General Immersion Thread (merged)

[Mines]

Next you are going to tell me that you think that stores in Europe should put up prices in USD while you are on vacation. The ship is in Europe or Brazil (for example) why should the currency be the USD? Until I can cruise and pay for everything in CAD... this argument doesn't hold any water whatsoever.

 

 

I have never been on a cruise where the on-board currency was anything except US$. Particularly in South America the local currency is not freely tradeable, so it is unlikely that they will change.

 

I can understand a wish to change to Euros in Europe because of the exchange rates. It is a double-edged precident to set, however. Would they change back again if the exchange rate went in the other direction?

 

I think they should stick to US$. Most of the products come from the US anyway.

[jbond]

Next you are going to tell me that you think that stores in Europe should put up prices in USD while you are on vacation. The ship is in Europe or Brazil (for example) why should the currency be the USD? Until I can cruise and pay for everything in CAD... this argument doesn't hold any water whatsoever.

Guess I must have made my point, now that you have switched tactics and are putting words in my mouth.

They will still have service in English. The menus are in English. They will have some local favorites mixed with international fare. They will seat you with other English speaking people. And you still have the run of the ship and English excursions. That you aren't the majority of the cruisers... that you won't be. And the prices will be in the local currency.

How many immersion cruises have you done? We just completed on from Brazil. It wasn't advertised as such, but RCI switched ports after we had made final payment, shore excursions were canceled because of insufficient English speaking passengers, menus were in English, but with mass produced local style food and prices were in US$. The main issue on these immersion threads is that people booked a cruise and LATER were informed that it was an immersion. It has nothing to to do with cultural sharing, it's a lack of upfront disclosure.

[Mines]

We do know which cruises are immersion cruises, because they have the message written next to the map.

 

Not true in all cases. Our 6/27/08 Jewel of The Seas cruise is an immersion cruise but there is no notation on the web site to this effect!

 

This does seem strange. Cruises to the Baltic on Jewel do not qualify as immersion cruises under the definition. They always have about 75% either Amercians or British. Scandinavians do not normally reach 10% and Russian presence is minimal. It does not make sense that many Russians would travel to Harwich to take a boat back to Russia and terminate in Harwich again.:(

[Gixer]

dathy - just wanted to let you know that today I have gone ahead and cancelled out IOTS cruise out of Southampton. I thought about it long and hard since you brought immersion cruises to our attention. I decided to cancel because this trip for us was never about the ports, it was always about sailing RCCL.

 

We have been to many of the ports many times, and decided when we looked at the itinerary that for most of them we wouldnt even bother getting off the ship, instead choosing to throw ourselves totally into the onboard experience.

 

Well that onboard experience has now changed from what I originally booked, I happen to love American crispy bacon, buttermilk pancakes, sausage links and maple syrup, I can get regular bacon & sausages anytime anywhere, I cant get an all American breakfast where I live!

 

I have nothing against my fellow Brit passangers, infact I would have loved to cruise with a whole ship full of them, providing the ship was offering what it originally promised to, sadly this is no longer the case.

 

Again, I will state that if I wanted British cruising I would have booked it, I dont want it forced upon me, therfore in light of everything we decided it was best to cancel the cruise and take a land vacation instead.

 

Good luck with whatever descision you make :)

[Ephraim]

I have never been on a cruise where the on-board currency was anything except US$. Particularly in South America the local currency is not freely tradeable, so it is unlikely that they will change.

 

I can understand a wish to change to Euros in Europe because of the exchange rates. It is a double-edged precident to set, however. Would they change back again if the exchange rate went in the other direction?

 

I think they should stick to US$. Most of the products come from the US anyway.

 

Most of the products come from the US? What's still made in the US? The Chinese clothing? The Swiss watches? The French scarves and perfume? The Russian Vodka?

 

Oh... the Seattle's Best Coffee, the artificially flavoured food (since New Jersey is the source of the world's flavouring.) and some bourbon?

