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What is the appeal of sea days?


Doggielover68
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I can explain why we eat at 5:30 every day and don't book traditional. First, it's just two of us and we prefer to eat alone. Second, it doesn't take as long so we can see the evening shows without a problem. Third, in the event of a late lunch, we can eat later on that day if we want to.

 

 

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Thanks, I haven't done traditional for over 15 years, so don't know. But can't you get a two top for traditional sitting? I have eaten in some MDRs that have a first sitting and then become anytime and have seen plenty of two tops. Perhaps they split tables up after the first sitting.

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same here! we tend to eat early.

 

Since there are only two of us, we can order very quickly, and get our food far faster than we would if we were at a large table, waiting on people to arrive, decide, order, eat their appetizer, eat their main....

we tend to get in and out in under an hour. :)

That I can understand. We do that at whatever time we choose to eat.

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Thanks, I haven't done traditional for over 15 years, so don't know. But can't you get a two top for traditional sitting? I have eaten in some MDRs that have a first sitting and then become anytime and have seen plenty of two tops. Perhaps they split tables up after the first sitting.

 

Yes, you can be assigned a two-top in Traditional Dining.

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Is it me or is this unbelievably condescending?

 

 

 

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Some might feel that way. But in substance he's not wrong.

 

The mega ships ARE restricted by their size to comparatively few ports, and they almost exclusively sail on short itineraries. And they CAN feel crowded, noisy and busy. But many people find that these types of ships suit their lifestyle. And that's fine.

 

The smaller ships are not restricted by their size, and can visit a great many more ports. And it is the smaller ships which offer the longer itineraries (and more sea days). The luxury lines are pretty much all smaller ships. Due to their size they do not offer the razzle dazzle extras of the mega ships, and tend to be quieter. But many people find that these types of ships suit their lifestyle. And that's fine too.

 

I see nothing condescending in that. Just reality.

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My problem is, why cruise? And be stuck with such a limited time in each place? If you don't like the cruising.

 

I would rather fly to Europe, maybe hit one or two places, and REALLY do them. Train or fly between the cities.

 

Your vacation, do what works for you.

 

I looked at Med cruises and do not like that they are almost a port a day, and you get such limited time in each city.

 

Cruising I have seen most of the major sea port cities in Europe and the Mediterranean.. We have well over 60 cruises many cities we have visited multiple times...and we keep going will by on the Royal Princess transatlantic out of Barcelona this October. We do independent land trips as well often before or after I cruise. Best of all worlds.

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We tend to get in and out in under an hour. :)

Don't understand why this would be a goal.:confused:

Sometimes this is handy. I feel an hour and a half is a reasonable time and sometimes on a large table it can be nearly 2 and half hours. If you are wanting to go and do something, or are not getting along with the table guests, I imagine this is a drag. If not, then it is simply a nice dinner.

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My problem is, why cruise? And be stuck with such a limited time in each place? If you don't like the cruising.

 

I would rather fly to Europe, maybe hit one or two places, and REALLY do them. Train or fly between the cities.

 

Your vacation, do what works for you.

 

I looked at Med cruises and do not like that they are almost a port a day, and you get such limited time in each city.

We did a cruise from Lisbon to Barcelona last spring. We spent several days in Lisbon at the start and Barcelona at the end. A number of the stops we're in smaller ports where a day gave us enough. Others, like Seville we might go back to sometime. So, the cruise plus land stays on each end gave us depth where we wanted and a nice breadth of other towns.

 

We did the same some years ago with a cruise from Istanbul to Athens. The small island stops we're interesting and about the right amount of time.

 

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We tend to get in and out in under an hour. :)

Don't understand why this would be a goal.:confused:

 

I would rather spend my evening doing something besides waiting for the menus, waiting for tablemates to order, waiting for tablemates to eat their appetizer, then their main, etc, etc.

 

it's not a goal to get out in an hour, it is just nice to have the evening free to do things rather than wait on my tablemates.

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We did a cruise from Lisbon to Barcelona last spring. We spent several days in Lisbon at the start and Barcelona at the end. A number of the stops we're in smaller ports where a day gave us enough. Others, like Seville we might go back to sometime. So, the cruise plus land stays on each end gave us depth where we wanted and a nice breadth of other towns.

