Simply the Best (of Everything)

Q – We are considering joining our church group for a tour our Minister is leading to Egyot and the Holy Land. As part of the trip, we’ll be spending nine nights in Egypt and we’re a little nervous. We’ve never been to Europe or the Middle East so this is kind of a big deal for us. We’re in our thirties and in great shape. It’s more the political situation that causes us, particularly my husband, to be nervous about this. We do need to make a decision as the deposit is due this coming week so a prompt response would be appreciated. Thanking you in advance for all you do. Please do not use my name.

A – As you may have noticed, we protect the names of anyone who participates in our Q and A. The fact is that no one knows what the political situation will be in Egypt in six months. You have already failed our “Anxiety Meter” test and, on that basis alone, we would suggest you not do the trip. There are lots of places you can go to do humanitarian work or practice the involvement of you faith without placing yourself in an uncomfortable situation.

In the most recent parliamentary elections, Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood has made some significant gains.  No one in Egypt is expecting the strict enforcement of Muslim Law but there are political figures who are gaining favor in Egypt who believe that bikinis, alcohol, and anything else that smacks of vice, should be eliminated. The up side is that one out of every eight jobs in Egypt is tourism-related so we really think there will be a compromise as it affects rules governing tourist behavior. Tour groups are entering the country at the moment but we are wondering how experienced your Minister is at handling emergencies in the far corners of the world. Who, we wonder, is actually operating the tour and how tuned in are they to local disturbances on the ground? We do encourage the non-timid to continue travel to Egypt but only if they are aware of potential difficulties and only if they are being looked after by the best possible ground staff. Church groups, sorry, have a dismal track record when it comes to intelligent selection of on-site affiliates, and often choose tour operators based solely on cost.

Q – Cool site but we I wish you could tell us where we can find you on Facebook. My wife and I have tried several searches and we can’t seem to find anything.

A – Well first you have to sign in to Facebook. Then put our name, Churchill and Turen Ltd., or our web site name, www.traveltruth.com in the space before the slashmark. Then search. You will, of course, discover that we are not there. It isn’t so much the privacy issues, although they are rather serious, it isn’t so much that we are against enriching Mark Zuckerberg even further so he has a nice little nest egg for his digital retirement, it isn’t that we are afraid we would attract new “friends”, even though they are not really friends because our friends have to do more than click a finger on the word “like”. No, we’re not on Facebook because we think it is so silly and juvenile and and most of what we see there is the work of the terminally bored.

You will note that we have Facebook links and you can push any of our stuff into cyberspace to be read by “friends”. But we like you to push the buttons and initiate the action. We’re too shy to do it ourselves. We’re extremely comfortable just chatting with folks who call us on the telephone or write to us in this space. We don’t need to see your wall, know where you went to high school, or see pictures of what you ate for lunch. We just want to share some of what we think may help you travel more efficiently, more ntelligently, and more safely.

And yes, we do see the hypocrisy of our stance. We know this site is a form of social media. And we may have to go on Facebook at some point if enough of our “fans” insist. But for now, we’ll stick with “95% of it is just silly.”

Q – My 18 year-old son and I will be spending a week in Lisbon as part of his graduation present. We’re pretty much set but were wondering if you had sources that could direct us toward a shop that sells the best hand-painted tiles in the city. We hear they are beautiful. My son is into photography. We’ll be staying at the Four Seasons and we have sightseeing planned but we were wondering if there is anything like a Photography tour of the city? 

A – There are several excellent tile shops in Lisbon but the best is currently thought to be Fabrica Sant’Anna. We would suggest that you contact the Hotel Concierge, Luis Miguel, and have him set your son up with a motorcycle sidecar photo tour. He should absolutely love it.

Q – I wonder if you can advise me if I can be assured that my new Verizon 4G LTE phone will work on an upcoming trip to Germany and Austria. The salesman in the Verizon store said it would but he was all of eighteen and told me he had never been to Europe.

