highplanesdrifters

Gotcha. I was thinking they did 12 hours in Reykjavik. 🤣

Killer!

Interested to hear more. Reykjavik is so small I wonder what they saw on a private tour.

If I'm staying home, it's going to be cashmere, a cashmere silk blend or super baby alpaca.

Thanks for the update. Please tell us about your excursions and experiences on board. I'm sure you will have different experiences than mine, fun to compare. I can then live vicariously. Sorry about the Bungle Bungle flight. Our horizontal falls was canceled, did yours go? Montgomery Reef was also a bit of a bust. Both due to neap tides and poor itinary planning. There was a lot of poor itinary planning our our trip. I've been meaning to do a recap. The service from hotel and restaurant was the best we've ever had on any trip. Hopefully that continues for you. Robert Paulier was amazing at solving issues that came up. Igor and restaurant team, wow! On the Kimberly leg of our trip we thought the expedition team was spotty. Some over the top fantastic, Matt Boyle in particular. Others well......we wouldn't get in their boat. Not surprised about the elevator.🤣 Sometimes the other elevator was out. Long climb up to 7 after a long day. Keep the updates coming!

Thanks for the tips. We got a private guide for all the Turkey stops possible and a few of the others. That bus thing.🤣 I hear ya on the Quest. Is she tired? I dont know, but it's a great itinary so I'll try and overlook her warts. Im more worried about service, food, and excursions. Also, price is right. I'm shocked at how much more expensive Silversea us.

We were on Silversea Explorer. A tad smaller than we like, but perfect for the trip. Sadly, Silversea sold her. The trip started in Fiji and also stopped in Solomans and Vanuatu. I did a live on the Silversea forum. Lots expedition ships covering PNG. Yell if you have any more questions.

We love flying out of DFW. Our favorite domestic airport. Sadly not a direct for us. We usually pop in the night before and stay at the Grand Hyatt. The restaurant is quite good. We too are in the 21 day plus camp. One can barely unpack in 14. 😉 If you loved the fjords in Norway, you'll love Grenland, have you been? It's mostly a scenery trip with minimal critters, but oh what scenery. Important to go later, as in mid to late August. Ice can prevent you from going into fjords earlier in the season. Find an itinary with Scorsby sound. Iceland is also amazing but can be crowded. Svalbard was interesting, but we had weather issues and I'm told that is common. We were crazy about our recent trip to Papaua New Guinea/South Pacific, we it felt changed us. It was right up there with Antarctica. B2B was followed by The Kimberlys/ Great Barrier Reef, which we loved. Costa Rica to Santiago was interesting and easy. Direct AA DFW flights. Forget the Carribean, I believe Silversea is now doing a French Polynesia circuit on Shadow. Heck just go and stay in an Overwater Bungalo. I love French Polynesia. United has great flights out of SFO. Upcoming: Doing eastern med late fall while Turkey seems stable and avoiding crowds. Starting in Venice, SB Encore Cape to Cape, including Antarctica ( going back while we can 😀). SS Cloud Guam to Santiago, SB Pursuit (we loved Venture, our favorite ship) Circumnavigate Japan with a few extras, SB Quest Looking for: Indonesia Seychelles Back to Greenland, ending in Churchill. Azores up to Western Europe Would love to hear ideas from others. Hope that wasn't TMI.

We too follow the rules. One never knows when they will be enforced. I've seen plenty of times when they were. We have numerous sizes of carry-ons depending on the trip. We went through Heathrow twice last summer. To say I was concerned about our bags making it was an understatement. Like you, we shipped bags and used carry-ons for must haves. As for the canine issue. Make the ill bred owners walk the plank. Abandoned items on chairs, go the WaveyDavey way and turn them in to lost and found. Civilized Humans Unite!

Bus etiquette can be a challenge. We always strive to be polite and helpful when someone is in need. When it takes 15 minutes plus for a bus to unload it can be a challenge to enjoy a short stop. So I agree, those needing extra time might consider letting others pass. We avoid bus tours at all costs. Sometimes it's the only game in town. Attitude in these situations goes a long way, here are some examples to challenge our thinking: On an expedition trip to South America last November there were a few folks using canes and walkers. My first though was good for them! But they were a crabby entitled bunch who complained a lot, about everything. The trip was not in ADA compliant areas and uneven surfaces were the norm. The group wanted a special bus and excursions to cater to their needs. This was an EXPEDITION cruise. Eventually some were assigned expedition team members as their personal aides on excursions. The aides were treated poorly and my heart went out to them. In Greenland on kayak tours a gentleman sometimes took his paraplegic wife. She was amazing. We all would have happily waited hours to assist. In Antarctica there was a gentleman in a wheelchair who could walk very short distances with some aid. Again we were all happy to wait while the expedition team settled him into the zodiac and assist once on shore. Great guy. Are we more apt to treat those who are kind with kindness? Clearly I was. Perhaps I need to think about that.

No easy answer. I am told by friends that it varies depending on the specials, cruise line, itinary, etc.

What a slice of heaven! Does 6:30 work?

Oh man, that sounds too perfect. Anxiously awaiting the Belmond report. Hypoxemia...don't you have people for that? 🤣

So sorry to hear that you're in the smokey zone, and I don't mean the BBQ one. Wishing you cleansing rains and a wind shift along with a refreshing adult beverage.

JP- thanks for the report. Peru! What fun. Please tell me you're taking the Belmond train. We missed a bit when we were there in November due to the unrest. Hope all is calm for you. Ya, I grouse about the market but reality is I love it. If I'm not beating the street, I'm beating my head until I beat the street. 🤣

And then there's all the Wagner Gold and Diamond stuff. @Stumblefoot what do ya know? Or what can you tell us without having to kill us. 😂

I wish I could add some real insight to the 5 yr and Libor. Our inflation dropping like a rock, Europe not so much. And I did not watch the Powell/LaGarde marathon the other day, 🤣 I'm solidly back in the short term who knows camp. Equity pullback was pathetic, not even the Russian drama could move it. FOMO, quarter/half year end window dressing, still plenty of stimie cash out there all keeping it up? Were our pullback targets 4200-4300 just pipe dreams? And poof, recession talk has turned into expansion. So do we go straight to my next target, 4785, or trade around for awhile? I'm sitting on my hands except to reach in the popcorn box. Just saw a headline about 20 trillion in boomer money ready to be spent. So grab those cruise cabins and air biz seats while you can. Just looked at a Seabourn cruise around Japan spring 2025, 3 days after release all my favorite cabins unavailable. How were the European airports? TGIF Terry!

Thanks for the first hand info! Sounds like the Captain had some fun in the rumor mill.

There are numerous threads on Antarctic trip tips. Just do a search.

I'm sorry I do not have the answer to your stabilizer question. I too am curious. Have you tried calling Seabourn? Sidenote: On a recent Silversea trip we had dinner with the Captain and I asked him what he knew about the stabilizers. He said the stabilizers fell off and they didn't know when or where. Aparently the mechanism which allows for cleaning and maintenance had issues. Supposedly the company who built the stabilizers assumed responsibility for the problem. True, who knows, but all sounded plausible to me.

We'll be here all week. 🤣 Thanks to @commodoredavefor allowing our hijack.

Cash and carry.

You are so kind. Thought about trying to sneak the end segment in. We are going back to Antarctica with a crossing to Namibia then a little safar starting in Feb 2024, home in April. It might be a little tight to pull off. I will be there in spirit for sure.