Live-ish from the Jewel, Seattle - Tokyo - Taipei - Singapore, Oct 3 2023, 39 days

[cruiseaholic78]

20 hours ago, Rob_H said:

Boracay is a tender port. The tenders arrive at the Cagban ferry terminal in the south of this small island.

Boracay is very well known in the Philippines as a beach resort. Lots of hotels and resorts.

The main beaches are on the west of the island. We took a tuk tuk (for 150 pesos of $3) to D'Mall, a shopping street roughly in the center of the beach area. 

There's a walkway and shops and restaurants along the spectacular palm-lined sandy beach.

Hallo, we are following along more or less your route on the Westerdam, I have a small question, does the tender actually take you to the island? I thought we would have to take a boat across from the tender port.

Reading your reports with interest hope your cruise is as good as ours.

[Rob_H]

3 hours ago, cruiseaholic78 said:

Hallo, we are following along more or less your route on the Westerdam, I have a small question, does the tender actually take you to the island? I thought we would have to take a boat across from the tender port.

Reading your reports with interest hope your cruise is as good as ours.

 

For us yes, the tender port Cagban is on the island of Boracay. Not really any good beaches in easy walking distance, but an easy tuk tum ride.

 

There's an airport over on the mainland which can be seen from Boracay. That would need a ferry to get to the island, maybe that's where the confusion is.

 

[penlanspice]

We're on the jewel in a couple of weeks from Bangkok, we have to do the e visas for Singapore and the Philippines a max of 72hrs before arrival, did you get any free Internet time to do the evisa before arrival in the Philippines?

[Rob_H]

4 hours ago, penlanspice said:

We're on the jewel in a couple of weeks from Bangkok, we have to do the e visas for Singapore and the Philippines a max of 72hrs before arrival, did you get any free Internet time to do the evisa before arrival in the Philippines?

 

The Philippines site is on the "free sites" list, like Cruise Critic, so doesn't use minutes. When I tried that it was too slow so I completed them while on a train in Taipei.

 

Not sure for Singapore, we'll find out soon, but it'll probably be faster to do it on land while we're in Vietnam.

 

BTW if you have global roaming on your phone, the Philippines is one of the worst places in the world for connectivity. Late 1990's data speeds (2G  Edge) in almost all places, nearly unusable.

 

We're in Malaysia today, back to modern technology!

[Rob_H]

Last stop in the Philippines was Puerto Princesa. Not as nice as Boracay, this is more of a working port town.

With traveling for a long time there's sometimes a "maintenance day" so this was, partly. Found a doctor to check something out ($9), got good data in a nice coffee shop while waiting, to catch up with various things (mobile data in the Philippines has been nearly unable)

Then tuk-tuks to and from the pearl market at Pasalubong Center. Highly variable prices in the market, the sellers are very professional, Boracay had better deals.

The Baywalk Park near the ship isn't worth spending any time at.

[cruiseaholic78]

12 hours ago, Rob_H said:

 

For us yes, the tender port Cagban is on the island of Boracay. Not really any good beaches in easy walking distance, but an easy tuk tum ride.

 

 

Thanks so much now all set to tender to the island.

Happy cruising

[penlanspice]

10 hours ago, Rob_H said:

 

The Philippines site is on the "free sites" list, like Cruise Critic, so doesn't use minutes. When I tried that it was too slow so I completed them while on a train in Taipei.

 

Not sure for Singapore, we'll find out soon, but it'll probably be faster to do it on land while we're in Vietnam.

 

BTW if you have global roaming on your phone, the Philippines is one of the worst places in the world for connectivity. Late 1990's data speeds (2G  Edge) in almost all places, nearly unusable.

 

We're in Malaysia today, back to modern technology!

Thanks for the reply. We'll prob do it on land then, thanks for heads up. 

[mugtech]

Was wondering when you were told your first stop in the Philippines would be Currimao instead of Salomague.  We showed up at Salomague at 10 AM, and the only person at the port told us it was changed to Currimao, about a 30 minute drive further north for us.  When we got there we were not allowed to park, since we were not a tour or public transpirtation, and we were not allowed near the dock,  we saw the first two tenders pulling in fron further up the coast.  In 2019, when Salomague was a tender port for Celebrity, we greeted the cruisers as they disembarked, plus there were cultural musicians and dancers performing right on the docks.  Disappointed this time.

[Rob_H]

Kota Kinabalu is on the island of Borneo, in the state of Sabah in Malaysia.  It was our port on Sunday.

