Day 4 - Gaspé, Quebec
Gaspé, Quebec
This morning Crystal Serenity is anchored off the coast of Gaspé, Quebec. The ship offers four different excursions in Gaspé.
Whale Watching Safari at 8:00am
Discover Forillon National Park & Mi’gmaq First Nations at 8:00am
Percé & Bonaventure Island at 8:00am
Whale Watching Safari at 12 Noon
Rickee and I booked the Whale Watching Safari at 12 Noon. With a 12 Noon excursion there really is no time for lunch today, so we stop at The Bistro for a little sustenance to tide us over until we are back onboard.
Rickee ordered a hot chocolate and you can see the detail they go to when making the coffee and chocolate drinks here.
Hot Chocolate at The Bistro
There is a variety of pastries, fruit, breads, cereals, sliced meats and cheeses at The Bistro for late breakfast. The best thing here is the Pasteis de Nata, a Portugese custard-filled pastry (shown at bottom below). These are to die for.
Warm Custard-Filled Pastries
Our shore excursion tickets were delivered to our suite upon embarkation and they detail the date/time of the excursion as well as the meeting time and location.
We met our tour group at noon in the Stardust Club where we once again met Emmalee, who had taken us on a tour of the ship yesterday. Emmalee is the Future Cruise and Loyalty Club manager for Crystal Serenity. She will be joining us for the whale watching tour today.
Emmalee and Rickee in Stardust Lounge
Going ashore in Gaspé requires a tender ride which takes about 15 minutes. Fortunately, the seas are very calm today and we arrive with no drama. In fact, it is a beautiful day, about 62 degrees (F).
We made sure to dress in layers as we assumed we would be exposed to cooler temperatures out on the water. We “assumed” that our whale watching tour would be in a tour boat with a covering, or even an indoor space where you could escape the cold air. Oh no, nothing could have been further from the reality we were about to experience.
Guests must tender ashore in Gaspé
Our first hint of things to come was when we met our tour boat captain and we were instructed to put on rubber pants and jackets. This was a clear indication that we were most likely going to get wet.
As it turns out, our “safari” is aboard a Zodiac. Well, that’s not so bad, I mean, we have done dozens of Zodiac rides in Antarctica, the Chilean fjords and Alaska. So, this should not be any different, right? Wrong!
Unlike our other Zodiac experiences, which stroll through relatively calm waters at low speed, this Zodiac is hauling ass at 20 to 30 knots on some pretty bumpy waves and a lot of water comes crashing over the front of the boat as we make our way to where we can watch the whales. In addition to the frequent splashes of water, there are some pretty harsh bumps that could be a real issue for anyone with back or neck problems. I would definitely not recommend this excursion for anyone with mobility or back/neck issues.
The fast Zodiac ride took about 30 minutes to reach the area where we found a couple of pods of Humpback whales. Because of all of the rubber gear and life vest, the camera in my pocket was inaccessible, so all I could use was my GoPro. To get good photos of whales, you really need a proper camera with a fast zoom or telephoto lens, and if you have such expensive gear, you would never want to expose them to these elements.
You can see a blow in the distance in the photo below. Of course, it was much easier to see with the naked eye. We did see quite a few blows and tails as the Humpbacks dived down below the surface. At one point, we saw some whales actually breeching in the distance. Unfortunately, I did not have my GoPro on at the time.
We spent about 45 minutes watching for whales before heading back to Gaspé. The majority of time for this excursion was spent zooming along in the Zodiac to reach the whale-watching spot, then returning back to the pier.
Thar She Blows
By the time we re-boarded Crystal Serenity, our butler, Rao, had already delivered our afternoon canapés, which were a welcome sight since we skipped lunch today. We devoured the snacks as we were getting ready for our 7pm dinner at Tastes.
We met our friends, John and Sandra, for dinner once again this evening at Tastes Kitchen and Bar. This is perhaps the most unique dining experiences on Crystal Serenity. As I have mentioned in previous blogs, I will be doing a thorough review of all of our dining experiences on Crystal Serenity on our YouTube channel after we get home. I am posting photos of some of the dishes we tried on Instagram and Facebook (@Cruisereport).
I can tell you that Emmalee says this is her favorite restaurant on board Serenity and, after our meal, we can understand why. I can also tell you that we tried Tastes back in 2015 and were not too impressed. In fact, it was our least favorite experience. So, you should find our dining review video quite interesting.
After dinner, we head to Stardust Club for tonight’s show, “Sweet Soul Music”. Stardust Club has the feel of a traditional cruise ship lounge and while the lighting and stage technology is limited, the live band, and excellent dancers and singers were able to elevate their performance in front of a packed house.
Sarah Combs Performs along with the Crystal Ensemble Of Singers and Dancers
After the show, many guests remained and were encouraged to get out on the floor and dance to the Motown hits.
Dance Party at Stardust Club
It was a very busy day for us on Crystal Serenity and we are looking forward to another relaxing day at sea tomorrow.
