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SusanDK

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  1. Just circling back on this comment after looking at options. It appears that only Silversea starts or ends in Quebec City from among the cruise lines I mentioned (i.e. the smaller ships). All the others I was considering start or end in Montreal. In addition, I'll be flying from Orlando to/from the cruise and have daily direct flights between MCO and Montreal, but only a couple days a week with direct flights to/from Quebec City.
  2. Thank you for the input! Why Quebec City instead of Montreal? Is it because of the size of Montreal?
  3. I'm researching cruises to NE/Canada for the autumn (Aug-Oct) and looking for recommendations. Probably 10-12 days would be ideal. We would like a smaller ship so primarily looking at Silversea, Seabourn, Regent, Viking, Oceania, Azamara. From exploring itineraries, I think we'd like a stop in Saguenay or at the very least, to cruise the Saguenay Fjord. We are more into nature and scenery than big cities, would enjoy the maritime atmosphere of the area. We like to walk so are most likely to explore ports on our own, but also open to small group excursions. On board, we'd like at least some entertainment / music but doesn't need to be full scale Broadway-type products (obviously won't be based on looking at smaller ships). I enjoy access to a good thermal spa (steam, sauna, plunge). I am doing searches in the respective cruise forums and reading reviews, but thought I'd post here to get suggestions from others. Which cruise lines, ships and itineraries have you most enjoyed in this region? We prefer casual luxury - not formal or stuffy, but a nice uncrowded ship with resort casual attire being acceptable most/all evenings. Thank you.
  4. Thank you, Peregrina651, for your thoughtful and helpful responses, and to all others who shared their experiences and advice. It's been very useful because my husband's first thought was that it should be a 'no brainer' to use the cruise line to book air, so they would be responsible for getting us to the right place at the right time. But I understand now it isn't so simple and may not be the preferred choice. Since I'm accustomed to booking overseas flights and, in fact, have a flight booked for May to Europe (returning July) on business class for $2700 round trip all-in, which is a bit more than half what Viking is citing for business class air, I'm guessing we can do better on our own. We just weren't initially thinking of adding more days to the trip since we will have just been in Europe for six weeks. Food for thought.
  5. Thanks all for the very direct responses. 😀 When I referred to "diversions" I was thinking more about missed connections, i.e. that Viking would be responsible for getting us to the ship if something went wrong with the flights they booked on our behalf.
  6. We're considering a Viking cruise in the Mediterranean this autumn (Sep-Oct) and find the idea of using Viking to book the airfare somewhat appealing since they would handle diversions, transfers, etc. Does anyone know what airlines Viking tends to use out of MCO (Orlando) to fly to/from Barcelona, Rome and/or Venice? If Premium Economy or Business class is preferred, are we better off booking flights ourselves or will Viking Air have reasonable options? I've done a search in this forum on 'airfare' and read mixed reviews about whether or not to use Viking Air, but would love to hear any and all advice for TATL flights when departure is from Florida. Home airport is MCO but we could easily get to FLL or MIA via train or car if it means a preferable flight itinerary.
  7. Looking at booking a Concierge GTY rather than Veranda, and I noted it said that it may be subject to obstructed view. I would have thought that Concierge class staterooms would be less likely to be located where they would have obstructed views. Is this a reasonable assumption or is there a good chance it will indeed be obstructed view? This is on the Ascent. The additional cost to choose one's own cabin (of which there are only a few available) is over $100 pp.
  8. We ended up driving to Alaska in the RV rather than taking the cruise. My advice - don't do what we did! We were actually in Canada (around Banff / Jasper) trying to decide whether to continue driving to the Al-Con Hwy or head over to Seattle / Vancouver to catch a cruise (our friends cancelled their cruise out of Vancouver, so we were no longer committed to only looking at that departure port). We were really close to booking a cruise that initially looked like a fabulous deal, but as we went through the booking process, the extra fees kept adding up. My husband was researching and reading forums where people debated driving vs. cruise, and many said to save the cruise for when we weren't capable of doing the drive. I knew that if we didn't drive it in the RV, he'd always regret it and wish we had done it. So we drove - almost turned back several times, like after a truck kicked up so many stones that we got a 3" diameter crack in the windscreen and many, many deep paint chips in our perfectly waxed paint job. Back to your question, if I remember correctly, I did find better options for parking an RV in Seattle rather than Vancouver, so if you are still considering which cruise port to depart from, you may wish to research Seattle. Good luck!
  9. Thank you. Oceania is also on my short list based on my research, so good to know I'm on the right track. The biggest issue for me is that I want to leave from a Florida port (avoid flying to Caribbean), prefer the eastern (or southern) Caribbean, but also don't want too long of a trip (10-12 days ok, but prefer not to stretch it to 14+ days). So my itineraries appear to be limited. I'm guessing I'm going to have to book further in advance than desired but also need to read about when we can cancel at no (or minimum) cost.
  10. And just like that ... I snooze, I lose. The two cruises I was looking at in Nov/Dec are now completely sold out. There was a bit of availability earlier this week when I started looking, but now gone. Advance planning is not our strong suit - well, it could be mine, but my husband is very spontaneous and cannot even discuss something like this so far ahead of time. Anyway ... how likely is it for suites to open up closer in when a cruise is showing 'waitlisted' one-two months out? Is there a certain time prior to departure when cancellations generally occur (e.g. before final payment is due?). Does one need to place a deposit to waitlist? Apologies for these questions, we are not experienced cruisers.
  11. I'm considering a first Regent cruise for my husband and me. I love the sound of the smaller ships, all-inclusive nature, etc. and have been reading about all the excursion options that are included. We are not pre-planners so would likely be booking something last-minute, i.e. looking now for maybe November / December, and most likely a Caribbean itinerary from a Florida port. Since we will be booking late, will we still be able to get a selection of the included (no-fee) excursions? This is one of the benefits that appeals to me most and many of the included excursions sound wonderful, but I wouldn't want to discover that they are all fully booked by the time we book our trip and/or arrive on board. Are these usually available once on board? From what I can see, most of the dining venues do not require reservations. For any that do require a reservation, is it difficult to get these if not reserving pre-boarding? Thank you!
  12. When you refer to larger balconies on the slant, would you be referring to something like cabin # 7206 or #7208 on the Eclipse? It's odd because I'd been seeing this cruise up until yesterday on ***** and other websites stating that balcony cabins will receive $300 onboard credit, Premium drinks package and free WiFi. Today for a balcony cabin, it says $125 onboard credit and only the Classic beverage package. Is it usual for the offers to get worse? Is there a way to find that better option now? The cruise still appears to have good availability. What kind of travel insurance would I buy to cover us in case one of use tests positive for COVID and is denied boarding and/or entry into Canada? Not likely (we are double vaccinated and boosted) but one never knows.
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