kjbacon

We encountered quite a storm between Iceland and Greenland over the summer. It was intense and the ship sustained some broken glass but the worst of it was only about 6 hours. Two full days of that intensity sounds intimidating.

I’ve been reading about the tragic accident that Viking Polaris just had in Drake Passage. My thoughts and prayers are with them. We are on the Splendor cruise next year that includes Drake Passage. I knew it was known to be rough but had no idea! Would those of you that have sailed this please share your experiences? Thank you.

Thanks for taking us along and getting each of us more excited for upcoming cruises! Chocolate tea pictures are wonderful. Safe travels!!

Thanks so much but not necessary. We’ve always had good wine experiences on board! We have learned alot from Georgiana on the explorer and look forward to learning (and tasting) more 🍷

The wine lunch pictures are fantastic! Who is the sommelier on Splendor? We board in about 2 months and are so looking forward to it.

Thank you for describing the jeep tour. We are taking a similar sounding shorex on the February 8 Splendor and I’m only 5’2”! Now I know to go to DS before the tour to check out the details. Happy Thanksgiving!

I’m not angry. I’m appalled by the mob mentality on here to all but lynch a disabled little old lady because she and her dog don’t fit their cookie cutter definition of what they will tolerate from the handicapped. Ok, so the dog had an accident and no one wants that but that does not “prove” the prejudiced point so prevalent here. And I’d bet an easy $100 that most every accuser on this board has had an accident along the way. It’s hard to believe that there is serious discussion on here about confronting a disabled old lady to demand her health report or even better, to expect SB to violate her rights as a human being to disclose her personal information to you all. My 38 night experience with SB suggests that her cabin status didn’t buy her an exception to their service animal policy. We were in the winter garden suite and couldn’t so much as make a 15 minute adjustment to a Collonade reservation on fried chicken night. To the other point … no, we did not like SB. Maybe you guys shouldn’t take that so personally! There’s a couple other lines that we strongly prefer for several reasons but so what? Additionally, our particular sailing had pronounced problems that basically no one is denying. We have 10 days of fcc that we will be using next year so I will continue to monitor these boards .

No, she wouldn’t make mention of the given because SB does not allow pet dogs. SB only allows service dogs so why state the obvious? Someone earlier went off on a rant about hair, parasites and soiled backsides. While that could apply to a dog, that does apply to humans. Don’t forget poison ivy, pink eye, and shingles. Rabies. Herpes. If you want to worry about something, you absolutely should be worried about the many unsanitary practices I observed from the improperly trained kitchen and waitstaff. If you are that unnerved by hair, you best not watch the SB servers or cooks. Or Covid. As in the Covid my husband and I caught from another passenger on SB on our first day because of the completely asinine SB policy. An unmasked, selfish, entitled, snob went on our excursion, sitting next to me on the bus, despite her very active Covid symptoms. Note that her husband who was Covid positive stayed in their cabin that day while she was out and about infecting us. All ok by SB. We missed 10 days of our cruise and a couple ports that we are unlikely to have another opportunity to visit. It should come as no surprise that we rank SB as our least favorite cruise ever and this thread only reinforces some of the reasons for that. The expedition staff, the SB singers, and the guest speaker (Sir Alan) were the only bright spots on this otherwise subpar product. Given our experience with fellow passengers in SB Square, I guess anything different shakes everyone up. If we talked above a library whisper or laughed, the other passengers would set their book down to glare at us. As I said earlier, SB has serious problems and this dog isn’t one of them.

Wow!!! Love great news to start my day. I am so happy for you.

GeorgiaPeach, I’m really enjoying your report! Your pictures and descriptions are terrific. We will be on the Splendor for the first time in February so thank you for adding to our excitement. Carolina Cruisin, my fingers are crossed for you and I so hope to hear that you made the ship. Sounds like an absolute hot mess. My very, very best to you.

You summed it up well. Some of these posters are out of the range of normal with their hang ups but the nasty and selfish attitudes are shocking. Not one of them has yet to offer anything of substance to suggest that this is not a service dog, other than they don’t want it to be. Or maybe that only blindness is a good enough disability for them? SB does not allow pet dogs, only service dogs, and still they know best.

Even though most of you now admit that this is a service dog, the atmosphere here is no better. This conversation is disturbing from which disabilities you think are deserving of a service dog or which breed of dog you think should or shouldn’t qualify as a service dog. It’s hard to believe this group is so self righteous and/or hung up that there is actual discussion as to whether or not SB should have to allow the disabled on board. Hopefully if you or yours should end up in like shoes, you will be treated with the kindness and respect that you have not shown. And the excuse that the dog had an accident or sat on a chair is just that, an excuse.

SB has real problems and a quiet, little dog that shows up once in a blue moon isn’t one of them.

This is not only entertaining but quite the head shaker. Based on absolutely nothing other than the owner is from France and is in the owners suite, most everyone in this thread is positive that this is not a service dog. Neither of those excuses make a drop of sense. And I hadn’t know that SB passengers are supposed to dislike the French. Someone suggested that they didn’t see the dog do anything for the owner. Seriously? Did you expect the dog to be wearing a stethoscope and carrying her chart? Sensing her blood sugar levels, for example, is not a fireworks level show. There were NO perks when we spent 38 nights in the winter garden suite. None. And many of you here on this thread schooled me that everyone is treated equally on SB and what was the matter with me that I thought an extra night in TK might be a nice touch. Which is it? You get nothing for a big suite or you are allowed to take the whole ship over with your pet pooch? I cannot imagine having my trip ruined by a 9 or 10 pound evidently completely silent little dog. It is quite unlikely that anyone’s allergies are so crippling that a small amount of allergens like that on a huge ship could affect them in any physical way. The subject line should read phobias, prejudices, and judgments.

All raw fish served anywhere has been previously frozen.

Good morning, wow what a thread. No disrespect intended but hoping to get everyone to think a little bit. Would you ever approach someone in a wheelchair and ask (ever so politely) what the nature of their handicap is? Is it to be brave enough to ask her or is it to be rude enough to ask her? Service dogs aren’t just for the blind but rather for an entire array of disabilities that aren’t obvious to the skeptical observer like multiple sclerosis, type one diabetes, and epilepsy.

That’s exactly what I’m doing 🤣

There’s the issue of whether or not the Restaurant is open during the day, yes, but there’s the more important issue to me of the inferior situation SB offered us for breakfast and lunch in a very long cruise. When it’s the only open venue during inclement weather, it’s more of a zoo - trough - high school caf - take your pick. Add to that the inexperienced, insufficient staff and I don’t care how much of a SB groupie you are, it was unacceptable. PS: I still think Mr Luxury is older than me.

We also have only a couple hour drive home afterward but if you’ve never been to South Beach, definitely do the day pass … some of the best people watching on the planet!

Nah, I betcha you’re much older than me 🤣

Remember that cigarette back a million years that was a silly little millimeter longer 101 🤣

So the same guy who wants formal wear at dinner wants to stand in the long toast line at breakfast, holding his own plate and watching the rest of his food get cold? Or is the lure of the debate a bit much ….

We did Iceland and Greenland last summer and you are in for a treat! Before you decide to book your own excursions, be mindful that the weather there is very unpredictable so check the last minute cancellation policies.

You seem to have the “if-then” backwards. Table service meals 3 times per day doesn’t make a 6* cruise experience. Rather it is a service provided by a 6* cruise experience.

The Peking duck and watermelon salad at Pacific Rim is one of my favorite dishes on the ship.