Review of SDI Copenhagen to Bergen 7/16-7/26 Part I

What an incredible voyage! It met all the SeaDream criteria for a fabulous time - the itinerary, the yacht, the passengers and the crew. All were exceptional and it made for a truly wonderful journay.

We began with four days in Copenhagen. Our flights were from Chicago to Newark, and Newark to Copenhagen. While SAS does have a non-stop flight to Copenhagen from Chicago, when you want to fly first class on miles you don't always get to choose. So we went to Newark and spent four hours in the SAS lounge. The good thing about this flight itinerary was that the Newark to Copenhagen leg left Newark at 11:30 p.m., so we were both able to sleep on the plane. As a result of that, our get lag lasted only the first day. We stayed at the Radisson Blu Royal, right across from Tivoli Gardens. The day we arrived we forced ourselves to stay awake as long as we could, but by 11 p.m. we gave in. At 11:30 we were jolted out of a sound sleep by loud noises which sounded like bombs. We thought we were in a war zone. But when we opened our curtains we saw that there was a fireworks display at Tivoli. Unbeknownst to us, Tivoli does this every Saturday night at 11:30. When we calmed ourselves down enough to watch, we enjoyed fireworks the quality of which far exceeded what we saw on the Fourth of July.

Copenhagen was rainy and chilly. But we expected this of Baltic weather so we were prepared. Only one day of the four was so rainy that we somewhat curtailed our activities and did museums rather than walking around outdoors. The final two days prior to boarding the ship were beautiful, and those who arrived in Copenhagen a bit later than we did enjoyed lovely weather. We took a walking tour from Copenhagen Free Walks, which was suggested to us by a couple we met at Tivoli while we were watching the light/lazer display which they have at 10:30 each night. And we dined at some wonderful restaurants - Nimb Terrace in Tivoli, Restaurant Cofoco, and Pony.

But all was a prelude, of course, to the main event - boarding the ship. Embarkation went sommthly as always, and we were settled into suite 302. The Captain was Remi Erickson, whose first voyage with SD was our ill-fated Panama Canal cruise where the crankshaft broke. Captain Remi handled that wonderfully, but we felt sorry for him for that to be his first experience on SD. He seems a lot more relaxed now. We do find that Captain Remi is the most social of the captains we have sailed with, generally attending the cocktail hour and mixing with the passengers. As we boarded the ship Captain Bjarne was leaving the ship so we got to chat with him for a while, which was great as we love Captain Bjarne.

Regarding our fellow Cruise Critics, I had connected with Demain Mann through her Cruise Critic post about six weeks prior to our voyage, and our emails to each other eventually turned into daily rituals. By the time we actually met in Copenhagen, we were already besties, and we spent a lot of time on the voyage with her and her DH. Early on in the voyage we also met CDreamer's brother and SIL. During the cruise I was emailing JSx2, whom we met on our Panama Canal b2b and who is currently on SD1 on the fjords cruise following ours. I think I drove her crazy as I was telling her it was cold and rainly in Copenhagen, and to bring rain boots. And then I was telling her that it was a heat wave and to bring clothes for the tropics. We did connect with JSx2 in Bergen, where we met for lunch on our debarkation and their embarkation day. I just love the people we meet on SD!

Looking at the yacht just coming out of drydock, a noticeable difference is that the lounge has been redecorated - new carpeting, furniture recovered, etc. But they left the same artwork on the walls, which I love. I have always interpreted those paintings as depictions of the bioluminescent bay in Puerto Rico, but I'm not sure whether that is correct or just my interpretation. One other thing, which I don't know whether is a result of improvements in drydock or just luck, but we had no issues on this cruise with toilets not working properly.

At a couple of the ports, particularly Oslo, there were quite a few people coming onboard as visitors, guests of SD. In Oslo there was a dinner in the dining room while the passengers dined topside. These additional people caused a lot of conversation among the passengers. DH and I were not personally affected, as we were off of the yacht when the guests were on, but for those few remaining on the yacht this was a big annoyance, as it changed the feel of the ship and took away the intimacy.

To be continued.

Thanks for taking the time to post. Hope you have a ball. Capt. Eriksen is high on our list as well. He did a great job in Costa Rica on one engine. We share your observation of "Guests" on board. We have had the owner and his guests on board a few times. It really does change the feeling on board. For the crew as well. Human nature when the "boss" is around is to not be quite as relaxed. Hope the rest goes well.

J.

Thanks Zimmy for your post. It sounds like you had a great time. I heard from CDreamer's brother yesterday and it sounded like they loved it too! Looking forward to future installments!

Thanks for reporting in Zimmy!

Looking forward to hearing more:D

Zimmy, I have really been looking forward to your review! My brother and SIL said they met you and that they had a great time on their b2b cruise...but details have been brief so far since they are still catching up after being away from home for nearly a month! :eek:

Anyway, am glad you met up with other CCers and will look fwd to hearing more about your SD1 cruise.

