HxFx

Great, looking forward to it! I love reading a Live for a ship I have been on.

11 hours ago, Roscoe13 said:

My point being was that a land vacation is how you see Alaska

My sister lived in Anchorage for about 4 years. She never made it to most of the cruise port destinations, said they were too remote/cost prohibitive from there. I did visit her there for a few weeks. We went skiing in Alyeska but the rest of the time was in Anchorage.

3 hours ago, MeganGC1983 said:

There’s no way it will be my favorite cruise of all. Let’s not get crazy. The sheer amount of clothing I’ll have to wear to be comfortable will downgrade it by 10%. 😉 My dad is going to go with us & maybe some of his siblings. My brother in law as opted out for him & my sister. He says the flight is too long. I’m jumping on a 3hr & 50 min nonstop on Alaska airlines… that doesn’t seem that long to me. 🤷🏼‍♀️

Do you know when they will publicly release their itineraries? I'm flexible on cruise line for Alaska. Port stops, timing, and good food are my priority!

46 minutes ago, ReneeFLL said:

My physical therapist is also doing Alaska in June, but on Norwegian. Excited to see her pictures when she gets back. Have fun and I'll be looking for your review.

Has she seen any dates/ships? I am not seeing anything for Alaska at that time except for Viking. Was planning to do NCL Alaska in August of next year but probably pushing to the following May/June.

On 4/24/2024 at 1:03 PM, MeganGC1983 said:

What if you lose your phone and can’t get SMS?

I can access my phone SMS on my laptop and computer. I have all apple so easy to set up but I think most of the major providers can do that with the right applications. I use my computer a lot for texting and 2FA. Of course, my husband thought it was funny to jump into a conversation from one of my devices he borrowed while on a trip! I made him get his own Apple ID and device after that 🙂 

On 4/24/2024 at 6:47 AM, A&L_Ont said:

I sure hope not. It’s a great place to dine. On a side note the musician that was there in March was from Nova Scotia and onboard for 3 weeks. 

I believe that's the same musician that was there the first week of March. He was great, I especially enjoyed his performance at On the Rocks in Hideaway Beach.

On 4/16/2024 at 10:08 PM, kj_connections said:

Also curious, why does everyone hate CATS? I'm going on Oasis very soon...

I was just on her in March and I loved it. The audience seemed to really like it as well.  Not sure why Cats gets so much panning here on CC. Maybe the cruisers on here have just seen it a lot? I have seen a bunch of Broadway shows, both on Broadway and regional tours but only one time each. It was the first time I had ever seen Cats but I would definitely go again.

Looking forward to the review, I am on Radiance in November! I've been wanting to take a cruise from my hometown for a while 🙂 

47 minutes ago, TravelE said:

I am not sure that Business Class would be a good investment for me as I doubt I could sleep even in a lie flat seat. Is it even comfortable? Plus I have trouble falling asleep around strangers.

I think it's pretty comfortable. I can't sleep at all in the upright chairs. I don't get a full night's sleep in the lie flat but I get a few hours which will keep me going that first day. I'm a mess if I don't get any sleep and that kinda ruins the first day or two for me. I always go for the 10-11PM flights vs. 5-6PM ones as well so sleep is easier.

I looked into flying Biz eastward for the overnight and Economy Plus back home westward but it didn't really save much money in this case. It will be nice when I have the time to cruise home!

3 hours ago, mkcurran said:

For those who have flown to Europe, I can use your advice, tips and tricks.

I may have a good excuse to go to Ireland about this time next year. 

What airlines are better? Who's got the best business class prices? 

Anything else I should know?

We are going to southern Spain in May and I used Skyscanner to scout routes and prices. I tried booking through United or American, booking a codeshare if necessary. The prices were outrageous so I looked directly at the European websites (TAP, Aer Lingus, Iberia…). The tickets were about half of what the codeshare via the U.S. companies cost, at least for anything Economy plus or higher. I ended up getting Biz class on TAP for just a few hundred over what an Economy Plus ticket cost booking through United. Plus we got a free layover in Lisbon. 

What really made me mad was that when I looked at RT FROM Spain and back on the U.S. Airline sites, the tickets were so much cheaper. I tried gaming it with one ways but that didn’t work so I just booked directly with TAP. Their websites aren’t as good but worth it. Aer Lingus had pretty good rates so I would try directly with them.

I’m definitely interested in the Izumi location. I just booked a cruise on Radiance for November and selected my room to be below Izumi (deck 10 portside aft) vs. under Windjammer. If they move Izumi to deck 12 where Samba is, really curious what gets put in its place!

I did My Time Dining on Oasis a few weeks ago. It’s not too bad of a wait if you make reservations but that just doesn’t make sense to me. My Time Dining, to me, seems like the whole point is you don’t have to make reservations ahead of time (and you really need to make them far out from the cruise for anything before 8:30). You don’t even have the show schedule at that time. We ended up just making reservations for 8:30 (earliest available) after the first night in the MDR for the rest of the cruise.

We may as well have just gotten our standard late dining and just strolled to our seat without any waiting. We will do that from now on. The other lines I have tried definitely do that better; no reservations, check-in via the app or get a buzzer, and hang out at a bar until a table is ready. Many times, no wait at all. It’s not the end of the world since I don’t mind set time dining but I don’t understand why it’s so different on Royal.

