PhD-iva

Mrstanley! I LIVE FOR BOOGIE & KASHIA! My favorites! Sigh

I was on Mariner a year ago and I thought she was SPLENDID! I had a great cruise!

Bless your heart! So many questions. Good for you! I think you will get answers soon from experienced Regent cruisers. That’s not me. I’ve been on 1 Regent cruise so far, and am anxiously awaiting my next in February - so excited! I had a GREAT time on my first, and I’m confident my second will be just as great! Enjoy your cruise!

Good for you! Let us know if NCL bans you from cruising on their ships, thx!

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In November last year, my cruise stopped at Manta and our tour included a stop at the archeological museum Hojas Jaboncillo. Here’s the writeup I did. Today’s very interesting excursion is to an archaeological site called Cerro Jaboncillo. First, we went inside a small museum with exhibits. A very short and tiny local woman took us through the museum and explained everything in Spanish. She was very sweet and I liked her a lot. Our excursion guide translated her explanations to English. I sometimes helped him with the more difficult words. After our tour of the museum we walked up a hill to three different sites where indigenous buildings were re-created. In one of the buildings, life-size statues of elders (male & female) seated in a semicircle were displayed. A distinguishing feature of the locals was a beak shaped nose, noticeable in this picture of an elder. Our guide described the lifestyle of the locals prior to the arrival of the Spanish. Not everyone made it all the way to the top of the very steep hill. When we got back to the port, the bus dropped us off at the terminal and there were some nice stalls with some interesting handicrafts available for sale. But the ship was going to sail within an hour so I didn’t want to spend a lot of time at the port. I did find some earrings that I thought would make a nice present. I bought four pair.

Luggage Free is another option I’ve heard of. Also, perhaps post on your cruise line roll call or forum……?

Very good advice! Thank you!

Wow! Thx! It looks like you’re having a great time! I appreciate the advice! I plan to be better prepared this time, thx!

Am booked on a cruise with 3 days “cruising the Antartica peninsula.” Am worried that I’ll be cold while o/s on deck. Should I bring my LLBean down coat that kept me warm all winter hiking across campus in Connecticut? I left it at home while on my Alaska cruise and missed some good stuff when I went back to my stateroom to warm up. Thx!

Do share all the juicy details with us! 😛

I don’t think I have ever made a complete booking online, as I travel solo and I need the help of my TA to get everything booked correctly. But, if someone reserves/books online and uses their credit card to make the required deposit, then haven’t they already paid the deposit prior to receiving any invoice? My question was asking whether the booking process clearly identifies the non-refundable deposit……Or, is there a “cooling off” period?

Hmmm. I hope the website (somewhere) clearly states the cancellation policy when doing an online booking. If the first time you see/read this information on your invoice, it’s already too late? Is there a cooling off period during which you can change your mind (i.e., cancel)? If you spoke with someone and asked for a courtesy hold, fine. Read the (courtesy hold) invoice. But, if you pulled the trigger already……..? OUCH!

Ikelmay, which itinerary are you booked? I’m on the February 2, 2024 Voyager out of BsAs. We have a rollcall, I hope you will join us!

I have tried several times to do a mock booking for one passenger. It always seems to give me twice the fare price. So, I don’t think that it always works to be able to check online. Best to work with a knowledgeable TA.

Oceania does not have a best price guarantee, unless booked on board. Yes sometimes you can have your (non booked onboard) cruise re-priced. Sometimes you can’t. It never hurts to ask.

A bit disingenuous. Anyone who has only paid a deposit is not past final payment date which is 6 to 8 weeks or more before the cruise. This is an apples to Oranges comparison.

“Something more active than Regent” ??? YOU MUST NOT HAVE MET BOOGIE &KASHIA! I had read about B&K on CC, and when I was on Mariner I LOVED HER! (and he’s pretty good too!) I don’t care about ports or itineraries. I just IMG_7577.mov want to cruise w Boogie & Kashia!

I haven’t heard of “Value Fare” before. Any more info on this?

I have Verizon. You have to opt into their international calling plan. Then you are charged $10 a day when you use data or text or calling outside of the US. I think Mexico and Canada is five dollars a day. It does add up.

Simply More, which is Oceania‘s new marketing strategy. Currently all new cruise fares include wine and beer at lunch and dinner in dining venues, and an amount of money that can only be spent on Oceania excursions. It was supposed to simplify their Olife. Not sure whether or not it is simpler to understand.

I would think you will have the opportunity for some extra resys. It helps to be flexible as to sharing with others, and flexible on dining times. Ask early and often! Others will have good strategies on how to make your requests known (go to the speciality restaurant as it opens for dinner and ask if they have any openings/cancellations; there’s a desk specifically for requesting dining reservations, look in Currents for the time they are open and ask for any openings….) And I usually find the GDR is also quite good, especially if you’re not in a hurry…..

And, they are much more expensive than an Oceania cruise!

Off the top of my head, expedition cruises (Hurtigruten is one example) are much smaller ships that comply with recent legislation regarding which ships can sail bellow a certain latitude close to Antartica. Pax might be able to use an RIB (rigid inflatable boat, maybe?) to actually land on Antartica. Others who know more about this topic will be able to provide more details…..

On many itineraries, yes there are bridge lessons targeted to beginners and separately to intermediate players. The more sea days an itinerary has, the more likely it will have sponsored lessons. On most ships, one can “sign up” for a bridge game with other players. If there’s a card room, there’s probably a sign-up sheet…..