A Wish: Cruising to Get There

[Eileen Garland]

I hate flying. I'm not AFRAID of flying, I just find it tedious and
uncomfortable, and sometimes even miserable.

I love to travel however and I have physical limitations that make
cruising the ideal way for me to go. And there are cruises to all kinds
of wonderful exotic places that I would love to see - but you have to
fly to the exotic places first. There are a few exotic cruise
itineraries that take you TO these places via ship, but they are few and
far between, and the only way to return is via plane (or they'll sail
you back but the only way to get there is to fly).

I drool from the itineraries on world voyages for this reason, but
unless Howard gets another nice long sabbatical (and we're not holding
our collective breaths), we haven't the time for these, not to mention
the money (per diem rates on very long cruises are considerably higher
than on short cruises, for no reason I can figure out).

So what I wish is that there were more cruises that went round-trip to
exotic places. We love those transatlantics; flying to or from Europe
is not my idea of fun, but it's doable. But flying to or from the Far
East or Australia, for example, is NOT doable for me.

I wonder whether other people would be interested in this type of
cruise. Could you find time for say a three-week trip of this kind? Do
you think this sort of thing would be not profitable for a cruiseline?

Eileen

[villa deauville]

Eileen,
I have never liked lying. My first plane trip was in 1947, when I flew
to NY from Croydon airport England .I flew Pan Am 4 prop that took 15
hours with landing and take off 4 times. Since then I have flown umpteen
times but I never cared for it but I had to in order to get from point A
to Point Z.
I have been to 98% of the places I had wanted to see and now age and
physical
health have just about grounded me.
if I won the lottery I would sail to Australia and back. I have been to
Hawaii twice. First time we flew to LA with a stop over for 2 hours then
flew to Oahu and did the same thing but in reverse going home. Secnd
time we flew to San Diego, stayed in SD for 3 days then took a commutor
plane to LA and then flew to Hawaii to catch the Legend of the Sea.
Legend had been in Alaska and was on a repositioning back to US. Coming
back we had to disembark in Encinada and return to SD by bus. stayed in
SD for 2 days then flew back to Florida
The reason I posted such a long travelogue was to really say I could
never, ever do that journey today.


SUNNY<........'s advice Dont put off for tomorrow what you can do today

S'nd I

[Diva]

If I could afford it (which at times I can, but which right now I can't =
-- just did a lot of landscaping), and I had the time -- which I usually =
do in the summertime, I'd for SURE be interested in a cruise to =
Australia and back. Otherwise I will never see Australia because there =
is no way that I'd fly that long. YECH.

June

"Eileen Garland" > wrote in message =
...

I hate flying. I'm not AFRAID of flying, I just find it tedious and=20
uncomfortable, and sometimes even miserable.

I love to travel however and I have physical limitations that make=20
cruising the ideal way for me to go. And there are cruises to all kinds =

of wonderful exotic places that I would love to see - but you have to=20
fly to the exotic places first. There are a few exotic cruise=20
itineraries that take you TO these places via ship, but they are few and =

far between, and the only way to return is via plane (or they'll sail=20
you back but the only way to get there is to fly).

I drool from the itineraries on world voyages for this reason, but=20
unless Howard gets another nice long sabbatical (and we're not holding=20
our collective breaths), we haven't the time for these, not to mention=20
the money (per diem rates on very long cruises are considerably higher=20
than on short cruises, for no reason I can figure out).

So what I wish is that there were more cruises that went round-trip to=20
exotic places. We love those transatlantics; flying to or from Europe=20
is not my idea of fun, but it's doable. But flying to or from the Far=20
East or Australia, for example, is NOT doable for me.

I wonder whether other people would be interested in this type of=20
cruise. Could you find time for say a three-week trip of this kind? Do =

you think this sort of thing would be not profitable for a cruiseline?

Eileen

[villa deauville]

Forgot to add because of Jones Act or another act Legend could not take
their pax back to the US. We were picked up in SD by my BIL and - get
this - we watched the ship come into SD, from Encinada,empty except for
crew and officers.

SUNNY<..........will stick with the Caribbean

Snd I

[Jeff Coudriet]

Eileen,

I wish there were more of that kind of thing too. Maybe cruises in/out
of Iceland! It's a short flight from the states (east coast) and it
could to to the Norwegian Fjords, Baltics, or even south to Spain,
Portugul and maybe the Canaries or Azores? 10 or 11 days is perfect in
my book. P&O has some interesting 10-14 day sailings out of
southhampton, and flying to London isn't too bad.

