CDNPolar

Wise words, thank you. I have decided the following which I have tested and it has worked. For my phone which has a physical SIM for my personal cell, and an eSIM for my business number I will do the following: 1) I will forward my personal number to the business number. 2) I will turn the personal number OFF in Settings 3) I will allow my business number to connect and Roam and any calls from my personal number will come through as a forward. 4) My husband will get an eSIM for data only This will cover the business portion. The only thing that I have not figured out yet is Wifi calling because on Ocean cruises, there will be a lot of time that we are not close enough to shore to receive calls. The last time I tried Wifi calling my phone constantly seemed to overheat?

Not attacking what you said here, just sharing some of my observations and making some of my opinionated responses... I think that some of the comments suggest that we should not expect all TA's to give part of their compensation (commission) to their clients. Some do and some don't. We often get confused by the word "commission" I think. To me often commission suggests income on top of a salary - or a bonus. For many travel advisors, the commission IS their income. There is no salary, and then commission on top, the commission is their income. Yes, and the salespeople that you know that will discount their product by giving up some of their commission, are they also receiving a salary?

Some cruise lines list accredited TA's in their sites. These would be TA's that have gone through their learning programs and are experts on the cruise line. This is how we found and used an Agent for our Antarctica Cruise. We found her listed on the Hurtigruten site.

Well, this comes down to what the policy said... was a refund expected? If the back was considered a pre-existing condition when they went into his medical background, then that could be why medical did not cover. BUT if he had CFAR with this package, he was lucky and at least got 90% in FCC. That is much better than nothing.

Oh, and EZAir is covered under the Princess Travel Package. They have two levels of insurance, but it does cover the air too. For the medical portion to kick in, it would have to be a medically covered reason, but the CFAR is CFAR and this covers air too, BUT I don't know if you can just cancel the Air portion. You may have to cancel the whole cruise and air.

EZAir - in my opinion has some very attractive fares, and yes, the outbound and return may be on different airlines, but in general I find EZAir very difficult to deal with. You must take this up with EZAir and not take any chances that not showing for one will result in the other still being open or not... If you don't get a definitive answer and solution from your EZAir rep, as for a supervisor.

I would think that you have an argument for two devices at a time, but unless you are actually using both at the same time, I don't suppose that there is need for two?

But, if you like excursions that are on the website that are not offered on MVJ when booking opens, you can consider Viator or other local tour operators to get what you want. Don't rely on Viking excursions only. Viator have now "Worry Free Shore Excursions" for cruise passengers that if booked within their parameters can be cancelled for refund if your ship does not dock, or is late in docking, and if they don't get you back to port in time they will get you to your next port at a cost of up to $1000 per person. If you cannot find these yourself, contact your travel advisor...

Same here... I have three pairs of my favourite black shorts. Oakley is the brand, and they have the Oakley logo on the left leg near the hem. You might see me many times wearing these shorts on a 14 day cruise, but they get changed to clean ones and the dirty ones laundered in between. For some however you are going to think that I have worn the same thing for 14 days.

We are same experience with over 10 Viking cruises now. Lovely people, well travelled, experienced, open and accepting.

Viking is 70% + American guests with the rest being UK, Canadian, and Australian. Viking focus their marketing to these countries.

This is how I am looking at it now. I get the whole business expense piece, but in reality that is only about 30% back on the cost as the expense only reduces your taxable income. It is still a cost that I would rather not have, reduce, or eliminate if possible. I have been investigating Freedom and this 92 country thing which is very interesting. BUT, the fine print if very misleading depending on how you read it. The Canada/USA/Mexico with 92 country roaming is the following rules: * I can receive a call anywhere in the 92 countries for free. * I can call Canada from any of the 92 countries for free. * BUT these calling features are not free between the roaming countries * If I am in China and want to call someone or somewhere in China, I will pay for that call * If I am in China and want to call someone in the USA, I will pay for that * For instance, China to USA is $3.50 per minute * Much of my business requires me to call the USA I have two lines - one personal on a physical SIM and one business on an eSIM. This makes things more difficult now. I used to use Airalo but since I already have an eSIM installed (for business) my phone dose not allow two eSIMs. I think that what I will do is activate Roam Like Home for the business line and forward my personal number to the business line. Then I don't need the eSIM for Data.

Thanks! Hope all works well for you. I know this has been discussed several times over the years, and will be nice to have a CC trusted review!

Have you actually used the cooler yet? Would love a real honest review. I don't distrust Amazon reviews, but would love to hear your thoughts on the following: 1) If you are not using the biogel bottle, and you unplug the unit, how long does it stay cool before needing to be plugged in again? 2) Will the unit actually freeze the biogel bottle on its own? Doubt it... because if that were the case you would be in danger of freezing the medication. We have battery backups that we travel with and I am sure that they would hold the cooler for many hours, perhaps even 24-48 hours.

Haha... was going to recommend Cactus Club too!

We renew as soon as we can inside the one year of expiry so effectively we are only getting 9 year passports. This is not even a consideration for us. We just do it as soon as we can and inside our planned travel schedule so we are never caught in a situation like so many that they are rushing to get an expedited passport.