[Ephraim]

Guess I must have made my point, now that you have switched tactics and are putting words in my mouth.

 

No, I'm just pointing out using sarcasm that I don't believe your point is defensible. It's the same old argument over again.... except that it doesn't hold water anymore. This is an International cruise.

 

How many immersion cruises have you done? We just completed on from Brazil. It wasn't advertised as such, but RCI switched ports after we had made final payment, shore excursions were canceled because of insufficient English speaking passengers, menus were in English, but with mass produced local style food and prices were in US$. The main issue on these immersion threads is that people booked a cruise and LATER were informed that it was an immersion. It has nothing to to do with cultural sharing, it's a lack of upfront disclosure.

 

I was on a short cruise last year where most of the customers were Spanish. Everything was done in Spanish first and then English. The had two different daily schedules, one in English and a different one with different activities in Spanish. The CD, who I think is one of the best I have ever met was there speaking Spanish and English. As for the excursions, I don't know, I don't usually take a ship excursion. I found it odd to be paying in USD in Europe and worse, having to pay VAT in USD. As for food, I would rather have Spanish food made with Spanish produce any day, it's a heck of a lot tastier than the artificially ripened stuff that we get in the US and Canada in the supermarkets.

 

... maple syrup...

 

Please tell me which cruise line actually has maple syrup. All the cruise lines that I have been on (including RCL) serve corn syrup that is artificially flavoured "maple". Being from Quebec, I can assure you that they are NOT maple syrup. They don't have the consistency of real maple syrup, nor the rich flavour. A litre of maple syrup costs about USD 12.00 (that's about GBP 6.00.) I've even seen restaurants in the US that have used corn syrup flavoured as honey instead of the real thing to save money. Real maple syrup is too expensive for the mass-market cruiselines.

[Gixer]

Please tell me which cruise line actually has maple syrup. All the cruise lines that I have been on (including RCL) serve corn syrup that is artificially flavoured "maple". Being from Quebec, I can assure you that they are NOT maple syrup. They don't have the consistency of real maple syrup, nor the rich flavour. A litre of maple syrup costs about USD 12.00 (that's about GBP 6.00.) I've even seen restaurants in the US that have used corn syrup flavoured as honey instead of the real thing to save money. Real maple syrup is too expensive for the mass-market cruiselines.

 

The cruise lines that have real maple syrup are usually the ones who have a really nice Canadian in the roll call thread that if you ask very nicley will bring you can ;) This is what happened on our Disney cruise, I got talking to a great family from Toronto and they brought me 2 cans, one which we used on the ship and one to bring home. I'v also had some cans come all the way from Canada down to the Falklands by some great people who are cruising South America, and let me tell you, my house was FULL of kids from all over town wanting pancakes on those days! Now if I could just get a willing cruiser to bring me a couple of bottles of Maudite too that would be fantastic :D

[Elizanessie]

Well I posted this on another of the threads about the same subject so incase any booked on the Indy are concerned and missed the post I will post it here also.

 

All Indy cruises leaving from Southampton will be classed as Immersion Cruises ...it is called this to let Europe/World know that a large majority of people onboard are from the UK.

 

The onboard currency will be DOLLARS.

[Ephraim]

The cruise lines that have real maple syrup are usually the ones who have a really nice Canadian in the roll call thread that if you ask very nicley will bring you can ;) This is what happened on our Disney cruise, I got talking to a great family from Toronto and they brought me 2 cans, one which we used on the ship and one to bring home. I'v also had some cans come all the way from Canada down to the Falklands by some great people who are cruising South America, and let me tell you, my house was FULL of kids from all over town wanting pancakes on those days! Now if I could just get a willing cruiser to bring me a couple of bottles of Maudite too that would be fantastic :D

 

Costco has 1 litre plastic bottles instead of the cans... just so you know :)

 

Maudite is actually a lightweight at 8%. Unibroue has La Fin de Monde, Trois Pistols and Don de Dieu at 9%. La Fringante is 10%. La terrible at 10.5%. For their 11th anniversary they brewed 11 at 11%. Just wonder how it's classed for import duty when it's that strong, as beer or as wine?

