Roll Call Seabourn Spirit 15-11-2009 Lisbon-Ft. Lauderdale

[Seabourn-nail]

Congratulations in every way, best choice!

Marja

Is that asking too much of the Spirit?:cool: (quote)

[dhream]

Your description of what you hope to find summed up all of Seabourns vessels

 

Perfick!

 

Our apologies, with all the excitement we forgot to introduce ourselves by name: Will & Felicia.:)

[TravelHop]

We look forward to seeing you on the crossing. My wife and I cruised on Seabourn 15+ years ago but have only the best memories of it. I think it will live up to all your expectations! We can't wait for November to get here!!! :o

[Seabourn-nail]

We look forward to seeing you on the crossing. My wife and I cruised on Seabourn 15+ years ago but have only the best memories of it. I think it will live up to all your expectations! We can't wait for November to get here!!! :o

Hi John!

Very nice that you and your wife will sail on this crossing after 15 years!

We now have quite a few CC'ers who will do this cruise.

Thanks for posting your countdown clock .... I can check yours now. I don't want to use more than one....!

Still 125 days ...... too many ...... I need something in between!

Marja

[howndder]

First off, welcome to our honeymooners and our other crossing comrades. I have finally been able to book our air tickets and can now breath a sigh of relief. However, I'm very annoyed that what used to take 180,00 miles now takes 400,000 miles. This is a rather large nerve. Plus you have to pay a large fee for their pleasure. I also need to transfer points from my platinum card and they too charged a fee. Will someone give me a break. Anyway, that is all done and we are now committed to this trip. I'm now so very happy:).

Howard

[LaPaloma]

First off, welcome to our honeymooners and our other crossing comrades. I have finally been able to book our air tickets and can now breath a sigh of relief. However, I'm very annoyed that what used to take 180,00 miles now takes 400,000 miles. This is a rather large nerve. Plus you have to pay a large fee for their pleasure. I also need to transfer points from my platinum card and they too charged a fee. Will someone give me a break. Anyway, that is all done and we are now committed to this trip. I'm now so very happy:).

 

 

Howard

 

One way to look at it Howard...these reward points may not be continued for too long..as least that is my opinion. When we moved we used up some buying HD TV's. So use them! I could be wrong on this..but privileges of all kinds seem to be going assunder these days. The money is needed too badly. :(

[Seabourn-nail]

First off, welcome to our honeymooners and our other crossing comrades. I have finally been able to book our air tickets and can now breath a sigh of relief. However, I'm very annoyed that what used to take 180,00 miles now takes 400,000 miles. This is a rather large nerve. Plus you have to pay a large fee for their pleasure. I also need to transfer points from my platinum card and they too charged a fee. Will someone give me a break. Anyway, that is all done and we are now committed to this trip. I'm now so very happy:).

 

 

Howard

 

I'm happy that you are happy Howard!

Hope to meet you during this crossing.... a Spirit TA, very unusual and special, or?

Marja

[TravelHop]

First off, welcome to our honeymooners and our other crossing comrades. I have finally been able to book our air tickets and can now breath a sigh of relief. However, I'm very annoyed that what used to take 180,00 miles now takes 400,000 miles. This is a rather large nerve. Plus you have to pay a large fee for their pleasure. I also need to transfer points from my platinum card and they too charged a fee. Will someone give me a break. Anyway, that is all done and we are now committed to this trip. I'm now so very happy:).

Howard

 

I was able to get a round trip from Fort Wayne, Indiana to Lisbon on Northwest flying business class over and coach back (going to discard the coach portion) for 80,000 miles each + $95. I was very happy with that - took a lot of looking and work but happy with the result. After I booked, I thought that I perhaps should have made the return coordinate with a West to East TA but am not even sure if I could have booked an award ticket with the return 5 months after the first leg. Oh well, like you I am glad I have that done. Now just need to make my hotel reservations and I will be pretty well done planning this trip.

