Considering Voyages of Discovery for 2011

[comcox]

We are considering a 2011 cruise with Voyages of Discovery but have some questions for folks who are familiar with the cruiseline.

 

1) What is the smoking policy on board? How strictly is it enforced?

 

2) What is the dress policy for dinner?

 

3) Is a buffet offered at dinner time or just the Main Dining Room?

 

4) Cabin dimensions look very small. Are they really comfortable for two people? What storage facilities are in the cabins?

 

5) Do cabins have refrigerators/mini-bars?

 

Any information/insights greatly appreciated.

[SwissMyst]

We are considering a 2011 cruise with Voyages of Discovery but have some questions for folks who are familiar with the cruiseline.

 

1) What is the smoking policy on board? How strictly is it enforced?

 

2) What is the dress policy for dinner?

 

3) Is a buffet offered at dinner time or just the Main Dining Room?

 

4) Cabin dimensions look very small. Are they really comfortable for two people? What storage facilities are in the cabins?

 

5) Do cabins have refrigerators/mini-bars?

 

Any information/insights greatly appreciated.

 

Please search this forum for my very detailed threads on the MV discovery - on dining, ship layout and activities - there were about three main threads which I put in a lot of information that I also had been searching for on the net but failed to find too about this little ship.

 

There was a smoking area on one side of the Lido deck and did not see or smell smoking anyplace else on the ship or in the hallways. Not sure if smoking is allowed in the cabins.

 

There were two formal nights which were nicely formal though a cocktail dress/dark suit would be fine, though many men wore and appeared to enjoy wearing tuxes and dinner jackets, which could also be purchased on board. Women sparkled those nights and you still saw long gowns and quite nicely dressed.

 

Other nights were "smart casual" which also meant many dressed up a bit more too and DH always wore a jacket and tie and I tried to dress up a bit too because the dining room has an nice understated elegance to it so it felt right to just not show up in casual, casual. I believe they had formal, informal and smart casual, and there was little difference between the last two.

 

This is a international group that likes the older ship cruising traditions of sailing, but it is large enough and informal enough in its social structure and mix of people that you can pretty much feel comfortable on your own style if this is not something that you want to do. It was a pretty tolerant and welcoming group of people who one feels dress for dinner at home only because it is traditional, and not because it is a style or status thing. It is not that kind of thing at all.

 

There was no dinner buffet alternative and that was missed as well as a good room service alternative, but I think we failed to explore the room service menu well enough. Be sure and check this out at the front desk because someone else reported there was a separate menu but we were told we had to order only from the meal menu and it would be delivered only at the start of each dining cycle.

 

One trick around a formal sit down dinner each night would be to have a nice sandwich made at tea time (which is a great buffet) at 3-4pm and then miss dinner and go to the really good hot snack buffet at 10:30pm. The lunch buffet is quite hearty and one could make this their main meal of the day and breakfasts were sumptuous - the Lido buffet food was quite good.

 

Cabins are extremely small but we found an exceptionally large one on the bottom deck which made our 42 day cruise quite doable. No mini bar or fridge in these lower deck rooms but they had a few larger rooms and suites on the upper decks that may come with more amenities. Storage was cramped, but I also listed what was offered and the dimensions available. Because we had extra space in our cabin and were on a long voyage we bought an extra clothes hanging rack and had an extra tiered coffee table in the room we used for clothes storage.

 

However, that being said the daytime wear onboard was very casual and primarily consisted of these well-traveled people getting a chance to wear all their logo travel tee shirts they had picked up all over the world which made great conversational ice-breakers. And one saw plenty of the same things worn over and over again. We also purchased a folding drying rack and did all our laundry in the room for our 42 days and it worked out fine.

 

You can store your suitcases under the beds so that expands the storage capacity. Our bathroom was functional but pretty utilitarian in design so not much extra storage space in there. Best to bring wall hooks and hanging kit bags or over the door shoe storage bags for extra storage spaces in the bathroom.

 

I left a recent review on the MV Discovery member review page on Cruise Critic so you can get some of this information there too.

 

We loved the trip, even though this is a very different type cruise experience and we even had two of the worst weeks in a row for rough seas. You sail this ship for discovery and enrichment and low-key offerings and get to places few other ships can offer in the company of well-spirited and non-demanding people who also share what this type of more bare bones cruising experience has to offer. We would do them again in an instant for the right itinerary, and are already looking at their new brochure.

[SwissMyst]

Here is one of my prior Discovery threads on the ship's layout, that you also can get from the search feature is you put in MV Discovery for the rest of them:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1169393&highlight=discovery

[comcox]

SwissMyst==thanks for the detailed reply.

[gymbabe]

It is a wonderful ship,with fantastic crew and an amazing focus on enrichment via travel.I spent 6 weeks on board earlier this year,and the whole experience was indescribably good.I have previously been on other bigger-name cruise lines.

