tupper10

@rafinmd Glad you are on your way home. Wishing you safe travels and hope you are feeling a lot better.

Baby Murphy looks adorable and what a fighter she is.  I hope her journey to health and getting home continues.

Sorry to hear that people are still waiting for needed medical things.  It seems that our health system is getting worse and worse.  A 3 week wait to read a test is inexcusable - these tests can reveal life threatening conditions!! Also @marshhawk I can't believe you still haven't gotten your needed oxygen.

Today was a busy day with work in the afternoon and loads of errands in the morning.  I work remotely so I can make my own hours.  I usually walk everyday but today I just couldn't get it together so instead I made a nice meatloaf (haven't had one in years) and my DH made home made mashed potatoes.  It turned out great.

Tomorrow we have a repair person coming for our front door and then some additional errands and then work.

@JazzyV I hope you get a good sleep tonight and may it be pain free.  

Safe travels to everyone. @Nickelpennyyour trip to Hawaii looks fabulous.  

@kaku  thank you so much.

Sorry to hear so many people are having issues and the awful weather doesn't help.  

We are back from our trip to NY/NJ - it was a quick trip to go to our newest granddaughter's baby naming.  It was fun but I find traveling exhausting now even though our planes were on time.  Our next trip will be a bit easier since we only have to drive to the port.  

@rafinmd I hope you get discharged from the hospital shortly. I know you don't like to fly but did you consider it and perhaps ship your car to MD.   A lot of people use car transport companies so if you need one post here and if you give me an email address I can send you the name of the companies we use.  

@kazu - hope all your visits went well - a favor to ask- we are going to Amsterdam this summer and wondered if you can share the name of the canal trip company you used. I can't seem to find it. I thought I had saved the link but I guess I didn't.  

Glad to hear that heating and electric got fixed.  @JazzyV I really don't know how you do a house with so many levels given your back/leg pain.  I hope that you find a solution and that the house gremlins stop!!  

I am hoping everyone had a wonderful holiday today however it was celebrated. I am thankful today for this wonderful group of people.  I love traveling with you to all the different ports that I will probably only see through your pictures.  I also want to thank you for all the caring  and friendship that is shown to all who come here whether we post a lot or not.  

39 minutes ago, bdawg76 said:

I am doing the Eastern Caribbean 11 day cruise on the Eurodam departing FLL on December 9.  It's my first cruise!  I'm going with a friend of mine from high school.  We're in our late 40s.

 

I'm scuba certified and would like to dive at 2 or 3 of the ports of call.  It seems like most of these places have decent but not absurdly great diving so there's not too much to differentiate them from that respect.  So I thought it might make sense to instead see what are the best "topside" activities at each port and then scuba at the places where there's nothing above water that really floats my boat (ha!).

 

I like adventure activities the most: hiking, canyoning, etc.  I also like interesting cultural activities.  Shopping is of no interest to me.  Beaches are of minimal interest.  I'm not a big drinker.  I tend to prefer smaller group activities or exploring on my own rather than being on a big bus full of other tourists.

 

What are folks must-do activities at these ports?  We're going to Sint Maarten, Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica, St Lucia, St Kitts, St Thomas, and Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas.

 

Thanks!

I suggest you go to the board that says Caribbean and look at each port you are going to be at- there are recommendations on that board for all these ports.  Have fun and enjoy.  

In our local paper they said that the FLL airport lot is full but nothing about the cruise port lot.  I would be prepared for major traffic in the area as our roads have been a mess as usual.  

Try using Safari that seems to be the only one that works for me- Chrome and Firefox is the spinning ball.  

We loved Pompeii and Herculaneum and they are both very interesting to see. If anyone goes on a trip to this area and has some time in Naples go to the archeological museum - visit the private room where some of the risque items are kept from Pompeii.  We did enjoy the entire museum and you see the colors of the mosaics a bit better in the museum.  

We used flightease and asked for ticketing once final payment was made - it wasn't an issue.  This was well in advance of our cruise. Of course the airline made changes right up until we left and then of course our flights were delayed but we did mange to make our connections.  

