Zimbo

Thanks for the extra info - guess that particular cruise is pretty popular!

In November Hapag-Lloyd issue a German language Preview Brochure on the strength of which one can take options on specific cruises.

 

When prices are subsequently released one can either confirm, or cancel, an option.

 

The following thread is from November of last year:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2567351

Are the itineraries released for German speakers, before the English versions make their way online?

I just got the email to say the new Europa 2 2019-2020 catalogue had been released, and so I went onto the website to check the new schedules (which weren't there when I looked a couple of weeks ago). However, I see the Valparaiso to Rio cruise in Jan/Feb 2020 is already entirely sold out. Is this possible, or is it an error?

Not for me. I just checked with Safari [but thought there might be an old cookie] and Chrome [new browser for me] -- the Quest deck plan is as of Dec. 2015 and shows the wrong tub/sofa information. What is really strange is that a newer, correct deck plan had been on the website -- I have that one, dated January 2016.

You are quite right, it is still the incorrect layout for Quest. Think my browser must have been opening an old cached version, which was actually correct.

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Thanks Bonnie and CountryGirl. We know there were supposed to be showers in the odd N1s and even N2s with tubs in the opposite. However, the new deckplan shows something different. Thanks for looking into it for us.

The corrected deckplan is now on the website

I had seen your post on Crystal and I have not cruised Crystal or Hapag Lloyd. I am currently looking at cruises to Antarctica. We are doing a cruise this Oct. from Lima to BA on Oceania and flying to Rio for a few days after to experience all of SA. We are also doing a side trip O offers to Machu Picchu pre cruise. Therefore, I understand and can see why the portion to Antarctica would be appealing.

After doing my research and much reading, the Crystal part to Antarctica only does a sort of "drive thru" and you do not see as much wildlife etc. as you would find on something like Silversea or HP. Touching land and being able to get inside a bit more is what I decided is more important to us. I want to get out in a Zodiac and feel the ground/ice etc etc.

Due to the fact I am researching this thoroughly, I wanted to give you my thoughts. If South America is the main reason for the trip, then Crystal seems OK. For us, I wanted more of Antarctica, therefore, will look at alternatives.

Enjoy your trip, whatever you choose.

Thanks for the thoughts, very useful. You are quite correct, Crystal only does a sail through. I would prefer to set foot on land/ice, but as with everything, it's all about compromises.

Seabourn has been suggested, and looking at their offerings, they do offer zodiac landings and similar on the Peninsula, without being a full-on expedition ship such as the Hanseatic or Silversea equivalent.

Perhaps, instead of trying to achieve everything in one go, this would be best split up into two trips? Do South America around Cape Horn, and then separately do an Antarctica expedition?

Would also be interested in vistaman's feedback.

We are considering Crystal Cruise's V7304 Antarctic Adventure as an alternative to the Europa 2's Christmas 2017 sailing around South America. The Crystal cruise has the added highlights of sailing to Antarctica, and a precruise trip to Machu Picchu, otherwise it is very similar.

Anyone here sailed Crystal before? Thoughts?

Dave, we changed suite numbers within the same category, after final payment, with no issues. TA took 30s to do it on system.

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Larry Pimentel ‏@LarryPimentel 12h12 hours ago

Continental suites are being delivered early! The progress is awesome @AzamaraQuest #drydock #cruise #azamara

 

 

Noticed a small change here from Journey's refurbished CC suites - the electrical sockets are now mounted under the mirror, whereas on Journey I think they are hidden on the side of the desk?

Azamara already learning and adapting from Journey's reimagining; I wonder what else has changed?

This was an image tweeted recently by Larry Pimentel which I have not seen before

Fantastic photos Terry, glad you had an amazing trip. Particularly like this one of the King of the Jungle - this chap has been around the block a few times (look at the scars on its nose and muzzle area). Also, I thought it might have a pierced and studded upper-left ear; but no, those are just a line of bloated ticks! Finally, for those of you who have domestic cats, compare the shape of their eye pupils with that of this lion (and other wild big cats)...

