IRMO12HD

I believe Iceland Air also shares miles with Alaska Airlines

Thank you for the info!

Booked BOGO air from Colorado Springs to Seattle for my son and daughter in law for an NCL Alaska cruise in early October. I'm looking for feedback on what airlines NCL has booked flights with. They'll most probably route them through Denver, but the primary airlines that I've found are Southwest, United, and American in terms of low fares. Does NCL book Southwest? P.S. I did post this in the Cruise Air category; unfortunately no one bothered to answer my question, and instead gave me sage advice on why one shouldn't use NCL Cruise Air. I'm aware of the risks and have made alternative arrangements for my son and daughter in law just in case. But, I'm hoping someone who has used NCL Cruise Air can enlighten me as to on what airlines they were booked.

Booked BOGO air from Colorado Springs to Seattle for my son and daughter in law for an Alaska cruise in early October. I'm looking for feedback on what airlines NCL has booked flights with. They'll most probably route them through Denver, but the primary airlines that I've found are Southwest, United, and American in terms of low fares. Does NCL book Southwest?

Finally, regarding the Schengen stamp. I tried getting it in Malaga, Spain (our only weekday port stop!), but since it was an interim port, the (National Police) authorities couldn't give me a stamp. They said I could only get it at the first port of entry (Punta Delagado in the Azores) or our final port (Civitavecchia). As it turns out, I was able to get my passport stamped in Civitavecchia, along with everyone else. Semi funny story -- when I got to the Passport Control agent (who was very curt and obviously not enjoying his day), he growled at my "Buon Giorno," grabbed my passport and inspected it, and then stamped it . . . with the "Exit" stamp instead of the Entry stamp. He then growled again (not kidding!), lined through the stamp with a pen, and stamped it with the entry stamp. I was a bit concerned that his German counterparts might take exception to his pen and ink correction, but they did not, and I was able to depart Germany on May 10.

Oh, and I now have a transferable, does-not-expire Southwest airfare credit because I didn't make the PE to BWI. I'm sure I'll find a use for it at some point.

Results of my efforts, starting with May 6 as my Day 1, and ending with May 9 as Day 4 and my flight from Frankfurt on Delta Airlines on May 10. Day 1 (May 6): Marked myself present for a mission to Dover and Travis at about 1530; roll call was supposed to be at 2230. Mission date and roll call changed to Wednesday 8 May at 0730 Day 2 (May 7): No flights. Slept in, toured around the Airbase and Ramstein, played 9 holes of golf, had a nice dinner. Day 3 (May 8 ) Roll call at 0710; arrived at 0613. Not selected (although after looking at the online Roll Call document, I think I should have been). Checked in to the Air Force Inn as I had only booked the Hotel Michaela for May 6-8. About twice the price, but it was really nice to be right on base and close to everything. The rooms are quite nice. Patriot Express to BWI for 5/9 shows 20 seats available. Roll call at 1535 tomorrow Day 4 (May 9) Left my bags in the hotel storage for the morning; roll call is pushed to 1700. I have train tickets to get to Frankfurt leaving at 1800 so this is going to be tight. In the end I don't make this flight either (again, I think there was an error based on the roll call stats, but that's all water under the bridge. Classic advice is to not give up until the aircraft leaves the ground, but I couldn't do that and still get to Frankfurt to my hotel while it was still light -- also couldn't cancel my Frankfurt hotel room after 1800 and get my money back) My lessons learned: I think I calculated the lead times for registering for Space A pretty perfectly. The flight schedules just didn't work in my favor. Because I was traveling solo, I wasn't as flexible in my travel plans for lodging and getting around in general. If I try it again (which I will), I'll build more of a buffer of time on the end to give me more time to catch a hop. My luggage plan worked well; I had my 26" suitcase, a backpack, and my Travelon purse which carries quite a bit. I was able to maneuver it pretty well, even at the Kaiserslautern train station where the elevator for my train platform wasn't working and I had to lug it up the stairs!

