Sonoran_cruiser
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Posts posted by Sonoran_cruiser
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We were on the Rhine (northbound) May 12 to 19th. Didn't have much rain, but it seemed cooler than I would have expected (we did a late May Danube cruise in 2016, and it was outright hot for several days). Biggest problem with mid summer cruises can be water levels, and the added amount of land based tourists taking their vacations. I want to to a late fall cruise sometime.....
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Traveling with some friends in May with Emerald Waterways (we did Danube in 2016, doing Rhine this time). Everyone has opted for "water level" staterooms this time, since we didn't spend enough time in our cabins last time to make the French Balcony that worthwhile. Having a French balcony room was nice, but so is saving a bit of money and still having a great trip!
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Really excellent review of your Emerald trip. We cruised Emerald in 10/15 from Amsterdam to Basel and had the same basic experiences. We're now considering a Danube cruise in July 2018. After reviewing options offered by AMA, Avalon, Viking and Emerald, we're thinking Classic Prague and Danube Delights on Emerald is the right choice for us. We feel it's an excellent value. We like that Emerald has a mix of Australians, British and North Americans. Do you remember what the cost was for the all-inclusive drink package?
Weezo - we did the Classic Prague and Danube Delights in late May 2016 ( Bud to Nuremberg, bus ride to Prague) and enjoyed it very much! I'm currently trying to organize friends for a Rhine cruise in 2018. With respect to extended alcohol package, I think it's something like 20 Euro a day. (note - sometimes Emerald offers it as a free booking perk, at least I 've seen it here in the American market)
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Nice review. I so wanted to do that cruise..... but I couldn't find anyone interested in going with me. :(
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I would return to Regensburg again just for another visit to the Sausage Kitchen! Even two quasi-vegetarians in my group had their sausages and sauerkraut, and said they were very delicious.
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They booked the same flights on Delta that I would have booked myself. The downside is, booking 330 days in advance the schedule is likely to change.
Actually, your flight schedule will probably change a few times (slightly) before you fly, since schedules are typically tweeked every 3 or 4 months. Hopefully you didn't have any "close connections" that might become even closer!
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This is true, we are going Scenic next year and I see looking at the layout there is a single cabin right next door to us.
Marlster
I think the newer Scenic ships only have one single cabin. I was on Emerald Waterways (Scenic's sister), and they had 2 single cabins. Single cabin is only about 100 square feet (with a twin or slightly wider bed). Single cabin didn't have a price supplement, which made it attractive to a solo traveler. Then again, you can sometimes get regular cabins at a reduced (or no) supplement adder.
My friend was able to book a single cabin on our cruise, but they are often not available (due to solos or group leaders getting them early). Since our cruise wasn't a sellout, they did give him a free upgrade to a normal "waterview" room. He was happy!
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There is so much else you could do and see on the Big Island. Do you really want to waste a good chunk of your port time driving to/from the other side of the island? (too bad Princess doesn't visit the Kailua-Kona side, which would make your intended beach trip a lot easier)
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Funny thing is, the average person reads almost nothing in their cruise contract.... or the FAQ's listed on the cruise line/etc website.
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As Katmu said, Emerald Waterways does have 2 single (called ES category) rooms on each of their ships. I had a friend who was able to nab one for our recent Danube Delights cruise. Even better, the cruise didn't sell out, and they gave him a free upgrade to a normal 2 person stateroom when he went to check-in! He was glad to have the extra space (think a single room is about 100 square feet, whereas a normal cabin is about 175 square feet).
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Just back from a Budapest to (almost) Nuremberg Danube cruise on Emerald Waterways Emerald Sun. Great ship, great staff, and quite good food.
Two of my traveling group didn't like the food that much, or the fact that they "couldn't get something to eat between lunch and dinner" (meaning - outside of regular dining hours). Apparently they expected this ship to have a 24/7 pizza and hotdog stand :rolleyes:
We did pre (in Budapest, by ourselves) and post (in Prague, with Emerald) extensions, and I would definitely recommend spending a few days in each of these cities. Our post-dinner evening cruise along Budapest waterfront was definitely a great way to kick off the cruise!
Note - we choose Emerald Waterways over Viking due to the total price available (including air) when we were looking in Sept 2015 (plus the final payment policy for Emerald - 90 days before sail). You definitely see lots of Viking ships on the Danube, but don't know if that's necessarily a good thing.
