LIVE from the Voyager Transatlantic 5/6/06-5/19/06

[CruzinPat]

Thank you for taking time to describe your experience. We will be on the Sept 23rd Voyager sailing and your reports are very exciting to read!

[wolfcathorse]

Its nice to hear you're still enjoying yourself and not letting little things get you down on your cruise. What do you do in these little island stops in the middle of nowhere? Who is the captain you keep refering to?

[faithwins]

Thanks for you continued updated reports! enjoy reading them

[tessamilla]

IMNiles : I saw you had problems with the lack of morning light. I read somewear that you could set your TV on the channel with the bow cam on. At night it is dark anyway and in the morning you could see if it has become daylight yet and what Kind of weather you have, sounded like a greate idea but I haven`t tried it yet, was going to when we are due the 23 May.

[SharC]

What is cyber cabin hookup? We will be on Voyager in September and are trying to decide if we should take our laptop. Can we use it from our room?

[Compo55]

Hi Sharon,

 

I emailed RCCL recently to ask this question, so I have copied their reply below. Hope this helps.

 

Regards

 

Ian

 

What is Cyber Cabin?

Unlimited Internet dial-up access from the privacy of guest staterooms.

Kits are required (on some ships) and are available onboard. A limited

number of kits are available on a first come first serve basis.

Ships that require a kit: Voyager, Explorer, Navigator, Mariner, and

Adventure.

What does a kit consist of? A kit is simply a box containing the following: 1. Telephone with a digital to analog convertor 2. Telephone cables

3. Power supply

4. Instruction sheet

Note: Without the telephone, the guest will not be able to dial up via their

laptop modem.

 

The following ships already have a converter in the stateroom and

do not require a kit: Radiance, Brilliance, Serenade, and Jewel.

What is the cost for Internet usage in a Cyber Cabin?

4 nights- $60 for unlimited access

5 & 6 nights - $80 for unlimited access

7 nights - $100 for unlimited access

8 nights - $110 for unlimited access

9, 10, 11 nights - $125 for unlimited access

12 & 14 nights- $150 for unlimited access

Note: Guests can not prepay for cyber cabin access. This must be done

on the ship.

What ships offer Cyber Cabins? Voyager of the Seas, Explorer of the Seas, Adventure of the Seas,

Mariner of the Seas, Radiance of the Seas, Brilliance of the Seas, Serenade of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas, and Jewel of the Seas.

NOT Available on these ships: Enchantment, Grandeur, Splendour, Legend, Majesty, Monarch, Empress, Sovereign, Rhapsody, and Vision.

What does the guest need to bring?

Windows based operating system

Internal modem

dial-up Internet capabilities

previous dial-up experience using own laptop

Speeds 38 - 42 Kbps.

[IMNiles]

Hello again! We are currently at sea somewhere between Ponta Delgada and Lisbon. The seas were very rough pulling into Ponta Delgada - so rough that the captain said that he was almost unable to dock - 45mph winds and moderate seas. We docked almost 2 hours early, and would have been able to get off early if we had been dressed :) As it was, we got off the ship about 10:30 am. The temperature was lovely, and it was a bit overcast. We wandered around town for awhile, took advantage of the free internet at Portugal Telecom, then found a cab to show us the sights. He didn't speak a lick of English, and we not a lick of Portuguese, but we had a lovely two hours and somehow managed to communicate. He charged us 35 Euros for the two hours, and did his best to explain things to us - we even talked politics for awhile! We had wanted to see the crater lakes and Sete Cidades, but alas the weather was not with us. It was so foggy and overcast that we couldn't see a thing from any of the miradouros until we were pretty much at ground level, and the 'blue' lake was pretty much green without the help of the sun. That said, it was all really beautiful, and we tried to get this across to poor Antonio Daniel, our cab driver, because he was beside himself trying to apologize and tell us how it was usually much prettier. Being from the brown desert, all the green was extremely lovely, and as much as we would have liked to have seen the full view, what we saw was very pretty and we were not disappointed. Of course, the moment we got back to town the sun came out and stayed there until we left! :)

 

The seas remained a little unsettled most of the night, but that pretty much just served to put me right to sleep. Today, another sea day, was overcast and very windy, and almost nobody is outside. The sexy legs contest was moved inside, and today they added a third ice show to replace the one cancelled due to high seas earlier. We spend most of the day just playing cards and relaxing. I skipped breakfast so we were able to enjoy a lovely burger at Johnny Rockets (and a milkshake!). yum.