This will constitute both a continuation of my notes from March 25 and then the results of my Space A efforts in conjunction with a cruise. I made the following "preparations" as I went along. Registered at Ramstein, Spangdahlem, and Mildenhall 55 days in advance of my hoped for departure date of May 8 or earlier. Registered at Naples NAS 40 days in advance of my hoped for departure date of May 6 or earlier Booked a provisional hotel (free cancellation) at the port of Civitavecchia for May 5 in case I got stuck in terms of transportation (cancelled it while on the cruise); Researched and eventually booked FlixBus from Rome to Kaiserslautern leaving at 5 pm on May 5 (our disembarkation day), due to an impending national rail strike that was supposed to start at 5 p.m on May 4, and go through 9 pm on May 5. As I became more concerned about the extent of the rail strike, I also booked the ship to Rome (center -- the Tiburtina train station) transportation for $79. I probably could have caught a train, but this turned out to be a much smarter and more relaxed choice. As it turned out, the strike didn't affect all of the trains I thought it would, but I was already committed to the (20 hour!) bus ride to K-town via Munich. Made sure I could fit everything into a big suitcase and my backpack, as the flix bus would supposedly only allow one carryon (not the case, but oh, well). Made a reservation for a hotel in Ramstein that was near both the Airbase and the train station. The Airbase was supposedly walkable but I never tried it. It was Hotel Michaela, and was a really nice place to stay. I had a large room with a large patio for about 120 Euros/night. Ramstein has a pretty good bus service onto the base; the bus stop is near the train station, and it costs 2 Euros. Taxi was about 12 Euros.

I'll use this as a timeline and (sort of) live blog for my experiences using Space A travel as a means of getting back home (to Eastern Washington state) after a Transatlantic cruise. First, a few notes: I am retired so will be Cat VI. My cruise takes place in mid April - early May, before the main PCS season begins and the (DODDS-Europe) school year ends, so (theoretically) I won't be competing with as many AD and Cat 2-5 travelers. My cruise ends in Civitavecchia, Italy on a Sunday, with a port stop the day before in La Spezia, Italy, so I should be able to see and use the 72-hour schedules for the relevant terminals. I have booked a refundable flight via Delta just in case I don't catch a hop, which gives me a way back (and, if they need it, a viable return ticket to show the Schengen authorities) My main concerns: 1. Where, when and how I will get a Schengen stamp for my arrival in the Schengen area. We have four port stops before reaching Civitavecchia, all in Schengen countries. They are: Portugal (Azores), Spain (Malaga, Cartagena), and Italy My concern is that two of those four stops occur on a weekend, so I will have to find an office/agency that is open. 2. I usually book travel in advance, but since I'm not sure where I'll try to catch a hop first, I'll have to "wing it" for either train or air travel to wherever I hope to fly out of. 3. I'm still wrestling with what kind of luggage I'll bring; carryon only, or one suitcase and my trusty backpack. Next up: what I have done (or am doing) to prepare.

I've sailed once on Norwegian at the discount rate -- owing to the low cost of the cruise itself (7 night Seward AK - Vancouver BC), it wasn't substantial, but was enough to pay for a couple of drinks aboard (I declined the beverage part of the Free at Sea). I will say that I was impressed by the degree of detail they put into recognizing their military passengers. Other discounts, a patch, a challenge coin, extensive welcome packet, a reception). I was happy with my pre-cruise and my cruise experience.

So far my spreadsheet is developing a clearer picture (well, maybe -- it's Space A, after all!) of where my best chances of catching a hop back to the States after my TA cruise might be. Definitely Ramstein is the best possibility, but the travel there from Rome is continuing to provide a few wrinkles. In about two weeks I'll start sending out my emails to the different departure points, bearing in mind that the Navy Air Stations use a different signup period (up to 45 days in advance) from the Army and Air Force installations, which have a signup period of 60 days.