 

...John

[lifelover]

We found that only U.S. Airways offered a return flight more than five months out (at a reasonal price). So we booked to fly over from the United States to Lisbon in November for the Spirit transatlantic and then the return in April, after the Legend transatlantic, Europe to the United States. It saved us almost half of what we paid for our airfare home this past April, which was a Northwest flight in which we threw away the second leg. It's crazy that the one-way fares are more than twice the price of a round trip ticket.

Most importantly, we too, are counting the days until we sail in November. Home is wonderful, but there's nothing like being on Seabourn!

[TravelHop]

We found that only U.S. Airways offered a return flight more than five months out (at a reasonal price). So we booked to fly over from the United States to Lisbon in November for the Spirit transatlantic and then the return in April, after the Legend transatlantic, Europe to the United States. It saved us almost half of what we paid for our airfare home this past April, which was a Northwest flight in which we threw away the second leg. It's crazy that the one-way fares are more than twice the price of a round trip ticket.

Most importantly, we too, are counting the days until we sail in November. Home is wonderful, but there's nothing like being on Seabourn!

 

Wow - you are obviously smarter or more experienced than I ;)

Next time I will try to make the return coordinate with at least a POSSIBLE cruise date. Oh well - for us it was just miles of which we have an abundance.

[howndder]

This is why I had to wait until now to book. I already have a return trans-atlantic from Ft. lauderdale to Amsterdam in late May, on Holland America and I wanted to be able to use a round trip ticket. Not the same thing as Seabourn but the dates and ending in Amsterdam a huge plus.

I'm really surprised about the Northwest flight and price. That was excellent. If I wanted to use NW it would have been a dreadful schedule and the same mile I just paid.

Now the hardest part. Waiting.

Marja, I am so happy that you are happy for me. Thank you. Now I really must meet you.:)

Howard

[Seabourn-nail]

For sure we will meet Howard! My pleasure...

Marja

[ltsally]

We're in. Or on. Whatever....we'll be with y'all. Anticipaaaaaa-tion!!

[Seabourn-nail]

We're in. Or on. Whatever....we'll be with y'all. Anticipaaaaaa-tion!!

 

That's great Itsally! Congratulations!

I think you need to change your biography......

Marja

quote:

Biography Spouse and I have never taken a cruise - tho he did make several crossings as a child.

[ltsally]

Wow, Marja - good catch!! It definitely needs updating since this will be our 3d trans Atlantic and 5th cruise! Do you recall we met on the March 07 eastbound crossing?

 

On the subject of 'getting there,' we're doing quite the roundabout: O'Hare to London (at 20,000 AA miles/pp), stay the night and then fly into Lisbon. All cuz I'm such a lousy, claustrophobic flyer who will do almost anything (obviously) to avoid a late-nite flight (through which I'm unable to get any rest at all).

 

Off to change the biography........

[Seabourn-nail]

Wow, Marja - good catch!! It definitely needs updating since this will be our 3d trans Atlantic and 5th cruise! Do you recall we met on the March 07 eastbound crossing?

 

On the subject of 'getting there,' we're doing quite the roundabout: O'Hare to London (at 20,000 AA miles/pp), stay the night and then fly into Lisbon. All cuz I'm such a lousy, claustrophobic flyer who will do almost anything (obviously) to avoid a late-nite flight (through which I'm unable to get any rest at all).

 

Off to change the biography........

Itsally, I do remember we met.... don't remember your (first) names though, but I can picture you I think.... didn't you stay one night in Lisbon in a boutique hotel after the cruise? I'm sure I can find the name, but I don't want to cheat! Like I didn't check your old posts as well!

I still see you get off the bus...

So you fly in the same day we depart? We fly the day before, just in case... the suitcase(s)! I haven't booked a hotel yet, but do have some ideas.

Will be nice to see you again!

Marja

[ltsally]

Right you are Marja! We stayed at the Britania in Lisbon and liked it very much; very spacious rooms. We will fly to Lisbon on Sat, the 14th - my nerves couldn't handle arriving the day of departure. Don't know yet where we'll stay for the one night. Don't know whether it pays to stay near the pier - I don't recall how long a trip it was from the city centre.