 

Tomorrow is Lisbon. Shipwide maintenance continues - a section of the promenade deck was blocked off today, presumably so they could paint. There is definitely a lot more of this going on than on previous cruises, but it doesn't bother me - better that than the alternative of a rundown ship!

 

Somebody asked about the captain - I can't remember his name, but he struck me as much younger than I expected, and he seems to be a nice guy. I'll try to look his name up.

 

The cyber cabin was $150 and is essentially a dial up connection in your room. You need your own laptop and modem. on this cruise it is EXTREMELY slow - almost unusably slow. Much slower than even your typical dialup modem.

 

Another interesting note that I haven't seen anybody mention - for the first time I've seen on a Royal Caribbean ship, there is Texas Holdem in the casino. Instead of a typical poker table, they have basically just converted a blackjack table to holdem,and according to the sign it's $5/$10 stakes, presumably limit, though I didn't ask. It has been full pretty much any time I've looked (assuming it was open at all). I've been too busy doing other stuff to play so far.

 

Off to dinner!

[SUZCRUZ]

So much fun to read your summary of the days events..

It's almost like being there.

Elaborate as much as you can.

It's all fun!

[wolfcathorse]

Somebody asked about the captain - I can't remember his name, but he struck me as much younger than I expected, and he seems to be a nice guy. I'll try to look his name up.

 

Does the name Capt Gerry Larsson-Fedde or Capt Charles Teige ring a bell?

[Homeschoolmom69]

Does the name Capt Gerry Larsson-Fedde or Capt Charles Teige ring a bell?

 

wolfcathorse, I was on the Voyager 2 weeks ago, and Capt. Teige was the capt.

[tessamilla]

IMNiles : I read somewear that you could set the tv on the channel were the bow camra is on. Then it is only dark at night and you would see if it is daylight when you wake up!! And even get an idea of what kind of weather it is outside ! Hope this works for you !!

[Past it]

Hanging on your every word,love it.I was going to be on this sailing but events made me change to the Sept Med so I can cruise with my 2 cousins from UK. Nice to hear they are sprucing it up for us! Do they still have the lovely fish tanks in one of the bars? I saw some pics of them once.Hope they are filled when I'm on..Many thanks for taking the time to do this.Happy Cruising :)

[truffles2]

We just got off the Brilliance 13 day crossing and I, too, was worried about how to fill all the sea days--especially if the weather was bad....but not to worry--they fly by. We had a total of 8 or 9 sea days. You lose an hour nearly every day going over. It was very relaxing. Most days I had no idea what the day or date was--and didn't care. We had rough seas for a couple of days early on and high winds (82 mph across the deck one day) but it was great sitting at the pool and not burning up! Would do it again in a heartbeat--in fact, if loyalty ambassador had had the info for next year we were prepared to book on board. I think she said new info comes out May 19 so we have tentatively booked a PC crossing--but may switch depending on new transatlantic info.

[SharC]

Thanks for answering my question about the cyber cabin hookup. It is amazing the information that can be gained from these boards.

[bigbigboat]

hey do me a favor i've been on voyage twice - i'm lokking for a head waiter named rajiv twarti we had him both times but he wasn't sure if he was going to stay on this ship . please see if he's still there everyone will knoe him. tell me kim said hi thanks

Hi folks! Now that our internet connection is up (it was down the first night and most of the first day), thought I'd start the live thread for this sailing. Anyone with burning questions about the current state of Voyager, now is the time to ask!

 

As expected, she is in fine condition, especially considering her age and the number of passengers she sees regularly. I have seen no obvious signs of serious wear, and as usual the staff is always about cleaning and polishing. The bed is clearly near the end of it's life, but we know the whole fleet is getting new beds soon, so that will be rectified eventually.. It's still more comfortable than the bed we had on Legend in December. We tried to get a foam pad, but despite asking at around 1pm on embarkation day, our steward said there were none left. Simeon, our cabin steward, is just as friendly and solicitous as I have come to expect from RCCL.

 

Embarkation was fairly smooth - there were representatives strategically placed at the entry points directing you to the right line. We couldn't have waited more than 5 minutes in line or so to get our seapass card, but then we waited another 45 or so in another line as they were not yet boarding. Despite the cruise not being sold out the day before, there were no pier upgrades available.

