DCThunder

I refuse to use body wash, so always bring bar soap. I know the youngin's like their body wash, but I'm a bar soap man!

I think that's a smart bet, but still...🤷‍♂️

As someone else mentioned up-thread, when over 50% of the passengers are Elite, the benefit of the perk starts to decline a bit. Perhaps on a run-of-the-mill 7 day Caribbean cruise with lots of lowly Rubys or, heaven forbid, NO COLOR medallions, it's a big deal to have tender priority, but otherwise, NBD.

How do you miss the ship in Skagway? Their ain't that much to do there.

Hey, the title of the thread got me to check it out. That's why they call it "click bait".

I also find it hard to believe that HAL would have leaned into the "150th Anniversary of HAL Celebration" if the plan was to sell or otherwise shutter the line within 5 years. I realize that the unexpected happens, but doing so seems counterintuitive to me.

I'm sure there will be a friendly (although slightly disheveled looking) person hanging around Fisherman's Wharf who'd be more than happy to watch your luggage for you while you went off and had lunch and toured the area. Just leave it with them. It'll be perfectly safe...😁

All cruisers will welcome our Saudi overlords!😎

In Vigo, look into an excursion to Santiago de Compostela. It's about a 90 minute bus ride through the beautiful Galician countryside, which culminates in the famous Cathedral of St. James de Compostela, the terminus of countless pilgrimages to the supposed location of the death of St. James the Great, one of the disciples of Jesus. Whether or not you are religious or are bored of cathedrals in Europe, seeing this one is worth the time. The main square outside the entrance has a specific marker as to the end of the various pilgrimage trails with the distance to major European cities where they start. When I was there in early May, there were many hikers who'd just completed their treks and were all taking photos with the Cathedral in the background. The area round the main square is full of little shops selling a lot of schlock, but there are some gems to be found if you look hard enough. Our tour had lunch at a restaurant that was in the lower level of a 5 star hotel that had been operating in one form or another for several hundred years. The lunch was one of the best meals I had on the entire cruise. BTW, the weather in early May was sunny and got quite warm in the afternoon. I'd say in the mid-80s F.

I was looking at GeoBlue Trekker coverages. One thing I noticed was that medical expense coverage dropped from $1M to $100K when you turn 70 up until age 94. So you can't just look at the top line coverages, and not consider the fine print. I'm no insurance expert, but I'd also wonder about the subrogation of the Princess coverage and then the GeoBlue coverage for a medical or medevac situation.

Remember too, that Medicare provides no coverage outside of the USA. I'm not sure about Medicare supplemental plans, but I'd suspect the don't either. So if your only US health insurance is some blend of Medicare and Medicare supplemental, you'd absolutely need travel insurance for medical. I thought I'd never need insurance coverage. A slip and fall taking all of 2 seconds changed my mind about that once and for all.

Just FYI, the Australia ETA visa site doesn't list travel in 2025 on its drop down menu, so coolest thy jets on Australian visas. It's only June 2023.

I was looking at a flight from ATL to FCO, preferrably non-stop.. EZAir offered a routing of ATL>LAX>FCO. A 30 hour flight with layovers included...

There might already be a thread on this topic, but I didn't see it in a quick look. If so I apologize for posting, but it seems that Sapphire Princess helped to rescue the passengers and crew of a smaller ship that had a fire in Glacier Bay. New York Post Story is here: Passengers, crew rescued from Alaska cruise ship in Glacier Bay National Park (nypost.com) It's nice to see a Princess ship get some positive publicity for a change...🔥

I am not planning on doing this, but as I'm normally a solo traveler, I was thinking if this were possible in case I ever needed to try to do it. Were it ever to come up, it's obviously something to discuss with my TA or HAL.

Does anyone know how it works in reverse? Suppose a solo booked a cabin, paid the single supplement, and then had someone decide to go along with them on the cruise. Is the single supplement refunded and a second fare charged, or would the additional name just be added and call it square? This would be in the post full payment period prior to departure.

The other perspective is the audience that most likely reads a website like "thetravel.com". I'd bet there isn't much overlap with the subscribers of Travel & Leisure or other magazines/websites of that ilk. Hence lines like Seabourne, Viking, Cunard, and Oceania aren't even in the author's Top 10, while Windstar barely cracks it at #10. Also don't forget that Virgin Cruises are the hot "hip" cruise line of the moment, so I'm not surprised they're #1. They also probably advertise on "thetravel.com" and that can't be discounted either. But I guess the author achieved her objective of getting some clicks on the website with another listicle.

As I've said before, I was on Oosterdam for 31 days in March/April and loved the ship. I experienced none of the issues that have been reported in the various negative "reviews" (aka bitchfests) that have popped up recently. Capt. Kevin Beirnaert, described Oosterdam as "HIS ship" and as a "classy older lady who's aged well". She may have had some problems, but nothing that should put you off sailing on her, especially if there's a dry dock later this year. I thought Capt. Kevin said it would be in 2024, but perhaps things have changed.

You MIGHT be able to get her a Passport card from the prior to your cruise if you apply ASAP. Here's some information from the State Department. What is a Passport Card? (state.gov) Good luck.

Hot water---FREE Ice---$2.50 🧊🧊

If you're an iced tea drinker from the South, bring along your own tea bags (I prefer Luzianne). Ice tea made with English Breakfast or Earl Grey just ain't the same.

After a very good experience in the Medical Center on Oosterdam, I made it a point to write a handwritten note of thanks and praise for the staff and deposited it in the feedback box at Guest Services. A day or two later, I received a plate of chocolate covered strawberries with a note of thanks for my feedback from the Hotel General Manager. I'm not a huge fan of chocolate covered strawberries, but I appreciated the gesture.

Don't let something as minor as not having early booking of MDR reservations stop you from doing the Santiago>BA leg. That's the best part of the South America cruise, IMHO.

Thank you for that clarification.

Just a note, the longer cruises aren't always called "Collectors" cruises. Sometimes they're called "Grand Voyages".