Spirit of Adventure Canary Islands and Cape Verde Nov 13 2023

[FatBoy20]

2 hours ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

But I imagine 2 P and O's added together are still cheaper than 1 saga?

 

My mum and dad paid 11k for 21 nights on saga from Southampton 

 

I think I could get approaching 55 nights ish  in inside saver on Iona for that including drinks and plenty of speciality all we would want 

Inside Cabin on a "Block of Flats". Lots of Kids, poor quality food & service. No thanks I'll stick with Saga.

[JMMKUK]

4 hours ago, FatBoy20 said:

Inside Cabin on a "Block of Flats". Lots of Kids, poor quality food & service. No thanks I'll stick with Saga.

Absolutely

[Windsurfboy]

4 hours ago, FatBoy20 said:

Inside Cabin on a "Block of Flats". Lots of Kids, poor quality food & service. No thanks I'll stick with Saga.

 

Agree about inside cabin and school holidays. 

 

But how about outside school holidays, a corner suite with extra large balcony with sun beds plus table and chairs,  breakfast in Epicurean,  priority  boarding/embarkation , dining in  different speciality restaurants every night so no queues, with vintage champagne or very good wine, P&O entertainment. All for Saga standard cabin money, certainly huge saving on Saga suite. 

 

I love Saga and have booked another 30 day cruise , but bored if every  cruise I took was Saga, similiarly if every holiday was a cruise. Room for everybody taste.

 

 

[JMMKUK]

3 hours ago, Windsurfboy said:

 

Agree about inside cabin and school holidays. 

 

But how about outside school holidays, a corner suite with extra large balcony with sun beds plus table and chairs,  breakfast in Epicurean,  priority  boarding/embarkation , dining in  different speciality restaurants every night so no queues, with vintage champagne or very good wine, P&O entertainment. All for Saga standard cabin money, certainly huge saving on Saga suite. 

 

I love Saga and have booked another 30 day cruise , but bored if every  cruise I took was Saga, similiarly if every holiday was a cruise. Room for everybody taste.

 

 

Only time we sailed P&O was out of school hols but loads of kids with awful parents who had taken then out of school. We often joke that the kids were OK it was the parents that weren't. You make them sound interesting though.

 

Enjoy your next cruise. We have nothing booked atm. Keeping options open but it won't be P&O because their ships are much too big.

[FatBoy20]

13 hours ago, Windsurfboy said:

 

Agree about inside cabin and school holidays. 

 

But how about outside school holidays, a corner suite with extra large balcony with sun beds plus table and chairs,  breakfast in Epicurean,  priority  boarding/embarkation , dining in  different speciality restaurants every night so no queues, with vintage champagne or very good wine, P&O entertainment. All for Saga standard cabin money, certainly huge saving on Saga suite. 

 

I love Saga and have booked another 30 day cruise , but bored if every  cruise I took was Saga, similiarly if every holiday was a cruise. Room for everybody taste.

 

 

Standard Cabin with Saga & all the trimmings is ideal for us. We left P&O post Covid after 20 plus Cruises with P&O. The quality of P&O has fallen through the floor & yes you get what you paid for!.

[Harry Peterson]

9 hours ago, JMMKUK said:

Only time we sailed P&O was out of school hols but loads of kids with awful parents who had taken then out of school. We often joke that the kids were OK it was the parents that weren't. You make them sound interesting though.

 

Enjoy your next cruise. We have nothing booked atm. Keeping options open but it won't be P&O because their ships are much too big.

Well behaved children are delightful. So are well behaved parents.

Unfortunately, when the children are out of control, so are the parents, which accounts for the children. Double dose of horror!

[twotravellersLondon]

1 hour ago, Harry Peterson said:

Well behaved children are delightful. So are well behaved parents.

Unfortunately, when the children are out of control, so are the parents, which accounts for the children. Double dose of horror!

 

Sometimes we've found that the children of today are far more mature and socially aware than their Gen Z parents! Recently care across a "child" very gently berating a "parent" for being inconsiderate towards others and an embarrassment to the family! Hope springs eternal!

[khkate]

12 hours ago, JMMKUK said:

Only time we sailed P&O was out of school hols but loads of kids with awful parents who had taken then out of school.

P&O being a large cruise line, it has ships of different sizes, and it also has 2 ships - Aurora and Arcadia - which are adult only. So, it is still possible to sail on P&O and avoid kids, and still enjoy a much cheaper cruise than anything comparable on a Saga ship!!

