Joc123

Trouble is, I have been following the boards and that’s why I’m concerned.

I’m starting to wonder if transport to the airport is the least of our problems. Is this cruise going to happen? People are saying everything from yes to maybe to no way. If SS does cancel, it will be the 7th cruise we have had cancelled since Covid. We must be really bad at selecting cruises!! My fingers are crossed but I feel if it does leave Singapore as scheduled, it will be a modified trip. I hope SS does the right thing and lets us know sooner rather than later.

I think this is the way to go, thanks

Thanks for information - we have often booked transfer through guest services on Seabourn but couldn’t see Silversea offered the same service. I rang SS Australia and they said no such service was available on board (I don’t find them very helpful). If it is available, that’s the way we will go but I’m not sure I want to leave to the last minute.

Thanks for reply. I wondered about a taxi being available at the port. Our flight is at 11:00am so we will be one of the first off the ship. Thanks for the tip about agreeing on the fare although I’m never very good at bargaining.

We are booked on Silver Moon Singapore - Mumbai arriving on May 23rd 2024. (Hopefully world events and cruise cancellations will have settled by then) The booking is port - port which of course, doesn’t include transfers. Although in Australia, we use a TA in UK and they quoted 90 pounds per person for transfer from Mumbai cruise terminal to airport. This seems very expensive. Has anyone booked an independent transfer with a company you could recommend?

Hope the weather improves for you, we are having a dreadful summer! Unsually wet and humid with mild temperatures, not like Adelaide at all. It should be a dry heat, 30c - 40c, but you might actually enjoy the cooler conditions.

Enjoy Cook. The only inhabitants are rail workers and flies. Glad you are enjoying the trip, I’m constantly amazed by the meals that are served from the tiny train kitchen. Will you have any time in Adelaide or is it just a stop over?

As did we.

Has anyone heard anymore about the cancellations? We are booked on 3rd June B2B London - Rome. I reached out to our travel agent (well known UK agent) and they heard the cruises have been cancelled but they had not heard officially from Silversea and will email me when they do. Two weeks later still nothing so I rang Silversea Australia. They confirmed the first two cruises have been cancelled but there is a legal issue and that is why TA and passengers have not been contacted. They also suggested we should wait to hear officially before we cancel flights and hotels because they may reimburse any out of pocket expenses - I won’t hold my breath!! Anyone know anything?

Please don’t tip when in Australia

Well I’ve been corrected by both husband and wife. I shall keep quiet from now on.

DW says he will be spending 2 days at Uluru which is the First Nations name for Ayres Rock. No one in Australia refers to the rock as anything but Uluru. It is a great itinerary and should be a good introduction to Aus and NZ - just be aware DW, you will be experiencing the outback. Wales is very different.

Over the years I have been a Seabourn cheerleader, over 400 nights. Our last cruise on Ovation will be our last until we hear things have improved. Our cruise was only 7 days (long story, first and possibly last time we will do this) and for 3 of these days at breakfast we had to chase a waiter to take our order, not only food, but also coffee. Never happened before but I know there was a problem with Covid amongst the crew (not that there was an official announcement). The other thing that really annoyed me was the berries - I do not think 4 small strawberries, 1 raspberry, 1 blueberry is an acceptable serve. When I queried this I was told take 2 servings. At that rate I would need 4!! No individual tubs of yogurt, just a big bowl of fruit (strawberry) and plain, same everyday. Cereals served in bulk - who on earth eats fruit loops? Correct me if I’m wrong, but weren’t there tablecloths at night in the Colonnade? Now you don’t even get placemats!! This really is not a luxury line anymore, so sad

As I see it all that the new dress code on Nova has done is remove the Informal night. I say hooray! It has been Formal Optional for awhile now and no one is saying you can not, under any circumstances, dress up if you want to. If that is what you like, do it! We have just completed a cruise on Dawn and Seabourn Ovation and for the first time, we felt like the old people ( mid 70’s) onboard. It was wonderful to see so many people in their 40’s and 50’s and yes, heaven forbid, they had children with them! This is the future and we oldies have to accept it. Personally I love it. I will never understand why it ruins a cruise if someone is not wearing something you think is acceptable. My goodness, I have seen many formal outfits which have made me wonder if the wearer looked in the mirror before they left their suite! Does it really matter? NO!!!! (or it shouldn’t) Why on earth do people think everyone will wear shorts and flip flops is dress code is relaxed? Rant over We have to be better than this

Tipping is part of the American culture but it is not a worldwide culture. Please don’t tip in Australia if you are passing through to Tahiti. Our workers are paid by the company, not their costumers.

Thank you for letting us know how the zoom meeting went. I do however, wonder if it was worth the effort, 6 participants seems a very small sample. Personally I could care less what people wear as long as they are clean. Formal wear doesn’t always mean classy. I’ve seen some very questionable outfits over my 15 years of cruising - MHO of course. The quality of food, the downgrading of service, the nice little extras that made you feel special are far more important and the things that will make think twice about booking Seabourn again.

Can I make a suggestion? Book Platinum Class instead of Gold Class. It offers a bigger cabin (still quite small) and a lovely bathroom. We have done all the train trips around Australia and it’s the only way to go IMHO.

Our room attendant and her assistant on Ovation suddenly disappeared, we suspect Covid as there were lots of cases - passengers and crew. We were told they were very close to making everyone wear masks again. One thing that really concerned us was the full tour buses. This never used to be the case, always plenty of spare seats. Now every seat is taken and people coughing non stop.

Texanaust, we could not agree with you more. We disembarked Silver Dawn 1 day before boarding Ovation so can’t help making comparisons. The only thing that is better on Ovation is the entertainment! The singers on Dawn were ordinary at best and there were no guest entertainers. On Ovation, they are some of the best we have seen. The Colannade seems to be the area they have decided to save money. Breakfast is similar to a 4 star hotel, everything is bulk except the berries!! On Dawn the fruit was beautiful, fresh plentiful and ripe. Not the case here. We are diamond members but I doubt we will be booking another cruise with them for awhile. We have booked another Silversea cruise.

Yesterday we boarded Silver Dawn. It has taken us 10 years to return to Silversea after a dreadful cruise (Singapore - Singapore) on Silver Shadow. We said we would never give SS our money again! Never say never because here we are on the beautiful Dawn. We booked a Silver Suite thinking it would be similar to SB penthouse. It’s not! Its at least twice as big, a true separate bedroom, much larger bathroom with a lovely sized shower and a wardrobe with so much space not even I can fill it!! We had dinner in La Terrazza last night and it was lovely, La Dame tonight (formal night) We are still trying to work out where everything is, so many bars, restaurants, sitting areas and at this stage it’s a little confusing. I’m sure we will have it sorted by the end of the day. After this cruise we board Ovation so we will be able to give an accurate comparison.

I do hope you have booked platinum class on the train - it’s the only way to go. Having done all the train trips around the Australia, it is so much better than gold class. You will be calling into Adelaide on your way to Sydney, if you want to know anything, just ask.

PP, I have to ask, do you follow the AFL team with the same name? I have wondered for some time, actually asked once before but my post was removed, not sure why. Let’s see what happens this time (Go Crows!)

Make that two people. A ‘million years’ ago we were offered an upgrade to Owners Suite on the Pride. I have never been so seasick and really regretted accepting - the suite was right up the front. Never sailed forward again.