Traditional Cruising with SAGA Cruises and JGT

Saga Cruises for Today’s Over 50’s

If you enjoy the timeless traditions of cruising – first-class service, fine dining, sparkling entertainment, grand public rooms and an ambiance created by people your own age, a journey aboard the contemporary Saga Sapphire or the intimate and informal Saga Pearl II is just for you!

Whichever ship you sail on, you can always enjoy elegant and comfortable surroundings, excellent facilities, a well-planned itinerary, delicious cuisine and service that is truly exceptional! SAGA’s small, elegant ships are cosy and intimate, yet spacious enough to provide all the amenities you need. Due to their size, they can sail you to the heart of destinations beyond the reach of larger ships, in comfort and style. In last year’s client surveys, 98% of passengers described their cruise as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’. That is the real baromiter of how good SAGA are!

Friendly Faces

Making friends is simple on a Saga cruise because all their holidays are exclusively for people aged 50 and over. This means you’ll be sharing the experience with like-minded people, enjoying activities and entertainment tailored to your particular tastes. With 2 staff to every 3 passengers, you can look forward to exceptional personal service and a cheery greeting each day. SAGA Cruises provides an especially warm welcome for solo travellers and is particularly suitable for ladies travelling unaccompanied.

Value

Relax knowing that everything is taken care of. That’s why so many extras are included in the price, many of which you would have to arrange separately with other cruise companies. Flights from Ireland are included, as is a chauffeur-driven car to whisk you from the airport in the UK to the port and back again afterwards. Travel insurance is mentioned in the SAGA brochure as being included but this is not the case for Irish residents. Our prices exclude the cost of travel insurance but include the air fare. You should make sure you have adequate insurance cover. Port taxes are included as are all on-board gratuities, so no tipping required or expected.

Days Ashore

At each port of call you can choose from an exciting selection of optional excursions (extra charge). These are usually exclusively for Saga so the guide can focus solely on your group and only needs to speak in English. A Saga representative will also accompany you on the coach. Joining an organised tour is a great value way to see the sights as every Saga excursion includes entrance fees, transport and the services of an English-speaking guide. Refreshments and lunch are sometimes included too, so you can enjoy yourself without worrying about the costs mounting up.
If you would like to explore independently, you can use the free shuttle bus service which will take you from the ship to the nearest town or city centre. This service is available at most ports when the distance between the ship and town is over 500 yards.

Dining on Board

From formal dining to eating al fresco, mealtimes are always a highlight aboard SAGA’s ships. Chef-prepared breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Waiter-served dinners in the main and speciality restaurants. Buffet meals and snacks in the alternative open-seating venues. Daily afternoon tea – a real treat! Unlimited tea and coffee in selected venues. Enjoy single sitting dining on both of SAGA’s ships. Each evening meal is served at one leisurely sitting. Dine whenever you like between 7pm and 9pm. You’re also free to sit wherever you like, unless you prefer to reserve a table.

Activities

Plenty of pleasant surprises including, a choice of indoor or outdoor pools, fully-equipped gymnasium, sauna and steam rooms, a programme of keep fit classes, Crazy golf course on Saga Sapphire, live music performances from guest entertainers, a programme of talks and lectures, computer and games rooms, free shuttle bus to take you to the nearest town centre.

Saga Sapphire

Contemporary Medium Sized Ship

After a recent total refit and a few successful seasons, Saga Sapphire is commanding consistently high satisfaction scores from her passengers. This makes her Captains and crew prouder than ever to welcome you aboard for an exceptional cruise experience. Discover the reasons why Saga Sapphire sparkles so brightly, and why she is receiving such excellent ratings from her guests – from her friendly on-board service, delicious cuisine and delightful public rooms, to her spacious cabins.

All cabins aboard Saga Sapphire are light, bright and spacious, with air conditioning, en suite bathroom, bathrobes and toiletries. Whichever cabin you choose, 24-hour room service is always included, which means you can have a meal, snack or refreshments brought to you at any time, for no extra charge. There are 4 cabin types – Inside, Outside, Superior and Suites.

Cooper’s Bar is themed around comedian Tommy Cooper and filled with his quirkiness which includes the trademark red fez as lampshades and cushions stitched with a selection of his best one-liners. The Aviator Lounge is a different experience, with a theme dedicated to heroes of the skies and decor that makes you feel like you’ve walked onto a film set.

On deck, The Beach Club features beach huts serving fish and chips in newspaper, ice cream, traditional sweets and blue-and-white striped deckchairs around the outdoor pool.
The View From the Top features two hot tubs. There are plenty of sunloungers during the day and in the evening you can sit back, relax and watch a classic film in the open-air cinema.

The stylish public spaces include The Drawing Room, featuring panoramic views through the large picture windows and plenty of comfy sofas. Before you settle down in a cosy spot visit the help-yourself Larder, and enjoy any or all of the homemade treats that would go perfectly with a cappuccino.

