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

[cinnamon]

A poor photo, taken into the sun, but this is McDonalds. 

[cinnamon]

And Starbucks. 

[cinnamon]

Smart hotels too. 

 

[cinnamon]

Even the Manhole covers in the pavements are works of art. 

Edited September 7, 2019 by cinnamon

[cinnamon]

Walking back we passed close to Viking Jupiter. 

[cinnamon]

Back in our cabin we now have U.K. sockets at the desk and by the bed. Yay!  

I still find it hard to understand why no previous occupant in the first 6-8 weeks or so on this ship had spotted it before and managed with only European ones. 

[cinnamon]

[Jammy Bun]

21 minutes ago, cinnamon said:

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. 

 

Yes, I can understand that... if you want evening entertainment - a snazzy show, magician, comedian etc. - then Viking is probably not for you.  They have mainly low key classical musicians around the ship and their Ents team consists of 4 decent singers (who can move a bit but wouldn't class themselves as dancers!)  We were on Viking for 4 weeks earlier this year, and I can honestly remember NONE of the evening shows!  Having said that, I can remember many shows from other cruises on more mainstream cruise lines that I would rather forget!!! (Tribute acts and 1970s comedians who should really have known when it was time to retire 😏)

[cinnamon]

Having been to The Club last night we are now able to book another Specialty restaurant. By being at the Coast to Coast desk at 5.30 we’ve been able to book for this evening at 7.30. In order to do so we’ve accepted a reservation at a shared table for 6. 

Pot of tea for 2 in the Living Room first. 😄 ☕️

[Saab4444]

Why are you not leaving? I thought departure time was 5 pm?

[cinnamon]

Because we arrived one hour late so are departing 2 hours late. 

[christine848]

Love those manhole covers!! 😁😁

[sweep]

2 hours ago, cinnamon said:

Back in our cabin we now have U.K. sockets at the desk and by the bed. Yay!  

I still find it hard to understand why no previous occupant in the first 6-8 weeks or so on this ship had spotted it before and managed with only European ones. 

Is the ship full? On our cruise there were only 900 people.  Perhaps your cabin hasn’t been used much??

[sweep]

2 hours ago, cinnamon said:

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. 

We went with a guarantee cabin which was even cheaper! My logic was that there weren’t any ‘bad’ cabins.  We ended up in B539 so I think we did pretty well.  

I agree being aft is great as you can make use of the aft stairs and all those lovely seating areas for sail away.  

[Oliversgrandma]

2 hours ago, cinnamon said:

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. 

Thanks for the info.  Sounds good and am loving your pics of Bergen in the sunshine.   We visited Bergen on our very first cruise and the sun also shone that day, as you say, very unusual.  

[cinnamon]

Just a mention about the bathrooms etc. The towels are huge, fluffy and lovely. 😄. The toiletries seem fine but I wish they were all different colours. At least they’re in big bottles, no having to fiddle with tiny ones. Plus a good sized bar of proper soap in addition to liquid hand soap. 

 

For Azamara fans........ the showers are wonderful. What else can I say. 😉

 

The hairdryer has to be plugged in to the one European socket which for is now means unplugging the kettle!  😅😅

You have to squeeze the whole handle, not hold down an awkward switch. I found it pretty easy and do have some arthritis in my hands. There are two temperature settings and two speed settings. 

[cinnamon]

[cinnamon]

[Glenndale]

4 hours ago, cinnamon said:

Back in our cabin we now have U.K. sockets at the desk and by the bed. Yay!  

I still find it hard to understand why no previous occupant in the first 6-8 weeks or so on this ship had spotted it before and managed with only European ones. 

We’ve always reported problems as soon as we find them.

One particularly bad example was on Adonia (Pursuit now)

Once at sea the wind whistled through the balcony doors, the next day they fixed it by replacing all the seals. Why would you put up with that? Can’t understand it 🤔

We’re booked in the cheap seats too, on the opposite side to you so it’s good to hear that you’ve not found any problems.

Very useful information re the booking of the specialities.

Really enjoying your blog. 🙂

How many formals are scheduled and when? Looking forward to your reports.

[cinnamon]

Only 1 Formal!  Everyone surprised.  

 

Fabulous dinner. Will write it up later. 

[Atriumgirl]

Following along too.  Thank you, Cinnamon for all the inside info.  We are on Spirit of Discovery in October, travelling with Piscean and another two friends.  We usually cruise with Regent or Oceania but like Azamara, Regent's prices have gone truly silly.  It will be our first Saga cruise so we are really looking forward to seeing what a British line can offer.  The prices of the cocktails are a good start!

[Wacktle]

1 hour ago, cinnamon said:

Only 1 Formal!  Everyone surprised.  

Did you know before sailing?

 

Thanks for this blog; it's great!

Edited September 7, 2019 by Wacktle

[cinnamon]

1 hour ago, Wacktle said:

Did you know before sailing?

No. Everyone believed the notes which said it’s normally 2 on a 7 night cruise. 

[cinnamon]

Coast to Coast truly lived up to the ‘Special’ description. DH and I have in the past seen Seafood platters on menus in the Mediterranean at eye watering prices. Well here, you have to order it for two people and we are so pleased we did. 

Lobster, Langoustine, Shrimp, King Crab legs, Crab claws, Mussels and assorted other small shellfish. 

[cinnamon]

Can you believe that this is is just one “Shrimp”?  Cutlery gives perspective as to the size.