LIVE Norwaylady sails on Edge World Cruise from Rome to Singapore 30.10 to 25.11.23 , 26.night

[KKB]

@Norwaylady Sorry to hear about your Luminae experience. Hoping it was a 1st day issue.

 

We were a bit underwhelmed w/ Luminae on Beyond in April but overall pleased. But we didn't find it particularly better than Edge or Apex MDRs...

 

Here's to better days!!!

[Norwaylady]

30 minutes ago, hcat said:

hope it improves.. too many glitches so far.. have you chatted with other Retreat guests to hear if they have similar experiences?

Have a Great Day!

Fingers crossed it will smooth out❤️ 

We had a chat by Mihail, hotel director and he said call me if things go wrong. 
 

So I’m confident that it will get better from now❤️ 

 

We have not talked to many people.
We don’t approach people up front. If it’s social appropriate (type in one off the bars or you’re sitting in a mixed table we do speak and chat. But we don’t walk up front to folks and start a conversation) It’s a cultural thing different from USA/Nordic country😂😂👍🏻

And I’m a “burned” child….. I was bullied and harassed heavy because of my younger brother not being A4 so I’m not shy, but I don’t take the first move. I was beaten so it gave me a concussion 🤕 and several other very gravy events. 
I need  to feel comfortable in the situation.

It’s a very strange thing, this doesn’t go away. 
So I’m very easy to talk to and have a conversation with. But it’s very hard for me to jump into the table❤️

[Lena11033]

10 minutes ago, Norwaylady said:

Fingers crossed it will smooth out❤️ 

We had a chat by Mihail, hotel director and he said call me if things go wrong. 
 

So I’m confident that it will get better from now❤️ 

 

We have not talked to many people.
We don’t approach people up front. If it’s social appropriate (type in one off the bars or you’re sitting in a mixed table we do speak and chat. But we don’t walk up front to folks and start a conversation) It’s a cultural thing different from USA/Nordic country😂😂👍🏻

And I’m a “burned” child….. I was bullied and harassed heavy because of my younger brother not being A4 so I’m not shy, but I don’t take the first move. I was beaten so it gave me a concussion 🤕 and several other very gravy events. 
I need  to feel comfortable in the situation.

It’s a very strange thing, this doesn’t go away. 
So I’m very easy to talk to and have a conversation with. But it’s very hard for me to jump into the table❤️

 

I get that, I am shy I grew up as an only child and was bullied for being different (I have a learning disability).

My dad was a lot older (we are talking he lived through world war 2) and my mum's family were strict older Glaswegians so for me kids were expected to just be quiet in social situations until spoken to so I have a harder time now socially.

If someone starts speaking to me no problem but I am not comfortable just starting a conversation with people.

 

[catgirl411]

If I remember correctly, you are doing two legs of a four leg Grand Voyage. If that’s the case, it is even more disappointing that the B2B aspects are not operating smoothly. I feel sorry for those who are doing the whole thing if that doesn’t improve. Do you think that part of what you are experiencing is because of the move up to The Retreat? 

[hcat]

so sorry about bullying.  It is tragic  and long lasting..more than just youthful banter or picking on each other.  Have worked with  victims..It is sad how mean and cruel some  people can be..they need help too!

 

On cruises some people are friendly... easy to ask "are you enjoying the cruise?..Did u go to the port ? How was the show,?"  if folks don't want to chat they will signal clearly ..

 

  My husb and I are  both shy and private  but enjoy chatting with  cruisers..like cruise critic!

[upwarduk]

52 minutes ago, catgirl411 said:

Do you think that part of what you are experiencing is because of the move up to The Retreat?

I thought it would be superior to verandah.
You certainly get more Captain’s Club points per night, as you are paying more.

We have never ever had to wait for the room stewards to do their job.

Edited November 14, 2023 by upwarduk

[Jim_Iain]

5 hours ago, Northern Aurora said:

Jim:  Since we have been to Dubai previously we stayed on board and we are SO glad we did.  The Retreat B2B passengers had it somewhat better than the B2B passengers who went a shore but it was still an appalling mess.  Absolute mess.  Never have experienced anything like it.  Zenith friends went outside and — even with a transit pass — they reported a two hour line to reboard.  One person fainted while in-line.  People are very upset, and I mean very upset.  I have seen some photos and they are appaling.
 

We had the CC welcome toast this am. Again sloppiness as some Zeniths did not receive an invitation.  We learned of it as Charles ran into the CC hostess.  She told me that she had prepared the invitations before the turnaround day (and I believe her).  Very poorly attended by all levels of the CC.  But Captain Matt announced that we have 51 Zeniths onboard for this leg.

 

Gerry

 

Thanks Gerry -    Incredible to hear how much of a mess it was.   At time things just spiral out of control.    We were on a cruise on Summit and due to a screw up 80% of the sea passes didn't have the drink packages printed on them.    You can imagine Customer Service with 1,600 on line.   The line went up the stairs and thru the Casino. 

