MS Europa 2020 Ocean Sun Music Festival.

[English Voyager]

HL's German Language website has full details of this cruise:

 

Hamburg to Kiel , Northern Europe, from 27.05.2020 to 09.06.2020.

 

Plenty of availability for solo travellers.

 

https://www.hl-cruises.de/reise-finden/EUR2010#overview

 

 

 

 

[Catlover54]

So far on CC  English Voyager,  and myself are booked, Geezercouple is interested.

 

Maybe if enough English speakers sign up HL will assign someone to do English menus and programs, which performers who do not speak German could also use?

 

I also signed up for the 2021 Ocean Sun Festival, fixed booking, Limassol to Civittavecchia, EUR2017.  EV alerted me to that, thank you. 

 

 

 

 

[GeezerCouple]

2 hours ago, Catlover54 said:

So far on CC  English Voyager,  and myself are booked, Geezercouple is interested.

 

Maybe if enough English speakers sign up HL will assign someone to do English menus and programs, which performers who do not speak German could also use?

 

I also signed up for the 2021 Ocean Sun Festival, fixed booking, Limassol to Civittavecchia, EUR2017.  EV alerted me to that, thank you. 

 

 

 

 

Well, this sounds interesting 

 

We are trying to decide which one, which will depend upon plans we already made for May/June, 2020, and then the 2021 Music Festival cruise seems a bit earlier, and that might not work the best for DH.

(OTOH, maybe, just maybe, he'll have retired by then....  )

 

It sounds like we need to make a preliminary decision pretty soon...

 

You have both "done this" before?  The music is nice, and something daily?  Evenings if sea days?

 

Thanks!

 

GC

[Catlover54]

I have done Ocean Sun twice, EV has missed it so far despite best efforts ( when you travel solo, availability is more restricted). I am missing it this year only because it coincides with my 75th DDay anniversary cruise in Normandy.

There were several performers or performing groups on board each time, and at least one performance was done daily, about an hour duration, usually in the evening after a luxury dinner, sometimes late afternoon. A couple times they had two in a day, different times so I could hear both.  The timing was such that there was no conflict with time in port, so people could go tour the port city and still have time to see the concerts. They typically had a couple star performers on board a few days then they would disembark and new ones got on.

There were also other performances ( on my cruises a Spanish dance group, Istacion).  Once on each cruise we had a special complimentary land performance in a special location, about two hours, almost everyone went to those and got dressed up. For Sunday service one of the voice performers sang.

 

As there are only 400 pax on board ( counting performers) and not everyone is on board for the music, the concerts were in intimate venues.  I was able to sit up close and there was also easy opportunity to talk to the performers, most of whom can speak English  .

Where English speakers miss out is that the intro chat to the history of the pieces is only in German, and it may go on a few minutes and typically had interesting information.

[vistaman]

On ‎2‎/‎13‎/‎2019 at 7:22 PM, Catlover54 said:

So far on CC  English Voyager,  and myself are booked, Geezercouple is interested.

 

Maybe if enough English speakers sign up HL will assign someone to do English menus and programs, which performers who do not speak German could also use?

 

I also signed up for the 2021 Ocean Sun Festival, fixed booking, Limassol to Civittavecchia, EUR2017.  EV alerted me to that, thank you. 

 

 

 

 

i like the ocean sun festival however , i am not going to St Petersburg anymore ...visiting with a cruise ship.

it is impossible to obtain a personal visa as Belgian -

[English Voyager]

1 hour ago, vistaman said:

eitheri like the ocean sun festival however , i am not going to St Petersburg anymore ...visiting with a cruise ship.

it is impossible to obtain a personal visa as Belgian -

Not having been to St. Petersburg since 2005, I don't know if it is still the case that the smaller the ship the closer to the city centre it was allowed to dock.

 

In 2003 on the Celebrity Constellation we docked well outside the city.

The next year on the Seabourn Pride we docked opposite the Hermitage, and in front of us was the Europa.

 

At that time, unless one could read, and speak Russian, there was no point in having a personal visa as everything was in Cyrillic script.

 

The advantage of  being on a Cruise Line's tour was beating queues, and in some instances visiting a place before it had opened, or after it had closed, to the public.

 

St. Petersburg is one of my favourite cities.

