Dusko

Isn't a bow tie what you use to attach the forward part of a boat or a ship? 🤔

Of course, men must be careful to pack the speedo style swimming attire regardless of their belly if they intend to swim in a French pool, either public or hotel. Apparently the skin tight ones that look more like shorts are becoming somewhat acceptable but definitely not the loose ones or board short types. Do you have to wear speedos on the beach in France? - Geographic FAQ Hub: Answers to Your Global Questions Now in the MDR................😉

I think you’re absolutely right and fashions change. Tuxedos, for example, used to be popular. I think I still have a blue blazer somewhere but because I wear predominantly blue pants I tend towards light coloured jackets. Haven’t worn a suit for probably 10 years. I found some ties in the closet last year and shook the dust off them. Thank goodness we have become more tolerant of individuality. As has been said, long as we’re not offending anyone all’s good. I certainly adhere to the SB dress code.

I never wear jeans but not because I find them unattractive. I just don’t look good in them. It’s my body shape that’s the problem. Now, some body shapes look really great in jeans! I wear chinos, whether they be Dockers/Eddie Bauer or whatever, and have been doing so in the MDR from time to time without feeling uncomfortable or getting comments. I’m somewhat surprised that they might be considered unacceptable. I always just thought of them as navy blue pants.I “ Live and learn “.😊

I’m not really a champagne drinker but am always glad to see the welcome bottle when we arrive in our suite. I usually pop the cork just to recognize our arrival. After that we keep the remainder in the fridge and I clean my teeth with it every morning. Thank heavens for Bombay Sapphire!

Don’t panic! These posts are from 2022 and things do change. We took Venture out of Reykjavik to Greenland on June 1 last year. We stayed at the Radisson Blu for two nights before we embarked. Yes, it’s noisy. The whole town is noisy!! Given the limited daylight hours the locals (and visitors) party hearty until the early hours. We were across from the famous hot dog stand and there was a line up there at 5 am. It’s all part of a different experience. I’ve never expected the cabin I choose to influence my hotel room. Since we had an open day before joining the ship we took a food tour from Viator. A brilliant decision. A full tour of the town and a chance to try lots of various foods and drinks (including the hot dogs). Once we joined Venture we had the best cruise (expedition) ever. When it came to fly back to Reykjavik the charter flight was excellent. Is it business class….no. It was clean and comfortable and the service was great. Lots of positive comments. The only negative in the whole trip was the arrival at the hotel in Reykjavik. There was no agent present and a long line up to check in. Pre-registering would have been an obvious move on the part of the hotel but remember that this is not London. You are going to love Venture. We had such a great time we took her from Cape Verde to Malaga this year. Another great experience but we are thinking of repeating Greenland.

Well, I just received a promo email from Seabourn with details of two events. There’s the ‘Sail to remember’ promo offering a discount on certain voyages (not unusual) and the ‘More moments to remember’ promo with some OBC. In the latter there is a complete section detailing all the good things that Seabourn offers as standard. Nothing has been deleted or changed from the current (in my humble opinion) excellent Seabourn experience. It would seem that the results of the survey were “don’t change anything, we’re affluent and prepared to pay the price” and they listened. Oh we of little faith.😉

No I didn’t. I did try and register/pay on the EASE site. I got to the payment section and got a message that my credit card provider may need additional confirmation. Shortly afterwards I get a blank screen. I contacted the support website 5 times and tried applying on 3 different browsers, 2 computers and 2 different credit cards. Same result. Finally the support line told me that I can pay on arrival. I have searched and this is a very common problem but it does seem that payment on arrival works fine, just takes longer. I don’t fault Seabourn in any way on this. Now when you do print your final paperwork you get details of a visa service that has a special section to handle Seabourn, for a fee I’m sure. If you’re really worried you could try them.

I believe you are correct, you don’t need a visa but you do need to complete Ease. I am assuming in the instructions it means ‘at least’ 5 days ahead of arrival and not precisely 5 days. If you’re joining the cruise in Cap Verde I assume you will be flying in from Lisbon. You will need the flight number and you only get that when you complete your final documentation. I did that yesterday and will complete Ease over the weekend.