Jeff



Eileen Garland wrote:
>
> I hate flying. I'm not AFRAID of flying, I just find it tedious and
> uncomfortable, and sometimes even miserable.
>
> I love to travel however and I have physical limitations that make
> cruising the ideal way for me to go. And there are cruises to all kinds
> of wonderful exotic places that I would love to see - but you have to
> fly to the exotic places first. There are a few exotic cruise
> itineraries that take you TO these places via ship, but they are few and
> far between, and the only way to return is via plane (or they'll sail
> you back but the only way to get there is to fly).
>
> I drool from the itineraries on world voyages for this reason, but
> unless Howard gets another nice long sabbatical (and we're not holding
> our collective breaths), we haven't the time for these, not to mention
> the money (per diem rates on very long cruises are considerably higher
> than on short cruises, for no reason I can figure out).
>
> So what I wish is that there were more cruises that went round-trip to
> exotic places. We love those transatlantics; flying to or from Europe
> is not my idea of fun, but it's doable. But flying to or from the Far
> East or Australia, for example, is NOT doable for me.
>
> I wonder whether other people would be interested in this type of
> cruise. Could you find time for say a three-week trip of this kind? Do
> you think this sort of thing would be not profitable for a cruiseline?
>
> Eileen

[Eileen Garland]

Gotcha, Sunny. That's we took the Statendam from San Diego to Hawaii
and back; they did a brief stop in Ensenada to satisfy the requirements
but there was no getting on or off the ship there. The flight from
Philadelphia to SD and back was tolerable (though if there'd been a way
to skip that, we'd have gone for it!), and the cruise was utterly
delightful. Yes, we didn't see as much of Hawaii as we might have on a
land trip, but coming from the east coast, a land trip to Hawaii was
never an option in my book!

Eileen

villa deauville wrote:

> Forgot to add because of Jones Act or another act Legend could not take
> their pax back to the US. We were picked up in SD by my BIL and - get
> this - we watched the ship come into SD, from Encinada,empty except for
> crew and officers.
>
> SUNNY<..........will stick with the Caribbean
>
> Snd I
>
>
>
>
>
>

[Jean O'Boyle]

E
"Eileen Garland" > wrote in message
...
> Gotcha, Sunny. That's we took the Statendam from San Diego to Hawaii

Eileen, did you have a balcony and would you recommend one? Also which month
did you go?
TIA,

--Jean

[Odysseus]

I flew Sydney to LA nonstop. I also flew Tokyo to Chicago nonstop. I think in
designing the tourist class cabins they resurrected a jailer from the Spanish
inquisition.

>
>If I could afford it (which at times I can, but which right now I can't --
>just did a lot of landscaping), and I had the time -- which I usually do in
>the summertime, I'd for SURE be interested in a cruise to Australia and back.
>Otherwise I will never see Australia because there is no way that I'd fly
>that long. YECH.
>
>June
>
>"Eileen Garland" > wrote in message
...
>
>I hate flying. I'm not AFRAID of flying, I just find it tedious and
>uncomfortable, and sometimes even miserable.
>
>I love to travel however and I have physical limitations that make
>cruising the ideal way for me to go. And there are cruises to all kinds
>of wonderful exotic places that I would love to see - but you have to
>fly to the exotic places first. There are a few exotic cruise
>itineraries that take you TO these places via ship, but they are few and
>far between, and the only way to return is via plane (or they'll sail
>you back but the only way to get there is to fly).
>
>I drool from the itineraries on world voyages for this reason, but
>unless Howard gets another nice long sabbatical (and we're not holding
>our collective breaths), we haven't the time for these, not to mention
>the money (per diem rates on very long cruises are considerably higher
>than on short cruises, for no reason I can figure out).
>
>So what I wish is that there were more cruises that went round-trip to
>exotic places. We love those transatlantics; flying to or from Europe
>is not my idea of fun, but it's doable. But flying to or from the Far
>East or Australia, for example, is NOT doable for me.
>
>I wonder whether other people would be interested in this type of
>cruise. Could you find time for say a three-week trip of this kind? Do
>you think this sort of thing would be not profitable for a cruiseline?
>
>Eileen
>

[Eileen Garland]

No, Jean, we didn't have a balcony and yes, I would definitely recommend
one. We went in January and had gorgeous weather except for the first
and last days, if I remember correctly. A balcony cabin on this cruise
was MUCH more money than an outside, so we settled for the outside.