[English Voyager]

GeezerCouple,

 

HL has now published details of the artists appearing at this year's Ocean Sun Festival:

 

https://www.hl-cruises.de/reise-finden/EUR1910#programme-on-board

 

Included are:

 

Julia Lezhneva:

 

 

 

And 

Carlo Vistoli:

 

 

 

 

Daniel Roehn:

 

 

 

Edited February 15, 2019 by English Voyager

[GeezerCouple]

Many thanks, EV!

 

Unfortunately, I heard back from Hapag-Lloyd, and DH and I are completely turned off by their "tone".

I had submitted an online question through their website, inquiring about 2020 or 2021 Ocean Sun Festival cruises, whether they had names of artists on board, and if any on board staff spoke English.  (This query was sent prior to some of the additional details that were kindly furnished here on CC.)

 

I did *NOT* inquire about this year's (2019) cruise, because we already could not go, given our Med cruise an subsequent time in Italy.  I specifically only mentioned 2020 and 2021.

 

Here is the reply in its entirely (without names):

 

 

Dear XXX YYY,

 

thanks for your email and your interest.

 

Ocean Sun Festival

 

Curtain up for our top-class classical music festival. At the Ocean Sun Festival we welcome the best international classical artists to unique concert moments on board.

Let yourself be enchanted by virtuoso soloists, brilliant orchestras and chamber music at the highest level in the intimate atmosphere of the EUROPA - or by unforgettable performances at extraordinary places on land.

 

MS EUROPA - from Lissabon till Hamburg  - EUR1910

01.06.2019 - 15.06.2019 (14 days)

 

We checked the availability of the required itinerary but unfortunately, we can make no suitable offer currently.

 

Please note that the language on board the Europa is only German.

 

But no similar cruise is planned for 2020 yet.

 

For any questions, please contact us.

 

Best regards

AAA BBB (name) 

affiliation, etc.

 

So... they managed to inform me that there was no availability for the 2019 cruise, which I did not inquire about.

 

More importantly, they outright stated that "no similar cruise is planned for 2020 yet", which is exceedingly interesting, given that statement is wrong.  (Didn't one of you even just make reservations?)  Further, it also seems clear they already know there will be a 2021 cruise.  BOTH of those cruises are fully listed and described on their own website.

 

This was from what I assume is their main HQ.  The corporate address under name and titles, etc., was

 

Hapag-Lloyd Kreuzfahrten GmbH
Ballindamm 25 · 20095 HAMBURG · GERMANY
 

This was not from some local, USA-based travel agent.

 

I don't know if this reflects an anti-American bias or an anti-English-speaker bias, but either way, this is certainly not any sort of way to try to "sell" a cruise.  It's  quite the opposite, by stating there is no such thing yet.

 

We have plenty of wonderful classical music in our big city, and for better Opera, we tend to spend an occasional weekend in NYC, at the Met, meeting friends from another city with a wonderful major symphony.

It looks like we won't "bother" to try to combine the music with cruising, as thoroughly appealing as it seemed.  Or at least NOT with Hapag-Lloyd.

 

Thank you for your assistance here on CC.  *You* could probably have sold us some cruises! 

 

GC

[Catlover54]

3 hours ago, vistaman said:

i like the ocean sun festival however , i am not going to St Petersburg anymore ...visiting with a cruise ship.

it is impossible to obtain a personal visa as Belgian -

 

 

I understand visas are required for all who put their toe on the holy Russian motherland's soil, but I thought that these days westerners could get a personal visa off of a cruise ship as long as they have a government approved individual guide?  I read on a couple other cruise sites that Americans used certain guides in St. Petersburg who had good reputations, spoke English, and were approved by authorities.   

Or is there something specific about being Belgian that is a  problem?

 

[Catlover54]

1 hour ago, English Voyager said:

GeezerCouple,

 

HL has now published details of the artists appearing at this year's Ocean Sun Festival:

 

https://www.hl-cruises.de/reise-finden/EUR1910#programme-on-board

 

Included are:

 

Julia Lezhneva:

 

 

 

And 

Carlo Vistoli:

 

 

 

 

Daniel Roehn:

 

 

 

 

Lovely! EV, unless you have another cruise or other commitments for this June you might still be able to get on board.  If you ask to be put on a "binding commitment"   wait list through HL Germany you get priority over people who are on the wait list but have no commitment to pay if space is approved.  This was explained to me in email from HL in Germany when I inquired about waitlisting for the Stella Maris voice competition cruise this September (before I got confirmation I would be on Ocean Sun 2020).  You can pick what categories of suite (i.e., prices) you would accept if spaces opens off the wait list based on the online published prices (though there is  unavailable space right now, things happen).

