MV Discovery - on board activities

On board activities during the sea days on the MV Discovery:

Usually 4 excellent lectures, including and upcoming port lecture, by distinguished enrichment speakers giving rich historical, cultural, scientific and context content talks about the areas we are visiting. Since we were travelling primarily the Indian Ocean, we had a lot of background on the British Empire trade routes.

As most passengers are British and Commonwealth nation residents, the talks assumed you knew your British history and institutions so some of it was a very pleasing stretch of our American memory banks. I found them all intellectually challenging and fascinating.

The natural history talks unique to the areas travelling were superb and we all left with an intimate understanding of the geologic history as well as its natural flora and fauna. Including the local industries such as fishing and their impacts on the environment.

We had additional talks on health and technology with supportive help for individual technology problems (cameras, computers etc - even a successful request to reprogram a computer program in Polish).

There was a volunteer choir that put on a program and had rehearsals. A very active bridge player component with experts and a separate room for playing and instruction.

Craft classes changed with each segment, but a fewincluded beading and water color (for beginners). There were Q&A sessions with segments of the staff including the kitchen.

If anything, there was too much to do which left little time to just sit outside and watch the world go by, but a lot of people did that too. You could always get the lectures rebroadcast on the cabin closed-circuit TV so missing them live was not a detriment. I almost wished I had done more of that so I could have spent more time just being lazy when the sun was out. There were gaps in the schedules before dinner or before the shows where one could catch up on the televised lectures.

The small but highly talented entertainment group was very good. They geared their shows to the age group of the passengers and did so very competently. All shows were very enjoyable. Our talented cruise director Don put on his own solo cabaret show and it again was an excellent offering. Since we were on for three segments we did not go to all the shows at first as there were repeats with each segment, but ultimately saw most of them over our 6 weeks.

Staying up late after late dinner seating sometimes was just too much for us. Again, sometimes it would have been better to have made a nice sandwich at tea time to save for an "early dinner" and then see the earlier show on sea days. Port days usually left us ready for early bed.

And the beginning and end of each segment was a three day stay in port which was wonderful to have the extra time to explore an area more in depth. We had these in Hong Kong, Singapore, Port Luis, Mauritius and Capetown on our 6 week tour.

At first I thought 3 days in Port Luis, Mauritius would be a waste of time, but we ended up finding wonderful things to see and get to know and went back twice to a perfect little courtyard French restaurant "Le Vieux Consiel" that was a little obscure to find and would never have been enjoyed if we just had a day tour.

We finally got our credit card bill - lunch for two, appetizer, main course, dessert and drinks were total $80 for those two days. So it paid to do some in depth homework on those three day layoever ports between segments.

We did dine out for lunch and often for dinner if there was a late departure and enjoyed the change of pace very much. Credit card bill for an excellent local choice in Borneo close to the port was total $ US 6 for two. Sampling local cuisines (with all due precautions) is one of my great travel joys and we were glad the schedules often offered this chance.

One problem we did notice as reported and did register as a complaint was the "hogging" of deck chairs. Discovery needs to enforce their own policy more and just clear out all deck chairs that remain empty for over one half hour. And make a few more announcements about this .... on a daily basis particularly at the beginning of each new segment.

This is less of a problem when shade is not such a premium as it was on this voyage crossing the equator so much. There are plenty of deck chairs, but most are fully sun exposed so when it is more fun to be in the sun in more temperate climates this is probably less of a problem.

Though we never used it as we brought along our own reading material or books on ipods, the ship has a very good library and a loyal daily following who gather there. It was a very pleasant spot and I know I would have enjoyed using it but most of my free time was spent in the lectures and I would have hated to miss any of them.

There is a nicely equipped gym with stunning rear ship window views as you jog, row, bike or use elipticals. Weight machines, roomy saunas for men and women, two hot tubs which were not all that hot but pleasant for warm splashing around and enjoying also the aft deck views. There was a full fitness class program with its own instructor and a variety of group or individual activities and consultations.

I got pedicure in the salon (which sells my favorite Biolage brand of hair care products) which while pricey, was very competently delivered. There were specials from time to time particularly on port days when they were not so busy. Best to bring your own favorite nail polish color, as the choices were limited. The full range of spa services were available - massage, facials and hair. As well as product oriented informatlonal "talks" on various skin care and beauty topics. (Never attended so don't know about these - just that they were available).

Obviously, no youth programs on this ship and if anyone was under 45 it would be a surprise though I think there were a (very) few younger people traveling with an older adult relative for a few weeks, but none on the longer cruise programs.

Movies in the theater were surprisingly current - we even had a non-3D version of Avatar and there was a very topical selection of older and classic movies on the closed circuit TV that ran continuously - multiple channel choices but none of them live.

Daily news abstracts was delivered every day for separate British, Australian and American editions. Just a few headline stories and a lot of sports and some financial news. Just as much as we wanted while we were away from it all. They additionally ran these same stories on a close circuit TV channel.

