Everything’s Going Splendidly on Splendida - Dubai-Yokohama 2018

[Beamafar]

It's now almost 12.30pm. We were to dock at 4.30am but we're still anchored outside of the port. I feel very sorry for those disembarking (and on excursions) who have been out of their cabins since before 7am! The weather is cold and pretty awful, the sea is quite choppy and there is quite a queue of ships building up around us, also waiting to enter the port. Here's just a smattering of them:

 

 

We had pulled up anchor and moved closer earlier this morning. The ship listed so much, I had to walk uphill from the balcony door to the bed!

 

DH has just come back from TSL where, he says, there are a lot of gloomy faces. I have a cold coming on, so I opted to stay in the cabin and enjoy reading my book. I'll probably order the BBQ chicken wrap from room service, which is quite tasty, despite the fact that I'm not very fond of BBQ flavours, usually. I must say, I've become quite partial to this as it will be my fourth of the trip.

 

 

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[Beamafar]

8pm and we're still anchored 5 hours from port due to high winds at 14 knots. By all accounts, it is hoped that we'll finally dock during the night and spend tomorrow here. It'll be interesting to see if we miss overnighting in Yokohama as a result.

 

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[thecruisers6]

Hi Bea. Looks like the wind will drop in 6-9 hours time. Hopefully you’ll wake up in port [emoji3]

[CruisingFox27]

Oh Bea, how frustrating! Glad to hear you have been having an enjoyable trip so far. Hope you have now managed to get into port and the weather improves for you.

[travelberlin]

8pm and we're still anchored 5 hours from port due to high winds at 14 knots. By all accounts, it is hoped that we'll finally dock during the night and spend tomorrow here. It'll be interesting to see if we miss overnighting in Yokohama as a result.

 

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I am sorry to hear about this Beamafar. Good luck.

Ivi

[thecruisers6]

Thank goodness Bea, safely docked according to the webcam.

Hope you have a nice day

 

 

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[Formula280SS]

Bea, thanks.

 

Learning quite a bit about this itinerary 'first hand.

 

Enjoy.

[thecruisers6]

I can’t see the port on the webcam anymore hope all is ok Bea.

 

 

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[sidari]

Bea ... Heard from Clive and Helen about not being allowed off the ship and missing the next port and the MSC offer.

[Beamafar]

Thank you all for your kind comments - much appreciated.

 

Unfortunately, Shanghai became a 'technical' stop just to allow embarkation/disembarkation of passengers and crew, plus to take on supplies. We were not allowed to go ashore. I believe we docked around 5am and then departed by 11.45am. This has impacted on our arrival time in Yokohama tomorrow, which we had been informed would now be at 4pm. However, there is no indication of an arrival time on today's planner!

 

This means that we've had a total of 3 POCs being impacted by weather - Da Nang was substituted for Phu My, Shanghai has been cancelled and we will miss most of tomorrow in Yokohama. As Sidari has mentioned, we've received a very generous offer contained in the following letter:

 

 

It's left us with a bit of a dilemma as we already have another cruise booked for this year and 3 for next year. 2 have flights included, so the deposits are a bit too hefty to lose if we cancel. I've booked an appointment to see the Cruise Consultant later today to tease out our options (if she turns up, that is. She's not scheduled to attend YC today so the concierge is arranging it - just one of the amazing perks of being in YC that we've experienced on this trip!)

 

There has been a real shift in atmosphere around the ship since yesterday due to the new arrivals onboard. Last night was our fourth 'Elegant' night and the bars/lounges were packed everywhere. We went to see a show in the theatre called 'Nature'. It was very colourful and enjoyable, despite the fact that it contained the same contortion acts, etc, that are an integral part of all MSC variety shows.

 

I'm aware that I haven't yet shared our experiences of Singapore and Hong Kong - I do intend to, but events of the last couple of days has shifted my focus, so I may leave it 'til I get home to gather my thoughts before posting. It will be of especial interest to those who are planning this trip for next year.

 

DH has just returned from the cigar lounge where he was talking to a Dutch couple who have tried to book a future cruise with the 50% discount voucher, only to be told that they cannot use it onboard and must wait 'til they return home to do so!

 

 

 

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[Darcy15]

Bea, I’m sorry your trip has been so disrupted :(

 

Shanghai seems to be a problem port......we couldn’t make it in due to weather on Diamond Princess a few years ago, despite trying for hours in rolling waves and high winds!

 

MSC do seem to have stepped up and made a decent offer, though it does seem to have some strings attached :rolleyes:

 

Enjoy what time you have in Yokohama, and then safe travels home :)

[Beamafar]

Thanks, Darcy.

 

It looks like we've been sailing 'full steam ahead' as we're now scheduled to arrive in Yokohama at 1.30pm tomorrow - so not too bad - considering! Hope I manage to get all the packing done in the morning (I'd assumed I'd have all day to get organised [emoji849]).

 

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[thecruisers6]

Safe journey home Bea.

