travelberlin

Thank you for your answer. I have looked at the web page of Via Rail and it appears that one can only bring a small bag that either fits under or over your seat. But for our cruise this is definitely not possible. We have to take one carry on and one piece of luggage each. How do people transport their luggage on Via Rail?

Our cruise is living from Quebec City. We will be flying from Miami and I do not see any options than to fly to Montreal (YUL). Or to the YQB with one stop in YUL. What will you recommend is the best way to get to Quebec City? We like trains (not buses) but our experiences are trains in Europe. If possible we would like to take the train from Montreal to Quebec City after a stop in Montreal. Would you recommend to take the train? Are they reliable? Where to stay in Montreal close to the train station? How many days to plan for visiting Montreal? We do not speak French unfortunately 😔

Is the funicular free of charge or how do you get the tickets?

Voyager Radiance The big ships are my least favorites

Some of us know what to do and do it consistently not only because ourselves but also because others. Others know what to do, are polite and care about others and just don’t remember or think about the importance of it (those are a large number and wouldn’t have a problem of being reminded). Others just don’t care, like the guy that came coughing into the elevator and when one passenger asked him if he couldn’t use a mask, he answered he wouldn’t because this was his vacation. Keith, we will have to disagree on this one but I have seen it successfully implemented in other cruise lines even in the times of the pandemic. I think it can be done without much effort or investment from Crystal. In any case I would suggest it and see what it happens. By the way another area which needs more attention at the moment ( or at least did it during my cruise) at Crystal is the cleaning of the public toilets. Ivi

I have visited Puerto Vallarta many years ago with Oceania. I have liked that port. The below picture reminded me of Crystal at that time.

Keith, in those cruise lines that allocate a crew member at the entrance of buffet they just have one at each door and this happens on peak hours, not the whole time. I have always encountered a waiter at the entrance of the buffet on Crystal. So they are already there. I do not think that additional staffing is necessary. When they increase health protocols at the cruise lines where I have experienced Noro, what they have done in addition, was to avoid that guests serve themselves. There were crew members serving and not allowing guests to touch the serving silverware. Ivi

Mein Schiff, Royal, Celebrity and Silversea do it. But I think it is not the point that all do it or just some. Imho it would make sense to do it since many guests of cruiselines, luxury or not, do not seem to have very good hygiene habits. If you read this thread from the beginning, you will realize that there are comments pointing that out.

During my cruise they were also those communications in the reflection about hand sanitation, etc but very few people paid attention to them. Even though there was a wash station before entering the Market Place the majority would just pass by without paying attention. I remember talking with the restaurant manager in a joking manner, pointing that I was probably one of the few washing hands before entering the Market Place. Once, I was sitting close to the entrance and to my dismay I saw someone picking his nose while entering the Market Place. I think that in this case Crystal can learn from other cruise lines placing one crew member at the entrance of the buffet to remind guests kindly but firmly, to wash wash their hands and sanitize before entering the buffet. This is done by other cruise lines for example Mein Schiff. Not only COVID is the problem. There are some funny respiratory diseases going around and the well known Noro is always a risk. Ivi

Has Covid been reported on the current sailing or how was this information communicated? Ivi

Thank you Rob for your summary of observations. I like your honesty and balance about what you are experiencing. Ivi

I have traveled many times solo with Azamara and I have enjoyed it very much. You can be on your own or join others (solos or not). Azamara has sometimes solo discounts. The solo supplement has increased in the last year for many cruises. I hope Azamara makes more cruises available at lower solo supplements and shows that they are, and remain solo friendly. It has been nominated under best for solos in the current competition from USA today readers.

How do you do that? You do the whole checking process online and everything and then you just arrive solo at the ship and say she couldn’t make it? Hasn’t Royal realized that you do this often?

Crystal cruises will allow you to book designated solo cabins with a lower solo supplement. Everything included from gratuities to internet. It is more expensive than Royal but it is a luxury experience.

Under this circumstances I wonder how much is the liability of the cruise line to give compensation to the clients if they are not willing to take an alternative route. In Germany we call it Force Majeure and under Force Majeure, there is not much the guests can become. Options are: take alternative route or cancel the rest with the corresponding refund. No additional compensation. Airlines for example can cancel flights without any compensation because of Force Majeure. And in some cases they would not even offer an alternative. Offering itinerary alternatives seem to be reasonable. Refunding the money to those who do not want to do the suggested itineraries seems also adequate. However, I believe the cruise line has the right to cancel ports of calls or change itineraries if the circumstances dictate so. I am sure many affected guests will not like to hear about the itinerary changes but it is not the fault of Crystal, right? Ivi

I feel very sorry that the Red Sea conflict is going to disturb so much the operations of the new Crystal. It is not easy for the company nor for the crew. I hope that guests affected will be able to get bookings in other itineraries of their choice. For example guests that have booked on Serenity for the Mediterranean could look at the Symphony itineraries there. I am confident the Symphony will cruise in the Mediterranean this year and it has very nice itineraries. Guests on the full world cruise, which apparently are less than 200, might just continue their cruise independently of which route the Serenity would take. At least if we were on the world cruise, we would just continue. And maybe in the new itineraries there will be interesting ports and overnights in ports. I hope that those itineraries also get the attention of other cruisers who could book them. For example if the ship will go from Cape Town to Brasil or Argentina, maybe South Americans and South Africans will book the new itineraries with a good marketing strategy. There are not many ships along the East South American coast around that time of the year and there could be a demand. I am not sure about the weather though. In any case it is a difficult situation and I wish Crystal sincerely that they manage to overcome the challenges. Ivi

I have one question in relation to diamond benefits. Do Diamond members can check in also only 45 days before cruise or are they able to check in earlier?

Due to the condition of your grandson, I believe you could get this service if you just ask nicely and explain the reason. People are not motivated only via tips. You can tip afterwards as a sign of gratitude but upfront tipping for every thing as if human beings could only be convinced through money?

I am not sure if this has been already posted but I have just learned that Azamara has been nominated for several categories in USA today readers. For example best ocean liner or best cruise line for solo travelers. People can vote for their favorite cruise line until February 5th apparently every day. This seems to be the web page in case someone is interested to vote. https://10best.usatoday.com/awards/travel/

Good press statement. 👍 It was necessary imho. Ivi

I find it a lovely idea 😍. I would like to meet Rover onboard.

Thanks Keith. I have not read the article properly. I have not met him on board. But due to my bookings in solo cabins, which are apparently the lowest category possible, and without belonging to the VIP guests, it is very unlikely that I would ever meet a senior head butler on board. Ivi

What I have read is that MSC has cancelled three itineraries for April. „Swiss-Italian operator MSC Cruises said on Wednesday it had cancelled three trips in April from South Africa and the United Arab Emirates to Europe due to the Red Sea crisis. "The safety of passengers and crew is the number one priority and as there was no viable alternative itinerary, the company has regrettably had to cancel the voyages," MSC Cruises said. "The three ships will transfer directly to Europe without any passengers on board and avoid transiting through the Red Sea."”

And it is also not too early for management of other cruise lines 😄. We could speculate if the conflict in that region will take long or not but no one really knows. Conflicts are taking longer than expected nowadays. I wonder if insurances cover costs associated with this situation 🧐 Ivi

Was he the head waiter in the sailing from 5th to 18th January? I do not recall meeting him onboard 🧐. Ivi