This was one of the most perfect cruises we've ever taken, except for a
low-key night life.

Eileen

Jean O'Boyle wrote:

> E
> "Eileen Garland" > wrote in message
> ...
>
>>Gotcha, Sunny. That's we took the Statendam from San Diego to Hawaii
>
>
> Eileen, did you have a balcony and would you recommend one? Also which month
> did you go?
> TIA,
>
> --Jean
>
>

[Jean O'Boyle]

"Eileen Garland" > wrote in message
...
> No, Jean, we didn't have a balcony and yes, I would definitely recommend
> one. We went in January and had gorgeous weather except for the first
> and last days, if I remember correctly. A balcony cabin on this cruise
> was MUCH more money than an outside, so we settled for the outside.
>
> This was one of the most perfect cruises we've ever taken, except for a
> low-key night life.

Sounds perfect to me, Eileen. A low-key night life is okay too, as long as I
get some time in the casino! ;-)
Thanks again,
--Jean

[Jean O'Boyle]

"Eileen Garland" > wrote in message
...
> No, Jean, we didn't have a balcony and yes, I would definitely recommend
> one. We went in January and had gorgeous weather except for the first
> and last days, if I remember correctly. A balcony cabin on this cruise
> was MUCH more money than an outside, so we settled for the outside.
>
> This was one of the most perfect cruises we've ever taken, except for a
> low-key night life.


Thanks, Eileen,
Low key night life would not bother me as long as I got my time in the
casino!! ;-) I also have heard many favorable things about the Statendam
that I thought we better take her before she went by the way of the
Westerdam.

--Jean

[Mason Barge]

On Sun, 14 Sep 2003 18:52:21 -0400, Eileen Garland
> wrote:

[snip]
>So what I wish is that there were more cruises that went round-trip to
>exotic places. We love those transatlantics; flying to or from Europe
>is not my idea of fun, but it's doable. But flying to or from the Far
>East or Australia, for example, is NOT doable for me.
>
>I wonder whether other people would be interested in this type of
>cruise. Could you find time for say a three-week trip of this kind? Do
>you think this sort of thing would be not profitable for a cruiseline?

I agree wholeheartedly. In fact, I'll settle for half -- good exotic
itineraries that start far away and end up in the US.

There are some of these, but not enough for me. In fact, I would
probably do this one except for questions about the Royal Princess:

Royal Princess South America 3/8/04

1 Santiago (Valparaiso), Chile 6:00
2 La Serena (Coquimbo), Chile 8:00 AM 5:00 PM
3 At Sea
4 Arica, Chile 7:00 AM 6:00 PM
5 At Sea
6 Pisco (Puerto San Martin), Peru 7:00 AM 6:00 PM
7 Lima (Callao), Peru 5:30 AM
8 Lima (Callao), Peru 1:00 PM
9 At Sea
10 Manta (for Quito), Ecuador 5:30 AM
11 Manta (for Quito), Ecuador 1:00 PM
12 At Sea
13 Panama Canal 7:00 AM 4:30 PM
14 Cartagena 8:00 AM 1:30 PM
15 Aruba 1:00 PM 7:00 PM
16 At Sea
17 At Sea
18 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, United States 7:00 AM

Really a superb itinerary, with probably a good stop somewhere -- at
worst a second day in Aruba -- instead of Cartagena. Enough time
built in to see Machu Piccu, even.

If I had a cruise line, I would schedule a summer cruise from Hong
Kong to Tokyo to Vladivistock to Nome to Seward and down the Inner
Passage to Vancouver. Tell me that one wouldn't sell! (Actually
Princess has one fairly similar trip on the Star.)

The British really have us licked on this one. Lines like Fred Olsen
and Swan Hellenic include airfare back to Southampton in their one-way
out and one-way back to Africa, Asia, etc. Sigh.


Mason Barge

"If this is coffee, please bring me some tea. If this is tea, please bring me some coffee."
-- Abraham Lincoln

[Ermalee]

We spent 12 days on the Royal Princess last month, and I have absolutely
no qualms about this ship. She was one of the best ships we have ever
sailed! Great condition. We loved every minute of our 12 day cruise.

