Institute for Shipboard Education?????

[Young Senior]

Does anyone know anything about the so-called Enrichment Voyages run by the ISE? I know they are the outfit who do the Semester at Sea for students, but their EV are for adults. There is one that just appeared on the Online Vacation Center ad that looks very interesting - transiting the Panama Canal and stopping in Mexico and South America, but I worry about accommodations, facilities, amenities, etc. Clearly the style is very informal. Would appreciate any info. Thanks.

[gatorbaby1]

I was just on the m/v explorer on saturday taking a tour with dd who is going on the spring 09 voyage.The ship is the same size as a small to medium sized cruise ship, but is geared towards students.The ship still has the same square footage but things have been converted, i.e the lounges to classrooms and computer labs. The cabin(can only speak for those that students stay in) are smaller than the average cruise ship cabin.There is still a pool, and some longes, but they set up differntly.Hope this helps.

[norm27]

The enrichment was almost nonexistant. There was only 1 good lecturer and he had no notes. He was extemporanus and extremely knowledgeable. Two others who used the "auditorium" read their notes and put me to sleep. Most of the other interesting lectures were held in small areas that held 20-25 people therefore not many passengers could be accomodated.

 

The food was high school cafeteria in both taste and service. If you are a college student its fine. As an adult I found the entire cruise depressing,

[edtheboatguy]

The enrichment was almost nonexistant. There was only 1 good lecturer and he had no notes. He was extemporanus and extremely knowledgeable. Two others who used the "auditorium" read their notes and put me to sleep. Most of the other interesting lectures were held in small areas that held 20-25 people therefore not many passengers could be accomodated.

 

The food was high school cafeteria in both taste and service. If you are a college student its fine. As an adult I found the entire cruise depressing,

 

I also sailed on the May 2008 Enrichment Voyage to Central America, and I had a great time and never for one moment thought it was "depressing."

 

I thought all the Enrichment Sessions were educational and informative. Considering most of them only lasted about an hour, I thought a lot of material was covered and personally, I learned many new things. I agree, though, that the art workshops and some of the community college sessions that were presented by passengers should have been in larger rooms (or re-broadcast on the TVs in the cabin) so more people could be accommodated.

 

As far as food, I found something satisfactory to eat at every meal. The selection was a bit more limited than most cruises I've been on, but everything tasted great and there was plenty of it. And the crew and service was first rate. Everyone was eager to help out and always had a smile and a friendly greeting.

 

I also found the prices on board to be very reasonable. A very large bottle of water cost less than it does at my neighborhood 24-hour convenience store here in Florida, and I when I bought a round of (very stiff) drinks for some new friends I had made on the ship, the tab was quite a bit less than it would have been on any other ship (or at most bars shoreside, for that matter).

 

I enjoyed the Enrichment Voyage very much. I'd recommend the cruise to anybody who is looking for a different, unique experience. Different is better.

[Bellingham Belle]

We too were on the May cruise and enjoyed it so much we signed up while on board to do the three week cruise to the Amazon in Dec. and have found a lot of our fellow passengers are going also. I second all of your comments. We enjoyed not having cameras stuck in our faces all the time, the smoke free air, the $1 soft drinks and the friendliness of the crew. :)