Tom2

My wife and I just returned from a 12 day Cuba Cruise with Peal Seas and were very impressed. There were 150 on the ship and the guest lecturers’were outstanding, both in presentation and knowledge. All of the tours were included as well as lunch at private restaurants on many of the tours which were all very good. Drinks on the ship were included and plentiful and the food was some of the best we have had on a ship. Here is a link to a short video slideshow we put together after we got back plus the daily blog we posted while on the trip. http://tomjed.com/index.php/cuba

Tom

Day of the Dead is a Mexican holiday celebratedthroughout Mexico, in particular the Central and South regions, it begins Oct31 and ends Nov 2. We will be in Costa MayaNov 2, doesanyone know if they have any special Day of the Dead Festivals or parades?

Thank you, yes they do connect. I knew I could find the answer here.

We have 2 side by side balcony rooms booked on deck 6 for an October Western Caribbean Cruise. Is it possible to have the divider opened between the 2 balconies?

Thank you,

Tom

Brittany,

My wife and I took that same trip on the Sea Bird in March 2011. Here is a link to the travelogue we posted while on the trip and a short video slide show I put together after the trip.

http://www.tomjed.com/index.php/whales

Tom

I love your video!!!

 

Did you take HAL tours or private ones? What kind of camera did you use?

I'm glad you liked the video. We took a combination of both HAL and Private tours. The Alpaca Farm was a private tour not offered by HAL, we also did private tours in Wellington, Dunedin and Sydney after the HAL post cruise tour package. We use a Nikon D7100 for still photos and a Sony HDR-SR7 for video.

Thanks for sharing! What did you like best about the ship?

We just recently returned from spending 6 days in Auckland, 14 days on the

Noordam, and 7 days in Sydney. Here is a link to an 11 minute video I put together that tries to capsulize the 27 days.

My wife and I did Alaska with Lindblad in May –June 2013 with the Denali Extension. Here is a link to a short video I put together to show that experience: http://tomjed.com/index.php/alaska/121-ak-slide In my opinion if you are going to Alaska for the wildlife and not the night life Lindblad National Geographic is the only way to go.

Tom

Just back from 7 nights on the Sea Cloud in the Lesser Antilles, what an amazing vessel. Here is the link to a short video I put together showing our experiences on the Sea Cloud. http://tomjed.com/index.php/caribbean If you ever have the opportunity to take this trip do it, you will not be disappointed.

Tom

I think the best way to see Denali is to stay at the North Face Lodge which is 90 miles in the park. The North Face Lodge got grandfathered in when they expanded the park and Lodges cannot now be built within the park. Every day you take hikes in various areas of the park and get up close and personal with nature. Great photographic opportunities. We booked the North Face lodge as an extension to our Lindblad National Geographic Cruise however you can book with them direct and they pick you up at the Denali Visitors Center. You can find their website on line. Here is a link to a video I put together of our 2013 Cruise and Denali extension, I have posted this video before to show the small boat experience. The Denali part starts about 8 minutes into the video: http://www.tomjed.com/index.php/alaska/199-alaska-ss

sand33647

I am glad you enjoyed the video; please feel free to share it with whomever you wish. If your friends are going to Alaska for the wildlife I don’t think you can beat the small ship experience. I have nothing against large ships and have done quite a few large ship cruises in Europe and the Caribbean but with small ships you really get up close and personal with the wildlife. Anytime we came upon wildlife we would follow the wildlife, there was no schedule we had to keep, i.e. we came upon a pod of Humpback Whales “bubble net feeding” and stayed with them for over two hours allowing great photo opportunities. We first did National Geographic off of Baja for the Gray Whale Migration and were so impressed with their naturalist guides we booked NG for Alaska. There is a slideshow of the Gray Whale Migration trip on the website under Whale Migration. I have seen comments on the cost of a small ship expedition, on the surface small ships seem more expensive but when you factor in all the tours, daily zodiac excursions, lectures, and wine at dinner that’s included the cost seems more reasonable. Alaska is a beautiful place whatever route your friends take.

We went to Alaska May and June of 2013 with National Geographic on a small 58 passenger ship and then did their Denali extension at the North Face Lodge. It is a great way to see the wildlife with fantastic naturalist guides. Here is a short video slide show I put together of the Alaskan trip: http://www.tomjed.com/index.php/alaska

Tom

it seems like Glacier Bay is a sure thing. Is that correct?

We went to Alaska May and June of this year and sailed into Glacier Bay the last week in May. Here is a short video slide show I put together of the Alaskan trip and about five minutes into the video it shows Glacier Bay. The big blue ship that is shown briefly in the background is a HAL ship that was there when we arrived. http://www.tomjed.com/index.php/alaska

Tom

Tom2

Great video. You two have really done some traveling.