 

I might be convinced to trade a can or two for some Yorkie bars. They have them at the WIC store. :)

[SF]

Well I posted this on another of the threads about the same subject so incase any booked on the Indy are concerned and missed the post I will post it here also.

 

All Indy cruises leaving from Southampton will be classed as Immersion Cruises ...it is called this to let Europe/World know that a large majority of people onboard are from the UK.

 

The onboard currency will be DOLLARS.

 

How did you find out? I hope what you say is correct as when I call RCCL they give me a different answer each time. Did you talk to someone specific?

[Elizanessie]

How did you find out? I hope what you say is correct as when I call RCCL they give me a different answer each time. Did you talk to someone specific?

 

Sorry I cant give more details :o lets just say it came from the horse's mouth ;)

[SF]

Liz,

 

Hoping your right as that would be great. With our weak dollar won't have to worry about the exchange rate at least on the ship or when booking tours.

[Yvie]

Well I posted this on another of the threads about the same subject so incase any booked on the Indy are concerned and missed the post I will post it here also.

 

All Indy cruises leaving from Southampton will be classed as Immersion Cruises ...it is called this to let Europe/World know that a large majority of people onboard are from the UK.

 

The onboard currency will be DOLLARS.

 

Thank you, I am on that cruise in July and my main concern was regarding currency.

[kacoombs]

I don't really eat seafood & by the middle of the cruise, my stomach is done with the rich food. At that point, when I start eating only a bit of my dinner, the waitstaff bend over backwards to try to make things for me. So if there are a couple people who don't like the food, the staff is usually pretty helpful.

 

My 4 year old DD ate from the kids' menu on the first night only. The rest of the week, we got things from the regular menu. She had duck, Asian style chicken soup, duck consomme, prime rib, etc. On the last night, she gave DH an exasperated look & said, Why you guys always make me try new stuff? I'm pretty happy with her not eating from the kids' menu. Have a little hope that it'll work out.

[jms2362]

I heard that an immersion cruise also changes the money to the port which would be british pound. We have the US dollar and that would mean everything would be double the cost for us. We will be on Indy June 28, 2008. Does anyone know?

[jms2362]

How do I know if it is an emmersion cruise? Indy June 28th in four weeks?

[jms2362]

What do you mean buy the message is by the "MAP"?

[jms2362]

We are on Indy June 28th, in four weeks. What does this mean to us as it is an immersion cruise. This is the first I have ever heard of it.?

[jms2362]

We just finished booking our tours in advance, we sail June 28th. They were put on the credit card we gave at the time and they were in dollars. I hope that onboard it will be in dollars, theat would be great for the Brits and us. If it is the pound, everything will be 50% and more vs. the US dollar. We love the Brits and are happy to have lots of them on the cruise. I heard recently they don't like Yanks anymore??

[Ephraim]

I heard that an immersion cruise also changes the money to the port which would be british pound. We have the US dollar and that would mean everything would be double the cost for us. We will be on Indy June 28, 2008. Does anyone know?

 

Excuse me? If a drink is 4 GBP or it is 8 USD it's the same. You don't really think that they would charge 8 GBP, do you? Do you think that everything in Britain is double the price of the US because the exchange rate is 2 for 1?

 

Sure there are things that are cheaper there and there are thing that are more expensive there. But that's the point of an exchange rate, to equalize (on a macro scale) the differences in the currencies (given different exchange rates, etc.)

[temple1]

We are on Indy June 28th, in four weeks. What does this mean to us as it is an immersion cruise. This is the first I have ever heard of it.?

