My Cuba Cruise

[Balloon Man]

I'm soooo jealous.

[dontworry]

Just booked our Cruise for Feb. 9, 2015. Our cabin number is 7011.a deluxe outside stateroom category XF.

We are going through Transat Tours(Air Transat) flying 2 Feb. from Edmonton to Calgary to Varadero with a transfer to Havana. We are staying in the Parque Central hotel, junior suite breakfast included. On the 9 there is a transfer from the hotel to the Ship. A drink package is included. When the Ship docks then there is a transfer back to Varadero and we fly home. Our seats are not the top ones on the plane but the next category.

Very, very excited about this. we have been to Cuba twice before. Once a 3 day Havana and 4 day Varadero and once on a 8 day coach tour of Cuba, plus 3 days Havana plus 7 days Varadero. Hope to see more and more people booking this Cruise.

Cheers to all.

[retiring soon]

HI all!

 

dontworry ~ sounds like a great trip! Is that a package they offer or a customized one?

 

I checked today on the XE category we had in Jan.& our cabin isn't available

for the week in Feb. we'd probably go. I wish we could book & know we're going but DH doesn't want to book yet.:(

 

Ciao.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[dontworry]

We had our TA contact Air Transat for some options. We chose the hotel and the category of stateroom. Between our TA and AT they came up with the date and what specific cabin. We opted to get transfers wherever we could as well. We like the reassurance that there is someone assisting us along the way. I do believe AT had pretty much this same itinary last year.

[ONT-CA]

HI all!

I checked today on the XE category we had in Jan.& our cabin isn't available for the week in Feb. we'd probably go. I wish we could book & know we're going but DH doesn't want to book yet.:( Ciao. ~ Jo ~ :)

 

Jo, remind DH of the minus 20 C and driveway clearings conditions that come with February and that might spark the interest. Deposits are refundable and it would be a shame to miss the what and when accommodations. And don't forget that the 20% discount ends July 31st.

[Liz54]

Jo, remind DH of the minus 20 C and driveway clearings conditions that come with February and that might spark the interest. Deposits are refundable and it would be a shame to miss the what and when accommodations. And don't forget that the 20% discount ends July 31st.

 

I agree! We always book sooner on the grounds that if things change we can cancel. But we never do!!!

[retiring soon]

HI all!

 

Thanks for the words of encouragement! I'd love to book now but DH has it in his head that there'll be a 2 for 1 deal offered later like there was last year. He thinks the cruise won't sell out until Americans are allowed to travel to Cuba. I OTOH think there's enough people in the rest of the World to fill the ship & if many people who went last time go again plus tell a friend we could be sol.:(

I'm going to call AT & see what the package is like.

 

Have a nice weekend.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[ONT-CA]

HI all!

 

Thanks for the words of encouragement! I'd love to book now but DH has it in his head that there'll be a 2 for 1 deal offered later like there was last year. He thinks the cruise won't sell out until Americans are allowed to travel to Cuba. I OTOH think there's enough people in the rest of the World to fill the ship & if many people who went last time go again plus tell a friend we could be sol.:(

I'm going to call AT & see what the package is like.

 

Have a nice weekend. ~ Jo ~ :)

 

Jo, remind DH that the 2 for 1 was understandable for a new venture like this. But with publicity now out like this: http://yourcubacruise.com/YourCuba.aspx ,

it's a whole new ball game. Over 850,000 Canadians visited Cuba last year and that number represented only 36% of all tourists from around the world, i.e., over two million.

 

With only 14 sailings, a full capacity sellout would amount to about 15,000 passengers. A very small number compared to the number of people who will be visiting Cuba this year.

