Growler
November 8th, 2008, 06:29 AM
Well, we’re on our first sea day of this Transatlantic voyage, on our way from Casablanca to Madeira, so I have time to put down a few thoughts regarding the trip so far, both good and bad, so eyes down, look in, and fasten your seatbelts.
Our passage to Lisbon was fairly uneventful, but with hindsight we should have made the trip a couple of days earlier, as what little we did manage to see of this picturesque city certainly seemed worthy of further investigation. We overnighted in the Tiara Park Atlantic (used to be Le Meridien), and couldn’t have wished for a nicer hotel. It also appeared to be the hotel of choice for HAL, as they were obviously running tours/embarkation shuttles from the hotel, presumably for travellers who’d purchased trips as part of their vacation package. Note that it was not possible for us to ‘piggy back’ onto these trips in order to get to the port, but the hotel concierge, for 40 euros, organised a wonderful driver called Nunu, , who provided an impromptu guided tour on the way to the terminal.
Check-in was without doubt the easiest we’ve ever had with HAL, and having arrived at the terminal at 11:10 am (we like to board early) we were onboard by 11:35. Port Everglades staff please take note!! As expected, the staterooms weren’t available until around 1:30, but being in a Deluxe Verandah Suite we were able to use the Neptune Lounge as a bolthole until our cabin was ready. We’d booked an ‘S’ guarantee, but didn’t get the Penthouse upgrade this time – in fact the folks who were in our cabin for the previous leg from Athens won that particular prize for the second half of their cruise. Lorie, one of our two smashing concierges, remembered us from a previous Mexican Riviera Cruise, and whilst it’s probably a necessary trait for the job, it’s always nice to be remembered by the friendly staff who’ve gone out of their way to make your travels memorable.
Two new additions to our ‘HAL friends’ are Bobby and Bambang, our cabin stewards. From our first meeting, they’ve showed a willing attention to detail, every small request not only being serviced without fail, but they’ve also checked up afterwards to make sure that nothing we might have forgotten to ask for had been overlooked. They even changed their daily routine to cope with our unexpected change from late to early dining – an arrangement forced upon us by DW’s overwhelming late evening tiredness, a not unexpected by-product of her recent hospitalisation. It’s probably worth noting that all the staff, from the Hotel Manager to the Assistant Waiters have been exceptionally accommodating in this regard, and it has certainly made life easier for us so far. Top marks to all in this respect.
I’ll talk more about the food, cabin, dining arrangements, tours, entertainment and general observations in later postings, but now we’re off to the CC Meet and Greet…
Tim & Anne-Marie
Our passage to Lisbon was fairly uneventful, but with hindsight we should have made the trip a couple of days earlier, as what little we did manage to see of this picturesque city certainly seemed worthy of further investigation. We overnighted in the Tiara Park Atlantic (used to be Le Meridien), and couldn’t have wished for a nicer hotel. It also appeared to be the hotel of choice for HAL, as they were obviously running tours/embarkation shuttles from the hotel, presumably for travellers who’d purchased trips as part of their vacation package. Note that it was not possible for us to ‘piggy back’ onto these trips in order to get to the port, but the hotel concierge, for 40 euros, organised a wonderful driver called Nunu, , who provided an impromptu guided tour on the way to the terminal.
Check-in was without doubt the easiest we’ve ever had with HAL, and having arrived at the terminal at 11:10 am (we like to board early) we were onboard by 11:35. Port Everglades staff please take note!! As expected, the staterooms weren’t available until around 1:30, but being in a Deluxe Verandah Suite we were able to use the Neptune Lounge as a bolthole until our cabin was ready. We’d booked an ‘S’ guarantee, but didn’t get the Penthouse upgrade this time – in fact the folks who were in our cabin for the previous leg from Athens won that particular prize for the second half of their cruise. Lorie, one of our two smashing concierges, remembered us from a previous Mexican Riviera Cruise, and whilst it’s probably a necessary trait for the job, it’s always nice to be remembered by the friendly staff who’ve gone out of their way to make your travels memorable.
Two new additions to our ‘HAL friends’ are Bobby and Bambang, our cabin stewards. From our first meeting, they’ve showed a willing attention to detail, every small request not only being serviced without fail, but they’ve also checked up afterwards to make sure that nothing we might have forgotten to ask for had been overlooked. They even changed their daily routine to cope with our unexpected change from late to early dining – an arrangement forced upon us by DW’s overwhelming late evening tiredness, a not unexpected by-product of her recent hospitalisation. It’s probably worth noting that all the staff, from the Hotel Manager to the Assistant Waiters have been exceptionally accommodating in this regard, and it has certainly made life easier for us so far. Top marks to all in this respect.
I’ll talk more about the food, cabin, dining arrangements, tours, entertainment and general observations in later postings, but now we’re off to the CC Meet and Greet…
Tim & Anne-Marie