mom says

I think I know where you are coming from, but I also think there may be something you haven't considered. Celebrity guests come from all over the world, not just the US. Even on a Pacific Coastal cruise, odds are that there will be more than a few cruisers who will, in fact, find themselves in a foreign country, with different regulations, practices, and especially, personal safety concerns.

Chic night is the sad, forlorn, remnant of what was once called formal night. The MDR will have something special on the menu, which would include lobster on one of the chic nights. Dress up as much or as little as you wish- the guidelines are on the website. There's nothing else of significance.

Celebrity has kids clubs on its ships. And during school holidays there are always other children on board.

We did a similar cruise in 2019 on Connie from Singapore to Shanghai. I really encourage you to spend a couple of days before and after the cruise, to explore both Singapore and Hong Kong. We did both of those cities DIY- transportation is easy. All of the other ports we dui as private tours with members of our Roll Call. Our guides were excellent, and with a small group, we had none of the inevitable delays from large bus tours, and they were way cheaper than the ship excursions. If you have an overnight in Bangkok, do yourself a favor and arrange an overnight at a hotel in the city, and a private guide to tour the temples, canals, and markets. Hopefully with a few of your Roll Call members to defray the tour costs.

But the question is... why would you bother if it's going into a mimosa?

The technology would have to be perfected?? The technology would have to be invented. A pool formed or at least faced seamlessly with waterproof screens of that high quality, and that can withstand the water forces and foot traffic? How many millions of dollars in R&D for that? Hire operators capable of running and maintaining it. Supply and maintain the equipment the guests had to wear. Allocate a large dedicated space on one of the outdoor decks and install it, removing said space from general public use. Yeah, I can just see all the cruiselines fighting each other for that. How many people could they throughput on any given day, and how much would they need to charge to recoup their costs and show a profit? I believe you have a fine example of blue sky thinking with no idea of how to turn it into a practical reality.

If you dock at the Marina Bay Cruise Center in Singapore, there is an exchange bureau in the terminal. If you tender in Phuket, you will find several exchange bureaus on the street at the end of the dock.

It would be helpful to know which countries you will visit. Some, such as those in the Caribbean, accept USD, although not at the best exchange rate. In other ports, depending on your planned activity, no local currency may be needed. In others, the best exchange rate would be from a bank owned ATM. Or an exchange bureau. About the worst exchange rate would be on the ship.

I appreciate your thoughtful post, Georgia guy. And I made an error in my previous post. It should have read that when questioned by the FBI, the child molester admitted to the assaults

Fair enough. But a vlog I just saw reported that, when questioned by the OP, the child molester not only admitted the assaults, but admitted to other assaults on minors. Given that, I don't think there is any rush to judgement here.

There may be a problem with using a thermos and ice when going through security. You could be required to pour out the ice if any of it has melted. Might be better to use an insulated lunch box or bag with the rigid freezer packs designed for use transporting frozen goods. Look for something that says transportation freezer pack. Do not use the cold packs used for treating injuries- they start thawing immediately. My freezer packs were still mostly frozen after a 22 hour flight day, and would have stayed cold for much longer.

There aren't many, but there are a few such cruises out of Reykjavik. You can check departures on Cruisetimetables website. I don't see any TAs departing from Ireland.

So you would like a quiet zone or zones, in public areas, presumably walled off with sufficient warning signs in all the approaches, just so you can read your book without any disturbance. Forget the phones and other electronics; apparently other cruisers must go elsewhere if they wish to speak with each other? Anyone walking past or through your special space had better zip it as well. No more ambient music, either. Just silence, for your reading enjoyment. But please remember, if you are reading paper material, to keep the rustling of pages to a minimum. And how much space would you need, to avoid any sonic disturbance intruding from other adjacent public areas? Maybe they could install sound proof booths instead? I understand the annoyance, but IMO, taking action to modify the offending behavior is better all around than attempting to remove a section of public space just for the benefit of a few people out of thousands of their fellow cruisers. An enforced policy requiring the use of headphones for electronics and banning speakers outside of staterooms would benefit everyone, not just a few. The trick would be getting the cruiseline to grow a spine and enforce the policy.

Depends on the ship, the island, and the excursion. It will be very busy when the gangway first opens, but I wouldn't describe it as crazy. Try looking at each of your stops on the Ports of Call forum. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/37-hawaii/ Of course any tender ports will have a different disembarkation protocol. You can ask on the forum for your cruise line.

Are you booked on a guarantee, or did you select your cabin? Our original booked cabin was changed twice before embarkation. Fortunately both times it was just a couple if doors down from the previous one. But, yeah, Princess is known to do this.

That blue line is such a time suck. I think we stood in line for a whole extra minute before our last cruise. Sigh.

So, conversations are now to be discouraged in public areas? Because, if one person talking on a phone is disturbing, then multiple people talking to other people must be many more times as disturbing. I would say that in most public areas onboard ship, it is the loudness of any conversations that can be problematic, and not the conversation itself.

Welcome to Cruise Critic. I'd suggest asking on the Royal Caribbean forum regarding ship time policies. Some lines conform to local port times, others dont. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/51-royal-caribbean-international/

If people feel a need to make friends and connections or just want to socialize with other cruisers they will; regardless of their ability to have decent internet. The only big difference I forsee with Starlink is the decreased incidence of the air turning blue around people when their connections drop or their device is constantly buffering.

No, they aren't. But before you completely write of NCL (Although I wouldn't blame you if you did) try posting this on the NCL forum for comparison to other NCL cruises.

If you only want a one way cruise, it will have to be from or to a port outside the US because of PVSA. The closest would be Vancouver. You can check out your options with your favorite cruise lines, then come back once you've narrowed down your choices. Or better yet, have your TA give you a list of options that fit your cruising style, dates and budget.

Hahahahahahahahaha. Good one. No.

Welcome to Cruise Critic. I would suggest looking for the Roll Call for your cruiseline and your specific sailing in the Roll Call section of the forum. Or have a look, and perhaps ask your question in the Asia Ports of Call board. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/43-asia/

Hmm. It looks like CC member ipeeinthepool has been sailing Celebrity recently.

Just don't answer when they call.