GeezerCouple

Yes, THIS! ^^ Some of those laundry tags, from various ships (and hotels, etc.), stay on the clothing for a remarkably long time. And some seem to be secure enough that there are no edges or corners to irritate... and similarly, none leading to the little label getting torn off, knowingly or not. I really enjoy the occasional time I unexpectedly stumble across one of those labels. Some of them are in slightly out of the way places, so they probably get less "tugging"... and also get noticed less often. Fun! GC

This doesn't quite make sense, if you think about it from O's position. What if you don't end up taking the cruise (e.g., you get sick). They've paid the money for your visa from your OBC, not from an invoice to you that you have to pay. If you cancel the trip, the OBC isn't relevant anymore. But O would have forked out the money on your behalf anyway. It's one thing to use OBC "in advance" when it's being used to pay for a cruiseline service, such as upscale dining (which doesn't cost extra on O, but does/might on other lines). They aren't giving any outside/non-ship party some money that they plan to collect from you. The visa gets paid for, and it doesn't matter if you ever show up or not: The visa is still paid for, by O on your behalf, and waiting for you. It can't be "returned" or "sold to another passenger", or such. Use the OBC for something "on board", something provided by O, not something they are paying someone else for in advance for you.. Now, *IF* they allow the OBC to be used for this, I'd be surprised, unless you've agreed to reimburse them once they've paid... But hey... I've heard of crazier things, so it's "worth asking them"... 😉 GC

I agree with FlatbushFlyer: You aren't trying to sue anyone with a big liability claim such that an attorney would spend lots of time hoping for something like 1/3 of a large payout. That's when 'someone takes your case'. You need an attorney to 'go after' someone who owes you money (or a letter that satisfies the debt/etc., in this odd case). That's done at an hourly rate; there's no claim of injury or malpractice claimed here. Either you aren't phrasing it right for the attorneys or you are somehow finding attorneys who specialize in something like "personal injury" litigation. In many cases, a "real letter" (not phone calls) from a "real attorney" (not from you or some other individual, etc.) can get the ball moving. Also, I agree about the "deadline" usually being to FILE a claim. If it's a deadline to complete the claim and receive the money or you *never* get the money, then many, many insurers would be *veeeery* slow to pay... leaving many of their insured without timely payments and no further way to continue the claim. 😡 Good luck, and it's time to have a professional (e.g., attorney) get involved in pursuing this. But you pay them; they don't need "a big case" to work hourly. If the money at stake is minimal, then perhaps it's less costly to just pay the bill, but "medevac off a ship" sounds "expensive". GC

This ^^ We were astonished at the laundry service. We had a Neptune Suite on our first HAL cruise, on the Noordam, and somehow we missed advance mention of the "free laundry", or we'd have packed a bit less. One time, we just put two pairs of socks out. 😉 Even with more items, it was always back surprisingly quickly, less than 12 hours. And... folded/arranged *so* neatly. Really amazing. It was a wonderful cruise overall (New Zealand & Australia). We've had other "wonderful cruises", but never laundry service like that! GC

Who *is* your insurance from, the actual insurer? And from what you are reporting, especially with the time limit looming, I'd strongly suggest that you contact your state Insurance Commissioner's Office. Insurance is regulated by the states. And even if your insurer doesn't yet have all the info they need (??), they should know how to handle this type of claim. So let the state Office help them, too. They may well know how to handle a snafu like this. [I hope so!] I'm glad it was possible to do the medevac. (One thing that has worried us as we get older is... how long will the "longest time to serious medical" going to be for any trup.) GC

Our Alaska cruise wasn't on HAL, and our experience with HAL is only with Noordam (which we enjoyed in New Zealand/Australia *very* much!). We carefully chose a NB itinerary. We wanted to enjoy the "landscape" on shore. early in the season. We wanted the scenery to be likely to get more dramatic as the cruise continued on, rather than the other way. So we also carefully selected starboard side, which on a one-way cruise Vancouver to Seward/etc., would have the shore almost entirely on the starboard side. It was definitely the right decision... for *us*. Others may have different preferences. We also enjoyed the inside passage, which isn't usually included unless on sails from Vancouver. (Seattle departures usually go outside of Vancouver Island.) We thought the Hubbard Glacier was the high point; we enjoyed it more than Glacier Bay. There was a LOT of calving, and the Captain let us stay there for a long time, slowly spinning the ship so everyone could enjoy that view even if they weren't roaming around on the ship (which is recommended for this itinerary... it's ALL so gorgeous!). Enjoy! GC