Enjoy exquisite cuisine in The Pole to Pole main restaurant. It has an intimate atmosphere with zones styled to reflect the continents of Africa, Asia, Europe & The Americas.
Decorated with a collection of antiques and curios from around the world, it’s a sophisticated space in which to enjoy chef-prepared meals, served by our friendly waiters.
Here you can enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner. The majority of tables are open seating but there are also a number of fixed-seating tables if you prefer this option.
For something a little different, reserve your table at East to West, the ship’s speciality Asian restaurant. Here, waiters serve up the best Oriental flavours in a medley of Asian-influenced dishes. You must “do lunch” on the Verandah. You can dine alfresco on the Verandah, after helping yourself to lighter, healthier meals at The Grill. A more casual dining experience, here you can pop in for a continental breakfast or to enjoy a cooked-to-order lunch and choose your favourites from the buffet. If that is not enough you can take Afternoon Tea in the Britannia Lounge with a range of teas and beautifully crafted cakes on offer.

SAGA Sapphire was refurbished in 2012. She carries a maximum of 720 passengers, so is small by modern day cruise ship standards. She has ten passenger decks, four passenger lifts, is air-conditioned throughout and is fully stabilised to reduce roll motion at sea.

To book a Cruise call John Galligan Travel on

(01) 207 6555 or e-mail leisure@jgt.ie

Saga Pearl II

An Intimate and Informal Ship

A contemporary, yacht-like ship which is intimate, informal and smaller than most cruise liners. She offers a sociable on-board experience and a home-from-home feel.

Despite her intimate size, SAGA Pearl II offers a fantastic choice of dining venues. Fine dining is one of the time-honoured traditions of cruising and SAGA’s team of chefs ensure all meals are cooked to perfection and impeccably served. Why not have breakfast in bed using the free room service or a leisurely breakfast in the Dining Room. Help yourself to a freshly prepared breakfast buffet in The Verandah restaurant.

You can enjoy lunch with a hot or cold buffet luncheon in The Verandah restaurant or waiter-served lunch in the Dining Room. Afternoon Tea is served in the Discovery Lounge, with beautifully crafted cakes and sugar sculptures. For dinner, dine al fresco in The Verandah or have it served up to you with waiter service in the Dining Room. Each evening meal is served at one leisurely sitting between 7pm and 9pm, so there is no rush to finish your dinner.

All cabins provide a comfortable retreat, decorated in a stylish nautical theme with air conditioning, en-suite bathroom, bathrobes and toiletries. Whichever cabin you choose, 24-hour room service is always included, which means you can have a meal, snack or refreshments brought to you at any time, for no charge. There are 4 cabin types – Inside, Outside, Superior and Suites.

Looking for a place to sit back with a cocktail or coffee? The Sundowner Bar has great sea views through the picture windows and allows you to make the most of the Sun Deck with outdoor games and activities. A large television outside means you won’t miss any big sporting events, as long as the sun is shining. Shackleton’s, the ship’s main bar, features a live pianist and dance floor so is perfect for pre-dinner cocktails or a nightcap.

To unwind after a busy day go to the Spa for a massage or other therapeutic treatment. For some pampering, the Beauty Salon is the place to go.

There are plently of opportunities to get active too – indoor pool, sauna, gym, yoga and pilates classes. The sports deck has a short tennis court, shuffleboard & deck quoits. You can decide with every cruise what you would like to join in with, from watercolour classes, wine tasting or a lively lecture. The Discovery Lounge provides a choice of activities from West End-style shows and cabaret acts to lectures, dance classes and more. The Cinema shows both movie classics and more recent releases. The Library gives the perfect opportunity to escape and read a book or to research the next port of call. There are over 3,400 books and DVDs to choose from.

SAGA Pearl II was refurbished in 2010. She carries a maximum 449 passengers, has seven passenger decks, three passenger lifts, is air-conditioned throughout and is fully stabilised for smooth sailing.

To book a Cruise call John Galligan Travel on

(01) 207 6555 or e-mail leisure@jgt.ie

John Galligan Travel are proud to be the exclusive representatives of SAGA Cruises in Ireland. We offer the broadest range of cruise lines available anywhere in Ireland and are delighted to be associated with this top-quality company. We have worked with them for many years and constantly discuss them with our clients, after their cruises. As a consequence, we have great faith in the knowledge that, once our clients travel with SAGA, they will come home contented and feeling they got excellent value for money. If you are over 50 and want a truly memorable experience, call us today on (01) 207 6555. We can provide you with information, availability, prices (our prices are almost always cheaper than SAGA’s) and brochures.

Our prices include:

• Flights between Ireland and the UK
• Road transfers between airport and ship
• Magical cruise of your choice
• Full board accommodation including afternoon tea and snacks
• Comprehensive entertainment programme tailored to Over 50s
• Unlimited tea & coffee in selected venues
• 24 hour room service
• Shuttle bus to town centre in ports
• All tips and gratuities
• Local agent in Dublin to look after your booking
• Porterage
• Port taxes and service charges

 

N.B. Please note we distribute SAGA Cruises UK brochures in Ireland. These are designed primarily for the UK market, so are quoted in Sterling. We will quote you in Sterling and provide a Euro equivalent, using the prevailing exchange rate. This rate may change between the time of deposit payment and final balance payment. Consequently, we will need to revise our Euro quote to you at the time of balance payment, based on the exchange rate prevailing at that time. SAGA quotes rates including travel insurance. Our rates DO NOT include travel insurance and you should make sure you have adequate cover. Our rates do include free flights, unlike SAGA UK’s rates and we are usually cheaper!

JOHN GALLIGAN TRAVEL
offers a broader range of cruise product
than anyone else in Ireland!
Contact the Real Cruise Experts!

To book a Cruise call John Galligan Travel on

(01) 207 6555 or e-mail leisure@jgt.ie