LIVE from Anthem June 2-21 - B2B Canaries and Fjords

[mil76]

Our worst fear of the revised itinerary came true today.  The company we booked with for our full-day tour of Lisbon told us they can't find a guide for us on the new day, so they are refunding our money.  Been looking at other providers, but everything is sold out. 

 

My Lanzarote tour operator won't even respond to my emails, so it looks like we will be scrambling to find something when we arrive at both ports. 

 

[dani negreanu]

12 minutes ago, mil76 said:

The company we booked with for our full-day tour of Lisbon told us they can't find a guide for us on the new day, so they are refunding our money.

 

I can highly recommend this company - We hate tourism tours...

 

https://www.wehatetourismtours.com/

 

[mil76]

13 minutes ago, dani negreanu said:

 

I can highly recommend this company - We hate tourism tours...

 

https://www.wehatetourismtours.com/

 

Thanks Dani.  I checked their tours and they are all sold out.😫   Looks like Norwegian Getaway is already in Lisbon on the 11th, and based on the port schedule they usually only have one ship in per day. 

[snaefell]

On 5/31/2024 at 7:20 PM, mil76 said:

Lots of crowds today, even though the weather lied when they said mid 60s and we got mid 50s instead.  Had to break out some of the Norway packing 2 weeks ahead.of schedule.

 

The crowds can be blamed on this:

 

Lots more.Dortmund fans than Real Madrid out and about today.  Not surprising.since Real is in the final it seems like every year.

Welcome to UK weather forecasting!😆😆

[Tin can]

14 hours ago, mil76 said:

Was a bit disappointed in these areas.  It's all souvenir shops and American chains now.  There's even an American candy store.  Why would anyone go to London and buy American candy?  Getting English chocolate and sweets is one of the best things about visiting England for us.

 

 

Loving the review, you did well staying away the American sweet shops that are all over the West End. Some of their business practices are, shall we say, a little shady.

[mil76]

Currently on the train to Southampton.  Train left at 9:35 from Waterloo and it is packed.  I can tell there are lots of cruisers onboard by the luggage tags.

[mil76]

2 hours ago, snaefell said:

Welcome to UK weather forecasting!😆😆

At least we have great weather today!

[FionaMG]

1 hour ago, mil76 said:

At least we have great weather today!

 

Ssshh. Don't say that out loud. 😂😂😂

[mil76]

Greetings from the Anthem of the Seas in beautiful Southampton England!  Train arrived on-time at 11:00 and we were on board by 11:40, and that included walking to the port and getting lost once.  Getting through the terminal was a breeze. 

 

Love the view of IKEA.😄

 

Got my soda cup and Flowrider waivers are signed.

 

[little britain]

16 hours ago, mil76 said:

Our worst fear of the revised itinerary came true today.  The company we booked with for our full-day tour of Lisbon told us they can't find a guide for us on the new day, so they are refunding our money.  Been looking at other providers, but everything is sold out. 

 

My Lanzarote tour operator won't even respond to my emails, so it looks like we will be scrambling to find something when we arrive at both ports. 

 

Lisbon is just a fantastic city to stroll around.  Walk to the big square with the Rua Augusta arch, up the narrow streets there to the SantaJusta “elevator” then back up the hill into the Alfama area, watch the streetcars, see the view from the Miradouro da Graça, drink Sagres beer and crisp vinho verde on the way back to the ship!

Enjoy. 

[mil76]

Ok, this is cool.  Steak pies and Yorkshire puddings in the Windjammer.  You can tell we're sailing from the UK!

[irishgal432]

20 hours ago, mil76 said:

One tourist attraction we haven't done in central London before is Sky Garden.  It's free, but you have to get tickets ahead if time.  They release tickets on Mondays for spots 4 weeks in the future, and they get snapped up quickly. 

 

It's in the building known as the walkie talkie.  It's the building in the forefront of this picture.

 

The views are pretty spectacular, and you can't beat the price.  I hear it's 35 quid for the Shard.

 

Thanks for the heads up!  

[Roybthered]

My DW and I did Anthem to the canaries last year and loved the trip, you will love all the ports of call. Madeira is beautiful and a lovely place to walk around on your own. Our favourite was Lisbon, it was amazing. You are straight off the ship into the city and it is a great walk with lots to do and see. We went for a walk around sight seeing, ate some lovely food, drank a few sangria's and had an amazing time. We have booked again to sail on Anthem again on the Spanish flare trip on 2nd Aug for 9 nights and we cannot wait to stop off at Lisbon again. Enjoy your trip and will be following along.

[irishgal432]

5 hours ago, mil76 said:

Currently on the train to Southampton.  Train left at 9:35 from Waterloo and it is packed.  I can tell there are lots of cruisers onboard by the luggage tags.

How much was the train?  Never been to London so trying to get logistics worked out.

