Scenic Eclipse News

[RockyandMoose]

9 minutes ago, Holy Roller said:

Booking restaurants seems to be first come first served, however, our butler has offered to help and it may be that we get some preferential status.   We have some dates set but await others. We’ll wait and see.

We had  breakfast outside yesterday at the yacht club which was warm and sunny.

The hot tubs are up and running and there are some loungers though limited as the space taken up by the helipad is where an outside pool and lounge area would be.

i asked for towel hooks and yesterday they fitted 2 suction type hooks as temporaries.   Functional and I can’t fault the attention to our needs.

The ship is incredibly silent and unbelievably manoeuvrable.  Coming off our mooring in Key West and “spinning” to head out attracted crowds. I know that seas are very calm but nevertheless I’m certain that we’ll feel the benefit when we hit some rougher conditions. 
The open bridge policy is interesting and I spent a little time there yesterday morning before we docked.  Crew are justifiably proud of the ship’s abilities.

All for now.

To address your question about outdoor eating come out the yacht club has a retractable ceiling which would afford ample room for outdoor dining in warmer climes. Similarly The yacht club lounge has table service outside of the lounge area itself so there are options for eating outdoors.

[ZAPfOTO]

I just found this thread and certainly appreciate all the onboard reviews.  It has been very helpful as my wife and I plan to join the Eclipse in Cartagena on Oct. 30th.  We had concerns since we originally booked an Oct. 2018 Cuba cruise back in March of 2016 and had it canceled along with our Arctic cruise for this past summer.    We have rebooked for the Artic sailing for July 3rd, 2020.  

 

I wish there was some sort of Roll Call available for the Eclipse. 

 

Gary 

 

[Carol From California]

6 minutes ago, ZAPfOTO said:

I just found this thread and certainly appreciate all the onboard reviews.  It has been very helpful as my wife and I plan to join the Eclipse in Cartagena on Oct. 30th.  We had concerns since we originally booked an Oct. 2018 Cuba cruise back in March of 2016 and had it canceled along with our Arctic cruise for this past summer.    We have rebooked for the Artic sailing for July 3rd, 2020.  

 

I wish there was some sort of Roll Call available for the Eclipse. 

 

Gary 

 

Gary - Cruise Critic will hopefully set up a separate board for the Eclipse when the second ship is built. Same thing for the roll calls. There is a roll call for "all other cruise lines" and I have started a roll call for the July 3, 2020 Arctic sailing. It's on page 2, but when you add your name to it, it will move up to the first page. Like you we were booked on a different cruise and had to switch when the original cruise was cancelled. RockyandMoose are also booked on our cruise. We met them on this forum a few months ago and found out they live 5 minutes away from us. We've met them for dinner twice.  Enjoy your upcoming cruise!

Edited October 22, 2019 by Carol From California

[TahoeTraveler]

I have also started a roll call, albeit a bit late, for the 8 November 2019 Chilean Fjords and Ultimate Antarctica cruise.  I know "Melbourne people" are also on that cruise, but if anyone else will be on it, or will be joining us in Ushuaia on 26 November for the Ultimate Antarctica portion, please feel free to join the roll call.  I will most likely start a new "Live from the Scenic Eclipse to Antarctica" (or something like that) post here on Cruise Critic once we board the ship, to keep everyone updated there, as I'm afraid this post is going to become too long if I do it here.

[RockyandMoose]

7 hours ago, ZAPfOTO said:

I just found this thread and certainly appreciate all the onboard reviews.  It has been very helpful as my wife and I plan to join the Eclipse in Cartagena on Oct. 30th.  We had concerns since we originally booked an Oct. 2018 Cuba cruise back in March of 2016 and had it canceled along with our Arctic cruise for this past summer.    We have rebooked for the Artic sailing for July 3rd, 2020.  

 

I wish there was some sort of Roll Call available for the Eclipse. 

 

Gary 

 

We will be onboard as well.  Looking forward to meeting you.  We were on in September.  I promise you that the wait will have been worth it when you finally board.  The ship has a lot of WOW factor!

[LN50]

RockyandMoose, it must be an amazing ship for you to be on-board again so soon.

We join in Cartagena and travel to Lima, then we are on the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu  tour. Just sorting out all our packing. We are so excited about being on this new ship. 

[Holy Roller]

Dear RockyandMoose,

You may be right about the 2 sittings in the teppanyaki but as there’s only 125 guests on this sailing they may feel they can cope - until they can’t.

