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Posts posted by Brissle
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We depart on April 30th 2025 - I wonder whether we'll get Geirangerfjord.... would be good if we do.
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Thanks LA Cruiser
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Sorry - a supplementary question - it's been a few years since we sailed with Princess and I've forgotten some of the details (must be middle age creeping up on me).
With the WiFi are we entitled to use one device each or one per cabin?
Thanks
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Thanks everyone for that info.
It looks like we're going to have a special time anyway - it's our 60th anniversary.
We never eat before 7.30pm at home or on holiday (often later), so getting bookings in the other restaurants shouldn't be a problem by the sound of it.
As our package includes some OBC it won't matter if we are charged occasionally for extras.
Our special cabin has good space, so we thought that having the odd meal in there (on even on the balcony) would be fun.
We're grateful for your advice.
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Hi everyone,
We have splashed out for a major wedding anniversary and booked a Reserve Collection (used to be Club Class) Mini-Suite on Sky Princess in November.
We have paid Princess Plus fare, so drinks, tips and WiFi are included. I've looked at the list of amenities provided - they look pretty good - but I have a few questions, please.
Does that category of cabin give us free access to any of the speciality restaurants? If not, what is the supplementary charge to use those restaurants.
Do we need to make speciality restaurant reservations in advance of sailing?
Also, is there a charge for room service if we want to have a meal (breakfast or lunch) in the cabin?
Do we get access to the Sanctuary area? I believe that is an adults only area with it's own pool. Or do we pay extra for that.?
We would be grateful for any tips - we want to make the most of this special cruise.
Thanks
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We travel quite a lot since we retired, so have annual travel insurance. It gives peace of mind, especially for medical costs in the event of illness, injury or emergency.
We also like to have our baggage covered plus compensation if there are flight delays.
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Thanks grayjay
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two questions, please.
We ghave booked the Junior Suite for a round trip. The Havilla description says that there is a fridge in our cabin - how big is that? Will it take a bottle of wine if we buy one when we go ashore?
Second: It says there's a gym on board - what equipment does it have?
Thanks
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Thanks grayjay, we'll have to keep our fingers crossed.
We did book before March 31st, so may be lucky.
I'll check again closer to the time.
The trip sounds amazing and we are so glad we booked.
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Hi everyone,
We have booked the round trip on Havilla Pollux a year ahead - departing Bergen on 30th April 2025.
We have splashed out (wedding anniversary) and booked a Junior Suite which comes with the Gold package. I understand that the Gold package is being / has recently been changed and we would be interested if any recent travellers can tell us what's included.
Thanks
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I stand corrected. You make some very good points.
We, too, have been on many cruises with different cruise lines.
We like to think we are independent in our planning, which is one reason why I have found Roll Calls a useful source of information, e.g. about independent tours rather than ship tours. On several occasions we have linked up with other passengers to rent a minibus to visit an attraction at our own pace. I have used recommendations from other folk (on Cruise Critic and Trip Advisor) to find private guides, car hire companies etc. or to discover better ways of visiting places.
And I like to hope that, in return, we have been able to help others - maybe new cruisers - with their questions.
However - and possibly most importantly - I take your point about personal security. When signing up for websites I always try to give a false location, phone number etc. But personal/home security is more and more important. And hackers are more and more skilful. Which is why we have recently invested in a remotely monitored comprehensive video recording home security and alarm system.
I had no intention of making deprecating remarks about the Saga generation - we are well into that category ourselves!
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Well, that makes 4 of us on this cruise.
The Roll Call appears to have been discontinued.
We find Roll Calls for Princess and Oceania are very active, but maybe Saga people don't use the internet....
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Hi everyone,
The Roll Call for 7th June SOD cruise isn't very active, so I thought I'd ask a question here.
We visit Leixoes (for Porto) on 19th June. I read elsewhere that a shuttle bus is likely to be provided into Porto.
We are thinking of finding a TukTuk tour (booked privately). We had a great experience with one in Lisbon last year.
Has anyone here tried this? Can they recommend a company?
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Thank you for this information. A great help.
We have virtually decided to book Junior Suite 7304 on MV Pollux in late April 2025.
Port side would interest us - we like watching what's going on in port (maybe not in the middle of the night.....).
Our TA has just told us that the Gold package is being changed from April 1st. No details yet but we'll gamble on similar benefits. It will include access to the Hildring and tea/coffee maker in the cabin.
Thanks for your help.
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Thank you all for such brilliant info about cruising with Havila.
My wife and I are just talking to our travel agent about a round trip cruise in April or May 2025 (to celebrate our 60th anniversary) and all these reports and comments have been most useful.
Can anyone please tell us what are the "perks" that come with a booking for a Junior suite. We're thinking of splashing out..... I can't find anything on the Havila website but have seen comments in other postings. I think we get the non-alcoholic package included? And access to the speciality restaurant?
We would be grateful for any advice.
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5 hours ago, twotravellersLondon said:
Fiction writers with multimillion sales looks like a very interesting suggestion but... we do wonder just how many copies would be needed to allow almost 1,000 passengers to choose something that they would like.
We seldom have any time to read fiction on a SAGA cruise. We make the very most of every port day... we're up with the fulmars before dawn for often sensational sail-ins, fully occupied with stunning excursions and exciting independent exploring during the day, we're on deck for every sail-away and every sunset... but of course we take time out for drinks, dinner, shows and late night entertainment as well. It's pretty full on but we find that it makes an immensely enjoyable experience that will stay with us for ever.
Even on sea days, were up before dawn and enjoying the sea air, the atmospherics, the bird and marine life and chatting about our experiences on that cruise with like-minded people... who cruise for the joys of the experience.
