joejo

Hate is a strong word, but here are some things I dislike, in no particular order:

*getting up @ 6:30 am to pass through Immigration (non-US citizens) :eek:, it is a rough way to end a vacation, lol.

*trying to find a spot to eat in the WJ, at least twice on our last cruise we could NOT find a seat! I have kids, so it was harder on them. We tried to plan when we would eat around the busy times, but sometimes I had to feed my 4 yr old when she was hungry and it wasn't very convenient. We tried to take our full plates out of the WJ and go to our room, but we were stopped by staff, who then found us a seat about 10 minutes later. None of this is earth shattering ;), but it was hard on my kids. If we ever wound up at a larger table (we were a group of 3), then my 11 yr old would ask every small passenger group that passed if they would like to sit with us! She really remembered how much she disliked walking around for so long with no where to sit.

*trying to find reasonably priced flights to get to the cruise! Cruising is relatively cheap, but our flights are NOT cheap, and can easily be double the price of the cruise! We would cruise way more often if we could find better flight options :)

I have the WORST luck for this trip!!

1) we booked our flights first, because that is usually our largest expense, only to find that the cruise fare for the Carnival Splendor had skyrocketed.

2) decided to book on RCI instead because it was quite a bit cheaper...only to discover that this particular sailing has a group of professional football players and their fans...joy.

3) next, my husband's vacation time has been revoked after previously being approved :eek: so I will likely be taking this vacation as the only adult with my 2 children. We are past the point of getting a decent refund too.

and NOW...

4) we are on deck 10 :eek:

Walmart has the best groceries. Meat, dairy, produce and whatever you like you will find it in walmart.

 

The only turnoff for us is that they do not refrigerate the eggs.

Non refrigeration of eggs seems to be quite common in Mexico. At first I was turned off by it but after I ate a few egg meals there I was ok.

While in Mexico I find that Walmart is the best source for American items. When I was in Merida I needed cranberry juice for a medical reason and Walmart was the only place to find it.

Personally I'd rather visit an authentic mercado than a Walmart. Now THAT is a sight to see :eek::)

Westin Long Beach May 1-2, 2010 $58

 

Bid 3* for $50, it was rejected.

 

We were impatient so upped the bid to $58 and it was accepted.

 

Rack rate is $189

Sorry, I made an error in this quoted post and missed seeing it within the time I could edit.

Our original bid was for $45 and it was rejected.

I'm thinking that we bid a little high but we are still very happy with our rooms for $58 and $50 :) We have always paid WAY more for pre/post cruise hotels (in Tampa and Ft Lauderdale).

Westin Long Beach May 9-10, 2010 $50

Bid 3* for $50, was accepted.

Westin Long Beach May 1-2, 2010 $58

Bid 3* for $50, it was rejected.

We were impatient so upped the bid to $58 and it was accepted.

Rack rate is $189