for an excursion. The next day I made it clear I wanted my own table and got it. I have no objections to putting people together if the MDR is busy, but never make someone wait for complete strangers to order their food.

 

- Don't pay for the 'streaming' Internet. The speed on serenade is so bad that it can't support downloading images on Facebook let along streaming. It is a waste of money.

 

-the Croatian woman manning Cafe-lattitudes makes a mean white chocolate mocha :)

[TulipBee]

Thanks for the pictures and narrative. Your comments are very helpful for us and are giving us an idea of what to expect in each port.

 

I know the weather can change in a few weeks, but I'm very pleased with my decision to book an OV for this cruise. We were in 8586 last month and it looks like you are close to where we were on the hump.

 

Very close - 8508 :)

[TulipBee]

I enjoyed it so much I printed out the blogs for future reference, LOL. I'm glad to hear you were able to get something at the pharmacy to give you relief. Thanks for the moisturizer tip, and for the answer about karaoke. Do you know when the second formal night is? On most cruises I've been on, it's been on the second sea day, but I believe it's up to the Captain, and every ship and itinerary can be different. Thanks again for your blog. It's excellent!

 

Thank you :)

 

The two formal nights were day 2 and day 5. First was a sea day, second was a port day.

[TulipBee]

Oh, and another tip for those that play Bingo! They no longer do the punch out cards (apparently they took too long to burn in the ship incinerator we were told) so you need to bring a pen/marker to bingo with you. The only other option is to buy one of the RC bingo robbers for $2.

[packercruising]

How cool! Thank you for the link to the blog. We did a B2B on Visions to Norwegian Fjords and Baltics. It was a blast. I can post a link to the pics, if you would like.

 

We were on Serenade for a Caribbean cruise and really liked the ship.

 

Sorry about your wi-fi!

Edited May 22, 2016 by packercruising

[cruisingbajan]

Really enjoyed your blog. Thanks for posting.