“the Big One”! World Cruise on Sojourn

[shark b8]

Aloha, everybody.  If you ever lived in SoCal like we did, “the big one” always referred to earthquakes, but for us right now, it’s the WORLD cruise on the Sojourn, 140 days. We sailed out of Miami about an hour ago (90 min’s late, the usual sailaway festivities around the pool had long since ended).  Anyway, I obvs have read some disquieting things about the Sojourn on this board recently, and have also read those who had pretty much the opposite view.  I’ll try to call balls & strikes, although I will readily confess up front that I’m pretty biased in Seabourn’s favor…..otherwise we wouldn’t keep sailing with them, & this is #14.  As always, would love to field any questions and I’ll do my best to answer honestly.  Woohooo, here we go! 

[nancygp]

Bon voyage…have a wonderful journey

 

Nancy

 

 

[SLSD]

I look forward to your reports!  Have a fabulous trip! I am assuming that you brought your luggage with you this time?  And it is on the ship?

[Sunviking]

3 hours ago, shark b8 said:

Aloha, everybody.  If you ever lived in SoCal like we did, “the big one” always referred to earthquakes, but for us right now, it’s the WORLD cruise on the Sojourn, 140 days. We sailed out of Miami about an hour ago (90 min’s late, the usual sailaway festivities around the pool had long since ended).  Anyway, I obvs have read some disquieting things about the Sojourn on this board recently, and have also read those who had pretty much the opposite view.  I’ll try to call balls & strikes, although I will readily confess up front that I’m pretty biased in Seabourn’s favor…..otherwise we wouldn’t keep sailing with them, & this is #14.  As always, would love to field any questions and I’ll do my best to answer honestly.  Woohooo, here we go! 

Aloha, shark b8, I hope you a lovely trip. I always enjoy reading your objective opinion. I am leaving in two and a half weeks to sail on the Quest from Chile to Antarctica, South Georgia , falklands and eventually up the Amazon before ending 58 days later in Miami. This will be my longest cruise and if it goes well, I’m considering a world cruise next year. So I’m really looking forward to reading how your cruise goes.

Ann

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[lincslady]

Looking forward to reading about your adventures.  I am pleased to read that you obviously like Seabourn, but I am sure able to notice things which are not up to scratch, if any.  May there be very few!

 

 

 

 

[margbem]

Hope you have an amazing journey! Looking forward to reading your reports.

[pyffii]

When you get off in 140 days in barcelona we'll be boarding so very keen to hear of your adventures 

[shark b8]

Thanks all.  The sailaway last night was a bit muddled - they did the on-deck entertainment at 5:00p, even though we didn’t actually sail away until after 6:30.  Cute moment:  we were berthed directly behind the Quest (which also sailed last night, for the South American circumnavigation Sunviking mentions).  As we edged out into the canal alongside her, on our way out, there were loads of cruisers furiously waving at us, and so naturally we furiously waved back.  Then as we passed her and headed out, the Quest gave us the 3 long blasts of the horn, and we followed with 3 long blasts of our own.  Then the Quest gave a short “beep” and we responded in kind, it was laugh-out-loud funny….maybe partly just because of the thrill of the moment.

 

We’re in Key West today, will head out for a look-see and report back.

[shark b8]

8 hours ago, SLSD said:

I am assuming that you brought your luggage with you this time?  And it is on the ship?

hahahahaha, good memory!  For those who don’t know, our friend SLSD refers to our Caribbean cruise just about exactly a year ago, wherein I decided to try out the “Luggage Forward” thing, and was promptly rewarded with our two suitcases arriving on the Odyssey ELEVEN days after we sailed.  Yes, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and did two suitcases this time too (included in the overall price this time, so….).  Happy to report it could not have gone smoother.  I now have Apple AirTags in all luggage so I can pretty much know at any given moment where everything is, and this one was fine, arrived at a storage facility near the port within about 72 hours of leaving home.

[shark b8]

….and last night at dinner in the MDR, a hotel officer whom we’ve come to know, recognized us, came running over and immediately said “do you have your luggage?!”.   It’s possible I may have been just the slightest bit cranky about it, at the time.   😎

[shark b8]

(there was a bit of luggage-drama - it took an unusually long time for bags to arrive in everyone’s suites.  I mentioned sailing at 6:30, our one bag (not the forwarded luggage) didn’t arrive until about ½ hour prior to sailing.  But….all is well)

[SLSD]

I hope you will visit Hemingway's House on Key West today if you haven't already been there.  That was the high point of the island for us. 

