My Cuba Cruise

[retiring soon]

HI all!

 

Ron ~ wow you could have made a fortune had you charged admission to your balcony! That's quite the crowd!:eek:

 

burm ~ getting ideas? ;)

 

p598738 ~ thanks for your reply. Too bad we won't get to meet but sure hope you come back to let us know how it went.

 

insider1649 ~ thanks for posting the photos. It's getting me even more excited to see it. Less than a month for you to wait now, lucky!

 

zebraprintsky ~ bon voyage, safe travels & have a great cruise. Please

tell us all about it when you get back.

 

Guy on the right ~ very nice of you to make your first Cruise Critic post & clarify the situation.:D Have a great cruise! DH & I had always wanted to cruise around Cuba & are so glad that this venture is up & running & in its 2nd year. Congrats!

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[burm]

burm ~ getting ideas? ;)

 

I ALWAYS have ideas - the trouble is getting other people to go along with them. :(

[ONT-CA]

For Craig Marshall

 

Thanks for coming aboard Cruise Critic and explaining the circumstances surrounding my observations and complaint. I am not an advocate of formality but believe that once established, rules should apply to everyone.

 

How unfortunate that the news of corporate development was not presented to the passengers in some public way averting rumours and misunderstanding. I'm sure that everyone will be pleased to know that we have not lost our Canadian link to Celestial Cristal.

 

I know you and your friends will thoroughly enjoy your Dec. 29th cruise out of Havana.

[ONT-CA]

Let no one be deceived, please. The photo with the large number of passengers on the Royal suite deck is a photo chop and did not, could not and would not occur during our occupancy.

[burm]

Let no one be deceived, please. The photo with the large number of passengers on the Royal suite deck is a photo chop and did not, could not and would not occur during our occupancy.

 

 

 

Well, I am hoping that the 6 Eh'ers will be enjoying a nice mini F2F on Jamaica sailaway and Cienfuegos arrival. :)

 

While I had the pleasure of meeting Kerri and her DH last summer, I have been chatting with Jo for years, but have yet to meet her. I am really looking forward to it!

[retiring soon]

Hi all!

 

Ron ~thanks for clearing that up!I thought you were the host with the most;)

 

burm ~ I look forward to meeting you too plus Kerri & Cam since I didn't make that other event.:( Thanks for the invite.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[csnow]

My husband and I booked this cruise just before Christmas, but I haven't had much time to look into the tours until today. Thank you so much to everyone who has taken the time to write about their experience. I am finding these cruise ports more challenging to find information for, but without this thread it would have been much harder. I started to read from the first post, but that was taking way too much time! I am thinking it might work better to just search for certain words in this thread instead.

 

We are on the Jan. 5th sailing, so I am going to be very busy these next few days. We had family staying with us until yesterday so today was my first opportunity to begin searching for tours, etc.. Is anyone else on this thread on the Jan. 5th sailing?

 

Thanks again to everyone for all the info provided here.

[potterhill]

I just finished reading all 66 pages after seeing an article in the Globe & mail today. Had no idea about this cruiseline and would have been on it for Christmas had I known.

 

I have told the family I will not not be at home next year for the holidays. When they asked where we would be, my response was "anywhere but here". Now I know where I want to be and will have to wait patiently for next years bookings to open. We are perhaps the only ones of our friends who have not been to Cuba, and with Obama's announcement it has to move to the top of the list. I would book for this winter in a heartbeat, but we already have made plans that involve friends and that we are looking forward to.

 

Wonderful thread, and most informative. I will definitely follow.

 

Mo

[gubby]

I just finished reading all 66 pages after seeing an article in the Globe & mail today. Had no idea about this cruiseline and would have been on it for Christmas had I known.

 

I have told the family I will not not be at home next year for the holidays. When they asked where we would be, my response was "anywhere but here". Now I know where I want to be and will have to wait patiently for next years bookings to open. We are perhaps the only ones of our friends who have not been to Cuba, and with Obama's announcement it has to move to the top of the list. I would book for this winter in a heartbeat, but we already have made plans that involve friends and that we are looking forward to.

 

Wonderful thread, and most informative. I will definitely follow.

 

Mo

 

Mo, I am with you about next year's booking and for the very same reasons. We leave for South Carolina on Friday, but I intend to continue to follow this thread and will begin to make notes of excursions this year's cruisers have found. We are also the only ones of our group that have not been to Cuba yet, and to see Cuba AND be on a cruise seems like Heaven to me. We also want to see it before the influx of US dollars changes the landscape and the people. I have a whole year to look forward to this adventure, and will anticipate every minute of it!

