AJCM

Hi We have considerable OBC for our upcoming May cruise. It appears I can only pre-book excursions online by credit card; with no scope to apply our OBC to a booking. I contacted Seabourn Australia and this was confirmed. I queried whether there is scope to book and pay now; then cancel and re-book using OBC once on board. Although she seemed unsure, she said I could try but the moment I cancel, we'll be replaced by those at the top of any waitlist. If so, this will not work in our favour. Does anyone have any real life experience of using this process as a work around for OBC; as there seems to be little scope to otherwise use OBC once on board (other than spa, fine wine, retreat or jewellery).

We recently had Explorer 672 for a Japan cruise. The hot water in the shower and basin left a lot to be desired. After a couple of days we had tepid water to shower in on 3 mornings and a cold shower on another. It was checked out by the chief engineer and the head of guest relations, when we reported the problem after the 2nd day; so they were certainly responsive to our problem. However, when they tested it was apparently ok and set to 41c. The GR head suggested we let the hot water run for 5 mins before showering; to let the cold water in the pipes flow through. This didn’t make any difference but I knew there as no point contacting GR again. Unexpectedly and very welcome, the hot water corrected itself after a few days, until the tepid 2nd last day, then was ok again for disembarkation. Just a warning to prospective guests, as there was no intervention which caused the poor temperature nor to correct it. It’s a shame because 672 is in a very good location (if you like proximity to self laundry and gym).

You’ve got to love cruise critic. so many people are very generous with their knowledge and experience. We’ll done marazul.

Hi John Can you clarify please. You mention having a loyalty discount applied to your booking. I’m not aware of any discount applied to a booking, related to your loyalty level. Was this a specific short term offer or is there some broader applicability I’m not aware of?

100% with you. We recently had a wonderful 30n cruise around the Med. The sun loungers are very uncomfortable - we were commenting just last night that it's the one comparitive shortfall of Seabourn.

All the discussion above, while helpful, only highlight how hard it is do to download, read and consider options around excursions. Previously we could download a PDF of all excursions. What is happening now is not progress. You’d think the money people at Azamara (or it’s new owners) would ensure that this money making side of the cruise industry was state of the art.

We were recently on a very enjoyable 30 n Seabourn cruise around the med. We had already booked a 14n Greece cruise for June 2024. It has been cancelled. However, the 7 day version from 5 june is still active. They didn’t use their email which my email recognises so it went to junk mail - result is I didn’t see it until our 2023 cruise was over. They gave the same non - transparent reason of deployment changes. As Russia isn’t involved, I’ve concluded some rich company has chartered it and this trumps what they can get out of us. We’re fortunate that we hadn’t yet booked flights and duly got our refund back but now we have to question whether we can trust Seabourn in the future. The SB cruise fitted in perfectly with our other plans. We have now booked an alternative cruise in Norway with Silversea. I’m sure we’ll thoroughly enjoy this and who knows, maybe we’ll look to do more SS in the future and not return to SB. Apparently SB won’t care.

It appears inevitable that booking the med west or east in Jul- Aug will become increasingly unpopular over the next decade as the high temperature trend because the norm. Apr - mid June and Sep - mid Nov will likely boom. Northern Europe, Alaska should become increasingly in demand through Jul - Aug. Maybe some ships will be deployed to SE Asia, Oceania and Sth America. We’ve already stopped travelling to Europe any later than mid June, due to known risks of very high temps. We were there in Sep into Oct last year and the weather was great; as it was through June this year.

Wait and see how much you like the included drinks and wine. You can always pick up an upgraded liquor or wine package at any time and pay for the days remaining. The ultimate liquor package has better wines than the standard.

We were recently on Seabourn. They didn’t seem to know until quite late before each arrival. We were at T4, not the World Trade Centre. There’s a shuttle you pay for (couple of Euro) which takes you near the WTC. For embarkation and disembarking, you’ll need a taxi to the T terminals.

I'm sure this is decidedly true. Tour businesses have an obvious vested interest in talking up their capabilities to cruise companies, while knowing they are not capable of providing the same standard as pre-covid; due to staffing. Cruise companies must necessarily go with what they can get. (By the by, anyone who has cruised since covid restrictions have lifted would be aware of inexperienced staffing issues and supply issues - the problem is certainly not restricted to the tourism sector). Even so, when a tour falls significantly short of what it was supposed to be, the cruise company has a responsibility to provide a straight out refund. Recently, Seabourn gave a 50% refund for a failed excursion. We considered 50% was fair, as costs were certainly incurred by the operator. At least with Azamara, there is usually ample opportunity, through the cruise critic roll call, to arrange and/or join small group private excursions. In our experience the best excursions we've done have been this type; whereas ship excursions have usually been disappointing in some aspect both pre and post covid (you know what I mean - I'm not suggesting covid is over). The roll call is a real plus for Azamara clients as premium cruise lines (Seabourn, Regent, Silverseas) usually have little roll call acitivity. Azamara roll calls, by comparison, are always very active. We recently signed up to join a small group overnight tour to Luxor next year and I expect there'll be other private tours available. We can only hope these tour providers can indeed supply a quality tour.

