Heartfelttraveler

7 hours ago, FlightMedic555 said:

In a letter WS sent to travel agents they identify that these sailings are not available for "public bookings" and will "enhance the image" of WS.  I take the "enhance the image" to potentially mean being booked as a floating hotel for the Olympics.  I clearly could be incorrect.

Are you still going to go to FP and do a land-based vacation.  If you go to the Pacific Islands board on Cruise Critic, there are some very knowledgeable people who can give you some suggestions for land based travel.

We have only been to the islands once so far but did do some land-based stay besides the cruise.  We are again booked for next year and plan to spend another week on our own.

There are some great VRBO and AirbNB options as well as wonderful resorts.  Driving is also pretty easy for us USA based tourists.

Please come back and update us on what you plan to do about going to FP.

This is a Cruise Critic thread about the Onward and Journey April and May cruise cancellations because the ships now need to go around Africa.

Thanks for your swift response.  We sailed Nautica in October.  Our Owner's Suite was nice but our friends said the bathroom in the Veranda was miserable.  We are leaning towards the Star Breeze.

Have you taken your cruise?  Would love to hear your thoughts on this cabin and the ship.

My choice is between Oceania Nautica and Windstar Star Breeze.

I was on Oceania Marina in February 2019 and loved it.  Perfect cruise and weather.  Also perfect days pre and post cruise.

I have only been on Windstar Windsurf sailing ship but loved the experience.

Was on Nautica with friends in October 2023 and they were not thrilled with the balcony cabin bathroom.

From your knowledge, which ship would you choose?

We were on the RA January 2023.  We had one landing each day that lasted from 1-2.5 hours, and one zodiak tour that lasted from 30-60 minutes.  It was very organized and just right.  The ship was constantly in photo-opportunity mode.  My husband took about 45,000l photos.  It was a surreal trip that I would do again in a heartbeat.  Some of the landings were quite strenuous, and some of the zodiak tours were quite wet.

You have to gear up for getting off the ship in Antarctica.  For us it was long johns (lightweight wool), ski pants (outside the boots), sweatshirt, wool socks, Hurtigruten jacket and boots, hat, and life vest.  We actually changed for lunch and then back in the gear for the next landing/zodiak ride.

There are also craft classes, science classes, information meetings, meals, games, etc.

We were in Suite 856.  The suites give you access for no extra charge to the Lindstrom.

The cruise/expedition was wonderful.  (As you can see by my signature, it took several tries to actually take this trip.  Our January 2022 sailing was cancelled as we were loading the car to head for the airport.)

4 hours ago, rogueriver said:

This is exactly what we planned, so I appreciate your detailed information.  Once in Kawaguchiko we are thinking of taking the red line sightseeing bus around the lake.  Did you possibility do this as well?  If so, any advice you can give us on that?

We are doing this in April.  We are spending two nights in the Kawaguchiko Lake area.

On 3/20/2024 at 7:22 AM, CHPURSER said:

There are dozens of different trains and buses that can take you from downtown Tokyo to Kawaguchiko.Although I would opt for one of the trains, the buses are faster and far less costly.

We booked the Fuji Excursion train each way through klook.com.  It is a direct train (with stops but not change trains) from Shinjuku Station to Kawaguchiko Station.  It stops at Shinjuku-Tachikawa-Hachioji-Otsuki-Tsurubunkadaigakumae-Shimoyoshida-Mt. Fuji-Fujikyu Highland-Kawaguchiko.  It takes about 2 hours.  Our prepurchase tickets were $30 USD for reserved seats each way including the small fee that Klook charges.  The key to the tickets/train we chose is that we get on the train in Shinjuku and do not have to change trains, cars or seats.  Also, the train does not have to deal with traffic.

We pre purchased our Fuji Excursion Express train tickets on klook website.  Shinjuku to Kawaguchiko.  One month before the reservation the tickets are confirmed and you get a QR code to pick the tickets up at the station.  You purchase the to and from tickets separately.  
 

https://www.klook.com/en-US/rails-32/1012-japan/route-1372/kawaguchiko-to-shinjuku-trains/

They do sell out fast.

A day or two before you arrive check the hotel website to see availability of your chosen room for the night before you arrive.  If there is availability the night before you arrive it means they have rooms that don’t need to be cleaned and may let you check in early.

16 minutes ago, Laganlady02 said:

26 days, Singapore to Athens around Africa???

They were originally going to do it in 26 days going through the Suez Canal with 15 days of ports stops of which 4 were overnight.  I am in no way an expert, or even a novice, but looking at the map, taking into account that they will only port to take on supplies etc., those extra 15 days of sailing should get them to Greece in time for the May 29 itinerary.

This is the original itinerary on cruise mapper.

1 hour ago, oddjob16 said:

Obviously. The cruise is cancelled. 

Just showing that the ship has 26 days to go around Africa and make it to Greece for the May 29 trip.

On 3/9/2024 at 7:17 PM, oddjob16 said:

Journey's May 3rd is cancelled, but no info as how the ship will get to Piraeus in time for the next cruise is given. Will they sail thru Suez with minimum crew? Isn't that a serious gamble?

No guests between May 3 and May 29.  

2 hours ago, BarnacleBil said:

The first thing that Azamara has to do is admit that there is/was a problem rather that trying to cover it up. The company seems to be in (public) denial, so blaming them is not misdirected. If you have been on the receiving end of this problem (I have) and had your expensive and anticipated cruise spoilt by "the bug" then one's opinion might be different. None of us go on holiday to not eat the fine food and spend several days confined to a cabin,  even if it is for "the common good".

Were you sick onboard the Pursuit?  Did you see the onboard medical team? Were you quarantined? If you were quarantined, did Azamara compensate you?

