Pullmantur wine and food?

[peabody99]

We are very excited to have booked on the Pullmantur Zenith for a Greek/Turkey trip. Its very hard to find reviews since this line is not geared towards Americans. I love Spanish/Italian/French wines-even "table wine" quality tastes better than any new world wines as far as I am concerned. Has anybody that sailed know anything about the wines-the ones that are complimentary of course ;) I also understand premium coffees are also no extra charge. True?

 

the second question is about the food. Is it Spanish or just sort of typical cruise ship type menu items? what are some examples of menu items? I cannot find any Pullmantur menus on line and my curiosity is killing me.

[Downdie]

http://public.fotki.com/Magwa/cruising/zenith-april-2011/zenith-interiors-11/galaxy-deck-7-zenit/restaurant-menus-an/

peabody99 : I hope this website,courtesy of former CC member Magwa, helps you and answers some menu questions.

I sailed on the Zenith from Ravenna to Malaga in Nov 2011, my third Pullmantur cruise.

Complimentary wines served at dinner were Spanish,one red,white ,rose and Cava.

Premium Lavazza coffees are free at all bars and cafes.

I'm happy to answer any more questions you may have

[peabody99]

Thank you Downdie, I really appreciate it. The menus look good, and I love Spanish wines so I will be enjoying them for sure! Do you recall very much about dinner attire? I noticed the cruises I have taken catering to Europeans tend to be more smart casual at dinner. I know what I'm wearing but I'm trying to talk my husband out of bring his dark suits/ties if a jacket and collared shirt will do.

[mary.g]

Downdie. Good to see a fellow BC'er (I am from Vancouver)We are doing 3 back to back cruises on Pullmantur Empress in May. Have you ever been on the Empress? what was your overall impression of Pullmantur? Peabody99 has voiced some of the exact same questions I had. It definitely is difficult to get feedback as not many North Americans have cruised with Pullmantur.Were any English speaking excursions offered? We will spend a total of 4 days in St Petersburg so really want to plan in advance so that we can take in the wonderful sights. Thank you for any input.

Mary

[Downdie]

Thank you Downdie, I really appreciate it. The menus look good, and I love Spanish wines so I will be enjoying them for sure! Do you recall very much about dinner attire? I noticed the cruises I have taken catering to Europeans tend to be more smart casual at dinner. I know what I'm wearing but I'm trying to talk my husband out of bring his dark suits/ties if a jacket and collared shirt will do.

 

peabody99: A jacket and tie will only be required on the Gala night which includes the captain's cocktail party. All other nights are smart casual with or without a jacket, fairly laid back actually.

mary.g: Nice to see some other BC'ers giving this Spanish line a try. I haven't sailed on the Empress.but have enjoyed the Zenith in the Med and the Horizon and Holiday Dream in the Caribbean. This is a mainstream cruise line, sailing slighly older but well maintaind ships geared to the Spanish market and offers an all-inclusive experience. English is the second language onboard and is spoken by most staff and many of its passengers. English speaking excursions will depend on the demand, but I wouldn't hold my breath.In Europe it is more than likely thai any English speakers onboard will be expat Brits from Spain.

[andrewsjerrypat]

My wife and I are also interested in the Pullmantur cruises because the prices is so reasonable and the ports are great. We are intersested in either the Greek Island Cruise/

Turkey or the Baltic/St. Petersberg and the Norway cruise. (back to back)

Questions?

Since they do not always leave from makor port cities, how hard is it to get to the cities they leave from...example Ravenna Italy or a city I had never heard of in Sweden

Also noticed that a couple of their itineraries require visas-is it like other crusielines

that say as long as you go on the ships's tours, that the visa are already included.

I am refering to the cruises going to St. Petersberg and to Turkey.

Tipping? I noticed on their website that their recommend tipping is higher than US lines

$100 per person for a week. versus about $77 for major lines.. Is the service good?

I would appreciate any help as we are planning to go the first part of June and need to get our airfare tied down.

Jerry

[mary.g]

Thanks for the information Downdie. Jerry has raised a valid point re tipping protocol. Do you recall the process for tipping?

Jerry,I have made enquiries regarding ST Petersburg as we spend 4 days in total due to back to back cruises. You cannot go ashore without a visa in SPB. Most people advocate organized tours and there are quite a few recommendations on this site. I am currently corresponding with Alla Tours regarding their tours. I am looking forward to cruising with Pullmantur as a change from the mainstream lines. Good luck with your plans.

Mary

[Downdie]

mary and jerry: As you are both sailing on Pullmantur in Europe the onboard currency will be Euros Like all other RCCL owned ships you will have automatic gratuities added to your onboard account, this amounted to 65 Euros pp/week.We found the service onboard excellent.

jerry: We boarded the Zenith in Ravenna, getting there by flying to Venice, staying three days there, and taking the train to Ravenna for an overnight stay then on to the ship. Really quite easy and thoroughly enjoyable.

I believe the Swedish port is Malmo, which you can probably fly to through any of the major European hubs.

[mary.g]

Thanks again Downdie. I am still having difficulty organizing excursions. Alla tour could not really accommodate us for the 2 day tours as we arrived on the second day of the tours on both occasions. I have also written to SPB tours and they are recommending personal tours. I have just received brochures from Pullmantur in English but they did not answer my question as to whether any of the tours would be in English. in the past we have done both independent sight seeing as well as excursions organized by the cruise line. Did you do any excursions organized by Pullmantur or are you aware of anyone else that did.i do appreciate all the advice that you have given us. Perhaps one day our paths will collide!

Mary

[Art geezer]

I am flying into to Copenhagen Kastrup and then taking the train over the Oresund bridge to Malmo. the station is beneath terminal 3. It takes about 22 minutes to Malmo Central Station. Tickets are purchased in the terminal and the train leaves every 20 minutes during the day. I hope this helps. Am still wanting to figure out St Petersburg - so I get the most out of the four days we will be there in June.