I guess the next problem could be the problems in Dakar. Just have to wait and see. I wonder if there are more ports to add in the Canary Islands 🤔?

Venture is our favorite ship after we went to the Arctic last year. She is stable and able to handle rough seas. She does not, however, have the pool area, entertainment, bars etc. that other ships have. Please don’t misunderstand, I expect we will get a fabulous cruise. There will be really wonderful lectures from some fascinating expedition team members. You will love it, as will we.

Just been advised that two ports, St Louis in Senegal and Tan Tan in Morocco have been removed from the itinerary. We’ve now got an additional sea day and we’re off to Tenerife for the day, presumably on the beach. Not thrilled about it as the expedition ships are not the best for sea days and 5/14 is too many. Also wanted to do this trip because I am interested in Isle de Gore and Morocco. Nothing to be done I’m sure since Seabourn always have the right to alter the itinerary. Port Congestion is given as the reason. Hopefully we get free drinks to compensate 🫠.

I also think the same and I think your Embassy will concur but that’s not the point. If I were to have a medical incident while in PNG I would not be covered by my health insurance simply because I was in a level 3 country. I checked with my insurers. Maybe worth a call?

I’m just a little surprised that nobody is concerned that PNG is at level 3 interns of US and Canadian government warnings and that travel insurance may be nullified. I have looked at my Allianz policy and it is very specific. I would not be covered.

I usually don’t bother with Seabourn or visa services until I have established the need for a visa or not. I begin with the official site of the country. Try https://www.papuanewguinea.travel/usa . If you still have doubts the contact information for your embassy in the country is listed. I drop them an email or give them a call. When contacting a Canadian embassy I have found them to be responsive and helpful, not only with visa information but also security concerns. With a level 3 designation I would definitely contact them.

Take a look at Papua New Guinea International Travel Information (state.gov) You do need a visa. Papua New Guinea is listed as a Level 3 - Reconsider Travel Risk destination. Check the wording of your Travel Insurance. If you find a company that will provide coverage in a Level 3 country please post the link. I couldn't find one and so scrapped plans for a cruise.

Exactly what I was looking for! Thanks 😊

If you read the post it says, "On our last cruise before Venture......"

I think others are right, you have to try it. It’s a bit like the TKG. We tried it the first cruise on one of the smaller ships and found it noisy, not great food and felt pushed to upgrade the wine. We did a later cruise on one of the larger ships and were urged to try it again. It was better but since we were a table of two it felt cramped. Nothing spectacular. On our last cruise before Venture we were again urged to give it a try. Our impression was “Not bad but nothing special “. Others love it. We are not champagne drinkers or spa users so the Retreat may well not be for us but we will give it a try if we sail on one of the larger ships again. Then we can judge.

Just a reminder about my question please. If someone has been on one of the longer cruises could they elaborate as to how much of a French experience they had please?

We spent Christmas in Lisbon last year. For Belem we took the hop-on hop-off bus. It was a really great day out and the bus was perfect. We caught it right by the hotel downtown near the railway station . We had heard about the train option to go to Sintra but then realized that an Uber from the hotel direct to the place was $40 for three of us. No brainer. Uber then took us down into town for a great meal and look around. The Uber back to the hotel was $35. Honestly, Uber pricing was so low it became almost embarrassing. Just a thought

I'd like to follow up on this one if I may. We've done three PG cruises and loved every one of them. They were all pre-Ponant. We moved over to Seabourn for a change of venue and because we wanted to avoid being on a 'French first' ship. The comments about the shorter vs longer cruises are interesting. We would tend toward longer ones since we have covered the shorter cruise venues, including Cook Islands. If someone has been on one of the longer cruises could they elaborate as to how much of a French experience they had please?

A 2000GBP credit, not even a discount, means the US deal is better. Looks like Seabourn is being pretty fair and consistent with their pricing. Good to know. It has been interesting anyway 😊.

Don't know if they will allow you to book without the included air. A quick look at BA's website came up with an economy fare around 4500GBP. That would leave about 7000GBP or $9,000 US. That's a possible 10% saving but my flight cost may be out and I haven't accounted for the transfer so the real number may be much smaller.