 

Nikki

Edited December 31, 2014 by gubby

[retiring soon]

Hi all!

 

Mo ~ welcome! I'm with you too about sailing next Christmas but it won't be on this ship. Thanks for mentionning the Globe & Mail article, I looked it up.

 

csnow ~ welcome to the thread! Wow you're going to be cruising Cristal in days. Have a great time & please come back & let us know how it was. Perhaps zebraprintsky is on your cruise, she's getting on in Montego Bay on Friday. Wonder if her DH has stopped smiling yet!;)

 

Here's something I read somewhere & thought was quite interesting. DH & I had been waiting since 2010 for a Cuba cruise but that Toronto outfit didn't get it going.:( Glad these Canadians did & loving the way they're doing it.

http://www.fromthedeckchair.com/2014/07/09/interview-cuba-cruise-president-dugald-wells/

 

Nikki ~ safe travels & good times in the sunshine.

 

Happy New Year!

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[burm]

[burm]

Also, special thanks to the person who got me singing "Consomme mucho".

 

 

Consomme, consomme mucho

Como si fuera esta noche

la última vez

 

Consomme, consomme mucho

que tengo miedo a perderte

perderte después

 

Quiero tenerte muy cerca

mirarme en tus ojos

verte junto a mí

Piensa que talvez mañana

yo ya estaré lejos

muy lejos de aquí

 

Consomme, consomme mucho

Como si fuera esta noche

la última vez

 

Consomme, consomme mucho

que tengo miedo a perderte

perderte después

 

Consomme, consommé mucho...

[ONT-CA]

Also, special thanks to the person who got me singing "Consomme mucho".

..

 

Well burm, they certainly know that rendition in the dining room. One evening after closing, about 6-7 waiters fetched maître d' Carlos to our table to hear the song. Raising my baton (fork), I led the chorus in this very rendition. Carlos just shook his head in bewilderment and walking away said, "Oh you guys". Should you have the fortune and pleasure of being served by Erich (pronounced Eric) or Luis (pronounced Loo'iss) they will know this rendition and it's history.

 

The wait staff is a fun group and can be as formal or as whimsical as you choose. But personally I have always preferred a laugh to a bow.

[burm]

Well burm, they certainly know that rendition in the dining room. One evening after closing, about 6-7 waiters fetched maître d' Carlos to our table to hear the song. Raising my baton (fork), I led the chorus in this very rendition. Carlos just shook his head in bewilderment and walking away said, "Oh you guys". Should you have the fortune and pleasure of being served by Erich (pronounced Eric) or Luis (pronounced Loo'iss) they will know this rendition and it's history.

 

The wait staff is a fun group and can be as formal or as whimsical as you choose. But personally I have always preferred a laugh to a bow.

 

If I remember, I will be sure to sing it on the final night in the MDR. The words would be most appropriate at that time. LOL

 

 

"Give me a lot of consomme......as if tonight were the final time. Tomorrow I might be far away, far away from here."

[csnow]

Thank you for the welcome Retiring Soon. You have supplied a lot of helpful info on this thread that I have found very useful. I have read up to page 13 and a lot of the in between posts from using the search engine. I will try to post after we return and answer any questions that anyone has.

 

We have decided to do the Cuba Life tour, Panoramic Santiago, and the trip to Trinidad if there is still availability. We tried to call to book, but understandably there was no one at the office. We are going to try again tomorrow since we read that it has to be done 48 hours before boarding. If not we will have to take our chances once we are onboard.

 

Does anyone know if there is a HOHO bus in Havana? We were thinking of using that and just walking around on our own. Is it possible to walk from the port to Old Havana, or will we need to take a taxi? Well, I had better keep reading!

 

Wishing everyone a happy, healthy new year!

 

Sandy

[burm]

Does anyone know if there is a HOHO bus in Havana? We were thinking of using that and just walking around on our own. Is it possible to walk from the port to Old Havana, or will we need to take a taxi? Well, I had better keep reading!

 

 

Thank you for asking! I didn't know there was a HOHO bus in Havana.

 

http://www.accommodation-cuba.com/havana-tourist-bus.htm

[retiring soon]

Hi all!

 

burm ~ lovely picture!:D I watched some of Anderson Cooper & Kathy Griffin on New Year's Eve & they had a reporter at the Tropicana show in Havana. I'd never seen a report from Cuba before. They also had a reporter on Quantum of the Seas. I love the song Consomme Mucho too.;)

 

Sandy ~ you're welcome. I think the Cuba Life excursion is a great choice.