Purchasing the hotel through HAL charges you almost double what you can do on your own since the rate is per person not per room.  I suggest you book the hotel on your own.  Also note that taxi fare is regulated from the airport to the hotel/cruise port so it is generally cheaper than an uber.  You need to fly in at least one to two days before your cruise leaves given what is going on with delayed canceled flights. We stayed downtown, not by the port since we wanted to walk to see the sites, and have loads of restaurants nearby.  I suggest you do a web search on one of the larger sites to see what is still available and the cost and then book through the hotel's site which is generally cheaper.  We always book a refundable rate. For airfare we did use flight ease.  We had no issues with flightease at all - we got our seats right away and when we paid final payment we asked for our airline tickets to be issued to us which HAL did.  Good luck and have fun.  Vancouver is a great city.  

3 hours ago, Haljo1935 said:

We have been notified of a very last minute port change for tomorrow. Apparently, the pier at Salerno has collapsed into the sea because of a storm. So, we will now go to Sorrento, a tender port.

Here's when it bites it to have a non-ship excursion - we have not been able to get a response from the tour company for our tour in Pompeii - ugh!

In Sorrento there is a train that takes you right to Pompeii - it takes about 1/2 hour and is an easy walk from the station to the entrance.   Wow the weather is really impacting cruises this year. I do hope you reach your excursion provider.  

There is a transatlantic that leaves  in late June 2024 that goes to both plus does the entire Canadian maritimes and ends in Boston.  It leaves from the commercial port in Amsterdam not in central city.

It isn't hard to pack if you think layers.  Many hiking pants come with roll ups so you can make them into  capris so you can wear them for hot/cold weather.  One or two sun protector shirts (Columbia has long sleeve ones with roll up sleeves - I wear them for casual dinners too since they are a button down shirt)  and a  sun hat and you are good to go.  Then layer the hiking pants - with long underwear for the cold.  Buy some performance tops with a high neck  - REI has some great ones - they are lightweight and warm- and are quick drying.  A fleece, and then a water proof jacket for the cold.  Hat, gloves, and you are set.  The issue is wind not so much the cold.   HAL has a great laundry service so figure this into what you pack - we did laundry every other day and it was returned by the same day or the next day.

  Also just know that the ship shops sell wonderful jackets for layering - at least they did during our Alaska cruise and many bought them vs packing one.  They were waterproof with hoods and a lining so all you needed underneath was your silks, a turtle neck top and a fleece or sweater.  BTW they also had some nice fleece tops as well in case you have a lot of OBC.  

We loved Antarctica - it is hard to explain the incredible beauty of it to those who haven't been there.  We feel incredibly blessed that we got to see it.    

3 hours ago, Electra 7 said:

thanks to all who posted 

can I now have info on dress code for night time 

we are just back off Queen Victoria and it was the dressiest cruise I have ever been on (even for Cunard which I loved) 

people always post how casual you can go but I was wondering how dressy the norm would be I know people will say go as dressy as you want 

my question is what to wear so I do not look out of place

 On our recent 14 day Alaska on formal night most men just wore a collared long sleeve shirt and a pair of slacks. We saw some jackets/ties but not many.    For women, one pair of black slacks and a couple of nice tops is enough.  My suggestion is to bring long underwear, warm hat, gloves, sunglasses, and a jacket you can layer this should fill your suitcase!!   The best thing is to use the HAL laundry service and not pack for 7 days but perhaps 3 to 4 at the most. The turn around for the laundry was usually same or next day service.  

It is worth it and yes you may have bad weather but even then it is still incredible to see the icebergs jutting through the mist.  

@cruising sisterSo happy to hear that Baby Murphy is doing better. Please keep us posted.

Jack scary about that allergic reaction. Glad it was taken care of.

Vanessa sorry to hear you are still in pain.

Maureen so glad you finally got the approval -it must be a big relief to you both.

The cruises people are on sound wonderful and wow to the Seabourn cruise - we are enjoying following along.

Terry it sounds like you are doing so much for others and have daily things to take care of for everyone- I don't know how you do it but hope that you are taking some time for yourself. 