Based on what @broberts gave you in a link, I would concur with that. If you are Canadian (Vancouver) then you currently do not need a Visa to enter or sail from the USA. However, where are you sailing to? Are you going on a journey that is taking you to countries that would require you to have a Visa?

Interesting... popped it into a Google Image Search which can usually identify the origin, but instead I got the below.... looks like it is a stock photo that many, many people use. Would be interesting to see if anyone can actually identify the ship and line.

Our first cruise together was 2017. We took far too much clothing. We primarily sail Viking which have no formal nights, BUT, we like to dress up in the evenings. What we have done since 2017 and with 14 cruises under our belt since that first one, is curated a wardrobe for travel. We don't travel with even one pair of jeans. First they are heavy in the luggage, and for us not comfortable for travel. We find them hot to wear in warm climates and coming from a -20C winter homeland, we find them cold to wear in the cold temps. (I know there are many that feel jeans are the only comfortable pant) We have searched out and found pants and shirts that are travel friendly, wrinkle free, and easy to care for that pass in the evening and are comfortable for excursions too. We come home from excursions, shower, change for dinner into a fresh outfit, and then we wear that outfit for dinner, the evening, and then for the next day outings. Repeat. We have so reduced the amount of clothing that we take with this method.

Loved your review, but this point stuck with me until the end... your horrifying experience of the pitch black windy/howling sea. We are all so different, because this is one of the things that I LOVE about ocean cruising. Absolutely LOVE this experience. Overall, happy that you loved the experience and hoping that you can do the 80+ day around the world cruise. We are considering a 120'ish day world cruise now with Viking.

Sorry - I need to ask what is the "attitude on board" Viking and Oceania?

Hopefully it will work well for you! Let us know when you return. This has been sufficient for my needs during travel periods keeping this in my carryon sling bag. When I get to destination, I don't refrigerate, I just keep my pens in the Breezy Pack on the table. My only real concern where I have not tested this is if you are on a land tour and full days out between hotels where you are in the sun and heat all day. I would not leave the Breezy Pack in my luggage on the bus, as I would assume that would get very hot. I would carry it in a sling bag. For cruises and more controlled environments - like your drive - I think that this is sufficient. I am considering this for a future land tour however: 4ALLFAMILY Cooler from Amazon https://www.amazon.ca/4ALLFAMILY-Diabetic-Medicine-Portable-Medication/dp/B07SYZ22GS/ref=sxin_15_pa_sp_search_thematic_sspa?content-id=amzn1.sym.ea4b7f00-c440-4d65-bd3f-caa76cb13654%3Aamzn1.sym.ea4b7f00-c440-4d65-bd3f-caa76cb13654&crid=2A00VPKNZCW8L&cv_ct_cx=insulin%2Bcooler%2Btravel%2Bcase&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.cqxT89NXewEl7ZZKRi9QQiH1dPRG-sSr0xvMCQNBUuGivAVgq1rzEn0xohqOX98k-FwOvWIgFdnDdXkwl_67pA.dMHSN8ozP58da1USAFbAeSxWoXa1yQerIlpNX7lL91M&dib_tag=se&keywords=insulin%2Bcooler%2Btravel%2Bcase&pd_rd_i=B07SYZ22GS&pd_rd_r=df98a407-72c2-4f66-a799-9249a5f03fbf&pd_rd_w=uMSsg&pd_rd_wg=lfpgT&pf_rd_p=ea4b7f00-c440-4d65-bd3f-caa76cb13654&pf_rd_r=BCMXD4GVSCVZZX91WPBV&qid=1722676373&sbo=RZvfv%2F%2FHxDF%2BO5021pAnSA%3D%3D&sprefix=insulin%2Caps%2C159&sr=1-2-acb80629-ce74-4cc5-9423-11e8801573fb-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9zZWFyY2hfdGhlbWF0aWM&smid=A3TCE8WYFM9DRZ&th=1

It is called Princess Plus and Princess Premiere and these are being actively sold now at the point of booking. https://www.princess.com/en-us/cruise-deals-promotions/plus-premier-cruise-packages?cid=pm_sea_bkws_ggl_cfl_com1_gen_rsa_princessplus&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwqre1BhAqEiwA7g9Qhj7DKSbH3NMKoRYfzI0-RcFbFUC6sN2O9Z9ANzTzjdXrb052Fh2z6RoC2G4QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Don't think it is a sale, they have a package at $64.99 per day or $84.99 per day. For the $64.99 this is liquor, crew appreciation, wifi, 2 casual dining reservations, fitness classes... The $84.99 per day is much more. You basically save over 50% from adding these amenities individually. You add this when you book. Sorry - rounded to 60 bucks, but it was $64.99

We are so interested in the calling to 92 countries, but we have to do more research. I rely on my phone when travelling for my business - which does not turn off when I am travelling. I have to have connectivity and phone connection is very important. I am not disputing anyone's experience here, but do want to be very sure before we take the switch.