Windsurfboy

Snap , Who else got the email far to early 

Very  strange as only 15 knots officially recorded yesterday in CapeTown,  which is normal for this time of year.

The windy season is November to February, the "Cape doctor" , due to trade winds being accelerated by thermal effect of high inland temperatures. 40 knots+ in afternoon is  not unusual in January but rare April, Table Mountain normally shelters Cape town city centre  from worst winds

Katabatic winds are normally  at night or early morning and short lived,  so won't have kept a ship at harbour all day. 

Unfortunately our visa ran out on 9th , or would have cancelled flight to get on Victoria. 

Winds were petering out as normal  before we left

Mine was a bit temperamental,  seems to need a very fast Internet or it has a paddy.

However once working it was very efficient. 

The real comparison is what you can get on both lines for same money.

So Fred vs P&O bigger balcony cabin , plus eating in speciality restaurants each night.  Fred food is better than MDR, but how does it stack up to Epicurean, Sindhu,  or limelight club

P&O isn't the only line to have kept number of dishes constant,  but now have 3 vegan/vegetarian options. Cunard and Saga are similar.

Vegans,  vegetarians are 15% of UK population. So either that means 1 dish in 7 . Or a separate menu, as they deserve a choice , but not at the expense of the 85% meat fish eaters

One thing always let Saga know how much luggage,  if you're not sure better to give them a generous estimate.  This will ensure a big enough "car"

10 minutes ago, Tothesunset said:

One thing I don't understand. You get off the ship at, say, 9.30 for the 3 hr trip home. The other passengers need a loo stop after a couple of hours. Fair enough. But do they really need to spend 45 minutes having a cup of tea, a faceful of food and a wander round the retail outlets? They've only just had breakfast for crying out loud. 

 

L'enfer c'est Les autres

Did this happen to you , I  see your signature doesn't include Saga 

We had a shared transport last time, comfortable big merc 8 seater for 4 , nice company to chat to. Added 30 mins max.

Certainly not worth the extra £600 for private transport

53 minutes ago, twotravellersLondon said:

 

 

This is one case where comparisons are pointless.

 

We've visited Svalbard with Fred Olsen in the 1990s and so were captivated with it that we've been there lots of times since... often on a Fred cruise, a couple of times with expedition boats and we've flown in and out... staying at the Radisson. It captivated us and it still captivates us... one of us checks the weather forecast every single day... and we watch the webcams... if you've not tried it, have a look at  https://portlongyear.kystnor.no ... still lots of snow and ice on the harbour... it's been a cold winter.

 

We completed a polar circumnavigation of the archipelago one year, been blocked from doing the same on another year because of the ice. We're both certified marine mammal surveyors and one of the most wonderful experiences that we've had was cruising through a group of Belugas only minutes after leaving Longyearbyen on the Boudicca. Mind... we had to dress very warm to stay out on the decks.

 

And we've seen a polar bear in the distance from the Balmoral not far from Longyearbyen but they're not common in summer... just as well as they're quite partial to unsuspecting tourists! (We've had a couple of close encounters on expedition boats much further North as well as some superb sightings.)

 

On a perfect day you can see the sun for 24 hours... it makes a complete circuit of the sky and at about midnight it shines from due North... quite sensational  if you can catch it.

 

Been to Hammerfest about four times... but always in the midst of winter... very, very cold but as a result we're both members of the Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society... you can join at the museum on the quay!

 

Hope that you have a really great time. It is something well-worth looking forward to.

But your comments are all about itinerary not about the cruise line.

If Fred was the only cruise line to go up north then comparisons are irrelevant.  But there are other cruise lines that go there with small ships, perhaps not P&Os mega ships. So you must compare Fred to these.

But in general its Fred vs P&O for similar cabins and similiar itinerary that is relevant. 

There are sea view  cabins on P&O you can compare with Fred.

However my cursory examination of prices, Fred is up there with many better lines , but these have no insides. So if you want a balcony cabin, then Fred price is up there or perhaps above Saga, but no comparison in terms of the Saga better offering. 

Clearly given smoking we'll never touch Fred.  But we'd never pay their prices when there's Saga , or for a little more other lines with small ships and great service . Or even big ships with ship within ship.

