EMBARKATION DAY - DAY 7

Some say variety is the spice of life.  Spontaneity is also another spice of life.  About 4:45 AM, Anne Marie said to Keith aren't you going to go out for a morning walk/run so you can see Endeavor.  Although he hadn't planned to do so, this was music to Keith's ears.  The nice thing is it gets light very early so whereas at home it would be pitch black it was daylight in Reykjavik.  He did a combo walk and run over to the Old Harbour where Crystal Endeavor was slowing making its way to its docking position.  Timing is everything in life.  

​

Some additional photos from out last walk yesterday afternoon.

​We have enjoyed our stay including the accommodations we selected at the Reykjavik Residence Hotel and our many walks throughout the city.

We wanted to begin with an overview of the hotel property.

Reykjavik Residence Hotel is comprised of the reception building; plus, eight other buildings.  Seven of the eight are the guest units and the eight building is a Wine Bar open each evening with indoor and outdoor seating.
 
Our building is named the Printing Press Front Building & Courtyard Building and is on the same street as the Reception Building and no more than a two-minute walk.
 
Another building which is called The Prime Minister’s Residence is located in the other direction of our building and across the street and a five-minute walk from Reception.
 
Four of the other buildings called The Embassy, Publishing House, Bergshus and The Tannery are right next to one another along with the Wine Bar and are located across the way from Reception but a couple of blocks further away and involve a five-minute walk.
 
The other building called the Artisan House is also located about five minutes from Reception and across the way.
 
All the residences are apartment style hotel accommodations.  They include studios which are modest style one room units with a small table adjacent to the beds.  They are in three of the buildings on the ground floor and have a small kitchenette area.
 
There are three types of suites.
 
A Junior Suite located in one of the buildings also with a kitchenette.
 
A family suite located in one of the buildings which can accommodate up to six people with one bedroom and a living area with pullout bed.  They have a kitchenette and decorated with some characters with the younger children in-mind.
 
A Royal Suite located in the Prime Minister’s Building where the King of Denmark and his queen stayed during their royal visit to Iceland in 1926.   It is classically decorated with a corner bathtub and include wine cooler with an array of wine.
 
There are four types of apartments.
 
The one-bedroom apartment is in three of the buildings.  They have a fully equipped kitchen, one bathroom and a living area.
 
The two-bedroom apartment located in one of the buildings and includes a fully equipped kitchen, living room, and even a washer and dryer.
 
The two-bedroom/two bath apartment is the one we are in and is in one of the buildings.  The main difference between this one and the two-bedroom apartment is the second bath in this apartment versus the washer/dryer in the other apartment.  Although we do not have plans to use it, inside our building is a laundry room with washer and dryer.   

The three-bedroom apartment is close to double the size of the two-bedroom apartments and located in one of the buildings.  These apartments have the third bedroom, fully equipped kitchen, large living room and washer/dryer.  

​The accommodation we chose worked out perfectly for us.  We made our selection with COVID-19 in mind.  In short, we wanted a place to stay with minimal guest traffic getting in and out, a nice size living area where we could relax after a day of long walks, and a place where we could eat most if not all our meals including kitchen and a nice size table to eat on.  The layout was perfect and its proximity to the downtown area and to nearby grocery stores worked out very well.   
 
The building in the photo with 45 on the front is the Prime Minister’s Residence.

Each day the Breakfast Basket includes two different types of cheese.  We only have a little bit because how much cheese can one eat.  This plate included two type of cheese from Thursday and one from Wednesday.

Embarkation day is always exciting and today was no exception.  Similar to our cruise on Crystal Mozart in 2019 today marks our first time on Crystal Endeavor and only the third cruise of this vessels with a full complement of guests on-board.  With only a maximum of 200 guests on-board the ship we sailed which comes the closest to this size was the former Seabourn Pride.

The first time we sailed the Pride was twenty-six years after her debut and the second time was two years later.  She was close to 10,000 tons, had five passenger decks, and a length of 438 feet.  At double occupancy she could carry 208 passengers with a crew of 164.

Crystal Endeavor was completed in 2021 although some work continues on the finish out of the interior of the ship. In contrast to the Pride, her gross tonnage is 20,000 tons, has five gues decks and is 539 feet long.  She can can carry up to 200 guest at double occupancy and carries a crew of 206 members.  

Whereas the Pride had two dining venues; a main restaurant and a casual dining area called the Verandah offering breakfast, lunch and on occasion dinner, Endeavor's dining venues include Waterside, Prego, Umi Uma, Bistro, and Marketplace along with The Pantry which is available 24 hours offering self service items such as snacks and beverages.  

A few days before the start of the voyage we were notified that construction has not been completed for the Solarium/Marketplace, Sauna & Steam Room, as well as the Marina Deck, Bridge Viewing and Helicopter Lounges and that there are issues with some suites.  This didn't come as a surprise to us having followed the adventures of some on-board for the first two voyages.  

After checking out of the hotel we took a taxi over to the Grand Hotel where we checked in for the cruise.  Directly next to the hotel is the USA Embassy.

We took the COVID-19 test and about 15 minutes later learned we were negative.  Negative.  We are positive people but it's best to be negative when it comes to the test.

After receiving our wrist tags we filled in two forms and turned these in along with a form we filled out ahead of time.  Crystal representatives confirmed that the driver for the private tour we booked would be at the hotel by Noon and they were.

We stayed in a large room very far from other people where they had water, juice, coffee, croissant sandwiches and pastries.

We are so excited to be on board Endeavor. We will post lots of photos tomorrow of the ship and of our tour but thought we would post a photo from our embarkation lunch at Waterside.  Cobb Salad and Champagne.

Cheers,


​Anne Marie and Keith