Ermalee <---loved the Royal Princess

Mason Barge wrote:
>
> On Sun, 14 Sep 2003 18:52:21 -0400, Eileen Garland
> > wrote:
>
> [snip]
> >So what I wish is that there were more cruises that went round-trip to
> >exotic places. We love those transatlantics; flying to or from Europe
> >is not my idea of fun, but it's doable. But flying to or from the Far
> >East or Australia, for example, is NOT doable for me.
> >
> >I wonder whether other people would be interested in this type of
> >cruise. Could you find time for say a three-week trip of this kind? Do
> >you think this sort of thing would be not profitable for a cruiseline?
>
> I agree wholeheartedly. In fact, I'll settle for half -- good exotic
> itineraries that start far away and end up in the US.
>
> There are some of these, but not enough for me. In fact, I would
> probably do this one except for questions about the Royal Princess:
>
> Royal Princess South America 3/8/04
>
> 1 Santiago (Valparaiso), Chile 6:00
> 2 La Serena (Coquimbo), Chile 8:00 AM 5:00 PM
> 3 At Sea
> 4 Arica, Chile 7:00 AM 6:00 PM
> 5 At Sea
> 6 Pisco (Puerto San Martin), Peru 7:00 AM 6:00 PM
> 7 Lima (Callao), Peru 5:30 AM
> 8 Lima (Callao), Peru 1:00 PM
> 9 At Sea
> 10 Manta (for Quito), Ecuador 5:30 AM
> 11 Manta (for Quito), Ecuador 1:00 PM
> 12 At Sea
> 13 Panama Canal 7:00 AM 4:30 PM
> 14 Cartagena 8:00 AM 1:30 PM
> 15 Aruba 1:00 PM 7:00 PM
> 16 At Sea
> 17 At Sea
> 18 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, United States 7:00 AM
>
> Really a superb itinerary, with probably a good stop somewhere -- at
> worst a second day in Aruba -- instead of Cartagena. Enough time
> built in to see Machu Piccu, even.

[Eileen Garland]

I just got a mailing from Raddison with a wonderful itinerary in
January, LA to Sydney. Of course, you have to fly back - but I'd be
tempted if I hadn't just read Kuki's review.

Eileen

Mason Barge wrote:
> On Sun, 14 Sep 2003 18:52:21 -0400, Eileen Garland
> > wrote:
>
> [snip]
>
>>So what I wish is that there were more cruises that went round-trip to
>>exotic places. We love those transatlantics; flying to or from Europe
>>is not my idea of fun, but it's doable. But flying to or from the Far
>>East or Australia, for example, is NOT doable for me.
>>
>>I wonder whether other people would be interested in this type of
>>cruise. Could you find time for say a three-week trip of this kind? Do
>>you think this sort of thing would be not profitable for a cruiseline?
>
>
> I agree wholeheartedly. In fact, I'll settle for half -- good exotic
> itineraries that start far away and end up in the US.
>
> There are some of these, but not enough for me. In fact, I would
> probably do this one except for questions about the Royal Princess:
>
> Royal Princess South America 3/8/04
>
> 1 Santiago (Valparaiso), Chile 6:00
> 2 La Serena (Coquimbo), Chile 8:00 AM 5:00 PM
> 3 At Sea
> 4 Arica, Chile 7:00 AM 6:00 PM
> 5 At Sea
> 6 Pisco (Puerto San Martin), Peru 7:00 AM 6:00 PM
> 7 Lima (Callao), Peru 5:30 AM
> 8 Lima (Callao), Peru 1:00 PM
> 9 At Sea
> 10 Manta (for Quito), Ecuador 5:30 AM
> 11 Manta (for Quito), Ecuador 1:00 PM
> 12 At Sea
> 13 Panama Canal 7:00 AM 4:30 PM
> 14 Cartagena 8:00 AM 1:30 PM
> 15 Aruba 1:00 PM 7:00 PM
> 16 At Sea
> 17 At Sea
> 18 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, United States 7:00 AM
>
> Really a superb itinerary, with probably a good stop somewhere -- at
> worst a second day in Aruba -- instead of Cartagena. Enough time
> built in to see Machu Piccu, even.
>
> If I had a cruise line, I would schedule a summer cruise from Hong
> Kong to Tokyo to Vladivistock to Nome to Seward and down the Inner
> Passage to Vancouver. Tell me that one wouldn't sell! (Actually
> Princess has one fairly similar trip on the Star.)
>
> The British really have us licked on this one. Lines like Fred Olsen
> and Swan Hellenic include airfare back to Southampton in their one-way
> out and one-way back to Africa, Asia, etc. Sigh.
>
>
> Mason Barge
>
> "If this is coffee, please bring me some tea. If this is tea, please bring me some coffee."
> -- Abraham Lincoln