CDNpolar gave a very good answer above. However, I would like to explain a bit more about one thing they wrote: Travel insurance policies can differ in some respects. Some cruise-line specific insurance (purchased from or offered by the cruise line may indeed give their CFAR benefits as a "credit" for future sailings, and not "cash back". However, many 3rd party policies (purchased from a separate insurance company) will give "CASH BACK". That means you can just keep the money or spend it on an entirely different vacation or something else. Often, for CFAR, the "cash back" - and even the "credit back" - coverage is for something like 75% of the costs, not 100%. So it could be you'd get back, say, 75% in cash [or a credit, depending] rather than all of your money back. It's better than nothing, definitely, if you need to change your plans and the reason is *not* a "covered reason". For a "covered reason", it is typically a full refund. But ALWAYS read the specific terms and conditions of any policy that *you* are getting, as policies can differ in many ways. Also consider any transportation to get to the cruise. Would you be flying? If so, is that included in the "casino deal"? If not, then you may want to include the transportation costs in any insurance. But as PDNpolar mentioned, that's only if the costs are NON-refundable. If you get refundable tickets, then insurance wouldn't pay.... but you'd have no need for that coverage. And if you decide to get travel insurance for this trip or some other, make sure that you understand the definition of "pre-existing condition". That can be very different than its usage in everyday life. Sometimes that works out better, and sometimes not, depending upon the actual underlying medical issue. Sometimes there are deadlines to purchase travel insurance if one wants it to cover certain things, so double check. BTW, "taxes and gratuities" are often refundable anyway if one cancels, so again, double check that before purchasing insurance for those costs. GC

When we were first learning about travel insurance, we realized something very important about the annual plans with annual $$$ limitis, regardless of their terms. IF one used up the coverage limits before the year was up, but while there were still trips to take during that coverage year, it would have been very likely that it would have been too late for us to get the coverage we wanted for a "per trip" policy for any trip(s) remaining in that coverage year. And it would probably be too late to cancel the trip and get a full refund. Not good... This was pointed out when we were speaking with Steve (of TripInsuranceStore.com) rather early in our travel insurance experience. I doubt we would have realized this otherwise. There were other reasons why an annual policy was not going to work for us back then, but this reason wasn't obvious to us, at least not to us at that time. GC

This ^^ ... or the same if you purchased the travel insurance from some other agent/broker! Especially if they are getting a commission, well, they should be providing the associated service with the policy, if requested. This is one of the reasons to use an agent/broker rather than purchasing the coverage directly from the insurer. You get someone to help IF help is needed. Another reason, of course, is to have some professional help with selecting the coverage type that is best for *you* and *your* travel circumstances. A policy that is great for one person may not be at all appropriate for someone else. Without input from someone very familiar with the various polices/coverages, it can be incredibly difficult to understand if there is something in your particular circumstances that would make a particular policy a "bad fit", etc. And the time to find out that Policy A is not a good fit for you is, um, NOT when you file a claim and it gets denied. 😠 Purchasing travel insurance from an agent/broker doesn't (shouldn't?) cost the traveler anything extra, at least in the USA. It may be different elsewhere... We use TripInsuranceStore. We found them incredibly patient when we were first trying to figure out what type of policy to get. And all of our claims have been paid*, without nonsense, so it really did work out well! * One exception: RECEIPTS really are needed. We had one tiny portion of one claim denied. I didn't think to get a receipt for the *tip* for a taxi. It was too small an amount to bicker over, but I did learn that receipts really are important. GC