Last night we were invited to the chef’s table.  An amazing meal of 10 courses accompanied by 10 wines including Chateau Batailly.  This was a superb offering and very much appreciated by all. It was a cross between a culinary and a chemistry exercise.  The closest that we know to anything like last night is Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck restaurant in Bray, UK which has 3 Michelin stars and has been voted the best restaurant in the world.  To say it was special is a heavy understatement.  I know the table is by invitation only but try to get your butler on side - you won’t regret it.

[towel-animal]

On 10/21/2019 at 7:00 PM, Holy Roller said:

I forgot.  Towel-Animal, we’re on deck 9

 

Ah, we are on deck 8, but look forward to seeing you onboard soon! So glad you're having a fantastic time and appreciate you taking the time on your vacation to update us all! Every post is such a treat. 

 

When you have a moment for another update, could you explain how the complimentary laundry benefit for Spa Suites and above works? Curious if this is unlimited or once per cruise, and if things like pressing are included.

 

Wishing you a continued fabulous cruise.  

[RockyandMoose]

We agree. But I think you will find that if you speak to the maître d’ early on in the cruise and offer some degree of flexibility in terms of your Dining schedule the maître d’ will make it happen. You may have to go back a couple of times to check in over the course of a few days to make sure that the maître d’ is on top of the issue. With 125 passengers it should not be as difficult as you made fear it to be.  We were on a ship that was full to capacity and had no trouble dining there twice once toward the beginning of our cruising and once at the end. The other consideration of course is the seating time. Many people like to eat fairly early in the evening and an 8 o’clock or 830 seating is offputting to some which reduces the amount of demand.

 

Finally Heston Blumenthal came immediately to mind at the chef’s table because of the presentation of the Caprese salad.  We have only had the privilege of dining at the Heston Blumenthal restaurant when he was located at the Mandarin Oriental in London but the ingenuity of the dishes certainly had to of been inspired for Chef Tom.  We wonder if he perhaps did a stent in Heston‘s kitchens?! 

[Holy Roller]

Towel-animal, the laundry system was a mystery for the maid and butler who, when I asked what “limited” meant said that they had needed to ask the same question originally.  They said that basically a reasonable amount of laundry and pressing each day was complimentary.  If it was 3 bags a day then this could be considered over the limit.  See you in Cartegena.

R&M, I saw the Head Chef today to compliment him on the dinner and he admitted that he was an admirer of Heston and when I said that I felt that he was a worthy proponent of his culinary skills he seemed very happy.  I certainly felt that he was the closest I’d experienced.  I shall try to get a second bite of the cherry, though I would feel guilty if I deprived someone who desperately wanted to enjoy this of their opportunity.

[RockyandMoose]

Holy roller, scenic is fortunate or perhaps more properly we passengers are fortunate that Scenic got Chef Tom to join them.  He is truly a wunderkind and always gracious and quite visible all around the ship in every venue.  And so thin for a chef!  He just adds another WOW factor to the entire experience.  Continue to enjoy!  We wish we were there!

[salbags]

Holy Roller

 

Just wondering if you have been told yet whether we are going through the old or new canal?

Also do you or anyone else have any idea what the weather is likely to be going down the columbian and equator coast after the hot steamy Cartagena and Panama.  Just wondering if some warmer clothes will be necessary?   Lima says 20c and cloudy but its generally cooler out at sea?

 

 

[LN50]

1 hour ago, salbags said:

Holy Roller

 

Just wondering if you have been told yet whether we are going through the old or new canal?

Also do you or anyone else have any idea what the weather is likely to be going down the columbian and equator coast after the hot steamy Cartagena and Panama.  Just wondering if some warmer clothes will be necessary?   Lima says 20c and cloudy but its generally cooler out at sea?

 

 

I did a check on a long range weather website yesterday, just wondering what to pack. the results were Cartagena 32C, Panama Canal 30C, Salaverry 22C, Lima 21C I could not find the parks. But some large variance in temperatures. It seemed to show cloud, sun and rain most days. I take it from that I will just need to pack layers, and a waterproof. Well the weather won't spoil it for us. Getting very close now 😊

 

[Holy Roller]

The forecasts have tended to be unreliable.  Today had been forecast for a thunderstorm but we had glorious sunshine in Rostand Island which is a wonderful island with fabulous people.  Scenic laid on a great day and we’ve just left on our way to Isla de Providencia in 38 hours.