Thanks for the additional info ededmd.

So we have now booked for this voyage (EX1800), verandah suite 674. I hope this is a good choice - providing stern views. Was tempted to go with one of the corner verandah suites on deck 7, however their location just below Sansibar was a concern wrt. noise.

Thanks Vistaman, Catlover, English Voyager for all the very informative and insightful responses - they have really cleared up many of my "unknowns".

My wife and I are not heavy drinkers, so we would probably prefer the HL drinks policy of not having some passengers subsidise the habits of others! :D

Catlover - your comments about the rough seas in that area do concern me slightly. I had, perhaps optimistically, assumed that a lot of the cruising (except for the stint to the Falklands and back) would be close to the shoreline or amongst the fjords and inbetween islands, in other words upon calmer waters. Perhaps this was a dangerous assumption!

So this thread has inspired me to have a look-see at Europa 2 cruises. The 2017/2018 Christmas and New Year cruise around the southern-most tip of South America has caught the eye...

A couple of small questions:

1) What is the drinks policy on the Europa 2? Website makes it sound that only the drinks in your room fridge, and coffee and tea, are included. But I have read reviews stating all non-alcoholic around the ship are included. What are drink prices like?

2) How good is the internet access on board? Obviously this is highly dependent on sailing location, but I do need to have relatively regular access with workable speeds.

3) When do Hapag-Lloyd typically release details on shore excursions?

Wonderful photos Terry, Botswana really is a beautiful country. Not to detract from the quality of your photography, but you probably have to admit that Botswana, and the incredible guides, do make your job easier... :D

Wrt. politics around tourism, Botswana has actually taken an interesting approach, as you are no doubt aware. Whilst other countries in Africa have gone for the "high volume" model, eg. Kenya, where you will see many vehicles around an animal sighting, Botswana has instead opted for the low-volume conservation model.

Many private safari operators are offered large land concessions, and are required to operate at a much lower bed:square mileage ratio than in other parts of the continent. This is why the lodges in Botswana tend to be quite small, and animal sightings/events are rarely shared between more than two vehicles. Of course, this results in higher costs, but this is the more "upmarket and exclusive" clientele they seek to attract. But there are many discussions around whether this is the best approach, with many balancing factors and requirements ie. revenue/profit, local vs international operators, conservation, etc. It has though, by most accounts, been an incredibly successful approach so far - safari tourism, along with diamond mining, has been Botswana's most successful industry. Tourism is seen as the long-term sustainable alternative to the diamond mining industry.

Great photos and live blog as usual Terry - I predict this one is going to turn into a classic! :D

Looks like you had an awesome time in Cape Town and surrounds, with great weather. The exchange rate at the moment is also a bonus! Good choice to take the heli-flip.

The latest downloadable deckplan for Journey contains a new story - all N1's with tub and convertible sofabed, and all starboard N2's with tubs. Only the port N2's have showers.

https://www.azamaraclubcruises.com/sites/default/files/pdfs/aza_jr_1705_2016.pdf

Perhaps they had to sign an NDA on embarkation which forbids them from posting any details or pictures of the refurbishment and changes publicly (or indeed even the existence of said NDA), until after the official announcement and images from Azamara itself?

We have not had a comprehensive official "launch" yet, possibly because last work was still ongoing right up to delayed boarding, and may yet to be complete in areas (leaving no time for official photographs, videos, words, etc.) Notice that the only pictures we have seen post-departure are those from official Azamara sources, and these have been limited.

Just a (unlikely) hypothesis. :confused: :D

The Azamara Facebook page has just posted a new album with several photos of the reimagined interior spaces on Journey.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10153495845767144.1073741871.191979232143&type=1&l=9020391e5a

Interestingly, in response to a question on Twitter, Larry Pimentel stated "We will have new toiletries arriving in March. It is part of the new look and feel." No mention of branding.

Apologies, have moved this to the correct thread.

I tried to make the picture bigger to see if the lamp has an outlet on it, but I couldn't tell.

