plantlady095

Thank you for your photos and commentary. We loved the cruise, too. In Huatulco, we took a ship excursion that included a visit to their beautiful church, which we liked much more than the church in PV due to the mosaics & other decorations inside.  While driving around, we saw entrances to many luxury resorts that might be worth a return trip. I am looking at my next cruise and reconsidering ship excursions as  the big crowds on the big buses made me a bit crazy.  So fun! Hope to see you in the future!

20 hours ago, canadarocks said:

Thanks for the advice about the Sanctuary and the Panama Canal day. I've booked us the Balcony Breakfast for that day. I figure we'll be criss-crossing the ship a lot for the rest of the day. 

 

We were on 16 forward for the locks - both sections. You can stand at the railing or on 15, they have chairs. To access that area, use an unmarked door on 15. I was fascinated by the gushing of water in the lake/ponds next to the locks on the Pacific side. Now, I wonder if the water movement can also be observed on the Atlantic side. 

2 hours ago, jaycruising said:

 

I kind of kept my eyes open for them, but I never saw a duck anywhere on this cruise.

I hid (dropped in elevators, stairways, passageways) about 53 ducks. I found 1. It would be more fun if more people brought them so there'd be more to find. I doubt that I will have luggage space for my next cruise.

Thank you for sharing your photo review of our wonderful Emerald Princess voyage. The crew was the best that we have had and it was terrific to have the luxury of time to get to know them. We found the food to be very good most of the time. The Lido Salty Dog chicken tacos were spicey and very tasty. (I didn't see a mention of them.)  We also loved the free aviary at the Cartegena cruise terminal and would visit it again. The LA(Longbeach) cruise terminal was very, very slow. It was a disappointment to see that they weren't using the facial recognition (iPads on stands) like in all of our post Covid cruise returns. It is so fast. We had a noon flight and I was getting more than a tad nervous. We made it in just enough time to grab sandwiches to eat on the flight. 

We were on very similar excursions and saw many of the same places. At Cartegena, our excursion included climbing the gigantic fort. We were proud to have been successful. It was such a hot day.

I will keep an eye out for you on CC and future cruises. Bon voyage!

Check out the port of call forum: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=168

Thanks! That is a great idea!

My family is on the Sept.1 sailing and we are looking for something to do in Aruba. Does anyone have any ideas or tips? I have always heard that Aruba is strikingly beautiful but I need a tad more than that before arriving there. Please!

The OP is staying in the same complex as the Hilton in a Homestead hotel at the Airport. I do not believe the Homestead offers a restaurant for dinner and other than the Hilton, there are no restaurants in this area. From her first post my guess is she wasn't looking for a post cruise spot but rather a hotel to head off to the port and leave a car.

 

Perhaps you should go back to OP's first post and reread her travel plans but I know for a fact the Homestead Blue Lagoon is indeed at the same Airport location as the Hilton. Google Map Blue Lagoon Miami Airport and you'll see the hotels.

We just spent 2 nights at the Hyatt Regency Downtown. Breakfasts were included and the location is superb. It has a Metromover station , too. Whole Foods, CVS & Walgreens are close in case you forget anything. Our taxi cost $11 to the port. If you have time in Miami, consider the Miami to the Max tour. It was great!

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ShawninFL is right on! What if you take a wrong turn and find yourself in a neighborhood that is not so safe? A vacation should be carefree and fun. Our clothing is enough to set us apart as North Americans. We have been on two Rick Steves tours and I have traveled alone in Europe. No need to ever do anything to draw additional attention to oneself. My rings visit the bank while I visit abroad. I have a costume band to wear while touring a port. Why should we have to learn about the procedures for filing on insurance for a preventable loss?

Be safe and have fun!