Enrichment Voyages .. anyone heard of them?

[florida frank]

i get there before noon.....hopefully won`t have to wait for you guys before heading to puntranous !!!!!!!!!!!!!:)

[Southrim1]

Ontdi

 

I see that you made it through the Panama Canal today.

 

Here's your transit through the Miraflores Lock. Enjoy.

 

[QuePasa]

Thanks for the video!!!

[ontdi]

Southrim1,

The video was nearly as good as doing the transit of the canal in person!

 

We did a tour from Cristobal yesterday that took us to the old town of Casco Antiguo. It was very interesting.

The skyline of new Panama City is a beautiful to see. Also it is interesting to see the canal from different places.

 

The included box lunch was a small sandwich with the crusts removed & a Special K bar! Yum!

Again thanks for the video.

Dianne

[MMDown Under]

Ontdi

 

I see that you made it through the Panama Canal today.

 

Here's your transit through the Miraflores Lock. Enjoy.

 

 

Isn't the Internet just wonderful!!

 

Thanks so much for the Video.

[Southrim1]

Been on board the MV Explorer for just over a week now. Been way too busy to get on the site, but have a few moments to report updates.

 

Getting to San Jose, Costa Rica and then down to the port of Punta Arenas was a bit of hassle, but as they say in Costa Rica, Pura Vida!

 

The port call at Corinto, Nicaragua was interesting and unlikely port call for most ships, but then the MV Explorer is a very different type of "cruise ship."

 

The contrast between Nicaragua and Costa Rica (neighbors) is dramatic. Took a bus trip up to Leon, which is in need of quite a bit of work, but when you are talking about a city founded in the 17th Century where very little seems to have changed.

 

Passage through the Panama Canal was event. Not to be missed for anyone taking more than a single sea voyage, especially in Central America.

 

The itinerary brought us to Puerto Limon and Costa Rica for the second time in the space of a week. The trip over to Cahuita National Park was a major surprise. Walked thought the jungle, looked at animals and returned along a beautiful beach to the starting point. Lunch was suppose to be short, but the handful on the trip stretched it out to 2 1/2 hours as the guide didn't seem to mind. Lovely place. Highly recommended to anyone looking for nothing to do but relax. The city of Puerto Limon, however, needs a complete makeover.

 

Roatan. Despite the earthquake two days earlier was untouched and a garden spot. Took cab over to West Bay and hung out all day. Water is beautiful, shops are over-priced, but the food (Half Moon Bay restaurant) was excellent. Beer was cold. Paradise. Didn't want to leave.

 

Biggest complaint on the ship last year (same ship, MV Explorer) was the food. Major improvement this year. More variety and tomorrow night we are having our third BBQ when we return from Livingston. Three times they served Hamburgers on the Pool Deck for lunch — made to order. So the ship went from a 9.5 to a 10 this year. Perfect. Perfect. Perfect.

 

Anyone looking for a voyage out of the ordinary will not be disappointed by the MV Explorer and its unique "between semesters" Enrichment Voyages.

 

That's it for now. Having fun.

[MMDown Under]

Been on board the MV Explorer for just over a week now. Been way too busy to get on the site, but have a few moments to report updates.

 

Getting to San Jose, Costa Rica and then down to the port of Punta Arenas was a bit of hassle, but as they say in Costa Rica, Pura Vida!

 

The port call at Corinto, Nicaragua was interesting and unlikely port call for most ships, but then the MV Explorer is a very different type of "cruise ship."

 

The contrast between Nicaragua and Costa Rica (neighbors) is dramatic. Took a bus trip up to Leon, which is in need of quite a bit of work, but when you are talking about a city founded in the 17th Century where very little seems to have changed.

 

Passage through the Panama Canal was event. Not to be missed for anyone taking more than a single sea voyage, especially in Central America.

 

The itinerary brought us to Puerto Limon and Costa Rica for the second time in the space of a week. The trip over to Cahuita National Park was a major surprise. Walked thought the jungle, looked at animals and returned along a beautiful beach to the starting point. Lunch was suppose to be short, but the handful on the trip stretched it out to 2 1/2 hours as the guide didn't seem to mind. Lovely place. Highly recommended to anyone looking for nothing to do but relax. The city of Puerto Limon, however, needs a complete makeover.

 

Roatan. Despite the earthquake two days earlier was untouched and a garden spot. Took cab over to West Bay and hung out all day. Water is beautiful, shops are over-priced, but the food (Half Moon Bay restaurant) was excellent. Beer was cold. Paradise. Didn't want to leave.

