Host Jazzbeau

Fletch [may I call you Fletch? I promise I won't call you Surely!] – I am enjoying this blog so much. I am also very glad that it confirms my total lack of desire to do an Amazon cruise ["The weather veers from dry and wet and back again yet it’s always hot and humid." – yeah, no thanks] Agree about zodiacs and the effect on one's spine – especially if you are the family photographer! Maybe with all your expedition experience you could get the one really good seat [driving the thing from the transom] 😉 I'm not a birder, so I'm always happy to accept whatever identification the guide offers. I can't contradict unless it's a robin or an owl, and neither are likely to be seen on this river. [Dylan Thomas: "All birds are robins, except owls..."] Question about your last paragraph: What was the first: having dinner in La Terrazza, or enjoying it?

It is a truly lovely suite – wonderful for dining-in and for entertaining too, and the Butlers are very accommodating. The first time in a CW (thanks for a very reasonable upgrade) we asked the Butler to arrange a little cocktail party for our new Roll Call shore excursion friends. He agreed but apologized that he was only allowed to cater for 6 – but he brought enough hors d’oeuvres that the 13 of us couldn’t finish it all! We also had room service breakfast each morning – delivered twice so DW could have it early and mine was a little later. We have done 6088 on Quest and 7114 on Journey – both cabins are identical, but the balconies are deepest on deck 6 and slightly shallower as you go up [which is really only important if you want shade, as we do] And after all the complaints about the small bathroom in the regular cabins on Azamara, I am happy to report that the CW bathroom is just wonderful: both a bathtub and a large shower with sink, and a connected toilet room with another small sink – with another door that opens right at the entrance [so guests can visit the 'powder room' without seeing all your stuff spread over the main bathroom!] The layout also means there is circular access around the cabin: entrance to living/dining area to bedroom to main bathroom to powder room back to entrance. Two people sharing will never trap the other in a dead end! We used every part of the suite [except the storage – there was so much we never used all of that!] We're booked in a CC for our next voyage, but I'm hoping we will be able to upgrade to a CW. PS - are you from Charleston SC? [Chucktown]

I've seen similar paperwork on many cruise lines. We also travel with 1 checked bag, one roller carry-on, and one 'personal item' each – and have never had a problem. [Haven't sailed on Emerald, but this experience is from Ama, Scenic and land tour operators]

If not "stocked" in the dining room, bring a bottle from your cabin. When others see it, there will be a clamor. [That's how I realized they had it on Whisper.]

The US govt has continually extended sell-by dates on Covid tests, so we just use the oldest ones in our stock. When we had Covid, the old tests did identify it.

Wow. The salt ruins the taste for me.

I suspect your friend means they have sparkling water (made onboard), but not branded sparkling water [or maybe not the particular brand they prefer]. BTW I agree with your friend: ship-made sparkling water isn't 'proper.' Thankfully our Butler and the Restaurant waiters on Whisper were able to get us San Pellegrino once we knew to ask.

I keep my iPhones a long time. The 6 was the first fully mature design, so I kept it until the battery died. The 12 was a good step up, and then switching to T-Mobile got us all on 13s for free [too early to upgrade, but for free?] That still does everything I want, so I'm waiting for the 16 [or later, depending on trade-in deals] That's why I like Apple products – they 'just work,' and they keep working almost forever.

New article on Travel Weekly: https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/Insights/kayak-shore-excursion-with-Avalon

New article on Travel Weekly: https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/West-Africa-uncharted-waters

New article on SeaTrade Cruise: Cruise boosts Saga’s profit, search continues for strategic partner

And Cruise Critic respects copyrights.

Just being nosy, but since you are such a great font of information: will the cruise lines try to get these dates back in sync [to simplify planning], or just keep spattering inspections around whenever due?

The minor child seems to add to the logic of this request. But I'm a human being, it may be necessary to convince a computer!

Couldn't you take the Hurtigruten or Havila voyage from Bergen to Tromsø, spend time at the Ice Domes Hotel, and take the southbound voyage back to Bergen? [Or better yet for Northern Lights viewing, continue on the Tromsø to Trondheim voyage, then return Trondheim to Bergen]

The Google wasn't able to help me. Other than the condition that gets worse with every birthday, what does AGE stand for?

And like Jay Leno used to say about Doritos: they can keep making more.

To be fairer to Silversea, I don't sail in Azamara Insides or even Verandas – so my price comparison is to a Club Continent (CC mini suite, 266sf plus 60sf veranda = 326 sf) or (in the case of the 2022 cruise) a Club World Owners Suite (CW true one-bedroom suite, 560sf plus huge 233sf veranda = 793sf). On Silver Whisper we had a Deluxe Veranda (mini suite, 313sf plus 60sf veranda = 345 sf). The DV didn't feel any more spacious than a CC, so I think it's fair to compare Azamara CC pricing to Silversea. Looking at the cruise you mention, a CC is 65% more than the lowest category, which would still be far below the cost of the SS comparison (enough to cover your shore excursion costs – and specialty restaurants are included for CC and above). So all in, Azamara and Silversea would cost about the same – and based on my comparison would provide about the same experience. Given that choice, I would book Azamara.

Rüdesheim may be more enjoyable in the Amsterdam to Basel direction than the other way. Early in the cruise, before you have been exposed to very much authentic German culture, it seems fun. And that mechanical music machine museum is indeed a lot of fun.

I remember a newspaper column many years ago noting variations in local usage on the US East Coast. "Regular coffee" was a slippery term, because in some places it meant black, others with sugar, others with cream...

DW reminds me that there was one year when that last step might have been hazardous to our teenager's health! Luckily he knew how to tie his own ties!

You don't mention what port this was in. For $500 you should be able to hire a private guide to take you somewhere for the day and drop off at airport. We use daytrip.com for this for of thing. For example, from Civitavecchia to FCO they suggest possible stopovers at Santa Severa Castle (60 minutes, adds 50 Euros to trip cost); Necropolis de la Banditaccia (120 minutes, 92 Euros), and/or Ancient Ostia (90 min, 88 Euros). Basic trip cost would be 309 Euros. So you could do all the stops for a little over 500.

I've been advised (I think by Phil among others) that the last N1 (under the aft bathrooms) and first N2 port side cabins (under the Windows entrance) are the quietest – safe from pool chair or waiter cart noises. [I hope that's right because I have 8056 on Journey (equivalent to 8048 on Onward) booked for next year!] It should also apply to those under the forward bathrooms.

I'm confused because your 'original route' map doesn't show Hoorn or Ghent. Had the route already been changed earlier? Of all those changes, missing Ghent would have been the biggest disappointment to me.