shellgirl61

The Sky redeployment affects me to. I was scheduled to sail on May 16, 2021. I am not sure what I will do. The options that we have right now are not that great. Losing 3 ports and gaining more sea days does not make me excited about the cruise. Missing about half of the ports takes a lot away from the overall enjoyment of cruising the Baltic.

Moving Baltic cruises from RT Copenhagen to RT Southampton does not make a lot of sense to me.

I live in a very small lake town near *****, SC. I retired from the CDC a year ago. I have been sheltering in place for about 4 weeks, only going to the grocery store and pharmacy. I have been to a couple of restaurants to pick up takeout.

Luckily, we have been having beautiful weather. It was rainy the second week. I get out and walk 5 miles each day, and have been doing some yard work.

Most of my time is spent scrap booking  past trips. I have about 6 trips that I still need to complete. I just finished a Disney World trip that my son and I took in 2016. Today I started a 2017 Disney Land trip that we took in 2017.  I also have 3 cruises, Canadian Rockies bus tour, and a camping trip to South Dakota and Montana in the que. I will be busy for a while.

I had a Baltic Cruise on The Sky Princess booked for May 6 - May 17. Of course it was cancelled. I also have a B2B cruise on the Enchanted Princess booked for October 25 and November 5. I am keeping my fingers and toes crossed for those two.

Most things are closed here. Another round of closings are coming tomorrow.

Today I made a cloth mask from a bandana and ponytail bands. I will wear it next time I go grocery shopping, which I hope wont be for 2 or 3 weeks.

I hope everyone stays safe and healthy. Please stay home if you do not have to go out. Many thanks to everyone that has to go to work to keep all the essential things running.

I save all the paperwork from the cruises. I scrapbook each trip. When I finish each book, I toss the remaining things that I do no use in the books.

I will be on the Sky in May in The Baltic. thanks for sharing and taking all the pictures. It looks like such a beautiful ship. So excited about sailing her.

Last cruise, I wore black ballerina flats from J Crew. Very comfy and very cute. I will be wearing them on my cruises  this year also.

Thank you so much for sharing your trip. How wonderful it must be to travel with your Mom and Sister. I was on the Sapphire last November in the Mediterranean, from Southampton to Civitavecchia.  It was an amazing cruise. Joffrey was also my waiter. I really liked him. He was so friendly and had a great sense of humor.

I am enjoying your Live report. I am sailing on the Sky to the Baltic, May6 - May 17. Looking forward to the rest of your report.

Thank you so much for sharing.

Washing hands vigorously with hot soapy water is much better to kill germs on your hands, than totally relying on hand sanitizers. Hand sanitizers are anti-bacterial and will not kill viruses.

This is what I did in the buffet to save a table for myself. I always took a jacket with me and put it on the back of the chair. I also picked up a cappuccino at the International Cafe or used my travel coffee mug and left them on the table. Then, I went and got my food. My table was waiting for me after I got my food. 

Don’t cancel your cruise!!!! I did my first solo cruise last November. Loved it. It was a Mediterranean cruise on the Princess Sapphire. I did not do any meet and mingles. I just went about my day. I always met plenty of people to talk to. I chose anytime dining at a table by myself. I always found people to talk to while eating dinner. I even ate dinner three nights with a group I met on the ship. I always found people to hang out with on excursions also. One other single lady and I were on two excursions together. We hung out together on both of them and sat on the bus ride together. It was an amazing trip. I was anxious before I went. I also spent two days in London and Rome on my own. I have already booked three solo cruises for 2020. Enjoy your trip!!!!

I just finished my first solo cruise on November 10th. I also spent two days in London before the cruise and two days in Rome at the end of the cruise.I was anxious about doing such a big trip alone, especially being in Rome alone. The trip was amazing from start to finish. The Concierge at both hotels were very friendly and helpful. I felt totally comfortable in both cities. I met a group of people on a tour in London that were also on the cruise. They invited me to hang around with them on the tour, had lunch with them, and also shared a taxi back to my hotel. We also chatted quite a bit on the ship.

