salboz

On 8/13/2021 at 8:47 AM, h18furball said:

My wife forgot to renew her passport.  We sent it out expedited on 8/6 2021.  We have one cruise on 9/10 and a second cruise on 11/14.  If her passport does not arrive in time, can she still sail on just her drivers license?  We live in Florida.  She also does not have a birth certificate and has been told it is 3 months to get a replacement.  Should I start looking for a wife replacement? 😀

 

Dave

If noo passport, need BOTH DL and BC

On 8/18/2021 at 8:22 PM, clearlake_cruiser said:

Send to shareholderbenefit@rccl.com

 

I didn't know you could email it.  Gives an address to Investor relations in Miami on the form.  Thanks for the info

On 8/20/2021 at 9:50 PM, neverbeenhere said:

My travel agent seems to always pay the base gratuity amount for me. 

I am a travel agent and have never received as much commission as the cost of the gratuities.  So if you have an agent that pays them, she must be working for fun and not money

 

If your itinerary includes  stop in Iceland , use Iceland Air but book  through their site to book comfort Air.We were flying into Barcelona and by spending another $100 each for comfort air, we got  lot extra including use of their lounge which had free food and drink and also had cots where you could take a nap if you had long enough layover.  All included in comfort economy fare

On 8/11/2021 at 8:31 AM, LEMJMcC said:

I'm hoping that the nonsense around masks aboard for ANYONE is long past by the time we cruise in December.  However, if RCCL insists on mask usage we will likely cancel it.  We made this resevation back in February, 2021, so we meet the conditions for the Cruise With Confidence program.  However, I am wondering if we will be able to apply the FCC from the December booking to another booking we made back in April for a cruise in July, 2022, should we end up cancelling the December '21 cruise.

 

Anyone have a similar scenario occur?

 

Thanks!

I just used fcc from March 2020 on a sailing April 2022

I am 81 years old and have been on 60+ cruises all over the world.  I also have  very compromised immune system which is an indication that I shouldn't have the vaccine.  However, cruising is my only joy.  So I have to chose to enjoy what life I have left by taking the vaccine against my doctor's advice, or live a dull boring life.  I am taking my chances and getting the vaccine.

I am just interested in a clamshell which I have booked online on other lines.  I gather that NCL doesn't do that and you have to get off the ship early and rent a clamshell on shore.  Is that correct?  If so, can I use my ship card or do I need cash?  Anyone know how much they cost these days?

On 10/18/2018 at 12:10 PM, Notnewtoit said:

 

You must have been on a different island to me... I suspect that you may be remembering Great Stirrup Caye which used to be largely as described but it's been a while...

OP - Harvest Caye is pretty lovely - as long as your OK with what is basically a giant resort island close to Belize... as opposed to an authentic immersion in Belizean culture!

The pool... is the pool... it's large, appealing, busy and noisy. Not unlike the pool deck on board! That's not to say it's bad at all... The thing I would note here is that since much of the tree planting on HC is new, shade is at something of a premium so a Cabana is handy if you like to hide from the sun a little. I would say it's not a particularly 'premium' experience, they are very close together and very close to the pool edge, so don't expect too much respite from the hustle and bustle. This is really what sets the Beach Villa doohickey's apart... private beach, a lot of privacy/quiet and exclusivity - if that's what you seek it's very, very worth it.

 

I would CERTAINLY take a pool cabana if that is the only option available to you!

HC has one large beach (one end reserved for the Villas)... and of course a whole bunch of activities.

One can also rent a 'clamshell' ON the beach... something of a halfway house - affords you some shade and a base of operations, not much privacy but at least you are looking at the ocean - which for me is what I want to see when I sit on a tropical island sipping a cocktail.

🙂

 

I never take the ship tours but I am tempted to this time as I want both island tour and beach time and usually the port vendors offer one or the other. Has anyone been here and seen a vendor offering both?

Stopping in Southampton from 9am until 8pm. Any way we can get a tour of London or is it too far away to have any time there? If possible, tour operator?

We are on same cruise as OP (not doing Disney though). If you haven't already done, also check in the roll call to see if anyone else wants to share a private transport.

sounds rather too iffy for being this close to sailing. We are planning on using Uber.

If you see it pop up in cruise planner, report back! I'm on Nov 11 Anthem and wanting to book :)

I will also be on that sailing and looking forward to Puzzle room

A great tour guide for any place in Italy is AllAboutRome

Just a little FYI - It is about an hour drive between the ship and the city of Rome.

I'm not sure if it was on Princess or not, but the ship's excursion took place even though the museum was closed. Some museums apparently make deals with some cruise lines. If Princess if offering a tour to an otherwise closed museum, I would feel quite confident that the tour will be a go.

We also always go a day ahead. Risks vs peace of mind is one factor, but we just like having that extra day of vacation. Most ports have nice and inexpensive pre-cruise deals if you look in the right places. Embassy suites has a deal in most port cities.

Definitely check out Mary Lou's Tours for both Hilo & Kona.

We enjoyed our tour with Kyle very much...$75 a person per tour.

Private tours or self reserved will save a lot of $$ over the ship's offerings!

Most of these will offer pier pick-up, so very easy!

We drove the rest on our own via Harley's or Mustangs, but understand your apprehension at not wanting to drive :)

 

Due to all the great reviews I have read, I booked with them for both Kona and Hilo. We have room 4 4 more if you are interested. More details on post 32, or you can check out there web site at Maryloustours.com

Thanks for the input. Diving is for a certified diver. Were thinking more of an organized tour to a good spot, rather than just off the beach. I had heard that both Grand Cayman and Belize were good. Probably going to have to be Western Caribbean this time.

If we picked our itinerary solely on the best place to snorkel and/or dive, which islands in the Caribbean should we pick?

Thats an interesting change in wording...free Shore Excursion money AND free Spending money? It all goes to the same place in your account unless they are going to actually enforce using the Shorex credit for Shorex.

 

Terry

This forces you to buy the Princess overpriced shore excursions instead of with local guides which are always much cheaper, smaller groups, more flexible, include more, etc. etc. Almost never book ship tours and have never been sorry and I've been on over 40 cruises.

Just a little FYI - Agents do not get 10-15 per cent unless they own their own agency. Also, nobody get commission on the taxes or port charges which make up a substantial part of your cost. As to whether or not to use a TA, depends upon the TA. If you get a good one, it is a no brainer. If you go to a booking mill, then you probably don't gain. Some TA's will even tell you to wait a few days before booking because then you will get such and such a perk. Some also always give a gift beyond what the cruise line offers and are honest about what the c/l is giving. Don't think I'm allowed to tell you how I know, but these are facts.

RCL lost 1 of my bags, or somebody else took it, from the ship to the terminal. Never recovered.

Trust me! You are part of the majority, not the minority. Enjoy yourself and ignore the idiots.

I have used a number of operators in Jamaica, but enjoyed Jo Junie the best of all. We were just in Falmouth in January. Don't have his website handy, but you can google him or check Trip Advisor where you will find very good reviews.

I have toured St. Martin with several different guides including Joyce Prince and Bernard who both were good. Before deciding, check out Jo Junie tours. His private tours are only a few dollars more than the group tours and he is great. He sees to it that you get to see everything, and yet you can spend more time or less time at certain places, depending on what you prefer. We just went with him in February and paid $60.00 each for a private tour with the 6 of us. He was very entertaining, informative, flexible and felt like an old friend by the end of the tour. Has new vehicles with excellent AC, and plenty to drink with his compliments. By far, my favorite in St. Martin, and of others according to Trip Advisor.