Definitely outlets there. You can see them in this picture (from the original mockup done several months ago, notice no mirror) on the front right side of the desk.

Larry Pimentel is obviously now aboard the Journey, since he has posted several photos on his Twitter account of almost-complete work.

I assume Andy is commencing his well-deserved holiday, so I will post one of the images here that caught my attention. Looks like they listened to feedback from this board, amongst other places, and modified the original mockups to include a mirror above the sitting table/desk in CC suites.

Thanks for that great clarification Zimbo. Looking forward to meeting you on Quest in August.

 

Difficult to come to grips with your "cosmetic" comment. It appears to me from my knot hole that tearing out suites, cabins, and public areas to the bare walls then rebuilding them is much more than simply cosmetic.

 

And, assuming you are correct with the conversion to NZ dollars, and the dollars that both Regent and Oceania are performing in US dollars, the $25M is an extremely low number for the number of days in dry dock as well as just the labor which was reported at about 11,000 hours per day and don't forget, a ship in dry dock is worked on 24/7. Then add in all of the materials, carpeting, big screen TV's, etc.

 

Believe the refit is a 13 day job and dividing the $25M by 13 days is about $1.5M per day. Using the 11,000 hours per day and a fully loaded labor rate of say $75/hour brings a labor cost of $825K per day and that is only for the shipboard labor.

 

So, IMHO, either Azamara is providing a very low dollar figure or Oceania/Regent are inflating their refurb number for whatever reason. Only the head shed knows for sure.

Dave, you may well be right. Your maths is convincing. My knowledge of refurbishment and labour costs in that part of the world is minimal. My "cosmetic" comment was based on the fact that the majority of the work that I have seen has been renewing surfaces - floors, walls, ceiling, and some new fittings and furniture.

Very little has been heavy structural work, where in my limited experience significant cost is incurred. Apart from the new Spa Suites and four(?) extra verandah cabins, there has been little work to the hull and existing inner structures and layout. For example, even the new bathrooms have just involved stripping existing fittings and installing new, but no new behind-the-scenes heavy plumbing, no footprint changes etc.

My original thinking was $25,000 all-in cost per cabin refurbishment (averaging across cabin types), at 350 cabins would come to around $8 million. This still leaves almost $17 million for work in other areas of the ship. But perhaps this is underestimating the actual scale and nature of the work.

Of course, this is not based on any inside knowledge, and only what I have observed in, and deducted from, the same images everyone else has seen. I am also not detracting from what has been undertaken - am a big fan of the changes and one of the reasons we booked with Azamara.

We should both be in a better position to inspect the work first-hand and discuss further in August! :D

US$25 million = NZ$38.5 million. The article is only reflecting the cost in New Zealand Dollar equivalent.

Whilst US$25 million seems a small amount, the majority of the work has been cosmetic in nature.

We'll be taking a cruise from Cape Town on Jan 5, 2017. I'm looking at flights now, and we can get one that will arrive in Cape Town Dec 31/16. That would give us 4 days before we board to explore the area. I have several questions:

1. We are arriving on New Year's Eve. Is that a big event in Cape Town? What about New Year's Day, will anything be open, will tours be available?

2. We have never been to Cape Town, or to Africa, and know little about it. Can anyone recommend the preferred area to look for a hotel for 5 nights in Cape Town? We will not have a car, so would like a hotel in an area where it is safe to walk around, and walking distance to decent restaurants.

3. We will probably arrange a winelands tour to Stellanbosch, visit Table Mountain, and we want to go to Cape Horn. I'm assuming that will fill 3 of our 4 days. Will we find the penguins on our tour to Cape Horn?

4. Can we do a day safari (or possibly an overnight one) from Cape Town? Our cruise also stops at Port Elizabeth, East London, Durban, and Richards Bay, just for the day, about 10 hours, in each port. Would a day safari be better from one of those ports? Seeing wild animals in the wild is a priority for me.

 

Any suggestions or information would be appreciated.

