schmoopie17

We bought two bottles of Limoncello in Rome to take home as gifts prior to embarking. We carried both bottles onto the ship and nobody said a word. Maybe they thought it was wine...maybe the port people doing the screening were new (or didn't care). But we did it. YMMV

Good for you. Glad it worked out. Did they agree to send live snails to your cabin with a bunch of garlic and butter so you can throw it all in the shower, turn the hot water up all the way, and steam everything for instant escargot? Sounds yummy.

$3.50 pints?? If I'm ever lucky enough to run into Dad in this place, we're both going to need help getting back to the ship.

We are on the Escape next week. Haven't heard of any port change for our cruise.

And lousy taste in art.

What exactly would I be looking for?

Speaking of the pot...talk about what the pot called the kettle...

Which stock is at record lows?? Certainly not NCLH.

For those of you who don't prefer the French Onion in Le Bistro...NO SOUP FOR YOU. Mrs. Schmoopie likes Lobster Bisque. I'm hoping one of the restaurants has it so I can hear her say "Yada, yada" to the bisque.

The food, festivities and fun (FFF) all look great. But even all of those will not persuade us to venture into the elegant opulence which is Cunard. I no longer own a suit or even a sport coat...and the only long pants I own are jeans. Rent a tux? Only if I'm going to Prom (which is highly unlikely) Looks like we are destined/doomed to a life of cruising with steerage lines like NCL. But glad you guys are having a blast. Sorry to see your cruise (and review) come to an end soon. It's always fun tagging along with you.

It is apparent that Cunard is a much classier and more caring outfit than NCL. I would assume that such an organization would have collections onboard to buy toupees for the bald eagles?

So...based on the responses so far, it's settled. It's dollars. It's euros. Maybe I'll just flip a coin (or a euro).

That's a great point. Tipping in euros actually ends up costing us more. Hmmm...

We'd love to have you join us...except I know you can't get time off from work. 😜

We're doing a Med cruise next week and we're planning on bringing almost zero US dollars along for the ride. Our plan is to give any additional tips to ship's crew in euros. In speaking with a few people recently, their opinion is that the crew would rather have US dollars than euros. (I know $2.00 are rumored to be popular). Our only other Med cruise was a TA, which ended in New York...so giving dollars made more sense on that one. However, for this cruise I tend to disagree, since on a Med cruise, euros would be just as valuable...if not more valuable...to crew if they get off in ports. And since the ship will have several European itineraries following ours, it seems to make sense. Thoughts from experienced Europe cruisers?

As they say on CC...YMMV. In our case, we have a number of private tours/transfers booked for our Med cruise next week. All of the tours/transfers require cash (euros)...no credit cards. As a result, we have around 900 euro already planned just for these trips. On a somewhat related note, we're planning on bringing hardly any US dollars. I don't see the need for them for two weeks in Europe. We plan to do additional tips to ship's crew in euros. I'm assuming those are just as valuable to crew as dollars...especially on a Med cruise.

The Celebrity board is having fits because that paragon of artistic excellence, Park West, booked one of the main public rooms on the Eclipse for an entire cruise...and apparently for the next few after that one.

While perusing the Celebrity board today, I saw this. We have one more X cruise and nothing booked with them after that. The premium atmosphere on Celebrity has evaporated and we have grown tired of the corporate lip service, declining product, revenue generation schemes, and silly high prices. There are many new and interesting cruise and vacation options out there. Variety is the spice of life and we are now looking for smaller ships that deliver more a refined experience and value. We've never been on Celebrity, but always considered them to be a notch higher (with prices to match) than NCL. Looks like even the vaunted Celebrity has its own issues...and dissatisfied customers.

I just added the Schmoopies to the spreadsheet for 6/5/26.

I'm confused. Are they saying you HAVE TO pay the gratuities upfront, or do they only offer you the OPTION of paying the gratuities upfront. Every cruise we've ever taken on NCL offers the OPTION of paying them upfront...including our 10 day cruise next week...we have the OPTION of paying $400 upfront for two. If you're saying they've already charged you for the gratuities and it's showing as a balance due, then that's a different story.

We had the Prelude Duo on the Jade a few months ago. Possibly the most talented lounge act we've ever seen on a ship. Daniel is an excellent piano player. If he ever has a solo show, be sure to catch it.

Ditto...seems like a waste of money to go to ports we have been to before and stay on the ship. We'd much rather go places we've never been...i.e. Croatia, etc. As always, YMMV.

Why the cheap Irish Cream? I see Bailey's is back on the steerage menu...

You could always do the Panama Canal February 6th cruise. I hear some celebrities will be on board.

My effort to go incognito while waiting for some "company" from the girls of the Red Onion apparently has gone viral.