Super Star Virgo

[boeckli]

Yes I have seen it.

 

But it did not name the Pisces and the Virgo and where did you get the imformation that it will be in HK after 2010.

 

kuldalai did not infer that the Virgo would be in HK after 2010. He merely pointed out that the location of the "Paragraph B - Home based cruise" information was to be found "at bottom (of page) after (on the page) 2010" , i.e, after the 2010 listings (separate sub-heading B. Home-based cruise, after sub-heading A. International cruise which lists all the different vessels arriving at various dates.

 

As to information about Pride of Aloha's future deployments, I agree the lack of info is rather puzzling ...

[deck 9 001]

The lack of any announcement from Star Cruises regarding ships and deployments has always, in the past, proven to be a bad omen.

 

Being that the transfer of Pride of Aloha is just around the corner, and still no announcement, puts this into the "bad omen" category.

 

Mike

[kuldalai]

Yes I have seen it.

 

But it did not name the Pisces and the Virgo and where did you get the imformation that it will be in HK after 2010.

 

I wrote that the footnote was after the 2010 Arrs & Depts listing .

 

Good heavens Star are receiving a new vessel next month and we still do not know what they intend doing with it ; if Star told us what they what were doing with the fleet in a years time most of us would be in shock, as for 2010 well if Star told us that far ahead it would be a case of cardiac arrest !!!

[Deck10 007]

kuldalai did not infer that the Virgo would be in HK after 2010. He merely pointed out that the location of the "Paragraph B - Home based cruise" information was to be found "at bottom (of page) after (on the page) 2010" , i.e, after the 2010 listings (separate sub-heading B. Home-based cruise, after sub-heading A. International cruise which lists all the different vessels arriving at various dates.

 

As to information about Pride of Aloha's future deployments, I agree the lack of info is rather puzzling ...

 

Yes I have re-read Kuldalai posting and the actual article and I have a better understanding now.

Kuldalai did throw me off track and it could be just me. Sorry Kuldalai.

[kuldalai]

Cruise Wholesalers in Australia are offering this departure on SS VIRGO at discounted via e-mail this week at all inclusive package rates :

 

Itinerary

Day Port Arrive Depart 02 May 08 Hong Kong, China ##

8.00pm 03 May 08 At Sea

 

04 May 08 Chan May (for Hue), Vietnam 7.00am 3.00pm 05 May 08 Halong Bay, Vietnam 7.00am 2.00pm 06 May 08 Hong Kong, China ##

3.00pm

 

Star brochure lists these departures but not the one listed above :

 

Ex HK April 30 2 nights Xiamen round trip

Ex HK May 05 1 night Gambling Cruise high seas ##

Ex HK May 07 Xiamen 2 nights round trip

 

There appears to be clash of sailings in that VIRGO cannot be in two places at once ? Refer itineraries marked #

[Deck10 007]

Star Cruises brought The Virgo to HK just to carry the Olympic Torch from HK to Macau to Sanya, China on May 2 to May 4.

I think it will supersede whatever your travel agent has on his books. I think only the Olympic officials and other VIPs would be on board and not open to the public.

[kuldalai]

Looks as if the Olympic torch thing might all be off as far as SS Virgo is concerned. The posted itinerary does not go to Sanya at all .

 

Here is the link as advertised in Australia :

 

http://www.creativecruising.com.au/cruises/cruise.asp?id=4137

 

and also at :

 

http://www.cruising.com.au/superstar-virgo-4-night-hue-and-ha-long-bay-adventure-hong-kong-return/2008-05-002

[Deck10 007]

Like I say the schedule posted by tour travel agents will be superseded.

The timing for the Touch Relay must have come out after the generic standard schedule was posted. If the Virgo was brought to HK just for the Torch Relay it make seems that everything else is inmaterial to them.