 

Since you're a 'crossing veteran,' and this is our first time in November, I'd be interested to know what your experience has been as to weather, etc (though I realize it might vary quite a bit, year to year).

[Seabourn-nail]

Right you are Marja! We stayed at the Britania in Lisbon and liked it very much; very spacious rooms. We will fly to Lisbon on Sat, the 14th - my nerves couldn't handle arriving the day of departure. Don't know yet where we'll stay for the one night. Don't know whether it pays to stay near the pier - I don't recall how long a trip it was from the city centre.

 

Since you're a 'crossing veteran,' and this is our first time in November, I'd be interested to know what your experience has been as to weather, etc (though I realize it might vary quite a bit, year to year).

 

Exactly, the Britannia!

Well, you could stay near the pier, but most other hotels are not far away either.

The fall crossings usually have even better weather conditions than the spring ones. Indeed, we did quite a few, never had bad weather.

Hope it will be the same this year!

Marja

[curiousx]

I was just reading the posts on this and couldn't agree more with the comments about the high price of one way fares. Thanks to a tip on the Cruiseair forum here at CC, we found that Aer Lingus has REAL one way fares from New York City to Lisbon, so this is what we are doing. Economy fare is $407US before taxes etc.. We're waiting for a quote on business class (f they have it). Note that one can't book the one-way fares on-line - the TA has to phone.

[curiousx]

Has anyone noticed that the 5 hotels in the Britania chain in Lisbon are having a promotion?

 

Book at a daily rate of 115Euro (including taxes, service charge, museums pass, and airport transfer but not breakfast). One is guaranteed a room at that rate in any of the hotels, noting that the daily rate for a double room ranges from Euro120 to Euro150, depending on the hotel. The catch is they don't tell you which hotel you are booked into until 48 hours before you arrive. Any comments?

[ltsally]

I was loooking at the Britania (chain) website the other day and noticed that one of their promotions (not the one you have mentioned, curiousx, required non-refundable pre-payment).

 

Also, a comment on AerLingus: we flew it back from Lisbon, via Dublin, a few years ago. Do be aware of the connection time; we had less than an hour in Dublin to make the connecting flight back to Boston and - because the Lisbon ticket agent refused to check our baggage all the way through - we would not have been able to make the connection without priority rush-rush service from a gate agent.

[howndder]

Hello all, I was just thinking how quiet this thread had become, so I thought I would see how everyone is doing so far this summer. My summer, if you'd like to know, is terribly boring. No cruising until this trip. Personally, I'm not used to not taking a cruise in the summer. I feel somewhat annoyed that my investments have not kept up to my traveling needs. I feel a turn around is just around the corner, so to speak, but it can't come soon enough for me. So, how is your summer going?

Howard

[Martita B.]

Howard

I'm hoping you, Derek and Derek's Mother are still joining us on the Odyssey TA Crossing, Oct. 31st from Malaga,

Martita B.

[Seabourn-nail]

Hello Seabourn-Nail; and Travelhop, this is Howard and Derek from Sunny Ft. Lauderdale, throwing our hats into the ring on this lovely,:) we hope, crossing. Looking forward to meeting you all on board.

 

Howard

 

Hi Martha!

Howard will be on this Spirit crossing, so I don't think he will make the Maiden TA on the Odyssey. Summer is here!

Marja

[howndder]

Hi Martha and Seabourn Nail, I was originally scheduled to be on the Odyssey from Istanbul, but my neice has decided to get married on Holloween weekend and I must go where I am needed. I will hope to try the Odyssey at a later date and we are taking the Spirit for our fall trans-atlantic. Sadly mom will no longer be traveling with us. She reached her 90th bday last month and has decided to end her traveling days. No totally, I might add as she has booked a 4 night number for herself and a few relatives coming in from abroad. Since we live in the cruising capitol, it isn't difficult to find a short cruise.

As far as the future goes, we are seriously looking at the Sojourn for next fall. I'm already booked on Holland for the spring to Amsterdam, but may change it to the Legend as that is her last crossing, I think. Are you ladies planning on the Sojourn too?

 

Howard