shippmates

2 minutes ago, StLouisCruisers said:

We did this walk on our own.  Back then the ships handed out port maps with information on there that helped you to decide what you would be interested in. You could plan your route hitting the highlights quite easily provided distances weren’t too far apart. Now you have to plan ahead of time and print off a map or hope they hand some out on shore. It’s one of my gripes we no longer get the port guides and I intend to keep complaining about it in my surveys!

Thank you.  That sounds like a great way to visit Malta.  The only thing I would do different is I would stop at the cafe and have some rabbit.  That sure would bring back some great memories of growing up when my Dad would hunt and bring home some rabbits.  My Mom would fry them just like chicken oh so good.  

Thank you for the great quote and all the updates.  Prayers for everyone who needs them.

StLouiscruisers I have a question on your Malta pictures.  First they are amazing and made me more excited for my stop there in December on the Volendam.  Was this a walking tour on your own or did you do a tour?

It is a beautiful sunny morning in Central PA.   Enjoy your day and stay safe.

Yes you do have an assigned table and waitstaff on deck 2 of the Britanina.  You will find your table and deck listed on your seapass card when you get onboard.  

When you want to dine elsewhere in the evenings, just let your tablemates and waitstaff you will not be there.  I also tell them if I am not there five minutes after start time, you will not be there and do not wait for me.

The Golden Lion does not reserve tables and they do not serve dinner.  They just serve lunch everyday beginning at noon.  It gets very crowded so if you want to eat lunch there, arrive about 11:30, order a drink and wait till noon to order your lunch.

mcrcruiser I just found 2 accessible balcony cabins on Queen Victoria for a 14 transatlantic out of Ft Lauderdale sailing March 14, 2025.

Does every Disney ship have karaoke?  We will be sailing on either the Magic or the Wish next year.

If you find a good local travel agent, they would be able to contact you when the new sailings are released.  Do you get emails from Holland America about sailing and sales they are having.  If you go into your Mariner account, look for the email preference and request mailings.

I was just solo in a PG on QM2 and was placed at a table for 6.  I was never alone except for maybe 10 minutes before others joined me.  The only thing to remember is not everyone will come at the same time.

I was on this crossing and I had some wonderful chats with the young delegates that were transporting the flame.  They had some amazing stories as to what their families had gone through and how thankful they were to the Americans.  It was a great experience to see and hear this.

I was not able to answer the health questionnaire for my cruise boarding today.  I tried on the app and it would just spin and spin and not let me know.  Guess I will need to do it at the port today.

I seem to get behind the person who uses the Cunard app for their boarding pass, and they have to stand and scan through all their downloads to find the boarding pass.  I am old school so I print all my needed papers.  I think if you have to look for your needed documents, persons with the printed documents should be able to go ahead until they find what they need.  

Yes there is a free shuttle that will take you from the ship to Southampton.  It drops you off at a good location and all you need to do is remember where you get the bus to come back to the ship.  Just make sure you find out when the last shuttle is back to the ship.  Enjoy Southampton.

travelloverontario 

I know how you feel.  I have completed several solo sailings since I lost my husband and I have enjoyed them all.  I leave in a few days and I also felt why am I doing this.  I am feeling that way today but I know I will go and once I get on the ship everything will be good.  Please make sure you do not stay in your cabin all the time.  Go and enjoy

I am not sure how many are confused how agents make their commission.  They are paid a percentage on the cruise fare and travel insurance if purchased through the cruise line.  They do not make commission on port charges, taxes, shore excursions, drink packages or any added charges.  So if your cruise has an all inclusive price of $2500, it is possible the cruise fare is only $2000.  It is possible the agent would make $200 before the agency they work for takes there share.  An agency could end up with $150.00 for that one booking.  

I agree 10 days is too long to get your booking confirmation, as they are received with in an hour of booking.

I agree you should receive quicker response time, but asking for 2/3 of an agent commission is a little extreme.  With the little amount of commission an agent makes returning 2/3, the agent would be working almost for free.  I am sure if you are in the workforce, you would not want to return 2/3 of your salary as  discount to your employer for allowing you to work there.  Sorry for the rant.

Bon Voyage.  Hope you have a great time.  Looking forward to your review as I am on the Volendam for 42 days in November.

travelloverontario That is a great first step.  I am sure you will have a great time.  I did my first solo sailing in 2022 after losing my spouse of 50 yrs.  I had it booked for us but I went solo due to a promise I made to him.  It was on the Queen Mary 2 for 26 days and it was wonderful.  I missed my kids and grandkids but I would sit on deck and think about all the wonderful cruises we had taken together.  

I will admit I had some very dark times but I just made myself go out of the cabin and at least see people even if I did not talk to them.   Now when I feel sad at home, I know it is time to get on a ship and see the world.  I feel so much better when I get home.

I am so sorry for the loss of you son, I can not even imagine the pain and also praying your husband continues do well.

I am doing my first solo sailing next week on Anthem of the Seas, I am looking forward to comparing it to my Cunard sailing.

Can not wait to hear about your trip when you return.  Please come back and ask any questions you may have or if you just need some one to listen.

Hello Eoghan-23.  Welcome to cruise critic.  You can get some very good information here.

Some time it is less expensive to book a double occupancy cabin opposed to a single cabin.  There are not many single cabins on each ship.  When searching on some of the cruise lines they have cabin category for single cabins. If working with a T/A, they may get an advance notice of when a cruise line is having a sale with reduced single supplements or no supplement.  You may want to look for an agent that would be willing to send you notice of these sales.

I have attended these events on Cunard and they are wonderful.  They are well attended and you meet some nice passengers.  I am sailing solo most of the time but do sail with friends.  I still attend as we are both sailing single. We did have lunch with some of the group and I have also matched up with ones that were on the same excursions.  I do not think there should be any difference in single or solo.  Enjoy your cruise and attend a meeting, you will enjoy it.

The few times I would go to the Windjammer for breakfast I would take a book and leave it on the table.  I mainly ate all my meals in the dining room and I would request a table with other diners that spoke English.   I like doing that as I eat at home by myself almost every night, so it is nice to speak with other people.

I have done 5 solo cruises since 2022 and I have loved everyone of them.  The shortest one I booked is a 7 day sailing in June.  For me the longer they are the better I like them.  I really do enjoy my sea days so I do mostly TA with a sailing in between to see different parts of Europe.  You will enjoy your time on the ship.  Attend the solo meetings, they are a great way to meet others.  You can do what you want, when you want.  Spend time with other passengers, read, walk, watch the ocean go by.  Enjoy and come back and let us know how you enjoyed it.

I have linked several bookings on different cruise lines and the only thing that I can see is what items we wanted to link.  This included same dining table, if you want the same hotel pre or post cruise.  I could not see anything other than those items.

I am doing my first TA/ repositioning cruise on Anthem in 2 weeks.  I am looking forward to finding out how Royal handles a TA.  I have completed many TA's on Cunard and they do an amazing job on them.  Do not be afraid to do a TA, they are so different that a normal cruise.  Just remember you have more sea days in a row than you do on other cruises.

I do not think Holland is thinking about selling the Volendam.  It is going into drydock in October and will be back in service for the 42 day Med America sailing.  That will be my first sailing on her and looking forward to seeing the ship.  I do enjoy the smaller ships more so than the larger one.  The Rotterdam was a beautiful ship and I did enjoy my sailing on her.

Volendam is going in dry dock in October and will be back in service for the November 9 sailing.