6 hours ago, CSHS1979 said:

Sushi Class. First timer.🤣

That looks exactly like what our class made on Oasis a few weeks ago! We didn't get that knife placement tip though. I guess that helps to close it? It was still delicious!

21 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

It’s $250 cruise first day.

 

https://www.ncl.com/cruisefirst-program

 

 

I've been watching for those so I went ahead and bought 2! They don’t expire and you can transfer them so seems like a no brainer. I wanted to get 3 so I could have an extra for a gift, but DH only agreed to 2. I should have started at 5!

On 3/10/2024 at 9:56 AM, blarko said:

@MeganGC1983
Mamma Mia
2:30 pm (2 hrs 30 min)
Amber Theater | Deck 4, Forward

 

Two and a half hours???? There’s no way I’d be able to sit thru that.  Are the kids going to that too?

They have an intermission for this one. I was lucky in that my room was one deck up and nearby. I was able to use my own bathroom and refill my champagne glass!

My husband is a T1 diabetic and we have enjoyed many cruises. We never make any special needs requests. There are a lot of options for going low carb on a cruise. In fact, my husband’s pump broke on our cruise in October and since he is not as used to using the syringe to give himself insulin, he was remarkably strict, and thoroughly enjoyed his meals.

We do not request a sharps container since my husband does not discard any in the trash. Of course with the insulin pump and sensor, he does not use many (even with the syringe he used, it was the same one used throughout the remainder of the cruise so was not discarded). I always see it as an option to request one if you need it so that shouldn't be a problem.

Yes, the liquor drinks, without any sugary mixers, are your best bet for low carb alcoholic drinks. A strong wine is pretty good as well (general rule of thumb, the stronger the wine, the less sugar). Also recommend always taking the stairs if you don't have any limitations. Activity really helps my husband control his blood sugar. Enjoy your cruise!

Doing this cruise next month! Looking forward to hearing about it. The Hideaway Beach day passes just went on sale so I got those for our groups. Will be interested to read how that is. Only videos/pictures I've seen are of people dancing in the pool. We might be interested in the chef's table as well. We did that on Allure. The food was not as good as I hoped but I loved the location and presentation. We also had great table mates! Can't wait to hear about your experience.

On 1/19/2024 at 10:40 AM, island lady said:

I absolutely feel the same way.  No way I want to join that zoo of pax shoving and pushing at the railings with kids screaming. 

 

Sooo happy to have my quiet balcony all to myself.  😉    Same shots...no crowding.   Nice glass of SB when I duck into the cabin to warm up.  🤗

On some of the more scenic passes, do they ever turn the ship for a bit so the port side balconies can see as well? I'll definitely want to do my research on which side to book if I make it to a SA cruise. Sounds like starboard definitely has the better views on your route. Thanks for all the posts!

On 1/3/2024 at 10:58 AM, island lady said:

Today was sushi making class, of which we have done many on various ships.  Some were not so great (Harmony was the worst) and some were really good.  This one was a good one.

I was thinking they would be very similar. What made them better/worse? Just the chef/host or was it what you were making? We're doing this on Oasis in March, hope it's a good one!

15 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

And now I’m booked on Epic.

I love the cruises out of San Juan! I've done two of them (on Celebrity). It doesn't really even matter what ship it is from there since there are so many ports. Good news on the $250 Cruise First too! I haven't pulled the trigger on my (hopeful) NCL Alaska cruise in 2025 yet.

3 hours ago, time4u2go said:

Sophie Lenin? 😉

 

That's exactly what I thought of!

Probably too late now for Aruba, but this boat excursion, https://www.tranquiloaruba.com/, is one of my all time favorites. Actually did it while on a land tour to Aruba but pickup is right by the cruise port and across from Lucy’s that was previously mentioned. I had a great time there after my excursion as well!

On 12/11/2023 at 2:26 PM, D_And_K_gocruising said:

Was super disappointed in teppenyaki and also moderno. 

For me, I would not have chosen Teppanyaki or Moderno because they are more about the show / quantity rather than quality of food. You may have been happier with different choices. In addition to Cagney's we ate at Le Bistro and Ocean Blue. But, it’s hard to know what you will like to do until you’ve done it….I love a balcony, so will probably always have one. I don’t like overcrowded pool decks so Vibe would be worth it to me as well, depending on the itinerary/# sea days. I’ve never been to a spa on a ship so that would be a waste on me.

FAS is a good deal if you will use everything (wifi time limit is perfect for me and we do take an excursion in most ports…) I think upgrading the drink package may often not be necessary but I did really like getting the bottles of wine at the restaurants included. I think if you upgrade with a package it could be worth it, especially with FAS+.

Is the band Latin Grooves still performing in the Havana Bar? They were fantastic on my cruise. 

15 hours ago, Riles34 said:

Washington, Michigan, Texas, Bama. FSU played 2 ranked teams, 5 LSU and 16 Duke who both ended unranked, so a trash schedule. Go Washington!

Yeah, strength of schedule really varied. Florida had a lot of problems but we played 6 ranked teams, 3 in the top top ten. Two of the ranked teams weren’t even in our conference. Not sure who thought that was a good idea!