BrisbaneGran

sorry wrong post.

I am sure you will enjoy it. The ship is beautiful, the crew were very good, and the food was probably the best we have had on a ship! (dare I say, a lot better than Seabourn!) French cooking certainly stands out, and the breads, I ate far more than anyone should!

There really wasn't a problem for non French speaking people, we just felt the information in French was a lot more detailed than it was in English, but then again, maybe the French language just has a lot more words than we use in English!

I think there were a couple of Groups onboard, but again not a problem at all. I think one was just a big family group,.

As far as things to do on sea days, there were things like bingo, quiz, French Lessons, and maybe a couple of other things. There is a small library....computers....(for a charge) but honestly we didn't really look for things.....we are happy with our kindles and peace and quiet. The pool deck is a lovely small area if you want to swim or sun bathe, and there is a very nice Bar just above the pool, looking over the back of the ship. This is where we spent most of our time.

Most of the staff were fine with English, a couple struggled but not really a problem.

we are booked on Sojourn for 84 days from December. This is going to be a very hot cruise, so I doubt too many people will be very happy if the deck isn't 100% usable! Patio Grill, Patio Bar and Sky Bar are all our favourite places, so we certainly wont be happy if we cant use them as often as we usually do!

I see a couple of people posted Bunnings links, I was going to do that...great minds think alike eh! (most of my plants come from Bunnings)

SB can have the ones in my back yard for a lot less than $3000. :p

LOL....I have a few Cocos palms, complete with fruit bats they can have free!! The ones I saw in pics, I think looked like Golden Canes......not an expensive palm at all......as they say in the Classics, "someone is pulling someones leg"!

I can assure you my source would know. I’m sure there’s a palm grower in Darwin who’s pretty happy though.

as I said, the person who paid this, (if they in fact did) should be sacked immediately! He or she should not be allowed access to Seabourn money! This is just pure waste. Are you sure they weren't $300? NOT $3000?

I have it on impeccable authority that the 10 or so potted palms (RIP) were purchased in Darwin for $3000+ ... Each!

anyone who would pay $3000 for a potted palm in Australia, really needs to find a new job that doesn't involve "buying". I cant believe that would be true at all!

Assume they’re getting married and will lead a more land bound family life?

that is also what I would imagine is happening, will be great for them, but not so great for us :')

we have been told that this is a fact.

Another thing to be VERY wary of, are their charges for Transfers! From Trinity Port to Cairns Central OR the Airport, was 60 Euros....in the pic below, it shows pretty well Cairns Central....just a few block! You can also see Reef Casino, just across the road......a French couple taking the Transfer before us, were going to the Reef Casino......60 Euros!! WE used the transfer as we had OBC we couldn't spend, so was better than using our own "real money"....

Just a word of Warning! IF you are on a Ponant cruise, and they have a Video of the cruise for sale, MAKE SURE you view it first before paying their exorbitant charges!

Last night I saw the video my son purchased while on board.......I am sure he paid something like 70 Euros for it! IT IS DISGUSTING! They should ashamed of charging for it at all! As an amateur photographer, I would certainly be too ashamed to let anyone see something so bad! There was so much out of focus filming, blurry filming, filming in places that were too dark to see anything, background music was dreadful, hardly anything shown of the ship, or life on the ship at all. It started with the sail out from Sydney, which was sort of reasonable, but too dark and frankly, boring. It then showed some of the Captains Welcome ..... there was NO Captains Farewell or Introduction to the Crew, which was all out on the crew deck, in perfect weather, and probably THE most important part of the on board happenings. There was NO filming of the final night, which was also on the Pool deck with singing and dancing.......

I just wish there was some way I could upload this video to show you what I am talking about. IF these were "Professional Photographers" on that ship....they should be made to walk the plank immediately!

Thanks for the photos. Your son's normal size cabin looks very nice.

the room was nice but very small....only ONE chair, so had to sit on the bed.....bathroom was really just a "shower room"......half the size we had.....and again the extremely narrow balcony. I couldn't survive in a room that size, so glad we spent the extra for a bigger suite.

The Bridge

Ponant LÁustral

A "normal size room".....

Tonight I got the stick with my sons pics....so maybe tomorrow I can post pics of the "normal rooms"....and some of the islands we stopped at......

Really enjoying this thread.

 

Keith

thanks Keith.....you may have read my many Seabourn Reports over the years.....way back to 2006..... Granny L

Always good to have options! Between us I think we will cover most of them! I am trying Scenic Eclipse and Viking Ocean this year. Viking is bigger than we normally like, but the ships are beautiful and the adults only style appeals to me.so it is worth a try.

and also heard a lot of Seabourn crew have gone to Viking......including Synchrony, not sure if that's spelt right.....Judith and Arvin and their Band.

Your cabin does look nice (apart from the narrow balcony and tiny toilet!). A walk in robe would have been a good addition but I think we are spoiled on Seabourn with their cabin layout. Did you get any photos of the "normal" suites? Based on your experience with Ponant, would you consider them again?

My son was in a normal room......so I am waiting for him to send me some pics. We did enjoy our cruise, but I really think we would be sticking more with Seabourn. This week though, we are off to a Presentation by Windstar! LOL....good to have lots of options!

Bathroom

more of suite 603

Deluxe Suite 603

Cyclone season is January, February and March.......we don't really get many cyclones, but they can ruin a holiday at times!

A LOT of people who left the ship in Cairns, were on a "tour", where they were to fly to Darwin for 4 days, then get on a train called The Ghan, and travel the length of Oz.......that tour was apparently cancelled just a day or so ago, as NO planes were flying into Darwin due to another cyclone......no idea if alternate plans were made for them.......

Outdoor dining area for Casual dining room.....and outdoor Bar overlooking the pool deck