Topic: well that was an experience

we have just got home last night from the island escape canaries week tour
i don't normally do this but ............
the boat is exhausted not just a "little tired" as i keep seeing on various forums
we were on deck 5 , the noise and damp smells and movement was horrendous all week !!!
the weather has been awful apart from Madeira where we had a sunny day
the ports of call i think were very disappointing
the norovirus was still very apparent as was the sounds of people being ill ,
constant hand sanitising , which i agreed with under the circumstances
we found the whole experience very tiring , not much sleep to be had , as the weather was so bad , and very rough in my opinion

yes the staff are WONDERFUL !!!! the quiz shows were fabulous the drinks were reasonably priced , the food was very nice , although i was getting more and more cooler food towards the end of the trip , which again is not good

would never again go on this ship , i think it wants scrapping and all the excellent staff should be given a more worthy place of work !!! which they deserved

i went with an open mind , and didn't expect too much after all what do you want for £500 for a weeks cruise !!
but i was quite disappointed overall
if the weather is bad it makes the world of difference as well , and we have also put all that into perspective

i can't see what the fun is in trying to get to your table with your bowl of soup , and your swaying sooooo much , and wondering whether you are gonna make it without covering someone on the way

anyway , any questions please feel free
all in all not for us , but its another experience to add to my life
Sharon x

Once again...Alang awaits...but then someone said there are plans
to spend four million Pounds on the ship.
Is that worth it, for a car ferry that will never quite make muster?


The word scuttle also comes to mind... as in..
Oh dear what an unfortunte accident.
Some idiot left the sea cocks open. Dammit!
.

QUOTE:

...the boat is exhausted not just a "little tired" as i keep seeing on various forums
we were on deck 5 , the noise and damp smells and movement was horrendous all week !!!

Firstly Sharon, I am sorry that you did not have a good experience.

All of Thomson's ship are old and a little 'tired' - but normally the on board experience and fares seems to compensate in most cruisers eyes, although 'Escape' is obviously not impressing anyone at present. Thomson certainly do not spend money on extensive refits of there ships, very often, if at all.

The ship is a converted 1982 Scandinavian ferry. She was plagued with sewage problems during her maiden year as Island Escape. In contrast Fred Olsen runs an ageing fleet and they are all in excellent condition.

The Canaries are subject to high winds in the winter which makes the seas rough. Even the biggest ships would rock and roll a bit.

QUOTE:

Once again...Alang awaits...but then someone said there are plans
to spend four million Pounds on the ship.

Four million is a pittance in ship refit terms. That will probably just buy new carpets and soft furnishings.

I know she is not the QE2 so any remote comparison is not fair, but Cunard spent 30 million on refitting the QE2 back in 1994 (one of many during her career)- Now that's what I call 'a refit'.

[QUOTE=Aplmac, Barbados;27494]Once again...Alang awaits...but then someone said there are plans
to spend four million Pounds on the ship.
Is that worth it, for a car ferry that will never quite make muster?


as i say .....scrap the ship and share the £4 million between the staff that work so hard to try and compensate for the s*** hole they offer you as a home for the week ............i only thank God i wasn't on for 2 !! , i would have left whatever the cost !

The only way they would scrap it is if nobody cruised on it and they were making losses. TUI actually OWN this ship so they would be reluctant to spend money on a charter. Of course the reason why Thomsons other ships don't get extensive refits is they are all charters and the only time it might possibly happen is when the charter expires. Apparently Destiny, Celebration and Spirit are all coming to the end of their charters and it may be a better option to charter newer ships rather than 'fix' the old ones. Actually the vibration on Celebration and Spirit is not fixable, if it was a spruce up would allow the ships to give many more years of service with more repeat passengers.

Are there any newer ships available for charter? I can't think of any.

QUOTE:

The Canaries are subject to high winds in the winter which makes the seas rough. Even the biggest ships would rock and roll a bit.

With the new bigger ships the stability has improved beyond recognition along with peoples expectations.:o
In her day she was considered fit for purpose as a car ferry short trips with a lot less passengers.
Conversion to a cruise ship traveling in the Ocean is a different kettle of fish. If we look back there was a swing from lots of small cargo ships and ferries to large container ships and super ferries this coincided with the growth in the cruise industry to cut costs as the cruise industry started to really grow some of the redundant ships were converted to fill the gap as the industry has proved sustainable purpose built cruise ships have been built.
These ships will keep going as long as they make a profit and when they don’t they will probably end up in the Far East opening new markets where passenger expectations are lower.

In my opinion, the price difference for a week on the Island Escape and one on a much, much classier ship is not that great. I really can't understand why people keep going on this heap of junk.

QUOTE:

In my opinion, the price difference for a week on the Island Escape and one on a much, much classier ship is not that great. I really can't understand why people keep going on this heap of junk.

Fully agree there are so many other boats doing the same route, and for families RCI all the way....

QUOTE:

Fully agree there are so many other boats doing the same route, and for families RCI all the way....

If she were a boat then she would be in the right place under the sea ;)