I will probably not set the Stella Maris cruise as a binding commitment because it covers almost the same route to St. Petersburg as the Ocean Sun in 2020 and I am already having a major cruising blow-out this spring and summer with the Hanseatic Nature and DDay cruises I have planned.  

[English Voyager]

2 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

Many thanks, EV!

 

Unfortunately, I heard back from Hapag-Lloyd, and DH and I are completely turned off by their "tone".

I had submitted an online question through their website, inquiring about 2020 or 2021 Ocean Sun Festival cruises, whether they had names of artists on board, and if any on board staff spoke English.  (This query was sent prior to some of the additional details that were kindly furnished here on CC.)

 

I did *NOT* inquire about this year's (2019) cruise, because we already could not go, given our Med cruise an subsequent time in Italy.  I specifically only mentioned 2020 and 2021.

 

Here is the reply in its entirely (without names):

 

 

Dear XXX YYY,

 

thanks for your email and your interest.

 

Ocean Sun Festival

 

Curtain up for our top-class classical music festival. At the Ocean Sun Festival we welcome the best international classical artists to unique concert moments on board.

Let yourself be enchanted by virtuoso soloists, brilliant orchestras and chamber music at the highest level in the intimate atmosphere of the EUROPA - or by unforgettable performances at extraordinary places on land.

 

MS EUROPA - from Lissabon till Hamburg  - EUR1910

01.06.2019 - 15.06.2019 (14 days)

 

We checked the availability of the required itinerary but unfortunately, we can make no suitable offer currently.

 

Please note that the language on board the Europa is only German.

 

But no similar cruise is planned for 2020 yet.

 

For any questions, please contact us.

 

Best regards

AAA BBB (name) 

affiliation, etc.

 

So... they managed to inform me that there was no availability for the 2019 cruise, which I did not inquire about.

 

More importantly, they outright stated that "no similar cruise is planned for 2020 yet", which is exceedingly interesting, given that statement is wrong.  (Didn't one of you even just make reservations?)  Further, it also seems clear they already know there will be a 2021 cruise.  BOTH of those cruises are fully listed and described on their own website.

 

This was from what I assume is their main HQ.  The corporate address under name and titles, etc., was

 

Hapag-Lloyd Kreuzfahrten GmbH
Ballindamm 25 · 20095 HAMBURG · GERMANY
 

This was not from some local, USA-based travel agent.

 

I don't know if this reflects an anti-American bias or an anti-English-speaker bias, but either way, this is certainly not any sort of way to try to "sell" a cruise.  It's  quite the opposite, by stating there is no such thing yet.

 

We have plenty of wonderful classical music in our big city, and for better Opera, we tend to spend an occasional weekend in NYC, at the Met, meeting friends from another city with a wonderful major symphony.

It looks like we won't "bother" to try to combine the music with cruising, as thoroughly appealing as it seemed.  Or at least NOT with Hapag-Lloyd.

 

Thank you for your assistance here on CC.  *You* could probably have sold us some cruises! 

 

GC

GeezerCouple,

 

With all due respect I think that you are reading more into HL's response than warranted.

 

Mistakes happen.

 

With regard to my recent category request for the 2020 Ocean Sun Cruise, HL quoted to my TA a fare that related to the next higher category.

A further conversation quickly resolved the error.

 

The fact that Americans, and British, cruise on HL would indicate that there is no bias.

If there was, given Brexit I would not be allowed anywhere near a German ship.

 

I trust that you have referred the response you received back to HL for their further attention.

Edited February 15, 2019 by English Voyager

[English Voyager]

2 hours ago, Catlover54 said:

 

 

I understand visas are required for all who put their toe on the holy Russian motherland's soil, but I thought that these days westerners could get a personal visa off of a cruise ship as long as they have a government approved individual guide?  I read on a couple other cruise sites that Americans used certain guides in St. Petersburg who had good reputations, spoke English, and were approved by authorities.   

