The cruise was very good. We were unable to visit one port because of bad weather and arrived at Halong Bay just a couple of hours earlier. It would have been better if he had more time an had arrived about four or five hours earlier. All the ports were very interesting and we learned a lot about Vietnam that we were not aware of.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Very little around the port area. The nearest MRT train station is about one mile away. A couple of large malls within three miles of the port. There were two ships in port at the time so there was a little confusion as to where to leave the luggage. Once the proper area was located the porters were very good in taking the luggage. There was a large staff inside to handle the Embarkation. There was a short wait to see an agent. The processing was very fast. The key cases are cardboard that are not very good. The keys can slide out very easy. Other cruise lines give a folding plastic key case that keep the keys from falling out.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
We didn't use any specialty restaurants. The main dining room and the buffet were both very good. The service in both locations were very good.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
All these activities were available never had a chance to use them.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
The cruise had two shows per day that were very good. There were live music in other public areas during the day. The performers and the stage shows were outstanding.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
We had on board free Internet. The confirmation showed the credit but the ship was unable to provide the free Internet without me paying for it until the information could be verified by the corporate office. Another couple traveling with us had the same problem with the on board credit requiring verification with the corporation even though the credit was shown on the confirmation. Other questions and issues were handled very well by the staff.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
There were signs and maps all of the ship three banks of elevators and stairs, The public restrooms and public areas were very clean all day long and at night the staff worked on the maintenance of the ship.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
There is no electric power in the bathroom for electric shavers or toothbrushes. The electrical outlet has two 110 volts and two 220 volts ports. The bathrooms sink counter top was a little small. There were one set of small shelves in the bathroom. The shower was small with good water pressure. There was plenty of closet space. The dresser drawers was adequate. The night stands were very good with two large drawers each. There was small and large cabinet shelves around the cabin. The desk top was a little small with a chair. There was a small table and sitting chair in the room. The balcony had two chairs and a table.
Ship tip
The Internet is very slow and was down for a day. Sometimes it was very hard to connect the iPhone with the Wi Fi. The notebook once and a while had a connection problem. There is no washing machine on the ship. The ship does provide laundry service at a fee.
We arrived the day before the cruise. We stayed at the Sheraton Singapore Towers. The transportation around the hotel was very good local bus and MRT trains nearby. We didn't have enough time for a tour. We took a taxi from the hotel to the cruise port. The cruise port has a small Watson Drug Store, Tourist Board Office, a small store that sells coffee, sandwiches, snacks and a few personal items. There is a municipal bus stop at the port and cabs are always available. The nearest MRT train is about one mile away. A group us took a cab over to one of the large malls to buy some water,
We took a bus from the port to the beach city of Pattaya about one hour away. The bus dropped us off in front of Mike's Mall a large building about six stories high with escalators and one bank of elevators, There were many vendors on each floor. Money exchange on the first floor. Several places to eat and a grocery store. There were shops and restaurant along the street in both directions from the mall. There was a Starbucks a couple of blocks away with free Wi Fi.
We booked an excursions with Red Lotus Travel online from the ship. Red Lotus gave a package for all the ports. The drive and guide was waiting for us at the pier. The driver took us to Ho Chi Minh City where we visited the war museum and the tunnels. The guide spoke very good English. There were four of us on this tour.
Red Lotus had a driver and guide waiting for us on arrival. They took us for a tour of Halong Bay. They rented a boat that included lunch for us. We toured the bay and visited the cave. The guide and driver drove us to Hanoi to the Sheraton Hanoi where we had made our own reservations. The price of the tours included lunch and admissions to all sited visited. The next morning the driver and guide picked us up at the hotel for a tour of Hanoi. We attempted to visit the memorial of Ho Chi Minh but the lines were very long with students and over visitor, We visited a couple other locations in the city and returned to the Ho Chi Minh Memorial after it was closed. We took pictures of the area. We went to a water puppet show and shopping after. We returned to the ship later in the evening.
No excursion. The cruise port offered two free bus rides to the malls. We took one of the buses rides to a drop off point near the MRT trains bought a train pass that is good on the trains, buses, ferries and the tram to Victoria Peak. The first day we visited the peak, walked around the city and took a ferry to the other side of the harbor to return to the ship. The second day we left the ship by cabs to the J W Hong Kong Marriott for a three day stay. We use the pass to go to Stanley Market, the Night Markets. We visit the Big Buddha by train to the station near the tram to the big Buddha. The tram to the Big Buddha is owned by a private company and requires the purchases of tickets to use the tram. The lines were very long it took almost two hours to be seated in a cable car. The other option is to take a ferry from Central Ferry Terminal to Lantau Island and take a bus to the Big Buddha the MRT pass can be used for the ferry and the buses on the island.
The luggage was located in one area. There was a shortage of porters in the area. The porters were very good. They waited in line until the taxi becomes available and helped loaded the taxi. There were plenty to cabs available. The port staff handled the line of passengers very well loading five of six cabs at a time. The line was long but move fairly fast. The taxi took us directly to J W Marriott Hotel in a short period of timel
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