jsn55

NOTE TO NEW OPs: If you want our advice, and you're fabricating a scenario for some strange reason, just read our advice, say thanks, then go away. Don't insult us all by telling us that you made up a problem. We're better off not knowing that this was all a farce.

Interesting question, and good answers/opinions. My question is: exactly HOW would you leave your cabin and depart the ship with 4 suitcases?

I've dealt with Morton's for 30 years. After 3 or 400 pairs of shoes purchased and tried, I've come to a couple of conclusions that work for me. Rule #1 is that 'cute' is my last concern, unfortunately. There are very few 'closed shoes' that I can wear. Mostly buy 'slides or mules'; I look for ones that offer 'support', not bits of leather across my toes, but a configuration that cradles the foot as much as possible given the style of shoe. I find Clark's makes comfortable ones that I can walk in for fairly long periods. The sad thing, as you probably know, is that a shoe that was very comfortable last week can make my feet unhappy today. When it comes to trainers, Easy Spirit works for me. I buy a size larger, tear out the insole and wear them with thick socks. I use 3/4 inserts (like Dr Scholl's from CVS or Walgreen's). This gives my toes more room to wiggle. Besides the travel, I work horse shows and am in a warmup arena for ten hours a day, and these shoes are pretty comfortable. Way back when I had a hip replaced, I visited a specialty shoe shop and ordered German shoes with customized inserts. The whole shebang cost $600 and I walked out of there wondering if I had lost my mind. They arrived a few weeks later ... the store people knew how to fit them perfectly with little adjustments here and there. I wore them in blissful comfort for more than ten years, then bought another pair. They are seriously ugly 'clod-hoppers' as my Grandpa would say. But I can walk forever in them. As for color, I decided long ago that I'd travel in black pants and shoes ... I can't be packing 5 pairs of shoes for a river cruise! For warm weather, I do bring a pair of trainers the same color as my capris. While boring, this makes packing much easier. Clark's makes a sandal with wide adjustable straps which are the least ugly I can find. They're supportive and come in a kind of bronzy color that is suitable for almost any outfit. You can get through life with Morton's, it just takes a lot of research/trying time and a great deal of money. Goodwill loves me.

I've read that about NCL as well. Everybody 'hates' standing around but if the ship starts to sink, at least some of the pax will remember something from their muster. (Not) watching a video will make little impression. On our first (and last) Princess cruise over the holidays, we were required to watch the video 3 times at home. It's one of those things that needs a little thoughtful consideration. What's the main sticking point? Your muster station location, of course. Closely followed by the location of life vests in your cabin. If people don't know how to put on a life jacket, someone will help them. With musters required 'in person', at least everyone will know where their life jacket is and where their muster station is.

Slightly off topic ... I know that airlines charge for checked bags in coach if you don't have a credit card to cover the fee, but what airline charges extra for a carryon?

Oh my, the Selectrics! I could type a thousand words a minute on a Selectric. When I moved to SF, my desk had an IBM Executive, the one with variable-spacing, i.e. a 'W' took up more room than an 'L'. They turned out very elegant docs. BUT you had to memorize how many back spaces were needed for a typo. Great fun.

Use a computer.

Glad you've made a decision and can now think about all the wonderful parts of your cruise. Can't remember if I included this earlier: pack a compete outfit in your carryon. Chose clothing that coordinates with what you wear on the plane. Just in case ... it's a lot easier to deal with a lost bag when you're not desperate.

Yes ... but it would be interesting to know just what our OP has booked for flights. A stop is just as subject to baggage problems as a connection.

You might want to read the reviews on NCL ships ... we took our first cruise on NCL last fall and it was fine. Our last cruise had been on Queen Victoria, so we did not expect to enjoy NCL much at all. It was a nice surprise. NCL's website will lay out all the information you need about included goodies, extra-charge items and tipping. Then come back to us with specific questions.

You have the right attitude ... do what you can, hope for the best, double-check everything, enjoy what the app can do once you've boarded. As long as you get that green/QR code on your phone, you don't have to worry about it any more. Just beaver along online and in the app, and pretty soon it will appear. You can make lots of plans on the app, but they may or may not happen; all that has to be double-checked once you board. We only made 4 MDR reservations, and 2 of them were screwed up. Four shore excursions and two of them were wrong, one of them 3 times. This app has been around a long time, it has huge flaws that never seem to get fixed. The daily activities list is a joke, so cumbersome as to be almost unusable. Some people have no problems with the whole scheme (so they say), others can't get much done at all. You won't know which group you're in until you board, get settled, and try to do something on the app. The app does have a sense of humor ... our last evening I ordered some cake and champagne to be delivered to our cabin. After the order was confirmed, my screen turned bright green and I was instructed to 'hold it up in the air so the server could find me'. Uh huh.

