Day 1 – Lima, Peru

Nov 19th – Lima, Peru

Seabourn Quest – Patagonia & Antarctica Exploration

Today is the first day of our first Seabourn Cruise. This will be the 31 Day Patagonia/Antarctica adventure. Antarctica has been one of our dream destinations for some time and we have researched the various options available. The first decision to make is whether to go on a ship that offers landings on the continent or sails near the continent. Ships carrying more than 500 passengers may not send passengers ashore. This rules out the mass market cruise lines who only offer sailings that go near the continent. When you start to research the various cruise lines that offer landings, you will find the luxury lines like Seabourn and the expedition lines like Quark.

We found that Quark and some of the other expedition lines offered more landings per day, but also more austere accommodations. We chose the Seabourn Quest since they offered their luxury experience along with Antarctica landings and the price was competitive when we booked one of the early season sailings.

We left San Diego on 13 November and spent 6 days pre-cruise visiting Machu Picchu. I will write about that experience later, but I want to focus now on the cruise portion which started on 19 November.

Leaving San Diego and Arrival in Lima

Our driver picked us up at 4:30 AM for our 6:15 AM Delta Flight to Atlanta which would connect to another Delta flight non-stop to Lima, scheduled to arrive a little after midnight.

My sister, Cindy, and her husband, Brad, will be joining us on this adventure.

Machu Picchu Pre-Cruise adventure

For those considering a pre-cruise trip to Machu Picchu, we learned that the Lima Airport Hotel, (Costa del Sol Wyndham Lima Aeropuerto ) would store our bags for the 5 days we would be visiting Machu Picchu and Cusco. The trains to Machu Picchu and the Flights to Cusco restrict baggage to basically a carry on – so it is best to travel light and store your bags in Lima. The Lima airport also offers a luggage storage service called “Left Luggage” for a fee.

We used a travel company called Coltur that put together an outstanding trip in conjunction with our travel agent – Craft Cruises. At this point we continued to Cusco and Machu Picchu but I will skip this part of the trip for now and proceed as if we went directly to the ship.

Peru Immigration and Customs

While researching the procedures for Peruvian Customs I came across a Peruvian customs declaration form HERE. This lists a variety of electronic equipment and limits the quantity that you are permitted to bring into Peru duty free. As it turns out, we were never required to fill out this form or an Immigration form. Clearing Customs and Immigration on our arrival was quick and easy. After we claimed our luggage we had to send them thru large X-ray machines, but we didn’t see anyone get asked any questions while we were in the X-ray line.

Transfer from the Airport to the Callao Cruise Port

The Seabourn Quest would be moored in the Callao Cruise Port. Vehicle access to the ship is limited to companies that have special permits and their vehicles must have a rotating beacon type light on their dashboard. This eliminates most taxis that are available in the taxi stand. I recommend arranging your transfer in advance with a company that has port access. Otherwise, you will be dropped of at the port gate and must transfer to the ship using the shuttle bus that runs from the gate to the ship.  The transfer company we used, arranged by our tour company “Coltur”  was “TransPeru” HERE

Our tour company arranged for a small bus – 20 seats – to take the four of us and our baggage to the ship. The ride to the ship took about 20 minutes and another 5 minutes or so to clear security at the port gate. We arrived at the Seabourn Quest gangway a few minutes later.

Arrival at the Seabourn Quest

Four or five smiling crew-members greeted us at the bottom of the gangway while dockworkers in orange vests gathered our luggage. We were expecting to have to show some sort of paper work before we boarded the ship, but we were simply waved aboard. Once we boarded the ship, we passed thru a standard metal detector and the security guard asked us for our name and suite number. He checked his computer and welcomed us aboard after he confirmed our name and cabin number matched and directed us to the Grand Salon on Deck 6 where we would complete our check-in. The gangway was on Deck 4 and we took the elevator to 6 and continued to walk aft, following the signs to check in.

There were 10 stations set up to accommodate guests. There wasn’t anyone else waiting or being served when we arrived. Check-in was very quick and after they confirmed our credit card and took our picture, we were on our way with our cruise cards. We didn’t fill out the health questionnaire – maybe that is a requirement for USA departures only.

On the way out of the lounge, there was a small podium set up with a crewmember to handle requests for any celebrations or dietary restrictions. We are celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary and they made of notation and asked us which day we would like to celebrate the occasion.

Our Suite

The Seabourn Quest is gorgeous inside, with everything sparkling and looking new. Our suite, 522, was toward the front the ship and one deck lower than the Grand Salon. Once inside our suite, we were surprised that all our luggage was already delivered – that set a record for us in the speed of getting our luggage. A few minutes later our stewardess, Sandra, introduced herself and offered us some champagne and canapes from a silver tray. She was very friendly and charming. We learned that she was from Malaga, Spain, and was on her first Seabourn contract joining the Quest only a few weeks ago. Sandra showed us around our suite and made us feel very welcome. She made an outstanding first impression for our first cruise on Seabourn.

Suite 522 is nice and roomy for a verandah stateroom. The bathroom is huge and has a dedicated shower, double sinks and a full-sized tub. The closet is a large walk-in closet with plenty of space for clothes along with several drawers. The rest of the suite has numerous drawers and there is plenty of space for storage. The deck is a nice size with a table and two lounging chairs with separate foot rests.

The TV is a 23” flat screen, which now seems small, but it is perfectly fine for our cabin. The small refrigerator held the beverages we selected during our pre-cruise check-in along with a bottle of Jack Daniels. Sandra asked if we would like anything else and I asked for a bottle of Grand Mariner which was promptly delivered in about 1 hour.

