SMNYCruise

Unfortunately, Rome in Limo promptly responded that they do not offer services in Porto Empedocie.

We are looking for a tour to Agrigento and the Turkish steps. Can anyone recommend a company? We would also be willing to do it ourselves if there are rental cars or public transportation. Looks like the port is industrial and not a lot of options for tourists.

Check our Windstar. The reviews from the recent Alaska cruises are very positive. Uncruise is great also, although the cabins are very sparse and have more of a "camping" feel. On Uncruise there is no cell service, TV or internet available (some view this as a positive, but I at least like the choice of checking on relatives or work emails).

Speaking of visa’s....we have received all sorts of conflicting information about whether we need a visa if we stay on the ship and do not go ashore in Maputo, Mozambique. Word from the officials there is that we don’t need one. Oceania originally said we don’t need one and then recently changed their minds. Seems easier (and profitable) for Oceania to just insist on a visa for all passengers.

Great review. The last paragraph really sums up why we love Windstar.

We are doing this in Cape Town. Having dinner onboard and leaving the night before disembarkation to catch a 12:30am flight. I called Oceania and they said it was fine as long as we handled our own luggage and left before 5:30am.

We took a cab to Mary's Boon Beach Hotel after the cruise disembarked in St. Maarten. We swam and had a wonderful lunch there. Outdoor shower was available. No charge at all. We could not use the pool, but all the other facilities were available to us including beach lounges and bar service. They called a cab when it was time to head to the airport. Perfect way to kill time waiting for a late flight.

probably more to do with your alumni group I would ask them if the cruise only fare is an option

Unfortunately, I checked with both Oceania and the alumni group and booking without O-life Choice is not an option.

We did save a lot by booking our own air.

For our January 2019 cruise we booked O-Life Choice with OBC and without air. Would have preferred cruise only, but was told that we couldn’t do that since we booked with an alumni travel group.

I usually hold the booking and transfer to a TA shortly before final payment. Last time on Windstar we received a check mailed after completing the cruise. For our upcoming trip on the Windsurf we saved a significant amount of money off the brochure price.

Sorry to hear about this. We have never had bad service on the 5 Windstar cruises we have taken.

Also interested in hearing about this itinerary...

Try Uncruise. They have trips to Alaska, Panama, Costa Rica, Galapagos, Canada, Baja etc. Most passengers are in their 60's and very, very active. Since there is no TV, internet, entertainment, elevators etc., the focus is on outdoor activity.

We prefer small ships (Windstar, Azamara) and expedition trips (Uncruise, Xpedition). Which river cruise company would suite our needs? Also, is Danube River a good "first time" itinerary?

Uncruise has a cruise in the of Sea of Cortez. We saw grey whales (including a baby) up close, humpback whales, and the elusive blue whale.

Just got back from our Uncruise Trip in the Sea of Cortez. It was one of our best vacations ever! Lots of wildlife sightings including three different species of whales. Staff was excellent. Perfect for nature lovers.

I have been waiting for the Legend itineraries. Windstar may be losing customers by not releasing itineraries more that a year in advance. I’m sure their competitors, like Azamara, have filled many cabins already for 2019 cruises.

I have also been trying to find out when the rest of 2019 will be released. The Seattle office was not able to provide answers when I called them last week. My guess is that they will be released within 3 weeks.

I wonder if the above issues are why Windstar has not released most of the Star Legend 2019 cruises. It looks like they are the only cruise line, including the small ones, who have not done so. Many people, especially with popular itineraries like Japan, book more than a year in advance. Does anyone know when the rest of 2019 will be available? I called the Seattle office but they were clueless.

Every two minutes. Just unsubscribed. Hope that helps.

I retired this year at age 56. It has been the best year of my life!

Ski Mom 2: Just started a roll call for the Sicily part of your trip. :D

Sounds like a great trip! We will be joining you on the Sicilian Spendors leg.

We have also recently had great customer service from Windstar when we had to make changes to an existing reservation.

We decided to postpone our Tahiti cruise, but I did learn a lot while researching this trip.

1. The "cruise only" fare is more (approx. $300) if you don't book Windstar's air/hotel/transfer package.

2. Windstar's package is not flexible. You can't add nights on either end.

3. If you have to book airfare from the east coast, do it through Qantas. For some reason, their flights are a lot cheaper than booking through American or Air Nui and they use the same Air Nui flights from LAX.

4. I think Windstar puts together a nice package, but it is definitely cheaper to make arrangements independently. One thing we didn't like about Windstar's package is that they choose a flight which gets you to the hotel very late in the evening. You are paying a lot for a hotel without having much time to enjoy it.

Hope this helps.

Were attended a renewal ceremony on our Star Breeze cruise last year. Many of the guests, who became friends on board, attended. The captain performed a beautiful ceremony...not a dry eye in sight!! Afterwards we had champagne and cake and watched the sunset. Windstar did a great job.