Torfamm

Do they not have it at Coffee & Cones? The line was always much shorter there in the morning than the International Cafe. As long as it was after 6, I went there for lattes every morning

Celebrity offers Elite members free drinks from 5:00 to 7:00

In those days cruising was much more expensive than it is now. My first cruise in 1982 on the Carnival Mardi Gras was over $1000 per person for 7 nights in a cabin with a tiny porthole and no electrical outlets. $1000 then would be $3,100 today. It's similar for airline tickets. Prices have come way down, and the experience has also changed.

It’s always interesting to me to hear what other passengers would value. The point about Plus and Premium packages diluting elite benefits is well taken. For me, the idea of a discount on Princess Plus or Premier rather than only discounted Wi-Fi would be very welcome, as would just adding either drink coupons as Royal Caribbean does or free drinks at happy hour to the Wi-Fi benefit. Specialty dining is much trickier than it used to be. It might be a benefit that no one could ever use. I just looked at a cruise that leaves in 5 weeks and there is not a single table for 4 available at any specialty restaurant on any of the 14 nights. I have to imagine that it’s inclusion in the packages has impacted availability

We had an absolutely amazing experience with Jayleen's Alaska in Juneau. She operates small boats that take out no more than 6 people at a time. It was a fantastic morning literally surrounded by humpback whales. Jayleen was very easy to work with as well. We had cruises cancelled two years in a row due to Covid before we finally got to go whale watching with her last summer.

Caribbean, Discovery, Enchanted all had live links for "view menu" on the tabs for each day when you select View or Change individual daily reservations while you were connected to Medallion Net. The only glitch was that they only show one menu at a time. For example, on the same day you might only be able to see the breakfast menu if you look in the morning.

I’ve been able to see the menus for the whole cruise once onboard on my last few sailings

You can see which shows are scheduled in the Journey View activities timeline in the app. I’ve seen it populate as much as a couple of months before a cruise but it could be later

There are still managers turning people away at the MDR for wearing shorts. It's not fair to say that it can't or won't happen. If people care about eating in the dining room, they should be prepared and pack pants.

I saw people turned away in shorts on the Enchanted several times on a cruise in November. It is unfair to promise people that shorts will be allowed in the MDR. No one can predict whether the policy will be enforced on any ship on any given night.

It is not fair to promise people that the dress code won’t be enforced unless you are going to be the one at the door to the MDR making that decision. If eating in the main dining room is important to someone, they should plan accordingly and pack long pants. As for what age it is likely to be an issue, I have no experience with bringing a child into the MDR in shorts, but my guess is that it would probably be fine, especially on smart casual nights.

Did it work? One lady refused to.She just sat there logging in and out every 5 or 10 minutes after I asked if I could use a machine if she wasn’t playing. She never played. Of course there were no staff around. Unbelievable but not worth a confrontation

Just off the Caribbean Princess and the policy that only active slot players are able to smoke was repeatedly ignored. There was a group of 6 people sitting around blocking 3 machines last night who actually said they were just there to smoke when someone asked to use one of them. I wonder how much revenue the casino loses because they are a smoking lounge?

Sometimes more excursions are added but I wouldn’t count on it. You can probably find good information on the ports of call board for the country and port you are visiting

I have not gotten more emails but I have logged into the bidding site at a later date and seen starting bids lower than they showed in the original email

My understanding is that the cabin steward’s do exactly that. They put tape over the sensors if passengers request that they be disabled.

I also hate them. They are way too bright in my opinion. We also pack painters tape to block the sensors and use a rechargeable night light in the bathroom on cruises https://www.amazon.com/RTSU-Dimmable-Nightlight-Atmosphere-Decorative/dp/B01EOI3RO4?pd_rd_w=nDtAK&content-id=amzn1.sym.b854a5c2-4475-41f8-a6d4-df92b2868104&pf_rd_p=b854a5c2-4475-41f8-a6d4-df92b2868104&pf_rd_r=RF7D9EAKFAECFDECDPV2&pd_rd_wg=J2OcT&pd_rd_r=0220f4fa-939f-49d9-936a-5cd990feece8&pd_rd_i=B01EOI3RO4&psc=1&ref_=pd_basp_bia_rpt_ba_s_2_sc

I paid $78 on January for a 1 day rental with Hertz. They offer free transfers in Miami from their location near the cruise port but not at FLL to Port Everglades

I’d factor in the nuisance and cost of getting the wine to last a whole cruise to the ship when a passenger flies, Either renting a car or Ubering to a liquor store at the embarkation port or paying to ship cases of wine would negate any benefit to me. If you can drive it would be well worth it

I think it’s a bit unfair to compare any wine list pricing to retail. You’ll not likely find Veuve Cliquot on any restaurant wine list for under $100. Wine is normally marked up at least double or triple of retail. Any $10 grocery store wine will be at least $25 or $30 at a restaurant. Drinking wine out is always a poor value. If I want really fine wine, I normally drink it at home. Off the subject, if you are interested in champagne, the book The Widow Cliquot, was really interesting.

I will try to remember to ask a bartender! The packages’ selections aren’t appealing to me, but they are definitely cheaper than buying the bottles individually from the MDR wine list. As an example, the sparkling wines are $59, $65, and $115 on the list in the app so $149 is a good price, IF you wanted those particular wines and would have purchased by the bottle.

There is also an icon on the app above the QR code that shows your medallion loyalty color

While I prefer stems, I have a rigid cardboard carrier meant for a single bottle that is perfect for two stemless glasses. It’s gone on many outings off tripds

Wine packages are available on the Caribbean Princess this week. Can’t say they look too exciting

They had the Reidel glasses on the Caribbean Princess this week. I noticed that they served one wine I ordered in a regular glass though. It was a French Sauvignon Blanc included in the Plus package. Probably wouldn’t have been much improved by a better glass 😉