On our January 3 cruise our friend was quarantined for 24 hours which caused him to miss an Azamara excursion.  His wife was not quarantined, but opted to not go on the excursion alone.  Azamara refunded the cost of the excursion.  He (and only he) was also given a future cruise credit for the two days he was confined to his cabin.  (Pretty generous considering it was actually only two half days.)  He also had extensive testing (even his poop) and all came back negative.

We were on the January 3 cruise.  We spent one night at the Marriott Waterfront Hotel.  I wiped everything down with Lysol wipes, we only drank bottled water and even brushed our teeth with it, lots of hand washing and sanitizing.  Boarded the Pursuit the next day.  Same drill with Lysol wipes and bottled water and hand sanitizing.  We had stomach issues.  Our friend was about seven post major surgery, so he went to the ship doctor.  They did Covid, flu and RSV tests, as well as analyzing his poop sample.  All negative.  He was given antibiotics because of his surgery history.  We all took Imodium when needed.  We then had eight nights in Victoria Falls, Kruger and Johannesburg.  Our stomach issues persisted.  Finally, after 24 nights, we boarded our Delta flight home, and after my first bottle of Disani water, magically my stomach issues subsided.  (Same for all of us.)  I did notice on the ship and at the resorts that if I drank ginger ale my stomach was better.

If you go on the NCL, MSC, National Geographic (other cruise lines) and Silver Sea CC boards you will find that they have the same complaint.

The bottled water we had the whole trip in SA was from SA.  I think that it has something to do with the purification system used to produce the bottled water.

I was on the Azamara Pursuit South Africa Cruise the beginning of January - Our first Azamara cruise.  I used the Azamara OBC to pre-book excursions.  I called them and they took care of it very quickly.  I had a sizeable amount of refundable OBC from our web-based travel agency.  About two months before our cruise, I emailed the travel agent (paper trail) to request a check after the cruise instead of OBC.  They agreed.  With all the complaints about mix-ups with OBC I decided to go that route.

Even though we used a Travel Agent, Azamara were very quick to answer any non-booking/financial questions pre-cruise.  Our excursion reservations were made directly with Azamara.

Our cruise was wonderful.  Great service and food.  All our excursions through Azamara were excellent.  We liked the size of the ship and the wonderful travelers we met from all over the world.

We were on the January 3, 2024 sailing with another couple.  All four of us had stomach issues.  One of the men went to the medical doctor on board and had extensive testing.  Even a poop sample.  It showed no sign of norovirus, flu or covid.  Imodium helped.  If I drank ginger ale my stomach was ok.  We continued with stomach problems for the following eight days after the cruise in Zimbabwe, Kruger NP, and Johannesburg.  We only used and drank bottled water.  Once on our Delta flight home, and the first bottle of Disani Water, our stomach problems disappeared.  I have come to the conclusion that the bottled water filtration and treatment if SA was the cause.  Not Azamara.

Now I am trying to find out if the Journey is having the same problems.

On 1/26/2024 at 8:59 AM, upplepop said:

Interest rates are relatively high right now, so being able to lock in your fare plus earning interest is a no-brainer for them.

 

This is the reason I regret taking advantage of the 5% offer. I could've been earning almost 5% of my remaining fare per month had I just stuck it in a high-yield savings account.

Where are you seeing 5% per month.  That would be 60% per year!😜

6 hours ago, oakridger said:

@Heartfelttraveler  Thank you for letting us know what is happening on Maud.  I hope you and all aboard have safe travel to Germany then home.  What a traumatic experience for everyone!  You sound like you are in good spirits in spite of the problems.

 

Take care of yourself,

~Nancy

I am not on Maude.  (I am tucked safely in bed in the USA.)  I saw these photos from someone who is onboard and shared them here.

I got this from the site that may not be named.

I can recommend a private snorkeling tour.

H2O Bora Bora.

they were great.  Picked us up at the pier and we went to three snorkel sights.

https://boraborah2o.com/index.html

On 12/7/2023 at 4:55 PM, donaldsc said:

 

The people of Key West got local legislation restricting the number of ships that could dock in Key West passed by I believe 60% of the voters in 2020.  In 2021 governor DeSantis signed a law forbidding a local government from passing a law to to regulate cruise ship port usage. This post is not making a political statement but a statement of historical fact.

 

DON 

https://cruiseradio.net/key-west-awaits-pivotal-cruise-ship-decision/

I will start.

1. Is there a good English website to see the train schedules?

2. Any recommendations for traveling from Shinjuku Station to Kawaguchiko Station (Tokyo to Mt. Fuji)?  (I have the train route but cannot find the schedule online.)

4 hours ago, mandwcruise said:

Until your comment, I had not even considered that as I am fairly healthy and already have COVID shots.

 

I saw this https://www.go2africa.com/african-travel-blog/vaccinations-need-africa

 

Is it expected that I get all these vaccines before I go?

No.  But if you travel outside of South Africa you will have to get the Yellow Fever Vaccine.  That is the reason we are not going to Kenya etc.  We are flying into Cape Town and doing a 12 night South Africa cruise, then flying to Zimbabwe/Zambia, then flying to Kruger, then flying to Johannesburg and then home.  No YF vaccine required.  As far as Malaria, we will take the pills with us.  Some people actually take the pills prior to and during their African trip.  We are not young anymore and have underlying health issues that we would rather not subject to a bunch of vaccines.

In the USA it is no longer recommended for people over 65 to get the YF vaccine.  That was a surprise to me.  Most of the others we have already gotten over the years.  As for the Covid vaccine, I feel that it is a personal choice.

When planning keep in mind the Yellow Fever vaccine requirement for most of Africa.  South Africa is not a yellow fever area.