"Direct, non-stop ... both flights". I'm clueless as to what this means. But I will tell you about things I have learned about a checked bag. I've become quite a fiend about luggage ... many years ago all the tags were torn off my bag between SFO and Roma, via Amsterdam. Some wonderful person opened my bag, saw all the information he needed, and forwarded it to our hotel in Roma. As a certified clothes horse, I would be extremely upset to start a cruise with no luggage! Put your detailed itinerary from your house to the ship on top of the contents before you close the bag. Put another copy in the upper outside pocket. Be sure your ID tag is waterproof and easily readable. List your hotel phone as well as your cell. If you have any contact information for the ship, include that. When you check the bag at the airport, be sure the agent puts the right destination airport tag on it. I don't 'worry' about my bag either, but am very glad to see it arrive on the carousel.

The quality of the cruiseline will determine how good this is.

My husband and I share a cabin when we cruise. We have breakfast delivered. We make plans for the day. We talk to each other. Works just great.

I booked this cruise which was cancelled during the virus disaster. I didn't really notice until we made the res, either. We live in NoCA, and got over the whole 'wine thing' years ago, so I was disappointed. But I read about all the excursions, then studied the reviews ... and it seemed to me that it would be fine. I mean, it's FRANCE, right? Scrutinize the itinerary and the shore excursions to see if you'll like it.

Whew! I thought for sure you were asking for opinions on bringing your toddlers on a river cruise! I can almost guarantee you'll both enjoy yourselves immensely. We've only done one Viking ... a cruise/tour of China. It was a disaster solely due to an incompetent tour leader, but we love Avalon in Europe. We did 'your cruise' on Grand Circle, our first, when we were 54. So much to see and learn ... the age of your fellow pax is really of no importance at all. You'll be able to figure out who to spend time with and who to avoid very quickly and gracefully. I particularly like Avalon's choice of dinner venues, so we can just sit up in the lounge together munching little bites and drinking champagne, or join everyone in the MDR if we like. Viking probably has the same kinds of choices. I'm sure Viking also has excursions at different levels so everyone enjoys themselves. That's really important. Read the reviews of your cruise on CruiseCritic to gather all the little intel that's so important to a successful trip. There's only one problem with a European river cruise ... it spoils you for any other kind of travel!

First step is to use NCL's website and search for an answer. 2nd step is to call NCL and ask them. You could also an online search on the subject to get an idea of how things work on cruiseships. This kind of important event is best handled directly so you're sure to get the correct information.

Good friend who turned me on to Avalon in the first place has cruised in every category offered on several Avalon ships. She feels the same, just doesn't matter to them, so save your money for things that are important to you. We tend to spend a great deal of time in our cabin on a cruise, we like to 'lay around' reading or plunking on our computers, gazing out the window or even napping. So I'm super-careful to pick cabins that are spacious and comfortable enough for two people.

While not technically a medallion problem, this cracked me up just now ... I wrote a review of a great whale-watching shore excursion on Maui for Princess. It was the best experience of the whole cruise. There are several categories to rate along with the narrative. For each category, it takes about 5 clicks to register your opinion. You can't just click 'the stars', you have to go back and forth in order to get Princess to accept your ratings. Hmmm, I thought, isn't this just typical of Princess ... make it as difficult as possible just to get your ratings accepted.

Jerusalem is a port, a city to visit. What other ports are you interested in?

It's my understanding that shore excursions booked through the cruiseline have priority getting off the ship. You might want to post on the Celebrity forum.

We were on Royal Princess; MDRs are Allegro, Concerto and Symphony. All three were open.

I think you may have just explained the whole issue, Thrak. I have a very cheap phone (by choice, I don't need anything else), so what you're saying makes sense. I know that I boarded with a chip on my shoulder after all the angst getting checked in from home when the system just wouldn't work. Previously, I knew how to talk and text, and thought the medallion app would be a fun challenge. To top off the experience, the man who checked us in on the pier put the wrong cabin number on our documents. That added an hour to the process because nobody seemed to know what to do about it. Plus, I have no patience for swiping and tapping on a phone screen. Half our pre-made dinner plans and shore excursions got changed and cancelled several times along the way. When you travel with someone who has mobility challenges, being told that you need to traipse half the length of the ship to dine at a different restaurant than the one you booked and rebooked makes you quite cranky. I'm glad so many of you have few problems with Princess. But I'm glad I'll never have to worry about it again.

Ah, the magnet topic. 'Everyone' always says they attach things in a cruiseship cabin with magnets. But far too often the walls don't react to the magnets. I made 3 cute little Christmasy things for a recent cruise on Royal Princess. The only place that I could use a magnet was the cabin door. Very disappointing. So I'll not be packing magnets any more. .

Trust me, the whole medallion thing is far worse on the ship.