 

When we did board, around 12:30pm or so, we could still see disembarking passengers waiting for customs, so they wasted no time starting boarding once everyone was off. I would say the biggest problem at embarkation was the fact that the line to get on the ship was so long it extended nearly to the door, and new arrivals kept trying to get in that line and had to be redirected to checkin.

 

Our cabins were not yet ready when we boarded (no surprise there) so we made our way to the pursers desk to arrange our cyber cabin hookup, and by the time that was all settled, our cabin was ready. There was a fair amount of confusion over the price - they wanted to charge $192 for the whole trip (13 days), but I had an email from guest relations that said it was $150, so they honored that price.

 

To be continued..

 

Well, I've spent too much time in front of this computer so I'm gonna go enjoy the beautiful weather and visit the buffet. I'll check in later to answer any questions about the ship anyone has.

 

Cheers!

[IMNiles]

Does the name Capt Gerry Larsson-Fedde or Capt Charles Teige ring a bell?

 

Charles Teige.. That's it. Seems like a nice guy, though I haven't spoken to him personally.

 

At the moment I'm sitting in an internet cafe in Cadiz, Spain, just popping in to do an update since the connection is so slow on the ship.. It's hard to believe the trip is almost over, and I'm sad that it will be ending soon. We have just one sea day (tomorrow) and Marseilles before we arrive in Barcelona.

 

Yesterday was Lisbon. Once again the cruiseline offered a shuttle to the city center, and once again I feel that it was not a particularly good value. Perhaps I didn't mention this before, but the bus ride in Ponta Delgada was literally less than a minute. We waited about 10 minutes to get on the bus, paid our $2 each (one way) and drove from one end of the dock to the other. Needless to say, we did not take the shuttle back. In Lisbon it was less egregious, and in fact we did take the shuttle BACK, but the line was so huge in the morning for the shuttle we just walked to the Plaça Comercio - it took us about 15 minutes, including a stop at an ATM.

 

We opted not to take a ship's tour on this stop (in fact, we have yet to take one). We're going to be in Lisbon for another day as we travel home, so we knew we'd have another shot at it. We paid e14 apiece for tickets on the double decker (open top) sightseeing bus, and took the "blue" route which covered the major tourist sights in town. The busses leave right from the Plaça Comercio, and there is a ticket booth right there (in a retired trolley). These are the "hop on - hop off" style busses, meaning you can get off at any stop to sight-see, and get back on later for the single ticket fare, although we did not take advantage of that feature. The tour took about 1 3/4 hours, and did a fairly comprehensive loop, including the major squares, an elevator, and the Belém tower (which is closed on Mondays). We were provided headphones for narration in a number of languages (including English), although the narration was a bit sparse, and we were otherwise subjected to a continuous loop of the same portugeuse fado song, which got a bit tiresome after a while. At any rate, it gave us a good overview of the city, and gave us an idea of what else we might want to visit when next we pass through. The lines were very long in the morning, but when we returned about 2 there was no line at all. The busses pass through each stop about every half hour. At one point we rounded a bend and saw what we thought was our ship, but then on closer inspection it seemed much smaller. It was, in fact, Splendour of the seas, who was moored just down the channel nearer the bridge. Had THAT been our mooring point, I'd bet the shuttle would have been a better value. Perhaps it's luck of the draw where you end up, or maybe Voyager got the prime spot seeing as how it was her first visit.

 

Afterwards we stopped a random little restaurant for a couple of beers, some pork that I would normally call ribs, except they weren't like any ribs I'd ever had before (they were tasty though, and apparently cooked on/in brazilian charcoal), and a lovely rice tamboril. The proprietor was very nice, and was able to translate the menu for us in broken English. We also started with a selection of deep-fried munchies (one was "meat," one shrimp, and one "fish" - they were very tasty, though we were surprised to find that they were served cold).