Terry - I hope your husband is feeling better and that you are getting some much needed time with no hassles. Here is hoping that you get to go on a relaxing cruise soon.

I hope everyone is having a good Saturday. I am enjoying the beautiful weather here - finally we can go outside during the day and breathe.  

5 minutes ago, Cruzin Terri said:

Tupper10, You are not understanding that a round trip must be paid by AMEX.  Since I used Chase Points, irrespective of the fact that they were returned to my credit card, the cruise constituted a One-way fare and, therefore, not eligible for reimbursement.

I am not wasting my time trying to pursue this.

Terri

Sorry to hear that you had to cancel your trip and are now out a significant amount of $$.  In my experience it never hurts to ask the person at the next level, in writing,  but this is totally up to you.   

17 minutes ago, Sitka2024 said:

Hi, recently booked our first Holland America cruise and did it directly on the website. Are we automatically assigned a personal cruise consultant? I have talked to customer service a couple of times and a consultant was not mentioned. But I have received phone messages and an email from someone claiming to be our personal cruise consultant. I am probably going to transfer the booking to a travel agent, so maybe not an issue, but what do they do, the PCC, just curious?

I have scoured the forum for an answer but not seen this particular subject addressed. Thanks for any info.  

In my case the Personal Cruise Consultant I was assigned did nothing at all.  He never returned a phone call or an email.  On the one cruise that I did not use a travel agent  (since I thought the PCC would actually respond to my calls/emails) it ended up, if I had an issue I just called the 800# and called  back at different times until I got an agent in the US.  I found that the others just went by a script and could never answer any of my questions.  Now I just use a travel agent, much easier for me.

@Kazu- As I understand it @Cruzin Terri used points only to pay for her airfare on one credit card - the Chase card.  The points have been returned to this card.   This as you say should not count as paying for anything on a credit card. She paid for her cruise on Amex -which is the card that has the travel protection.  Since she paid in full for the cruise using Amex she should be able to get the travel protection associated with this CC.  I do hope when she speaks to someone at Amex they will give her the coverage for her cancelled trip.  

22 minutes ago, Cruzin Terri said:

An Expensive Lesson Learned.

 

I feel that you are all my friends and therefore should share with you what happened when I tried to claim insurance reimbursement from AMEX through my Platinum Card.  

Hope this helps anyone who has a Plantinum Card and plans to rely on it for trip insurance.

i posted this both on the insurance forum and the Oceania Forum.

Here goes:

 

Let me start by saying that I am not blaming AMEX.  i did not do due diligence by reading and understanding all the terms and conditions of the insurance so I blame no one but myself.

This post is only so that anyone else who may be thinking of using the insurance provided by the AMEX Platinum Card understand when and how they may be able to get reimbursed.

Here is my story:

We were planning a trip to Italy and then a cruise from Rome back to Miami.  We booked our airfare with Chase Points and paid for our cruise with the AMEX Platinum Card.  The cruise was under $10,000 so I figured that in the event we had to cancel for a covered reason, we were insured.  

Well, two days before we were to leave for Italy, my husband became ill and we were unable to go.  My airline tickets to Italy (purchased using Chase Points) were fully refundable.  So that was refunded and the points re deposited in my Chase Ultimate Rewards account.  I had opted to pay for the hotel stays at the time we stayed rather than the early, non-refundable rate.  So I canceled in time.  The only money we stood to lose was the cruise fare. So I felt we had a shot at getting that back with AMEX.  So I called them to file a clam.

 

Not so easy.

What I failed to notice was that AMEX says that a Covered Trip is a period of round trip travel 1) to one or more destinations other than an Eligible Traveler’s city of residence at the time of departure where 2) the period of round-trip trave ends when the Eligible Traveler returns by Common Carrier to the city of departure: 3) the trip does not exceed 365 days away from the the Eligible Travelers city of residence and 4) The Eligible Traveler charges the full amount of the cost of the the transportation by Common Carrier(s) to your Eligible Card.  The period of round trip may consist of round trip, one-way, or combinations of round trip, one-way tickets with Common Carriers.

