Jim_Iain Apex Key West, TansAtlantic and British Isle with a Week in Amsterdam

[kwokpot]

I would also like to thank you for another detailed and wonderful trip report.You provided many helpful suggestions that will be useful when we board the Apex in July. 

[AF-1]

You pictures were amazing and they told a great story of each city you visited.  Cheers

[carolyn22]

Thank you so much for sharing your adventures with us!  I look forward to seeing what you think of other cruise lines. 
 

Since many folks are talking about itineraries, I would love to see Celebrity do a world cruise or even Grand Voyages like Holland America does.  Overall I like Celebrity’s product better than HAL’s, but HAL has itineraries that I’m more interested in. 

[Mike981]

Well my friend you have done it again, wonderful job. Thank you!

 

As others have said, I look forward to hearing your adventures on other lines. We recently booked an Aqua room on the Silhouette for this coming January, but are also looking at other lines to try. That said, it is hard to compare lines now since Covid, from what I have read ALL lines have been effected for the worse. Then add in the issue (as you just experienced) of air travel today.

[haynesra]

On 5/26/2023 at 4:16 PM, rwf1 said:

 

We will be flying Delta as well. Would you mind saying what you found confusing? Do you check in at KLM instead of a Delta counter? Appreciate any info. Thanks!

I was looking for Delta but was told KLM (partner). Only once in KLM line did I notice the check-in screens at KLM counter would switch between KLM, Delta and someone else I can't remember. There was nothing really telling us to go there. My first time flying in/out of AMS in addition.

[rwf1]

 

haynesra:  Thanks so much for the information!

Edited May 28, 2023 by rwf1

[hawkesbaynz]

Great review Jim. Fantastic photos. I recollect your Weymouth photos were so reminiscent of Victorian postcards. Iain looked like he was having a great time. Your bro-in-law looked a bit perplexed but am sure he was having a ball.
 

Will be interested on your take on other lines. There are some great itineraries out there to enjoy on cruise ships, big & small. After two great Oceania cruises (South America was outstanding) we are trying Princess next week. Had a a penchant for Istanbul and a bit of Greece island hopping and they had a good itinerary. Then back to X for Japan, Thailand, India, and the new Ascent. Who knows after that! Am saving my Virgin points for a free cruise in October on their cruise line.

[Jim_Iain]

15 hours ago, chemmo said:

Firstly, thanks again for another wonderful vicarious cruise.

 

I must say we looked at some of the smaller lines itineraries a couple of years ago. Much as we like the Celebrity product cruising is about itinerary too and, as you say, some of the smaller lines offer itineraries in the South Pacific, Indian Ocean, Africa and the Far East that the mainstream lines simply can not match.

 

I will be interested in your views as you try new lines. We had two sets of friends independently book Silver Seas just before covid…One couple loved it and have further cruises booked, the other couple enjoyed the itinerary but disliked the ambiance on board and wouldn’t book again. Sometimes you simply have to try something new to see if it suits you…

 

Good to hear.  We have some friends from Sydney that travel Ponant regularly and just ended a 14 day Med Cruise with them.   Before we commit to flying 1/2 way around the world and find we don't like the product we booked 7 day Great Lakes Cruise.   I think it should give us a basic understanding and will see how it goes.

[Jim_Iain]

11 hours ago, terrydtx said:

We are also looking at other lines for itineraries as well. The 18 day Oceania cruise of South America in March 2025 was so much better than what Celebrity is doing for only 14 days. The August 2024 Volendam HAL cruise of NE and Canada has an itinerary and small ship that Celebrity and even Oceania can match, so we are straying too, After making Elite with Celebrity and no longer wanting to cruise the Caribbean after next week, we find Celebrity's itineraries are getting too boring and repetitive. Also Celebrity has too many shorter cruises unless you pay more and do B2B cruises.

 

I hope you will comeback here and do a comparison of Celebrity to Ponant.

 

I believe I will do the Comparison here on Celebrity.    The Ponant Board is VERY SMALL and I would feel like I was taking it over.   They only have 15 pages of posts and most posts have fewer than 10 replies. 

[Jim_Iain]

10 hours ago, hcat said:

Is there a CC Board for that?

Hope you will post a link on Celeb Bd...

 

Such a shame Celeb is willing to let Zeniths move on..esp ones who have a big  presence with an on line following!  Even some  who  are not Zeniths like Gen X have tested the waters elsewhere! 

 

 We have  2 "X " cruises booked but are no longer frequent cruisers...just relaxing alot in Fl during the season and enjoying 3 seasons here in NY. Granchilden!!

 

CC has a Ponant  Forum https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/846-ponant  but very small.  Also they don't have Roll Calls.

