Five More Sea Days On the Sky

Being at sea on a luxurious cruise ship can be more important than ports for some people.  Trans-oceanic voyages provide the ultimate journey for such folks.

While we plan our vacations based on destinations, Julie and I also love time at sea.

We wouldn't have taken several cruises from Los Angeles to Hawaii if we didn't appreciate both.

We understood that visiting Norway and Iceland from Southampton, England, on a two week cruise would require that half of the days would be at sea in order to spend the other half on land.

Having three Iceland ports cancelled and only one replaced by a previously unscheduled port meant instead of a 7:7 ratio of sea days to port days we would actually experience 8:5.  We understand the Captain and crew want to keep us all safe, but having flown across the ocean, it would be a lie to say we weren't disappointed to miss our two major Iceland ports.

Nonetheless, we enjoyed our additional sea days.

As from the outset of our voyage, the live entertainment in lounges, cappuccino carefully prepared at the International Café, terrific meals, historical presentations and time to simply relax and enjoy the ocean views kept us happy.

On the way back, a British guest who had been a foot soldier in the Falklands War made an interesting presentation about his experiences, including a bout with frostbitten feet that still bother him to this day.  Not that it had anything directly related to the region of our voyage, but we were engaged by his tales.

I have mentioned the wonderful production shows a couple of times, promising to share some details.  We were treated to three new shows that Princess has introduced on their newest ships, including Sky.

"Rock Opera" is the most conventional of the three, featuring powerful vocals on very recognizable songs.  It is similar to the Princess shows "Encore" and "Bravo," but we thought Sky Princess had the best cast of singers we have heard on any ship.  Each of the four lead vocalists are stars in their own right.

The most ground-breaking show would have to be "5-Skies," with a futuristic setting and a format not unlike a video game.

Once again, terrific vocals and dancing.  I'm not sure if it features mostly original songs or simply recent popular songs with which we aren't familiar, but they were all delivered with authenticity and vocal chops that kept the audience engaged.

Our favorite show was "Spotlight Bar," in which "this imaginative show transports guests to a vibrant bar atmosphere where they connect with local storytellers who share tales of their colorful lives through song."

With five sea days cruising from Isafjordur to Southampton, the final leg of our cruise became more like a trans-Atlantic, although windmills in the ocean were unusual sights.

Upon arriving in Southampton, we boarded our Princess shuttle, thinking it would not be terrible if our flight was overbooked and enticements of a few hundred dollars were proferred induce us to stay over in London or perhaps return to the city of Bath.

That was not to be, but getting to the port proved to be a breeze.  With plenty of time before our flight, we went to a casual eatery and split a huge hamburger for lunch, so we wouldn't find ourselves starving on the plane.

When air plans go awry, remember good times at sea!

Rather than non-stop flights like we had outbound, our return flight would require a three hour layover in Chicago's O'Hare Airport.  As we all know, any time a plane touches down, there is the chance for something to go wrong, and our next flight was delayed...delayed again... cancelled...and eventually our entire section of gates was shut down for the night.

We headed to our new gate and waited longer, with a total four hour additional delay stretching our layover to seven hours.  In any case, we eventually got on a flight, too sleepy to watch a movie, and made it home safely albeit well after midnight.

While not the best ending possible, it had been another terrific cruise, and Sky Princess has a wonderful crew who always made us feel at home.

In fact, we are already planning a return to Iceland on Princess, visiting the ports we missed as well as going to Scotland and UK ports.  Princess gave us future cruise credits equal to what we paid for two days of our trip, and they will be applied to that new cruise.

Bottom line, those two extra sea days of great onboard entertainment, delicious meals and open bars were free of charge.  Being treated fairly always gives us warm feelings toward a business.  Thanks, Princess!