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I was on an Emerald Waterways river cruise northbound on the Danube last week. We left Passau early evening on May 31st, but had to stop less than 20km northward due to the high water up towards Regensburg (apparently a bridge south of Regensburg is the "go/no go" point on the river, with no great docking options to the south of the city). We ended up spending our last 2 nights "parked" in Vilshofen. At least we got to take a bus ride trip to see Regensburg. Glad I wasn't on the next (the current) Emerald Sun cruise, since they all had to take a bus ride southward to reach the ship, vs being able to step on in Nuremberg.
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We're sailing on the Emerald Sun in July, 2016 Classic Prague and Danube Delights & booked through a ta. Will I be notified of booking optional tours in advance of the cruise, must I request the choice with my ta or do I just wait & book the tours when we are on the ship? Thanks
We booked the same itinerary last September (for our Bud-Prague trip, coming up in 5 weeks), and optional excursions were available for booking at that time. Surprised your TA didn't forward info on them to you at booking time.
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You could also go to an early LGBT meetup event, and find other singles/couples to dine with. Even if you end up sharing a large table at dinner, you at least have some other "friends" at the table to make you feel more comfortable.
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Do you really want to risk losing your cruise, by waiting until the last absolute minute to pay for it? What if something happens, and your credit card company bounces/denies the payment?
My TA requires payment a few days ahead of the cruise line due date, just to 100% guarantee that you still get the payment in on time.
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Sorry I can't find anymore the Princess Roll Call on its Facebook page.
I was using it on FB before I switched to CC in 2013.
This is the link and info that I used before:
Princess stopped their roll calls 2 or more years ago. Apparently some type of Facebook security issue..... or so they claimed.
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My thoughts:
- We loved our Caribe deck room(s). Friends were on the opposite side of the ship, so we changed rooms (with wine glasses in hand) when the "ship spinned" in Glacier Bay.
- I'd recommend the Promenade deck over going "up top". Although the upper deck (ie, above center or front elevator areas) provides a 360 degree view, there will be lots of people jostling for photo/viewing positions, they will be noisy, plus there are several ship vent areas that are noisy. This means you can't easily hear the ice cracking and groaning, before it breaks off (calve).
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You might also get the beverage package free, as part of the cruise sale offering. Problem is, that happens oh so infrequently with Princess (whereas it's a regular offering on Norwegian and Celebrity).
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To the best of my knowledge (and for the US market), Princess has only had a "free beverage package" deal once in the last 2 years, and that offer only ran for 2 weeks and had capacity limitations.
Phrased another way - Princess isn't exactly generous with giving promotions to their clients. (ie - has anyone exactly found their "free coupon booklet" to be useful?)
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My hubby and I will be on the Dec 3rd Southern Caribbean sailing on Vista. It's a "work event" for me, but hoping to get a chance to fully experience the ship. Only my second time on a Carnival ship (and I really would like to put Imagination out of my mind).
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Summer of '14, we flew out of Anchorage returning to AZ post-cruise. Our flight was at 2AM or so. I couldn't believe how busy the airport was at midnight. Luckily we had TSA pre-check, and didn't have to wait in the incredibly long line for passenger screening. Keep in mind that many flights leave at this time to sync up with connections in Seattle or Portland.
Regarding Princess luggage hold at the downtown depot - I believe they close fairly early in the evening (ie, 6 or 7pm). We did the Portage Lake excursion post cruise, got bussed into town, then stored our luggage and walked around Anchorage for a while.
We had two friend staying over one night in Anchorage, so we used their hotel as a "crash pad" before departing to the airport. Don't know what we would have done had they not had that hotel room....
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Dgoodname,
We booked through the TA, who did not (apparently) keep any record of this promotion.
Any TA should have access to promotional history for the cruise line offers.
That said, there might be nothing on the TA's electronic records that would track the OBC, either before or after it disappeared. OBC's (or Shareholder or Military credits) are only kept on Princess' system.
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I agree with Pieshops, this makes absolutely no sense.
Then again, I have a SIL who doesn't want to travel anywhere because of the "fear of the unknown".
For me, I'd get on a plane/train/ship 24/7 if I could, especially if it is to see something/somewhere that I've never visited.
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In Tortola we docked "aft in", on the right side of the pier (if you were standing on the very end of the pier, facing land). An Aida ship was on the other side, and another Aida ship was tendering to shore (pretty busy day).
Does the Escape always dock this way, on this side? Who knows!
Best river cruise in Bordeaux region of France?
in River Cruising
Posted
I did an Emerald Waterways Provence cruise with friends back in June. We did a few pre-nights in Nice, caught the ship in Arles, and then did 3 nights post cruise in Lyon. Emerald allows you to do "whatever" on your own, pre or post cruise (although, doing so negates them providing free transfers for those portions where you book stuff "on your own". Oh, and we had their discounted airfare special!