Our first port was Marstrand, Sweden, where we did not take the ship's excursion (a walking tour) but explored on our own. It's a little town with not much to see, but beautiful. The gardens were particulary wonderful. It was a Sunday and what stores there were were closed, but even if they had been open, there wasn't much. My shopping compulsion had to really be on hold this trip. DH loved it.

The next day was Oslo. We went on the ship's excursion (complimentary) to the Vigland Sculpture Garden, which is a don't miss site when in Oslo. Then it was on to the Hadeland Glass Works for looking, shopping and lunch. When we returned to the ship we immediately set out on another ship excursion, a walking tour of Oslo which culminated in the Ice Bar. The problem is that there wasn't enough time at any one place. We would have loved to explore the Sculpture Garden more, but our guide there was good and the story of the sculptor was fascinating. And I would have shopped at the Glass Works, but there wasn't enough time (at least for me) to consider one's purchases. And while the Ice Bar is a must see if you haven't been to the one in Stockholm, we have been. So in retrospect, I would have skipped all tours and gone to the Vigeland Sculpture Garden on our own and then gone on to the Peace Museum and wandered around Oslo on our own. One day is not enough for Oslo, really the only port on this voyage where there is a lot to see and do. The other ports were places to stop while we were cruising through the fjords and enjoying the breathtaking beauty of the scenery.

I do have to add that on the walking tour of Oslo we encountered a problem. The tour guide, unsolicited, shared his political beliefs with us. The things he said were quite offensive to us, and to others. Normally we are quiet people, but my DH did not let it go and bravely took him on. Back at the ship we shared our complaints with the Club Director, Candeese, and apparently several other tour participants did the same. Candeese contacted the tour company, and assured us that this particular tour guide would never work for SD again. While we did not ask for this because we did not want the seriousness of our complaints to be confused with financial complaints, we were not charged for the tour.

The next day was Lillesand, Norway, another charming town to stroll through. Everything is pristine, and the gardens are beautiful. I wondered that every house is well kept up and you never see any in a state of disrepair. But one of our guides told us that Norwegians get a tax credit for monies spent on their homes. So it is either give it to the government or improve your house - kind of a no brainer.

Next we arrived at Stavenger, which is the beginning of the fjords. Some SD passengers went on the ship excursion to climb Pulpit Rock, which is quite a daunting hike. I, however, chose to see it by helicopter, which was also offered by SD. It was my first helicopter ride, and we went up the fjords and circled Pulpit Rock - fabulous. We even buzzed the ship, where my DH, no fan of heights, lifted his BBC glass to us.

From Stavenger on, DH and I ate all dinners on deck. The regular dinner was usually scheduled in the dining room, but so many of us ate outside that by the end of the cruise Pierre gave up and just scheduled the dinners topside. The scenery is indescribably beautiful, and we refused to waste two hours of it being inside. It remained light until about 11:30 or 12 at night. The place to be after dinner on this voyage was not in the piano bar or casino - neither could compete with the scenery. The TOY bar was a very busy place at night.

And it was at this point, Stavenger, that we pretty much lost our wifi. It has been fair up to that point - not good but we could get on if we tried a few times. But once we were in the mountains it was a lost cause. Most days I did get my email on my phone through the 3G, but some days not even that. The internet rate on SD is $99 per week, to be prorated for a longer cruise. On our final bill they charged us only the $99 for the ten days, I guess in recognition of the fact that wifi was useless for so many days.

The next ports were Jondal and Rosendal in Hardangerfjord. Jondal was in the morning, where we just walked around the pretty town, and Rosendal in the afternoon. In Rosendal we went on the SD excursion to an old castle where we had a piano concert of works by Grieg. The castle and the concert were absolutely wonderful. I think that there are concerts there often, and which artist you get is kind of the luck of the draw. We were lucky, and the concert was a delight.

To be continued.

Marstrand is one of my favorite places in Sweden! So glad you were able to enjoy it.

Enjoying your report and looking forward to more:D

Next were Balestrand, Gudvangen and Flaam in Sognefjord. These are all charming, beautiful towns with not much going on. The attraction is the scenery, not the towns. In Flaam we did take the SD excursion on the train going to the top of the mountain, and to a couple of other sights. Those who did not sign up for the SD excursion but planned to take the train independently found that it was so booked that the times they could get were not the most desirable. Flaam is a larger port and there were several relatively large (but not mega) ships that day.

The next day was Fjaerland where we went to the Glacier Museum and then on to a couple of glaciers. Here I have to mention the weather. When you go to Norway, you expect cool and possibly rainy. I brought clothing for cool and rainy, as did most of the passengers on SD. The weather was amazing. The Norwegians onboard, and the Norwegian captain told us that they had not had weather this warm in 150 years. It was in the eighties and nineties. Who would ever imagine walking to a glacier in shorts!

The last port was Oygarden. We decided not to get off the ship because we saw those who did come back on the next tender. So while this cruise had no sea days, we created our own.