 

If you look up Independence of the Seas on the RCCL website and find the sail date, click on more details. Next to the map of the itenerary there is the following statement:

 

"Please note: this product has been sold almost exclusively to guests from the United Kingdom; therefore the services and product have been tailored to their cultural preferences in food and beverage, entertainment and retail. "

 

Doesn't sound like a big problem for North American passengers. It specifically does not mention money on board ship - just some of the ambiance will be geared towards the UK passengers.

 

Please write a review when you return - I would love to do the cruise.

[Pemcorgimum]

Just copying over what Liz( Elizanessie) said on the last page

 

All Indy cruises leaving from Southampton will be classed as Immersion Cruises ...it is called this to let Europe/World know that a large majority of people onboard are from the UK.

 

The onboard currency will be DOLLARS.

 

 

 

Thanks Liz for posting this and hope you don't mind my copying it over. Some people posting after you seemed to have missed it.;)

[jbond]

As for food, I would rather have Spanish food made with Spanish produce any day

One reason we like to cruise is that we can pre-cruise in cities like Barcelona, San Juan, Santiago etc. The food and drink are a major part of our enjoyment. We also stay ashore during the day, no going back to the Windjammer for lunch. We had great meals in Rio, Recife and Santos in Brazil, their churrascarias are very different to anything we have ever had. Great meat and lots of variety. In Buenos Aires the ship stayed until late evening. We had an awesome meal, probably one of the best steaks I have ever had, along with some inexpensive, good wine.

On the ship the "immersion" type food was totally different. It was quite poor in fact. We did two cruises, B2B. The first leg was the run of the mill RCI cruise. Food was good, standard RCI fare. The meat was the average, OK, nothing to write home about. On the second leg, the meat was really poor. We questioned the Head Waiter about it. Her comment was that it was local beef that the ship picked up in Salvador, Brazil. All I can say is that it was nothing like the quality or taste that we experienced when we had lunch on shore. Seafood was non existant, except for the standby shrimp with Portuguese names.:mad:

If RCI does truly want to make some of their cruises an immersion and provide local food experiences, this could be very enjoyable, but my very limited experience has not been too positive.

Do you think that everything in Britain is double the price of the US because the exchange rate is 2 for 1?

I'm not trying to be difficult, but it's pretty close to that. We were in England last year and I really thought that a lot of things, especially food, were about the same in £'s as they are in $'s here in California. Our brief time in Europe last month using euros was a similar experience. Most of the time, our observations are about food, car hire and gasoline, transportation etc, so it's a narrow viewpoint to be sure. If the ship's do change to £'s or euros, I don't believe that it will be twice or 1.6 times as expensive, but you can bet that RCI will round up, rather than round down.

[lovemylab]

I'm not trying to be difficult, but it's pretty close to that. We were in England last year and I really thought that a lot of things, especially food, were about the same in £'s as they are in $'s here in California.

 

This is my thoughts as well. One of my friends lives in England and he finds the price in restaurants to be the same in pounds as they are in dollars. Ex. fish and chips at a pub is around 7 pounds. He can get the same thing here in Canada for $7.

 

Personally, I think EVERYONE would rather be paying with US dollars right now due to the exchange rate.

[Ephraim]

This is my thoughts as well. One of my friends lives in England and he finds the price in restaurants to be the same in pounds as they are in dollars. Ex. fish and chips at a pub is around 7 pounds. He can get the same thing here in Canada for $7.

 

Personally, I think EVERYONE would rather be paying with US dollars right now due to the exchange rate.

 

In London or outside of the city? London is just plain expensive and the prices outside of the city are a lot more reasonable.

 

Incidentally, many Canadians find that the US is expensive when we travel at least until our currency moved up in value compared to the USD. There are many things that are cheaper in Canada and vice versa. The price of milk in Canada will certainly confound an American visitor. On the other hand, I go into price shock when I see what they sell toothpaste for in the US. It's all relative and is influenced by supply and demand in that country.