[boeckli]

Cruise Wholesalers in Australia are offering this departure on SS VIRGO at discounted via e-mail this week at all inclusive package rates :

 

Itinerary

Day Port Arrive Depart 02 May 08 Hong Kong, China ##

8.00pm 03 May 08 At Sea

 

04 May 08 Chan May (for Hue), Vietnam 7.00am 3.00pm 05 May 08 Halong Bay, Vietnam 7.00am 2.00pm 06 May 08 Hong Kong, China ##

3.00pm

 

Star brochure lists these departures but not the one listed above :

 

Ex HK April 30 2 nights Xiamen round trip

Ex HK May 05 1 night Gambling Cruise high seas ##

Ex HK May 07 Xiamen 2 nights round trip

 

There appears to be clash of sailings in that VIRGO cannot be in two places at once ? Refer itineraries marked #

 

The 4-night sailing on May 2 is listed in Starcruises PDF brochure (http://www.starcruises.com/newweb/ebrochures/PDF/SSV/ssv_itin_mar-oct08_en.pdf) on page 2.

It does however also list the 1-night departure on May 6 (which clearly conflicts with the May 2 one).

Have not been able to find any reference to the torch and SSV anywhere. All I could see was HK to Macao either by ferry or air. But then again the torch relay details seem to be changing quite a bit lately ...

[kuldalai]

As originally published on paper and in PDF form the Virgo itineraries did NOT include the four day Vietnam round trip ex HK . That is a recent addition and alteration to the PDF version .

 

This indicates clearly that Olympic torch thing whatever it was going to be is now OFF as far as Virgo is concerned and this new itinerary has been inserted to fill the gap . Two Cruise Wholesalers in Aus have been advised and have packaged it up fast with accomm and return air to sell on behalf of Star .

This is a last minute thing as they are e-mailing everyone they can think of to round up customers .

[boeckli]

Have a read of this thread for an answer as to why we haven't heard anything about Starcruises' plans for Pride of Aloha ... (the whole text of the Lloyds article is further down in the thread).

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=755216

[malamute]

Mike,

 

Many thanks for posting the Virgo photos. We are sailing on her in July, same balcony cabins we had on our first cruise in 2006.

Have 2 nights pre-cruise in HK, staying at the Disneyland hotel....and 4 night post cruise at the Hong Kong Harbour Plaza. Might do a private Halong Bay excursion on a junk.......not sure yet about Sanya and Xaimen...so hard to find information on these 2 ports:eek:

 

Thanks everyone for posting:) .......I love reading this board , it brings our cruise so much closer.

 

Cheers

 

Justine

 

Hey - seems we'll be on the same cruise ! As it's our first cruise, let me know if you have any good advice for our time on board ... or shorex's.

[casu1]

Anyone offer any tips on the shore excursions offered in Sanya and Xiamen..Looks like the cruise of Halong Bay followed by the shopping may be the best option for Vietnam - but tours in Sanya and Xiamen dont seem to offer much - perhaps free and easy is the best way to go in these ports - would be happy for any advice or experiences

stu

[redisol]

Just a few more days (5days) to go and we're boarding the SSV! We can hardly contain our excitement :D

 

Just one more question before we go;

 

Is it safe to go on a private junk cruise of Halong Bay? I emailed this company named Tuan Linh Travel and they gave me pretty good deal. Private transportation and private junk boat with lunch for our group (10pax) with meal for $24/pax. We prefer a private tour since we have small children with us and we may want to go back to the ship ahead of time if the kids get cranky.

 

Looking at their webpage, their credentials look good. They are a member of Vietnam travel Promotion Group... I just want to be sure of our safety.

 

Here's their webpage;

http://www.tuanlinhtravel.com/

 

I have to pay 50% in advance asap through XOOM or Western Union should I decide to book. What do you think?

 

Thanks!

[Jamin]

Hi all

 

redisol - hope you enjoy the cruise and we can enjoy it also via your thoughts and experiences.:D

 

Any info re the shorex opportunities on this cruise would be great - particularly considering that this is relatively new for SSV.

 

Be sure to have the steamboat dinner at the Taverna if it is available.;)

 

Regards

 

Simon :)

[kuldalai]

Please refer my query under Star Cruises - General Info thread re P of Aloha.

[Jamin]

Hi all

 

Just a quick note to see if there is any updated info from the SSV thread members on Sanya, Xianen and Halong Bay.