Or is there something specific about being Belgian that is a  problem?

 

I had assumed that vistaman was referring to an individual visa that would allow one to just get off the ship and travel around either unaccompanied by an official guide or being part of a group tour.

 

With regard to this year's Ocean Sun cruise I have prior commitments for June.

Edited February 15, 2019 by English Voyager

[GeezerCouple]

12 minutes ago, English Voyager said:

GeezerCouple,

 

With all due respect I think that you are reading more into HL's response than warranted.

 

Mistakes happen.

 

With regard to my recent category request for the 2020 Ocean Sun Cruise, HL quoted to my TA a fare that related to the next higher category.

A further conversation quickly resolved the error.

 

The fact that Americans, and British, cruise on HL would indicate that there is no bias.

If there was, given Brexit I would not be allowed anywhere near a German ship.

 

I trust that you have referred the response you received back to HL for their further attention.

 

Thank you.

I'm certainly willing to consider that I - then "we" - jumped the gun a bit, in terms of "interpreting" the email text.

(That is one serious problem with email, or any written communication, vs. by phone or in person.  In the former, there is at least the chance to hear some warmth in a voice, or lack thereof, and of course, with language differences, it can become very difficult to comprehend if both are not native speakers, or at least excellent speakers.  And with the latter, one can in addition see the facial expression, perhaps a twinkle in the eye, etc.)

 

As my TA reported back upon reading the email, "Never assume malice, when incompetence would be sufficient". 

He grew up in Germany, but is Canadian, so he has he advantage of fully understanding both German and English, as well as some of the cultural differences.

 

So, for now, we will *not* pass judgement on "all of Hapag-Lloyd", based upon one front office person's email.  You are very right to point that out, so thanks for calling us out on that.

 

I'm not sure if I want to bother fussing with them about this, however.  I'm not sure that my response wouldn't be received with a similar sense of "some negativity".

 

GC

[English Voyager]

50 minutes ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

Thank you.

I'm certainly willing to consider that I - then "we" - jumped the gun a bit, in terms of "interpreting" the email text.

(That is one serious problem with email, or any written communication, vs. by phone or in person.  In the former, there is at least the chance to hear some warmth in a voice, or lack thereof, and of course, with language differences, it can become very difficult to comprehend if both are not native speakers, or at least excellent speakers.  And with the latter, one can in addition see the facial expression, perhaps a twinkle in the eye, etc.)

 

As my TA reported back upon reading the email, "Never assume malice, when incompetence would be sufficient". 

He grew up in Germany, but is Canadian, so he has he advantage of fully understanding both German and English, as well as some of the cultural differences.

 

So, for now, we will *not* pass judgement on "all of Hapag-Lloyd", based upon one front office person's email.  You are very right to point that out, so thanks for calling us out on that.

 

I'm not sure if I want to bother fussing with them about this, however.  I'm not sure that my response wouldn't be received with a similar sense of "some negativity".

 

GC

There is nothing to be lost by giving HL an opportunity to comment on their employee's error.

 

Two examples of my experience with the Company.

 

My first cruise on the Europa 2 had departed from Hamburg, and I boarded at it's first port of call Southampton.

Due to most of the passengers having departed on excursions  there were no porters on duty, and I had to carry my own luggage onto the ship.

On my return, I wrote to HL detailing my experience, and saying that it should ensure that arrangements were in place for passengers embarking at an intermediate port of call.

I received a fulsome apology accompanied by a 500 Euro credit for a future cruise.

 

For my last cruise on the Europa 2, I had arranged via HL accommodation, at a 5* hotel, and transfers in Hamburg.

Two days before my flight the hotel advised HL that it was overbooked, and my reservation was cancelled.

HL refunded the cost of the hotel, and paid for a comparable replacement.

 

So why not write, and see the nature of the response.

[GeezerCouple]

7 hours ago, English Voyager said:

There is nothing to be lost by giving HL an opportunity to comment on their employee's error.

 

Two examples of my experience with the Company.

 

My first cruise on the Europa 2 had departed from Hamburg, and I boarded at it's first port of call Southampton.

