Blondilu

I loved our cruises. Cruising is perfect if you love cruising and are OK with the limitations of time and distance in any given area. If you want more in depth or want to stay in an area for a longer period of time it definitely needs to be a land based trip. Or if you want to see an area that is too far from a cruise port to get there and back in a few hours. Honestly, if I had the time and money (and wasn't afraid of driving on the left side of the road) I would rent a car and road trip it. Another option would be going by train. The UK has a great train system. Have a great trip whatever you choose.

Thank you so much for taking us along on your amazing trip!

"Never" is such a confining state of mind. For me it's more like "I'd rather not." But, I'm not adamant about it. Example, I'd rather not go see a comedian. But sis likes them and she doesn't want to go alone. So, I go and we have a good time. A drink or two doesn't hurt. And I have "never" understood what's the big deal about graphic t-shirts. In a world where so many women wear jeans that are ripped or where the hem is ratty and uneven and calling it fashion or those god-awful leggings that show every nook and cranny, what exactly is the issue with a t-shirt that has something on it. I will wear one that was purchased in the last port, but not to dinner. Well, the buffet maybe, but "never" to the MDR. That would be tacky.

I apparently didn't understand what a crazy, complicated law this PVSA thing is. I almost, kind of understand it now.

Are you asking about the Coastal Cruises? I've thought about doing this myself. I'm no expert either, but it seems to me each individual segment is in complete compliance with PVSA. The first portion is Seattle to Vancouver, and the second is Vancouver to San Francisco. Neither one are round trip from a US port so PVSA doesn't apply? Isn't that how it works? Please correct me if I'm wrong. And the San Francisco roundtrip has a stop in Mexico. In fact, all of the rountrips out of San Francisco have foreign port stops.

It's the woman at the ticket booth or gift shop counter with the lovely accent and cheerful demeanor. Or the guide who clearly loves her country and it showed with every word. What a special treat when she took us to her house to meet her cats! The guide in Scotland who was actually Italian but he moved to Scotland when he married his sweatheart (about 50 years ago). The taxi driver who told crazy tales of his time in the USA. Or the couple at the airport coming home from vacation in California while we waited to fly home to California. "They should warn you the speed limit is just a suggestion!" 🤪 There was that one fellow in the subway in London who helped us find our route. He was so funny. I have lots of stories like that. I have many other stories of castles, cathedrals and ancient stone circles. Ruins and relics. Narrow streets with intersting doors. Beautiful meadows, moors and mountains. Wild seas. Weird and surprising archectectural styles. But, to me travel is the whole experience, people included. "Icing on the cake". True that.

Never did this on a ship, but after my mother's stroke we would ask the waiter at whatever restaurant we were at to cut the food up and they would do it before they brought it out to her.

Cruise Raider, I see you are from the Bay Area. I spent most of my life in Sonoma. Some of my favorite cruise memories involve sailing out under the bridge. On another thread someone asked about the weather in Alaska. As I recall, that summer afternoon sailing under the bridge I was colder than I have ever been in Alaska. What can I say, summer in San Francisco is unlike anywhere else, LOL. But, we had a blast standing out on the deck watching the folks above wave down to us, the ship's captain blowing the horn. It really is all about what you make of it. And honestly, I cannot remember a single detail about the food and very little about the ship. It must have been the Grand. That was the ship they were sailing out of S.F. at the time.

I totally agree that Alaska is the focus. The ship is second. And food is too subjective for other's opinions to be of much use. You will always find something. The odds are whatever you find will be in the upper half of acceptable, somewhere between OK and really good. But it's pretty much guaranteed you'll remember the scenery over either the ship or the food.

That is awesome, great job.

Some really, really great info here. I've been 4 times. Think of it this way: Travel day, 1 outfit. Put it aside and wear the same outfit home, launder if necessary. 3 port days = 3 pairs of jeans or similar and 3 sweatshirts or sweaters. 1 fleece jacket and 1 rain jacket. 1 pair of waterproof shoes or 2 pairs to trade off when one gets wet. 4 sea days = the same jeans or pants you wore onshore. Maybe add 1 more or use what you travelled in. 4 t-shirts, add the sweatshirts if you get colder. On glacier day if you go outside you will also need your fleece jacket. Same shoes as port days. Nicer clothes for the evening = 1 or 2 nicer pants and a couple of shirts. A blazer/sportscoat or cardigan for the ladies and you're good to go. Dressier shoes. Obviously you'll want to add undies and sleepwear. You should also bring gloves and a beanie or scarf. All of the above should fit easily into one suitcase. You may have to wear the sportcoat on the train or carefully roll it up in your carry-on. Note: It could actually be warm enough to wear the t-shirts ashore instead of the sweatshirts, I've seen that a couple of times. Don't be afraid of layers. Layers = t-shirt, sweatshirt, fleece jacket and rain jacket, worn in whatever combination the weather calls for. If it gets warmer, peel off layers and put them in your backpack, cooler do the reverse. One more thing: bring whatever makes you happy. If you want to bring enough to require 2 suitcases, do it and don't let anyone tell you you shouldn't. Packing light is not for everyone, and the way I figure it is if I'm willing to lug around all that stuff then what difference does it make to anyone else? On the other hand my age is starting to show and packing lighter is more appealing with each trip.

