Hi Steve and welcome to HT!

I have merged your post with a topic already open on the Island Escape. You may find some information in earlier posts.

luci

Hi steve,
I am going on this cruise , flying from manchester to frankfurt then to sau paulo.

ali

HI nice to see someone else going on this one. We fly out from Manchester too, but we are going to Sao Paolo via Paris due to arrive 06-55am Sunday morning.

Steve

Hi I am going on my first cruise on the island escape - med charm on 30 may 06. Can anyone tell me were smoking is and isnt allowed,I am a bit worried as I have a lung complaint. Lynne

Hello to the Brazil cruisers. You must be getting excited as the trip draws nearer! Will you report back on your experience? I have considered this crossing and would love to hear about the ports, weather, sea conditions etc.

Hello Isize,

As far as I can remember, there is no smoking in any of the restaraunts.
On deck the left hand side -port side - is no smoking area , and that includes the outside eating area of the Beachcomber Restaurant.
There are smoking areas in the bars, but lots of the places are non smoking, and I think the shows are non smoking too.

You will have a wonderful time though. It is one of the most friendly ships we have been on. In fact we still keep in touch by e - mail with two of the staff on the IE.

Hope I have been some help.

Wish I was going too.

Marn.

Hi backysteve,

We went on this cruise the other way, two years ago.
We flew to Lisbon, sailed to Tenerife, Cape Verde, across the atlantic to Recife, Salvador, Buzios, Rio and Sao Paulo.

It is worth doing both Sugar Loaf and Corcovado in one trip., and of course you must see Copacabana and Ipanema beaches. Which you may see on the trips. It is a wonderful place, one which you will never forget.

There was a carnival on in Salvador when we were there, so that made for a good day out. - parties in the streets.

Recife is good for the beach.

Crossing the equator is good fun. People getting dunked in the pool, and you all get a certificate to proove that you have crossed it.

The captain of the Island Escape is one who will join in with the fun and games. It is a very friendly ship.

Hope you enjoy.

Marn and Mike.

Hi Guys ..and Girls.

We are a young couple 22 and 26 . going on the island escape on the 4th March 06 for the Transalantic Brazilian Cruise, and we are so excited.

I have been on this ship twice before, where this is my boyfriends first time cruising !..

I have heared it has been taken over by another company.. so was just wondering how this would effect us. ( hopefully for the better !) Also i've been hearing rumours that there is an option to go AI when on board, which will be handy as we are hoping to drink our weight in freebies ! ha ha.

for anyone who has not been, I remember the gym being of good standard!... which is reasurring after the amount of food that it to consumed!.

Pool is tiny and salt water... so wouldnt bother...

staff where fabulous .. and so friendly.

another point, Does anyone know how much the exc to Rio costs.? We have booked the extra days stay in Rio before boarding the ship and am guessing it may be cheaper to do our own thing ...

really intrested in the helicopter ride over the Christ statue... any info .. would be really helpful

xxx thanks in advance xx

Karen and Andy .

x

hi karen and andy

look forward to finding out how you got on. my parents are booked on this cruise in november so info about whether the drinks are AI, trips, etc would be much appreciated

Hi we are booked on the island escape in Oct is it true that the ship has had a refit as I have read that she was looking old and tired in someones review, we are doing the Mediterranean Charm & Discovery on 24th oct sounds a nice itinerary. Has anybody alse booked this cruise. We have got a free all inclusive. Really looking forward to this cruise
Thanks for your time
Happy cruising Gail & Rod

Hello everyone
Was wondering if i could pick your brains again ! Ive had a price for aug 2007 for a cruise on the island escape all inc , whats it like?
The price is £2748 for 3 ad 1 ch for 1 week, which is working out at £648 each. Also had a price for a cruise and stay which is £3650 half board in Majorca and all inc on ship, this is working out at £912.50 per person, what do you think of these prices? We are staying in a family cabin on deck 5 if we book that is. The children are 18 and 15 so they are classed as adults.
Thanks and any advice would be good, just one more quiestion, do you think when thompsons cruises go on sale they will be around the same price? Only ive been told by the travel agent that they will be a lot more expensive.

Well ive gone and booked it at last!!!! Im going on the escape in aug 07 for 1 week and a week in magaluf in majorca.
Thanks for all your advice and if you have any advice on trips, casino, and anything else i would be happy as this is my first cruise.

Hello all
Could anyone who has been on the escape advise on all inclusive please, ive heard that the a/inc is from 10am-2am is this the case? If i wanted wine with my meal would it be free by the glass as i usually order a bottle?

What type of shows do they have on, and are the cinama films new releases? Is it very busy in the main bars that have entertainment on, we wont have to get in very early to get a seat will we?

Has anbody been on the med isles itinery and if so advise on prices of day trips and recommendations.

We have 8 in our party now so wondered about dining would we get a table of our own do you think?

Whats the chances of getting a free cabin upgrade on this ship, and do they have offers about upgrades nearer the time or can you go to the info desk on the day?

Any hints about the safes or anything of help at check in desk etc?

And finally do we have to pay so much a day automatically for tipping etc or is this included in price?
Do we get charged 15% service charge even if we are all inc when waiters serve us?HELP PLEASE im so inexperianced with cruising.

Thanks again. xliz

Hi booked for next year and wanted to know about day trips etc, going on The Med Isles cruise. Thankyou.

Surely someone has been on this ship and can tell me loads of good stuff about it????? Please x

Any info on this ship would be great, also anyone done a stay then cruise before? whats the entertainment like on this ship? any help please as first time cruiser!!!

Liz

I have merged your post with a topic already open on the Island Escape. You should find some information in earlier posts.

luci

We did a stay and cruise in 2003, then 2 week cruise in 2004. Lots of really nice things about the ship- nice bars, public areas, eat when you want to, crew and staff were all really friendly and helpful. The show team put on a different show each night in the theatre, in the other show lounge there were game shows etc in the evening. During the day, competitions round the pool, talks with the captain, bingo, casino lessons, all sorts of things if you wanted them. The only thing we didn't like was that they were a bit TOO pushy when it came to getting people involved. Last year we went on the Emerald and they had a much more laid back approach.
Anything specific you want to know please ask- I still have my old cruise folder, and I am sure there are people who have been more recently who can help.
Reading your earlier post- most tables are for 8 so you should get a table to yourselves- might have to wait for one though, try not to go at the busiest times. Upgrades- depends when you go- they try hard to fill the ship so there are rarely empty cabins in peak times.

Hi

Have just booked a last minute deal on island cruise on the med spirit going 8/8/2006.

This is our first cruise for my wife and i advice on shore excursions would be appreciated the trips we were thinking of taking are Messina, Naples and Pisa, are they good value for money do they charge to take you from the ship to the port. Should we pre-book the tours or is it better value booking independitly when we dock.

What is it like on board, food, drinks prices what to avoid. We are on Flammingo deck inside cabin any opinions on this deck.

Is It true you cannot bring any alcohol on ship.

tony