catspaw1

Yeah, I know facial recognition is the new thing - much faster. I believe the program is still called GE so that's why I used it. I'm a retired Fed - was working at DHS, & CBP was my component, when we rolled out GE. We all thought it was going to be a big hit & it is. Hard to get an appointment now to get an interview for GE but I just got mine renewed. I believe it's still a lot easier to get appointments at the Regan building, home of CBP, in DC in case you can't get interviews elsewhere. We haven't traveled internationally since 2019 when we went to Portugal but are planning on lots of international trips in the near future besides our upcoming cruise to Bermuda. Will probably go back to Europe in the fall on a independent land visit. Next year we are cruising to the Galapagos on Celebrity.

Sorry to read about your sad story but so glad you & Ian found each other. It must have been karma! Enjoy your cruise. I know you said AU prices were cheaper than the US,& you went to an expensive dinner but what would a normal regular dinner at a moderate restaurant cost?

Thanks Jim, I love all your TR & am reading your adventures everyday on your cruise from AU back to the US. Always really enjoy reading about your & Ian's adventures. Hope you have a great trip! Please post how you like the go pro underwater. We are booked with Celebrity Galapagos next year & a bear watching adventure at a wilderness lodge & possible cruise again in AK next year. Want to see your opinion on the camera underwater. Loved your pics & blog on Sydney. Keep on writing please!!!

Not downloading the picture sounds much easier. I didn't think there was a GE kiosk at the port as I'm sure they aren't cheap. But it would be great if DHS would consider doing that- would save a lot of time. I love GE!

I got a professional heads hot picture at a conference I attended. Is that ok? If I checkin just with getting a boarding time, can I input the rest of the documents later that day- less than 24 hours later?

Thanks everyone. DH will not be with me when I check in so I will have to do both pictures later. Sorry I didn't clarify, I knew you needed a CC& I'll input my chase sapphire reserve # to get more points. Do I need my Global Entry numbers? If I remember correctly no, but I won't be home so would have to take them with me. Does your Passport scan on the app or do I do a download? I will be out of town & would rather not take my passports with me but just type in manually.

Do I checkin on the app or cruise planner on a laptop?

Hi all, what time does check in start? Is it midnight in the time zone of the cruise? What documents do I need? Will I just input our passport info or does it scan in using the app? We have Global Entry (if anyone doesn't have that & does at least 1 international trip per year I highly recommend it) so do I need those numbers also? I will be away from home checkin date so want to make sure I have all the data with me. Do I need my celebrity booking number? Can I check my DH & myself on at the same time? We want to get the earliest possible checking time since another couple has concierge class. Do we have 1 person check in everyone from our party? Or best for each couple to check in separately?Thanks everyone. Haven't cruised since before COVID19.

I am so envious of you to be swimming near Mark Spitz! I was on a swim team then & we of course followed him. Yeah I knew Northern CA you can't swim in the ocean due to cold water. I was a water rat also when young- loved to be in the water. Still do. I find the beach mesmerizing & calming. Thankfully we can swim on LI waters from June ( some start in May) through October. I still like to walk the beach in winter though. Am following along with your wonderful trip. Have a great time & enjoy! Really appreciate your posts & look forward to them daily.

Jim, just wanted to tell you how much I appreciate your TR. I have read several others & I love your writing style. Keep up the great work. I will look forward to reading about you & Ian's new adventures

Thanks Jim, would appreciate your review of the gopro & housing. We are going to the Galapagos on Celebrity next June & we're thinking of buying it also. I'm an old lifeguard & been on a swim team so am a strong swimmer but no one can out swim a rip current. Try to swim parallell to the shore, don't fight it & it usually doesn't last for long. Happened to us in Cancun many years ago. Remember fins will help you get back to shore. Because most people start panicking, get on your back after it's over & just kick back to shore. Better than trying to breathe through a snorkel at that point. Kick using your hips & not your knees. I grew up on Long Island NY- a few miles from the ocean & we used to go everyday in summer

I have followed a number of your cruises & really enjoyed them. I'm looking forward to hearing about this cruise also. We are interested in diving & snorkeling around those islands so would love it if you can post any info on that. Smooth sailing! Also, can you comment on Celebrity compared to your prior trips about a decrease in service & food if any? Many people on CC are commenting about that. Thanks & have a great cruise!