When you were planning your Alaska trip did you consider other small cruise lines like Un-Cruise. We've narrowed down our choices between UnCruise and Nat Geo and are looking for more insight.

 

Thanks in advance

mtlycrew1,

I am glad you liked the video, we did not do a lot of comparison between small ships when we booked Alaska because in 2011 we did the Gray Whale Migration off of Bahia with Nat Geo and were very impressed by the whole trip, especially the caliber of the naturalist guides on board. The Alaska trip maintained that same high standard. The cabins on the ship are very small and leave a lot to be desired but in reality you are only in the cabin to sleep, all of the action takes place either on deck or in the zodiacs. The food on the ship was better than any of the big ship cruises we have taken and we have taken over 30 in both the Caribbean and Europe on multiple cruise lines. I am not knocking big cruise ships because we have had some great times on big ships and will do so again, but when we went to Alaska we went to view and photograph the wildlife and not for the nightlife. The small ships are a lot more flexible in that regard for example we came upon a pod of Humpback Whales “bubble net” feeding and followed them for over two hours getting some great photos. We tracked a wolf digging clams on the beach for 30 minutes, a big ship isn’t flexible enough to do that; they might be able to slow down for a little while but can’t turn around and have a schedule to keep. The small ships schedule is determined by the wildlife spotting’s. We also liked the Denali extension that Nat Geo offered where we stayed 90 miles in Denali and not outside the entrance and bussed in each day. I am sure whatever line you choose you will have a great time, we didn’t start our more exotic travel until 2004 but we have never taken a trip before or after that we didn’t come back with great memories, every trip is what you make of it.

Tom

Good morning! Looking for feedback/thoughts/experiences of those who have sailed to Alaska on a large cruise ship as well as a small yacht (like those used on the "Un-Cruises").

 

Would love to hear your thoughts after both experiences, as well as your recommendations on which you would do if you could only choose one and why.

 

Looking for advice for someone who may only get one chance to sail to Alaska.

 

Thanks!

My wife and I like small ships and did Alaska and the Denali Extension with Lindblad/ Nat Geo in May - June of this year. Here is a link to a video slideshow I put together of that trip: http://www.tomjed.com/index.php/alaska When my wife and I travel we post a daily blog on our web site for family and friends, the day by day travelogue is down the right side. Hope this helps in your planning.

Tom

We are thinking of opting out of Viking's air and going on our own. Does anyone know how much it would cost to take a taxi to or from the airport both in Shanghai and Beijing? I know we can buy transfers from Viking but wanted to compare costs.

We booked our own air and used the Shanghai Car Service to get from the airport to the Pudong Shangri-la and the cost was $110. They met us in arrivals with a sign with our name on it, handled our luggage and took us directly to the hotel. Here is the web site: http://www.shanghaicarservice.com/online-booking.html . We arrived Shanghai a day early and also rented a car for a half a day of touring from them and split the cost with another couple we met on Cruise Critic. We took the extension so we left from Hong Kong and were able to get a ride to the airport from the Hotel Concierge. If you are interested here is a link to the daily blog we posted while on the China Trip: http://www.tomjed.com/index.php/china

Tom

Regarding visas, do any of you who have already gotten your visa have a preference for going through the company Viking recommends or going direct to the Chinese consulate in the U.S.? Is either one quicker?

I went through the company that Viking recommended (Generations Visa Services) for both my Egyptian Visa and my China Visa and both times I had my passport back within 2 weeks. My thinking was that GenVisa had control of my passport at all times so it couldn’t get lost, unless you hand carry your passport to the Chinese Consulate you risk the chance of it being misplaced.

Tom

Mickym

We were there Mar – Apr and wore light jackets in the morning and shirt sleeves in the afternoon except the day we went to the Great Wall where it was down in the upper 40’s F. When my wife and I travel we post a daily blog on our web site for family and friends, here is a link to the China tab, a day by day travelogue is down the right side. I always stress that these are our thoughts and observations at the time so sometimes any relationship between fact and what we write may be purely coincidental, although we do strive to be as factual as possible. Hope this provides some useful information in your trip planning: http://www.tomjed.com/index.php/china

Tom

My wife and I did the “Viking Emerald- China's Cultural Delights” trip in Mar – Apr of this year. If anyone is interested here is a link to a video slideshow I put together of that trip:

Tom

My wife and I did the “Viking Emerald- China's Cultural Delights” trip in Mar – Apr of this year. If anyone is interested here is a link to a video slideshow I put together of that trip:

Tom