The crew were their usual fantastic selves. I just don't know how they do it, but I wish they'd bottle it and sell it, whatever their secret is. And the food was wonderful as always. There were a few additions to the usual fare because of the location, but not too much. Reindeer burgers and Swedish meatballs were some that I remember.

The ship was full, and almost half of the ship were Americans. Among the non-Americans there were a few large family groups, with children, from Brazil and from Norway. The children were not a problem. I was surprised to see a three month old baby. I did not think that any cruise line allowed children under the age of one. There was one incident. I was sitting at the pool when I saw the father of the three month old put him into the hot tub. I understand that this is actually dangerous to an infant, but that is not my business. However, I do not want to be in a hot tub where there has been a child in diapers. I complained, and a few minutes later I saw someone from SD come over and talk to the father and show him the posted rules prohibiting this behavior. The father seemed quite surprised, but complied. I felt this was handled well by SD.

We debarked in Bergen, where we were staying only one night. There was a Tall Ship festival in town, and there were hordes of people everywhere. And it was hot. Really, really hot. We had chosen our hotel, the Radisson Blu, because it was the only one which had air conditioning. Ha! That air conditioning was pretty non-existent. If we closed our window and shutters, and kept the lights off, we could keep the temperature in the room not too much above 80. So that part was pretty awful. I admit it - Americans are totally spoiled regarding air conditioning, and I'm one of them. We couldn't sleep it was so uncomfortable. But on our last night we did dine at a lovely restaurant, Spisekroken, with some of our SD friends. So that was a beautiful end to a beautiful trip.

The flights home (three of them; Bergen to Oslo to Newark to Chicago) were only eventful in that we barely made our plane each time. In Oslo we had a tight connection of only one hour, so this I expected, but Newark was 2 1/2 hours and it wasn't enough. If we did not have Global Entry we would not have made it.

We will be on SDII in the Grenadines in January. It will be the first time for us on the II, after many SDI voyages. We will certainly miss all of the familiar faces.

Thanks so much for a thorough report:cool:

Zimmy, you have brought back so many wonderful memories! I think that was our favorite SD cruise and I would do it again in a heartbeat!

You will love SD2 and their crew just as much and the Grenadines are wonderful -- very laid back and the water is different than the eastern Caribbean.

Thanks so much for the report!!

Vandrefalk

I don't see this itinerary for next summer. Is it one they only do every few years?

Zimmy, you have brought back so many wonderful memories! I think that was our favorite SD cruise and I would do it again in a heartbeat!

 

You will love SD2 and their crew just as much and the Grenadines are wonderful -- very laid back and the water is different than the eastern Caribbean.

 

Thanks so much for the report!!

Vandrefalk

Vandrefalk, can you please elabrate on "the water is different than the eastern Caribbean."? We are thinking of doing a SD cruise in the Grenedines.

I don't see this itinerary for next summer. Is it one they only do every few years?

This is only the second time they have done this itinerary. The first was three years ago. Both times have been in conjunction with the yacht coming out of drydock. So while they aren't doing it again next year, I would not be surprised to see it the next time the yacht goes into drydock.

Sounds like you had a wonderful time! Good on SD for listening to your complaints about the tour guide. I loved just walking around Oslo when we visited a few years ago, but your tour of the Glass Works sounds very interesting.

Now that we're back in Germany, it's time to start shopping for cruises again! :D Maybe it's time we tried SD II.

Vandrefalk, can you please elabrate on "the water is different than the eastern Caribbean."? We are thinking of doing a SD cruise in the Grenedines.

Ragnar, I was trying to find a picture to illustrate what I meant, but not having any luck. The water is much more intense looking -- clearer, deeper blue in many cases. The islands are also more lush -- very little cactus as you see on Virgin Gorda and others. It's a beautiful area and I highly recommend the southern Caribbean cruise!

Vandrefalk

P.S. Have e-documents for Aug 30 cruise -- will start a new thread soon!

DJ's DH and I have sailed in the southern Caribbean as well so I know what vandrefalk means in terms of the water and fauna. I suspect that the water is a "deeper" blue because they aren't as many reefs and shallows as there are in the Eastern Caribbean. Just a WAG on my end.

Can't wait for your thread vandrefalk:D

Thanks for the report!

Thanks to both replys! Toss up between south Caribbean and Tahiti for our next cruise. May start a thread on the subject, so as to not continue to hijack this one :D

Thanks to both replys! Toss up between south Caribbean and Tahiti for our next cruise. May start a thread on the subject, so as to not continue to hijack this one :D

We are very close to PG r/t PPT. Yall have sailed Paul Gauguin, right? Hey, you started this hijack stuff.:eek:

Zimmy--

Loved reading your review! Thanks so much for posting!

Hi Zimmy,

Absolutely perfect, well detailed description of the cruise. Being besties before we embarked was GREAT. We are truly SeaDream devotees! xoxo demainmann