cece50

I just read the dress code (we sail The Muse in Dec).....first time on SS and I think I understand this jacket thing....it does differ from Seabourn which we have sailed.  There are 3 categories:  casual, informal &  formal.   Casual equals no jacket, informal equals jacket no tie, formal equals jacket or suit with tie.  If you are out & about after dinner on formal night even if you had a causal dinner in your suite or on deck, you are required to wear a jacket no tie in public areas.  Like I said....I think I get it.  You definitely need bigger luggage on SS😜

11 days until we embark in Lisbon.  I imagine this will be a bit different than our Mediterraean cruise last May.  However, the ports are very interesting......the coast of northern Spain, & western France, southern England, northern France & Netherlands.  I expect will be find a range of weather and sea conditions.  As this is basically a repositioning cruise.....has anyone done such a cruise?   Experiences?

Sorry it's such a dreary day here in NJ....and to think I left Florida last week for this.  Enjoy your day & the million dollar views of NYC.

Hoboken & Jersey City are very good calls while in NYC.  Newark not so much!   The very best views of NYC are from NJ.    These areas are accessible via Path trains out of 33 St Station and my favorite, NY Waterways Ferries which include bus transport to & from the piers.....stopping at various places on their loop around Manhattan.   LIberty State park is another wonderful area with acess to Lady Liberty & Ellis Island.   Also on site, is the restored train station that hosted millions of immigrants on their first stop as they travelled beyond NYC.....again, the views are magnifcent.  

Someone will correct me if I am wrong......but I believe formal night is only in The Restaurant (Main Dinning Room).  That being said, The TK Grill does lend itself to a jacket no tie, but I do not think jacket is required on any night.   

koalapanda.....Best advice.....Ever😎

N2wdw..... good call on ditching the tux for the wine.   We did not see many tuxedos on Seabourn Encore during that same time last May.....Athens to Barcelona.  My husband wore a suit one night.....opted for the jacket on some nights & a nice sweater on the others.   This May.....no suit.....just a nice blazer.   If we chose to dine in MDR on “formal night”.....he will wear a tie.  We ladies have it so easy with dress pants & pretty top or casual dress.   I did not pack a cocktail dress but opted for more casual knit dresses....easy & appropriate.   By the way....the weather was perfect.  We were on the newer and slightly bigger Encore and sail Ovation this May.   We are big fans of our only Seabourn cruise to date.  We sail SilverSea Muse later this year.  I think you are in for a treat.  Great ports.....we did a land tour of Sicily a few years back and were blown away by Siracusa etc.   Valletta was one of our fav ports on Seabourn.  The sail in party was so much fun.  Happy Travels!  

Josumello.....We found “formal night” no more formal than a jacket with or without a tie for men, maybe a suit here or there & dressy trousers and silk blouse or a nice dress for the ladies.  Tuxedos & Gowns were.....let me see....about 4 people. This was a fully booked Mediterranean cruise in May on The Encore.  Everyone looked great & totally appropriate.   We embark again this May on The Ovation.....my husband will be packing a sports coat & trousers.....no suit.   Along with nice trousers and sweaters for the Spring weather (Lisbon to Amsterdam).   Me.....a casual dress or two and a few slightly dressy trouser ensembles & a great warm wrap.  Dressing appropriate is easy on Seabourn.   For the few who go all out formal.....more power to you.  This should be fun whatever your preference.   I think Seabourn allows for the perfect balance. 

We sailed the Encore in the Mediterraean last May....Athens to Barcelona.....we loved the ship.  Perfect size just under 500 on our voyage.  The Encore feels like a yatch with its warm woods, navy color scheme, with fabulous light fixtures, staircase and lots and lots of natural light.  It was fresh and clean and new.  We didn't see many tuxs or gowns, just simple lovely dresses or pants ensembles and lots of men in blazers or suits with or without ties.  Re smoking on SB.....we never ever smelled smoke.

We sail the Ovation this May....Lisbon to Amsterdam....I expect to love it.

We will be sailing SilverMuse in Dec.....Sydney to Auckland....I expect to love it also.  I will be following the dress code for Seabourn, as I thought it was more than appropriate.  If SS is too formal......I suspect it really is not, we will decide if it's a game changer in the future.  Also, we heard that SS has a designated indoor clubby lounge for cigar smokers....so I expect most would be taking advantage of that. 

Have a feeling you will be happy with whatever line you choose from these two.  Itinerary would be my focus.

Our Travel Agent arranged for our tour of the Alhambra a few years ago with Made For Spain ........outstanding guide. 

Hi Terry.....I did read your reports from the Lisbon cruise awhile back & they were so helpful & useful.  Photos....fantastic. So excited for these ports most of which are new to us.....northern Spain & west coast of France.  I love Spain & France have been looking forward to these particular ports.  We have done an extensive land & golf trip to Portugal & we enjoyed it very much.  Lovely country.  We have our private tours arranged for Northern Spain, Bordeaux & of course, Normandy (been before but need to go back).  We have travelled quite a bit to London,  Amsterdam & Belgium & excited to be touching base there again.  Hoping for good weather & seas.....