For a complete change we tried a  Norwegian ship excursion as in this part of the world some have a reasonable price (after the $50 rebate and the Ambassador discount). The tour was to a tribal village (cultural theme park) and a minimalist city tour.

After using local transport so much we forgot how uncomfortable it is to be in an air conditioned tour bus chilled to arctic levels. We'll have to bring more warm clothes or jackets next time! 

Cultural village was nice but with so many tour buses it was overcrowded and rushed. There was some food and drink tasting, a show, and a good buffet meal included.

While leaving the show in a slow-moving crocodile there was a tropical downpour. Being stuck in traffic a lot of people got very wet (we were ok, had umbrella and rain jacket). Combined with the freezing wind on the bus some people might be sick soon!

After the cultural village there was a short tour of the city.  Photo stops at a couple of buildings, and half an hour at the market. The market was the "Phillipino Market", based around a former refugee camp for Filipinos. Mostly pearls (not great prices) and clothes.

KK looks like the kind of city where we could have done something more interesting by ourselves. Next time!

In the evening we went to Chin Chin again (the included Asian restaurant on board). We've found the best way to enjoy it is to order 3 or 4 starters each at the same time (like a dim sum/yum cha) then a soup. The rice dishes and main courses are usually served cold and too salty so we skip those.

[Rob_H]

Monday we stopped at Muara, the port for Brunei.  

We planned to do nothing much, maybe look around Muara town or the beach. We had lazy morning and left the ship a bit later than normal.

The ship provided a free shuttle to Muara town. It wasn't a good sign that the shuttle coming back to the ship was full, at 9.30am! Those on it told us "there's nothing there" and "we didn't get off the bus". We went anyway. 🙂

At the "town" there were a few local shops around a square. We didn't get time to look as a local bus soon pulled up. It was going to Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital, over half an hour away. For $1. We jumped on, along with many others. It was nice to have open windows rather than air conditioning!

The bus stopped in the centre, Kianggeh Road, opposite The Brunei Hotel.  We were told the return bus was from the same spot, every half hour, number 38 or 39.

One of the people in the bus hailed a motorboat on the river alongside. For $4 per person a group of us had a tour along the river to see some of the buildings, and some of the river village. 

If we'd taken the boat ourselves we'd probably have done a longer tour, but it was fine and fun. We did notice that some tour groups probably from the ship were being given lifejackets to wear when getting on other boats. We didn't have that. The boats are a bit tricky to get on and off at the bow, like a dhow on the Nile.

After the boat returned us to the same place, we (by ourselves now) headed across the road and had coffee and snacks in The Brunei Hotel.  Looks like a nice place to stay!

Afterwards we went along the river, around the main mosque and other buildings including the Chinese temple.

With an all aboard of only 4.30, and lots of people needing the half-hourly little bus, we didn't want to stay too long. Around 1pm we headed for the bus stop. Lots of people were already waiting for the 38 or 39, and more than half an hour later, still no bus.

Many people, including us, were considering sharing a taxi back.  Some taxi drivers were charging too much, we were talking to one taxi driver when a number 36 bus came along.

That bus didn't go to Muara, but in the same general direction. The taxi driver helped us (many people) essentially charter it beyond it's normal run. We piled on to maximum capacity and, after dropping locals off at their normal stops (going through interesting suburbs), he took us to Muara Town. Still just $1 each.

Then the free cruise shuttle back to the ship. We got there a little after 2.30 so we were glad we didn't leave it till the last minute!  

We went to Cagney's again tonight, for our last dining package meal. For free at sea, with an inside cabin, there is one dining package meal for cruises 11 days or less, two meals for cruises 12 days or more, plus two latitudes vouchers per cruise.  So for these three cruises over 39 days we've had 11 specialty meals included.

[Rob_H]

1 hour ago, mugtech said:

Was wondering when you were told your first stop in the Philippines would be Currimao instead of Salomague.  

 

We had an email from NCL on October 18 telling us about the new port.  

 

The change was mentioned after that by several people in the roll call for the October 30 cruise, since there was some confusion about tours being cancelled despite being in the same general area.

[Rob_H]

Quite a shock on Tuesday -- no port! Our first sea day for nearly three weeks.

We went on the Behind the Scenes tour (the free Latitudes version). The was a clash with something else on cruise one, and it was on a port day on cruise two (since there were no sea days). 

On this cruise, cruise three, we were told it was full already when we got back to ship after the port day in Taipei, so were waitlisted.  On a previous ship, Ambassador back to backs were offered a sign up for the events the day before the cruise started, so we didn't have to line up after a port day. Not this one.