We did not use the internet center but it was in a separate room with several computers and there were wireless hot spots around the ship as well for laptops. I understand the connection was slow which is the complaint I have always heard about ship board internet use. We did not find a lot of itnernet cafes in port but did finally check in during our 3 day stop over in Mauritius, about more than half way through our trip at a good high speed cafe located at the port.

Hi

Thank you for all your fascinating information about your journey. We are off tomorrow, joining the Discovery in Mombasa on Wednesday morning and I feel as if I now know what to expect. It sounds very good overall and your posts are increasing my sense of excitment at going. I will post my views once we are back

thanks again

Judb

Hi

 

Thank you for all your fascinating information about your journey. We are off tomorrow, joining the Discovery in Mombasa on Wednesday morning and I feel as if I now know what to expect. It sounds very good overall and your posts are increasing my sense of excitment at going. I will post my views once we are back

 

thanks again

 

Judb

You have a perfect itinerary from Mombasa --- as if Discovery doesn't always go to wonderful places. Watch out for the pirates (not really a joke here but they do not do messy cruise ships) and realize all the crew has to put in overtime standing watch during your passage through the pirate zone and give them all big hugs for me. I can picture your every activity and I realize how very much I miss it all.

Please report back because that leg of the trip through the Suez Canal and Middle East is one we would like to still take too Best wishes, smooth sailing and happy travels.

Yes, the port excurions seem pricey but all of them were very good. And a number of passengers on this ship do independent touring or make their own ground arrangements, so ask around to see what best works for you.

They do try to make good options for those who do not want to take the ship excursions, but your personal safety in this part of the world does need to be considered too.

Do not wear any jewelry, even a simple neck chain when in any port on your own. I did have my yanked from my neck in Capetown, two blocks from our very lovely post-cruise hotel near the Convention center at 3:30pm on a busy street. Ouch. Double ouch, I was told by the hotel support staff it was "safe" to walk into town from there.

Thanks Swiss Myst for your wonderful voyage reports. Pleased you enjoyed it so much. Have printed off your ideas so I can be more efficient in cabin use when I catch her again from Valparaiso in Feb 2011.

There was a change of chefs around Manila so that may have led to a change to what seemed to you bland flavoured entrees. With more older passengers the cooks limit included salt because of fluid retention.

I found it useful to have the regular option of steak, salmon and caesar salad on the left hand side of the dinner menu as long as I got a fortnightly creme brulee!!. I was surprised that the room service menu not in your cabin folder. I used it for cheese, crackers and fruit, soup and I thought BLT whereas I didn't know could get a dining room menu item delivered to the cabin. Always something to learn about MV Discovery and thank you for sharing your experiences.

Regards

Josie from Sydney

Thanks Swiss Myst for your wonderful voyage reports. Pleased you enjoyed it so much. Have printed off your ideas so I can be more efficient in cabin use when I catch her again from Valparaiso in Feb 2011.

There was a change of chefs around Manila so that may have led to a change to what seemed to you bland flavoured entrees. With more older passengers the cooks limit included salt because of fluid retention.

I found it useful to have the regular option of steak, salmon and caesar salad on the left hand side of the dinner menu as long as I got a fortnightly creme brulee!!. I was surprised that the room service menu not in your cabin folder. I used it for cheese, crackers and fruit, soup and I thought BLT whereas I didn't know could get a dining room menu item delivered to the cabin. Always something to learn about MV Discovery and thank you for sharing your experiences.

Regards

Josie from Sydney

We found no room service menu in the room and were given the instructions when we phoned that it had to be ordered off the formal dining room menu and at those same dining room times.

I should have investigated this more. I did discuss this with one of the Maitre 'D's who was surprised to learn there was no sickie menu but there was no follow-up on this. It would have made a big difference had we known (or follow-up a bit more on this) for that last terrible two weeks of high seas.

There did appear to be a menu change in Manila, and some of it for the better. It was more the fixed dining routine, rather than the food itself that finally got the better of us. I think we hit our wall at one month, and the onboard illnesses we both picked up and the relentless high seas ( rolling and pitching all the same time over and over and over and over again - never a break, always random and deep :() for those final two weeks made the dining options get to us too.

All of which is not to say we did not have a wonderful time and loved everything else we did and what we got to see and found the Discovery was a perfect match for us on all aspects of cruising ........ but, they had no control over the weather or the waves. ...... and now it looks like we did not follow-up enough on the room service so I am glad you took the opportunity to correct this.

This thread will provide more information about the Discovery's daily activities for the poster wondering about an upcoming 77 day cruise in 2011 to South America. Wow, and we thought 42 days was long though we did have some 70 day plus passengers on our trip as well.

Bump to keep MV Discovery posts clustered for new passengers.

Report on daily lectures from the Singapore to Mauriitius leg of the 2010 MV Discovery Grand Voyage Asia to Africa. We were travelling the Indian ocean and the onboard lectures for this leg dealt with the history and natural history of this fascinating part of the globe, as well as other topics of general interest.