We *always* get travel insurance! We learned about that here on CC, and purchased it for our first trip after that. That was a very special (and $$$$) trip... And less than 2 weeks before our planned departure, DH had a medical emergency! We got every cent back. IF we had not had that insurance, we both think we may never have purchased another "special" trip, we'd be so annoyed. As it turned out, we've continued to have "more special" trips, even more expensive, and the travel insurance has allowed us to not worry so much. But keep in mind, for some people, it's not the cost of the trip, but the potentially very high costs of medical care elsewhere, so make sure you are comfortable with that. Your travel costs are mostly capped; you know what you'd lose. But for medical care, for something very serious, who knows what it might cost; there's not really any "cap". Thus, many here at least get insurance for potential medical costs, even if most travel costs aren't covered. GC

As CDNpolar suggested above, unless you have CFAR (Cancel For Any Reason) insurance, if you "want to cancel" because someone is sick, you may not get reimbursed. Usually, that would require a rather dire medical situation such that a physician says something like, "Uh... sorry... but we advise that you *not* leave town now...." It's not so much that you "just prefer not to leave..." But check the terms of your policy to see if a physician's letter is required or such. And you should get the forms filled out *now* if you decide to make the claim. The insurer is likely to need contemporaneous medical information, rather than having someone think back... (If *you* were hospitalized while you would have been traveling instead, then your own hospital record would suffice, at any time.) You want to have the best chance of getting reimbursed if you don't have CFAR coverage. We always got CFAR coverage, in part because of very elderly MIL (late 90's). We knew if she were very seriously ill, a physician would advise that we not leave. But if she were "just" complaining that she "didn't feel right"? (I know that is NOT your situation.) Well, she *always* said, "You GO! Do NOT worry about me. I'll be fine!! Go. GO!" But at her age, IF she ever didn't say that, but only that "she didn't feel right", that would mean something likely very serious. But the regular insurance would never cover that, so... we got always got CFAR (but also for our own purposes). As it turned out, less than 2 weeks from a planned departure for a very special Med cruise + 2 weeks in Italy... MIL landed in the hospital for cardiac "tests". So we were very glad we had CFAR. But we still hoped she'd be "cleared" and go home, hoping the medical team would say something like, "It was nothing, but at her age, we wanted to be sure..." But they kept having to do more tests, and then *more*. We were getting ready to complete the CFAR paperwork (the decision needs to be "more than 2 days before departure"; I've never understood that). With about 4 days to go, while we were starting to fill out the CFAR forms and given them to her physician, her medical team suddenly told us... "Uh... we now recommend that you NOT leave town after all..." 😞 Bad news...! So we had them fill out the regular insurance paperwork, and we cancelled the entire trip under the regular insurance. Fortunately, she did recover, and a week later she was sent home. The timing was just "off" for our trip. It was a very special cruise itinerary, one we've been looking for ever since but never seen again. Sigh. But MIL came first, of course! Hope things settle down for you within the next two weeks or so, and that your FIL does get better, whether you decide to take the trip or not... IF you got your insurance through an agent or broker, ask them for advice about how and when to file a claim. That should be part of their services. We did rely in part on the advice of our travel insurance broker (Steve, at TripInsuranceStore.com). He's always a great help, especially with anything uncertain. GC

Keep in mind that sometimes there are changes to the itinarary. So IF that ends up changing to include a country that does have 6-month timing, the ship would need to have the passengers suitably qualified. And it's apparently not sufficient to say, "Well, we won't get off the ship". I think (can someone clarify?) that once the ship is in the country's "waters", all passengers are considered to be "in the country". (Even if that turns out not to be correct, the ship may not want to need to deal with "some passengers can't legally leave the ship", etc.) To be safe, to avoid risking being turned away from boarding, I'd double check the laws of each country planned *and* determine what the cruiseline requires for that particular sailing. And I wouldn't accept the answer of just one person at some phone bank for something important like this. They may not know the correct answer... Get it in writing. GC