I think swissmyst has answered all the questions about smoking,cabin sizes etc perfectly! I would add that the library and other facilities such as the informative daily newsletters and lectures really stood out for me.I was quite at home partying/dancing/even drinking on the other cruises,but found the emphasis on personal growth and exploration aboard Discovery have had an impact that will be life long!!Sure the ship is older and less glitzy,but that is part of the appeal...a true maritime journey....so if the itinerary you are considering suits,you will not be disappointed!!:):):)

[SwissMyst]

MV Discovery on board activities prior thread link: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1171376

[SwissMyst]

MV Discovery dining thread: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1169360

[SwissMyst]

Interior shot photos - MV Discovery - 2010

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/travellergal/MVDiscoveryInteriorPhotos201002#

[comcox]

Interior shot photos - MV Discovery - 2010

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/travellergal/MVDiscoveryInteriorPhotos201002#

 

Thanks for the helpful photos.

[Host Sharon]

I have also asked for brochures for this line. The above comments make the ship sound perfect for me.

[Parapara]

Thought I would mention dining in the Yacht Club. We really enjoyed that with the extra service, views and live music. You have to book to dine there and I think only once per cruise. However if you do cruises joined together- we did three short ones for a total of 28 nights then you can go once for each short cruise ( we dined their three times). This is the time you probably would dress up the most for dinners.

[judb]

Re the Yacht club, you can dine there once a week. The menu changes weekly and you do have to be quick to get a table, but it is lovely and offers a chance to dine with other people you may have met on board as a change from those on your table in the MDR

[SwissMyst]

Mixed feelings about the Yacht Club after our 42 day cruise, with differing successes with their different menu themes on each segment. You will get different menu theme choices with each segment, and some may be themed to where the ship is located so I don't know if you can plan which ones will be available on your cruise.

 

The Italian one which was the only repeat menu, we went to twice and it was unbelievably awful both times. I would avoid this one totally, even though the experience of dining in the Yacht Club is always a nice change of pace. Everything was awful from bread to dessert choices - worst because none of it was even remotely Italian except for a very mediocre pasta dish that clogged up the whole rest of the menu.

 

The South East Asian one was good, but made better when I asked for some limes to perk up the meat sauce.

 

The Asian one was our first and was a disappointment culinary wise, but okay.

 

The Jazz- Contemporary French was good, sorry I can't remember the menu.

 

We missed getting reservations for the African, but the posted menu did not look good.

 

So while this is a very nice dining alternative and the captain and his invited guests are often found here if they are not at the larger Captains Table in the main dining room and the specialness of the smaller setting is very welcome, this dining choice suffers badly from its food preparation and I am sorry to report this. It could and should have been a lot better. And the Italian menu needs to be thrown out and totally reworked.

 

So I offer this critique in hope changes can be made and that if you miss getting a reservation you will not despair. And if they offer only the Italian night on your segment, you take a sandwich at tea time and avoid the whole thing and eat it on the back open air deck if you want a change of pace from the main dining room.:(

[larissaB]

We went on Discovery last year, to Norway, the Faroes and Iceland. I haven't cruised since I was a child, and my husband never: we chose the ship partly because of the itinerary and partly because he flatly refused to go on the more modern "floating city"-type ships. I'd have been quite happy to try one of the bigger, more luxurious boats, whereas he likes things small and cosy.

 

When we first went on board I was really disappointed by everything - the size of the cabins, the facilities (or lack of them), and I had a huge fit of the sulks. There wasn't even a decent swimming pool, which is important to me - just a postage-sized thing that was empty the whole time we were on board. I also remember saying that the ship wasn't much better than an upmarket channel ferry!

 

And guess what?

 

We had the best holiday ever! Somewhere along the line, Discovery worked its magic on me and by the end we both had to be virtually dragged off the ship. The lectures were brilliant, I joined a choir, and the atmosphere was friendly, intimate and relaxing. The staff were extremely helpful, the ports of call were just fantastic, and the whole experience was utterly memorable. I won't say that there isn't a little bit of me that still yearns for the mega-cruise experience, but we're booking for next year now and we can't wait to go back on board. Already, it feels like a home from home. If you accept Discovery for what it is - a small ship with a very special appeal but no frills - you will have a great holiday.

[SwissMyst]

Larissa, you brought tears to my eyes talking about my ship. It does that to you, doesn't it. Wonderful report and beautifully handled the contrasts of feelings about this unique cruising experience.

[SwissMyst]

BTW: we found the smaller ships on Holland America Lines to be our best main line cruising experience when you really want to get it all, but still sail on real ships with real cruise traditions and not floating hotel boxes with waterborne shopping malls, casinos and lavish entertainment lounges.