A – Well he probably has spent virtual time there. Our guess is that you will encounter problems. If you absolutely need to have a phone that works in any particular country, you need to have a local sim card and a phone that connects to the local wireless network. 4G technology is an improvement but the fact is that  a smartphone that is going to work on a 700MHz in this country, will probably not work in Germany which uses a different radio frequency combination. That is the part they don’t normally bother to explain when you are purchasing a smartphone two-year plan. There are going to be tons of roaming issues because carriers in various parts of Europe are using LTE as the next-gen operating system but they have been slow to build the new networks after committing a lot of money to the old 3G system. While 4G LTE is the new standard, there are relatively few networks using the technology that have yet been deployed. Easy roaming in Europe is, we believe, as much as a decade away. Thankfully, there are some immediate alternatives to connectivity including so-called international universal sim card phones, satellite phones, which always work must must be used outdoors to get proper signals, or Skype and other cloud-based technologies. You can get hooked up anywhere with the right equipment. But walking into AT&T or Verizon and plunking down a few hundred dollars for a phone that “easily roams Europe” is putting your faith into a portion of the business world that does has done little to earn your trust.

Q – I just happened upon your site and am so happy that I did …what a concept, telling the truth! My husband and I love to travel and will be taking a first cruise on Sea Dream 1 in November. The reviews I have read on those “other” sites (before I found yours, of course) are mostly positive but now that I have found you, I would love to have some honest feedback. How would you compare Sea Dream to Regent, which we have traveled on several times. Keep up the great work! This will now be added to my “favorites” and I will be checking back on a daily basis.

A – Well please don’t come back daily – that would make us work even longer hours  than we are at the moment. Sea Dream’s two old yachts, let’s be honest, that’s what they are, will not make a great first impression. Sea Dream 1 carries just 100 guests. It is extremely laid back even compared to the comparatively low key Regent experience. The Sea Dream cabins are bound to disappoint., They are smallish and the bathrooms are, shall we say, more “yacht-like” than you may be expecting. The Regent ships, by comparison, offer the largest standard cabins in the luxury category and the two larger ships int he fleet carry 700 guests. So you will be traveling with 700 fewer people with fewer facilities on an older ship with smaller than normal size cabins.

But here’s the thing. We love Sea Dream and so will you if you just make a little extra effort to get your hands around the concept. Sea Dream is not meant to compete with lines like Crystal, Silverseas, or Regent. It is in a class totally by itself. The old Sea Goddess line ships are really yachts and about 70% of the on board guests either own their own boats or have rich friends who do. The food on Sea Dream is as good as the food on Regent although less formal. On Regent ships there is a restaurant called Signatures that is actually operated by Le Cordon Bleu. But although they do not advertise it, we have found French chefs in the dining room on our last three Sea Dream yachts. The difference is that on Sea Dream you may very well be dining outside under the stars on a lovely starlit evening. The service on Sea Dream is better and more personalized. The lecture programs, on board dining options, casino facilities on Regent, and the luxurious accommodations are all superior to what you will find on Sea Dream. But the staff will know your name on Sea Dream by the second day and the chef will prepare virtually anything you would like if you ask him nicely.

Many of the under 1,000 guest five-star lines advertise that they “go to ports that the big ships can;t reach”. The truth is that, for the most part, they don’t. The ports are very much same old with the exception of certain ports in southern Italy and the Greek islands. But Sea Dream really does do exquisite itineraries. Their port selection is nearly always superior to their larger sisters in the luxury category.

It looks as though you will be sailing out of Barbados. We hope it is toward the latter part of the month. So no cocktail dresses, no ties, and prepare to enjoy the elegantly casual yachting lifestyle with minimal expectations on the size of your cabin. In the right set of circumstances, Sea Dream is one of our most treasured cruising experiences. We hope you feel the same. We trust these positive comments do not make you suspect we are loosing our credibility.

Q – We’re in our late fifties, still quite active, and we travel from our home in Southern California about three times a year. We’ll spend somewhere between $15,000 – $20,000 on average per trip. Our problem is that we’ve done most of the destinations that our travel agent has been to and we are looking for something in, say, Africa that is really different. I own my own company and I can get away for up to three weeks at a time. We love seeing authentic peoples and we love to line our walls with blow-up prints of our travels. In fact we actually have a room thst is a complete travel photo gsllery. My agent suggested we visit traveltruth and I wonder if anything comes to mind that might be different than South Africa, done two safaris, or Kenya and Tanzania, where we’ve been before?