 

So the very first question, after verifying my identity, was how did I pay for the tickets to get to Italy.  As soon as I told her I used the Chase Ultimate Rewards, she let me know the terms and conditions of the insurance and immediately went on to inform me that my claim was most likely to be declined due to the fact that I did not pay for all my transportation by common carrier with the Platinum Card.

 

It was a lesson for me and I share it with you so that you do not make the same mistake I did.

Please don’t flame me for not reading the T&C’s.  i already know I made a mistake.  I write this as a helpful hint for others who may be thinking of doing likewise.

Terri

Terri given that you paid in full for the cruise with your Amex I would say that you paid the total amount using your Amex card.  I would NOT take the decision of the customer service person as the final answer. Please go to Elliot.org to get the names and email for the corporat office of Amex. I would politely tell them that you used the card to charge the entire cruise and therefore want the travel insurance to be honored.  Sorry I couldn't just email you but it doesn't work for me when I click it.

Graham-  Have a wonderful birthday today!!

Glad to hear that Sam is back home and hopefully now for a long while.

@JazzyV  I know what you are going through. Last year I had to cancel our cruise due to back pain. I finally gave up trying PT, shots etc and had the surgery. Though I did have nerve pain after it due to the manipulation, for about a month, it was gone after this, and I have been pain free for months now. Sometimes unfortunately surgery is the only answer. I hope the PA at the neurosurgeon can give you an answer to your issue which will allow you to live pain free.

Happy cruising to so many here - glad everyone got to go away.  

Sad for what is going on in our world. I always think of the song Where have all the flowers gone - and the line 'when will we ever learn' - it seems never.  I hope this is not too political.  

@sdc67  I tend to get seasick - the trick is to take the medication ASAP, I use dramamine since I don't care about being tired.  The ship has some meds at the customer service desk or you can buy meds in the shops. Before the medicine starts working just go outside the fresh air really helps.   I know how hard it is to move outside but it immediately helps.  

@JazzyV just a heads up,  when I had my epidural it took about one week for it to kick in and before it did I actually felt worse not better.  

@Cruzin Terri so sorry to hear you had to cancel your trip. I hope things work out for you and that whatever caused this is resolved soon.

Sorry to hear that @kazu's flights were delayed from FLL.   

Bon Voyage to all that are leaving for cruises or are on cruises.  

The weather in South Florida is finally habitable after one of the worst summers on record for heat and humidity. We could not go outside for months during the day.  For the last week we have had days in the 80's and nights that are cool. So much better.

Sending healing thoughts to all who need them.  

In the future if you can fly in and out of west palm beach. It was rated one of the 3 best airports in the us. It is about 45 minutes north of Fort Lauderdale. 

@mamaofami so sorry to hear about your DH's return to the hospital and just what you didn't need is the smoke detector going off all night.  Try and take a nap today if possible.

It is so sad that so many are ill or dealing with a lot of pain that interferes with sleeping.  

I read on one of the live from threads here that the Amsterdam is not going to Guatemala but instead is going to El Salvador. Those who are posting said they are not getting off the ship given the situation there.  

Thinking of everyone who posts on this thread and thank you for all of your great pictures of the ports.  I can travel in my arm chair to many places that I doubt I will ever see in person.  

@marshhawk I hope had a safe flight and transfer to the hotel in Rome.  I also hope her cat sitter came through for her.  

We are waiting for a big rain storm today in very warm South Florida.  The weather has been in the 90's.  Not much on the agenda today -a visit to get some blood work done and then staying inside to avoid the storms. 

@JazzyV and @dfish  I couldn't help but read about your pain. As someone who suffered greatly with back pain and did the steroid shots as well - which brought temporary relief, after suffering like this I bit the bullet last spring and had the back surgery.  I just want to say if that is what is recommended to you by your doctor, it is not as bad as you think it will be given all the new techniques used.  I was essentially up and about within a day of the surgery - they won't let you leave the hospital until you can walk.  Yes I had pain after the surgery but my husband who also had it did not.  It has been a great relief to me that I no longer wake up with the excruciating pain I was in prior to the surgery.   Sometimes surgery is the answer.