new_cruiser

Then you are limiting your options. You could agree on a time that you will make your way back to the ship independently from each other and do that. Or when you arrive at a place that you might separate, you agree on a meeting spot where you will return at a specific time and set alarms on your watches to ensure you head back there on time. I'm assuming that you are talking about independent unguided excursions off the ship. If it is a guided excursion, than you all should stick with the guide and for any unguided time, the guide should make clear when and where to meet back up.

All the USB chargers I've ever seen are dual voltage compatible (i.e. they work with 110 and with 220 V outlets) so you just need a plug adapter to get the right shape plug. Voltage can be an issue if you want to plug in appliances like curling irons or hair dryers. Most heat generating appliances are single voltage though there are some travel models that are dual voltage that either require you to set a switch correctly or that sense the voltage and adjust themselves. I prefer to bring a plug adapter and a separate charger because I want to have fast charge and the USB chargers built into the adapters usually aren't as capable. For example: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077WJYNQ5 and https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09C5RG6KV

When a form to enter Greece (not sure if it's still required but at the time, one had to put all the places one was staying so they could reach you if there was a COVID issue) required an address for the cruise, I looked up the address of the port and used that. Another alternative is to contact the cruise company to see if they can give you the name of their port agent and use that info. Or contact the Visa office as LHT28 suggests.

I appreciate that - I was just trying to explain why I'm confused and what my goals are. Tone of voice is missing on-line and makes it easy to misinterpret. I've made some minimal bids so can't show the original offer screen. Here is what I can get.

Good point, I'd mainly like it from we cruise from Seward and visit Hubbard Glacier and the Inside Passage Day. That first one is an area where it is pretty likely not work great. IIRC, I was able to get connectivity to land towers in parts of the Inside Passage. If I buy the package before the cruise, it is $17 a day for one device (which is all I plan to get) and it says it is $24 on board. I think I'll wait and buy it by the day seeing how it works out.

How good is the ship Internet service? Can it usually support streaming a show? WiFi calling? Also, can you buy it for just couple of days on a 7 day cruise or do you have to buy it for the whole cruise. Our cruise is pretty port intensive so if I can buy it a day at a time, I'd probably only get it for the two days without ports.

I've packed magnet hooks in my carry-on and TSA hasn't objected. https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/whatcanibring/items/magnets

Is there a laundry package? Is a by the bag wash and fold service always offered and what is the current charge?

None of those mention the "scenic" cabins nor the "sunset balcony". I'll be sharing the space with my granddaughter and we would be fine in a regular cabin but I'd appreciate a bit more space. I've been on two prior Alaska cruises and didn't spend much time in my room. Also, this cruise is more about traveling with the family and my son and daughter-in-law are getting a balcony so I expect I'll be in my cabin less time. The cabin types are all offered on RoyalUp so I expect not sold out. I was looking for the cabin type names on the deck plan so that wouldn't be affected by the sold out status of a particular cruise. Our first Alaska cruise was on Crystal - we got a good deal on a balcony guarantee that time but spent very little time on the balcony - like the upcoming cruise it was port intensive and on the scenic sailing days we preferred being on deck or in the lounge where we could change boat sides for the current view. Our first cruise was on Celebrity but that was a long time ago. I also did one cruise on Star Clippers and probably will use them again when going solo as they have a lot of no-solo supplement offers. Most of my cruises including have been on Windstar ships. That includes a cruise from Japan to Seward followed by 14 days cruising from Seward to Vancouver.

This is my first time on Royal Caribbean. I just booked on Radiance of the Seas to join some family on that Alaska Cruise. I'm confused by the number of cabin types on the RoyalUp page. Perhaps I'm missing something, but I don't see any information on Royal Caribbean for all those types. Many aren't even mentioned. Other lines I've traveled on have little floor plans showing the typical layouts for their various cabin types. Is a Scenic Ocean View cabin bigger than a regular Ocean View cabin? What makes it different from the regular ocean view? How spacious is a Spacious Ocean View? And an Ultra spacious Ocean View? What is a Sunset Balcony? (I did find a thread where that was asked before, but it seemed that nobody knew the answer at that time.) Then Balconies also have regular, scenic and spacious.

It's $184 per adult on my upcoming Alaska cruise, but maybe it is less on a Radiance Class ship because of fewer specialty venues? It will be my first Royal Caribbean cruise so I've no idea whether it is worth getting. Also, I'm traveling with family and don't know yet what they plan on getting.

Fins I've gotten from them have been full pocket. I haven't used paddle boards so can't answer that part of your question.

r&rd is correct. There are two kinds of OBC: 1. OBC that Windstar gives out (e.g. from promotions, loyalty program) 2. OBC you get from your travel agent or someone else paying it in advance. The first is non-refundable (i.e. use it or lose it) and you can't use it for gratuities). The second is refundable and can be used for anything on board including gratuities. It's basically like cash.

