Zimmy

Not our first NY voyage, garysarah. The fact that we're back for more says something. We'll try to report afterwards.

Thanks ctbjr. We are also looking forward to seeing both of you. We wish you a wonderful Christmas.

We are leaving Monday for San Juan, to board SDI on the 29th for the New Year's voyage. Who's joining us? Does anyone know who the officers on that voyage will be?

Four months? I can’t even imagine. Happy Holidays to you and Lois.

Join us over New Years Jim. We miss you.

Wow, Dan - that's a teaser! Glad you had a good time. We were on the spring 2023 transatlantic, and we are booked on the fall 2024 transatlantic. You're correct - it doesn't disappoint.

We are booked for the 2024 fall crossing, and I'm thinking ahead. I've noticed that the crossing often begins in Malaga, so perhaps some of you have become Malaga experts. Does anyone have any hotel suggestions? Or Malaga suggestions in general?

Absolutely Pompeii. Ravello has lovely views and shopping opportunities. Pompeii is something you will remember always.

Everything, Trapper. Everything.

I agree. Our first sailing was on SD1, and we continued sailing on SDI for many years. And at that point we knew the crew on SDI so well that we didn't want to go on the II. We felt like we would be strangers. But then an itinerary came up on the II that was irresistible, and we booked it. It was strange at first, but there were a few familiar faces and the II quickly became home. At this point we don't even look at whether the voyage is on the I or the II; we only look at the itinerary. You can't go wrong. Both are wonderful.

I think that the price is the same wherever you book. Some travel agents offer perks to their clients, but not a reduction in the price of the cruise.

I'm sorry, I don't know. I've always booked onboard. But I think that if you book immediately upon boarding you will be fine.

Naveron, I am so sorry we didn't meet. And if you thought tendering in St Barths was difficult (and it was), you should be glad you weren't on the previous trip. That St Barths tender was really bad. But the crew is great - they really help you and make you feel secure. I'm so glad that you had a wonderful SD experience. I look forward to meeting you on a future cruise. Did you book another?

Hi Dee. Looking forward to meeting you. We just debarked the II yesterday, and we can't wait to return.

We just received clarification from SD. When we looked at our cruise docs, it said Pier #4, which is the one in Old Town that we have previously sailed from. We emailed SD to confirm, and they replied almost immediately. They are using various piers now, rather than sticking to the Old Town pier. Bottom line, we need to look at our cruise docs closely.

It was timely that we read your post today, as we are boarding on the third. I didn't really look at our cruise docs, just assumed. I won't do that again. It won't matter to us as we are not staying in the old town, but we would have taken a taxi to the wrong dock. Thank you, and happy new year.

Details please!

Looking forward to following you. We will be doing our first crossing this spring.0

Trapper & I just booked this crossing today. We're veteran Seadreamers, but this will be our first crossing. We were going back through old posts on this board to find whatever we could regarding the crossing. We're very excited.

Piaa, I'm so sorry you are suffering. I hope that your broken foot heals quickly and perfectly. I don't recall whether my husband has ever worn shorts to dinner on deck. Maybe he'll pop in and answer that. As you say, I can't imagine SD ever asking anyone to change for dinner on deck. And I think you're correct that no one would notice or care, as proven by the fact that I can't recall. However, I have seen throughout the years (not often) passengers being denied entrance to the dining room because of dress codes. But I think in these cases it was pretty egregious in order for that to happen.

I had no idea that SD ever went to Bermuda!

We concur. We have stayed there multiple times.

Welcome to the world of SD. We have been sailing with them for 20 years or so, and we love it. I believe that your fears regarding deck two are not necessary. Barring inclement weather, the dining room is not used for breakfast or lunch - those meals are served outdoors. So the only time passengers might be in the dining room is between the hours of 7:30 and 10 p.m, and that would be only on some nights, because several meals are served topside. Through the years we have had staterooms on each of the decks. Our favorite is deck three because of its proximity to the pool and the gangway. But if we can't get deck three, we will happily take decks two or four. The cabins are identical, with the exception of a porthole on deck two and a window on the other decks, and I don't think that makes a difference. When we are on SD, we spend little time in our stateroom. If we want to relax during the day, we relax outside. Have a wonderful voyage.

We don't do crossings so I can't answer your questions about that, but I can tell you that there is no steerage on SD. We've been on all three decks, and they're all great. Our favorite is deck 3 because of it's proximity to the outdoors, but if we were to do a crossing we might choose deck 2 for stability in case the ocean was rough. You will have a ball.