 

All aboard was 4:30 so we didn't have much time to do anything else. We had gotten off to a late start due to the lines to get off the ship (this being voyager's first visit, they had trouble with the gangways, so everyone got a late state), and the lines at the shuttles were extremely long. Unfortunately, they hadn't figured out their logistics by the time we returned (we took the shuttle back from the plaça) and the line to re-board the ship was insane, and snaked way outside the terminal. I'd say we waited in line about 45 minutes, although the dismayed look on the late-arriving shuttle passengers made for some entertainment. :) The ship took on more provisions here, as we had run out of a lot of fresh fruit and vegetables, and probably other perishables as well. We did not leave port until an hour or so late, and even then there were several passengers who did not make it. There were the usual PA calls for the missing passengers, then shortly after we sailed, the pilot boat came racing out on a collision course, and pulled alongside directly below the spot I had chosen on the promenade deck for sailaway. Matching our speed, several people (presumbaly, the missing passengers) donned lifeboats, and climbed up a short ladder into a porthole on the side of the ship. A very dramatic end to the day for them I would say. If I see them later I will be sure to congratulate them on their grand entry. I wonder how much that cost them?

 

There was another midnight buffet last night, which I understand they moved from the pool deck to the dining room due to the weather, but I missed it as I was tired and went to bed shortly after dinner. The weather in Lisbon was gorgeous - partly cloudy and perhaps upper seventies or low eighties, but it cooled off very quickly once we got underway. We got a very nice view of the monument to the discoverers (or whatever it's called), the Belém tower, etc, as we sailed down the channel. The view, in fact, was better than from the bus on land. :) The passage under the bridge is also very pretty - it reminded me a great deal of passing under the golden gate in San Francisco.

 

Today in Cadiz it's very warm - mid eighties perhaps, and humid. We slept in and did not leave the ship until nearly noon, even though we docked around 9. I was initially unimpressed upon leaving the ship, but we quickly found a charming warren of narrow alleys and streets just chock-a-block with shops and bars, and it's just lovely. We stopped at a random sidewalk cafe for lunch, which was just OK - I think we would have been better off trying to get some tapas at one of the little holes-in-the-wall on Calle San Francisco. This internet cafe is across town by the train station, but it wasn't a bad walk - there were maps leading us here at the tourist center by the terminal.

 

Well, I didn't come to Cadiz to sit in an internet cafe so I'm going to go see if I can scare up another beer.

 

Cheers!

 

PS - regarding the bow camera - since we're in an inside cabin I looked for that almost immediately so I could discern the weather, but it is not on all the time - it's interspersed with the "bridge report" and other miscellany, so it can take some time to loop back around to the camera view.

 

PPS - tomorrow is "at sea," or final formal night and the gala buffet, and the next day (our last) is Marseilles. Tonight is the Quest.

[Ham154]

Quote : Perhaps I didn't mention this before, but the bus ride in Ponta Delgada was literally less than a minute. We waited about 10 minutes to get on the bus, paid our $2 each (one way) and drove from one end of the dock to the other.

 

We have just done the Legend transatlantic and stopped at Ponta Delgada, I can see from the photo of the Voyager in port there that we docked in the same place. The shuttle was FREE on our cruise, it dropped us at the end of the dock the same, it would be interesting if you asked at the pursers why they charged $2 each when it was free for the Legend (4/24/06)???

[bhughey]

I am so enjoying your "travel journal"! For the past 2 years, my husband and I have done the eastbound Transatlantic cruise, we didn't do so this year and I am missing it terribly!!!!!

 

I do have to say, the first time we did the TA on the Brilliance in '04, the shuttle service provided in the ports was FREE... and in '05 -- there was a charge. Seems to be another one of RCI's cost saving (or money making) measures!

 

Enjoy your last 2 days! Transatlantic Cruises are my FAVORITE!!!!!!!!!

[Aquarius2]

Hi IMNiles,

 

We'll be on the 23rd May 4 Night Cruise on the Voyager, can you find out for me when Disembarkation starts in Barcelona when you arrive? And is there Priority-Disembarkation for Platinum Crown and Anchor-Members?

 

We do have quite an early Flight at 9.40am from Barcelona and we do need to be at the Airport latest 50 Minutes before Departure, so any Info from yourside would be nice.

 

Have done this with the same Flight-Arrangement on the last Brilliance-Cruise in October 2005 and it worked fine, just wanted to doublecheck with you.

 

Thanks so much and keep the Updates coming!

 

Cheers,

Phil:D

[prairie_fox]

Very cool that you could see the Splendour but I am not sure why she is there, she was to leave on the 15th for a trip and not return to Lisbon. The place we docked at was where one would not want to walk for it had many ships and big machines moving grains and other things about where you could end up hit so easy. They had shuttle service also for us but it was FREE to take. In PontaDelgado it was also a free trip from the ship but we chose to walk the area and not ride for such a short time. We did just get off May 6th from her as she was to head to dry-dock in Lisbon and like I said to sail with people on the 15th. Hope my friends got to go and she wasnt held up on leaving.

