JMMKUK

Thank you. I was thinking they could have got ahead of the storm. Seas didn't look very high but they will be tomorrow judging by the howling outside.

Anyone onboard or know why she's still in Portsmouth? Something is going on after the last cruise's itinerary changed quite dramatically.

I've been following that too. Hope someone can enlighten us. Sorry about your crown. Hope you have been able to get an appointment now you are home. You were lucky to have so long in Funchal. We had a half day visit on Sapphire & all other visits have been unable to go ahead because of storms.

Since Waitrose changed from their House brand beans to whatever we've stopped bothering to take our cups. I meant the machine is like the Waitrose machine or like the Costa machine at Premier Inn Breakfast. You are very lucky to have a proper coffee shop. I enjoyed the coffee from the machine in the library & that served in the Living Room & Britannia Lounge. Got the Butler to bring machine coffee instead of a pot for our breakfasts. We have a bean to cup machine at home so not much different for us.

That's blown that theory then. It was certainly OK on the early cruises we did with the passenger number restrictions.

I've been known to say that it isn't fit for purpose. I nearly threw my iPad across the cabin when it failed to submit the end of cruise survey in October. Having read other posts about it I've got to wondering if it is a compatability issue. What device(s) were you using? I was using an iPad & iPhone that are both stuck on IOS 15 so need replacing.

It is a public network. Can you set up a VPN to make it secure? I used to have a free VPN on my iPhone. Make sure all the apps you need are up today as they won't get updated onboard.

If you don't want House Gin you can ask for others. They had Bombay Sapphire included. Not sure what others. The Bombay Sapphire we bought on SoA Duty Free is higher proof than usually available in the UK. It maybe the one they serve is too.

On NY 2022, wearing full evening dress, sequins & chiffon, I had changed into Crocs to see the fireworks & bumped into the Captain on the way to Deck 14.

Not as formal as they used to be. If your husband is in DJ & you wear a cocktail or tea dress you will be accepted at formally dressed. When my husband wore a lounge suit we got directed to the non formal side of the grill. That may have been because the formal side was full of course. Even when the sea is rough & the Captain has announced formal wear isn't required there's usually quite a few who still bother.

Saw that you left Funchal later than scheduled. Are you going to be late back to Portsmouth? You are not very far ahead of SoA on the CruiseMapper map.

There was one themed buffet in the Grill where they had bought local wine in the port to accompany the buffet. Sorry, but I can't remember which port.

The inclusive wines are drinkable. If you don't like the wines of the day they will get you something else from the limited range. We've never had to pay to get a wine that was drinkable but have become friends with guests who have. She was a white drinker & we drink red. I've never recognised the labels but we usually drink European wines at home.

No chance! The dog is a cute idea though.

I knew they were good, but not that good. No wonder there are lots of eager Filipinos waiting for a vacancy. One Butler we had was previously on Silversea. Two years on & he's still with Saga.

We got stuck in a lift on Silver Wind back in 2017. Luckily it wasn't between floors. After that we noticed it was OOS a lot. On SoA last twice lifts were often OOS but not for very long. I always assumed it was because the crew were using them for a something important. I know they do that when they are taking a medical emergency to level 4.

So pleased ypu enjoyed your Christmas & NY cruise. Bet the Christmas & NY formal dinner food was fabulous. We've always done warm but thinking maybe a Cold Christmas cruise might be next.

I heard they are bringing them back. I'm pretty certain one lady brought one with her on our last Christmas cruise. 🤣

Some of the crew on the new ships have been with Saga since Saga Rose. That must say something about the way they are treated.😊 A cocktail waiter told me that her friends who work on the big ships can't get onto Saga ships because crew hardly ever leave.

We have cruised with people who always choose E Deck. When ORCA are on board they are usuallly on Sun Deck or E Deck. Presumably it's the same for other entertainers.

No, just the wifi & the fact the food isn't as good as on the old ships. It kept giving me an error. The ORCA people were getting the same error. There was definitely something wrong with it. I wasn't trying to stream anything and certainly not make WhatsApp calls as I was told many cruises ago that isn't allowed. It was 4th time on SoA and nearly full as opposed to the earlier cruises. I just assumed it couldn't cope with an almost full ship.

Yay! The current offering certainly isn't fit for purpose.

We were in the Supper Club on the inaugral cruise so it has always been used. October cruise was the first time we'd been in the Britannia lounge.

We've been aft on deck A & deck C. Best was A tag 2, worst was C tag 6. We are gold but I don't think that is in the mix. Our friends, needing assistance were tag 1 on their Discovery cruise.

Where is your favourite cabin situated? We have noticed that Aft seems to disembark first.