I've been to Santiago a couple of times so didn't choose an excursion, they sort of scared me off the one I would like to do, thought it would be too much climbing for me. I want to do Trinidad too so look forward to hearing what you think of it. Good luck on getting the excursions you want.

HOHO buses are a great way to see a lot in a new place.

 

Anybody else having a hard time knowing what day it is?!:o

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[csnow]

Thank you for asking! I didn't know there was a HOHO bus in Havana.

 

http://www.accommodation-cuba.com/havana-tourist-bus.htm

 

Thank you for the link! I should have had the sense to google it!!

[ONT-CA]

... Is it possible to walk from the port to Old Havana, or will we need to take a taxi?

 

If you are fit and have a good pair of walking shoes the town is yours. The streets and sidewalks in the old section can be rough walking though. To give you an example of locale, the ship docks a couple of minutes walk to a most beautiful Greek Orthodox church (to the left as you exit the terminal). As the ship comes into it's birth, you will be able to see the gold domed steeple. A goodly walk straight forward from the terminal, towards the Capitol Building, which predominates the skyline, you will come to the square surrounded by historical hotels and where one can further catch or drop the HOHO bus. But be prepared to be continuously distracted with the architecture, restored and yet to be restored, and the visual history of Old Havana. At times I felt like I was a charter within a historical novel.

[csnow]

If you are fit and have a good pair of walking shoes the town is yours. The streets and sidewalks in the old section can be rough walking though. To give you an example of locale, the ship docks a couple of minutes walk to a most beautiful Greek Orthodox church (to the left as you exit the terminal). As the ship comes into it's birth, you will be able to see the gold domed steeple. A goodly walk straight forward from the terminal, towards the Capitol Building, which predominates the skyline, you will come to the square surrounded by historical hotels and where one can further catch or drop the HOHO bus. But be prepared to be continuously distracted with the architecture, restored and yet to be restored, and the visual history of Old Havana. At times I felt like I was a charter within a historical novel.

 

Thank you. You have given me more of a visual to go on. It sounds a lot like travel in Europe. You don't notice how long you have been walking because of the beautiful and interesting buildings around you. The cobblestones and uneven walking surface can be hard on the body though!

[KandCsailing]

We tried to call to book, but understandably there was no one at the office.

When we first tried to book on a Friday night with a TA, we had just missed the office closing by 15 minutes and they would be open again on the Monday. We ended up booking online to get the BOGO deal in time.

Don't know where you are, but the office is in Calgary for any time changes.

 

Getting excited; I started to pull out the summer clothes again. :D

[KandCsailing]

Thank you. You have given me more of a visual to go on. It sounds a lot like travel in Europe. You don't notice how long you have been walking because of the beautiful and interesting buildings around you. The cobblestones and uneven walking surface can be hard on the body though!

Sound a lot like old San Juan. Takes me forever to get from point A to point B because of the buildings and taking photos. Drives DH crazy. :D

 

burm ~ I look forward to meeting you too plus Kerri & Cam since I didn't make that other event.:( Thanks for the invite.

Looking forward to finally meeting you also Jo.

Poor Burm had to sit next to me the whole time at the other event. :rolleyes:;)

Edited January 2, 2015 by KandCsailing

[burm]

Poor Burm had to sit next to me the whole time at the other event. :rolleyes:;)

 

Nothing "poor" about it. I was happy to meet the talented cake decorator (and all round nice person) at last. We look forward to seeing you again!

[ONT-CA]

Thank you. You have given me more of a visual to go on. It sounds a lot like travel in Europe. You don't notice how long you have been walking because of the beautiful and interesting buildings around you. The cobblestones and uneven walking surface can be hard on the body though!

 

So that I don't mislead you as to distances here is a Google of the area of Old Havana. I have indicated where the ship will dock and the location of the Capital Building.

 

http://i999.photobucket.com/albums/af114/Yarkerhill/Havana.jpg

[csnow]

We called this morning and booked our excursions. A very friendly, helpful lady assisted us. We are thinking of doing a beach day when we are in Montego Bay. Doctor's Cave seems to be recommended on these boards. I am thinking it is easiest to grab a cab there and back. Has anyone been there before?

 

ONT-CA Thanks for the map of the area. It looks like a bit of a hike from the port to the Capital Building but I think we can do it. Should have lots of time to take plenty of rests!

 

Thanks again for all the help from everyone. You are a very friendly bunch!