Dobby36

To answer your question, you may be able to get into the American Admirals Club or Alaska Lounge (if flying on a one world alliance airline) or the United Club (if flying on a star alliance airline) All of these will be depend at on them having space available, as they prioritize members and premium cabin guests over day passes. Admirals clubs are in multiple terminals, Alaska is in terminal 6 and United is in 7. It’s a long walk depending on where you’re going but I’ve been able to hop to multiple terminals and lounges on a long layover without having to clear security. I think that’s improved over the last few years. The day passes are something like $59/person, and you can buy the united ones on the app, but I’d suggest just waiting until you arrive at the club to confirm you’ll be accommodated space-wise, before purchasing. once inside, you will find a buffet of sorts, some amount of included alcohol and seating with charging available. This level of airport lounge will not have ultra deluxe amenities such as massages or sleeping rooms or showers typically, but each will vary a bit. You can google reviews or YouTube tours of most of them, or use LoungeBuddy website/app as others have suggested. Lastly, there can often be an official time limit for entry, (ie: maximum of three hours before flight) but I find these are sporadically enforced, if at all on a connection. happy Lounging!

There is also a water taxi that comes every hour from Rowes Wharf to do airport transfers, but you must book ahead. You can find it by googling rowes wharf water taxi or searching water taxi on the east coast forum. We loved the experience earlier this year!

have you looked for you tube casino walkthrough video tours? This is one: sometimes these videos move slowly enough to catch details like denominations. Others, not so much. I didn’t watch until the end…

You can also use the “order service” (wording could be off) tab on the navigator app, once you get to the room and if you find them not arranged how you prefer. This is handy since the room attendants are often busy on the first day and I haven’t always caught them. Quicker than a phone call, too. other requests on that menu of the app include extra hangers, extra pillows, ice, turndown service, and similar room items. im always finding folks have never seen this, despite being app users. I believe that’s because it’s behind the menu button “order now” and that icon looks like a food service icon, so it’s easy to overlook.

I did HAL Zuiderdam New England/Canada surmise this fall, and wouldn’t suggest going on any ship larger than that. Quebec City was plenty big enough to handle the crowds from the cruise, but Bar Harbor and Charlotte and Sydney (and I suspect others from your list) were small enough to see many stores and restaurants near the pier be over run with folks and hard to get a table, etc. this was of course on top of the fall land tourists in these lovely places. I would highly recommend this trip, however. So beautiful scenery and wonderful people abound.

There are also periodic Amex “offers” under your membership tab of the Amex platinum site. Some of these are spend “$x” on certain cruise line and get bonus points. The offers vary between cruises and come and go. But if you have something booked, or are about to book they can be lucrative. I bought myself $500 worth of OBC for a celebrity cruise I was on during one such offer and ended up getting a 10,000 bonus of Amex points (or more? Can’t remember exact figure of points)

I think the K-Dam Halloween cruise out of San Diego can be added. I’ve seen it for sale on the Atlantis site (they out on full ship charters for gay men primarily, using various lines) for returning members and it should be public soon. Was interesting because until recently HAL was also still selling as “usual” on their site, and I see it’s now disappeared. Also on your list for a continuing education group at that time. the Atlantis parties wouldn’t be conducive to the normal HAL clientele, and makes me wonder: what happens to all those folks already booked? They get offered a different date? It’s only 11 months away so hopefully not too many have airfare booked…

We just got off the Millenium and Jeramie (female) was the host. She mentioned she was performing two roles at the moment, so it could be temporary, but her photo was on the slots listed as host, and she introduced herself as such…didn’t see anyone named Liam.

Also, once those pics posted I forgot to mention we certainly did do the iconic Gardens By The Bay! We were on the fence about the paid to enter portions (Cloud Forest and Flower greenhouses) tu saw the Cloud Forest had a short term Avatar Movie tie-in. It runs from 11/23 to early 2024. The entire greenhouse has flora and fauna from the Avatar films set up, and some interactive exhibits than you can take pics with yourself from your device for free, or try flying a banshee. Was pretty slick! And in addition to the usual signage and info about the specified plants and local weather, etc. a huge bonus to visiting this area (cost was almost $50 pp) was the entire greenhouse felt about 15 degrees cooler than the outdoors. A huge relief from walking over there in the humidity for a mile or so. IMG_4384.heic IMG_4382.heic

Here is part two observations and some pics: terry, the JW Marriott looks like a treat! We were just down the road at the Ritz, which was also great. The Marriott has two gorgeous towers and was bustling with excitement when we walked by. Grab- if you are at all app-savvy, I’d highly recommend getting the app “Grab” downloaded. When I logged into Uber in Singapore, it said “we’re not here, give Grab a try”. But it’s so much more than a ride sharing app. You can not only order a van, a traditional taxi, etc. (and even pay in cash if you prefer!) but you can also order food, and pay for things at vendors and stores using their Grab QR codes. It came in handy at the hawker markets. Food- speaking of Hawker markets -we adored these! So fun and vibrant, cheap food, and very organized. We tried dumplings, chicken, noodles, smoothies, and more over a few visits. One was in Chinatown, the other was Maxwell. We also had sugarcane juice from a vendor by the bay, which was interesting and something I’d never seen before. We tried an anime cafe, which was unique and fun. The breakfast Buffett at the Ritz should be on anyone’s list if you like a solid hotel spread. It had dozens of western foods, nice made-to-order Asian options, and endless fresh fruits and juices and seafood. Honestly, even if you aren’t a buffet person, the Colony is lovely. Marina Bay Sands is exquisite. Be sure to bring your electronic entry receipt from immigration and your passport if wanting to visit the casino. Security is tight! But it was fun once inside and huge variety of games. The mall is also gorgeous, and the evening light show worth seeing (on the mall side, not the gardens side or in the hotel itself) Airport - the airport was incredibly efficient. Make note of not only your airline but your “door” and “row” when you check in. Ours was on the confirmation screen once checked in and they also emailed it to us. Your driver will need that info to drop you off directly in the front of where you need to be. Once there it is so easy to navigate and clean and quirky.