 

The Hotel Director wasn't aware of it and it was brought up at the Zenith Lunch -   The Captain looked at him like --  we will be discussing this as he also was not aware.   How they didn't notice the lines is beyond me.

[Lastdance]

23 minutes ago, upwarduk said:

I thought it would be superior.

We have never ever had to wait for the room stewards to do their job.

Hmmm...we never did until our last cruise, a b2b and a new room attendant for the second part.  He had trouble the entire cruise.  Our first attendant tried working with him, as much as possible, but it was hit and miss.  We had never experienced anything like this before and hopefully will not in the future.  We sail Beyond again in a couple of weeks, but not a b2b.  I don’t expect this to be an issue.

Edited November 14, 2023 by Lastdance

[catgirl411]

10 minutes ago, upwarduk said:

I thought it would be superior to verandah.
You certainly get more Captain’s Club points per night, as you are paying more.

We have never ever had to wait for the room stewards to do their job.

Well, it was superior on Reflection but that was our only experience with the Retreat. Never had a problem with the promptness of the housekeeping.  Your experience so far makes me happier that we can’t afford the Retreat on future cruises. (We had an amazing deal on our Reflection TA…never to be seen again, I’m afraid). 

[Jim_Iain]

Alexandra and Jarle I wanted also express my sorry that your first day was a bit of a disaster.   The first night in Luminae (as well as many other dining rooms) is usually a train wreck).    It is one reason we often eat in Specialty Dining on the first night.    Luminae on the first day - especially they type turn around you have is also usually out of control.     I'm only pointing this out in hope that you will find it totally different today.    I think the main problem is the staff and passengers are settling in and getting to know each other and all kinds are problems are being attended to.    I am cautiously optimistic that you will find Luminae much different tonight.    Ask the receptionist to be seated  in a quieter area tonight and politely say we don't mind having to wait.

 

Last cruise there was this lady that was very drunk on the first night and overly loud.   The next night I asked the Maitre d' to be seated as far as possible from that loud lady -  He first said which one then smiled and said..... ahhh.. I know who you are speaking of.    We both laughed.  

Edited November 14, 2023 by Jim_Iain

[Ken the cruiser]

Wow @Norwaylady!! I'm so sorry to hear your transition to your first Sky Suite didn't go as smoothly as you were hoping. Here's hoping it gets better from here on out.

 

I do have a couple questions though. From what I have been reading, the "new" sky suite steward now has to double as the "butler" for all of their assigned SS cabins. If this is true, could this additional duty be causing him to periodically be detained elsewhere to perform "butler" service for a few of his "more demanding" SS guests, which is inadvertently causing your long wait times to have your cabin serviced? Hopefully not, but I was just curious.

 

My other question refers to the internet service on your SS balcony when the sliding balcony door is completely closed. When we were in an Edge SS on the port side back in Aug 2021, the internet service on our balcony was nonexistent until I cracked the sliding door open 3-4", which unfortunately also cuts off the AC in the cabin. I would periodically have to close the door as it would get a little toasty for my DW inside the cabin as we were in the Caribbean. Is that still the case?

 

In any event, here's hoping all gets smoothed out from here on and you have a great cruise!!

[39august]

Just tell your waiter in Luminae that you prefer a slower paced dinner experience. He will adapt to your specifications. 

[Jim_Iain]

A picture of Dubai says a 1,000 words...   Ouch

 

[The_Big_M]

As someone in a suite both legs our steward was unexpectedly very late last night, but has been fine for timing other nights.

 

Based on that I suspect this delay will only be a one off for norwaylady.

[BOB999]

Our stateroom attendant was changed in Dubai (same suite).  The previous one (who was outstanding) was moved to a different floor.  We have yet to meet the new one but the room gets cleaned, albeit on someone else's schedule.  Even the head butler when he stopped by had no clue who it was going to be, instead referred to the new one as "they" and I didn't sense it was because of a personal pronoun preference.

[hcat]

4 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

A picture of Dubai says a 1,000 words...   Ouch

 

hardly worth getting off the ship

total failure...

[Shiba_Lover]

4 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

A picture of Dubai says a 1,000 words...   Ouch

 

Ouch -- Jim - this is what our immigration line looked like when I mentioned (in the question about Southampton > Norway recently) we got stuck in one going from EU to UK onboard the Apex on a cruise.  Very painful.  

[Jim_Iain]

52 minutes ago, Shiba_Lover said:

Ouch -- Jim - this is what our immigration line looked like when I mentioned (in the question about Southampton > Norway recently) we got stuck in one going from EU to UK onboard the Apex on a cruise.  Very painful.  

 

I hate to say we once had a line like that at Heathrow.   They only had two immigration officers on  and took us 2 1/2 hours to clear.    We had a Limo Driver waiting and we stayed in touch with his office -   He didn't even want to charge us extra but we gave him a HUGE tip.

[cruise wizard]

5 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

A picture of Dubai says a 1,000 words...   Ouch

 

 

Looks like our experience in Vancouver at Canada Place with 4 ships in port and all funneled into one terminal. Those lines went inside, outside, up and down in elevators and escalators. Disney World was easier!!!