Lunch in the Colonnade

It was almost 3 PM which was the closing time for the Colonnade today. The Colonnade is one of the dining venues and is the closest thing to a LIDO deck you will find on Seabourn. Lunch is served buffet style, with a nice selection of self-served dishes along with some meat and fish that you must request and they are served by the staff. There are some additional items listed on a large chalkboard behind the buffet which you may or may not find on the line. Simply ask for what you don’t see, and they will bring it to you at your table.

After the main buffet line, which wraps around and forms an L shape, there is another buffet area which serves salads and other cold items, including some of the largest shrimp you will find on any cruise ship.

During lunch you seat yourself with your food and a waiter/waitress will soon appear to take your beverage order. Everything on Seabourn is included in the basic fare (Except for Spa services, Casino, Retail shops and expensive wines or other high-end drink selections.) Your cruise card will most often remain in your pocket except when you need it to scan off the ship.

As long as you are seated before closing time, you can stay as long as you would like. Before they close the buffet line, the staff will ask if you want to make any final selections before they wrap things up for that meal service.

Seabourn Square and the “Front Desk”

We had arranged a private cooking/food tour in Lima tomorrow. The ship will be spending the night in Callao. Our meeting place for the tour was at the Plaza San Miguel, about 6 miles away, and was also the drop off spot for the complimentary Seabourn Shuttle. Our meeting time was 8:30 AM but we learned that the first shuttle bus wasn’t scheduled to leave the ship until 9 AM – so we would have to make other arrangements by taking the port shuttle to the port gate and then get a taxi or Uber from there.

NOTE: Seabourn Square is the location of the library, computer terminals and a Starbucks equivalent coffee bar, complete with sandwiches, espresso drinks, ice cream and pastries. They also have alcohol available to make Irish coffees and other similar drinks.

Seabourn doesn’t have a traditional front desk, but a separate area in Seabourn Square called Guest Services. There are 3 desks in this area and staff is available 24 hours to help in any issue from getting tours to questions about your bill.

I stopped by guest services in the Seabourn Square and explained my problem with the private tour and the meeting time and a helpful staff person made a phone call and then explained that they would run a shuttle bus at 8AM to accommodate our early starting time.

I have learned that on Seabourn, that you should always ask for whatever you would like, even if it is not an advertised service or outside normal hours, and they will try to meet your request. They may not be able to accommodate every request, but they don’t default to No as their first response.

Mandatory Guest Emergency Drill

Our next major event was the Mandatory Guest Emergency Drill which was scheduled for 5:30 PM. All guests have the same muster location which is the Main Dining Room (called The Restaurant) in the center of the ship on Deck 4. They scanned our room key at the door and once everyone was seated, they proceeded with the standard emergency procedures description followed by a demonstration of donning a life jacket. I can’t say for certain, but the script read by the Captain sounded very much like the script we heard numerous times on Holland America – which is a sister line to Seabourn – so I suspect that certain procedures are getting standardized.

As soon as the drill was over, we headed back to our cabin to finish unpacking.

Welcome Aboard Party

After we were settled, we went up to Deck 8, by the pool, to catch the end of the Welcome Aboard Cocktails and Cruise Directors Introductions. The Cruise Director, Jan, was wrapping up when we arrived but we were able to hear the excellent singer, Anne, and the Seabourn Band. Once the band finished playing, we spent a few minutes exploring some of the open decks above the pool area. We noticed that there was a small refrigerated bench with a glass door that contained a variety of complementary soft drinks and beer. If you don’t like being nickled and dimed on the mass market lines, there is another option, albeit more expensive, with the luxury lines such as Seabourn and Crystal.

Dinner in the Colonnade

Dinner is available in 4 venues: The Colonnade, The Restaurant, Thomas Keller Grill and the Patio Grill. Room service is available 24/7 and during dinner hours you can order off The Restaurant Menu and they will serve your dinner course by course in your suite.

We headed to the Colonnade for dinner, expecting it to be buffet style as it was during lunch, but we were seated by the staff and presented with menus. No buffet style for dinner. We had a choice of Pan Seared Atlantic Salmon or Prime Rib. I had the prime rib which was delicious. Judy was able to get an end cut, which she found very tasty.

NOTE: The menu for each dinner venue is delivered to your room the evening before to help with your dining venue selection. Copies of the menus and Daily Herald can be found HERE.

The Restaurant has the most options for dinner and is also the most formal, requiring a tuxedo or suit and tie on formal night. On formal nights, the other dining venues maintain the “Elegant Casual” dress code which prohibits jeans and requires a collared shirt (jacket suggested). Seabourn is a little more dressy than the mass market lines. (If you want the Classic Formal Night experience then Cunard line is your best and possibly last choice for old school formal nights.)

Dinner took almost 2 hours – longer than we expected – but in the future we will let our server know if we want faster service and will see if they can adjust their pace accordingly. If the ship is not meeting your expectations, a polite, discreet comment to the management is appreciated – closer to the time of service rather than on the post cruise survey.

The food was fabulous, served hot and in reasonable portion sizes.

Evening on board

The evening’s entertainment was a local Peruvian Show at 9:45 in the Grand Salon on Deck 6. We took a pass on this show and headed back our cabin to finish getting settled.

Our room was prepared for the evening, with the bed turned down, the next day’s Daily Herald, the menus and a breakfast hang-tag laid out on the bed along with 2 of the largest pillow chocolates we have experienced on any cruise line.

The breakfast hang tag offers pretty much anything you might desire from standard egg orders to Eggs Benedict including Belgian waffles and French toast. I am almost certain that you could write in any request on this tag and they would probably bring it the next morning.

We had a wonderful first day on Seabourn and are looking forward to a fantastic cruise.

Seabourn publishes a cruise blog which can be found HERE

 

This entry was posted in Callao (Lima), Peru, South America