Thanks Kiwi. We sailed with a lot of Kiwis & they always told us how beautiful NZ is. Can we get around as an independent traveler without renting a car? Driving on the left is hard for me. The cruise sounds great. We thought we would get a one way cruise & see NZ by ourselves after the cruise

Thanks so much..Can you do it via the app?

How do you cancel & rebook at a lower price? I already bought the upgrade to premium at 25% off but hoping it will go lower. I watch daily.

Southernmost on TripAdvisor they say the good places to see NZ are further from the cruise port. Their advice was to take a land tour. We want to go to NZ also so would like to hear comments about this. We have never taken a European cruise as I can't imagine going to Rome for a few hours! We spent 5 days there on our own & didn't see everything

So accounting for time to get off the ship at 10am & last boarding at 230pm- you have less than 4 hours to see Napier. That's not good. Was this a tender port also? Is there anything to see close by the port? O have enjoyed reading your blog so far as we were thinking about the same cruise. On TripAdvisor many people suggested a land tour was preferred as they said the "good stuff" was too far from the cruise ports to get a really good feel about NZ. Can anyone comment on this?

I would probably go that time also. Maybe ask Celebrity or the Marriott in which order you need to do things between passport control, luggage inspection, check-in & bag drop. Plus no TSA precheck so might take longer to go through security. Will Celebrity help at the airport since you are flying independently? We speak Spanish although not fluently - we can get by fine. Also please let us know what happens when you have to pay the national park fee upon landing. Celebrity has said its included in our price but I'm not sure what happens if you already paid. You are lucky to go now as the park fee is increasing to $200 from $100 with no grandfather for those of us who already booked & gave deposit.

yes I know about the time difference & I always hate it as it's so confusing. We got to Bangkok once & it was 35 hours bed to bed after flying in business class. We kept getting up at 3am & my husband said the only people up at that hour were us & the prostitutes! It took almost a week to get adjusted to the time difference.

waterbug that's a really early flight but I would rather get there early & not miss the ship! I am sure the Marriott will know what time you need to leave for the airport but considering it's a 45 minute drive to the airport, that means leaving around 5am or maybe earlier. I am always early for flights! I would rather pay more for a refundable ticket, seat selection & higher baggage allowance also. Please let us know when you return where they can stow a large suitcase for each of us onboard. Rolling duffel bags are probably better but the big duffels we have don't roll so hard to carry. I like to carry my own luggage, so I know where it is & not depend on anyone to carry. I don't like to drag them on the floor. I'll see.

waterbug,good idea on the wipes. Let us know if flying out the same day as the cruise works as we might consider doing that also. Getting to Puerto Ayova will transferring on a ferry bus & taxi seems like a schlep with luggage so leaving right from Baltra would be better. I haven't look at flights yet since it's 15 months away. what time does your flight leave Quito & arrive? & how much was flight?

waterbug- about going up the teleferico... remember that's at a much higher altitude than Quito which is already high. Altitude seasickness is a real possibility. I got it in Cuzco & we had already been in Machu Pichu & surrounding areas for almost a week. With altitude, it's better to go up gradually. So let us know how that works out. At the teleferico in Merida VZ once, I got it so bad I had to immediately descend. Let us know how you like Mindo. We would like to stay 2 nights to see the birds at dawn. If the boat is rolling around so much, 2 pieces of luggage won't stay upright. will they store it somewhere? We really don't want to buy more luggage!

I have splashguards & was going to buy a neoprene pants. We are going to Bermuda in July so will test them out. Did you bring sunscreen & bug spray?

I am concerned about putting 2 large pieces of luggage in that small room. is there anywhere else to store them?

waterbug, would appreciate your doing a TR when you return also. We are also independent travelers so getting to Baltra on our own. We thought we would spend anywhere from 1-3 nights in Baltra before our cruise so please let me know what you think & how many days. My current plan is arrive day 1 probably pm. Day 2 walk around & look for a boat ride the next day. Day 3 snorkel trip. Day 4 go to the ship. How does that sound? It's still a lot cheaper to DIY than Celebrity wants even paying for air, food & 2-3 nights hotel in Baltra. We will also get our own guide in Quito. Please let us all know if the current situation in Ecuador affects your tip at all. We would like to go up to Mindo for a few days prior to the cruise also if it's safe.