Betty

1) New Year's Eve is not a massive single event in Cape Town - there is typically no large, coordinated and central celebration or fireworks display like you may see in other cities. However, there are plenty of localised celebrations in restaurants, clubs, on the beaches etc. Typically restaurants and shops in the big tourist locations will be open on New Year's Day. Some tours will likely not be available, but some will, it depends on the provider.

2) Your best bet for an "all-in-one" place to stay is the V&A Waterfront. It is quite commercialised and geared towards tourists, but that doesn't mean it is low quality - some of Cape Town's best hotels are located there. There is the Cape Grace Hotel, which is superb. Also very good are the Dock House Hotel and Queen Victoria Hotel. All are located in the Waterfront grounds which is safe to walk around with plenty of decent restaurants. It would also be very easy to organise an Uber to other parts of Cape Town, or during the day it is typically quite safe to walk around Cape Town CBD as well. I would suggested looking somewhere like TripAdvisor and seeing what suits your taste and budget.

3) Yes, you will see the penguins on the way to Cape Horn/Cape Point.

4) You can do day safaris from Cape Town, but they are not the best on offer, since the climate and vegetation in Cape Town surrounds are not conducive to big game. Since you have not been to Africa before and seeing wild animals in their natural habitat is a big priority for you, can I make a big suggestion, budget/time willing? Add a couple of days to your trip (and even reduce your Cape Town days if need be), and book a 2 or 3 night safari stay in Kruger Park, Sabi Sand Game Reserve, or Phinda Private Game Reserve (all in South Africa, accessible out of Johannesburg or Durban) - it will be the experience of a lifetime and provide a much more genuine experience than a "canned" day safari. If this is not possible, your best bet is to arrange for a day safari from Richards Bay.

Hope this is of some help.

I do think that we (those reading Bonnie's post) are being overly defensive here, and inferring too much from what was written.

Certainly "shooting the messenger" is uncalled for, especially given how much she does for us on these boards. Would the alternative, and definitely easier and safer route for Azamara, of not corresponding with us at all on these boards in such an open, regular, and engaging manner, be preferable? For example, see the automatons that other lines have on other boards, posting generic statements a couple of times a month and certainly not hearing what is being said...

Whilst the response from management re, the memo is a bit odd on first glance, I do interpret it slightly differently now, reading it to say that they are "unsure where uktog saw the memo, because such an item would normally be posted in service areas, and guests are (unlikely to be) entering such areas...". I don't see it as being accusatory, but rather fishing for a response which will reveal where it was seen (perhaps a crew member showed it to the guest, since highly unlikely a guest saw it in the service area). This is obviously important information, as such a memo is a confidential internal communication, and finding out how it got into the public eye is necessary. I certainly don't see it as inferring uktog entered a service area, it wouldn't make any sense to infer that.

Also keep in mind that (and this is not a personal attack on you uktog, but rather stating facts - having not sailed Azamara before, I greatly enjoyed and much appreciated your review and other input on this board) the internal housekeeping memo is a confidential internal document. Even though it was misplaced in a public area (which can happen, everyone makes mistakes) it does not, rightly or wrongly, give one the right to read and digest such a document, and certainly not to advertise an internal message publicly. I am sure it was quite clear on glancing at the memo, that it was not intended for guest consumption?

Finally, food wastage and excess is a cause quite close to my heart, and stateroom fruit bowls must see some of the highest unnecessary wastage at sea. In my opinion, it is not about paying extra, because this doesn't solve the waste problem and ultimately manifests for many as the highly privileged "paying for the option to waste" (even though the primary reason for the cutbacks by the cruise line is undoubtedly the bottom line, and not a moral "reduce waste" stance). Even the proposal of selecting your preferred fruit at embarkation doesn't entirely solve the problem on many routes, because the ship must still load sufficient fruit of all kinds upfront to cover unknown passenger choices, which could vary significantly. And people would by default take fruit every day even if not planning to eat it ("I must get what I paid for..."). Better to eliminate fruit bowls entirely and have it ordered on a case by case basis eg. by room service, if necessary.