SoloAlaska

It’s through the MyVegas games. You can get between 250-750 USD towards your cruises main fare (not taxes or gratuities). The promotions vary and you have blocks of time you have to book within but it’s possible to get a really good deal. You can also combine it with FCC but warning if it’s one you can use on the Canadian website they will have to switch it to US when you book with CAS.

Did a TA on the Gem and there was well over 100 solos who showed up at the first get together.

I love the Gem and spent 15 nights on her in December. I’d book deck 9 but I’m not big on lido deck. Last year I was on deck 8 and liked it but some people didn’t like the weird winding hallways.

Good to know I’ll have to check it out again. Right now I’m booking through casino at sea program and am saving about 50% on my cruise. I don’t gamble I just like playing games on my phone. When I book a cruise out of pocket I’ll try it again though.

Doing the same thing for Florida as well. Saving almost 200$/pp

I haven’t seen much of any benefit of using a TA in Canada yet. It seems the itineraries I book have no perks really when I have looked through the big box store mentioned above. Right now I have a booking through a local TA affiliated with a big online company and I hate it. No OBC, the hotel she way overcharged us on, it takes longer for any changes because she is travelling herself or something.

I live in Ottawa so if a flight is cancelled I have 3 international airports I can fly from albeit one is small and one is a haul to get to. I always look at my schedule ahead of time to make sure there are multiple flights that could get me to my destination and that my travel insurance will cover this last minute flight to get me to port on time. Again like many others I would never fly in day of on an international flight. There are way too many risks of delays especially if you are transferring. good luck with the lawsuit. A judge however may consider what the average cruiser would do which is fly in the day before. With all the fine print you may be out of luck or maybe NCL will settle ahead and you’ll get something more than what you’ve got so far.

Time of year would help in this search and also knowing an approximate budget. Also are you looking for an interior caning to your son? This would be 100% darkness. Do you want a balcony for yourself?

Crumbled up newspaper will dry soaking wet running shoes pretty much overnight. Let’s just say I liked running through puddles up to 4 times a week. With that said I agree waterproof hiking boots are essential for me to go to Alaska layers including waterproof jacket, hiking boots,” waterproof” backpack are my Alaska essentials.

We had beautifully flat to being chased by a storm on the same crossing. Still nothing compared to the seas I’ve experienced in Alaska though. Guess what still going on another Alaskan cruise on the same route at the same time of year though. I just go prepared with my EmeTerm bracelet now.

I always use a flight search engine to look for flights. My usual airline was very expensive for a one way to London but I found another airline which was half the price. It’s not direct but and I don’t get the perks of lounge access and free luggage but it’s still much cheaper.

When in Europe I always get a SIM card from there since it’s much cheaper than paying my plan from home internationally. Post on social media while in port and disconnect on sea days. Nice thing is if your kids are iPhone users they can use iMessage without a package. You can’t send photos but at least they can text some of their friends who also have iPhones. if you don’t like the price for wifi still then find another cruiseline. Don’t punish staff by removing gratuities. Virgin has free wifi I believe but it also has no kids. Not sure of any other cruise lines that offer unlimited wifi for free except for the luxury lines. another quick tip for surviving without unlimited wifi. Download content on your device at home or in port. I do this with Netflix, Prime, and Spotify.

The advantage for me would be not having to deal with a TA. I hate waiting for a TA to do things when I can just deal directly. Didn’t realize this entirely till I was forced to use a TA for a cruise next year and I am hating every moment of it. Turns out I’m a bit of a control freak and have no need for a TA.

I always run away from this one. I’ve been possibly traveling, hauling things around, and never look my best. Let me freshen up first before taking a picture.

My new favorite trick is if they change it you can get a full refund if you want to change your flights. This is great if something comes up and you want to fly in earlier than planned for example. I paid a ridiculous amount for an upcoming flight to Florida so I’m watching the price. If it drops I can get a full refund and rebook since the airline has changed my flights on me after I booked.

That’s why I like Alaska in September. We are the only ship in port on my next cruise. It’s brutal. Where I live we get from -40 to 115 so it’s a huge range of temps.

Haha we are expecting up to 116 with humidex in Canada this week. I hate the heat so I am hiding inside with the air conditioning 24/7. In August I’m much happier in Alaska but that’s just me hating the heat.

As someone who use to live near a port I’ve experienced how overwhelming it is to be a local when a cruise is in port. Setting limits will help create a balance and I 100% support this as a cruiser as well. When the port is too crowded it isn’t enjoyable for anyone really. Looking forward to my Alaskan cruise when we are the only ship in port every day.

Celebrity has some solo cabins as well on certain ships.

You can definetly make it on time if the stars are in line. I’ve been on flights that have arrived up to an hour early so if you’re lucky you could be early as well. if you want control of your flights then don’t book NCL bogo air. If your worried about timings and want to be more conservative then come in the day before as is recommended over and over again on CC. ive never used bogo air but thats because i can usually find a cheaper flight on my own and i like having control.

Wow I am shocked at tip jars on cruise ships. Haven’t seen one yet but I’ve cruised Celebrity and NCL. If you want to tip you can easily just go give a special handshake after a set. Having a tip jar out in my opinion is like wearing a sign saying “tip me now”.

I’m not sure about RCI but I have the same questions for a Caribbean cruise I’m taking next year.

Is that a 2:30 all aboard time?

The big difference is you don’t loose square foot with a “hallway”

I hadn’t but I did just now and still the higher price. Thank you though for the suggestion.