[IMNiles]

We'll be on the 23rd May 4 Night Cruise on the Voyager, can you find out for me when Disembarkation starts in Barcelona when you arrive? And is there Priority-Disembarkation for Platinum Crown and Anchor-Members?

 

We do have quite an early Flight at 9.40am from Barcelona and we do need to be at the Airport latest 50 Minutes before Departure, so any Info from yourside would be nice.

 

Sorry I didn't get your message before I disembarked. I am now in Barcelona, and can tell you that the travel lite people were disembarking around 7am, and the rest were prioritized based on when you said your flight was on your disembarkation form, etc. I got off long before some platinums I know so I don't think they had priority, but they may have been able to ask the concierge.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[IMNiles]

prairie fox - I cannot explain Splendour's presence, but she was definitely moored in the "less desirable" mooring spot nearer the bridge and further from walking-distance points of interest- I definitely would have wanted to take a shuttle from there. Where we were moored, on the other side of the Plaça Comercio, was within fairly easy walking reach - right across the road from what looked like a bus station (by the military museum). In this case it wasn't so much the distance the shuttle was to travel but the huge lines to get on one. The Lisbon stop was not a model of organization. There were lines stretching several hundred people long both to get on the shuttles, and to get back on the ship when we returned for the day. Both lines generated a fair amount of grumbling. We were also a trifle late getting off the ship because they had trouble getting the gangway fitted (this being Voyager's first visit, apparently they weren't quite sure how it would all work). One of the reasons for the lines getting on the ship in lisbon may have been the fact that there was only ONE security line. Instead of doing the security screening on-ship, they were doing it in the port building, and there was only one screening machine. The staff were also distracted by a fairly large number of passengers or crew who were embarking here for the first time (we also lost a dozen or two passengers here). Interestingly, they were NOT screening for liquor at this port, either because they were too busy or because it was "near enough" the end. I walked right on with a liter of scotch. Alas, I later found that I paid way too much for it, but it was still cheaper than paying by-the-glass.

 

As a side note, despite the warning to the contrary on the tickets, they DID refund my $4 for the shuttle tickets I did not use. I had saved the original order form which said they WERE refundable just in case.

 

Anyway, back to the present, or at least closer to it. The next day after Lisbon was a sea day, and it passed much too quickly. I've decided that the sea days are my favorite, and the ports are simply a bonus. As much as I enjoyed visiting the European ports for the first time, I find that most port cities seem to look alike after awhile - you really have to work a bit harder and plan to get away from the port if you're going to see anything truly different. The exception this trip was Cádiz, which was lovely once we found the warren of tiny streets that made up the old town and got away from the more modern part of the city.

 

I don't remember much about what we did that last sea day. I spent some time in the Casino, and played a few rounds of cards with friends in the Aquarium bar. Interestingly, despite the huge amount of time spent on-ship, I spent less time in the Casino than on any previous cruise of any length. Once I play my requisite couple of hours of blackjack, I generally view subsequent visits to the casino as an entertainment of last resort, and on this trip I just didn't need it. I think part of it is the really great bunch of people I met on board. It's hard to say that people on one cruise are "better" than on another without having it come across the wrong way, so perhaps the best way to explain it is that the passengers just seemed more "like minded." People who sail transatlantic just have a different disposition than those on your typical 7 night caribbean loop. There were virtually no children (and those that were on board were well behaved and not under-foot), and a comparatively small proportion of Americans. A few of them lived up to the "ugly American" stereotype, but thankfully most did not. Being American myself, I was thrilled to be able to have interesting conversations with people from all over the world. I can't even begin to list the countries represented, but there did seem to be a particular concentration of Irish, Scots, and Brits - perhaps it's the strength of the pound against the dollar. In any case, I was genuinely charmed to meet them all. I made a number of friendships that I truly hope to maintain.