1) There are plans that would allow the traveler to cancel the trip and receive full refund if there was a delay for a specific number of hours? There wouldn't be any requirement to try to join the trip at a subsequent port (assuming that is legal, which is not always the case)? 2) And the way you've written your response makes it seem that there are policies that would offer coverage to get a full refund IF, say, inclement weather caused a delay of a common carrier for a specific number. That sounds like one wouldn't even need to miss the cruise departure... I've never been quite clear about the first scenario above... how does that actually work? (And I'll assume the second scenario was simply wording of the reply, and not any actual insurance coverage. But IF there is a policy that IS written that way...??) Thanks. GC

For *ANY* special needs, including diets, ALWAYS contact the cruise line well in advance. Cruise ships aren't like hotels; no one can dash over to the corner shop to get <whatever> would help a guest, etc. And "even more so" for a cruise like Antarctica, where there are no shops at all along the way. We each have a special dietary need, and: a) We contact any meal provider [cruise ship, conference banquet, friend with a dinner invitation (this can be a bit awkward, but is necessary), etc.] well in advance; b) We always have "something else" with us in case it turns out there is not something suitable. These are usually snack bars, because they travel well and have a long shelf life (aka, suitcase life!). As for Hurtigruten, we also found that the "substitute" was "Here is <whatever>", and there were no choices at that mealtime for the special selection. However... it was definitely possible to speak with someone in the Dining group to discuss preferences, at least among the possibilities that were on board. And if there were some favorites that you'd like repeated, just tell them. 🙂 GC

If wearing the boot is helping you at the time you are leaving, I'd *strongly* suggest that you bring it along. As for space, yes they are bulky (understatement!). So why not wear it? That way, if you end up needing it, you'll have it. It would be a shame to wish you had it with you... but not have it. When I needed a boot and was traveling (twice), even if as I was sort of weaning myself off it, I definitely wore it on travels so I'd "have it there" if necessary. And that did come in handy a few times. I'm sure the medical center would have supplies, but they may (reasonably) be restricted to use by the medical team. I'd guess they can't start carrying enough assorted medical supplies for those who just didn't want to deal with the effort/inconvenience of bringing those supplies along and "preferred" to use equipment on the ship. But I could be wrong. (Maybe they do have some, and mark them up to exorbitant prices... as the ship does with many things!) GC

[editing added] Yes, indeedy. That's just how I remember my Econ 101... when sales are going GREAT, that's when to reduce the prices. "NOT!" 😉 (Of course, if they want to suggest causality in the other direction, that it took lowering prices to drive sales, well, okay then... 😠 Very wise.) GC

Not sure what you mean by a "reaction", but in a way, "yes" - but nothing negative. This was in the Before Days. When we "checked in" at the MDR Desk, we noticed a slip of paper was generated, and it included a mention about the food allergy. That slip was handed to the person each time who escorted us to our table. We were delighted that they were making use of an additional way to avoid a problem. Yes, we also ALWAYS mention it to waitstaff when ordering: "... and this is the <special prep> dish, correct?" We do that for every course, every meal. (And we do this at every restaurant anywhere, of course, not just Oceania!) GC

Way back (in the 1950s), our family doctor made house calls, as did many back then. And for stomach problems (e.g., nausea, vomiting), his little black bag contained a small bottle of a very viscous brown syrup that was always called "Coke [as in Coca Cola!] syrup". It did not taste good, but I still associate that taste with those visits. And whether it is related or not, for me, it is definitely Coca Cola that soothes an upset stomach. It's hard in hospitals to try to explain that I want Coca Cola and *not* ginger ale, which has never seemed to do anything for me. I don't particularly care for it no matter where I am... I suspect a lot of this particular effect of Coca Cola is some sort of placebo effect, but probably *not* all. And I'm very intrigued by TheOldBear's comment about the difference between Coke products and Pepsi! GC