[Mason Barge]

On Mon, 15 Sep 2003 21:49:49 -0400, Ermalee
> wrote:

>We spent 12 days on the Royal Princess last month, and I have absolutely
>no qualms about this ship. She was one of the best ships we have ever
>sailed! Great condition. We loved every minute of our 12 day cruise.
>
>Ermalee <---loved the Royal Princess
>

Hmmmm. What ships would you compare her to? And which ones do you
usually like?

I may give this a try, it's such a good route and good price to boot.


Mason Barge

"If this is coffee, please bring me some tea. If this is tea, please bring me some coffee."
-- Abraham Lincoln

[Mike]

>Hmmmm. What ships would you compare her to? And which ones do you
>usually like?

I also spent 12 days on the Royal Princess this July and have posted on several
occasions how impressed I was with the condition and amenities of this ship.

I have also been on the Regal Princess and Sky Princess and thought the Royal
compared favorably to those (which we liked very much). I have also cruised
on the Disney Wonder, the Horizon, the Noordam, the Nordic Empress, the
Seaward, the Fantasy, and the late lamented Seabreeze.

As you can tell, we like the relatively smaller ships and will be on the
Enchantment of the Seas this Christmas. Our first megaship cruise will be on
the Grand Princess next Summer.

Mike

[Ermalee]

Mason, I hope you aren't sorry you asked, but here goes. I would not
hesitate to book the Royal if I liked the itinerary and the price.

Our cruise in August on the Royal Princess was our 26th cruise.
We have sailed on Grand Princess and Golden Princess and I find that
I am not partial to the very large ships.
Royal Princess is a smaller, friendlier place! Everything
I saw last month was in excellent condition. We had a window with
obstructed view. I enjoyed the refrigerator and the bath tub. We
had plenty of room, and everything was spotless. The safe opens with
a key, not a credit card. Even the entertainment was good, but not
great. I did not walk out of any of the shows (have done this on
a couple of those fantastic Celebrity ships).
We loved RCCL's Splendour of the Seas when we sailed on her twice just
a few years back. I just wonder how that ship is holding up. She
was a beauty. I also like all the Celebrity ships that we've tried:
Galaxy (twice), Mercury, Zenith, and Horizon, Zenith being the least
favorite, probably because she was being redone a bit at a time when
we sailed on her (wasn't able to use the hot tub on that cruise, from
San Diego to San Juan).
Last year we sailed on Brilliance of the Seas. This is a fantastic
ship, and we found it easy to find our way around! We're
going on the Radiance in January and hope it will be as nice.
Old ships that I have personally enjoyed are HAL's Rotterdam V (now
defunct); Costa Riveria (now to be disassembled); and QE2. If I had
a choice among these oldies or the Royal Princess, guess which one
would win out.....? Tough decision between Rotterdam V and Royal
Princess. I can't imagine anyone calling her a rust bucket. It
just ain't so!
Some other ships that we've enjoyed include HAL's Statendam, two
cruises on the old Star Princess (now with P&O), two on Carnival
Sensation, Carnival Fascination, Carnival Pride, Carnival Spirit,
NCL Sky, NCL Dream....... In short, Bill and I love to cruise!
We'll try the Maasdam in November.

Ermalee <----apologizing for getting carried away here

Mason Barge wrote:
>
> On Mon, 15 Sep 2003 21:49:49 -0400, Ermalee
> > wrote:
>
> >We spent 12 days on the Royal Princess last month, and I have absolutely
> >no qualms about this ship. She was one of the best ships we have ever
> >sailed! Great condition. We loved every minute of our 12 day cruise.
> >
> >Ermalee <---loved the Royal Princess
> >
>
> Hmmmm. What ships would you compare her to? And which ones do you
> usually like?
>
> I may give this a try, it's such a good route and good price to boot.
>
> Mason Barge
>
> "If this is coffee, please bring me some tea. If this is tea, please bring me some coffee."
> -- Abraham Lincoln