GerryL13

I certainly wouldn't mind seeing some fly options ... if they were departing from North America. 😉 Would save me significant time in the air.

Probably the delay of the boarding time was due to the sanitizing following on the cases of Covid on the previous itinerary. I had been told that all the people doing B2B would have to disembark in Montreal while the cleaning was done but later found out that they only had to vacate their staterooms and did not have to disembark.

I found it on Manage My Booking for the cruise. By the time I thought to look, many of the classes were fully booked, mostly the morning ones. Plenty of openings for the afternoon sessions. (This is the Vista Panama Canal cruise in October.)

I was just coming here to ask about Terminal B appearing on my boarding pass. Designed for the big ships? Hope Norwegian won't be embarking there the same day. I just got an 11:30 boarding slot even though I am in a B3 cabin. This was my first time checking in for a cruise online. Wheeee.

No flights offered from my home -- West Coast, USA -- but they picked me up from the Heathrow hotel I designated and dropped me off back at the hotel. I was a little nervous, waiting in the hotel lobby wondering whether I would be abandoned, but it was all very smooth. They are very efficient, at least in my limited experience. We'll see how it goes next year when I might have different pickup and drop off points.

My listed "TA" is actually my sis-in-law. She and my brother are paying for the trip. She is a registered TA but not a professional practitioner.

I've never been a fan of water bottles that have to be unscrewed to get a drink. I'll probably pack my own large "sippy cup."

I asked this question over a year ago on a Saga Facebook page. But I did not yet know the British term "face flannel." I asked about wash cloths. Was happy to get the affirmative answer.

So, the travel docs for the October Panama Canal cruise on Vista arrived this weekend. Being the "read the manual" kind of person I am, I sat down and read/scanned the 40+-page booklet. On the page describing what I can expect in my Veranda stateroom (B3) there is a confusing footnote: Under Gratuities it says "... a suggested gratuity of $18.00* per guest, per day will be automatically added to your onboard account." Okay. Understood that to be the case. But there is a footnote. * "Not applicable on Oct 16, 2023 Inaugural Panama Canal." So that leaves me wondering precisely what is not applicable. The amount? The automatic addition? It would be too much to hope that it means gratuities are included on this booking, especially since I have not seen anything to that effect in my paperwork. Can anyone offer any insight into how to interpret this mystery footnote? (And yes, I will try to reach them by phone later in the week.) Related question: I've been going on the presumption that I can use cruise credits to pay gratuities. I haven't seen anything saying OBC cannot be used to cover gratuities, but neither have I see anything saying they can. Thanks

Just this weekend my travel doc package arrived in the mail. On the page detailing my Veranda stateroom, it does specify Bulgari. I've been wondering about how strongly scented the Bulgari products are, especially the lotion. Since I'm signed for a 2025 cruise, I would also ask about the products that will be replacing Bulgari. Anyone care to comment?

I pre-registered and booked b2b cruises for 2024, specifically Iceland/Greenland followed by Norway.

My experience on SoA: Before going into the buffet proper, you are guided to a table -- or an area where you can choose a table. You make note of the table number and then unfurl the napkin at your place setting before going to get your food. No need to leave anything on the table or chair to hold your place, unless you want to. The key is remembering your table number -- and also on which side of the ship your table is. Anyone who has had more than a few meals in the Grill has seen the people holding a plate and looking lost as they try to find table that is on the other side of the buffet. And many have been that lost soul.

Okay. I went ahead and signed up for the cooking class: TASTE & TECHNIQUE: A CHEF'S SECRET TOOLKIT. The AM time slot. My SiL was not interested in joining me. Nor my brother. That's fine since we are not joined at the hip(s). Looks like the Culinary Center has windows to the outside, so I won't be spending two hours of precious daylight tucked away in the interior of the ship!

I'm thinking about signing up for a cooking class on my upcoming cruise on Vista. (Some openings are still available.) I'd like to hear from people who've taken a class and whether you were impressed, underwhelmed ... or just whelmed. Do you think it is worth the $$ (I have some OBCs) or a waste of time and money?

A couple of months ago I was cruising with Saga (British cruise line). At every venue -- dining or entertainment -- you were greeted by a crew member wielding a bottle of hand sanitizer. At the main dining room there were sinks nearby for people who preferred soap and water, but there was no entry without at least a modicum of sanitizing.

From what I've read, "close" means really, really close. Like, if you live in the environs of Dover and are using Saga transport. I was picked up near Heathrow, about 100 miles according to Google Maps, and got a pickup time of about 12:30PM.

I did my first Saga cruise (actually 2) earlier this year. In 22 days aboard SoA, I only dined alone twice. Once was a quick lunch on the Terrace outside the Grill. It was late and not many people were around. The second time was in the Amalfi (my second visit) when I may have been the only solo and was seated at a two-top by myself. For dinners I either met up with other solos at the pre-dinner get-together in the Britannia Lounge or just entered the MDR and asked to share. At lunch or breakfast in the Grill, the tables are so close together that even if you are sitting alone at a two-top, you are not dining alone.

And you can ask your steward for a top sheet (between your body and the duvet). When Patrick came to introduce himself to me, I asked that he make the bed with a top sheet and told him I can't eat oranges. He always made up my bed as requested and, noticing that I was eating a lot of the grapes, kept me well supplied.

It's not the talks that send me to sleep, it's the darkened room. I like that destination talks are also on replay in my cabin so I can watch anything I might have missed -- or want to review. PS I have not yet had the pleasure of hearing one of Hazel's talks.

Matchstick potatoes. "Allumette" actually means "matchstick." Makes sense, eh?

If the policy covers going out of business. Big if.

I recently came off a cruise on the Saga Spirit of Adventure that claims to have the only Nepalese restaurant on a cruise ship. It is one of three specialty restaurants on this particular ship. I did not eat there as I "don't do spicy" at all, but everyone I spoke with loved it.

One of the challenges for people trying to file disputes with their credit card companies or banks (or maybe claims with 3rd party insurance) to get some of their money back: They have no official documentation stating that Vantage has stopped doing business. Tips about how to document their situation in light of Vantage's "radio silence" might be helpful. Can anyone state what "evidence" they have used to file a dispute or claim on a future cruise or on a refund that has never some through.

And here is the view from SoA. Could hear shouting from your side but not from ours/

I flew half way around the world with very high expectations. Loved my back-to-back cruises and am booked for two more next year. Not thrilled with some of the excursions, but I am more interested in the ship-board experience.