I very much doubt that was the reason. They give everyone the laundry package on cruises over 13 days like the New Zealand/Australia cruise we were on. I've been on Mediterranean cruises where a very high proportion of the passengers were on Cruise Collectors so got the package for free and all 4 stars get it free. It's more likely that they took it out of the package because so many get the laundry package for free anyway. It made the package less attractive by inflating the price. When they took out, they dropped the package price by $10 (slightly more than the laundry package price) to compensate. They are generally out at sea often enough that it isn't a problem. Due to weather conditions, the ship stayed in Auckland 3 consecutive days (the penultimate day of one cruise, turnaround day when we boarded and the next day of our cruise). That 3 day port stay did stress the grey water capacity and delayed return of the laundry we turned in the first morning but that was a pretty unusual circumstance.

If you mean a flat fee per bag, they do have a special for that occasionally on cruises. I don't know whether it happens once per cruise or more or less since I usually have the package. I noticed it once when I was on an Alaska cruise. It seemed like one would have to stuff the bag pretty hard to break even with it though perhaps on a warm weather cruise with more shorts and cooler tps it would work out better. Windstar's per piece prices are pretty reasonable.

I can confirm that as well. We were on a 15-day single segment (i.e. not a Star Collector) and laundry was free for everyone on that cruise.

There are water pitchers and an ice bucket in each stateroom which the steward refills daily. I like to fill my Hydroflask with ice and water in the evening so that I have cold water available at night and the next morning. When I first board, I let the room steward know that I like to have the ice bucket filled around 4 or 5 PM so there is fresh ice when I want it. Otherwise, they tend to refill the bucket earlier in the day and the ice is too melty later. There is a mini fridge in each room too stocked with cans of soda (which are free). If you have a particular drink preference, you can also let your room steward know that and they will make sure that is stocked in the mini fridge. Sodas on board all come from cans, there isn't a soda fountain. (The mini bar is also stocked with alcoholic beverages which aren't free unless you are on a beverage package that includes them.)

The "hotel service charge" (Windstar's name for the automatic gratuity) is currently $16 per day per person. I think it used to be $14.50 so people mentioning $29 are giving the old amount per couple. There is also an 18% gratuity on drinks. https://www.windstarcruises.com/voyage-plan/general-information/#HotelServiceCharge $89 is the daily per person charge for the All-In package which includes the beverage package, internet and gratuities if the package is bought pre-cruise; $99 if bought on board.

We just got back from New Zealand and Australia. The cab drivers we had in Australia all treated paying by card as the normal way to go. The card machine doesn't give the option of adding a tip and none of the drivers gave any indication of expecting one. All the drivers were pleasant and helpful including loading and unloading baggage from the trunk. Our first driver in Auckland added a surcharge of a couple of bucks for using a card. Other than that, our experience in New Zealand was pretty much the same. The lack of tipping also applied at restaurants and pubs.

Northern New Zealand is experiencing unusually wet weather for the time of year. We boarded in Auckland on 10 January. Our first two ports of call were canceled due to the rough sea conditions. Instead, we had an extra day in Auckland and an extra sea day. The cyclone didn't directly hit but tge fringes still caused heavy seas. Instead of going directly south down the East side of North Island from Auckland, we started going North and went around the West side of North Island to Wellington. We had some rain and lots of clouds. Rains have continued and the situation in Auckland is now much worse with some flooding. The airport flooded Friday and people were stuck in it because the flooding blocked the roads. All flights were canceled. Domestic flights restarted Saturday but getting international didn't until Sunday. Baggage claim flooded too.

This is the plug adapter we use: https://www.amazon.com/Inovat-American-USA-European-Adapter/dp/B01AZ9BIKG/ref=mp_s_a_1_45?crid=3EKH3LRXT6HII&keywords=euro+plug+adapter&qid=1674769802&sprefix=euro+plu%2Caps%2C653&sr=8-45

There is at least one US outlet in the room and a low power (shaver) one in the bathroom. There is also at least one European outlet in the room. A heating appliance like a hair dryer is usually voltage specific so a 110 V one shouldn't be used on a 220 outlet with a plug adapter. (Some travel hairdryers may have a switch to adapt for voltage.) Windstar provides an adequate hairdryer that plugs into the Euro outlet. Euro plug adapters are small so you might as well bring a couple.

Go to the Windstar cruise finder. Under Specials, click Last Minute Deals. Some are between $1000 and $2000 currently. I don't recall seeing prices below $1000 very often pre-COVID. I did get a great deal last December (2022) on a 7-for-7 on the price of my crossing Cruise Collector a bit before the Price Assurance window ended. The prices went back up after so my fare for 23 days was less than the fare on the 10 non-crossing segment.

We've had some Windstar cruises with unusual itineraries that booked full or near full and the price only went up. We were glad we booked them early. If booking the cruises Windstar does a lot like some of the Caribbean, Panama/Costa Rica or Tahiti itineraries, it makes sense to wait.

Actually, the change was made well before the pandemic. The price assurance policy used to be up to 7 days before sailing. Then they changed it to 180 days (or maybe it was 120 days) which I felt was too long and unfair to the cruiser. After some months, they changed to 90 days, the same as final payment. I feel that's a reasonable compromise that allows for booking a cruise you really like well in advance getting your choice of cabin with some price assurance and Windstar being able to sell spare capacity by last minute price reduction.