Unsure which canal but will try to find out. I’m hoping for the old canal.  

[Holy Roller]

I can now confirm that we plan to go through the old canal.  Today is at sea so after a very good brunch I went to the bridge (definitely worth a visit or two) and the helmsman went through the plans with me.  It is possible that we will go with another vessel which evidently makes it even more interesting.

Tomorrow is Isla de le Providencia where we are hoping for a deep dive in the sub.  The sub was cancelled at Roatan Island due to the swell so we are keeping our fingers crossed for tomorrow.  The trip is getting better and better and for those waiting to join us I guarantee that you won't be disappointed.  The vessel and the crew are magnificent.  Already we've decided to book another cruise on her, though we have to complete a few other trips that we've booked first.

RandM, the Executive chef is Bert who ran our Chef's Table.  I'm not sure who Chef Tom, that you mentioned, is?  Have I misunderstood?

[Carol From California]

3 minutes ago, Holy Roller said:

I can now confirm that we plan to go through the old canal.  Today is at sea so after a very good brunch I went to the bridge (definitely worth a visit or two) and the helmsman went through the plans with me.  It is possible that we will go with another vessel which evidently makes it even more interesting.

Tomorrow is Isla de le Providencia where we are hoping for a deep dive in the sub.  The sub was cancelled at Roatan Island due to the swell so we are keeping our fingers crossed for tomorrow.  The trip is getting better and better and for those waiting to join us I guarantee that you won't be disappointed.  The vessel and the crew are magnificent.  Already we've decided to book another cruise on her, though we have to complete a few other trips that we've booked first.

RandM, the Executive chef is Bert who ran our Chef's Table.  I'm not sure who Chef Tom, that you mentioned, is?  Have I misunderstood?

The original chef was Tom. Have they changed the chef already?  It's mentioned in this article:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/lauramanske/2019/09/09/peek-at-scenic-eclipse-new-ultra-luxurious-expedition-ship-dazzles-with-submarine-and-helicopters/#559f4e5d54ca

[RockyandMoose]

2 hours ago, Carol From California said:

The original chef was Tom. Have they changed the chef already?  It's mentioned in this article:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/lauramanske/2019/09/09/peek-at-scenic-eclipse-new-ultra-luxurious-expedition-ship-dazzles-with-submarine-and-helicopters/#559f4e5d54ca

Towel animal  had chef's table a night or two ago and Tom was the chef.  Perhaps he took a night off, or perhaps, having been onboard for a very long stretch, he now gets a vacation.  OR perhaps demand is so great that more than one Chef can host?  What was the menu?  That may tell us if other chefs are taking turns or this is Tom's protege or something else?  Please let us know.  We know that Tom handled the dinner when Holy Roller was there because as reported above, they had a conversation about how Tom's food was so familiar and of the same spirit and technique as Heston Blumenthal.

 

[RockyandMoose]

21 hours ago, Holy Roller said:

The forecasts have tended to be unreliable.  Today had been forecast for a thunderstorm but we had glorious sunshine in Rostand Island which is a wonderful island with fabulous people.  Scenic laid on a great day and we’ve just left on our way to Isla de Providencia in 38 hours.

Unsure which canal but will try to find out. I’m hoping for the old canal.  

Glad to hear you are having a great time and we take great pleasure in saying WE TOLD YOU IT WAS WORTH THE WAIT!

[TahoeTraveler]

Can anyone currently onboard, or who recently sailed (yes, I'm talking about you R&M!!) tell me if the Scenic Lounge Bar next to Guest Services serves strictly whisky's?  I saw a video where the crew member doing the tour called it their "Whisky Bar" and my paperwork says that it carries an impressive selection of Whisky's.  But, since this is apparently the only part of the ship that has musicians entertaining in the evenings, I'm curious as to whether or not I will have to get up and go elsewhere for libations when there (as I do NOT drink whisky, although hubby will be quite happy with it!!!).

 

Thanks for any info anyone can provide me!

