crusinbanjo

Sadly, I agree with the sentiment of this post. Mrs Banjo and I started sailing on SS in 1996 and, my, has the boarding process deteriorated from far exceeding expectations, to just another cruise line.

Hi all. Hopefully the internet service remains good and I will post as we go along. on Friday October 21, Mrs Banjo and I did a one way rental car and drove from Boston through New Hampshire and Vermont and into Canada. It was an easy and beautiful 7 hour drive. Leaving Boston at 7:30 am we arrived in Quebec City and found our Boutique hotel right next to the Château Frontenac and with plenty of daylight left, went out to enjoy a perfect sunny day in old town Quebec. Saturday morning was a repeat of perfect weather to be outside and continue our visit to one of our favorite Canadian cities. Out we went wandering the streets and stairs of the lower and upper city. After lunch at an outdoor cafe it was time to make our way to the Whisper, so we collected our luggage and a short Uber ride to the terminal and quai 21. The reception and boarding process is, as expected, kind of a PIA, but the good news is that this is not like the mega ship that was docked in front of our vacation home for the next 9 days. (As we looked at both ships on Friday, Mrs Banjo commented that Whisper looks like a toy next to the mega ship berth in front). Anyway, the pre board process went along smoothly with temp checks, etc. and did not take very long. Boarding was smooth, but not like it used to be. In the lobby we were greeted by a masked crew and told that suites were not ready, so we should wait on deck 8 or 7 in La Terraza until an announcement was made. It was 3pm when we boarded, 4pm when suites were ready. Still the ship was a great place to be, but the reception was not what SS was in the past. Rather than the Lux line feel, the feeling at boarding was more like a Mass Market ship. Any we are happy to be aboard and I will report on more as we progress. today is Saguenay and weather is fabulous

Glad I'm not the CFO at CCL

That is exactly what I did today and "Voila" (Practicing my French), and a suite was assigned today! We are good to go! Hope to meet you on board Lois. We will be driving a one way rental car from Boston to Quebec, then its on to the Whisper for our Let's get back to cruising cruise!

Mrs Banjo and I booked a last minute cruise out of Quebec on October 22, (next Saturday). We booked this just as, and because, the CV-19 testing and restrictions were dropped. As of today with 6 days to go before sailing we still have not been assigned a suite. We bought a guarantee for a Superior Veranda Suite. What happens if we arrive at the dock without an assigned suite? Has anybody experienced that situation? I am not really worried that we won't get a suite, but I am interested in what to expect.

You are quite correct, money managers can, and often are, just as poor at the market as I am. For most of my investments, I continue to be self directed and I generally have done better than the money I have under management. I get to pay 0.5% on management fees, anymore and I would walk away. Recently I was persuaded to move some $$ to another manager….. that turned out very poorly. It will take me a long time to recover the losses they delivered……. So those meals, as painful as they are to listen to, might tast pretty good. Haha

I should clarify, I have received my “ticket” , with no cabin assigned as yet. As far as luggage tags etc., nothing yet. even though Mrs Banjo and I are driving to Quebec to catch this cruise, and we received credit for the Blacklane car service, we still keep getting notices to schedule our Blacklane service. Can’t figure that one out.

Actually, the percent paid for money management or an advisor can vary widely. Some I have seen are as low as .5% or as high as 3.5%. As for the free dinners, I get many invites as well, sometimes multiple times per week. If inflation keeps going up and the markets keep going down, I might start accepting those invitations just for the free food! Haha

we are still waiting for docs for the 10 - 22 sailing, hopefully they come soon!

Well Terry, SS didn’t give Mrs Banjo and I any super low price for our last minute booking. But, having said that, we are still very happy to be “back in the saddle again”.

That would work for me! Haha On a different cruise line, I did get an upgrade to their top suite. It was very cool 😎, would not mind that on SS for sure, but more likely we’ll end up in a closet on deck 2. Still, we intend to enjoy it totally!

I would definitely not want to be in their shoes. With the economic issues all around, right after Covid, many corporate futures look bleak indeed. Hopefully SS and many other cruise lines survive and prosper. My feeling is that 2023 will see a start of a shake out in the cruise industry, (as well as many other industries). Hopefully SS comes out the other end of all this in better position.

Mrs Banjo and I will be on board on the 22nd as well, assuming they assign us a cabin. 😐 14 days until our return to cruising. It’s been way too long.

Same here, when we cruise, the cell phone is locked in the safe and only comes out occasionally. Paper for me please!

Mrs Banjo and I feel much the same. We began cruising in 1990 on the Island Princess. We moved up to our first Lux line, (Silver Sea), in the mid 1990’s and brought the average age wayyyy down, as we were still in our mid 30’s. Now in our late 60’s, we are very happy to be getting back, after Covid, to cruising. We take nothing for granted and we realize just how fortunate we have been and still are to have good health, and the ability to travel and cruise. We also make it a point to always be kind and generous to the crews and staff that work hard at making life good for us, after all, that IS why we cruise.

No suite assignment, but we are assured one will be assigned in the next few days. Weeeoooo, happy to be back to cruising!

Turns out you were right Lois. I challenged my rep and got an email response last night. So, assuming our suite is still available, we will be on board on October 22

thanks Lois, I will go back and challenge my SS consultant. Sorry the screenshot came out so small, but it is also from the SS website and lists all of the Whisper IT’s and clearly stated the drop in Canada restrictions, but still the required testing for boarding. I’m so confused, maybe we get lucky on this one and will see you on board.

That is the IT we were looking to book. My previous post I added a screenshot of what SS sent me. I would love to be wrong on this.

Here is a screenshot from the SS website

Well, I was ready to book a Canada, New England cruise just the other day. I nice last minute get away, because all the restrictions were dropped. Mrs Banjo and I are vaxed, but not boosted, (too risky for me due to medical issues). I was told by our PCC that SS still requires pre boarding testing. Now, I’m not against testing, but we have never been tested, have avoided all the sickness, and don’t even know how to go about fulfilling this requirement. So, we just declined and said we will stay in the US until the last of the stumbling blocks are removed. Hopefully in the near future. no offense to Stumblefoot intended!

That is for EU countries? I believe Britain and Norway have dropped all requirements and are open to all. If vax status is invalid after 270 days, I guess Mrs Banjo and I won’t be cruising in the EU anytime soon.

Now that Canada 🍁 has dropped all Covid restrictions, (as of Oct 1, tomorrow), When will SS drop the pre boarding Covid test? I know Viking has already done this as has Holland America, not sure about other lines…….. Just asking for a friend.

This post is for you Terry. Just to keep it going. Great insight as always!

Thanks, that is too funny. Mrs Banjo and I have been as far north as 73 degrees, (Resolute Island), in the northwest passage. It was pretty cold there, even in the summer.