highplanesdrifters

Thanks for taking us along. Always appreciate a good report.

Given the movement after the Fitch downgrade thought folks might find this long term chart of the 10 year interesting.

How dare they.

Just ask when you are on board if SS will host one. Or host one yourself. You may start a trend.

Yes, we ordered from room service. It was not horrible, and it was pizza. Looking forward to the new room service menu. Pizza if ordered from one of the restaurants can be decent if served bubbling hot. Cold congealed cheese is not my favorite.

Excellent and interesting recap. Thanks for taking the time. They not going to get this: If they opt for this:

I have to wear a bib while reading.😂

Ouch is right. That's going to leave a mark.

M - You're killing me with all the scrumptious food posts.😁

You dont want a night tour of Guyaquil. On our visit last November they canceled all tours and highly discouraged anyone from leaving the ship. You might google what's going on.

What a fun exercise. Thanks. But I agree with JPH. I think at a minimum you need to double the room charge. In the U.S if you're in a city, you might get a Holiday Inn if you're lucky. Ritz, MO, FS, start at $800ish for a closet.

I don't think I'll ever consider myself retired until I'm six feer under. Or cremated, or eaten by Sharks, or until somebody takes my toys away.🤣

Perfecto!

Turns out we are also going to Simi. Any tips?

Every day we are not on a ship is a land based vacation.🤣

Yes, we've all been there. About day 15 everything is starting to look a little samey samey, especially on the smaller ships. Many request special meals in advance from the chef. Indian is our go to. We will sometimes buy local condiments, especially spicy ones before we board. The restaurant kindly brings them out at dinner. Our last trip on the Explorer challenged our paletes after Chef Pia left. I started making my own soup at the lunch buffet. I asked for a larger bowl of soup part way filled. It was usually some brothy or cream based thing, added veges and protein from the buffet. Tada! Let's hear yours, I need some new ideas!

Yes. It was as mediocre as one would expect it to be.

I think this may be true for the mass market sales. For the higher maintenance SS sales I believe they still prefer that customers go through TA's. They simply do not have enough staff to handle the calls. Certainly not enough staff that has enough knowledge to answer questions accurately.

Thanks for sharing, really appreciate.

When you least expect it. I'm looking for a black/grey swan event in October. So guaranteed it won't happen then. 😁

So in town the pollution generated by the ship will be replaced by pollution from the busses to take people to the town. But the pollution from the ship will still be generated, just in a different town. So now, twice the pollution. Brilliant!

Especially now. Would love to know if you find any favorites on Encore.

CC should not be a problem. BUT, getting a taxi might be. Book in advance. We were told by our driver last year (who happened to be the owner of the company) that there is a 30% increase in cruise ship numbers this year, and not enough taxis and drivers to handle the biz. Last year, after an hour plus wait and no taxi in sight our friends hauled their luggage from ship to hotel. We had a 20 minute wait for a taxi out to the Blue Lagoon from our Reykjavik hotel. Perhaps it's better this year.

Now that that Wall Street is no longer collectively looking for a recession, you know it's coming.

As mentioned in another thread - On a similar trip, Seabourn top suites are less than half of Silversea. Something's gotta give.