I’m just back from my few days there post-cruise, so here are my return thoughts on Singapore, as promised: cruise terminal was a disembarkation experience for us, and was not orderly. celebrity told us there would automated expedited gates used if we filled out a QRcode form ahead of time, they called it an arrivals card. Once there, the gates all seemed to be not working and the agents were manually processing folks. Long lines all around. There were some construciton signs, so hopefully this is a short term renovation issue or something. the humid weather was true to its reputation, with frequent but brief heavy showers and temps in the 80s(f) almost 24 hours. Umbrellas are a must. 1/2….second post coming later, working on pics now!

It came out beautifully! So excited to be there in 2 weeks.

We ended up going with flat rate, and it was great! @BOB999 thanks for the rec, it was a newish black Chevy suburban, professional driver who was waiting 10 mins ahead of pickup and introduced himself via text earlier that AM, with bottled water and climate controls in the second row. Was $200ish, which felt reasonable. I checked black lane, it was more. I checked Uber black reserve-ahead, and it was about the same but I was afraid of a worse experience day of. Uber black when ordered in the moment could have been cheaper, but it would have depended on demand, etc. so having a reliable reserved service felt better. we are in the lounge now awaiting the beginning of flight over to honeymoon cruise in Tokyo -so far, so smooth! 🥂

I have family on this voyage. The O has Starlink, but ive heard the capabilities for WiFi video chats haven’t been as strong as they were for us on Zuiderdam when we were in the Canada/New England area. I think the less dense satellite coverage in the middle of the Atlantic has something to do with it.

There is a convenient map and fare card machine and info kiosk at SAN terminal 2 baggage claim (assume there will also be one at terminal one once it’s remodeled , or maybe already?)

I also called in and bought $500 worth of OBC for next month (which I know I’ll use anyway) to take advantage of an Amex offer of a bunch of bonus points. Sure enough it worked and it was money I would have spent anyhow

true, but the tourist areas including PV are noted to be excluded. If they were regularly unsafe for tourists, the monetary losses would be devastating.

Agree with the above. You may also see it described as “Zona Rosa” there are beach bars that will be full of LGBT folks, mostly gay men. More bars will open after dark but don’t get busy until 11 or so. Hard to take advantage in most cruise line schedules. There are a couple saunas if that’s of interest, and of course plenty of eateries and shops along the boardwalk. For me, the main PV draw is that it’s charming and enjoyable, while also feeling safe for gay couples as the poster above notes. I’ve stayed at Murcurio (budget gay male resort) and Almar (LGBT but upscale) and a few airBnBs. Prepare for some hills in the zona rosa, and cobblestone streets if you are walking. (And heat!)

I second this rec of the observation deck. They are VB category, if I recall. Love the short hallway, quick access to an outside deck, and short walk to crows nest. My fav.

Just one data point, but for me last year Black Friday (extended well into cyber Monday) was a good call. I’d be tracking a potential cruise and priced it out, but was sort of still looking elsewhere. Then when the email for Black Friday sale came, I saw they’d sweetened the HIA package inclusions to be similar to the early booking ones (this trip was no longer in the early category) by adding free gratuities and premium drinks/wifi. again, not a guarantee for any future action and I didn’t test that with other trips, but for me it was fortuitous!

A screenshot also worked for me in Sept 2023. I really wish they would work with Apple wallet however, as most other boarding passes these days do!

Thanks! We did upgrade to the bay view, since it is our honeymoon we are splurging a bit 😉 can’t wait!

Thanks for all of this. I’m doing most of it already, and yes the random points in different accounts are the result of sign up bonuses. My main earning is Amex platinum and Alaska visa (plus I fly AS the most based on their network meeting my travel needs most frequently domestically) one point to add : capital one does allow you to transfer points for free between users, you have to call which is cumbersome, but it’s simple and instant once you call. My partner and I have done this when i referred for a bonus, etc.

So great to hear! We will be in a similar situation at the Ritz next month post-cruise 😉

@Gardyloo this is great info. I’ve booked “simple” awards using AS, and been very happy on SQ and JAL, but ran into the taxes and limits you described above as I began to do my homework for this trip. I hadn’t considered another EU gateway, but that makes a lot of sense. Even if I expanded my search to SFO/LAX/etc, many routings still had me arriving at Athens in the middle of the night unless I had a huge layover -so might as well actually take a night and continue in the AM. I do understand the risks in non-connected journeys but a refundable fare for the inter-EU portion should alleviate some of those concerns…thanks again!