Sounds interesting and I would love to see it. But the photo uses some kind of extension I never heard of and don't have. Is there any way you could re-post as a jpeg?

Juggernaut. Disgruntled ex employee builds bombs, plants them on a liner traveling transatlantic, offering the key to disarmament in exchange for a lot of money. Special task force sent in to disarm. Drama ensues. Playboy captain, hard working cruise director. Mother of 2 traveling alone from London to New York. Or is it the other way around? And guess who is the guy in charge of negotiations and attempts at saving the ship. Her husband. Of course. Anthony Hopkins, Omar Shariff, Richard Harris and a whole bunch of other great actors.

I'm 70 and I love the Marvel movies. I also love Casablanca, Gone With the Wind, 12 Angry Men, The Great Escape and Cool Hand Luke, all of James Bond movies, almost anything John Wayne and many, many others. Recently I watch a Minions movie for the first time and loved it, stupid as it was. And oh yeah, Top Gun Maverick was awesome. I have eclectic tastes, to be sure. I like movies that are done well; written well, directed well, filmed and acted well. I also like movies where the splashy entertainment value is much higher than the overall cinematic quality. And sometimes stupid movies that make me laugh. I can't imagine watching 12 Angry Men on MUTS. Like those big theaters with all the X this and Dolby that MUTS calls out for something bigger in scope, like the Marvel movies, or some other action movie. Maybe Fast and Furious or a football game. Or a concert. IMO all those other "better" movies are more suited to a quieter venue.

Agree that's it better to book in advance, cancellation policy is usually 24 hours. If you are OK with this kind of thing there are usually vendors selling tours on the docks. Regarding the weather; get a waterproof raincoat or poncho and either waterproof shoes, or bring an extra pair to switch out while the other pair dries. It is most likely to rain at some point. You can't let that stop you from enjoying yourselves. It can either rain all day, or rain on and off, or be sunny and beautiful. Actually I don't remember any day where it just rained nonstop. More like, rain, then drizzle, then just kind of gray. The best thing to do is get the right clothes, which of course, you will only need if you don't have them! Regarding the cold; the coldest day I remember is glacier day on the ship. I don't remember being especially cold any other time, a sweatshirt was usually all I needed. Wear that sweatshirt under you rain jacket and you shouldn't have a problem as long as your feet are dry. And if one sweatshirt isn't enough they sell them everywhere. Rain jackets and fleece jackets, too.

Dorky for the win!

There are risks everywhere, and you can't live afraid of every "what if". A few years back a little girl was walking across the Golden Gate Bridge with her parents, tripped and fell and did that little rolly thing little kids do when they fall and try to get up and rolled right off the bridge. It was a horrifying. No one could have ever imagined a thing like that happening. But sitting your kid on a ship's railing just seems so obviously not a good idea. At least, to me. I mean, even in port the ship moves. Question: if that were an adult standing or sitting on the railing wouldn't they remove them? It seems I remember that actually happening. There must be something in the small print (that I never read) stating you could be removed from the ship for doing things that are obviously or intentionally endangering yourself or someone else.

I've never done a coastal but have sailed out of San Francisco, Los Angeles and Seattle either to Mexico or Alaska. These cruises sail more or less the same route as the coastal cruises. The only thing I've seen besides the ocean were the occaisional proverbial ship passing in the night.

I love it. You and your husband will look marvelous.

Pete, on my pc the resolution of the HD video was oh so slightly crisper. But I had to compare them side-by-side to even see the difference.

Our tour guide on the Princess tour was so knowledgeable I was mesmerized by her presentation on the bus ride to Normandy. One thing that stuck in my mind was her refusal to use the term "Allied Invasion." I do not consider it an invasion she said. It was a liberation. I have been twice and both times I felt it was well worth the cost and the long bus ride.

Mostly we DIYed the ports. In Boston we took a cab out to Bunker Hill then walked the Freedom Trail back towards Quincy Market. We missed some and almost didn't get a ride back to the ship. But all worked out and it was a great day. There was a shuttle provided by the city of Newport (can't remember if it was free) that took us out to The Breakers mansion which we toured. Took that same shuttle, I think, back towards the pier. Got off and had lunch then walked the rest of the way. Bar Harbor was skipped due to fog. St. John and Sydney are small and very walkable. In Sydney we did take a ship's tour to Louisbourg fort which was cool if you like history. In Halifax we walked into town and went in the Maritime museum then walked back. There was a Hop On, Hop off there that will take you all around the town including the Titanic cemetery I believe. On Prince Edward Island we had booked a private "Anne of Green Gables" tour and since it was just us the driver/guide took us all over the place. In Quebec we docked about 2 or 3 blocks from the shopping area. From there we took the funicular up the hill and had lunch then walked back down. Bar Harbor was where we had a private tour of local sites booked and a restaurant picked out for lobster. But it wasn't to be. New York pre-cruise was also a "big" port for us. Saw a show and went to the Top of the Rock one day, the the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island the next day.

I was going to say at the rails while docking or departing, but BklynBoy8 beat me to it.

Specific to the British Isles cruise which I have done twice; the Republic of Ireland is on this itinerary. Since it's a separate county from the UK you have to show your passort to be scanned by the border control agents of that country. Giving it to your room steward makes it so easy as you don't even have to be present. Check your passort, there is probably a Visa stamp from Ireland you didn't know you had.