 

We did the same some years ago with a cruise from Istanbul to Athens. The small island stops we're interesting and about the right amount of time.

 

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+1 We do the same thing. Some of the smaller towns we have enjoyed exploring but wouldn't want to stay there for an extended visit. Also as we drive on the other side of the road to Europe and North America and aren't comfortable driving there so it gives us a chance to see some smaller towns.

 

Next year we will spend 12 days in Paris prior to going down by rail to Barcelona to go on a cruise. So it is the best of both worlds. :). Especially since we will have time post cruise in Barcelona.

 

I understand the thread starters concerns. We have friends who love transatlantic and sea days and have trie to get us to join them. We did a LA - Sydney last year and by the third sea day out of LA we were wishing to have a port day. We do enjoy each others company and I like being in my own company but too many sea days causes cabin fever for us. This is where investing in a wifi package works for us.

 

Luckily there are many different cruises to suit each of us.

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We tend to get in and out in under an hour. :)

Don't understand why this would be a goal.:confused:

 

 

It doesn't take us very long to eat and we don't order multiple entrees. Also, some of the evening entertainment starts around 7:30 so there's time to stop by the room, change, use the bathroom, and head back out to get a good seat.

 

 

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We like sea days. One, two. But any more that two days and we have had enough. Did a TA with sea days. By day four we were both ready to jump overboard. The ship was beautiful, the weather fabulous, everything perfect. But four or five days at sea as too much for us.

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Then you should just fly to your favorite dive spot, and leave the cruising to those of us who enjoy it! ;):)

 

We enjoy cruising, too, but not for multiple sea days. One in a while is okay, but not multiples. And, we are flying to the Philippines for 15 days of wonderful diving in December rather than cruising anywhere.

 

I live part-time in San Carlos, Mexico on the Sea of Cortez, so sea days are no big deal for me. Only a couple hundred feet and I'm at the water.

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It is a good thing cruise lines offer a variety of itineraries so that every cruiser is happy. If everyone was the same it would be too crowded and also costly.

 

Agree, everyone has different wants and needs for their vacation. There is a multitude of lines, with different itineraries, to fit everyone's budget and idea of the proper vacation.:)

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It is a good thing cruise lines offer a variety of itineraries so that every cruiser is happy. If everyone was the same it would be too crowded and also costly.

 

 

Well said Mic.

 

I don't belittle my friends who enjoy lots of sea days and they don't give me a hard time about preferring more port days.

 

Telling people not to cruise or use Ferries if they don't like lots of sea days is rather rude.:rolleyes:

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Theres nothing more wonderful than the open ocean to me so thats the main appeal of a sea day.

 

I also love the relaxing respite from port days and how its on sea days where you usually meet cruise buddies and have time to really pamper yourself and glam up for the evening.

 

I do love ports more but I like a cruise thats 2 3rds ports and 1 3rd sea days.

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I would rather spend my evening doing something besides waiting for the menus, waiting for tablemates to order, waiting for tablemates to eat their appetizer, then their main, etc, etc.

 

If that's the extent of what you see as the MDR experience, I would recommend avoiding it altogether and utilize the Lido exclusively for your evening meals. You wouldn't have to deal with any of those annoying things..

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Every situation is different...how many sea days would you recommend for a family from Australia doing a Med cruise?

Med cruises are very port intensive (often a 7 day cruise will have only one sea day) so I would recommend alternating between full day and half day tours for the ports and possibly a stay somewhere after the cruise so that the family could recover/relax.

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If that's the extent of what you see as the MDR experience, I would recommend avoiding it altogether and utilize the Lido exclusively for your evening meals. You wouldn't have to deal with any of those annoying things..

 

We love eating in the MDR every night with YTD, so you can keep your recommendation.

 

We get a quiet table for two near a window out of the main traffic paths, and we don't have to deal with any of those annoying things. We get to talk to each other and have a wonderful "date night" every night of our cruise. We can chat with the table next to us, but only if we choose to do so. We can linger over dessert and drinks if we choose or head off to our evening activities.

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