 

He who hesitates is lost. Joseph Addison

[burm]

He who hesitates is lost. Joseph Addison

 

 

What about "Good things come to those who wait" H.J. Heinz :p

[ONT-CA]

What about "Good things come to those who wait" H.J. Heinz :p

 

A Berth in the hand is worth two in the rush ONT-CA

[ONT-CA]

...We are going through Transat Tours(Air Transat) flying 2 Feb. from Edmonton to Calgary to Varadero with a transfer to Havana. We are staying in the Parque Central hotel, junior suite breakfast included. On the 9 there is a transfer from the hotel to the Ship. A drink package is included. When the Ship docks then there is a transfer back to Varadero and we fly home. ....

 

dontworry, can you advise us of a package name or a package number or some sort of reference for what you have purchased? We cannot find anything resembling this on the Transat sites and we are sure there are others who would like to follow your lead.

[dontworry]

I originally had contacted Air Transat via phone and by Facebook and was told that they were only dealing with Travel Agents. I gave my TA the details of what we wanted and she dealt with them. Today, however I picked up a brochure called Transat Holidays Sun Collection 2014-2015 and on pg.162 is Cuba Cruise. They basically have the same things we wanted but their hotels for an extended stay are in Varadero, not Havana and I don't think the transfers were mentioned. They included a drink package as well. I don't know if this makes a difference or not but the cities on the outside of the brochure are all western Canada cities. I now see that the price they are quoting is flying out of Vancouver and having an Interior Stateroom. Hope this info is of some help. good luck :)

[retiring soon]

HI again!

 

Ron ~ good points & quips!:D

 

burm ~ good retort. Was he talking about ketchup?;)

 

I did call both Transat & Hola today but neither deals with clients you have to go through your TA so I emailed mine & her company doesn't deal with Hola for some reason.:confused: I'm looking at Feb 20th so I can meet both you characters!

 

She's on hold with Transat now.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[ONT-CA]

Jo, we're equally interested in meeting up with you guys in February. Hope you can put together a deal for then. It seems odd that the travel industry in general might not as yet have seen the potential in this venture and get on board, so to speak. A fresh new idea of Caribbean travel could only add to their business portfolio.

[retiring soon]

HI all!

 

Ron ~ received several emails from my TA & I'm ready to book with Transat

I just have to make DH an offer he can't refuse to see it my way.:rolleyes:

We'd fly in & out from Mo Bay day of. Transat is currently offering a modified beverage package which appeals to me. I sure hope to be booked

by this time next week if not sooner.

Hope one of you in the suite will let me see how the other half lives!;)

 

Ciao

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[ONT-CA]

Mi casa es su casa...especialmente la cubierta

 

You know where to find us

[burm]

Mi casa es su casa...especialmente la cubierta

 

You know where to find us

 

Then you can climb over the divider and check out 6200. :D We are going to have such an awesome view!

 

Yup, "Good things come to those who wait" was all about ketchup, their advertising slogan in the 80's.

[ONT-CA]

Then you can climb over the divider and check out 6200. :D We are going to have such an awesome view! .

 

Oh,oh....6200 will be mi casa from the 23rd of February for two weeks. Don't you mean 6100?

[Balloon Man]

Just booked our Cruise for Feb. 9, 2015. Our cabin number is 7011.a deluxe outside stateroom category XF.

We are going through Transat Tours(Air Transat) flying 2 Feb. from Edmonton to Calgary to Varadero with a transfer to Havana. We are staying in the Parque Central hotel, junior suite breakfast included. On the 9 there is a transfer from the hotel to the Ship. A drink package is included. When the Ship docks then there is a transfer back to Varadero and we fly home. Our seats are not the top ones on the plane but the next category.

Very, very excited about this. we have been to Cuba twice before. Once a 3 day Havana and 4 day Varadero and once on a 8 day coach tour of Cuba, plus 3 days Havana plus 7 days Varadero. Hope to see more and more people booking this Cruise.

Cheers to all.

