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Le Ponant September, 2015 Malta to Monaco
Is anyone else on this cruise? This is a dream trip for me and I am looking forward to this exciting adventure.
If any readers have any suggestions at all, I would certainly appreciate them! Thanks!
If any readers have any suggestions at all, I would certainly appreciate them! Thanks!
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I'm surprised that the food is just ok, but maybe that's a good thing! Are the hair dryers decent? Anything you wish you had brought along? Any 110 outlets?
Was there free internet access on board? How was cell phone reception? I will contact ATT for rates but wondered if I would be able to make/receive calls when away from the ports.
What percent of the time do they actually sail vs. motor?
I'm arriving in Malta a day early because I don't want to chance missing the boat. Any sightseeing suggestions? Did you find a need for cash (Euros) while on the trip for anything besides port shopping? I don't want to convert more than I will probably need.
Thank you again for responding.
Judy
Don't get me wrong about the food. Some people loved it. I am a picky eater. Breakfast and lunch was a buffet. At dinner you had a choose of one or two appetizers and two or three entries, usually a fish, chicken or beef/lamb. and one of two desserts. There was always lots of food. They also serve tea and cookies all afternoon, followed by cocktails and aps before dinner. Several of the lunches are in Port. Some are group activities hosted by Tauck. A few you can do on your own or with a few other passengers that you happen to meet... or some people returned to the ship for a free lunch. The food in the ports was always excellent.
There are hair dries in the bathrooms. You can not bring hair dries, irons, or anything else that might start a fire. There are no 110v outlets on the ship or in the hotels in Malta or Monaco. You will need as adaptor.
There is free internet on the ship and in the hotels. Speed and reliability on board depends on the satellite reception and the number of guests trying to use it at the same time. There internet on the ship works primary in the lounge, not in the cabins. It is best for getting on line, downloading your email and getting off, not good for sending or receiving a lot of data or big documents.
We took our cell phones but never sent or received a call..very expensive. We found that email and skyping was the best way to communicate back home.
The ship's sails were raised everyday when we let port in the evening and were down when we woke up in the morning. The sails provide some help but in order to make their schedule, the engines are on most, if not all, of the time.
We spent only one day in Malta because it was the last day of our trip, not the first so I don't know what all there is to see there. Tauck will take you to the City of Mdina (in the morning) and a quick walk through the old town next to the hotel and St John's Cathedral in the afternoon. It is a big island with lots of traffic compared to ever place else that you will go on the cruise before you reach Nice and Monaco.
With regard to cash, almost everywhere takes credit cards, Tauck covers all the tips (including airport drivers and bellman before and after your actual cruise). There is not need for cash on the ship. That leaves things like an ice cream or snack in port and some open markets that don't take credit cards. We took way too many Euros with us. I hear that some places that you get your Euros in the US before you leave will refund your money and buy them back when you return if you don't use them. We did do that so I don't know where or how.
You will have a great time and meet lots of nice people. Our cruise was full, 60 passengers. A few singles but mostly couples or friends traveling together. All the meals are at community tables so you get to meet all the passengers as the week progresses. For shore excursions they break the group into 2 groups of 30. You stay with the same group of 30 each time so those people you will see everyday. The shore excursions include some group activities (i.e a tour of the island, etc) in the morning and them some free time when it appeared that most people went shopping or just slight seeing.
Bring an umbrella and something to wear if in rains. Also a plastic bag to put your camera in when going in the zodiacs to and from shore as they can get wet.
Also, I am still confused on what is required for ladies attire for evening dinner I was finally going to travel light.
Also, I am still confused on what is required for ladies attire for evening dinner I was finally going to travel light. [/quote]
I am taking a casual dress and a pair of nice black slacks to pair with various tops. I think that the dress code is fairly casual and probably will vary with the guests. I am taking comfortable, wrinkle resistant items as I intend to enjoy myself and not worry too much about my attire. Enjoy your trip! I can't wait!!
I am on the Malta to Nice trip on September 13. I'm pretty excited, only a few more days to go!
Are there any others on this board going on this trip?
I'm flying in from Sarasota FL via Rome, leaving here on Friday, 9/11. See you in Malta!
If anyone has any questions not already asked and answered in this forum, I will attempt to answer them.
Sorry, to ask so many questions but this is our first Tauck tour and first small boat. We have taken two river cruises but it appears the accommodations are smaller and sea will make this more of an adventure.
Thank you in advance for you time and help.
Deb
I will answer your questions based on my own personal feelings/experience, not necessarily the opinions of other passengers.
The weather on our trip was warmer than expected with sunshine and blue skies daily; I understand we had warmer than normal temperatures. There was one night/day of a bit of rolling but nothing significant; to my knowledge, there was no sea sickness. That said, every trip will encounter different weather. If you are afraid of sea sickness, wear a patch or the wrist bands.
Concerning the food, the breakfast buffet was plentiful and very good with a wide variety of breakfast options. I generally ate lunch in whatever port we were in, and ate at the lunch buffet only once or twice; again, it was good with a variety of options. Some of the dinner items were good, others were not to my liking. For two of the dinners, there was no choice, but for the others you were able to make a selection of appetizer, main course and dessert. My primary issue was with the quality of the main courses. At one dinner we were given the choices of mullet, chicken or spaghetti; they were out of chicken by the time they got to my table so I ordered spaghetti, which I was unable to eat and I can't ever remember not being able to eat pasta! If this was a local restaurant, I would not return. Again, I must emphasize that this is only my opinion, although I did hear rumblings from other guests as well.
Dress was casual; pack wrinkle-resistant items and items you can layer. There were a couple of dinners when people dressed up a bit more but generally you wore what was comfortable. A must is a good pair of walking shoes for the daily Zodiac trips to the islands and the walking tours. If I did this trip again, I would even consider two pairs of walking shoes so that I could alternate. Consider a fanny pack & sun hat for the island excursions. Most days I wore slacks or nice jeans and a casual knit top.
All excursions were in the morning and plenty of time was allowed for sightseeing or shopping on your own. There were generally different Zodiac departure times back to the ship for those who wanted to return immediately following the guided tour, or later for those wishing to stay on the island. I will comment here that I thought the daily excursions were just right in terms of activity level, points of interest, variety, etc. Our two teams leaders along with the local guides did an excellent job.
I would also like to again commend the crew of Le Ponant for doing a great job. I would happily sail with them again if the food and internet service were improved.
There was no "favorite part" of the cruise; it was all wonderful! The other guests were great and I made some wonderful new friends. I traveled solo and was not sure what to expect but I could not have found a better group of happy people to travel with.
So, basically my negatives were few and the trip will be a highlight of my life. I hope you have an equally fabulous time!
Thank you very much for your honest and excellent feedback. I have been anxiously awaiting specific information.
I appreciate your feedback. From what you describe we have similar taste. I guess the bright side of this trip is that I won't have to worry about fitting into my clothes for the duration of the trip. Nope I'll just buy sweets on my shore excursions which bottom line for me is my favorite anyway.
I have enjoyed all of your post. Maybe one day we'll be on a Tauck tour together.
Thanks again.
Deb
I would not worry about weight gain as you will walk quite a bit during and after the excursions. And I did not hesitate to sample the goodies the various islands had to offer! Another hint: bring some toilet paper with you on the excursions as it can be in short supply at some of the tourist sites.