By Peter Knego
Following the captain’s sobering announcement about one guest on board testing positive for COVID, there was of course, a lot of guessing among fellow World Navigator passengers about what would happen next.
An unfortunate sign of the times. * Photo: Peter Knego
Now What?
Would the Egyptian authorities even allow the ship to proceed to Alexandria, where we were due the following morning? Would we head to Cyprus or turn back to Piraeus or Heraklion and be flown home from there? Would whichever port we went to next quarantine the ship? Frankly, the more we thought about it, the less appealing the options seemed.
My take was that since there was nothing I could do, I did my best to put it out of my mind until there was something tangible to respond to.
I would spend the rest of the morning filing dispatches to Travel Weekly, made all the more timely by this developing story.
As for the now quarantined guest who had tested positive, we learned that he was thankfully free of COVID symptoms. He and his immediate contacts and all crew who came into direct contact with him were being isolated in their staterooms.
Outside, it was temperate and there were moderate swells. It felt as though the World Navigator had slowed her course but that could have been my over active imagination or an illusion created by the following seas.
In the Porto Restaurant, where the service remained cheerful despite the rather somber developments, we enjoyed a nice lunch, which included a chicken teriyaki and basmati rice main course.
Alexander The Great in the Dom Henrique Auditorium. * Photo: Peter Knego
At 3:00 PM, we attended an interesting presentation by guest lecturer Vivianne Rowan in the Dom Henrique Auditorium about Alexander the Great and some of the historic sites in his namesake city of Alexandria that we would hopefully be visiting the following day.
After that, we beelined it for the Dome, where that refreshing tea that was still the ship’s best kept secret, was being offered at 4:00 PM.
Later that afternoon, I did 36 laps around the running track, hoping that my running app was correct in declaring my goal of three miles.
I did note that the pool had been drained and covered over, probably out of extra precaution, so there would be no relaxing “float” to cap the run off with.
The aft Porto Restaurant Terrace, facing port. * Photo: Peter Knego
Just was we stepped out onto the aft Porto Restaurant terrace to have dinner with our colleagues, some of whom were tracking the ship’s course on their apps, the moon over our wake began to shift rather dramatically.
Turning Back
We were definitely turning away from Alexandria and heading on a northwest course, back in the direction we came.
Moments later, it came as no surprise when the captain announced that World Navigator was returning to Heraklion to disembark the guest with COVID.
Tiramisu under the stars. * Photo: Peter Knego
With the gentle rumble of the ship’s engines underfoot, the wine flowing and a delicious Italian themed dinner being served, our conversation brimmed with a whole new assortment of “what if’s.”
And then, before going too far down that rabbit hole of worry, I reminded myself that at that particular moment, we were being served a ridiculously good tiramisu on a five-star luxury ship in the Mediterranean Sea.
There were much worse situations to get stuck in.
Starting the day at Paula’s Pantry. * Photo: Peter Knego
The following morning began with the now familiar soy cappuccino, pain au chocolate, muesli and a smoothie in Paula’s Pantry.
Meanwhile, more information about our options became available.
Choosing Between Plan B & Plan C
Atlas’ freshly revised plan was for us to spend the night in Heraklion, then leave first thing the following morning to board two charter flights to Cairo, where we would be given a full-day tour with lunch at the Mena Hotel, a visit to the pyramids, then dinner overlooking the pyramids.
If this all worked out, we then would fly home on our originally scheduled flights from Cairo.
The World Navigator’s reverse course is shown nearly completed as the ship nears Heraklion after being turned away from Egypt the prior day. * Photo: Peter Knego
During lunch in the Porto Restaurant, just as I was indulging a delicious Japanese eggplant starter, we picked up the Heraklion pilot.
Shortly after World Navigator tied up, friends told me they saw the COVID positive guest escorted off in Hazmat garb. His family was not allowed to accompany him, although later, they were allowed to disembark and stay in a different hotel.
There were many questions at that point that sadly could not be answered by anyone with Atlas or even the local authorities.
With the small chance looming that some or all of us could be quarantined in Egypt, several of my colleagues opted to disembark in Heraklion and make their way home from there.
I must admit I looked into that option and found the choices very costly, filled with long gaps and only terrible seats left on the few available flights. To leave in Heraklion would guarantee us a miserable return, while leaving in Cairo as planned could go either way.
We opted to go with Atlas’ Fly to Cairo option.
And so we spent the rest of the day in the comfort of the World Navigator’s air conditioning as the heat raged outside and many of the ship’s facilities like the pool, spa and gym were closed due to the COVID case.
I did a couple quick walk-through videos of the ship, packed, and joined our remaining friends for dinner in the Porto Restaurant before retiring early for our 5:00 AM wake up call.