 

Mind you, people going on about the "blocks of flats". Saga two 'new' ocean ships could be labelled "Blocks of flats" too - especially when one compares them with the original Saga ships - Rose, Ruby, Sapphire and Pear (1 and2)

[lincslady]

With a finite amount to spend on cruising, everyone will have their own view as to whether to have fewer cruises on a pretty top-notch line, with the charms of never having to sign for a drink and other perks, or several trips on a cheaper line, which does give them the chance to spend a bit more on special meals if that is their choice.  For those who are not very mobile, Saga does have the great  advantage of absolute door to door travel, never having to carry a suitcase yourself, and insurance which is pretty inclusive too.

[Bloodaxe]

Until recently I would never have seriously considered Saga, but not wishing to fly to join a cruise anymore the home pick up and included insurance did appeal.

We enjoyed our first cruise with them in September but have not booked another yet.

I do not usually like booking very far in advance and Sagas policy of reducing discounts doesn't really suit that

If we could get a good discount nearer sailing date I would be more likely to book.

I do think the cruises are rather overpriced.

We have never cruised P and O probably never will,  has others have said you pay your money and make your choice.

Edited December 11, 2023 by Bloodaxe

[Windsurfboy]

If you are a good sailor and don't have to be midships,  then there are no bad cabins on Saga, they are all very good. So last minute guarantee bookings can be reasonable 

[Bloodaxe]

39 minutes ago, Windsurfboy said:

If you are a good sailor and don't have to be midships,  then there are no bad cabins on Saga, they are all very good. So last minute guarantee bookings can be reasonable 

 

I agree but they do not seem to be offered on many cruises.

I will keep looking has we cannot commit very far in advance to get the best price. 

Edited December 11, 2023 by Bloodaxe

[arlowood]

1 hour ago, Bloodaxe said:

Until recently I would never have seriously considered Saga, but not wishing to fly to join a cruise anymore the home pick up and included insurance did appeal.

We enjoyed our first cruise with them in September but have not booked another yet.

I do not usually like booking very far in advance and Sagas policy of reducing discounts doesn't really suit that

If we could get a good discount nearer sailing date I would be more likely to book.

I do think the cruises are rather overpriced.

We have never cruised P and O probably never will,  has others have said you pay your money and make your choice.

If you like a particular itinerary then Saga often introduce a Guarantee Cabin option nearer to the sailing date. This means that you will not be able to select a specific deck level or cabin number but will be guaranteed that your cabin will be of a minimum grade (Standard Twin, De-Luxe Twin etc). The cabins are then allocated shortly before you cruise or on the day of embarkation. These Guaranteed cabins are usually offered at a good discount on the normal price but there is no flexibility. You must accept where they put you and if you refuse the cabin allocated then that will be treated as a cancellation on your part.

 

I have no direct experience of this arrangement but I have seen several posts where people have been very pleased with the cabins they received.

[twotravellersLondon]

2 hours ago, arlowood said:

I have no direct experience of this arrangement but I have seen several posts where people have been very pleased with the cabins they received.

 

We used the option a couple of times.... once when we hadn't been able to book in advance and get the 35% discount and once when we just wanted to get away for an additional break at very short notice. In both cases the cabins were fine... there are no bad cabins on SAGA these days and we made a really worthwhile saving.

[JMMKUK]

5 hours ago, arlowood said:

I have no direct experience of this arrangement but I have seen several posts where people have been very pleased with the cabins they received.

The lady we shared the car with had booked a cabin last minute for single occupancy for under £5000, going to the Caribbean for 34 nights, on Saga Sapphire. We thought that was amazing value. She was on the lowest passenger deck but she joined in so many activities it didn't matter.

We had booked the Qwner's suite at the last minute with 35% off. We guessed that someone had booked early & then had to cancel. Felt guilty about their misfortune though.

[FatBoy20]

15 hours ago, twotravellersLondon said:

 

We used the option a couple of times.... once when we hadn't been able to book in advance and get the 35% discount and once when we just wanted to get away for an additional break at very short notice. In both cases the cabins were fine... there are no bad cabins on SAGA these days and we made a really worthwhile saving.

Have used Guarantee Cabin once & had a Cabin towards front on E Deck cost was about 5% above Launch Price. Our Canaries Cruise next November is currently £700pp above the price I paid at Pre Registration Launch so best way of getting maximum discount.

[Whiteduck1]

If you are an English Heritage member you receive a further 5% discount. Often worth joining before you book 

[FatBoy20]

1 hour ago, Whiteduck1 said:

If you are an English Heritage member you receive a further 5% discount. Often worth joining before you book 

Also Boundless (formerly CSMA) but the additional discount is not available for pre registration bookings only when on general sale.

