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Scenic Gem: 11 day Gems of the Seine plus Normandy (hopefully live thread)


1of4
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6 hours ago, cat shepard said:

Sorry, more questions...

 

Do they have a fitness room with a machine or two & weights? I appreciate that they offer a variety of class types.

Any specialty coffee options, such as lattes or cappuccinos?

How quiet is your stateroom?

 

Was your airfare included in the cost of the cruise?

 

Don’t be sorry!  I wish I had someone to answer my questions before I booked because, honestly, it is not a cheap vacation!  Now we are here they honestly mean you pay for nothing.

 

yesthere is a fitness room and I will get photos for you.  There is also a spa and hairdresser.

 

You can have any coffee style you want, any time you want.  There is a machine in the lounge if you want to do it yourself or they would be more than happy to do it for you.  You can even put a sign on your door at what time you would like your butler to bring you.... fill in as they will bring whatever style coffee, tea, juice, smoothie or water you would like.

 

we haven’t even heard a toilet flush from another cabin!  Unlike the Westin where we heard conversations through the walls we have heard nothing.  We are in category BD near the stairs but have friends half way down the corridor so I will ask if they fell anything.

 

more questions...ask away!

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When at home you are asked to select what touring options you may like while on the river cruise.  Once on-board you are given free choice to change those selections except for Day 1 because it is too late as guides and drivers have been hired.

 

again every excursion is included in the price of the river cruise.  Here were our available options for this 11 day cruise:06D5424D-A3B7-4CF0-83C6-169C5E49E396.thumb.jpeg.2a88f19c0a3a24ddf5760664a6b1f005.jpeg

 

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Here is the gym.  It is small but very functional with treadmill, recombinant bike, erg, weights, mats, resistance bands.  Towels and water at the ready.

 

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Lacrosse the hall is the hairdresser and beside that room is the massage room

 

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9 hours ago, 1of4 said:

 

Don’t be sorry!  I wish I had someone to answer my questions before I booked because, honestly, it is not a cheap vacation!  Now we are here they honestly mean you pay for nothing.

 

yesthere is a fitness room and I will get photos for you.  There is also a spa and hairdresser.

 

You can have any coffee style you want, any time you want.  There is a machine in the lounge if you want to do it yourself or they would be more than happy to do it for you.  You can even put a sign on your door at what time you would like your butler to bring you.... fill in as they will bring whatever style coffee, tea, juice, smoothie or water you would like.

 

we haven’t even heard a toilet flush from another cabin!  Unlike the Westin where we heard conversations through the walls we have heard nothing.  We are in category BD near the stairs but have friends half way down the corridor so I will ask if they fell anything.

 

more questions...ask away!

 

 

Thank you, so much! I appreciate you taking the time to do this. Great pictures. I am surprised that they have a fitness room. It looks better equipped than some hotels I have visited. 

 

Do you think one could write in “non-fat latte” on the room service card? I did not see a place for writing in anything other than tea.

 

I agree it is not a cheap vacation. But if wine, drinks and gratuities are included, that decreases the difference in price with another cruise line.

 

Many of those excursions are amazing, and the ones I have not yet done sound wonderful.

 

Were airfare and airport transportation also included?.

Edited by cat shepard
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Ah I forgot about those showers!!!  It was like being in an outdoor disco in the rain 🙂  But they are great showers.

 

One of the best things about Scenic is that EVERYTHING is included, the first time I was on one the only thing I paid for was a bracelet I bought onboard.  While tipping is included, we did give our butler and maid a little something extra at the end but in no way were they expecting it nor standing with hand out (like on the big cruises).

 

We had our butler bring us coffee and croissants every morning so we had something to have while getting ready for the day.

 

Enjoy the rest of your trip and we'll enjoy reading about it.

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1 hour ago, *Miss G* said:

Wow.  Those excursions would be hard to choose from!  Love that they have coffee available whenever you want one.  I am looking at a CroisiEurope cruise and that’s one of the drawbacks for me.

 

There is a Croisi boat rafted against ours today.  Just a note, we saw people openly smoking in their lobby so if you are not a smoker that might be something to consider and the boat next to ours has no cabins with windows that open as far as we can see.  I’m sure they have different boats depending upon where you want to go but I thought I would just mention that.

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1 hour ago, cruiseryyc said:

Meant to answer this question in my last post.

 

"Were airfare and airport transportation also included?."

 

Yes most of their cruises include airfare and airport transportation.

 

 

Thank you! That makes the price very comparable.

 

Can not wait to hear about the excursions, food, and wine.

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1 hour ago, cat shepard said:

 

 

Thank you, so much! I appreciate you taking the time to do this. Great pictures. I am surprised that they have a fitness room. It looks better equipped than some hotels I have visited. 

 

Do you think one could write in “non-fat latte” on the room service card? I did not see a place for writing in anything other than tea.

 

I honestly think they would get you anything you want as long as you know what it is.  They have a bigger machine in the back.  You call your butler and it will appear.

1 hour ago, cat shepard said:

 

I agree it is not a cheap vacation. But if wine, drinks and gratuities are included, that decreases the difference in price with another cruise line.