 

Biggest complaint on the ship last year (same ship, MV Explorer) was the food. Major improvement this year. More variety and tomorrow night we are having our third BBQ when we return from Livingston. Three times they served Hamburgers on the Pool Deck for lunch — made to order. So the ship went from a 9.5 to a 10 this year. Perfect. Perfect. Perfect.

 

Anyone looking for a voyage out of the ordinary will not be disappointed by the MV Explorer and its unique "between semesters" Enrichment Voyages.

 

That's it for now. Having fun.

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to provide an update of your experiences on board.

 

Looking forward to future updates, in due course.

 

Keep having fun.

[VM_Mom]

My oldest daughter, who is a college student, wants to go on the December-January Panama Enrichment Voyage. I would like for my younger daughter to go along too. I read some reviews that most of those participating on these cruises are retirees? Is that true? If that is the case, I don't know that this is the right trip for them.

 

Also, I called the contact at semester at sea who assured me my younger daughter (16) is fine to travel with her older sister, who will be 21. This surprised me. Thoughts?

[Southrim1]

My oldest daughter, who is a college student, wants to go on the December-January Panama Enrichment Voyage. I would like for my younger daughter to go along too. I read some reviews that most of those participating on these cruises are retirees? Is that true? If that is the case, I don't know that this is the right trip for them.

 

Also, I called the contact at semester at sea who assured me my younger daughter (16) is fine to travel with her older sister, who will be 21. This surprised me. Thoughts?

 

The Enrichment Voyages do tend to mirror regular cruise ship demographics, but with your daughter’s ages of 21 and 16 they will still have a good time on the ship. It’s not like they are playing bingo all day long. Remember, this is not a cruise ship, but the floating campus for the Semester at Sea program, so it has the feel of a college campus. It lacks a casino, stand-alone restaurants and elaborate floorshows, which are the normal trappings of a cruise ship.

 

Instead, the Enrichment Voyages feature college professors (all alumni from previous Semester at Sea Voyages) who are experts in their fields, especially for Central American music, history, geology, astronomy, the various cultures, etc. They give daily lectures on what you can expect to see in the various ports, plus they are available to chat with just like any other passenger … and my experience from the two Enrichment Voyages I’ve been on is that they are more than eager to engage in conversation about the places the ship visits. It’s a unique experience.

 

The food is cafeteria style, with BBQ on deck from time to time throughout the voyage. There’s always something to eat. Plus there are the in-port eating opportunities. There are four bars on the ship, including a wine bar (limited hours). Coffee is available 24/7 in the dinning room on Deck 6 (never a shortage of things to eat). The rooms are nice, if somewhat Spartan in nature (private bathroom with shower, TV with six channels, two beds, in-cabin safe for small valuables and closet storage).

 

In addition, the entire ship is wi-fi (bring your laptop) and Enrichment Voyage passengers have FREE unlimited internet access for email and online web use. If you don’t bring your own laptop, there are 20 or so computers available 24/7 in the computer lab. Since this is a floating university, there is also an 8,000 volume library, which is also open 24/7.

 

Best of all are the ports of call. The MV Explorer goes places that cruise ships do not necessarily go. For example, the Christmas voyage that you are thinking about sending your daughters on has both Puerto Quetzal, Guatemala and Corinto, Nicaragua on the way down to Panama. You won’t find either port on regular cruise stops (take the half-day tour to León, Nicaragua, they simply do not see tourists there — it’s a beautiful Spanish-colonial city that is like a time capsule). Also brush up on the writing of Rubén Darío, the national poet of Nicaragua, they are very proud of him and what he represents to Central American culture.

 

The transit of the Canal is the centerpiece to the voyage — it is an experience that both of your daughters will carry with them throughout their lives. Puerto Limo, Costa Rica is a wonderful little city (lots of day-trips to enjoy here — rafting is fun if the rivers are up). Roatan, Honduras is an English-speaking part of the country (island off the coast) … a trip to West End is a must (food is excellent).

 

St. Thomas De Castilla, Guatemala is another off-the-beaten path port of call. Take the day-trip to Livingston (excellent food) ... it is a small city that has no roads and can only be reached by water taxi. Belize, cave tubing, that's a must at Jaguar's Paw ... and Cozumel gives them a chance to take a day-trip to Chitzen Itza.

 

I hope this helps. Short of actually attending a Semester at Sea voyage (usually around the world), an Enrichment Voyage aboard the MV Explorer is the next best thing!

[florida frank]

i agree with southrim having also been on two voyages on the explorer. i also enjoy the community college program that provides real world experiences from fellow cruisers. i personally have presented as well as attended these classes.

 

if your daughters enjoy cruising and also learning about the places visited they will be fine. if they are looking for the "carnival" type cruise they probably won`t.

i am thinking about the upcoming May cruise as it will offer many port cities i have not been too.

 

frank