Yikes! Any idea what ate this bag? (Do you know if all or most of the contents stay in/with the bag? That's what would matter the most to us.) As far as the "appearance" of any luggage... Huh!?? As others have stated, they are "containers". We don't want the "cheap and replace often" type, but there is a reason other than anything about "appearance". IF that strategy would "work", that would be just fine. However, the "cheap and replace when they break" - which is likely to be "relatively soon" - has a major problem. That "breakage" could happen DURING a trip. 😱 I'm not considering getting dirty or scratched here. The wheels or handle could break or fall off entirely, or such. ANYTHING that makes the bag "unusuable" is a very major problem; that is what we want to AVOID. Thus, "cheap but short term" is too risky. We want to minimize the chance of being in the middle of some small town or some bustling train station when... boom... the bag becomes a burden rather than a help. The longer the "time to failure", the better, in our minds, and that's one of the most important factors. Unfortunately, "expensive" doesn't guarantee "good" in this respect, but it's likely to be a lot better than the "cheap" versions. We tend to do a lot of research, but that's no guarantee, either, but it's the best we can do. So we try the best we can, and hope to be "at home", or nearby, for any actual "failure". [Keeping fingers crossed, etc...!] And as a side note/reminder: Never put *anything* that you MUST have with you (e.g., meds, passports...) in any checked bag. Keep all of that in a carry-on bag. We have one bag that includes meds, and it is exceedingly rare that one of us does not have "hands on" that bag! (And we have extra supplies elsewhere with us, just in case...) Our other goal is to avoid having the bag "walk away". So we put very obvious (and usually unattractive) tape or such on the sides, plus something like ribbons on the sides of the handle. And now we wrap the handle in something that FEELS different, to reduce the chance that someone just "grabs the wrong bag" in error, perhaps without even looking carefully (e.g., if in a rush or distracted). There are neon-type colored velcro-handle-covers for this dual purpose: both very visible and instantly noted by touch. The ugly and noticeable features are both so someone else will notice and also to make it easier for us to keep an eye on it... One thing I sometimes worry about with that hand-carried bag with our meds... I sometimes worry that I might appear like a Nervous Nellie protecting some $$$$ crown jewels, when there is actually very little of value to anyone else! GC

I never knew the reason people kept recommending GREEN apples. That's really fascinating. 🙂 (I had sort of assumed, without much thinking about it, that it was some sort of old tale...) GC

See if the organizer of the business group can be in touch with the cruise line, especially if they have a large-ish group. That might be the best chance to get any last-minute availability. Also, it isn't only the CFAR cancellations that are last minute. We always get CFAR just in case, but none of our claims have used that (yet!). But we've had two last-minute cancellations due to illiness, one just under 2 weeks before our departure date (DH medical emergency) and one less than a week (MIL medical emergency). "It happens". The trick is to maximize the chances of getting it IF it happens! Good luck! GC

My goodness. I making the assumption that the person IS going to take a cruise. If no cruise, then... no problem! Not sure if they know yet how they'll be on a large ship at sea, and of course, a lot depends upon conditions during that cruise... But *IF* they go on one, then why not have the best chance of making a go of it? So selecting a cabin with the best chance of having relative calm in their cabin, why not do that? GC

If someone is dreadfully ill with motion sickness, it only seems logical to me to hope that wherever one is sleeping or spending "down time" is going to have any additional/ongoing effect that is as minimal as possible. 🙄 How does having a cabin location that makes things worse than they might have been in a cabin located elsewhere (e.g., midship, low) make sense IF one could select the better location to start with? GC

Speak with your physician, and well before your cruise. That's in case there are any meds recommended, so that you can TRY THEM BEFORE YOU GET ON THE SHIP! (Sorry for the "yelling", but this is so important. It's important before any trip, but when one is on a ship, one can't "just leave or go home" right away, etc.) You want to double check if you have any side-effects, etc., before you leave home. And try to get a cabin that is mid-ship and on a low deck. The "middle" of the ship will have less motion than either "end" or the higher decks. Then... ENJOY! GC

For anything like this (even "just" distilled water), I would strongly recommend NOT going through "someone else", even a travel agent if that isn't necessary. And given there is a Special Needs group, it is not necessary to rely upon someone else to contact the cruise line. The more people in the chain of communication, the more chance of a misunderstanding. Sometimes such communications can be almost absurd ("HOW could they think THAT was what we meant!??"), but those misunderstandings do happen. GC