[Covepointcruiser]

We also had that experience in Heathrow, the longest immigration line ever.    We were all shuffled to one line, no global entry or Business Class line.    Didn’t enjoy this after being on a red eye flight.    We are going thru Brussels this time and they do have a different line for Business Class and you can also buy a pass for the expedited line for 12€ .

[Norwaylady]

So tonight’s show was Feel the Funk. Production show. Captain Matt had the  pleasure of welcoming new and old guests tonight before the show.

 

 

We went back (since this is the same show as last cruise) 

The cast was more on 🔥 fire this night( don’t know if it is the champagne kicking in😂)  But Mr also addressed it. The cast was even more on target tonight❤️

 

We had made a game plan for tonight. Eat later than yesterday! 

Hopefully the crowd has left the building and it will be a little calmer👍🏻

 

After the show we took a walk over to the Martini Bar/grand atrium. It was live music and good mood. 

We had a martini and enjoyed our time. 

At 20.39 we said it was time to go for dinner. 

It was definitely calmer when we arrived Luminae and we received a table off I-95👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

 

Mr wanted to try a cocktail from the dinner menu🍸

 

Today’s menu: 

 

 

We both had the lobster for starter. 

Mr asked for a green salad. 

For main i had the red snapper and Mr wanted the ribeye steak. 

 

Somalier service was at our table asap. He received our taste preference and then it was time to hit the show on the road🙃 

Mr received red wine as decried and I got a dry white ( Chardonnay) as asked ❤️

 

The meal service was more to our liking tonight. It went in a decent rhythm. Time to talk and enjoy our food. So much better then yesterday 🙌🏻

 

Chefs Taster 

 

The lobster starter tasted excellent. Really my cup of tea🦞😋

 

Mr asked for a plain green salad and it was as described👍🏻

 

My red snapper was tasty and the fish was nicely prepared and fits the purée well. 

 

Mr ordered the rib-eye steak and it looked good 👍🏻 

He said it tasted very good . 

 

tonight’s dessert menu: 

 

Mr tried the carrot 🥕 celebration 

I went for ice cream and macchiato. 

 

The chef stopped by our table after our dinner. He got the “list” of what’s going on for the last 15 days…. So they can address where it was hiccups and what has worked excellent 👌🏻 ( lots of great meals has left the galley in MDR🙃) But it’s better for them to know what they can work on and keep an eye on some details. 

 

After dinner it was time for bed😴

[Norwaylady]

Cruise Compass Day 3 Sea Day 2. Time change +30.min. We are now on Indian time. 
 

Letter for passport delivery for us that had our passports taken in Dubai. 
And information for those who don’t have visas in order. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[DaKahuna]

 @Norwaylady  Have you tried ordering room service breakfast yet?  I noticed you mentioned going down to Cafe al Bacio for morning coffee.  Have you tried calling your retreat host and asking for it to be delivered to you?  Under the old Butler service, our Butler use to bring us of morning coffee's as a designated time each morning. 

 

 

[Norwaylady]

1 hour ago, DaKahuna said:

 @Norwaylady  Have you tried ordering room service breakfast yet?  I noticed you mentioned going down to Cafe al Bacio for morning coffee.  Have you tried calling your retreat host and asking for it to be delivered to you?  Under the old Butler service, our Butler use to bring us of morning coffee's as a designated time each morning. 

 

 

Yesterday during the mingling in the retreat, we had to ask about breakfast… Do we order by the phone or by the paper form? 
 

We had searched the stateroom for an order form…. But couldn’t find a thing😝

Janelle said the best option is if it’s planned, use the paperwork. Otherwise you need to wait until it’s ready after you call room service…

So she said she would notify our stateroom attendant to deliver paperwork for orders. 
It was on the bed last night. 
It’s the same as in concierge cabins. 

 

 

I don’t know if we must pay for premium delivery? 
 

As for coffee…. We don’t have a butler. So I really think it’s something you need to go downstairs or up to OceanViev Al Bacio to get…. Or the Retreat lounge self service. 

[The_Big_M]

29 minutes ago, Norwaylady said:

Yesterday during the mingling in the retreat, we had to ask about breakfast… Do we order by the phone or by the paper form? 
 

We had searched the stateroom for an order form…. But couldn’t find a thing😝

Janelle said the best option is if it’s planned, use the paperwork. Otherwise you need to wait until it’s ready after you call room service…

So she said she would notify our stateroom attendant to deliver paperwork for orders. 
It was on the bed last night. 
It’s the same as in concierge cabins. 

 

 

I don’t know if we must pay for premium delivery? 
 

As for coffee…. We don’t have a butler. So I really think it’s something you need to go downstairs or up to OceanViev Al Bacio to get…. Or the Retreat lounge self service. 

The premium charge is only applied to non-suites. This is the version of the form we got.

 

Regarding coffee/tea our room attendant has asked a number of times if we want any, but we haven’t at the time, and when we’ve tried to call him, has been difficult to reach. But I think you can get it through your attendant if you have a regular schedule or times match up.

Edited November 15, 2023 by The_Big_M