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Far East Cruises 2019?


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Muttly surely if you take into account the cost of a return journey to and from Scotland to Manchester plus accommodation, you'll find that any other line with no all inclusive will work out more expensive. Also as other line cruisers have said the excursions are very reasonably priced and Marella have a much more intensive itineries and less sea days All told I believe it's worth travelling to Manchester for the Dreamliner and a Marella cruise

PS why not start a petition at your airport to get them to extend the runway to facilitate the Dreamliner as this could be the problem as many Scots cruise with Marella and it could mean one less flight from Manchester

 

 

The Dreamliner does fly from Glasgow. Glasgow Airport is a big international airport. All the major airlines fly from Glasgow to world wide destinations, including Emirates with two flights a day to Dubai and beyond.

 

The problem is not with the airport, the problem is Tui.

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Apologies to all who know the Dreamliner can fly from Glasgow I think it's disgusting that they aren't using the facility On our last Transatlantic cruise this April there were lots of Scots who had obviously had to travel to Manchester so there is the demand and there would have been no need probably to put on 2 flights from Manchester

We have only once used another airport for the Dreamliner to the Caribbean when it was actually cheaper to fly from Gatwick including fuel down to London and an overnight stay at the airport No overnight on the return as we flew back from Palma arriving lunchtime and drove home the same day We often find that Gatwick flights are cheaper than Manchester which is really annoying but would only choose this option if flying back from the Med

Those who don't drink alcohol or not that much have my sympathy as I agree you are subsidising those who like a good drink

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Hi all

I know that I am spoiled, only living about an hour from Gatwick so I suppose it's easy for me but if I was in your position I would complain to TUI. In the end if there is a good commercial argument for Marella Asian flights to go from up there they will bow to the pressure. I had an issue with another well known Travel Company a while ago when I made a sensible suggestion which went nowhere as it was against 'Company Policy'. They eventually saw the potential loss of customers and the 'Policy' was changed!!

So it can be done if enough people make their position clear, i.e fly from Scotland or you will loose our custom!

They can't be forced to change of course but at least they will be able to see the price of their intransigence.

Have a great time - wherever you fly from this year.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Its great to see so many of you are going to the far east this winter. I am hoping that you will all have an amazing experience and then you can feed that back, and hopefully I can go winter 19/20. Comparing these cruises against other cruise lines there are far more ports of call. So which ever Far East cruise you are on wishing you an absolutely fantastic cruise.

Sweby

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  • 1 month later...

Does anyone know when the excursions can be booked for this cruise please? - we will also be looking into how easy some are to do yourself too, so any advice greatly appreciated.

 

I gather there is a seperate board Asia 2019? but can't find it?

 

Thank you

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The flight times have been altered slightly for Gatwick 2.1.2019 and return. Somewhere on Booking I think I read trips can be booked 3 months before cruise? Meantime anyone done similar trips independently? Quite easy when we visited Ashod (Israel) despite Thomson putting up scary notices about the port.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi everyone, I have just booked for 2 weeks from 07 March and there were only 4 Junior Suites left so 8050 it is on Discovery. Can anyone tell me if this is the better side of the ship to book? The alternatives were 8540, 8544 and 8546 but the cruise department advised Port side.

 

Also only economy seats available on the flight already, so hopefully we can sit together as it will be a long flight sitting with a stranger.

 

I will be celebrating a big birthday and am also looking forward to the reviews and pictures.

 

I have cruised before with Thomson on Topaz :), Spirit and Dream but have not cruised for quite a few years now so any help, hints and advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

Hope everyone has a great holiday :)

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Hi everyone, I have just booked for 2 weeks from 07 March and there were only 4 Junior Suites left so 8050 it is on Discovery. Can anyone tell me if this is the better side of the ship to book? The alternatives were 8540, 8544 and 8546 but the cruise department advised Port side.

 

Also only economy seats available on the flight already, so hopefully we can sit together as it will be a long flight sitting with a stranger.

 

I will be celebrating a big birthday and am also looking forward to the reviews and pictures.

 

I have cruised before with Thomson on Topaz :), Spirit and Dream but have not cruised for quite a few years now so any help, hints and advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

Hope everyone has a great holiday :)

Hi Weeminx, don't think you have a good and bad side on Discovery we have had 8076 and 8086 both ok, think some passengers have had a few issues with noise and the overhang the closer you are to the ships center so I would expect you have made the better choice.