After a quick buffet breakfast with some of that excellent Pastoret yogurt in the Porto, we disembarked onto a coach that took us to the Heraklion airport.
A last fling with that deliciously creamy Pastoret yogurt. * Photo: Peter Knego
Once aboard the charter flight, the stress melted away as our plane cut an arc over the port before turning towards the deep blue Mediterranean.
To Cairo
In Cairo, we were well looked after by the Atlas reps and local authorities who got us all on the right buses. Our guide, Moustapha (“Mozzie” to his guests) was excellent, informative and reassuringly proactive.
The gardens of the historic Mena House Hotel. * Photo: Peter Knego
A local holiday kept Cairo’s metropolitan traffic to a minimum as we rode to the historic Mena House Hotel, which was built in 1869 as a hunting lodge but vastly rebuilt into a luxury hotel over the years.
In the mid-1950s Cecil B. De Mille and the cast of the epic movie, “The Ten Commandments” stayed there and the hotel has since been a favorite haunt of the glitteratti, world leaders and other notables.
Although much of the original part of the Mena House was being refurbished and was thus inaccessible, we were more than thrilled to partake of a magnificent feast of Mediterranean specialties that began with olives and hummus and ended with succulent baklava.
The Pyramids of Giza
In Giza, we spent about an hour at the largest pyramid, Khufu.
The heat index was off the chart but even after two prior visits, the sight and spectacle of this World Wonder never ceases to dazzle and inspire.
Of course, the hecklers with their merchandise, over stressed camels and non-stop chit chat with the sole purpose of “hooking you in” are the big drawback of visiting any site in Egypt.
Combined with the swelter and having no place to escape to, the experience can, indeed, be considered a mild form of torture.
From Khufu, we were next taken to an observation point, where some of our group opted to ride camels. Mozzie was very helpful here, making sure guests knew how to negotiate a fair price and not get ripped off or literally carried away.
The one and only, Sphinx! * Photo: Peter Knego
The Iconic Sphinx
Our last stop was at the magnificent Sphinx, where we had a chance to take pictures from a nearby platform.
The Sphinx is one of those objects that defies the imagination and even now, I cannot quite fathom that it is actually the Sphinx when I see it in person.
A view of the Four Seasons Giza pool with the Nile in the backdrop. * Photo: Peter Knego
Atlas put all guests up at the beautiful Four Seasons Giza overlooking the Nile, where we had time to check in and take a refreshing swim in its huge rooftop pool.
Cheops, the second largest pyramid at Giza, is featured on the back of the dollar bill. * Photo: Peter Knego
That evening, we were taken to a restaurant overlooking the dramatically lit pyramids for a final meal with one of the world’s most spectacular sites exclusively ours to ogle.
Meanwhile, local performers sang and danced, doing their best to divert our gaze from the magnificence behind them.
The author, feeling the heat moments before the lights were turned off. * Photo: Mike Masino.
At the end of the evening, Atlas president Alberto Aliberti thanked everyone for being flexible and understanding.
He also refunded $250 from everyone’s paid cruise fare and offered an additional $500 discount towards a future cruise.
The following morning, during breakfast at the hotel, I overheard a group of fellow guests raving about the cruise and how everything was handled, so props to the Atlas team for doing their most in a very challenged situation.
My overall assessment was that the ship, staff, food and itinerary were wonderful.
Of course, there were some expected start-up glitches that were improved during the cruise (see Part 1 for details). Remember, it was the maiden voyage of the first ship for a new cruise line.
As for the COVID situation, I’m confident that Atlas understands that in trying to not be overbearing about the masking and distancing rules, they may have erred.
Most, if not all guests would appreciate that they fully enforce the protocols for everyone’s benefit. If that results in a few people being angry, then so be it for the benefit of the sane majority. Such is the reality of traveling during a pandemic.
I want to conclude by congratulating Atlas for making vaccinations mandatory from 1 October on.
RELATED: Part 1 of Peter Knego’s World Navigator Maiden Voyage
AND THIS: Part 2 of Peter Knego’s World Navigator Maiden Voyage
AND ALSO THIS: Peter’s great full ship video tour!
Here’s the Atlas Ocean Voyages website.
The 200-pax World Navigator. * Photo: By Peter Knego
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HEIDI SARNA
Could you please tell us- is a complimentary tour offered at every port or just once per sailing? The literature is not clear on this subject.
Thank you.
Hi Linda, that’s a good question. On World Navigator’s Antarctic cruises, excursions are included. I agree their website is unclear about which/how many excursions are included on their other itineraries. I’ve reached out to them to clarify & will let you know asap. Thank you for writing!