If you want a better offering than P&O, and willing to pay Fred prices, you have a lot of choice of better lines , especially if you want a balcony. Fred seems to want to charge luxury prices for a average line. Like P&O of old is not luxury

Or you can stick with P&O and use difference in price for speciality restaurants,  treat yourself to great wine and perhaps a bigger cabin.

Yes the Savoy is far superior to premier Inn.  But is it worth the extra is a more complex equation 

No one's arguing that Fred is not better than current P&O

If its like old P&O worth may be just 25% more pushing it at 50% more

It would need far far better food and service to be worth double.

Comparison  without price is not useful.

1 minute ago, terrierjohn said:

What is wrong with buying wine by the glass, it's no more expensive , especially if you buy the large 250 mile glass, 

Not all wine is available by the glass

On Arvia

If you eat in Epicurean  two days in a row, can you keep bottles  to next night. My wife only drinks white , I  like a red. 

Don't need to know what you paid.

But for the same cabin size , and position (ie inside vs inside , balcony vs balcony) what are relative prices.

If P&O is 100 per night,  what does Fred cost. If Fred is 105 then choosing Fred is a no brainer, if Fred is 200 then it's a more complex equation. 

Can you let everyone know relative cost

Suites on Saga don't sell that fast. 

Shows the advantage of preregistering.

However as someone said earlier,  it's not a good policy if they want to encourage new to Saga cruisers. By the time they see it Saga looks expensive. 

When I started work it was drilled into us by safety officer use handrail. Falling down stairs is serious especially as we get older , even more dangerous on moving ship. I wonder how many accidents caused by people not using handrails for fear of covid , noro.

Officers showing off by not using handrails, not a good example. 

Use hand rails , keep hands away from face, and wash them often.

As someone whose been windsurfing in UK waters for 30 years, the odd dirty handrail seems a minor risk. Perhaps this has strengthened my immune system never had problem on cruise ship , or hotel.  So answer is get in the sea 

3 hours ago, Spence55 said:

What is the EH 5% please? 

English heritage members  5% discount, I  didn't know about it till after I'd  booked. Well worth the membership fee if we book another  Saga cruise

Just looked at my next cruise, not gone to  guarantee,  but still showing  discount% , also now showing how many cabins available at each level, which it hasn't for a while.

7 months to go, is their a time when guarantee appear

3 hours ago, nosapphire said:

 

Annoyingly, yet another booked cruise is now going to cabin guarantee...

I agree it's annoying.  Saga has got itself into a hole. Prices start off reasonable at 35% off,  it then reduces the discount. So Amost No one buys at higher prices, everyone waits then for guarantee which they know will come.. Which annoys anyone who didn't get 35% off.  Once promotions become routine, no incentive to pay normal price.

We used the butler most lunchtimes,  quite often ordered just a starter and occasionally a desert off the main menu, had it mainly on the balcony. Saves the bother of going to MDR especialy if you dont want full meal .  Very relaxing.

We are on Arvia next and to avoid chaos of bigger ship will use butler most lunchtimes. 

2 hours ago, Denarius said:

I have never seen the logic of why cabins on a higher deck cost more than identical cabins on a lower one. I suspect that it goes back to the days when cabins were in the hull and public rooms in the superstructure, so canins on a higher deck were closer to the latter; also cabins on the lower decks were close to the waterline where bad weather was more apparent. Old habits die hard. Personally I prefer a cabin closer to the public rooms - but not so close that unwanted noise could be a problem - and on Saga D deck is my deck of choice. I cannot see the point of paying considerably more for a an identical cabin on a higher deck, although others may differ. Perhaps this is why cabins on the lower decks sell faster, and those on higher decks have larger discounts for longer. If so, Saga's pricing policy is surely wrong.

Completely agree, the lower the more stable. Wish they'd have some midships suites on D , view is fine. Why you have to pay more to wobble ?

13 hours ago, zap99 said:

The poster suggested it would discourage them from booking with P&O. If that happens they won't go at all.

What would definitely put me off , it the idea that allocating times is somehow unfair on some people, so everyone  come when they want and join a 6000 people queue

The idea of choose your own boarding time sounds nice BUT

The majority of people would like to get on early. 

It is impossible to board 5000 people at once at 12pm without chaos so everyone can't get the times they want.

Therefore times must be allocated . Every cruise line has a pecking order. MSC Yacht club get on first...