[Jim_Iain]

9 hours ago, jaapie said:

If you visit South Africa, instead of flying from Johannesburg to Cape Town, for a wonderful experience be sure to take the Blue Train from Pretoria to Cape Town (Pretoria is not far from Johannesburg's international airport). Then when in Cape Town stay at the Mount Nelson Hotel.

 

Thanks for the information.   Will definitely look into it.  I have so much to learn about Africa.

[Jim_Iain]

8 hours ago, kwokpot said:

I would also like to thank you for another detailed and wonderful trip report.You provided many helpful suggestions that will be useful when we board the Apex in July. 

Look forward to reading your Live Report.    Always enjoy them.

[Jim_Iain]

8 hours ago, AF-1 said:

You pictures were amazing and they told a great story of each city you visited.  Cheers

 

I really enjoy photography and probably shot a dozen pictures on my walk today.   Due to all the rains this year there is definitely a Super Bloom in progress.    I really feel sorry for those with allergies.

[Jim_Iain]

8 hours ago, carolyn22 said:

Thank you so much for sharing your adventures with us!  I look forward to seeing what you think of other cruise lines. 
 

Since many folks are talking about itineraries, I would love to see Celebrity do a world cruise or even Grand Voyages like Holland America does.  Overall I like Celebrity’s product better than HAL’s, but HAL has itineraries that I’m more interested in. 

 

I think me may see more of those longer voyages.   The 4 segment Edge "World Cruise" is a good start. 

 

Actually the one I was on had a lot of multi segment travelers.   Many did the Caribbean, TA, Norway and then the British Isle Cruise.

 

While I really enjoyed our adventure the British Isle cruise was REALLY PORT INTENSIVE.    It left us begging for a sea day.

 

 

[Jim_Iain]

3 hours ago, Mike981 said:

Well my friend you have done it again, wonderful job. Thank you!

 

As others have said, I look forward to hearing your adventures on other lines. We recently booked an Aqua room on the Silhouette for this coming January, but are also looking at other lines to try. That said, it is hard to compare lines now since Covid, from what I have read ALL lines have been effected for the worse. Then add in the issue (as you just experienced) of air travel today.

 

I think things will settle out.   There is really a huge pent up demand of those that have not traveled since Covid and even getting a Passport Renewed is a challenge.      I may try to renew mine early -  I have plenty of time but running out of pages.

[Jim_Iain]

2 hours ago, haynesra said:

I was looking for Delta but was told KLM (partner). Only once in KLM line did I notice the check-in screens at KLM counter would switch between KLM, Delta and someone else I can't remember. There was nothing really telling us to go there. My first time flying in/out of AMS in addition.

 

It is always confusing when there is a code share.   I noticed our flight was changing between UA and LH.

[Jim_Iain]

 

Well we had a big surprise -    We were reluctant to Weigh In after being away for so long.   Wasn't too worried as my clothing didn't feel tight.  

 

The night we arrived home I weighed and had lost 5 pounds.    I figured it was water loss after being airborne at low humidity for so long.   I've weighed myself daily since and still about 3 pounds below what I was pre-cruise.   I have one of those electronic scales that uploads everytime I weigh so pretty easy to track.    

 

Iain next tried and he is at the same weight as before the cruise. 

 

Wasn't too surprised as I have a tendency to graze when at home.   While on a cruise we ask our butler not to bring treats and nothing in our room to nibble on.  

 

 

[Cruising Is Bliss]

12 hours ago, terrydtx said:

We are also looking at other lines for itineraries as well. The 18 day Oceania cruise of South America in March 2025 was so much better than what Celebrity is doing for only 14 days. The August 2024 Volendam HAL cruise of NE and Canada has an itinerary and small ship that Celebrity and even Oceania can match, so we are straying too, After making Elite with Celebrity and no longer wanting to cruise the Caribbean after next week, we find Celebrity's itineraries are getting too boring and repetitive. Also Celebrity has too many shorter cruises unless you pay more and do B2B cruises.

 

I hope you will comeback here and do a comparison of Celebrity to Ponant.

 

Oh yeah, the sweet spot for me is HAL's R class ships, Zaandam & Volendam. Small enough to get in to many more ports, big enough for good sea days. I started out on RC, switched to Celebrity for a itinerary, then to HAL for an itinerary, both for a while, since then it's just been HAL because of their more interesting itineraries and longer cruises. I'm doing two cruises next year and really looking forward to both of them.

2024 Grand Australia & New Zealand, RT San Diego, 94 days, on Zaandam.

2024 Alaska, RT Seattle, 28 days, summer solstice at the Arctic Circle, on Westerdam. More than a year away and it's completely sold out.

 

Edited May 29, 2023 by Cruising Is Bliss

[Ex-Airbalancer]

58 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

While I really enjoyed our adventure the British Isle cruise was REALLY PORT INTENSIVE.    It left us begging for a sea day.

