‘Live From’ Spirit of Discovery, 5th-12th September.

[cinnamon]

[cinnamon]

[cinnamon]

Docked and cleared by 9.00, an hour late. However Captain Sutherland has negotiated for us to stay an extra  2 hours, so departure time is now 7.00 pm. 

 

Im not sure if I confessed on here but due to our taxi arriving 25 minutes early I forgot to pick up my coat!  Going to be chilly in 11-13 C, low 50s F. 

 

Breakfast in the buffet today. We asked for coffee from the machine but somehow it wasn’t quite as good as the Library so that’s where we are again now for our second. . ☕️😄

[cinnamon]

[Jammy Bun]

1 hour ago, cinnamon said:

. Breakfast finishes at 9.00 in the MDR and 9.30 in the Grill, so you’re not allowed to in on Saga. 😏

Presume room service would bring it if one wanted a later breakfast?  Or surely there must be somewhere to get pastries, fruit, yoghurt?  9:30 seems very early to me, when I’m on holiday!  

[Bell Boy]

I'm following too;

 

I would be interested to hear about your dining experiences, eg; have you any bookings for the three speciality restaurants

and how are you finding the open seating arrangements  in the MDR ( I assume it's open sitting ?) Something I'm not too keen on, as I prefer to have the same waiter for the duration of a cruise.  I don't like to have to hang around or be asked to come back  later, however, not  only that,  but the hassle of the waiters clearing and then re-laying all the tables around me.

 

Although it is open sitting on Seabourn, one is able to 'walk in immediately' as there are enough tables sizes to suit every request.    

[Glenndale]

4 minutes ago, Bell Boy said:

I'm following too;

 

I would be interested to hear about your dining experiences, eg; have you any bookings for the three speciality restaurants

and how are you finding the open seating arrangements  in the MDR ( I assume it's open sitting ?) Something I'm not too keen on, as I prefer to have the same waiter for the duration of a cruise.  I don't like to have to hang around or be asked to come back  later, however, not  only that,  but the hassle of the waiters clearing and then re-laying all the tables around me.

 

Although it is open sitting on Seabourn, one is able to 'walk in immediately' as there are enough tables sizes to suit every request.    

You can request a fixed table check your personaliser or give Saga a call.

[Bell Boy]

Thank You ! Glenndale. 

[cinnamon]

Taster. More later. 

[cinnamon]

Bell boy, if you read the thread you will find out that we were only able to book one Specialty restaurant at a time. We ate at The Grill last night and are wait listed for Coast to Coast. 

 

[Jammy Bun]

Hurrah!  For once, the sun is shining in Bergen!   

Viking Jupiter is in port with you, and their Panomax webcam has a great view of the Saga ship - here's a link:-

https://viking.panomax.com/jupiter

 

 

[Lindy028]

34 minutes ago, Jammy Bun said:

Hurrah!  For once, the sun is shining in Bergen!   

Viking Jupiter is in port with you, and their Panomax webcam has a great view of the Saga ship - here's a link:-

https://viking.panomax.com/jupiter

 

Thanks for the link Jammy Bun, Bergen certainly looks much lovelier in the sunshine! Last time we were there we had torrential rain and I slipped in a great big puddle and had to go back onboard to get changed!

I have to say that the ship does remind me of the R ships, at least it looks like a ship not a floating apartment block!

 

[Oliversgrandma]

Following along (a bit late) with interest.  We are also Azamara lovers but shocked at the steep rise in fares.   Saga looks a good alternative especially as all-balcony cabins.  Corinne - can I ask if you have the lowest grade cabin?  If so, are there any drawbacks?  Looking forward to hearing more.

[cinnamon]

Bergen is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It’s our 3rd visit here and despite being the wettest city in Europe we have not had rain here before and not today either. In fact, I’ve just been ‘sunbathing’, albeit fully dressed, 😉 on the open aft deck. If you sit in the sun, out of the wind, it’s gorgeous, although only 16C/61F in the shade.   I’ve retreated to the cabin to bring you all up to date. 😅. 

 

I’ll post a few photos now. The WiFi works ok if I do them singly.  

[cinnamon]

35 minutes ago, Oliversgrandma said:

Following along (a bit late) with interest.  We are also Azamara lovers but shocked at the steep rise in fares.   Saga looks a good alternative especially as all-balcony cabins.  Corinne - can I ask if you have the lowest grade cabin?  If so, are there any drawbacks?  Looking forward to hearing more.

We are in the cheapest possible cabin on E deck 7. Low down (which I like, less movement) and near the aft which again has less movement than forward. In fact, I would choose the last few aft cabins every time for the convenience of being near the terrace. I love the fact that the ship does not have expensive aft cabins, like most new builds. Instead, the view is available to all. One deck down there is a drinks machine too for tea and coffee. 

The interior of the cabin is just the same as any others unless you pay for the larger Superior ones or a suite. Just 1 or 2 flights down to the restaurants, reception, theatre etc. We do use the lifts for The Grill though as that is 5 flights up. 

[cinnamon]

Thanks to the info provided onboard we were able to get the Concession fare on the funicular. It is not advertised at the ticket office but over 67 means half fare. NOK 50 instead of NOK 100 per person. We took ID with our dates of birth and I was asked for it. Luckily I qualify by 5 months. 😉. Others were not asked for ID, that was a boost. 😅

[cinnamon]

We took the free shuttle into town but it is only a 15-20 minute or so walk. It drops you just beyond the fish market. Then we walked to the funicular. At 10.30 am the queue was about 10 minutes to buy a ticket and another 10 minutes before the ride. 

This is inside. There are quite a lot of steps involved but people with mobility problems were able to use a lift. 

[cinnamon]

The views from the top are stunning. We would never book this in advance as so often in Bergen the weather is too bad to see much at all. 

[cinnamon]

Oh dear. Pictures not loading. 😟

[cinnamon]

Ah ok, they did. 

We had a pleasant walk through the woods. Being a Saturday it was very busy around the cafe and children’s playground. 

[cinnamon]

I did take my proper little simple digital camera in order to use the  Zoom for shots like this but most of my snaps are with my phone. 

[cinnamon]

Yes, Viking Jupiter is docked here today too. A friend of mine who is also an Azamara fan was on her recently. Whilst she said the ship was beautiful she was very disappointed in the evening entertainment. 

[cinnamon]

The view back over Bergen. It was a bit cloudy at this point but has cleared completely now. 

Edited September 7, 2019 by cinnamon

[cinnamon]

Back down at sea level we took a leisurely walk back to the ship. This is the famous Bryggen. 

[cinnamon]

Lots of modern chain businesses can be found occupying the beautifully restored buildings.