I think with the voucher you should book Bellissima YC April 6-20th [emoji3]

 

 

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[Beamafar]

Oooh .... that's quite tempting, Mark [emoji6] We had the Divina 31 night crossing booked for March which we'll probably now cancel due to the Holistic group charter onboard for the first 11 nights [emoji44] We also have YC booked on both Seaview and Meraviglia for next year, joining NorwegianCruiser and his better half on Seaview from Civitavecchia at the end of August.

 

Lots to think about when we get home. We definitely won't be using the discount for a cruise this year as we're already booked on Poesia in late Summer (with a 5+10+30% discount applied) and this current cruise has put a serious dent in the finances!

 

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[Beamafar]

I see Bellissima will replace Splendida in China in 2020

 

https://www.cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/18890-msc-bellissima-to-china-in-2020.html

 

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[thecruisers6]

Thanks Bea. I’m looking for something nice for August 2020 for our silver wedding anniversary so will cross off Bellissima then [emoji853]

[Norwegian Cruiser 73]

Thank you very much for you updates and great photos from your cruise Bea, very much appreciated. I'm very glad you had a nice cruise and it's a pleasure to see that MSC have put on OBC and a future cruise credit :) When Celebrity cancelled a port of call due to bad weather during our Caribbean cruise in January they gave us no OBC, but the port taxes was refunded. We didn't expect nothing more either as bad weather cannot be blaimed on the cruiseline. So this was a very nice gesture and great service from MSC.

 

Have a safe journey home and next year Seaview awaits us:cool::)

[Wansbrough]

I find the wording of the offer a little ambiguous.

 

A Future Cruise Credit of 50% on your next cruise? 50% of what?

Are they giving 50% of your current fare or 50% off what ever you choose? :confused:

[Beamafar]

Thank you very much for you updates and great photos from your cruise Bea, very much appreciated. I'm very glad you had a nice cruise and it's a pleasure to see that MSC have put on OBC and a future cruise credit :) When Celebrity cancelled a port of call due to bad weather during our Caribbean cruise in January they gave us no OBC, but the port taxes was refunded. We didn't expect nothing more either as bad weather cannot be blaimed on the cruiseline. So this was a very nice gesture and great service from MSC.

 

Have a safe journey home and next year Seaview awaits us:cool::)

Can't wait, NC. I have a story to tell you, which I'll share after I get home!

 

I agree that the 50% off a future cruise is a very generous offer for something that was outside of MSC's control. I also believe that our experiences in Singapore and Hong Kong may have influenced the high value of the discount. I'm holding off on sharing the experiences in these ports until I can give a good account of the difficulties we had there.

 

Wansbrough ... It's just down to MSC (awkwardly) translating everything from Italian into the various other languages of passengers onboard. They mean OFF your next cruise. Should we book another cruise, we will receive 50% off the cost of the cruise fare, regardless of what cabin level/Experience we choose. We also will still qualify for the 5% Voyagers Club discount!

 

 

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[CruisingFox27]

Very much looking forward to your full review Bea. I hope that the experiences you've had haven't detracted too much from having a fabulous cruise. It's mainly sounded wonderful - although they all do when you're sat in the cold and rain :)

 

 

The voucher is certainly a very generous offering which to take advantage of, unfortunately means you're going to have to book another cruise....oh dear :D:cool::D

 

 

Hope you enjoy your last hours away and safe journey home.

[Beamafar]

Thanks CF!

 

We're now at Haneda airport - it's 3.45pm and our flight's not til 00.05am, so we've quite a wait to go. Then an 11 hour flight followed by an 8 and a half hour layover in Dubai before our 8 hour flight home to Dubin. It may be some time before I post again! For now, I'll just share some random images of Tokyo taken from our excursion bus on the way. It's been a glorious hot day today - unlike yesterday in Yokohama where it was overcast and quite cool.

 

Thunder Gate

 

 

Rickshaw

 

 

Padi field

 

 

and a couple of shots from Tokyo Tower

 

 

 

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[thecruisers6]

Hope the flights and stopover go ok. Lovely photos.

Has Guinness traveled well to Japan [emoji15]

 

 

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[Beamafar]

Never got a chance to find out, Mark. It's quite popular in these parts, I've heard.

 

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[emmas gran]

Bea did you upgrade both ways to Business if so you can relax in the Emirates lounge it is a codeshare Japan Airlines. Some Asian countries will not let you check in until 3 hours before flight we had this in Hong Kong in February, then it is a long wait!! When we had a 7 hour wait Emirates offered a complimentary hotel in DXB coming back from Singapore 2/3 years ago.

 

Looking forward to your postings when you get home

Liz

[Beamafar]

Thanks for the info about the hotel, Liz. That's interesting! We didn't get an offer to upgrade for the return leg unfortunately and there didn't appear to be one available when I went to check in online.

 

I asked the sommelier about any red Australians and he said he had a shiraz. He mentioned the name but with his accent I didn't catch it. I never did get to see a wine list.

 

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