Dog, obviously not a service dog, totally unacceptable. Jacket in Observation Lounge - sit elsewhere (if available, otherwise sit there and ask staff to remove the unattended jacket) but ask staff to remove it after 15 minutes of non appearance, so others can sit. Pool behaviour is bad enough without adding inside socialising areas. People who want a seat ( particularly in a good position) should just plan ahead, put themselves out a bit and arrive early. Tours with dog which is clearly not a service dog - I would make a point of getting off the bus if the dog came on and insist placement on the alternative bus, if available. If no alternative available, I would take it up with the destinations manager later. I would query the allowance of the dog and whether the dog was going on other excursions we’d booked. If so, I’d request assurance of placement in another bus or, if not possible, a 50% refund due to diminution of the experience, paid for by the obvious payment for the dog on the excursion by it’s inconsiderate and entitled owner. If the dog is obviously a service dog or if there’s doubt but it is adequately shown to be as such, I’d have no problem. Tours with incapacitated guests - considerate people recognise their physical limitations and select suitable excursions. You did nothing wrong whatsoever. Cruise staff have responsibility to all guests, not a favoured view. We all pay a lot of money for our cruise experiences and they should be mindful that we can easily spend elsewhere.

At least Warnemunde is a delightful small place which is easy to do yourself (albeit that I think you are certainly entitled to expect an included excursion shorter than 12 hours). We loved W but as an alternative there’s a larger place (can’t remember the name) which is a short train trip away.

We had a couple of immersion events on the pool deck stage in Sep 22, just before Azamazing nights were to resume, in Oct. One was flamenco and when you struggle to see their feet, it’s a fail. IMHO the pool deck just doesn’t cut it. A third show (B2B2B) was in the theatre - Andrews Sisters performance. France) was great.

We did a fair bit of exploring streets around the Shinjuku station area; as it's so different from where and how we live - just observing. Went to Ueno Park and visited the Western Art museum, which was quite good but not exceptional. We'll go again this time but to the National Museum. It's a pleasant area to walk around. We intended going to the zoo but there was a huge crowd waiting to enter. Watched a baseball match for a while. Do visit the basement food court of a department store - there's a big store the other side of Shinjuku. The presntation of food is just wonderful. If you buy, however, you'll probably have to eat back at the hotel as there's nowhere to sit and snack - they just don't do that. The Meiji Shrine and walk to it were very enjoyable and is on the 3 day itinerary this time - we'll happily go again. You enjoy expansive views from the top of the Metropolitan Govt Building; which is only a 10 min walk from the Hilton - no charge to ride the elevator to the top (at least in 2019). Shibuya was just ok. Did the crossing and walked a few streets but we didn't see much of interest; other than women pushing their designer dogs in baby prams. Visited the Harajuku district on a Sunday to see the dress ups (didn't see many young women in garb and when we did encounter some we felt intrusive). The main shopping street of this area (pedestrianised) is the most crowded street we've ever experienced. Hated it. However, we visited a nearby small art museum dedicated to the woodblock art of Hokusai; most famous for his Great Wave. We loved this place! We found a quieter, suburban area which was very pleasant to walk around, seeing a diffferent side of Tokyo. Unfortunately I don't recall where. I think it was in the Shibuya area but in the opposite direction from the station. Al of our touristing outside Shinjuku were on the main loop line; which made things easy. No restaurant recommendations to help you out.

We haven’t done a tour but we’ve used George for airport transfers to and from on several occasions. Totally reliable.