One reason not to travel on Oceania , not enough seadays 😁

[upwarduk]

7 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

While I really enjoyed our adventure the British Isle cruise was REALLY PORT INTENSIVE.    It left us begging for a sea day.

We were surprised how much we enjoyed our British Isles cruise, which we took in July 2021, when it was our only option post COVID.

In fact we were really lucky, as Scotland open up for tourists the day before we arrived!!

[chemmo]

7 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

Well we had a big surprise -    We were reluctant to Weigh In after being away for so long.   Wasn't too worried as my clothing didn't feel tight.  

 

The night we arrived home I weighed and had lost 5 pounds.    I figured it was water loss after being airborne at low humidity for so long.   I've weighed myself daily since and still about 3 pounds below what I was pre-cruise.   I have one of those electronic scales that uploads everytime I weigh so pretty easy to track.    

 

Iain next tried and he is at the same weight as before the cruise. 

 

Wasn't too surprised as I have a tendency to graze when at home.   While on a cruise we ask our butler not to bring treats and nothing in our room to nibble on.  

 

 

With all the walking you do I am not in the least surprised! Also much as you enjoy your food, as you say, not filling up on snacks definitely helps! 

 

We have rarely gain weight on cruises either… As we have often had a busy city break before boarding that helps then on board we tend to keep to ‘either or’ for food choices. Either we have a big breakfast or a decent lunch but not both. At dinner nothing is banned but we stick to not feeling the need to clean every plate…

[chemmo]

7 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

Good to hear.  We have some friends from Sydney that travel Ponant regularly and just ended a 14 day Med Cruise with them.   Before we commit to flying 1/2 way around the world and find we don't like the product we booked 7 day Great Lakes Cruise.   I think it should give us a basic understanding and will see how it goes.

Excellent idea! Seven nights is long enough to get an overview of the line… the food, the ambiance, the entertainment….

Edited May 29, 2023 by chemmo

[Mike981]

17 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

Good to hear.  We have some friends from Sydney that travel Ponant regularly and just ended a 14 day Med Cruise with them.   Before we commit to flying 1/2 way around the world and find we don't like the product we booked 7 day Great Lakes Cruise.   I think it should give us a basic understanding and will see how it goes.

 

Any stops in Duluth, MN?

 

17 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

I believe I will do the Comparison here on Celebrity.    The Ponant Board is VERY SMALL and I would feel like I was taking it over.   They only have 15 pages of posts and most posts have fewer than 10 replies. 

 

Glad to hear this, I was trying to figure out how I was going to follow along. After you mentioned months ago that you were going to try Ponant, I went and looked at their board and it is very bare.

 

17 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

I really enjoy photography and probably shot a dozen pictures on my walk today.   Due to all the rains this year there is definitely a Super Bloom in progress.    I really feel sorry for those with allergies.

 

It is turning out to be a banner year for allergies here in Central MN. Record breaking snow falls this winter and now record breaking dry weather and high winds. Sniffle, sniffle, cough, cough.

 

17 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

I think things will settle out.   There is really a huge pent up demand of those that have not traveled since Covid and even getting a Passport Renewed is a challenge.      I may try to renew mine early -  I have plenty of time but running out of pages.

 

I hope you are correct that things will settle out. My worry is that the bottom line will be more important than customer satisfaction. When all do the same, you have little choice but to go with the new reality.

 

My wife and I just got are new Passport photo's done at Walgreens to start the renewal process. We have over six months, so we should be good.

 

Congrats on the weight loss. My first cruise (2000 Celebrity Mercury) was the opposite. We had lost a lot of weight on a low carb diet before our trip and then enjoyed the wonderful bread baskets and anything else we wanted. In a seven day cruise I gained 15 pounds. Yea, 15lbs. But like I always say, I am pretty good at losing weight but the weight is better at coming back and they invite friends.

[ProfMHC]

Thanks for allowing us to tag along. Especially enjoyed your port pictures and the many “heads’ up” you shared.  We did so enjoy meeting you and Iain and thoroughly loved the Apex design and amenities. But we will be returning to Princess for our next two and may try another transatlantic with them as well. Being elite with them and advance booking to score the stateroom type we love makes it a no brainer (price being lower doesn’t hurt). We anxiously await their new ships and have already booked one for ‘24. Hope they can match the beautiful style, design, and modernity of the Apex! 

[candr]

21 hours ago, haynesra said:

I was looking for Delta but was told KLM (partner). Only once in KLM line did I notice the check-in screens at KLM counter would switch between KLM, Delta and someone else I can't remember. There was nothing really telling us to go there. My first time flying in/out of AMS in addition.

While the check in counter signs say Delta, I believe KLM handles arrangements for Delta out of Amsterdam.  We were on a flight to NY booked on and operated by Delta, but Use of the lounge and boarding priorities were governed by KLMs rules not Deltas.  You can find out more about this on Delta’s website.