At least we did get a call the night before to say they had a cancellation and would we like to go. Usual tour, with a theatre manager we've seen before on the Spirit. But still there's always something new to learn every time.

 

There were two latitudes parties during the day (one for silver and gold, one for higher) but we gave it a miss this time.

 

In the evening it was Dinner with Officers. This time, the HR guy. Not as senior as before but a fun person to be with.

 

Show was a new acrobatics couple. So that means there will be a Cirque de Bijou production show in a couple of days (it was missing on cruise 2).

[Serengeti228]

It has been enjoyable to read through your encounters and experiences in this part of the World since I left the ship. What's your plan after Singapore? I will start my leisure trip in Malaysia and then Thailand in 2 weeks' time. We can meet again if you will be around. Patrick.

[Rob_H]

13 hours ago, Serengeti228 said:

It has been enjoyable to read through your encounters and experiences in this part of the World since I left the ship. What's your plan after Singapore? .

 

Hi Patrick!

 

We just have two nights in Singapore then fly to Cairns, Australia (a nice short flight!).

 

We left Sydney on the Norwegian Spirit on Match 28. After twelve cruises, eight flights, and lots of time with family and friends in many countries, we'll be home.

 

We don't have the option to stay on this ship for a while longer, as the Jewel's next cruise is a full ship charter.

 

[Rob_H]

Our first port in Vietnam was Nha Trang.  Paper arrival cards were distributed to cabins the day before. They were stamped by Vietnam as we left the ship, a fast and smooth process.

Norwegian offered a shuttle to the city (maybe 5km away) for $20 return. There were also taxis in the port.

We took a four hour taxi tour with another couple for $25 each. We went to the big Buddha and temple (with good views), the Ponaga temple, the catholic church, coffee by the beach, and the Dam market. A relaxed tour that got us to more places than a shuttle bus, for only $5 more.

There were a couple of admission fees of a dollar or two, cash only. Even the coffee shop didn't take credit cards. US dollars were OK in many places, having local currency helped in the market.

One of the world's longest cable cars across water, leading to a theme park, is visible from the ship. Unfortunately it's no longer operating and is partly dismantled.

[Rob_H]

The final port day was Phu My, the port for Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

It's a commercial container port. We saw passengers walking through the port around trucks and cranes, which looked quite risky. Neither NCL or the port provided any shuttle.

We took an NCL tour, as it's so far from the city, 1.5 to 2 hours by road!

Others did walk out of the port and get taxis and minibuses on the industrial highway outside, so it is possible. 

As usual the tour bus had a cold wind blowing the whole time, but we were better prepared with more warm clothes!

The tour included a canal boat ride including snacks and drinks, which made a nice break. Other places on the tour were not that interesting, such as the 1960's presidential place. 

The museum tour was extremely rushed as it was about to close for lunch.  We had some free time near the Opera later, where we had lunch.

It was convenient to be driven around and have tickets provided and not worry about getting back on time. This was one place where that peace of mind was nice to have. But next time, we'd prefer more freedom.

The Vietnam arrival/departure cards were collected from us when we returned to the ship.

[Rob_H]

The final full  day of the cruise was a sea day. And also the day when the shareholder OBC for cruise three was finally applied to our account!

On cruise one, some OBC was missing, but soon fixed when I mentioned it. Cruise two was applied correctly. On cruise three I've heard a very long list of excuses, and had to chase it many times, but it finally got done.

On the 11th, we reached Singapore. Disembarkation was slow to start and got slower from there. We weren't in a hurry, but it was still tedious, a very manual process for Singapore immigration in the terminal.

Uber doesn't operate in Singapore any more so I signed up on the Grab app while waiting in the morning. We got a Grab car  (like an Uber) all the way to Changi airport for S$21, from the well organised pick up area at the cruise port, with very little waiting.

We had an early morning flight planned for the 13th, so I booked a hotel at the airport. Really IN the airport - the Yotelair is on the 4th floor of the Jewel. It has a view of the vortex waterfall from the breakfast area / lounge.

The Yotelair has tiny tiny rooms (inside cabins) but the location is great. It also allows early check ins by paying for the hours until your check in. We got there at 11am so paid for 4 hours extra ($S11/hr) rather than bothering with luggage storage, much nicer to have immediate access to the room. The nightly rate is reasonable, for Singapore.

The rest of Saturday we went to Little India by MRT to see the deepavali/diwali celebrations and lights.  Sunday we went to Sentosa and had a couple of cable car rides.