[Whiteduck1]

11 minutes ago, FatBoy20 said:

Also Boundless (formerly CSMA) but the additional discount is not available for pre registration bookings only when on general sale.

Thank you.. 

[JMMKUK]

2 hours ago, Whiteduck1 said:

If you are an English Heritage member you receive a further 5% discount. Often worth joining before you book 

Oh, I wish someone had told me that before.

[Windsurfboy]

1 hour ago, JMMKUK said:

Oh, I wish someone had told me that before.

 

3 hours ago, Whiteduck1 said:

If you are an English Heritage member you receive a further 5% discount. Often worth joining before you book 

 

Snap, very much worth joining. Anyone tried asking for discount after booked but before final payment 

[Whiteduck1]

4 minutes ago, Windsurfboy said:

 

 

Snap, very much worth joining. Anyone tried asking for discount after booked but before final payment 

I don't know all the rules and there is probably small print, but I don't think you could do that. Saga when we booked waited to process the booking until we received our  English Heritage membership number. They just held the cabin for a few days. 

[Alchymist]

Writing specifically of the Cape Verde cruise, there were a number of things which I found disappointing. Firstly the careless attitude towards sanitation - until Norovirus struck. The first time ever I have boarded a ship without a member of staff insisting that I use sanitiser, and that was the case when returning from the pre-Norovirus shore trips too. Staff at the restaurants dispensed about one drop of gel, certainly not enough to wet out your hands. This all changed with Norovirus when the outbreak was swiftly and effectively dealt with - although it put a dampener on everything and clearly curtailed many activities. (Incidentally, alcohol gel is not effective against Norovirus!)

 

The food was disappointing, with meat cookery especially poor and what seemed like a smaller menu than hitherto = 6 mains, of which 3 were vegetarian. One table companion in the Supper Club had a ribeye steak which she could not cut and eat and I had a grossly over-cooked rack of lamb, which appeared as individual chops.

 

Entertainment was below par, the Cruise Director was almost universally known as the Invisible Man - although he may have had personal issues (who knows?) which led to this. The String Quartet, however, were brilliant as were the Spirit Trio. Would also commend the Agatha Christy evening in The Playhouse. But there is now only one show per night in The Playhouse and quite late at 21.30 or 21.45. Clashes of performances with the Britannia Lounge which had things on at the same time (eg Crew Show in Lounge at same time as Ventriloquist in Playhouse). The Destination lecturer was second to none and the other Speakers also VG.

 

We had a Captain change at A Coruna which brought a welcome announcement from the Bridge spot on Midday (as opposed to random time); seemed somehow more disciplined, perhaps I am old fashioned. However, proud of the first Captain and Bridge Crew for spotting and coming to the aid of the migrant boat.

 

Filling in the "online" questionnaire on the last day was a farce. Like several other passengers I spoke to, the app persistently failed after the first question and I wasn't prepared to go the Library and be nannied into using a supervised iPad. Perhaps that is why I am being frank here!

 

Disembarkation at Portsmouth was late and sad to see some less abled people struggling to push their trolleys up the ramp with no offer of help from staff. Journey home a fairly manic affair in a none too comfortable MPV, but we got there.

 

The crew were generally excellent and our Cabin Steward was a gem. I think it is people like him who encourage us to use Saga and despite my comments here, we will probably cruise with Saga again, although we do intend to go back to other lines to reset our expectations.

[Glenndale]

On 12/11/2023 at 3:57 PM, arlowood said:

If you like a particular itinerary then Saga often introduce a Guarantee Cabin option nearer to the sailing date. This means that you will not be able to select a specific deck level or cabin number but will be guaranteed that your cabin will be of a minimum grade (Standard Twin, De-Luxe Twin etc). The cabins are then allocated shortly before you cruise or on the day of embarkation. These Guaranteed cabins are usually offered at a good discount on the normal price but there is no flexibility. You must accept where they put you and if you refuse the cabin allocated then that will be treated as a cancellation on your part.

 

I have no direct experience of this arrangement but I have seen several posts where people have been very pleased with the cabins they received.

Except I have never seen the ability to chose a guaranteed deluxe cabin.

[LondonLad60]

8 hours ago, Alchymist said:

Filling in the "online" questionnaire on the last day was a farce. Like several other passengers I spoke to, the app persistently failed after the first question and I wasn't prepared to go the Library and be nannied into using a supervised iPad. Perhaps that is why I am being frank here!

I never fill in the questionnaire on the ship - I always do it from home; for the reasons you mention, plus, as far as I'm concerned, the cruise doesn't end until the chauffeur pulls up outside our house. By doing this, if there is any last minute issues (such as disembarkation) they can be mentioned.