Regarding Queensland overnight.....sounds very appealing.  Will look through your posts for info. Do I recall this was privately arranged?  Will probably have some questions as we start focusing on December. 

 Yes, a return golf trip with friends to NZ will be planned for another time.  The courses’ reputations are quite good & some other friends have first hand experience.  On Our List. 

 Thanks again, Terry .....really enjoy your blogs 

Christine 

Okwfreak.....what a great adventure across the Pacific!   We will look forward to meeting you onboard The Muse.  This is our very first venture to Australia & NZ.    We will  have a few days in Sydney pre cruise, but will have to be on our way to San Diego via LA the day after the cruise ends to spend the holidays with family in So Cal.   We hope to return to New Zealand at a later date to explore more in depth and take in a few rounds of golf......we hear it’s spectacular.   

We we are fairly new to cruising.....Athens to Barcelona on Seabourn Encore last May and will be boarding Seabourn’s Ovation in Lisbon cruising to Amsterdam this May.  This is our first with Silversea, & we are very excited.   

Hi Okwfreak.....am I understanding correctly.....you will be boarding the Muse in Sydney as an extension of your first cruise on Oceania from the West Coast?

Thanks Everyone for all your recommendations.....very helpful👏

Would love to hear recommendations and insights for our Sydney to Auckland cruise in early December on the Muse.   We will be spending about 4 days in Sydney pre cruise, so any thing we must do, must see, must eat while there would be greatly appreciated.   Our route will take us from Sydney onward to Melbourne, Hobart, then to New Zealand cruising the Sounds and then calling on Port Chamers (Dunedin), Lyttelton (Christchurch), Picton, Tauranga and then Auckland.   

We have used our Virtuoso affliated Travel Agent for many years to travel the world.  We just used her for our first cruise last year and using her again in our two upcoming bookings with Seabourn & Silversea.  As always, we find using her works to our advantage with upgrades, extras ( we were given a complimentary Virtuoso excursion on our Med cruise last May)....it was a great tour with a stunning lunch included.  She had her office in our hometown, but moved because of her husband's transfer to another city.  She handles everything for us via internet and never skips a beat.  Good luck in your search, but consider a Virtuoso agent who goes to all the trade events and works at having face time with representatives of all the cruise lines, tour operators, hotels, etc .....we found that aspect very helpful to us. 

Neither of us is prone to seasickness, but will pack the meds, just in case.  So looking forward to this beautiful cruise. 

Thanks for all your insights.  At this time our flight is scheduled to be on a 777-200 Wide Body on Air NZ. 

Thanks all for your thoughts.  Based on that particular day, we decided to take the late afternoon flight at 4:00 pm on Air New Zealand.....Business Class.   We will have a private transfer, maybe stop for lunch and get to airport will a little less stress.   We will stay overnight in Sydney before our flight the next day to Los Angelos since we will have spent four nights in Sydney prior to our cruise.  I know it may be a bit crazy to fly back to Sydney before heading back, but we were able to snag a great deal with Delta and our Amx points on their newer configured planes that fly between LAX and Sydney.   Christmas with our West Coast family was a great incentive.  So excited to spend time aboard The Muse in this beautiful part of the world. Praying for smooth sailing.....I hear the seas can be a challenge.  

Tell me about Auckland Airport.......Dec 20th......I assume New Zealanders will be in full getaway mode.  I know the US aiports are a bit crazy a few days before Christmas.  At this point we have access to a 2pm or 4:30pm flight on Quantas.   A 1pm or 4pm on Air New Zealand.  We are used to TSA precheck here in US, so we always leave a bit later.   Since it's our first trip to Australia/NZ, we are not sure what to expect.  Waiting on advice from my TA, but anything you can share would be great.

Thanks so much drron.....yes, we are looking at that flight.  I know it's the Friday before Christmas, so I am assuming the traffic could be heavier.  Your thoughts on that? 

Thanks so much rojaan.....just the info needed.  Late afternoon it is!

December 6 Cruise on The Muse:   First trip to Australia/New Zealand.

Planning flight from Auckland back to Sydney on same day as arrival in port.  Any recommendations on alloting enough time for breakfast, debarkation, luggage transfer, tranisit time to airport, traffic and customs etc.  We have our choice of flights at this time......early or late afternoon?

Cece50, I have just seen your post from September, with a question about how we liked the cruise from Lisbon to Amsterdam. In three words, WE LOVED IT. We have been to Europe many times, and have been to most of the countries (land trips, river and ocean cruises) but thought the itinerary was very interesting. Lots of new ports for us and all very varied. So, no complaints (except maybe too few sea days since we like them so much) and only positive things really. We loved the Ovation (well, except for a few things like no real walking/jogging deck - only around the pool; and the Theater has these very large weight-bearing posts that obscure views) and would happily sail on her again. You will have a wonderful time!

Thanks NJ for your insights....Looking forward to this one!

If you are looking for a “sneaker” type of shoe......look at a newer company....ON Running from Switzerland. Pretty sure you can find them in Dallas.....we have them here in NJ at our nicer malls & running stores. I wear their Cloudventures.....light, sturdy, lots of traction, and supportive. Great colors.