Monday morning we caught the Singapore Airlines flight to Cairns, Australia. Back home after nearly eight months travelling, including nearly five months of cruises!

 

[www3traveler]

4 hours ago, Rob_H said:

The final full  day of the cruise was a sea day. And also the day when the shareholder OBC for cruise three was finally applied to our account!

On cruise one, some OBC was missing, but soon fixed when I mentioned it. Cruise two was applied correctly. On cruise three I've heard a very long list of excuses, and had to chase it many times, but it finally got done.

On the 11th, we reached Singapore. Disembarkation was slow to start and got slower from there. We weren't in a hurry, but it was still tedious, a very manual process for Singapore immigration in the terminal.

Uber doesn't operate in Singapore any more so I signed up on the Grab app while waiting in the morning. We got a Grab car  (like an Uber) all the way to Changi airport for S$21, from the well organised pick up area at the cruise port, with very little waiting.

We had an early morning flight planned for the 13th, so I booked a hotel at the airport. Really IN the airport - the Yotelair is on the 4th floor of the Jewel. It has a view of the vortex waterfall from the breakfast area / lounge.

The Yotelair has tiny tiny rooms (inside cabins) but the location is great. It also allows early check ins by paying for the hours until your check in. We got there at 11am so paid for 4 hours extra ($S11/hr) rather than bothering with luggage storage, much nicer to have immediate access to the room. The nightly rate is reasonable, for Singapore.

The rest of Saturday we went to Little India by MRT to see the deepavali/diwali celebrations and lights.  Sunday we went to Sentosa and had a couple of cable car rides.

Monday morning we caught the Singapore Airlines flight to Cairns, Australia. Back home after nearly eight months travelling, including nearly five months of cruises!

 

WELCOME HOME!!!  Thank you for all your wonderful postings  Merry Christmas and Happy Year's

[Eggs2Go]

9 hours ago, Rob_H said:

Monday morning we caught the Singapore Airlines flight to Cairns, Australia. Back home after nearly eight months travelling, including nearly five months of cruises!

 

Amazing life. Doubt I have the stamina for that much travel, but I sure enjoy reading about all your experiences. And you live in such a beautiful area of Australia, seems would be hard for me to pack up and leave. When home, do you go snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef? Explore the Rainforest? Have fun in the city of Cairns? I truly loved my land vacation to your home environs back in 2007, forever memories.

[suech1970]

Wow what an amazing journey! You certainly don’t do things by halves!

We have our 1st Far East cruise Jan 24 on Jewel and have been taken some tips from your posts, thanks!
Just wondered if you had a band on board called Sonata?

We saw them on Sky in May and were the best band we’ve seen at sea, totally out of the box. They mentioned they were going to the Far East, so we were keeping our fingers crossed

[Seas2mountains]

2 hours ago, suech1970 said:

We saw them on Sky in May and were the best band we’ve seen at sea, totally out of the box. They mentioned they were going to the Far East, so we were keeping our fingers crossed

Thank you @Rob_H for your wonderful live review. I appreciate the time you spent to update us on each port.  Welcome home! 
 

We were on the Sky in early May and also loved the Sonata band!!  I think they are on a break in the Philippines now until early January. I am following them on social media as I agree with you regarding how talented they are. 

Edited November 14, 2023 by Seas2mountains

[Rob_H]

10 hours ago, suech1970 said:

Just wondered if you had a band on board called Sonata?

 

The musicians onboard were Melvin, Los Paisanos, and 5th Wave, as well as the showband.

 

Some of the musicians could be different by January.  We didn't really get to hear them much except in passing, it was such a busy cruise!

[Serengeti228]

Glad to know you enjoyed your time in Singapore and experienced the festive deepavali celebrations. I believe you didn't miss all the foodies. I shall see you again till next time... 

 

I am eyeing on the jewel's late Dec itinerary from Bangkok to Singapore. I am ready to go anytime upon reduction of supplement. Otherwise, I just enjoy my home sweet home.

[penlanspice]

Loved your updates, we get on the jewel on Monday in Bangkok.

You sure are enjoying your lives and good on you. Amazing to hear about your trips.

[Seemeonthesea]

On 11/6/2023 at 10:32 PM, Rob_H said:

 

We had an email from NCL on October 18 telling us about the new port.  

 

The change was mentioned after that by several people in the roll call for the October 30 cruise, since there was some confusion about tours being cancelled despite being in the same general area.

Thanks for all your info about your trip. We are supposedly stopping at Salomague in February and was wondering about transport there but I see you ended up further north. Did you do your own thing there?

Thanks, Vicki