Old Sea Dog

We returned late last night from Symphony having had a great cruise with just 147 passengers The ship operated in all departments as if it was full I had conversations with the Captain, Cruise director, Future Cruise Booking personnel and Herbert, Food & Beverage Manager who all explained that the present passenger numbers were all factored into the operation before sailings commenced. The projections are that numbers will be low for the next few months but they are already showing positive growth for the ship’s return to Europe in early 2024. The present sailing has 250 guests who I’m sure will have a fabulous cruise to Mumbai. We are booked for a back to back early in 25 and can’t wait.

Aboard Symphony tonight was formal and an approximate 60-40 split in favour of formal Waterside looked very fitting of the occasion

We are at present on Symphony and the above comments could not be further from the reality on this sailing The ship it’s personnel from top to bottom are exceptional,the food is improved from OC. Tonight is formal with Captains greet and meet and majority of passengers are dressed accordingly which gives the ship an elegant look and feel You would be very hard pressed to find this quality of product on any other line and I speak from experience of just a mere thirty sailings with Crystal

Yes it is well worth the experience. We have been fortunate to do it three times however if you are elderly like ourselves we would recommend breaking the journey each way On our first visit we did the return direct from Auckland with just a change of planes in Singapore and it took us nearly a week to recover. Subsequent visits we have stayed over in Dubai, Hong Kong, and found the trip totally manageable and enjoyable. All the advice you have been given is very relevant to a trip of this nature from the U.K.

This series of photos is the very reason we enjoyed Harmony so much and the transition to Symphony was so painless

As the present passenger numbers are low has anyone experienced a complement upgrade. Just curious

We were fortunate to cruise many times with her, she was so genuine so much so that when my daughter got engaged onboard she came to my wife and I in tears to congratulate us. A charming person

My wife would like to know if they do or intend to have the crafts get together for painting, needlework,knitting Thankyou

Firstly you have made an excellent choice. Yes the options you have are by phone or getting a TA to act for you. When I booked I was unable to find a U.K. based agent so booked with one in the USA If you can find a good U.K. agent then it does make things easier re conversion of currency.

Received from our TA a notification from Crystal that they will now provide visa’s for Egypt and Oman onboard. Charge will be made to your onboard account

IMHO this just muddies the water even more. Crystal have categorically said they are not involved In Egyptian visas as it’s the passengers responsibility and this implies that they will have to be. Personally I’d be very wary of his statement.

This was quite a saga. Firstly our US TA contacted Crystal as I enquired if they were doing a group visa. The answer was no you must do your own. After reading both the U.K. government and the Egyptian embassy requirements all they confirmed was visa on entry at airports nothing about sea ports.Phone calls and emails to help desk went unanswered. After contacting local TAs no firm answer was forthcoming so it was recommended we go for a multiple entry one so we at least we’re covered as we did not want to be refused entry at the second port. We used the online visa service which also gave us grief as it has done with our Canadian travelling companions. I must say the cost was a shock but we now have the required documents so no need to worry I hope you have a trouble free experience

Beware Egyptian Visa We are U.K. citizens on the October 9 th sailing and visas are a must. However we were advised that the single entry one was not appropriate for this voyage as we are in and out of the country on at least three occasions. So we applied and received a multiple entry one which cost 120 US per couple. The website is not the best and can be difficult to navigate from our experience.

Plus 4

Plus 2

They are at present all by coach and total twelve hours each however they are subject to change.

On which our love affair with Crystal started

It together with Aden we’re on the very first itinerary for those who had paid 500Us Both ports were of much interest especially to any British passengers.

Just noticed that on the above cruise the port of Sharm El Sheikh has been removed so visit to Mount Sinai & St Catherines Monastery now impossible Has anyone on Cruise been advised by Crystal?

Hello Anne We are booked for this in October. If they will still allow guests do you want to come aboard? Roy & Sue

And the cost of hull cleaning