Have you booked your flight seats yet I would recommend you do as its not worth risking being separated its not to bad going out but the return could be a problem with most passengers sleeping:o none of the seats, other than Premium and extra, would have been allocated yet so you have plenty of time. Advice I would give is take a change of clothes in your hand luggage for when you arrive:cool: Have a good one.

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Hi Pensionercruiser, thank you so much for your prompt response. I have hopefully avoided any overhang but if not we will make the most of it. I have paid to pre book out seats but have to wait until December before I can do this. Good idea about the change of clothes as it will be cold at the end of March. Will probably stay in a Manchester hotel over night and drive back to Glasgow in the morning. Excited already as it is a big birthday present to myself :):):)

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Book as soon after midnight as you can when the seats become available for best choice, and its obviously up to you but because of the seating configuration on the Dreamliner, 3-3-3, I would go for the central ones then you don't have to disturb anyone when you leave your seat, lots of passengers like the window but you have nothing to see, we book window in premium as its 2-3-2.

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Thanks Pensionercruiser and Vitalsign.

 

Unfortunately there are no Premium seat or extra space seats left on the flight but I have paid to pre book in December. Hopefully we will be seated together as I don't really want to wake up with my head on a strangers shoulder :eek: I will book as soon as I can.

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Hi All

I'm so pleased to see that the numbers responding to Asia 7 March are steadily increasing. At one point I thought we were the only ones on the boat who look at this website.

We booked last November and at that time had the pick of premium seats as no-one else had booked.

We tried to get stern cabins but the were not available for some reason so we opted for the middle of the boat. I haven't noticed any difference port or starboard side cos the boats we've been on in the past seem to dock either side so you get a differing view, sometimes lucky sometimes not. Both provide interesting differences as I quite like watching the activities on the dockside when berthed anyway.

It's certainly a long flight but I shouldn't worry about being in economy as the Dreamliner is a brilliant plane and is one of the reasons we book with Thomson. We've done Destiny and Ocean Village in the past in the Med and Caribbean and never been disappointed so I'm sure you'll have a great time and celebration. We're flying from Gatwick so probably won't meet up until on the boat. We're in Junior Suite 8524 and I've been excited about it since we booked!!

Happy cruising

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Hi Cuising, glad to hear you are happy with both the seating arrangements and your cabin. At the end of the day I will be on a lovely ship celebrating my birthday so really should not over think things. Enjoy your break. :cool:

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Good for you Weeminx, I'm sure you'll have a lovely time and something definitely to look forward to. Sadly most of my 'significant' birthdays are long gone but still enjoy the hols just as much. Did you manage to get a stern cabin or did I get the cabin numbers mixed up?

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What most here called the Far East is my backyard. Having lived in SE Asia for the last 20 years and taken many cruises here. I can tell you cruising in this part of the World is well worth doing and very different from the average cruise most people take from American Ports.

 

Depending upon time limits you should pick the area you want to cruise, Japan alone to really see it is 8 to 14 days. If you have a long period of time (30 days ) consider doing cruise and land based with major cruise ports like Singapore or Hong Kong in between cruises.

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Thanks for the info Expat, regrettably we are on a 14 day fixed itinerary starting in Thailand - Cambodia - Vietnam - Singapore. So Japan is not on our list. Hopefully March will be ok weather wise and not too much rain!

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Good for you Weeminx, I'm sure you'll have a lovely time and something definitely to look forward to. Sadly most of my 'significant' birthdays are long gone but still enjoy the hols just as much. Did you manage to get a stern cabin or did I get the cabin numbers mixed up?

 

Yes Cuisign I did, only just, we will be in 8050, a few down from the middle with no overhang. ;):cool:

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Thanks for the info Expat, regrettably we are on a 14 day fixed itinerary starting in Thailand - Cambodia - Vietnam - Singapore. So Japan is not on our list. Hopefully March will be ok weather wise and not too much rain!

 

It is not the rainy season yet in March for your locations. Thailand will be hot as April is the hottest month of the year. You should have dry weather for Cambodia & Vietnam. Singapore being so close to the equator you could have a rain shower but not long in length. It is also not the Typhoon season in March so you should have no really big storms. Have a great trip, I have lived in or visited all the countries on your cruise, are are great places to visit

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Thanks Expat, there's nothing like accurate information from someone who's lived there.

