Mary loves to travel

If you took a screenshot shouldn’t it be in your photos?

Um, if you’ve read this thread, you’d know his wife has deathly allergies, so this is in fact “an issue that affects him”. Being diligent in determining what’s in the food is similar to defensive driving. I have a lot to lose, so will always make sure it’s safe to enter an intersection, or use a crosswalk, even if I have the right of way.

they *really* want people to sign up for a package!

the problem with issuing an apology is that legally it can amount to an admission of guilt, so businesses are instructed to *not* apologize. A side effect of our litigious society.

so that makes a big difference in the "break even" calculation!!

That’s our experience, too. I know “break even” is two glasses of wine a day, but we just don’t drink that much. Good to have options.

Yes, I’ve been able to add transfers as described above.

Only $300 more, total, for a mini suite? Take it!!!

Thank you for this advice - definitely something to consider. And thanks also for catching my spelling error; I’m usually pretty good about getting names right, but not this time 😊 So I’ve been pronouncing Fremantle the way I spelled it, FREE-mantle. What’s the proper way to say it? Best, Mary

We're looking at doing Rottnest Island while we are in Freemantle for the day. We'll be docked from 7am - 5pm. While we could possible catch the 7:30am ferry, the 9 am is more realistic, putting us on the island at 9:30 am. We'd need to be on the 2:30pm returning to Freemantle at 3 pm. (the next return is 4pm, arriving in Freemantle at 4:30 pm.... with an all-aboard at 4:30 that's cutting it a little to close for comfort!). So, my question: we'd have about 5 hours on the island, 9:30am - 2:30 pm. Is that enough to enjoy it, or would we be better off doing something in Freemantle or Perth? Thanks, Mary

I am sure this was very stressful for you, especially being so sick, worried, and running on next to no sleep. I think I'm missing something, though, when you refer to being "treated like criminals". Did you feel this way because you were escorted from your room? Glad to hear you are better now. Mary

Thank you so much for your detailed info & photo of your attire for your Antarctica cruise. We're just back from the Jan 20th Sapphire cruise; I followed your clothing example and happy to report we had just the right clothes & were nice and warm all the hours we were outside, either on the Promenade, or on the top decks (where views are excellent, but it can get *very* windy and cold. Best, Mary

Great photos, Ken! and you’re right - pretty amazing close up of the bumble bee 🐝

Exactly! Which is why plastic bottles are no longer allowed to be brought on board. The 12 containers of soft drinks (including water) must be cans Or cartons

I believe the issue is with people smuggling alcohol in plastic bottles and the time needed to inspect each one for tampering, not the plastic bottle itself.

I strongly second this!! We had a lovely midship port side balcony, and it was great, especially for dawn viewing of Glacier Alley. BUT we also dressed very warmly and spent several hours each day out and about - top decks, above the bridge, promenade deck. You miss too much confining yourself to your cabin.

I have to agree!

We were on the first part of this cruise, from Santiago to BA. I’m trying to remember how we knew when we were going through Glacier Alley. We tended to be outside often, so heard most of the commentary from the naturalists, and anytime we were in our stateroom we had the tv tuned to the Bridge Cam so we’d hear any announcements. But we knew Glacier Alley was coming up early, and were up before 5 am. Watching the sunrise, then the sail along Glacier Alley was an amazing experience! People in the next cabin also knew, as they were out on their balcony at 5 am, too. I think the issue might be that some announcements from the captain and the naturalists were made in the early evening, and of course couldn’t be heard by folks in the shows. Not sure how to solve this. Mary

We really lucked out with the weather-it’s been 90’s and forecast to be back that way starting tomorrow. But today should be lovely walking around weather in Montevideo 😊 just finishing our last lovely breakfast in the Reserve dining room, which we tried for the first time this cruise based on your recommendations on these boards. Thanks, Ken! Mary & Peter

We haven’t seen him either, and bungled our schedule so missed the platinum & elite cocktails with the captain. I will say Captain Ravera has done a masterful job with our wind & sea conditions, avoiding the worst of it both ways through the Drake. Mary

People on this trip have shared a lot of photos, and from what I’ve seen, yes, there are more Kings at Volunteer Point. But the 2+hour ride each way, some of it bone-jarring, was a deal breaker for us. We were really pleased with the number of Kings at Bluff Cove, as well as the many Gentoos and easy ride. It’s what you prefer.

We didn’t walk through when leaving, but our van driver sprayed disinfectant on the soles of our shoes as we entered the van.

at Bluff Cove yesterday morning, they had us walk across some type of a “bath” that disinfected the bottom of our shoes. It was mentioned that this was for bird flu. Similar to Ken, we had an excellent time at Bluff Cove. I saw on their website they’ve used the pandemic shutdown to finish the road, so it was a very smooth ride in. There were plenty of Gentoos and a flock (?) of about 30 Kings. We finally got our penguin “fix” 😊🐧 I should note that we were on the 8:30am tour. We watched the penguins for awhile, then headed to the cafe to warmup. Then went back over to the penguins, and had them almost to ourselves for about 15-20 minutes until the next group of buses arrived. Mary

I’ve seen other guidelines that say $5 per person for a half-day, and $10 per person for a full day. We’re usually in that ballpark.

I agree with all of this, and would also suggest rain pants - great at blocking the wind and keeping your legs warmer. Don’t forget a knit hat and scarf. We like to be up on the top deck sometimes, as viewing is great from the top of the bridge, or just to get a different perspective from the opposite side of the ship on Deck 15. We also enjoyed strolling around the Promenade- it can get cold and windy even there on a moving ship. Our midship port balcony was wonderful for viewing Glacier Alley; we could step back into the cabin as needed. We have a mini with a completely uncovered balcony - the benefit here is a totally unobstructed view from inside the cabin. We’ve also found Hot Hands to be helpful when up on deck. The big issue for us was taking a glove off and on to use the iPhone camera. Our hands can’t re-warm enough after a few “off and ons” of the gloves. We ended up putting the Hot Hands packets in our pockets, would just quickly rewarm our hands. Works great 😊 Mary