Port Power

A question for @mysty if you don't mind. I leave for Vancouver in two weeks and will be there a few days prior to boarding Silver Muse. It's been four years since I visited Canada, and on those occasions there was a tour manager to take care of business. This time I'm on my own. I need some advice about tipping in Canada. Particularly the hotel porter when he takes my two suitcases up to the room? Having said two suitcases, I will take a taxi from the airport rather than the train. I will spend the days walking, walking, walking! Dinner probably at the Fairmont (Waterfront) one night and the pub across the road another. Oh, I'll remember to pack my Perth winter clothes for the visit. 🤣 Having just disembarked Silver Dawn, my first classic Silversea cruise, I am really looking forward to a full month on board Muse.

Well, that hardly gives me time to pick you up from the airport and deliver you to the East Perth Station! You have set yourself quite a schedule, but there is plenty of time to relax on the train and the cruise. Have a great time.

I have just had an email from Singapore Airlines with a change of flight time from Haneda (Tokyo) to Singapore on October 9th after disembarking Silver Muse. The flight has been changed from 5:05pm to 9:10am. I don't even know if Silversea can get me to the airport in time! I have informed my TA who has emailed Silver Air. The original flight now departs at 8:20pm. However, luggage probably cannot be checked in until 3-4 hours before the flight, hence no lounge access. My onward flight from Singapore has not changed, which leaves me an 8 hour layover in the very nice lounge. Silver Air's response to the flight change will show how customer friendly they are. If they keep me on the later flight (which I think is likely), will they provide a hotel day room? Or a day tour for late flights? I will let you know.

The fjord cruise and scenic drive took 4 hours in all. It was wonderful. I think we started at 8:30am. Allowing a bit of leeway, return would be by 1:00pm. I actually thought the fjord cruise tour was more scenic and interesting than the Flåm train alone. If you book the train trip yourself directly with Flåm Rail, it is not expensive at all. You can probably cancel within a reasonable time frame too. Be warned, book VERY soon if you want an afternoon departure. Like this week! They sell out extremely quickly. Remember it will be summer and school holidays. There were so many campervans in the caravan (trailer) parks! Going independently, the carriage is not crowded and you can move from side to side to look out the windows. You do not get off at the restaurant, but continue on with the train, then return to Flåm. The tender only takes 10 minutes at most. The walk to the train station takes only two minutes. @Lonedaddy gave the correct name to the Geiranger tour I also took: Panoramic Mt Dalsnibba and Eagle Road. It included a stop just after departure to look back down over the town to the ship.

If there are enough people on the waitlist, an extra tour will often be arranged. For instance, three buses instead of two. Each bus has staggered departures, or visit the sights in a different order. Then there are the cancellations once on board, as some passengers reserve multiple tours until later, or even cancel just a day or two beforehand.

If you don’t mind, I’ll add my excursion. The train is iconic if you have never done it before, but ship tours only do half the distance then get out at a restaurant. As I had done the train before (independent booking directly with Flåm Rail), this time I chose the 2-hour cruise and combined bus sightseeing. It was wonderful! The relaxing cruise (inside out of the rain) took us past literally hundreds of waterfalls, plus remote farms still only accessible by water. Commentary was good. At the end we transferred onto a bus, through a large town we had seen from the boat, and up a steep switchback road to a magnificent view point high above the water. “It’s like standing right over the water” we were told. A marvellous piece of engineering, and the drive was really interesting. However, we only had a view of the clouds below us! 😢 It was a really good excursion. The Geiranger morning bus excursion was really good too. We headed way up to the highest point, a long drive but superb views everywhere. An excellent guide too.

I was on the same cruise, @ladrona, and concur with everything you said. It was my first S/S classic cruise and ai thoroughly enjoyed it. There were very few people your age aboard, so I think I remember seeing you around the ship. I particularly liked the ease of stepping off the ship onto the tender. No stairs to navigate at all. After more than 40 cruises, Silver Dawn’s accessibility was a revelation. It is such a pity The Voices of Silversea are being disbanded. I enjoyed all their shows and performances. This group finish in two months’ time. Although I like watching dancers, I really cannot visualise how having just two singers with work out. What if one is sick? I suggested to Bruno that his assistant cruise directors might have to fill in! On your next cruise, think about joining the ship’s roll call. You had a self sufficient group already, but it is really nice having the occasional chat with people you have “met” on Cruise Critic. This was my second Norwegian fjords cruise, but I could gladly do it again as there is so much to see. I am really glad to hear your in-laws had a good time as well. What a wonderful last hurrah family trip for you all.

I think you missed the tongue in cheek/sarcasm/poking fun!

Yes, I agree. The standards have been discussed and confirmed, so time to move on. Everyone will not be pleased all the time, so make sure we make our own choices and enjoy them.

