16 Day Arabian Gems

Dear Fellow Cruisers:

My husband and I are contemplating a cruise from Dubai to Singapore. While there are a few consecutive sea days, the itinerary looks interesting. However, a visa is needed for India and I'm just not sure about some of the ports. I Googled images of these places and they do not look that exciting--Mumbai, Muscat, Doha. We are interested in seeing Dubai and Singapore but feel that embarking and disembarking in these ports will require us to spend extra days on each end. Can anyone give me advice regarding this particular cruise and its itinerary? Thanking you in advance for any help that you can provide.

We did a similar cruise, but in the other direction in 2013 on Seabourn Pride, from Singapore to Athens, 36 days. We loved Muscat, exploring the Souk, and Mumbai surprised us, being a lot cleaner than expected ( however we were there on Good Friday and although only 5% of the population are Christian, it was a public holiday)

We are pleased we made the voyage, (we mainly go for the ship) but we wouldn't repeat it.

Dear Fellow Cruisers:

My husband and I are contemplating a cruise from Dubai to Singapore. While there are a few consecutive sea days, the itinerary looks interesting. However, a visa is needed for India and I'm just not sure about some of the ports. I Googled images of these places and they do not look that exciting--Mumbai, Muscat, Doha. We are interested in seeing Dubai and Singapore but feel that embarking and disembarking in these ports will require us to spend extra days on each end. Can anyone give me advice regarding this particular cruise and its itinerary? Thanking you in advance for any help that you can provide.

Dubai is a great place to spend some time. We had three days of private touring in and around Dubai before one of our cruises last year. Our Doha excursion to the dune fields was indescribable, and one of the highlights of our trip. Wish we had more time in Muscat/Oman as well as Doha.

We did about half of this itinerary (in the reverse direction) a few years ago. Mumbai is one of the most vibrant and exciting cities in the world. We spent time visiting the slums (read "beyond the beautiful forever's" and you may want to as well) but if not, high tea at the Taj hotel is that the other extreme of the socioeconomic continue on. The remaining parts after that all offer interesting and exciting local markets, incredibly inexpensive and superb massages, and some wonderful beaches and local cuisine.

We did a Seabourn cruise last December that began in Dubai and ended in Singapore, and stopped at most of the same ports as the cruise you're considering (our cruise didn't stop at Doha -- we stopped at Abu Dhabi instead).

You're right that getting Indian visas is a major headache. We used a visa service (though expensive, we felt it was worth it).

FYI -- the headaches don't end when you have your Indian visa. On our cruise, Indian immigration officials boarded the ship at each Indian port to inspect each passenger's (and crew member's) passport and visa. This meant that there was a lot of time wasted standing in lines, and a lot of extra work for the Seabourn officers who have custody of passengers' passports during a voyage.

Regarding Muscat: it is absolutely beautiful and a wonderful contrast to Dubai. We hired a private guide who picked us up at the ship and made it possible for us to see all the major sights in/near town, and then drove us into the mountains overlooking the city. It was one of our favorite stops on the cruise.

Regarding Mumbai: we and another couple from the ship hired a private guide, and were very happy that we did. The city is as fascinating/overwhelming/noisy as it is reputed to be, but having a guide and driver to help navigate the chaos made for a really enjoyable and informative day.

Regarding Doha: though Doha wasn't on our 2016 cruise, we visited the city a few years ago. It's similar to Dubai (but smaller) -- very glitzy and built-up. But we enjoyed the Museum of Islamic Art (stunning building designed by I.M. Pei) and the souk.

Hope this helps!

We too have done the Athens to Singapore run. I loved every minute and would do it again tomorrow - so relaxing with sea days. My husband is not so keen to repeat it as there were a lot of "working" ports (we are still getting the cement dust out of our clothes :D). Doing the Dubai to Singapore run will avoid most of these ports.

Can't comment on Doha as we did Salalah in Oman.

Muscat was great. We did a private tour (as someone else mentioned). It was fabulous and the mosque and souk were amazing. Mumbai - again a private tour with a local taxi driver. We were to meet friends of friends and then found out there were 4 port gates so this didn't happen. We jumped in a taxi at a port gate and were very happy and had a very full day - I agree, it was cleaner than we thought it would be. Cochin was interesting with all the fishing nets - we had a private tour, but really 1/2 day covered most things. Mangalore seemed to be a fuel stop with little else there. Other than stretching the legs, I wouldn't get off the ship next time. We also did Penang, Malaysia prior to Singapore.

Obtaining a visa for India, while straightforward, it was time consuming and bureaucratic. Allow plenty of time as and be sure your application is for multiple entry. Ours came back approved for single entry, we then had to wait a few more weeks until our passports were updated and returned again (their fault). We also had the same experience as others with standing in line while immigration people checked visas at each port. There were many people who did not have a visa or did not have the correct visa and they were not allowed off the ship. I thought it would be easier for us being members of the Commonwealth, but not so. Quite a few people from other Commonwealth countries didn't bother with visas thinking there was reciprocity, but again, not so and there were 3 ports at which they were ship bound.

It's a very different trip. We both loved it (hubby had issue with a few ports), but it is the one trip we always talk about fondly. All those sea days are relaxing and you have time for everything and everyone. We don't go cruising to make new best friends, but the people we met from across the world on that cruise we have now known for over 5 years and try and cruise together when we can - it was that much fun.

Enjoy if you decide to go.