I appreciate your details! I'll be on Odyssey in April for the Transatlantic, and will have six sea days in which to explore :-)

A little bit more than two months until I head across the Atlantic, and put (hopefully) the Space-A perk to the test. I've been monitoring flights (scheduled and non-) and have a pretty good feel for what my options will be as far as catching a hop back to CONUS. I still haven't resolved my concerns about how/when/where I can get a Schengen stamp in my passport -- will be checking in every port! I still have my return ticket on Delta in case Space A doesn't work out -- but it's refundable, so I'm hoping!

Thank you! Our first port stop in Schengen is Punta Delgado in the Azores. According to what I can find about Schengen stamps, that's where I should get one.

Thanks for the background! What you experienced in Germany is exactly what I'm trying to be proactive about. Our first stop in the Schengen area will be Punta Delgado in the Azores, so theoretically that is my first port of entry into Schengen, and where/when I should get the stamp. I just haven't been able to figure out who to check with to see if it will be possible. Frankly, I'm not a "passport stamp collector," I just want to make sure that I grease the skids as much as possible. Great advice on maintaining hard copies of my transportation documents; will definitely do that.

If I am a US Citizen on a ship originating in the US (Florida) and stopping in the Azores, Malaga, and Cartagena before heading to our final destinations in Italy, do you know if I can request a Schengen stamp in my passport at our first stop in the Schengen area? This will simplify my subsequent travel plans after the cruise ends. From what I understand, there probably won't be an opportunity to get it stamped in Civitavecchia.

Thank you!

I am paying for my son and DIL's cruise to Alaska this fall. If I purchase a travel insurance policy for them, or if they purchase it, will they be able to claim reimbursement if the trip is cancelled due to medical, etc? That's what I want them to be able to do, but am not sure how it works if I pay for the cruise.

Me, three!

Well, more than 3 years later I'm still asking the question -- has anyone used Space A to get to or from a cruise? I'm hoping to test it out this spring after a TransAtlantic from Florida to Italy. I'll post my results. @USN59-79, I think that if you're retired military, you and your spouse (assuming both of you have military IDs), can fly together as Category VI. She could not, I believe, fly Space A on her own.

My DH and I will be on the westbound portion; I'll be interested to see how the card room in the "Windjammer Annex" will look. I also wonder if there's a place to do jigsaw puzzles. On Voyager's TA from Copenhagen to Boston, the puzzles were in one of the alcoves. Very busy place, with two puzzles going at a time

Thanks for the advice -- I will definitely check as soon as we board.

I've been reading all of the comments, and definitely appreciate all of you registering your thoughts and preferences! We're booked on Serenade for the Westbound Panama Canal (Miami-Los Angeles) and this time I booked the 3-night dining package for both of us. This will be our first cruise as D+, so I'm new to the BOGO deal, but will be researching it. Under the 3-Night package, I booked dinner for the second day, but recognize that we won't find out where it is until we board. I personally love Izumi, and we've never eaten at Chops or Giovanni's Table, so I'm inclined to accept the reservation if it's for Izumi or Giovanni's Table, or change it if it's for Chops. Then, we can figure out where to use our other two "nights" from the dining package, and where to use the BOGO.

DBP on Serenade Panama Canal cruise in November is at $57.99/day with the Senior Savings Sale.

I was on Norwegian Jewel for her 28 Aug - 4 Sep Seward-Vancouver sailing. I rode the NCL Shore Excursion train from Anchorage to Seward on the day of embarkation, and heard one or two people coughing. As a result, I tried to maintain distance from those I heard or saw exhibiting cold-like symptoms. I was in an interior cabin (solo), used the stairs as much as possible, and stayed away from crowds in the buffet. Walked outside on the Promenade rather than taking interior routes. Didn't use a mask (until I boarded the Amtrak bus from Vancouver - Seattle), but did wash my hands a lot, used hand sanitizer. Despite numerous accounts of people contracting COVID, I tested myself the day of disembarkation and the day after I returned home, and tested negative. I was irritated by the number of people who were coughing without covering their mouth, and did my best to avoid them. Had I experienced those symptoms, I would have, without a doubt, contacted the Medical Center.