Due to most of the passengers having departed on excursions  there were no porters on duty, and I had to carry my own luggage onto the ship.

On my return, I wrote to HL detailing my experience, and saying that it should ensure that arrangements were in place for passengers embarking at an intermediate port of call.

I received a fulsome apology accompanied by a 500 Euro credit for a future cruise.

 

For my last cruise on the Europa 2, I had arranged via HL accommodation, at a 5* hotel, and transfers in Hamburg.

Two days before my flight the hotel advised HL that it was overbooked, and my reservation was cancelled.

HL refunded the cost of the hotel, and paid for a comparable replacement.

 

So why not write, and see the nature of the response.

 

What you are pointing out is important.

"Things/mistakes" happen, etc. 

 

But what sometimes really counts is "how the problem is handled.  That can make such a difference.

 

We'll try to re-think this, "without prejudice", as the law sometimes states 

 

We weren't sure about this anyway, but the daily classical music is indeed a huge draw for us!

(I remember a few decades ago, when there were a few cruises with small orchestras on board, often portions of each instrumental section of a major orchestra.   Soloists would come and go.   But DH hadn't yet agreed to give cruising a chance.  Too bad, as he was hooked by day 2 of his first!)

 

There are a few ports of interest on both the 2020 and 2021 sailings. We'll need to re-think our current plans, which include reservations into 2020.

 

Thank you again for helping with an "attitude adjustment".

 

GC

[Catlover54]

Geezercouple, I did my 2021 Ocean Sun booking Limassol to

civitavecchia a few days ago on the German website online, including cabin selection. I got a confirming email they would send me an invoice in a few days indicating deposit amount to send and by when. Then I will pay with either bank money transfer or credit card.

 

If your TA speaks German, he could either

1.  walk you through the quick booking process on the German online site, for which cruise you are interested in, and book there with notation he will be the organizing TA, or

2. have him  call , e.g., ask for Lisa Schroedter at HL Germany, +49 40307030-871, or customerservice@hl- cruises.com attn to her, she understands and writes English ( as do others) to set up a booking.

 

However, in the past they have been unable to commit to which performers will be on board until a  few months before, and which speak English, and then they can still change it right up to boarding if someone has an emergency. Performers’ schedules are in constant flux. I have not been disappointed in any of the classical performers who ultimately appeared. I can go locally to San Francisco to hear performers, but it is not the same as on a ship with a small venue, in a package with travel and fine dining.

 

It looks like an unthinking bot had taken over the inquiry you did, and it should not have happened.  It reminds me of when I contacted SS a couple years ago on email with a specific question about separation wall  details in a suite and instead, three weeks later,  they blindly quoted from their website about the suite square feet, late, and not answering my question.

 

As I said in my reviews,  one has to be ready to do things outside of one’s usual comfort zone to sail on an atypical line and try something different. It is not for everyone.  I would not try to sail on a Chinese cruise line, where I could understand and read nothing at all, and perceive no benefits ( am drowning in already too much Chinese food near me, dislike the sound of the language, and dislike the music even more) nor on Ponant, due to Ponant’s periodic anti-American bias even though I love French food and language and they advertise as bilingual. Scenic also turned me off due to a snippy agent, and the nonrefundable big advance deposit ( not to mention double charges for solos) made it worse.

 

First impressions are indeed important if there are choices,  and I understand gun jumping.  I have walked out of highly rated new restaurants and settled on a hamburger at Applebee’s instead if we were not given a menu or drink offer within a reasonable time, or a “be right with you” friendly acknowledgment, i.e., awareness  that we would soon be shelling out a lot of money. 

 

If you know of other classical music cruises, I would love to hear about them.

 

[English Voyager]

Via my TA:

Cruise booked 13th February.

Documentation from Hapag-Lloyd received by me this morning, 16th February.

Edited February 16, 2019 by English Voyager

[vistaman]

I indeed intended to say a personal visa of such a kind   that i can go and walk around  on my own .

In 1989 and later on , it was not a problem . Later you were able to buy it on the ship.

It changed after Yeltsin was gone  -

It seems crew can go ashore on their own.

If eventually I should book even the cheapest and dirtiest  hotel in St Petersburg, I immediately obtain a personal visa.

Russia is simply forcing the cruise pax to buy the excursions or to hire a personal guide.