Tami

[RockyandMoose]

Hi Tami,  while the lobby lounge boasts a substantial collection of whiskeys, in fact it is a full-service bar with all kinds of spirits and wine selections in addition to the very substantial amount of whiskey offerings. The lobby lounge bar is the most varied of all the bars on the ship. There is a separate champagne bar in Lumiere, a wine bar only in elements. The yacht club bar also has extensive offerings and also makes available hot drinks such as cappuccino, lattes etc.  and the added bonus of the lobby lounge is that there is a great piano and vocalist to do all that entertains during cocktail hour and after dinner until almost 1130 or 12 at night and lots of areas where you can sit and meet or spend time with passengers you come to meet on board. There is also a coffee maker that can make various times of plain and fancy coffees and teas for guest use adjacent to the bar in the lobby lounge.  Suffering from thirst is not an option on the eclipse! Something to drink is always just a few steps away be an alcoholic or nonalcoholic! And don’t forget that in addition to the duo in the lobby lounge area there are performances at least four times on a typical 10 day cruise – – when we were on board we saw a quartet from the Boston symphony, a quintet from the Halifax Symphony and the ships on entertainment hostess performed a night of classical music and a night of Broadway tunes both of which were outstanding as were the professional groups from the local Symphony orchestraS.

[TahoeTraveler]

10 minutes ago, RockyandMoose said:

Hi Tami,  while the lobby lounge boasts a substantial collection of whiskeys, in fact it is a full-service bar with all kinds of spirits and wine selections in addition to the very substantial amount of whiskey offerings. The lobby lounge bar is the most varied of all the bars on the ship. There is a separate champagne bar in Lumiere, a wine bar only in elements. The yacht club bar also has extensive offerings and also makes available hot drinks such as cappuccino, lattes etc.  and the added bonus of the lobby lounge is that there is a great piano and vocalist to do all that entertains during cocktail hour and after dinner until almost 1130 or 12 at night and lots of areas where you can sit and meet or spend time with passengers you come to meet on board. There is also a coffee maker that can make various times of plain and fancy coffees and teas for guest use adjacent to the bar in the lobby lounge.  Suffering from thirst is not an option on the eclipse! Something to drink is always just a few steps away be an alcoholic or nonalcoholic! And don’t forget that in addition to the duo in the lobby lounge area there are performances at least four times on a typical 10 day cruise – – when we were on board we saw a quartet from the Boston symphony, a quintet from the Halifax Symphony and the ships on entertainment hostess performed a night of classical music and a night of Broadway tunes both of which were outstanding as were the professional groups from the local Symphony orchestraS.

That ALL sounds lovely!  Thanks so much R&M!  Now if I can just figure out how to pack all the polar stuff I need (long johns, gloves, ear muffs, waterproof pants, etc) along with enough clothes for a 30 day cruise, all into one 50 pound suitcase, I'll be set!! Something tells me I'm going to be paying for excess baggage on our Aerolineas flight from Ushuaia to Buenos Aires at the end of the cruise (luckily our flights to and from South America have baggage included).

[RockyandMoose]

Remember you can bring more than one suitcase.  The bed can hold 4 large suitcases under it while onboard!

[TahoeTraveler]

17 minutes ago, RockyandMoose said:

Remember you can bring more than one suitcase.  The bed can hold 4 large suitcases under it while onboard!

Our limitation is the included flight from Ushuaia to Buenos Aires once the cruise ends.  It is on Aerolineas Airlines, and unless Scenic has paid for excess baggage, we are only allowed one bag apiece, from what I am reading and only one carry on, which is going to prove difficult, as we both have backpacks, plus we have a separate camera bag (no way am I going to Antarctic and just taking cell phone pictures!!!).  I don't mind paying for an extra bag, but everything I'm reading is that Scenic disclaims any responsibility if the airline refuses to let us take the extra bag, even for a fee. Since they've got us on an early morning flight, we really won't have the time to argue or work it if they refuse to let us pay for an extra bag. I've got my travel agent looking into it, but right now it's just causing me more stress.  I guess worst case scenario we skip the included flight and book our own that allows for extra baggage...luckily we don't fly home from Buenos Aires for a few days after we get to Ushuaia, so we'd have time to work it.

 

[RockyandMoose]

Are you relying on the scenic terms and conditions page or have you contacted the airline directly to find out what their excess baggage policy is? The terms and conditions page on the scenic reservation is not really necessarily controlling. And it is inartfully phrased it best.  I have two suggestions for you. The first is that you have your travel agent or you yourself call Scenic’s North America offices in Boston Massachusetts and speak to their guest services director or have your travel agent do so . The second suggestion is for you to call the airline directly to get an answer from them and take a look at seat guru to get the configuration of the plane to get a better idea if it is going to be a fairly large plane like a 737 or a very small plane like a regional jet. This will help you better determine what to do. As the last idea I wonder if you might want to contact an organization like luggage forward or luggage Concierge to see if they could pick up The other bag from the ship on disembarkation  and ship it home to you.  These are just suggestions. One thing that surprised us when we received our box with the various gifts, vouchers and other materials from scenic which constituted our cruise ticket delivery was the fact that they provided us with six baggage tags even though the terms and conditions implied that the two of us could bring a total of two pieces each including our roll-on’s suitcases.… I.e. one suitcase each and one roll-on each. We ended up bringing three suitcases, two roll-on‘s and a personal item/backpack for my wife and had no problem with the airlines nor with scenic nor any related porterage.