 

No HSC, no airfare unless you upgrade to business or premium economy, no taxi if you stay in their pre-cruise hotel, no tipping, no excursion fees and all drinks are included except for some top, top premium ones that I will show later.

 

River Cruise Adviser did an item by item chart about a year ago comparing the real costs of all European river cruises and that is one main reason we chose Scenic.  Plus final payment for this cruise wasn’t until early May while some less expensive lines make you pay in full at time of booking.

 

1 hour ago, cat shepard said:

 

Many of those excursions are amazing, and the ones I have not yet done sound wonderful.

 

Were airfare and airport transportation also included?.

 

Yes.  We were given a $900 credit each Canadian for economy flights to CDG airport.  We took that as a credit and with Scenic’s purchasing power were able to upgrade to business for a fraction of the cost of booking the same seats ourselves directly.

 

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5 minutes ago, 1of4 said:

 

There is a Croisi boat rafted against ours today.  Just a note, we saw people openly smoking in their lobby so if you are not a smoker that might be something to consider and the boat next to ours has no cabins with windows that open as far as we can see.  I’m sure they have different boats depending upon where you want to go but I thought I would just mention that.

 

Wow.  Thank you.  That is very helpful.  I have very tight timeline restrictions (will be in Europe for a family function and not yet retired) and Croisi seemed the most do-able.  I will look at something else and save river cruising for something more upscale.  Much appreciated, 1of4!

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3 minutes ago, *Miss G* said:

 

Wow.  Thank you.  That is very helpful.  I have very tight timeline restrictions (will be in Europe for a family function and not yet retired) and Croisi seemed the most do-able.  I will look at something else and save river cruising for something more upscale.  Much appreciated, 1of4!

 

I didn’t hear anyone speaking English as they came across our sundeck and down our gangway so  think they cater to a European clientele.

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59 minutes ago, 1of4 said:

 

I didn’t hear anyone speaking English as they came across our sundeck and down our gangway so  think they cater to a European clientele.

It depends on the cruise. Some are marketed exclusively in Europe, and some are marketed in North America too. 

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Before I delve into the daily excursions here are a few more ship/cabin facts. Our cabin is a deluxe balcony cabin on the Sapphire deck which is the middle deck. The diamond deck comes with the same cabins but more services so more expense. 

 

We we have a few more square feet than balcony cabins and our sun lounge is a bit longer. Our friends in a balcony cabins halfway down the Sapphire deck say they hear every toilet flushed on the ship while we only hear if it is very, very quiet. They feel little movement from the engine and we feel none. 

 

I am writing this from here using the free wifi. 

 

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Looking from rom the sun lounge

 

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Looking from the door

 

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The stairs to reach the lobby/lounge from the Sapphire Deck. Yes there is an elevator. 

 

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The bar. All you see is free

 

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Nightly entertainment includes a pianist that is part of the staff and brought on bands twice per cruise 

 

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The television is the information hub. It tells us the time and can wake us up. It is the bow camera and the computer screen as well as the radio, TV screen and even fireplace if you want it to be. It shows you maps, how strong the wifi signal and what is for sale in the shop. 

 

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2 hours ago, 1of4 said:

The television is the information hub. It tells us the time and can wake us up. It is the bow camera and the computer screen as well as the radio, TV screen and even fireplace if you want it to be. It shows you maps, how strong the wifi signal and what is for sale in the shop. 

 

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First I love how the door to your balcony opens up and makes the balcony an extension of your cabin.

 

How amazing that the tv lets you know where the weaker WiFi signals are.

 

And finally - another vote for - fireplace mode. 

Edited by cat shepard
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Thursday August 8 dawned and the lovely Scenic Gem was making its way to the medieval town of Les Andelys.

 

scenic has an App we download and it shows us where we are at a touch of a button plus a street map and places of interest. 0190EF88-8012-4A43-9756-9C57F14251CC.thumb.png.e9aa88675bca8c4f822e2be24c98da23.png

 

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so so you are never wondering what’s that or where are we?

 

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Around 11:00 we docked at Les Andelys. Our first exposure to a true medieval village. 

 

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Many chalk cliffs in this region 

 

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While the e-bike training was taking place DH and I went for a short walk before lunch. 

 

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This is a home’s courtyard. I thought it was stunning but the little girl who lived there wanted no part of me taking a picture. Fair enough. When we walked back the door was open and I didn’t see her so I took the picture but she said “mamma elle prend une photo”!  Her mother responded with “dacord” which means okay. Phew otherwise I would have gone back and excused myself and deleted the picture. 

 

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Edited by 1of4
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After lunch we boarded very nice buses to travel to Lyons la Foret and Chateau Fleury. 

 

All I have to say is some people’s need to be first ALL the time is very tiresome.  But the town is beyond description. I’ll let pictures do the talking. 

 

Internet is is slow this afternoon so I will post more later. BD8A1C0D-D307-4527-9722-55059606EDD2.thumb.jpeg.9ed1959e05fff19d4b6bd44e535f70e1.jpeg

 

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