[hoosier74]

We'll be joining you in 30 days in Papeete.  I can't wait.  I hope there are get togethers organized for segments.  I don't think we'll ever do a world cruise, but I love to follow along.

[Mr Luxury]

2 hours ago, shark b8 said:

….and last night at dinner in the MDR, a hotel officer whom we’ve come to know, recognized us, came running over and immediately said “do you have your luggage?!”.   It’s possible I may have been just the slightest bit cranky about it, at the time.   😎

No,we don't have our luggage but on our bed we're two Apple Air tags 😁

[whogo]

I appreciate your taking the time to post, shark b8. I look forward to your reports.

 

Sunviking, I'd be happy to hear of your Quest cruise as well.

[skybluewaters]

Have a great trip shark b8 and thank you for your reports.

We just got off of Sojourn's 16-day Holiday Cruise yesterday and hopefully you'll have as wonderful a time as we had. 

Rumor on the ship a couple of days ago was that all passengers on Sojourn will be required to be Covid-tested on January 8 (tomorrow).  This apparently was a very recent decision.  We did notice more coughing than usual around us during the latter portion of the cruise.  Can you see what's up with this, if anything?  Thanks!

Edited January 7, 2023 by skybluewaters

[shark b8]

56 minutes ago, skybluewaters said:

We just got off of Sojourn's 16-day Holiday Cruise yesterday….Rumor on the ship a couple of days ago was that all passengers on Sojourn will be required to be Covid-tested on January 8 (tomorrow).  This apparently was a very recent decision.

Yes, part of the interesting boarding yesterday.  There were the usual (these days) multiple stops to finally get onboard - passport presentation, carryon luggage x-ray, etc.  at one point we were handed masks and were told “these must be worn at all times in the public areas for the first 3 days”.  And that, as skybluewaters says above, all would then be tested on the 3rd day, the 8th.  We had gotten PCR tests when we arrived at Miami airport, like we did for the Caribbean cruise a year ago - we have to leave home base in Hawaii sooner than the 48-72 hour deadline for the tests to be approved.  As it turned out, a step or two later in the process, the young man asked if we had experienced any symptoms, asked if we had been vaxxed & boosted, and asked if we had gotten the Covid tests, we said yes, and as I reached into my bag for the documented results, he said, “good” and waved us on, no one looked at the certificates.   Since boarding, I am not sure I’ve seen a single passenger wearing a mask.  So it didn’t “take”, and no enforcement is to found, at least I haven’t seen it yet.  Obviously we’re not yet even 24 hours in, so….we’ll see how all that kinda stuff plays out.

[shark b8]

Speaking of passengers, I asked our hotel officer acquaintance about the pax load - she said 323.  So, just over 70% —  sounds good, I’ll take it!

[highplanesdrifters]

@shark b8glad you're on the High Seas again and looking forward to tales of your High Jinx.😃  140 days Woo Hoo!  In Polynesia at the moment and I'll send you a map to our Rum stash.

[shark b8]

1 hour ago, highplanesdrifters said:

@shark b8…..I'll send you a map to our Rum stash.

Any Zaya?!

[shark b8]

7:00p.  We. Are. Home.

 

 

 

 

[highplanesdrifters]

4 hours ago, shark b8 said:

Any Zaya?!

Just the local stuff. But I promise, you won't spit it out!  Zaya looks interesting,  must check it out.

 

Looks like your evening is off to a well deserved, luggage drama over, perfect start. 🥂 Cheers matey.

[shark b8]

Had to add this quote as a jpg, as the wifi is apparently unable to function correctly after 10:00pm.  Or maybe it’s a blip.

 

anyway, getting into rum-tasting….I have found this is dangerous territory, even worse than Republican/Democrat or Sharks/Jets.  (I was ‘Indio” in the 1971 Occidental College production of West Side Story, and if you kind readers have any leanings toward the Jets, I invite you to stop reading right now and take a long walk off a short pier.  You are dead to me).  
 

Zaya is relatively heavy on the vanilla and the sweetness, which a lot of people (probably Jets) don’t like, but I find it exactly right for long, slow sipping, over ice.  Don’t ever, ever mix it in a cocktail, a crime against nature.   Sort of like the Jets.

[shark b8]

HPD - tell me about Mana’o, your pic.  

[shark b8]

9 hours ago, shark b8 said:

Rumor on the ship a couple of days ago was that all passengers on Sojourn will be required to be Covid-tested on January 8 (tomorrow).