 

within the past week we had a situation concerning an upcoming cruise on the ship and a slight complication which was a substantial concern. Our travel agent was able to make contact within 48 hours with someone at scenic who is absolutely in authority out of their Boston office and we had a written reply which out for all the reassurance we needed and then some. We hope this information will be helpful to you and encouraging as you see clarification.

 

btw, According to the airlines website for the airline you mentioned which I believe is probably correctly called Aerolinas  Argentinas with the exception of the 3:50 PM flight in the afternoon which uses in Embraer aircraft all the rest of their flights are on 737 aircraft. These planes hold a lot of people and can hold a lot of luggage. Check with the airline directly because ultimately when it is time to check in at the airport you will have to go to the counter with your bags to check in.  The ship may get your bags to the airport and help unload them from the bus but then you will have to obtain your boarding pass and luggage tags from the airline representative which most likely I would think, but I cannot guarantee, would allow you to pay for extra baggage unless the airline restricts the amount of bags based on the class of service on the aircraft that you have for your reservation i.e. first class or coach. Good luck and have a great time!
 

 

Edited October 28, 2019 by RockyandMoose
Modify text and correct spelling

[TahoeTraveler]

5 minutes ago, RockyandMoose said:

Are you relying on the scenic terms and conditions page or have you contacted the airline directly to find out what their excess baggage policy is? The terms and conditions page on the scenic reservation is not really necessarily controlling. And it is inartfully phrased it best.  I have two suggestions for you. The first is that you have your travel agent or you yourself call Scenic’s North America offices in Boston Massachusetts and speak to their guest services director or have your travel agent do so . The second suggestion is for you to call the airline directly to get an answer from them and take a look at seat guru to get the configuration of the plane to get a better idea if it is going to be a fairly large plane like a 737 or a very small plane like a regional jet. This will help you better determine what to do. As the last idea I wonder if you might want to contact an organization like luggage forward or luggage Concierge to see if they could pick up The other bag from the ship on disembarkation  and ship it home to you.  These are just suggestions. One thing that surprised us when we received our box with the various gifts, vouchers and other materials from scenic which constituted our cruise ticket delivery was the fact that they provided us with six baggage tags even though the terms and conditions implied that the two of us could bring a total of two pieces each including our roll-on’s suitcases.… I.e. one suitcase each and one roll-on each. We ended up bringing three suitcases, two roll-on‘s and a personal item/backpack for my wife and had no problem with the airlines nor with scenic nor any related porterage.

 

within the past week we had a situation concerning an upcoming cruise on the ship and a slight complication which was a substantial concern. Our travel agent was able to make contact within 48 hours with someone at scenic who is absolutely in authority out of their Boston office and we had a written reply which out for all the reassurance we needed and then some. We hope this information will be helpful to you and encouraging as you see clarification.
 

 

Yes, I have gotten online with Aerolineas and seen their baggage limits.  Unless Scenic has made arrangements to have our luggage included as part of the cost of the cruise, the ticket category they got for us allows zero bags unless you pay a fee. Given that that doesn't fit into Scenic's luxury profile, I'm sure they have coordinated with the airline to allow us each to have one bag.  Anything beyond that appears to be our responsibility.  I have asked my travel agent to contact Scenic and clarify exactly what kind of ticket they got for us and exactly what luggage Aerolineas will allow us to bring with that particular ticket.  And we only got two luggage tags each, presumably for each of us to have the one suitcase plus a carry on or backpack.  So it does seem as if Scenic is llimiting our luggage.  Hopefully our travel agent can get a definitive answer...because I'm sure that on a cruise of that length with the requirement to take so much cold weather gear, I am not the only one concerned about this! Thanks for the info...I'm sure it will all work out (it kind of has to, I guess, as I won't be leaving any luggage behind, regardless of the cost to get it back home!!).