I wouldn't say any of the excursions were "must see", as we all have separate preferences. For what it's worth, however, we really enjoyed Miyajima (Hiroshima excursion). The whole environment is very scenic. We had a wet and cloudy day but this gave the place a very calm, quiet atmosphere. It may be a place that often gets over-crowded, though, and that would give a different impression. In Kagoshima, we did a combination tour of Mt Sakurajima followed by Senganen garden. It was a sunny day, with great visibility of the volcano from the viewing point (at ground level). The garden was outstanding. This tour did not include the museum. This year's "highlights" tour refers to a pause at the garden - don't know what that means but it's probably a short stop. Guests will thus at least get a chance to see this wonderful garden. In Shimizu, we visited Kunozan Toshogu Shrine & Miho No Matsubara. The shrine was a most impressive complex,comprising a number of buildings on ascending terraces; and reached via cable car. I'd describe it as strenuous. The weather was thick cloud and rain but this gave the place a very peaceful and eerie atmosphere. We're strong walkers, so were able to move ahead of the group and virtually had the place to ourselves through the various levels. The second part of the tour was ostensibly to see Fuji from the beach. Probably would have been worthwhile on a clear day - all we saw was whiteout. I enjoyed skimming stones from the water's edge instead. We visited Nagasaki on Azamara twice, a few years ago. The Atomic Bomb museum and ground zero were very moving. The ship visited Osaka, and we did the castle. Probably the least of the excursions we did due to the very large crowd all wanting to tour through the castle. Strenuous, due to the many steep steps in the castle. Little to see inside. very good views from the top floor. Other than that, the rest of the Regent itinerary is different from 2019. We didn't do private tours while in Tokyo. The 3 days pre-tour was pretty good; although it moves slowly with substantial numbersa of us to be organised. A shuttle bus takes you to Shinjuku Station, which is surrounded by restaurants and shopping (plenty of restaurants are at ground level but a lot of restaurants are in high rise buildings). We learned how to navigate the subway system (at least the central loop) and we used this often, after being returned to the Regent hotel and more extensively when we stayed on our own for 3n after the cruise. This enabled us to get around different parts of Tokyo. It was very efficient - if a train was too full, the next one was only a couple of minutes away. We bought a suica card and loaded credit on - easy to re-charge. We always felt totally safe wherever we went in Tokyo. Highly recommend Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden that is near Shinjuku station. It's only about a 10-15 min walk from the station and is a wonderful oasis in the middle of this bustling area.I expect the colours to be stunning when we're there in Oct.

Azamara, Seabourn, Regent Seven Seas - have a look at the other CC boards and you’ll find similar concerns about a drop in standard. I accept that there are staffing and supply problems not just in the cruise industry but across many industries world wide. Despite this, we had another wonderful experience with Azamara Pursuit on a B2B2B in Sep 22. Why get upset about things that neither cruise staff nor yourself can do anything about; especially when they’re trivial matters (food items; drinks, etc)? Even so, this system transition has caused a legitimately major concern for people who are starting, or will soon, their upcoming cruises. It’s not acceptable that Azamara has not specifically ensured these current guests have their records completely correct. We’re not cruising with Azamara until 2024 and so I’m not worried whether our points are correct or not, as I know it will be addressed in good time. However, if we were due to start cruising anytime now and the documentation wasn’t sorted I’d be very concerned. It’s pretty clear, I think, that they’ve stuffed up. Who knows, but an optimistic view is that Azamara on land administration may actually improve, having separated from RCI, once their systems and staffing have settled down. From my experience, their on land operation doesn’t need to do much to bring about improvement. I can very easily live without brussel sprouts being on my plate. Thanks for highlighting though. Having been warned, we’ll certainly pack some vegemite for our next cruise. Maybe others could pack some frozen BS and/or a six pack, just to be sure they’ll have what they want.

We did this excursion in 2019 and loved it. The garden is quite extensive and varied and the temple and its surrounds were serene and a very visually attractive environment. Most of the excursions we did included a garden, Without exception they were exceptional - just beautiful environments to walk around. We loved the whole experience so much we’re returning with Regent in Oct; including the pre-tour in Tokyo. We’ll, of course, do different excursions to 2019. We’re very much looking forward to the autumn colours throughout Japan.

AVA Hotel and Suites. Very close - short walk straight toward the Acropolis and entry is just around the corner. Very comfortable place.

I booked tickets from the Sagrada website, for late May, last week; so you can apparently pre-purchase at least 3 months prior.

Good luck for a long, healthy life

Montserrat and Gaudi definitely.

Thanks MAVIP - with your info, I’ve just booked 2 9.00am tickets for late May. I probably wouldn’t have bothered looking before late March, so I’m very happy to have an early start and hopefully beat the crowds.

Shuttles were provided in Sep, in Valencia, as described, and Bilbao - close to Guggenheim. Shuttles weren’t needed anywhere else; except maybe Gibraltar. Most docking positions were very close to highlights. I’m not sure about Gibraltar as we did an excursion. I think there may have been a local shuttle, which charged. It looked like it would be a much longer walk to town than when we visited some years ago, so a shuttle is advisable. Vigo wasn’t on the itinerary.