 

TIA

 

Simon:)

[boeckli]

For all those cruising on SuperStar Virgo from Hong Kong between now and October

 

Just saw this note on one of the cruise newsletters I subscribe to - may be worth your while to check it out with your TA

"With immediate effect all Australian passengers sailing on SuperStar Virgo ex Hong Kong for “5 nights” between April – October 2008 are now required to source their own China single entry visa prior to departing Australia. If passengers are unable to obtaining relevant visa in time, or any Australian passengers are “ unable to disembark” in a China port due to visa issues, Star Cruises will provide them a HK$1200 “per cabin” onboard credit. This credit will be issued as a “gesture of goodwill” only during these difficult circumstances. There is no issue for Australians to remain onboard SuperStar Virgo while calling into China ports with or without a relevant China visa. Any unused group landing visa’s fee’s for Xiamen already collected/paid to Star Cruises will be refunded in due course. We will inform you of any changes if & when they come to hand. We appreciate your patience while our office in Hong Kong has been clarifying this visa situation & unfortunately this issue is beyond Star Cruises control."

This is apparently what Starcruises are advising their passengers. Apparently there has been some confusion about multiple-entry China visas for a little while.

[casu1]

Heard from our Travel Agent today - Star Cruises are refunding the $30.00 AUD incorporated in our ticket for the China Visa. It is up to us to obtain our own multiple entry visa. However Star may be offering a further cabin credit to compensate - still up in the air on a few things

[redisol]

Got home last Wednesday from our cruise with SSV and all I can say is we really had a wonderful time aboard. :)

 

The shows, the food, the crew were really amazing.... Food prices were reasonable that we had a hard time consuming our dining credits. We had to have a heavy lunch at the Palazzo on the last day just to consume it and in the end, I still had HK$240 left so I used it to buy a bottle of wine to take home with me... :D

 

About the shorex, we decided not to go down in Sanya and had a relaxing day on board.

 

We took the land/cruise with meal shore excursion in Halong Bay and we kinda regretted the decision. The ship anchored off Halong bay and it took some time for them to transfer us out of the ship to the junk waiting for us. The junk then took us for a short cruise around the bay and then dropped us off the tour operator's jetty. After a vietnamese meal in a local hotel, the tour guide took us to the Royal Amusement Park and because of the heat and humidity, nobody wanted to go down the bus so we were taken to the open air market to shop while we waited for our turn to go back to the ship which also took some time. I guess we should have stayed on board and saved us some money. Anyway the view was very nice.

 

We really loved our experience with the SSV and we are still having withdrawal symptoms :D

[boeckli]

redisol - Thank you for posting about your experiences. Glad to hear that you had a wonderful time onboard the great Superstar Virgo!

[tmbhl_on_the_go]

Great to hear from someone who's just been on the Virgo, we sail from HK in 2 weeks time. Did you have any China visa hassles? Did you have to obtain direct yourself, or were you able to still use the Star Cruise obtained mass visa? We've just heard from our travel agent that have to do ourselves, so quickly filled in our forms and sent passports off to embassy yesterday. Its several weeks since China announced it was cracking down on visas, so don't know why Star took so long to advise us. Did you do any excursions in Xiamen?

[redisol]

Great to hear from someone who's just been on the Virgo, we sail from HK in 2 weeks time. Did you have any China visa hassles? Did you have to obtain direct yourself, or were you able to still use the Star Cruise obtained mass visa? We've just heard from our travel agent that have to do ourselves, so quickly filled in our forms and sent passports off to embassy yesterday. Its several weeks since China announced it was cracking down on visas, so don't know why Star took so long to advise us. Did you do any excursions in Xiamen?

 

No problems with the Chinese Visa. All we did was fill out the application form and our travel agent got it for us. The visa was supposed to be free if we booked the Sanya excursion in advance but since we had no plans of going, we had to pay for the visa fee.

 

We only went on the 4d/3n cruise so Xiamen is not part of our itinerary.

 

Bon Voyage! . I'm sure you're very excited already...

[tmbhl_on_the_go]

Yes, well and truly excited by now :)

[Michele Noel]

Who sells Star cruises in the US. They do not show up on cruise critic agencies. Maybe they will let me ask this question?