We went to Hong Kong one year for a short break but that's as far East as we've been, so we will be in uncharted territory but really looking forward to it - can't wait! It still seems a long time yet but it will be a real experience for everyone on the boat I'm sure.

Thanks again.

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Although we are not booked on any of these itineraries (having sailed them with other lines in recent years) I was browsing the boards and came across this thread.

 

 

I just want everyone who has an Indian port (or ports) on their itinerary to read the Indian High Commission website very very carefully to be certain they have an Indian visa which allows entry into the number of ports they will visit, and to be especially careful if Port Blair (Andaman Islands) is on the itinerary because this port is in a Restricted Area and a separate form for this permit must be completed at the same time the application is submitted. This takes the form of a separate stamp on the same page as the tourist visa stamp on the passport page.

 

 

We have had to do this twice in recent years and it is a pain. Although there is not (or wasn't fairly recently) an additional charge for this permit, you must still have it. Even if you want to stay on the ship instead of going ashore, without this additional permit stamp you could be refused boarding.

 

 

Unless there has been a very recent change in the criteria, my understanding is that an e-visa is not usually valid for cruise ship calls. Again, depending on the passport you hold, read very very carefully for current info.

 

 

 

On our most recent cruise to that area (on a UK cruise line) with the one and only Indian port being Port Blair, (which boarded in Dubai) a number of pax had not made the connection between Port Blair and India, never mind discovered it is a Restricted Area. They had neither an Indian visa nor the additional permit. They were eventually allowed to board in Dubai, but had to leave the ship before it reached Indian waters, and could only board again at the first port after we left Indian waters. These arrangements were at their own expense as passengers take resposibility for ensuring they have the correct visas needed on any itinerary. The only other alternative was not to board at all.

 

 

 

Would advise that you all read the Indian High Commission info very carefully, and apply only through the link to the company which issues their visas. (they warn of more expenive websites and it is already expensive) Or at an Indian Consulate in person if you live fairly near one. All info on the websites.

 

 

 

Unless Marella drop this port you will absolutely have to have both a visa AND a Restricted/Protected Area permit.

 

 

Our experiences of Indian visas have put us off ever travelling to India again. The cost and the hassle are not worth it to us any more. And many other cruise lines appear to have dropped Port Blair too as whatsinport have hardly any cruise ships listed as calling.

 

 

Good luck.

Edited by edinburgher
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I should have added that the photograph requirements are also a pain as they require a different size from the usual passport size photos.

 

 

And once home, do keep details of your visa because if you return to India in the future you are required to give detailed info on any previous visas issued.

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My apologies for any confusion I may have caused by writing the two posts above on this thread.

 

Just to clarify, I had only wanted to give a friendly warning to others what to be wary off as we witnessed the upset and anger by passengers without the correct documentation on the cruise mentioned above. As I am certainly no visa expert (and why would anyone take advice from a poster on an internet forum anyway?) do please check info on official websites such as the FCO and The Indian High Commission before applying for any visa, “e” or otherwise. You can even e-mail for visa advice before sending an application and fees which would not be refunded if this wasn't the correct type of visa. Remember to mention that you will be onboard a cruise ship (not a ferry) and list your Indian ports.

 

Being itinerary driven and having visited some of the countries on the Marella itineraries on a number of different cruise lines off and on over the last 15 years, we have learned never to take for granted visa info given by any cruise line without double or triple checking that we have been given the correct info by looking at official websites elsewhere. This because countries can and do change visa requirements and eligibility and we have found in the past on second or even third visits that the criteria may have changed since a first or previous visits. It can also change depending on how you arrive in a country. Other reasons are that cruise lines staff do not always know the exact info, and sometimes visas for cruise passengers to some countries can be issued onboard.

 

 

Do check carefully and wishing you all amazing adventures.

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Out of interest, following your post on Port Blair and the additional permit required, I went through the online Marella booking for a cruise on Discovery visiting the Andaman Islands.

At the end of the booking process it states that a multiple entry visa is required but fails to mention the need for the additional permit.

I wonder how much other Indian visa information is incorrect or incomplete.

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