We often revisit places that we've been to many times before... each time they're different, each time we see a different side of them and each time the experience is more fulfilling than the last. This was our 20th visit to the Arctic in the last 20 years.
This is a glimpse of just one day we had in Honningsvåg on the Spirit of Adventure last month.
Dawn breaks...
Blizzard during the sail in...
Included trip up to the North Cape...
A stunning day at the North Cape...
Time to take that "Explorer" holiday snap...
Stunning landscapes...
Back to the Adventure for an excellent lunch...
Off into town exploring...
And birdwatching...
And ice watching...
Time before dinner to watch the spillway in the Arctic gloaming...
As the Sun sank... the pink created my micro ice crystals in the atmosphere...
After drinks... dinner...
Then some lively entertainment...
Then relaxing with a little late-night country music...
And the well after midnight... a hint of the Northern Lights setting off Orion in the night sky from our balcony.
So while we seldom have any time to read fiction on a SAGA cruise, we fondly remember back to the Sapphire, the Pearl II and the Spirit of Discovers when she was first launched where the "Libraries" had a real wow factor... fiction wouldn't be out choice but we might have been interested in having a peek or two at some books that we found relevant to the area and the theme of the cruise...
1, Ice Ship The Epic Voyages of the Polar Adventurer Fram by Charles W. Johnson
2, Farthest North Being the Record of a Voyage of Exploration of the Ship 'Fram' 1893-1896 by Fridtjof Nansen
3, Erebus The Story of a Ship by Michael Palin
4, The Ship Beneath the Ice: The Discovery of Shackleton's Endurance by Mensun Bound
5, Norway: Land of Fjords and the Northern Lights by Claudia Martin
6, Life beneath the Northern Lights by Lizzy Pattison
7, The Northern Lights: Celestial Performances of the Aurora Borealis by Daryl Pederson
8, Secrets of the Whales by Brian Skerry
9, Handbook of Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises by Mark Carwardine
10, Ragnar Lothbrok and a History of the Vikings by Noah Brown
11, The Sagas of the Icelanders (World of the Sagas) by Jane Smiley,
12, The Sami Peoples of the North: A Social and Cultural History by Neil Kent
13, Four Corners: Building An Ice Hotel by Gib Goodfellow
14, The Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World by Times Atlases.
In the meantime what is there is a very lovely and well used space... the fact that these pics show it empty is that they were taken early one morning well before breakfast. And we did that our own reference books on birds and whales.
Wonderful photos and wonderful memories.
You illustrate why cruising is such an attractive type of holiday.
And you demonstrate how varied are the experiences that people seek when on holiday.
For us, a cruise is a break from a busy life. We seek cruises with fewest ports - in fact I would describe a port as an annoying interruption to a good cruise. In 25 years we have visited many, many ports all around the world and now we enjoy the sea days best. Lectures, concerts, shows, reading, relaxing, swimming, the gym - oh I nearly forgot the outstanding food - all things we don't seem to find time for at home.
Everyone should make the most of the wonderful experience we are offered - in their own way.
That's why the library is a factor in our lives.
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On 4/14/2023 at 8:46 AM, twotravellersLondon said:
So how about suggesting a list of a dozen books or so that might be popular?
This is open to a huge range of suggestions because tastes vary so much.
But here is a list of fiction authors whose books are often in big demand:
Susan Lewis; Erica James; Jo Jo Hayes; Lucy Diamond; Barbara Erskine; Sophie Hannah; Amanda Prowse; Jane Fallon; Lucinda Riley.
There are plenty more.
None of these are represented in the current very small stock on Spirit of Discovery.
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On board Spirit of Discovery now.
I cannot agree that the library is FULLY stocked - at least half the available shelves are empty and there are cardboard imitation books on other shelves.
There is a distinct lack of fiction - but the value of that comment does of course depend on your taste in books. My wife is an avid reader of historical novels and she says there's virtually nothing of interest to her.
Luckily we brought a dozen or so books with us, which will be donated to the shelf of passenger books.
At least our luggage will be lighter going home ....apart from the litre of pink gin just bought in Gibraltar.!
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I phoned Saga direct yesterday as we are joining Spirit of Discovery on Sunday.
The lady assured me, without hesitation, that the library is now fully stocked as before and that the books are not just ones left behind by previous customers.
Who do we believe?
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Anyone of Discovery at the moment ? What news about books in the library?
My wife is an avid reader - a book a day at least, so it would be good to know how many she needs to bring! And yes she has a Kindle but says that there's nothing like a "proper" book.....
We are joining on April 9th - see you there!
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That's good info - many thanks
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It's easy for me, but my wife is trying to decide on packing for the Spirit of Discovery Venice and Adriatic on 9th April.
Approximately how many formal nights should we plan for?
The Saga website isn't very clear.
Thanks
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OK, thanks for that info.
It looks like our plans will have to be flexible......
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Hello everyone,
We will be on Spirit of Discovery calling in to Venice on 21st April.
We want to arrange to meet some friends in Venice and I'm trying to discover exactly where the ship will dock.
Google maps doesn't show a cruise terminal in Marghera.
I tried calling Saga but all they can suggest is that I enquire when we get on board. The lady thought there would be a shuttle but didn't know where it took us.
I'd prefer to know sooner if possible so we can plan how we get from the ship into Venice.
Any advice gratefully received.
Thanks
What's Included?
in Q&A with John Waggoner, Founder & CEO Victory Cruise Lines
Posted
That sound all good - especially for European travellers like us who like AI deals so we know where we stand.
One thing you don't mention is staff gratuities - a big drawback for those visiting from outside Canada and the USA. All ocean and river cruises that we have been on all include those in an AI package.
If you really mean All Inclusive, does that include gratuities as well?