ecs66

Thanks, Sis! Having a vicarious adventure watching this thread, and feeling a little jealous. The first cruise we haven't done together in many years. 😴 Glad the aft cabin is a good experience, since we'll all have them in February. The pics are great!

If the ports are those that we've seen before we stay on the ship. Port days on the ship are great!

Great review. We're doing this the 14-night Circle Carriben in February 2024 on Emerald. Wondering ... you mention the formal nights. How many pax get gussied up for these evenings? We've heard that not many do that any more. The info will help with our packing! Thanks...

We usually get cabins on port side of the ship so we can wave to family back home who are watching the webcam. You can contact the camera people online ahead of time, tell them where your cabin is, and they'll try to zoom in on that area as the ship passes by.

We also get port side to wave to the family back home watching the webcam. You can contact the camera people ahead of time online, let them know where you are on the ship, and they'll try to do a close-up as the ship passes by.

Except for one time, we've been in and out very quickly -- always between 15 and 30 minutes. Once, when we left from one terminal, but returned to a different terminal, it was a nightmare. Shuttles were lined up to transport to the first parking garage, but there weren't enough. It took a couple hours. Dreadful!

I think everyone has had enough of the barricading for a lifetime. Gotta live life!! In our church bulletin: "Worrying does not take away tomorrow's troubles; it takes away today's peace." From all I've read, for anything like noro, Covid, etc., WASH YOUR HANDS OFTEN with soap, and never, ever touch your face or bite your nails. Sanitizers are good, too, if you can't wash after using the handrails on stairs, pushing elevator buttons, or similar.

I usually buy Sketchers from Amazon, a half size bigger than my true size, and then use a separate insole and/or something in the toe (makeup wedges, usually) to make them fit better. When traveling, often my feet will get a little puffy and if that happens I can remove the excess stuff. I hate tight-fitting shoes. Maybe silly, but FWIW ...

We often don't take excursions, and just stay on the ship which is pretty peaceful since most passengers are away. A lot of times we don't do an excursion, but will get off the ship if there's stuff to do right at the pier -- shopping or entertainment. (I used to buy OTC antibiotics, etc., at the pharmacies, but wouldn't take that chance now with fentanyl-tainted pills being such a problem.) If tendering is involved, it's kind of a pain, but do-able. But on a first cruise, I'd definitely do some, and the Mexican Rivera has some fun ports. Be SURE to stay with a group; don't go it alone. That was true the first time we did that itinerary back in the '80s, and it's even more important now.

We had a group of about 25-30 from work on a cruise. We all did our own things during the days. Sometimes it was just a couple, sometimes two or more couples, and it varied a lot from day to day, depending on what excursions, games, etc., interested us. Then we met in one of the lounges for drinks, and then on to dinner -- two huge "rounds" next to each other -- and discussed the day, planned the next day, etc. Then we split up and went to shows, and whatever. That was back in the mid-'80s on Sitmar (later bought by Princess), when the cruise lines were more personal, elegant, and accommodating, and food was a thousand times better than now. We had a blast. (Compared to then, now we're like cattle.)

Oh, right. The Roll Call. That makes perfect sense. Thanks!

We like Josh Chardonnay, by Josh Cellars. Not wine snobs, either, but we like it well enough. I think we get ours at Costco.

LOL! Not a phobia -- a visceral hatred. I'm not afraid of it. Anyhow, I'll do it via PC in the Personalizer thingie as in the past. As Platinum, I'm very familiar with that. (I still miss the old way.) BTW, does one of us take the job of arranging a CC get-together while on board? We've been to a few in the past? (Or does Princess have a way to identify us and make arrangements themselves?) Last time we met in a wine venue -- I think on Sky.

Thanks for the info, but we don't DO cell phone "apps" if they require any kind of password, and I'm guessing this does. All this tech fol-de-rol is insane. (And my career was in tech; I despise it.) The Medallion, the App, and similar nonsense is what's kept us from cruising on Princess for a while, even after Covid.

Great!!! Good news. Thank you.