A – The good news is that you will never be able to visit the places you should see in your lifetime. Exciting, off-the-tourist-track destinations exist all over the world. There is just no justification for boredom. We are seriously thinking about getting a hotel room near Dupont Circle in Washington D.C. during Election Weekend, just to watch the anxiety on the faces of the locals as America votes. But that is not what we will recommend to you.

Look into a new, and fascinating discovery tour called “The Great Empires of West Africa” operated by luxury tour operator Travcoa. This 19-Day tour includes Bamako, Timbuktu, Mopti, Dogon Country, Kumasi, the Cape Coast, Accra, Lome, Ouidah and Cotonou. You can see a rare presentation of the Dogon Mask Dance and watch a war dance performed for the King ofr Abomey in his palace. If you think the shopping is good on Melrose Avenue, try walking the voodoo market in Benin.  There are opportunities to dine in the homes of locals and you will get to ride across Saharan sand dunes on a camel en route to meet the Tuareg, the nomadic “blue men” of the desert. Have you done all of those already?

Q – Wow, fascinating site with great information. Yesterday, we received a mailer from Tauck Tours, a firm that does quite well in your ratings, that was announcing a new air deal to Europe. If we are reading it right, and my bifocals are not failing me, Tauck will fly us up and back to Europe from Cleveland for $1290 per person and $3290 if we want to spring for business class. I’ve checked, and when you add in the taxes and the transfers, the air deal would seem to be saving me a lot of money. Are there restrictions and are we missing something here. Keep upo the good work.

A – Congratulations. You’ve actually found one of the few legitimate deals from a top quality supplier. It should save you in the neighborhood of $1,000 in total. There are only a few restrictions. You have to travel between March 1st and August 31st this year on any of Tauck’s many programs within Europe. You have to book the package this month (February) Finally, you have to fly out of a major gateway city. Cleveland certainly qualifies. This deal can be used in conjunction wioth Tauck’s land tours as well as the company’s highly rated River Boat programs. Generally speaking, you will find that Tour Operators are much more honest in their advertising claims than cruise lines. “Free Cruise Air” is just one example.

Q – After spending two weekends reading everything on this site, (it goes nicely with Red Bull), we thought we would ask about the 100th Anniversary of the Titanic Cruise sailing out of New York on April 10th. Is this thing legitimate? Do we have to worry about the Captain. I’ve never heard of Azamara and we are justifiably nervous but also fascinated. Is this a scam? Is it safe?

A – Yee of  little faith. You must be a follower of  Geraldo Rivera. Azamara is a newly-named cruise line that uses mid-size ships that were originally built by the, now defunct, Renaissance Cruises. We rate Azamara at 4.5 Stars and it delivers a high level of personal service, excellent food, and some rather port-intensive itineraries. The line’s President, Larry Pimenthal, is someone we admire a great deal. He was formally CEO of Seabourn and Sea Dream. You would be in safe, caring hands.

The ships sails round-trip out of New York on April 10th, returning on the 18th. At 2:20 am. on April 15th, passengers on the Titanic Memorial cruise will be in the exact location where the Titanic hit an iceberg one hundred years earlier.

The cruise has been chartered and designed by a British Travel Agency named Miles Morgan. The only port is Halifax and you should consider that the Atlantic, as we have all come to know, can be rough in April. Other than a potentially bumpy ride, we see no reason not to join this historic journey.  Azamara has made the cut as one of the “World’s Top Ten Cruise Lines”.

Q – Do you know of any cruise line that  likes to cook and serve organic food.?

A – Well we can’t imagine any cruise line would actually “enjoy” serving organic food given the cost. But cruise line marketing people understand that this segment of the market is growing and virtually every upscale cruise line now offers spa menus and a selection of some organic dishes. The next step, and plans are already underway, involves the opening of an actual alternative health food restaurant aboard ship. Oceania and Regent Seven Seas currently offer selections from Canyon Ranch Spa. One of the biggest misconceptions about cruising is that you are going to be fat and lazy for a week while lined up at the lunchtime buffet. In fact, the perpetually lazy tend to favor all-inclusive resorts. There is just too much walking about a ship and required mobility for full days in port to make a cruise attractive to couch potatoes. But sitting near a swimming pool or beach in a lounge chair just minutes from the all-you-can-eat buffet, now that’s resort living at its finest.

