billco

I hope the OP posts some more thoughts so the discussion can move on. We board the Valiant Lady next month.

Another feature of my iPhone is the ability to translate. Last night while having some friends over I held up my iPhone and showed that while they were talking I could translate the conversation into Spanish in real time without the iPhone connected to the internet.

The FCD was $100. Pretty close to final payment, so I don't think it matters. I figured it didn't hurt to ask and in this case it worked.

Thanks. Fortunately I booked with a Future Cruise Deposit.

At first, I don’t think she understood what I was asking for, but she told me I could cancel my booking and get a full refund of deposit, Club Orange, and HIA. When she realized all I wanted was to add the crew appreciation, she said no problem. like many people have said, sometimes it depends on who you’re talking to. I do have confirmation now that crew appreciation has been added

I called my PCC. She added the promotion (Free Prepaid Crew Appreciation) onto my booking. Easy Peasy.

The HIA was the same for both - $100 per day for both, It would have been $120 per day if I had selected HIA at time of booking.

Is it possible to rebook a cruise prior to final payment to take advantage of the current promotion - Free Prepaid Crew Appreciation? If Yes, is it also possible to transfer prepaid Club Orange and HIA? Last May I booked an Obstructed Oceanview and upgraded to the best cabin in the category by buying Club Orange. More recently I upgraded to HIA without crew appreciation. So, would I be able to cancel my booking, rebook an Obstructed Oceanview, upgrade to best in category with my previous prepaid Club Orange, and transfer my previous prepaid HIA?

Also, my Apple watch has fall detection and all my medical information is easily accessible on my iPhone. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208944 Two more good reasons why I always have them with me.

There a number of situations where I could contact emergency services by satellite if I didn't have wifi or cellular. Not sure if it would work while on or off the ship, but just another reason why I have my iPhone and Apple watch with me. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213426

I would feel naked without my iPhone. Never know when there might be a photo opp, text or e-mail of interest, need to Google something, etc. I'm retired and cruise often enough that I don't think of it as a vacation, so why would I not use something on a cruise that is so much a part of my daily life? I'm glad I have an app I can use on the cruise and that cruise lines are moving toward better use of the technology.

This is my first Virgin cruise. Not a good way to start. I spent about 2 hours last night and another hour this morning booking reservations. With all the crashes I have managed to book 3 Extra Virgin, 3 Pink Agave, 2 Razzle Dazzle, and 1 Test Kitchen. Really having second thoughts about if booking this cruise was a good idea.

My Ring Doorbell already has AI. It can tell the difference between a salesperson, Jehovah Witness, Girl Scout, or escaped convict. It tells them all that I can't come to the door right now.

Never have so many talked so much about so little.

Recently, I looked at the invoice for a cruise I booked 6 months ago and noticed it showed cancellation insurance. Since I hadn't paid for it and didn't want it, i called my PCC to have it taken off. She was on vacation, so I got another PCC who insisted I needed to pay for the insurance right then. I asked what if I cancel the cruise. After being put on hold twice, He said I still needed to pay for the insurance. I called back later and that PCC said no problem and took the insurance off.

Can you buy OBC with a gift card and then use that to pay gratuities once on board?

We are booked on the upcoming TA this October. Early on, I applied for and received status match. My addons showed the Deep Blue Extras and 2 $100 Bonus Bar Tabs. The other day it occurred to me that my wife should also be eligible, so she applied on Sunday and was approved on Monday. So, now her Addons show Deep Blue Extras and a $100 Bonus Bar Tab and my Addons show an extra $100 Bar Tab. Including the $600 Bar Tab for booking, that's $1000 to spend on the TA. Glad I thought to ask her to apply.

I saw the same cabin I have on next year's solar eclipse cruise was available on the 3 day cruise before it under the California resident special. $200 OBC as part of the promotion.

I think you were lucky to get a Guarantee.

These cuts make sense to me. I think the next cuts will be free laundry and minibar for Elites followed by free upgrade to Platinum Insurance. If the ships are sailing full, why give away anything?

Has anyone who had Platinum Princess Vacation Protection paid for a cruise partly with Gift Cards had to cancel the cruise after final payment? Was the full cost reimbursed as a FCC or just the part paid with a credit card? Was the amount paid with Gift Cards refunded back to the original Gift Cards?

Over the years I have had good and bad experiences with both CVPs and TAs. I am very happy with my current CVP who I have been booking with since the pandemic ended. She has done a few things that I don't think a TA would be able to do. For example, when we had Covid last August on the Enchanted it seemed like it was taking forever to get our meal allowance from Princess. I asked my CVP to look into it. Seems she had a friend who worked in the Customer Relations office. I had a check in a couple weeks. I've had equally good experience with TAs, but I decided to just stay with Princess CVPs after my last TA told me she wouldn't accept any more bookings since I was too high maintenance and she wasn't making any money over the time she had to spend on me. My CVP hasn't told me that yet.

Possibly part of the trend to cut back on entertainment. https://www.cruisehive.com/norwegian-cruise-line-cutting-back-on-entertainment/92334

Sounds like you are paranoid.

We recently booked an XL on this October's TA on the Valiant Lady. It was on Deck 8 and I believe it had a larger balcony. We changed our booking to Deck 9 over concern about noise from the Red Room, which was below it. The XLs above Deck 8 have standard balconies. so we changed to a midship Sea Terrace, since the price difference of $824 didn't seem worth an enlarged bathroom.