Good afternoon, Ms Pfeiffer,<\/p>\n
Although I\u2019ve long since returned to my daily routine after a wonderful trip, I\u2019d finally like to give you some feedback. First and foremost: the service provided by your travel agency is truly excellent; at every stage of the process \u2013 which was clearly well outside my area of experience \u2013 I felt very well looked after and supported. This was also true of the two staff members I was in contact with. As a result, the trip ultimately lived up to the \u2018brochure promises\u2019 in every respect \u2013 promises that one usually ends up having to compromise on. Looking back, I can say: everything was just right, everything was fulfilled and made possible, and it was an experience that exceeded my hopes and expectations.<\/p>\n
As I wanted to board directly from home for family reasons, I didn\u2019t mind the two-day delay to Good Friday (caused by cargo problems in Dublin). I was therefore able to take the lost notification dated 31 March in my stride with a smile on 1 April, five minutes before the scheduled departure, when I saw on Vesselfinder that the ship had only just reached Landsend and therefore couldn\u2019t possibly have arrived in Rotterdam on 1 April.<\/p>\n
I am by no means mentioning this as a criticism (I tend to blame the internet service provider for the lost email, as it was demonstrably not the only email sent to or from me around 1 April that Microsoft let slip through the cracks). Rather, it is a suggestion that you might include a reference to a vessel tracker in your \u2013 admittedly very carefully prepared \u2013 information pack. Firstly, it allows you to \u2018travel along\u2019 on screen a little in advance, so to speak, and, above all, it provides you with information \u2013 albeit non-binding \u2013 about any changes to departure and arrival times.<\/p>\n
I foolishly didn\u2019t ask whether this is generally the case, but on the ship, UTC was the on-board time, which wasn\u2019t changed either. During the journey, it was already summer time in Germany (and in Ireland too), but not yet in England. So it seems to me that 5 pm ship time as the departure time turned into 3 pm local time. \u201cI need to have her on the ship by 3 pm,\u201d was Melissa\u2019s panicked message to Driving4U, which effectively wiped out my two-hour safety buffer for the shuttle service, given that the estimated departure time up to that point had been midnight. It was only the captain\u2019s phone call, once I was already seated in the shuttle, that gave us back those two hours, and everyone was able to relax \u2013 especially me. Incidentally, the staff at Driving4U also went to great lengths to help; I\u2019d like to give them a special mention too.<\/p>\n
Everything was fine on board; the officers and crew were very approachable, helpful and happy to provide information. Even as we were leaving the harbour (without a pilot), I was allowed to take the second officer\u2019s place on the bridge and enjoy the magnificent view over the bow. And of course, I didn\u2019t get in the way or touch the joystick, as the captain had requested with a wink.<\/p>\n
We then reached the area off Landsend in what, by my standards, was heavy seas with a storm \u2013 though for the professionals it was harmless \u2013 as the ship reared up and then plunged into the troughs of the waves, whilst simultaneously rolling from port to starboard due to the side waves and swells. That was exactly what I\u2019d hoped for, and for a landlubber like me, it was adventure enough.<\/p>\n
The ship\u2019s cook was so kind to us all that I had to skip one of the three hearty, hot meals a day every now and then, so that I wouldn\u2019t have to be hoisted out by the harbour crane during one of our three shore leave trips (twice to Dublin, once to Cork).<\/p>\n
And here\u2019s a single, minor point of criticism to pass on to the shipping company. It was compulsory, particularly in the harbour area, to wear the high-visibility vest and helmet provided. And that\u2019s where I was a bit put off, because the headband was quite sweaty; I don\u2019t think I\u2019m overly fussy, but I did have to steel myself a little. Of course, I don\u2019t expect a new helmet, but perhaps the padding on the straps should be changed every few trips.<\/p>\n
My daily, enthusiastic reports to the 76 sponsors and people interested in the trip are true proof of what I said at the start: it was simply \u201cGREAT\u201d. And as far as I know, there\u2019s already at least one person who\u2019s followed suit, having learnt about the opportunity this way and is interested in a trip through the Kiel Canal to Sweden.<\/p>\n
Warm regards<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Good afternoon, Ms Pfeiffer, Although I\u2019ve long since returned to my daily routine after a wonderful trip, I\u2019d finally like to give you some feedback. First and foremost: the service provided by your travel agency is truly excellent; at every stage of the process \u2013…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","kontinent":[87],"gebiet":[92,123],"class_list":["post-6897","reisebericht","type-reisebericht","status-publish","hentry","kontinent-northern-europe","gebiet-ireland","gebiet-northern-europe"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n