Generally speaking, the tirelessly healthy are quite pleased with the amount and variety of fruits and vegetables available on the Top Ten Cruise Lines. If there is any criticism of current cruise line menus, it seems to center around the paucity of fresh fish.

Q – We had dinner with friends last night from St. Louis who have joined us on a number of cruises. The entire evening was spent discussing the Costa Concordia situation. We were somewhat surprised by the advice you have offered to some folks who expressed concern about sailing a mega-ship in the future. We appreciate the honesty but we were curious if you are seriously advising people not to go on ships that carry several thousand guests and crew? Do you really think they are dangerous.

A – If we thought that, we’d probably work in plastics. No, the mega-ships are certainly not dangerous. But we would like to be as clear as possible in responding to your question:

We advise those who have serious anxiety about boarding a large ship to delay their vacation. We feel that a a vacation ought to involve several important stages and anticipation is one of them. We do not think you ought to travel on a ship that scares you.

Of course there is the question of whether or not a mega-ship is safe. We know the massive PR cruise machine will try to convince cruisers that there is no danger. And they are probably right but we do feel there are questions to which the industry has never provided satisfactory responses.

What kind of experiences dealing with large-scale emergencies at sea makes us feel that a low budget, international crew speaking a wide variety of languages, with little sophisticated safety training, can be relied upon to remain on ship to professionally assist passengers in dire straits?

We would hope  that the owners of the mega-ships, the world’s largest cruise lines, would admit that they have been less than clear about their overall plans to successfully evacuate several thousand passengers and crew from a ship that is taking on water and starting to list. This is information that consumers will now be demanding. It was never talked about much because it is such a “negative”.

There are, we believe,   construction issues as ships are growing top heavy to accommodate more revenue-producing venues. Ships are being built with lower drafts so they do not have to use tenders as much.

The end story will be “human error” . But we think it may go way beyond that. It is clear, very clear, that there can be another Titanic. The Costa Concordia was at sea with no weather issues, close to land. All systems were operating efficiently. It should have been a calm evening.

Q – We are seriously considering a cruise for our family sometime this year. We read what you had to say about school vacation time and the impact on cruise pricing so we were wondering when might be the best time to cruise in 2012. Simply put, when are the best prices? We’re not cheap but we may end up paying for as many as fourteen family members so cost is an issue. We are thinking about a ship that is large enough to have good facilities and small enough to evacuate in an emergency. Any guidance would be appreciated.

A – We are anticipating that you will see a general decline in cruise prices between the months of October through mid-December. This is not related to the Costa tragedy but is closely related to the fact that this is a Presidential Election year. History shows that people just do not like to travel during the two months leading up to a National Election and the month following the election. Travel executives chalk it up to a general malaise and feelings of  uncertainty. You are going to see some excellent pricing opportunities in November. Our view is somewhat contrary. We think that this election may get so repugnant that a significant number of potential cruisers will decide to leave the country for a short spell. Therre may be a mad scramble to get away from our TV’s by late October.

Q – We are just so upset about the tragedy in Italy and the way the Captain of a luuxury cruise ship would just walk away. My husband and I are taking our two daughters on a cruise out of Ft. Lauderdale to the Caribbean on Norwegian Cruise Line and we are seriously thinking of cancelling. Our travel agent says we should just let time pass, but I just cant look forward to a cruise four months away without thinking of what could go wrong. These poor people were just having dinner the first night out and look what hapopened. I guess my question has to do with all we are hearing on the news about big ships. Are they too big? If you were us, what would you do? We have not made final payment yet.

A – We have received a number of similar questions and we will try to be as specific as possible in our response.  There is now little doubt that something went terribly wrong aboard the bridge on the Costa Concordia. We suspect that the conclusion of the inquiries will be that the Captain did not follow his computerized routing and decided to do a “pass  by” to please someone on shore. We know that this has happened on other lines. In one incident, several years ago, a well known British Captain had his wife on board. He got a little too close to the rocks during the departure from Acapulco because he wanted to show his wife the Cliff Divers. He ran the ship aground.

