Rickster50

Thanks for all those great replies and I have taken on board what's been offered.

I guess my main question would be: Is there a particular month to go on such a cruise or is it just "pot luck"?

Thanks

Rick

Hi All,

We are thing of doing a South America & Antarctica cruise in 2021 on board either Holland America, Princess or Celebrity for up to 16 days.

I was wondering whether any of you folks here have done a similar cruise and if so, how was it? We are both in our 60's.

Thanks

Rick

Hi All,

We are thinking of doing the 16 day Antarctica & Cape Horn cruise on Jan 3, 2021 on board the Coral Princess.

I was wondering whether any of you folks here have done that cruise, and if so, how was it?

Cheers

Rick 

Hi All,

We are thinking of doing the Argentina & Antarctica 14 day cruise aboard the Celebrity Silhouette next Jan 3, 2021.

I was wondering whether any of your folks here have done that cruise and if so, how was it?

Thanks

Rick 

I'm now seriously thinking of cancelling the Nov 2020 cruise and opting for a 20 day cruise on Jan 10, 2021 which would include more of Antarctica. We are travelling all that way so may as well get our moneys worth!

Rick

Thanks for that valuable info Mic. I'll talk to the upper management and see what she wants to do.

Rick

This is the cruise we are thinking of doing this November. I know it doesn't include the "Real Antarctica" but it still looks ok.

Just wondering if it's worth paying more and going further south to have a look at the white wonderland?

Rick

Thanks for the replies. Actually lissie is right. This particular cruise does NOT go down to Antarctica. I really want to check out the ice at close quarters so I'll have to book another cruise.

Cheers

Rick

I'm wondering whether any of you folks have cruised South America & Antarctica. We're thinking of doing a 14 day cruise this November,2020.

Thanks.

Rick

Sounds like you love South America willow....that's a pretty good endorsement! We've done Alaska and New Zealand so looking forward to this one.

Rick

Well thanks for all those replies. By the way, we have never been to South America but now we will be. I booked the cruise this morning so the countdown begins! Looking forward to someplace different.

It seems the Westerdam is pretty much similar to the Oosterdam which we cruised on a few years back to Alaska. We thoroughly enjoyed that ship.

Rick

We are considering doing this cruise in November 2020. I'm just wondering whether any of you folks here have done this cruise, and if so, how was it?

Cheers

Rick

Thanks for all your replies. That's actually the first time I've been sick on any cruise we have ever taken. The irritating thing was the fact that I was basically 50% deaf in both ears which really put me off and was quarantined for 24 hours which meant that I couldn't do a tour of Puerto Rico, but rules is rules as they say. 

I guess we here in Australia have a different setup as far as visits to the doctor. We have Medicare which means a doctor's visit does not cost at all. We have bulk-billing which means the doctor accepts the Medicare benefit as full payment for services rendered. Your Medicare card is swiped and you simply sign a form.

Anyway all that aside, we both enjoyed our cruise with HAL and will probably cruise with them again.

Rick

We were recently on the American Queen (New Orleans) to Memphis and were on D deck Cabin 425. 

It was ideal in every respect...plenty of room and view from the outside verandah. I would thoroughly recommend it.

Rick

My wife and I did a 7 day Caribbean Cruise on the Veendam - December 4 - 11, 2019.

Unfortunately I managed to become sick with the 'flu and decided to visit the resident doctor on board. 

After doing  various tests I was given medication which to be honest didn't help me in any way. I might add the consultation cost in excess of $350 which to my mind was kind of over the top. 

My point is ALWAYS pay for travel insurance when travelling overseas to cover these costs.

Rick

We have just finished a 7 day cruise on the American Queen from New Orleans to Memphis. I have to say the experience was fantastic. The crew were great, the ports visited were very interesting and basically that whole trip was very memorable.....highly recommended.

Rick

Thanks for the heads up Rivertripper & diplomats regarding the weather. I figured it would get cooler the further north you travel.

Mulate's sounds like the kind of place to check out while we are in New Orleans. I guess we should book a couple of days in advance.

Cheers

Rick

Love your sense of humour Toulumne, Colbe & Trixiee...what a ridiculous question to start with?

Rick

Thanks for that info Jen. We'll take the weather as it comes. We have 4 days in "The Big Easy" before the steamboat cruise so looking forward to checking out some Jazz & Blues Clubs and whatever else is around.

Rick

That's good to hear Lisakoivu. We are booked on the Veendam for a 7 day'er to the Caribbean in December. I'm not surprised because we have always had a good time on HAL ships.

Rick

3 hours ago, Porky55 said:

Rickster50,

Does the option to buy these cards affect your choice of cruise line ie. HAL over Princess (and lots of others) for  example?

As having cruised with various lines, I think HAL might be the only one that offers this option (though I’m probably wrong 😊). 

Just curious 🤔

 

NB: RCI offers a 10 Drink Punch Card on “some” cruises (US based probably) for $96US - can be used by anyone who has the card. 🧐 Interesting development ......... love Google 💕

https://www.cruzely.com/everything-to-know-about-royal-caribbeans-10-drink-cards/

Porky55,

We sailed on Viking back in January and they simply added whatever drinks you consumed to your Cabin #. I believe HAL is the only cruise line to have this option beverage card. No real possible "nasty surprises" at the end of the cruise.😮...my 2cents.

Rick

8 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

Is this with the cruise line. Which one? I haven't heard of this, only a drinks package that has a cost per day.

As stated earlier, this is on Holland America Line and suits us fine. I bought a $250.00 card last year on a 21 day back to back cruise through Norway and the Baltic ports. It basically lasted the whole cruise and I had a few bucks left at the end. 

I'll be doing it again in December on our Caribbean cruise.

Rick

Batten down the hatches all you Floridians....

We usually buy a drinks card before we go cruising. It has our name on it and it works just like a credit card. If you want to check your balance, you just ask any bartender. It's pretty convenient.

Rick

Well we enjoyed the Maasdam a few years back so I guess we should also enjoy sailing on the Veendam later this year....not too big, not too small.

Rick