Samples of daily ship lecture program for this leg:

(Singapore)

David Baskott: Port lecture on Columbo, Sri Lanka

BBC History Magazine Lectures:

Greg Neale: An introduction of the Indian Ocean and its history

Sir Michael Burton: The Maylayan Emergency; A subaltern's view

Prof. Richard Wilson: What did earlier travellers to the orient find and what did they have to cope with?

Dr. John McMichen, MD: The Healthy Traveller

Baskott: Port lecture on Maldives

Neale: Malaysia to Mauritius:2 - birth pangs of the post colonial world

Burton: Travels in Troubled Lands: Burma

Beaseley: Getting started with digital cameras

Wilson: Travellers east of Suez: islam, the Indian sub-continent

Burton: Travels in troubled lands: Tibet in the footsteps of Col. Francis Younghusband

Baskott: Port lecture on Seychelles

McMichan, MD: Matters medical and maritime

Dr Charles Anderson: Introduction to the Maldives

Burton: An Ambassador's Lot

Burton: The British Raj in India

Anderson: Building Paradise: the formation of the Maldives and Seychelles

Wilson: The lure of the east: from temple bells, typhoons and Raffles Hotel

Beaseley: Showcasing your digital photos

Anderson: Whales, dolphins of the Indian Ocean

Wilson: Was Kipling Right? Shall east and west never meet. Passages to India: How much can we understand

Burton: The Queen's Overseas Tours" Behind the scenes

McMichan: Herbal medicines

Neale: Oh mighty Leviathan, a cultural history of the Whale

Anderson: Monsoon migrations

Baskott: Port lecture on Mauritius

Anderson: Tuna fishing in the Indian Ocean

Beaseley: Putting a lifetime of photos online

McMichan: Arthritis: new joints for old

McMichan, MD: Affairs of the Heart

Wilson: An asian and indian pot-pourii

Guest Lecture Russell Gammon: Zimbabwe - the last 10 years

(Mauritius)

****All were superb. Available live in person or real time on cabin TV, and recorded for later viewing on cabin TV.

I am so pleased with all the details on the lecture program, it looks like there should be plenty to attend on the south american circumnavigation next year. Many thans otway:)

Pitching and rolling constantly. Yes it takes a bit of getting used to as I discovered in my 10 years at sea. And there is a name for it - corkscrewing. Very apt. Must have been quite rough though for the stabilisers not to have cut out the rolling - they cannot do much about pitching.

But you do get used to it and it does keep you quite fit keeping yourself upright. As good as any workout !!

Pitching and rolling constantly. Yes it takes a bit of getting used to as I discovered in my 10 years at sea. And there is a name for it - corkscrewing. Very apt. Must have been quite rough though for the stabilisers not to have cut out the rolling - they cannot do much about pitching.

But you do get used to it and it does keep you quite fit keeping yourself upright. As good as any workout !!

By the time we hit the extended rough waters at the end in the Mozambique Straights, I was already sadly pretty sick from lots of little things and taking way too many OTC symptom remedies at that point I was afraid to add one more thing -- like bonine to the mix and just rode it out. Our segments started out with a lot of upper respiratory ailments, then some contact lens eye infections, then some GI distress out of Madagascar, and then these "corkscrewing" seas for the last two weeks. First month were perfect seas, so for two-thirds of the time no complaints at all.

All I could think about during those last two weeks is how horrible life on the seas must have been for those early explorers who were months on end on seas with NO provisions for comfort. At least we were cared for and comfortable and a lot of it was also cumulative heat stress being so close to the equator for so long, as well as being on a ship for so long too and in this strange regulated environment that was very port intensive.

And with all that being said, I'd do it again in a heartbeat. It was a fabulous trip beyond all expectations, and I have nothing but fondest memories. It was an adventure, and a humbling one when faced with my own unknown frailties in this type of setting.

I think all of the above comes with the territory. Comfort measures need due consideration, because I doubt if there is any real prevention for a lot of this. At least no fleas or bed bugs and certainly no threat of scurvy! I remain astounded how well the staff and crew were able to function under similar circumstances. Bravo, Discovery. May you long sail.

More MV Discovery info

Hi swissmyst,

:)we are sail on this cruise we are australian,are you getting your own visas before leaving or using the ships option,have read in cc it can take a couple of hours to get them on the ship at each port,does your itinerary say we go to jeddah march31?

Hi swissmyst,

:)we are sail on this cruise we are australian,are you getting your own visas before leaving or using the ships option,have read in cc it can take a couple of hours to get them on the ship at each port,does your itinerary say we go to jeddah march31?

Wow, thanks for making me take a look. The Saudi stop was one of the reasons we chose this trip and just last night I was picturing what I would look like in a burka, but looking this morning at our itinerary printout I see March 31 is listed as an "at sea" day. Boo. I'll add this post to the Singapor-Safaga thread too.