But this is different. It is different because the evacuation procedures failed so miserably. This does raise some serious questions about the about of mega-ships to properly handle a real emergency at sea. The loss of life is tragic and we grieve for the victims and their families. There will be several major investigations that grow out of this event and we hope that crew training and preparation is at the forefront of those investigations. Yes, the Captain exercised poor , and now it seems, criminal judgement. But that will happen again. It is the crew’s lack of preparation that should be the primary focus of the investigation. We already know that some Captains like to do close-in “cruise bys”  to show off to friends ashore or crew with ties to the port. But there are legitimate concerns about the sourcing and training of low-cost mega-ship lines. And make no mistake about it, Costa is a budget line. They have beautiful ships but consumers, such as yourself, have to ask how it is that some cruise lines are able to come in at prices that are 200%-$400 lower then the lines lines in our “Top Ten Cruise Lines” Ratings.

The public will not believe that a low-priced bargain cruise may have implications regarding the quality of the crew, their background, and their training. Consumers believe that, when it comes to cruise vacations, the adage that “you get what you pay for” somehow does not apply. But ships have to make cuts somewhere to come in under $300 per person per day. Food is an obvious area of cuts. But attention to detail and safety may also be important components of price. We hope the inquiries focus on this area.

As to your specific question. We do think you should cancel your scheduled cruise. The fact that you are already concerned enough to write to us would indicate that you have anxiety about this trip. A vacation, we believe, ought to begin with the planning and anticipation stages of the journey. You should never begin a vacation unless you are comfortable. Think about waiting until you are comfortable with  the notion of cruising. You might also want to consider a rule that seems to apply to virtually every ship at sea. Space ratios matter. Look at a low density, under 1000 guests ship operated by a company with a distinguished operations history.

Q – I am writing on behalf of my parents who, in their early seventies, are going to be visiting Europe for the first time. My brother and I want to send them on a nice seven-to-ten day cruise in Europe. They have never been, so we were thinking of a cruise that does the British Isles. My Dad’s folks come from Wales. Here’s the problem. My folks are rabid non-smokers. The smell of tobacco literally makes them sick. So we’ve been looking at one of the small, upscale ships that does not allow smoking. So far, our Internet search is telling us that all of these ships allow smoking in various areas and some of them allow smoking in their cabins and balconies. Yet, when a new passenger boards the ship, like our folks, we would have no way of knowing if they had a no-smoking cabin. Friends turned us on to this web site and said you were honest. So please, tell us -honestly, what should we do?

A – Well based on your needs and the current tolerance among the luxury toward on board smokers, we don’t think any of them deserves your business. Our view is that smokers ought not be accommodated on any mode of transportation where it is not easy or safe to smoke outside. It is simply not safe to smoke on a cruise ship and it is especially dangerous to allow smoking on an outdoor balcony as winds can carry ashes back on to the decks.

Smokers, in our view, have no rights, when it comes to inflicting harm to others through noxious second-hand smoke. And since smokers are, essentially, suicidal, it might be best if they vacationed off on some smoking island of their own where they could inhale to their heart’s, dare we say, content. As a matter of fact, we seriously believe that separated vacation destinations for smokers are going to be trend in this country. For now, smokers can just pack up and head for China.

Here is what you are up against. A weak economy has made several cruise lines lean toward accepting a higher percentage of non-American guests. That increases the need for the various lines to allow more smoking then they would be inclined to do with an all-American clientele.  The best cruise line for non-smokers is Regent Seven Seas, which does not allow any smoking in cabins, balconies, or entertainment venues. They do not even allow smoking in their casinos. But there are sections of some lounges where smoking is permitted.

As to our recommendation: We do not think you should support the cruise industry’s current smoking policies. Instead, we would suggest that you look carefully at buying your folks one of the better escorted tour programs from one of the firms recommended in our ratings. They will not allow any smoking on their motor coaches or indoor venues.

Q – We are scheduled to take a cruise on a line called Azamara this coming August. It was to do the coastline of Italy near the area where the Luxury Liner went down. My husband wants to just cancel, saying the port pilots obviously do not know what they were doing. What is your take on this?