[allington73]

We have just got off Anthem today.  Watch out for some very noisy staterooms.  We were in 9632 which was junior suite and it had wooden bed surround which seemed to move and creak as soon as boat was moving.  We complained 3 times after being told the seas were rough (they were quiet to moderate in my opinion).  We ended up moving to another junior suite and it was actually worse.  We were given 10% off future cruise for all four of us in the end !

[Travelw]

My wife and I did 21 days last year in Great Britain and Ireland.  Only allowed 1 suitcase each.  Creative packing and a lot of Febreze.  Good luck.

we are doing Canary Island cruise in September.  Looking forward to reading the live review.

[mil76]

1 hour ago, irishgal432 said:

How much was the train?  Never been to London so trying to get logistics worked out.

19.40 pounds.  I booked in advance and it's much cheaper.  The walk up fare to Hampton Court yesterday was almost as much.

[mil76]

1 hour ago, allington73 said:

We have just got off Anthem today.  Watch out for some very noisy staterooms.  We were in 9632 which was junior suite and it had wooden bed surround which seemed to move and creak as soon as boat was moving.  We complained 3 times after being told the seas were rough (they were quiet to moderate in my opinion).  We ended up moving to another junior suite and it was actually worse.  We were given 10% off future cruise for all four of us in the end !

White noise machine.  Best cruising investment we ever made.  Paid $12 for it on Amazon.  Drowns out the creaky noises in the stateroom, as well as my snoring after I have had a few beers. 

 

[mil76]

1 hour ago, Travelw said:

My wife and I did 21 days last year in Great Britain and Ireland.  Only allowed 1 suitcase each.  Creative packing and a lot of Febreze.  Good luck.

we are doing Canary Island cruise in September.  Looking forward to reading the live review.

 

I used the plastic compression bags, so this will come in handy.  Got the full size, not travel size.

[mil76]

Rooms were open at 1pm prompt, and the bags were already at the door.  Since the Flowrider was boogie board 12-2, I actually helped the OG Flow Widow unpack.  I think it is the most organized our stateroom has ever been.

[mil76]

Finished unpacking then headed up to the Flowrider.  At first it was mixed wave then advanced from 5-6.  There are about 5 blue bands so far.  The short board is the quad channel Outlaw.  Hated it at first but getting used to it.  Didn't get any sail-away pictures, but here is Portsmouth from the balcony.

 

 

[mil76]

We usually do unlimited dining on our cruises, but for these cruises we felt there just wasn't enough variation in restaurants to keep repeating for 19 days.  Plus there is no Playmakers, which is our go-to for UDP lunch. So for the first cruise we did a 3 night package and we planned to do our BOGOs the first 2 nights. 

 

Tonights dinner was Izumi.  OGFW hates fish, so she does this as a favor to me.

 

I had the chef's sushi selection and the cutback roll, aka the rainbow roll.  Used to get 8 pieces which filled the whole plate, now its 4 pieces.

 

Besides the cutback portions, Izumi on Quantum class is awful.  You basically are dining in a hallway where people walk through the restaurant while you are eating.

 

The non-sushi menu is also more limited than other ships.  I also love the sesame rolls for dessert, but these are not available on Quantum class.  OGFW wouldn't eat her non-sushi entrees, so I am now sitting in the Windjammer as I type this.

 

I think we're done with Izumi on Quantum class for good now.

[snaefell]

9 hours ago, little britain said:

Lisbon is just a fantastic city to stroll around.  Walk to the big square with the Rua Augusta arch, up the narrow streets there to the SantaJusta “elevator” then back up the hill into the Alfama area, watch the streetcars, see the view from the Miradouro da Graça, drink Sagres beer and crisp vinho verde on the way back to the ship!

Enjoy. 

We have done the Hop On Hop Off bus tours in both Madeira & Lisbon in the past,enjoyed them both although as happens in big cities IME in Lisbon it was somewhat long winded due to traffic

[little britain]

13 minutes ago, snaefell said:

We have done the Hop On Hop Off bus tours in both Madeira & Lisbon in the past,enjoyed them both although as happens in big cities IME in Lisbon it was somewhat long winded due to traffic

Hoho buses in old medieval cities don’t work imho. They weren’t designed for busses 

[mil76]

Checked out the music on-board.  Pub singer Ana Alveredo is really good.  She can sing just about everything.   Speaking of the pub, was happy to see the pub again after our Spectrum of the Seas cruise in December with the tea shop where the pub is. 

 

The band in the Music Hall is Rhythmocracy.  I had high hopes for them because I saw a video of them online playing Enter Sandman by Metallica, but the set they played was all 1970's easy-listening love songs so we headed back to the pub to listen to Ana.  Jury is still out on them.  I really miss the tribute bands in the Music Hall. Might as well change the name to Trivia Hall. 

 

The piano player in the Schooner Bar (Giles Edmunds) was just OK, but the place was packed so what do I know...