As promised, here is my feedback from Silver Dawn, sailing Norwegian Fjords. Formal night was last night. I ate in Atlantide but was out and about from 6:00pm, and went to the 9:45pm show after dinner. I did not see any inappropriate clothing anywhere. Many men were in a tux or dinner suit. There were also dark suits as well as blazers with slacks, shirt and tie. Definitely no jeans or sweatshirts anywhere, much less in the dining room. Women were in a variety of dresses and pants, from formal through cocktail dresses to smart blouses with slacks. In all cases, no one seemed out of place. At the show a couple sat next to me. They had eaten at La Terrazza. Although not formal, they looked very smart in white slacks and button through shirts. Overall impression is that the dress code is alive and well on this ship. The show last night in the Venetian Room involved all six singers: the Voices of Silversea. The show was opera based and absolutely fantastic. Good costumes and excellent singing. I thoroughly enjoyed the show.

Of course you wear them to breakfast if you are going hiking afterwards. “Resort casual” is the suggested attire for wearing around the ship on sea days or after hiking.

Several of us were discussing this over dinner tonight. We all brought at least one formal dress and several “restaurant” or cocktail dresses. So there were six women who choose Silversea because of the expected high dress standard. Only one English lady (not going on the cruise) still seemed to think S/S is casual. 🤷‍♀️

It was an “Around the World” Journey in a Boeing 747 chartered from Qantas. It was absolutely fantastic! The catering was made to order and Champagne and Baileys flowed. In a couple of remote airports our aircraft had crowds out to see it. Qantas does not fly to Easter Island, but there the Red Kangaroo tail sat for all to see when we visited. The retiring of 747s has caused some difficulties, but of course the mothballing of most large aircraft during COVID put a damper on all such wonderful travel. Hopefully, if the Constellations align next year, an annual ATW trip will be back on in 2026. 🤞

I know who you mean now! Oh, no, not them. The owner of my tour company did actually used to work for that one, but went out on his own. Well, along with his wife and supported by a few others who also left that company. Dan does tours really well and is not as expensive, but is really, really good. I did my first Around the World on a 747 with Dan in 2019, and here I am now in Stockholm with a group of 29. The guest doctor is here for land only and won’t be joining the ship.

No, not them. This company have never used Silver Explorer. This constellation is their first time on Dawn but they may have been to Antarctica earlier this year. I have also just booked their “Arctic” tour next June which includes Silver Wind.

Next week, August 6-16. This charter is neither a club, business event or sporting group. Just a variety of people from around Australia who often travel together because the travel company organises such fabulous itineraries.

I finished packing tonight and have included lots of dressy outfits plus a definitely formal dress. Part of the reason I booked Silversea is because I want to dress nicely both during the day as well as at night. My cruise on Silver Dawn is also a partial charter by an Australian company I’ve travelled with several times and I know most of the guests dress well, so I expect the dress standard will be high. Even on an expedition cruise in the Kimberley the casual dress standard was pretty smart.

This is where magnetic hooks are very useful. After clothes stop dripping over the bath/shower (especially after rolling in a towel), place on hangars on the hooks along the wall.

On our recent cruise, there was a couple with a later afternoon flight. They did not get a day room. However, they had access to the hotel/resort’s swimming pool and facilities until the time of their individual transfer. Many guests were staying at the same hotel overnight as it was included in the cruise package. If a post cruise hotel is not included for most, then I think you might spend 4-6 hours at the airport. ☹️

This sounds really good. The day I disembark Dawn, my flight isn’t until 7pm. The only drawback is the minimum 3 cases. I’ll have to ask around if anyone else is interested.

“I am so sorry. As the book was on the chair for an hour without anyone reading it, I thought it must have been forgotten and left behind overnight.”

I usually only take one suitcase (18-20kg) and a carry-on, but still have plenty of dressy clothes for formal and informal dining. Base black with various jackets, cardis or kimonos for most nights. Two dressy dresses for formal nights. Post pandemic I want to dress up to go dining, and there is little opportunity at most (not all) restaurants on land. For my 30 nights on Silver Muse I will probably take two suitcases with me and really enjoy wearing different outfits. I hand wash them all, roll in a towel, and hang in the shower to dry. If the destination requires a bulky coat, that can be carried over the suitcase handle if there is not enough space in the case. If I am going halfway around the world for a long cruise, I want to enjoy myself and feel good too.

No binoculars in verandah suites. Bring your own. Personally, I feel binoculars are almost necessary on any expedition cruise or for looking at fjords and scenery on some classic cruises.

Interesting that you will see all those plants in Perth gardens, with the exception of the decorative bowl. Probably all in Brisbane too. My Singapore orchid is in a pot of course, not rampant outside! I was impressed while in the Balkans with the big and colourful oleanders everywhere. They really brightened our travels.

These are the stories I grew up with, the camel trains bringing goods to outback South Australia. I was not aware of who first brought camels to Australia though, so thank you for the link. Nor was I aware of Burke and Wills using them, and those explorers were part of Australian history learned in primary school. A few years ago I read a biography of a girl from outback SA and her memories of the Afghans coming by every few months with their camel trains of goods from saucepans to fabric. She had a romance with a young Afghani man. It was a very interesting read.