uktog

I thought you had to be invited to have the right links

Train from Oerstad station which is about 100meters from the Copenhagen Crowne Plaza Towers hotel into the middle of Copenhagen

Barcelona like many places has a problem- the protests currently are rooted in issues about the cost of housing. It’s the same on the Spanish islands. IF people spent more ashore and did not use short term rentals there would be more money in the economy and the housing stock would improve for locals. It’s no different to what is happening in Edinburgh although two solutions are being worked on - a tourist tax that’s added to port fees for cruisers/ hotel fees for others. And more importantly very tight licensing of short term rentals and higher local taxes on them. In future they will be licensed and the number of licenses heavily restricted. I do not blame the cruise lines. Guests want to see iconic places and they want turnarounds in locations with good flight connections to the US. I responded because there has been an undercurrent on several threads here that eating ashore is good eating onboard is bad. It is not. Barcelonas issues are repeated around the world. It’s a very complex supply and demand conundrum affecting availability of staff for the hospitality sector, their wages and the supply of living arrangements. My father used to complain about the tourists from Edinburgh coming to Fife. Beyond our front door we are all tourists to a greater or lesser extent. Good luck anyone coming to Edinburgh timing their holiday to coincide with the festival and tattoo. Unfortunately the refuse collectors are cute these days and intent to coincide their latest pay dispute then as they did two years ago. Edinburgh stank then 😡

You are correct we’ve had two different disembark locations with Azamara. We found the Crowne Plaza at the airport fully met our needs. We actually stayed a couple of nights there. It was an easy ride into town

Bear in mind for those with food allergies in a country where English is not universally spoken heading back to the ship for lunch is part of the “risk management” process. We do however head back out and as well as leaving money in the shop tills may enjoy a coffee or drink ashore. So accept not everyone can eat lunch ashore easily!

It very much depends on the sailing you can’t say every night I’m afraid LuAnn

I expect that route is under review- it’s not so much the canal as the seas off the type of Somalia that led to the round Africa trips earlier this year. I expect there’s a lot of discussions with insurers etc as to whether the canal route could be offered

Not a scam but a very good benefit that now works as a genuine discount without the smoke and mirrors of the past

Your toilet issue sounds like a system back up which happens from time to time. I suspect from other things said your room hadn’t been signed off by the supervisor. Maybe it should have been but you should address the issue with the supervisor so they monitor for the future.

In warmer places the Patio is a great spot. We also love the back veranda on Windows if we want a simple casual dinner. I agree the MDR is not as it used to be - menu choices focus too much on spices cheap meats with the beautiful salads and pasta of the day no longer offered. I am sure though with some of the changes in Head office hotel side we will see adjustments in due course.

There are pubs in the area or head further into town on the tram - might be much more pleasant as the terminal building is minute

The gangway is open all night. Experience is that they do not show games like that onboard and haven’t been showing the games to date this year. Bear in mind if you are watching in Edinburgh you may well be with a lot of Scots suddenly claiming Spanish grannies 😀😀

That has not been an option when we have been. There was effectively a shuttle called Paris on your own but that was a paid for transfer

When we were in Rouen we were dropped off just below the cathedral. Looking at a map I think it was Rue de General Le Clerc

Yes but they were on Oceania - never need cards on Explora apart from the usual opening the doors. So for the Explora board its not an issue By the way, we did need our cards on Azamara in February for a few days so its intermittent depending on the system and the staff's familiarity with the techonolgy

The included Reisling used to be nice if it was properly chilled, but of course with generic bottling I can’t be sure what you’re getting will be the same as us a few months ago in the Far East

Yes but you have to buy a package. On Explora package level drinks are included as standard. Explora overall is in a different league to Azamara (the only issue was the entertainment and they’re fixing that) To be fair their per day price is also higher

Thanks for highlighting. Even though they pay for their cruises surely Oceania knew who they were which makes it even more appalling. It’s worse if you read how they treated the mother in law in her wheelchair. Sounds like a culture onboard I would never want to experience

Yes you do. The little flyer onboard also confirms it, so for us our $8 becomes $6 a day

Not good. I hope you highlight on your mid and end cruise surveys

Yes that’s correct. The price is the same it’s the OBC that kicks in on one Sounds like they are doing a low offer. When we booked our most recent cruise we were offered the 8% offer which we declined because it was a bit far out and the team manager doing our booking said not to worry - There will be further offers nearer booking as has happened recently. We did get an email offering us that opportunity on a nearer in cruise. Most people who are taking up the offer are doing so about nine months before departure. They email you new offers. You can ask to pay off and get the offer at any time. It’s just that you are restricted to the amount being offered if anything and as 5% is the lowest figure of the most hang on for a much higher percentage. The reason it looks like that on the booking page is because Azamara are using seaware as the software. This allows early payments to be taken from those who want to pay in full booking - some companies like explora journeys give a discount off the Cruise fare so you do see twi prices there whereas Azamara you pay the same fare, get obc so don’t see a difference in price

No. Dummy bookings will not show it. Only after you complete a booking and make a deposit is the OBC shown. They do not run the offer all the time. Those eligible (some special rates are not) get an email advising them. The 8% has run off. It’s a case of wait and see. It is non refundable but ideal for excursions

Thanks thought so

For my understanding does having a PRN and being able to add frequent flyer number, select seats (free in our case) and add extras like baggage/request assistance mean you are ticketed or reserved?

Price is the same whether you go for pay in full or not. The offer is based on the price you pay for 2 minus taxes and air if you have it