A – It is a bit early for us to have a take that is worth very much. The news is still just hours old and this is clearly a black mark for an industry that has an enviable safety record. If you cancel your cruise, we don’t know where you might go since staying at home is statistically far more dangerous. Flying in an airplane and cruising at sea are about the safest places you can be on this planet of ours.

The reporting in the early hours has been interesting because it refers to Costa’s Concordia, built in 2006 as a “luxury” vessel. In fact, it is a lovely vessel with modern interior design that appeals to it’s core Italian customers. But Costa, once an independent company, is now a brand in the Carnival Cruise Lines stable. In addition to Costa, Carnival owns well known brands Holland America, Princess Cruises, and the luxury line, Seabourn among other lines. Carnival is the largest cruise company in the world by a rather large margin. Costa is generally regarded as a budget or entry-level product with prices to match. Costa provides an “Italian Experience at Sea” and the ships feature Italian officers and cuisine. Costa markets heavily to Americans when their ships are in the Caribbean, but they are normally considered very much a Euro-centered product. The Concordia had very few Americans on board, and most of its 3200 passengers on this Med cruise were from Italy with about 500 Germans and a smattering of other nationalities. It is too early to know to what degree a local pilot was involved as the ship sailed close to land near Guglio, a small port not very far from the lush Tuscan landscape. One of the most important questions to be addressed in the next several days will center around the issue of just who was responsible for notifying the Captain of rocky reefs off shore. Of serious concern to us are the stated reports that the crew refused to launch lifeboats when it appeared that were severely needed and the general lack of information provided to passenge3rs based on reports we have seen. More specifically, a number of guests who boarded an early segment of the cruise on January 8t, were reportedly on board the Concordia for several days without being asked to attend a lifeboat drill. If these initial reports are true, and they are often not accurate when it comes to other transportation related events, It would appear, that this accident could cause some serious financial harm to the  parent company. However, Italian law is not the same as US law  in matters of gross negligence and the fact that Costa is a treasured Italian name could potentially be helpful. It does not appear that very many passengers purchased their tickets for this cruise int the US.

With that said, there are some general points we would make since we have received a number of questions related to this tragedy. In a general sense, consumers need to ask themselves what sort of things are being cut when they consider a mass market ship carrying thousands of guests at a price that is, perhapos, one quarter of the cost of one of the World’s Top Ten Cruise lInes. Exactly where are the cuts being made? Food is an obvious response, but what about crew and where and how they are sourced. What about educational requirements for crew? What about the amount of crew training time that goes into crew safety trraining? Who is operating the ship in the form of senior staff? Cruise passenegers have somehow swallowed the Kool Aid – they believe that the cruise lines are a great exception to the rule that “You Get What You Pay For.” They are not.

Q – OK, here’s the deal. My boyfriend is head of research at a Wall Street hedge fund. We’re both in our thirties and we both work long hours. I want to surprise him with a vacation he’ll never forget, taking him to a place where his Blackberry won’t function. We’re both into climbing and we’ve done some high altitude stuff  in the States. If at all possible, we’d like to keep the vacation under $10,000 for both is us, not including airfare or expenses. But is has to be absolutely awesome. Just found this site and thought you might be able to make a recommendation.

A – Well, first understand that the last time we did something adventurous it involved flying Premier Economy instead of Business Class on United. But we think you ought to look closely at a new program in Abercrombie and Kent’s “Extreme Adventures”. “Mount Kilimanjaro: The Roof of Africa by the Umbwe Route” involves a climb up one of Kilimanjaro’s most challenging and direct routes to the summit. But you will encounter mountain forests,alpine desert, and then and ice-covered summit. You will encounter few trekkers and be rewarded with one of the planet’s most incredible views, assuming you can see anything at all when you reach the peak. The one week trip has departures throughout the year and is priced at just under $3500 per person. The Expedition Guide will be Dismass Mariki, a registered “Head Guide” who has climbed to thre peak 176 times. The trip begins in Arusha, moves on to the Umbwe Caves witht he ascent from Barranco Camp. You then climb to Karanga and then Barafu Camp. Or, you could just go to Sandals.