 

I was beginning to think that it wasn't going to happen, but this night was finally time for the Quest. On Voyager class ships, the Quest takes place in Studio B. I won't spoil it for the "virgins" by going into detail, but it was clear that a number of people on our team had done it several times before, because they came "prepared." I don't mean to boast, but we definitely were having more fun than anyone else in the room, and we were also clearly the loudest. Oh, and did I mention we won? ;-) It was a lot of work for a keychain (that I think I may have already lost), but I think it was worth it. I also have some excellent pictures that perhaps the parties involved might be interested in not having published. ;) (just kidding)

 

After our final sea day, our last port stop was in Marseilles. This was not a port that I was particularly looking forward to, mostly because as a large port city it promised to be a fairly typical modern city. We didn't plan any organized excursions, and just decided to wander around a bit, perhaps find a crepe. We ran into one of the ice performers, and decided to wander around together. After travelling what we thought was a fair bit into town, we sat down at a restaurant for a beer and a bite. As in most French restaurants, the food and drink were good, but getting the attention of the staff, particularly when it was time to get the check, was a bit of a challenge. It also turns out that we had accidentally described a giant circle - immediately on the other side of the building that housed our restaurant was the Vieux Port where we began our walk. oops. ;)

 

So we tried a different direction and THIS time found some nice shops, I ordered some Frites from a fellow who seemed a bit disappointed that I did not also want a kebab, then headed back to the port and settled in at a cafe nearby for a crepe. Well, my companions had crepes- I had a beer the size of my head and a delicious Pepsi (in a glass bottle and made with real sugar, the way the creator intended).

 

I think next time I will skip Marseilles and immediately head out to Aix en Provence or similar.

 

So now we come to yesterday, la dolorosa. Considering that this is the first time a Voyager-class ship has visited this port, disembarkation was very smooth. Unlike previous cruises on RCCL, we were NOT able to order room service breakfast this time (they ignored the hanger on our door). We put out our luggage the night before, as usual. We were told to have it out by 11, and they seemed to be collecting luggage by tag color because they would come down a hallway and take only a few of the bags. They didn't actually grab our bags until after 2 in the morning (I know this because we didn't come back from the Vault until then ;) ). Our alarm phone call went off at 6:20, four hours later (ack!), and by around 7am they had started calling tags, beginning with the "travel lite" people who were taking their own bags. Our tag, Green 2, was called around 7:45, so I had time to pop up to the windjammer for a quick bite, where another passenger kindly dumped her coffee on the floor, which spilled up onto my legs. sigh. We vacated our room about 7:40, and noted that a fair number of the cabins we passed were already cleaned and ready to accept passengers, so they wasted no time. We walked right off the ship with no real delay, and waited only about 10 minutes for our bags to come off on the belt. I felt bad for the porters, as there were a number of people who wasted no time ratcheting up the stress levels by complaining (loudly) that they had been waiting MORE THAN TEN MINUTES and their bags still weren't out! Perhaps they had early flights, but I avoid booking those for precisely that reason - I just spent two weeks de-stressing and I don't want it all back before I even get home!

 

Interestingly, there was no customs. We walked right out onto the street. Nobody looked at our passports or asked what was in our luggage. Being accustomed to long waits at customs in the US, this was a welcome (if perplexing) change.

 

Anyway, here I am in Barcelona sitting in the lounge typing when I should be out trying to find La Sagrada Familia. I'm going to go enjoy my last day and I'll come back later and sum up. Now would be the time to ask all those burning questions before I forget the answers!

[Aquarius2]

Thanks for taking so much time to write these Reports.

 

Can you tell me how long the Line for Taxis was in Barcelona und how long did it take you to get one?

 

Thanks in advance, enjoy your last Day!

 

Cheers,

Phil:)

[prcruisers]

We are going to be on the Voyager May 27th 7 day sailing with our 2 children. I cannot thank you enough for all of your posts and taking the time to share them. I feel I have a better understanding of the trip/cruiseship eventhough I am not going on a transatlantic.

 

Just one question, what is the best way to handle money exchange from dollars to euros? I am assuming you can change money on the cruise. I am also unsure of the currency used on the cruise. Any help on this would be greatly appreciated.

 

Enjoy Barcelona and thanks again.

[heatherb1958]

enjoyed the reading, thanks for taking the time out from your vacation to post. We are doing the westbound transatlantic in November and can't wait to return to Voyager. Do you know which venue they used, if any, as the overspill concierge lounge? I know that crossings are very popular with repeat guests and on the ships with a lounge a second venue has had to be opened.

cheers.:)