toby bert

Cruising-along, Yes, we were on the same cruise. We loved the Silhouette and four days in Israel was perfect. A great cruise. We were fortunate to visit Egypt in 2009 and would love go back at the right time as well.

Scrapnana Thanks for the update on your experience on the QE. A World voyage? Fantastic. The link to HAL cancelling Egypt is helpful. I expect this may be repeated again this October.

If anyone is considering sailing on the Ryndam, we had a great time on her in 2012. If you don't mind an older vessel, you'll find it a very pleasant and classic ship with a wonderful crew.

Vineyard View, I agree that Israel is the usual go-to alternate port for Egypt.

I'd be very happy with Santorini also and maybe Rhodes or Mykonos. Other possible options are Cyprus and Crete without burning too much fuel. Malta and an extra Sicily stop would be amazing, but would require other ports to be rescheduled, so unlikely.

It might be a game-day decision but I'm betting against Egypt. If they're considering changing the ports, the sooner the better. I'm sure that there's a fair amount of cruisers that are keen to see Egypt and many others such as myself that won't book unless they're changed.

Tough call for HAL. I just hope for those booked. it happens before final payment.

Hello,

I've been looking at the October 18th Ryndam sailing out of Istanbul and the itinerary has Egypt scheduled for the 24th and 25th.

Does anyone know if HAL has been stopping in Egypt recently? I'm a bit surprised to see Egypt still listed as a ports of call considering the current situation in Egypt.

I lost Egypt for two extra days in Israel on a 2011 Celebrity cruise, so I'm looking at these Egypt stops with a hairy eyeball from previous experience.

If it was up to me I'd prefer to call on on alternate ports, but I realize many may have booked this cruise specifically for Egypt, which I totally respect.

Anyone have any opinions on the chances of HAL keeping Egypt for October?

Ben

Istanbul is a great city to explore on your own. A guided tour would only be required if you're short on time.

turkeytravelplanner com is a great resource. Purchase a guidebook if you really want to get the most of the city. If you love history then Blue Guides are the best, even if they're not updated frequently like DK and the others.

Delos is a must see when in Mykonos. Buy a ticket for the ferry at the port and you'll be on the same boat as the official tours for much less.

cruisemom42 really knows her stuff and her knowledge is the gold standard on CC. Read up on her posts if you can.

I'm trying to make it on the Ryndam for October 4th myself. You're in for a wonderful cruise and the Ryndam is a great ship.

Oh, and I forgot to mention, I bought a very basic Kia Soul, no additional features, I didn't even get a key fob. And it is manual transmission. Cheapest one on the lot & I got an oceanview room. So, I believe it really was random, otherwise I would have an interior room on the bottom deck way in the back of the ship.

The Gods favour manual transmissions my friend. Perhaps, the upgrade wasn't random after all.

Have a great cruise and thanks for doing your part to

Save the Manuals!

http://www.caranddriver.com/features/save-the-manuals-official-headquarters

We have cruised on HAL for 12 years.

On returning to the Ryndam recently my wife had ONE beer confiscated.

They must be getting desperate.

I'm with you on this one. Seems very petty and cheapens the experience.

I enjoyed being able to bring a beer or two in my backpack on the Ryndam last year in Europe. They were very fair about it and I never brought back more than a couple.

This isn't about smuggling on some lousy cheap beer, but trying new brews from various ports not sold on the ship.

Something the wine lovers are also upset about!