pplwatcher

9 minutes ago, EJL2023 said:

Soda and fruit juices are not under the beverage package as that is only alcohol related drinks.  However, soda, specialty coffee and fruit juices are included at no charge on Oceania anytime. 

Well, that's even better.  I'm used to shelling out a few bucks for them on other cruise lines.  Thanks!

4 minutes ago, EJL2023 said:

There is no gratuities added for the SM beverage package. Added gratuities would only be applicable if you were to have a drink not covered by the package. But since you do not drink that would be a moot point.  So nothing would be added in your situation n

Ah, thank you very much.  That seems like the right approach.

The one that I experienced last year was the Norwegian "Free at Sea" program.  They offered a "free beverage program", but it really cost $21.80 per day in surcharges even if you don't have a single drink.  (Source:  https://thepointsguy.com/guide/ncl-free-at-sea-cruise-promotion/)  I like Norwegian and enjoyed the cruise, but I thought it was pretty misleading to promote a "free" offer that was going to cost over $400 in required surcharges over a three-week cruise.  Thankfully, I noticed it and they had an option to reject the offer.

I do drink soda and fruit juices, so I'd use the SM package if it covers those, and I don't mind tipping on whatever I buy.  I just don't want to pay a charge if I don't get anything in return.

Sorry to ask what is likely a naive question, but with the "free drinks package" (Simply More), do they add required tipping to your bill?  

I went on another cruise last year that offered a "free drinks bonus package", but when I read the fine print they planned to add some notable daily amount ($14 or $18 or something) to the bill to cover "required gratuities".  I'm not an alcohol drinker, so I wouldn't use any of the benefits and would have been charged for the tipping as if I was getting multiple drinks per day..  Fortunately, that cruise line (Norwegian, I think), let me opt out of not-so-free free bonus.

I don't see any language about required tipping with the Oceania "simply more" beverage package, but I was planning to purchase a cruise and their site doesn't allow me to decline the package.  Can anyone enlighten me about whether there are hidden charges for tips?

I recognize that they add to the bill for regular tips, by the way.  My question is specific to the beverage program.

On 6/3/2019 at 6:28 PM, Deimos said:

Thanks for the videos and photos.

I weighed up the pros and cons of travelling by freighter, in the end, it seems like the ocean liner QM2 always comes on top, in so many ways.

A 7 day journey by Cunards QM2 comes to around £1398 for the inside cabin

A journey via cargo ship comes to around £1440 for a single occupancy cabin.

When you factor in all the things the QM2 has to offer VS what isn't available at all on the cargo ship(s), it seems somewhat pointless going by cargo ship.

Yeah, I did the cargo ship west across the Pacific and did a cruise ship coming back.  I wouldn't hesitate to do a cargo ship again, but for the same price I'd probably lean toward the cruise ship unless you just want to try something unusual.

Just now, Chadr135 said:

Thank you so much for the quick and thorough response! 

 

Is there a way to ascertain (pre-booking) the amount of outside access you will have, or is it a bit unpredictable?

I got almost no information ahead of time other than the name of the ship.  I presume that's somewhat normal.

I also suspect that most ships are like mine in terms of outside access, since most ships will be container ships.  I could be wrong on that, though.  Maybe a ship that's carrying cars or raw materials or something would have different outside access.

I'll note too that the first half of my trip was in very cold weather as we went north past the Aleutians.  I got in the habit of staying inside and I'm not really a sun-worshiper to start with.  But the only places to be outside were the catwalks I show in the video and the stair landings on the tower.  

Here's a picture and short video of one of the stair landing areas, and the third picture is essentially the entire deck that I could access (or at least half of it, since this was only the port or starboard side).  I only went out there once for a fire drill.

39 minutes ago, Chadr135 said:

Thank you for these tips, I've always wanted to try this...Is it common to not have much access to an outside deck?  That would be a real downer for me!

It's nice that this site sends notifications if someone quotes a post.  A year later, I can respond quickly.

It was my first time doing it, so I tried to be careful to not inconvenience the crew.  I had open access to two catwalks on the bridge that were maybe 8 feet by 20 feet, but they were mostly for standing.  I probably could've dragged a chair up there, but it would've felt awkward.  The guys manning the bridge were just inside some windows.  I suspect a person could do it, though.

I could go out onto small catwalks on each deck, but they were very small, and had the potential to be slippery since this particular ship was in cold weather for half the trip or more.  The captain put a little lounge chair out on one once it got warm, so I probably could've done that.  The spaces were maybe 6 feet by 6 feet.  They were mostly stair landings so that you could go from deck to deck outside.

The actual "deck" of the ship was not a place to hang out at all.  Most of it wasn't really a deck at all - the containers were stacked 12 deep from the hull so the ship was essentially a bathtub full of containers, with some catwalks in between them.  I wasn't allowed out there due to risks of shifting containers.  There were small decks on the port and starboard, but they were completed covered and were very much working spaces where a person wouldn't relax.

All in all, it was a 1,000 foot long ship, and I had access to maybe 50 feet in length, in a 12-story conning tower.  The only true outside access was on the stairs going up the conning tower and the small catwalks at the top.  I've tried to upload a video that shows one of the catwalks - let's see if it loads.

I enjoyed the trip and would do it again, but I'll note that it's not for everybody.  You have to be open to spending a lot of time alone, and be somewhat open on diet.  (I had never had Romanian food or Sri Lankan food before, and had no info on the crew makeup before I left, so it could have easily been some other type of menu.  I thought the food was very good on my trip, but it sounds like there's some randomness from ship to ship.)

I did a transpacific this year on CMA CGM (the Rhone). It was very nice. I'd offer my most critical observations as:

1. Take your own snacks. Seriously, bring a grocery bag full of stuff if you want it. I had a small refrigerator in my cabin. I don't know if they all do or not.

2. I was the only passenger on my ship, so you have to be very able to entertain yourself. The captain had come from another line that ran transatlantic and he said that there are more passengers on those routes.

3. My cabin was very nice. Since I was the only passenger I got the largest cabin, and it was probably 500 square feet or so with a bed, desk, and sitting area with couch. I took a cruise ship back home and the freighter cabin was more comfortable.

4. My ship actually had a small internet connection (which I discovered a week into the trip). It was very expensive, so I just used it to send a text once per day to my wife. But it was there.

5. There's little or no outside space. You'll spend most of your time in your cabin, most likely.

6. I thought the food was very good. My crew was Romanian and Sri Lankan for the most part, so the food tended to favor those types of recipes.

I'd recommend it. You don't have the amenities of a cruise ship, but you have other advantages. It was cool to be the only passenger on a 1,000 foot ship.

Also, I made my reservations through this company: http://www.cruisepeople.co.uk/details.htm. They were on the ball while the Maris company was non-responsive to my initial inquiry.

I'm a married guy (24 years), and I've done several solo cruises. My wife doesn't want to go, and they're oddly a perfect place to have alone time for writing or teaching myself something. I don't have to worry about food or lodging, I work during the day, I get some social activity at dinner, and then in the evening I go listen to a little music or something. While I would be delighted if my wife came along, cruises are my personal retreats.

I should note that I don't do cruises that are more party-oriented or "fun in the sun". I find inexpensive repositioning cruises that are mostly sea days, and those tend to have relatively placid guests on board. While I guess I'm not averse to a more boisterous ship, that's not what I'm looking for and those cruises are usually shorter than I want anyway. I like to disappear for 2 or 3 weeks on board a ship.