I took a pre cruise tour from London to the port in Southampton. The trip included a stop at Stonehenge. I met a couple on the bus that invited me to walk with them while at Stonehenge. We also shared some hot chocolate at the cafe after touring Stonehenge. I also chatted with them on the ship.

There were so many lovely and engaging people on the ship. I always had someone to talk to, and attend shows with.

I chose Anytime dining and chose to eat alone. The two top tables on Princess ships are located in the same area and very close together.  The couples sitting by me were very engaging and always conversed with me. I also me a group of five people traveling together and they invited me to dine with them. I dined with them three nights and attended a couple of shows with them. They were so friendly. One of the couples is traveling on a cruise I have booked for next fall

I also met another solo traveler on my excursion in Toulon. She is also a widow like me, and has traveled everywhere on her own. She gave me lots of advice on solo traveling. We spent the excursion together and had lots of fun. We also were on the same excursion to the Cinque Terra. We also hung out together in that excursion. It was another fun and enjoyable day.

I may have just been incredibly lucky to meet so many welcoming and friendly people on this cruise. But I do not think so, I think it is just the nature of the type of folks that like to cruise. I also think if you are willing to open yourself up to new people and new adventures. you will find that people are very receptive towards you.

I had an amazing time on the cruise. I enjoyed talking and spending time with all the people I met on the cruise. I also enjoyed my alone time. I have already booked two more cruises that I will be traveling solo. I have no anxiety about traveling solo anymore.

I hope everyone of you anticipating that first solo trip have a very special experience like I did on my first solo voyage.

Hope I have the same experience after my first solo cruise sailing on 10/31/2019. 

Enjoy!! I am sure you will have a wonderful tome. My first solo is coming up October 31 on the Princess Sapphire, sailing from Southampton to Rome. Wish me luck!

We were on the Emerald Princess last summer in AK. The robes in our stateroom was very soft and comfortable. It was not the big plush one or the waffle one. It was also for sale in the gift shop for I think $95.

I bought the book from Amazon before my trip last summer. It also included the map. I wanted to read it before the trip. I did not want to read it on the trip. I took the map with me, but left the book at home. I wrote notes in my travel journal of information that was important to me and places I wanted to remember,

People traveling on all cruise lines that have some form of elite status will always flash it and some won't. That is just the way people are.Those that flash their status, will flash anything that they think will impress us more "common folk."

I encountered someone the other day that was going on and on about being the Valedictorian of their high school graduating

class. They graduated at least 40 ears ago. I was not the least bit impressed. Rather, I felt pity for them.

Very sorry for your bad experience. I have always use a TA and have never had a problem. However, I do not use an online TA. I use one that has an office, that I can talk to face to face. It is also good to establish a relationship with one, who knows what you like and don't like. Good luck with your future bookings.

They removed it for a short time last year also, but put it back on after a short time. 

Who knows why?? The price stayed the same last year. 

I was just able to order 2, 12 packs of water at $7.08.

I ordered the Alaska Cruise Companion before our cruise last summer from Amazon. It included the map and it was a couple of dollars cheaper than on the ship. I wanted to read it before the cruise, and make notes of the things important  for me. That is the main reason I ordered it before the cruise. I did not want to spend my time reading it on the ship. I wanted to enjoy the scenery.

Sorry you were not able to book solo cruise or hotel. I am booked on a Princess cruise out of Southampton this fall  as a solo. I am also staying at the Holiday Inn Kensington as a solo. I did not encounter any problems booking these. I used a TA.

Purchased it on Amazon. 

Thanks for the suggestions. I will check them out. The thought of a private ride from the airport to the hotel, after traveling all night sounds very appealing. 

Thank you, cft8. That is good to know. I will have to think about tackling stairs with my luggage. 

I will be arriving in London at Heathrow this fall for my Mediterranean cruise. I am staying at the Holiday Inn Forum in Kensington. My question is what is the best way to get from the airport to my hotel. This will be my first solo cruise and my first time in Europe since 1981, when I was in the Air Force Reserve. Thank you for any suggestions and advice you have.