 

It's a 2 to 3 hour transfer from the airport (which is actually about 20 km south of Varadero) to Havana. We also stayed at the Parque Central. Centrally situated (as the name suggests) in Olde Havana, a good hotel by Cuban standards with attentive staff but mediocre food. However many good "private" restaurants close by and the hotel has an excellent roof garden bistro (and swimming pool). The hop on hop off bus starts ffom either side of the park in front of the hotel (depending on the direction in which you want to travel).

 

The drawback to the hotel was the traffic noise - at least in our suite on the fourth floor. Blaring horns.

 

I hope you have a few days to enjoy Havana before joining the ship.

[burm]

Oh,oh....6200 will be mi casa from the 23rd of February for two weeks. Don't you mean 6100?

 

No, 6200.

 

We board on Feb 16 and hand over our lovely cabin to you on the 23rd. I will be sure to vacuum the floor and make the bed before we disembark. Don't expect any leftover beer in the fridge.

[retiring soon]

HI all!

 

 

Well, it's done we're going on the 20th from Montego Bay & having an outside XE cabin like last time only this time on port side.:D We'll have the beverage package which will suit us fine. I can hardly wait to see the difference in the cruise if more passengers book.

 

Ron ~ gracias amigo! Hope burm leaves the cabin in good shape for you.;)

 

Looking forward to cruising the Cristal again but this time with people I've chatted to onboard. I think I'll look up the people we dined with last time & see if any of them are repeating.

 

Have a nice evening.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[Liz54]

Does anyone who did this cruise last year have excursion advice for those whose walking is not great. Just been told I need a new knee and certainly will not get it by then. We are still going, but just wondering what tours DON'T require lots of walking.

 

I can still swim and snorkel however. Did anyone do a snorkel trip?

[retiring soon]

HI all!

 

Liz54 ~ I had a knee replacement just over 2 years ago & a few weeks before walked London & Paris Disneyland but with a cane. My knee was "bone on bone" but I actually was not in pain, just noticed my walking ability was decreasing.

 

I did the Cuba Life tour which was very interesting & didn't require much walking at a time since we went to a few places. Even say at the stop at Holguin you wouldn't have to walk down to the beach if you didn't want to, you could stay up by the hotel or at the flea market where I bought DH's guayabera.;)

 

The Tropicana night club is just a matter of walking from the bus to your seat so that might be a good one.

 

I don't think the snorkel excursion was offered at Isle of Youth last time because of lack of interest/pax. That's what I'm looking forward to this year, assuming the numbers are much better than last year (300 or so), how that will impact the cruise. We just had the one restaurant & snack bar available so that could change.

 

Have a nice week.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[ONT-CA]

Does anyone who did this cruise last year have excursion advice for those whose walking is not great. Just been told I need a new knee and certainly will not get it by then. We are still going, but just wondering what tours DON'T require lots of walking.

 

I can still swim and snorkel however. Did anyone do a snorkel trip?

 

One of the reasons we are returning to Cuba Cruise in 2015 is the fact that we feel we missed so much in taking into consideration the itinerary of the port bus excursions. Everything seems so strenuous, on the bus, off the bus, on the bus, etc. We had decided to take along a wheel chair on the cruise which we thought could assist us in meeting our needs ashore. A big mistake. We will not repeat that this time. Firstly, a chair is a total hinderance ashore because very few conditions in the historic areas, sidewalks, doorways, elevators, you name it were designed with a wheelchair in mind. You see very few chairs about. Street etiquette towards anyone in a chair is almost none existent. Plus it is the Tropics and manoeuvring in those temperatures is very taxing.

 

What we plan this time is to sign up for the bus tours and see what there is to see from the window.

 

So what we think best now is for us to get aboard a bus tour and when they announce that we must now get out and walk this quarter mile to the fort gates or whatever we will stay on the bus. Better to have seen the scenery and life style along the way than to have seen nothing at all.

[Liz54]

Thanks for your responses. I hope I am not at the wheelchair stage in January, but I do think I will be doing some sitting on busses. Will send my DH off with my camera!!