Ellanora

Thank you for your review, I really enjoyed reading it!  The information about vegetarian food and the vegan menu were very helpful.  I'm taking my son and his girlfriend on Harmony in December and she is vegetarian and I'm trying to plan our meals so she has as many options as possible.  

Thanks for posting the review. Sounds like you all had a lot of fun! Can't wait til Dec 12th to sail.

 

How did you find the aft pool? Is it truly adults only?

The pool itself and the direct area around it, yes it was. The pizza and ice cream is also located to each side of the aft deck so there were occasionally kids in that area, but there were none in the pool chairs or pool/hot tubs. We also spent our time there while docked in Nassau, so it was relatively quiet anyway, and tons of chairs by the pool available.

Regarding your comments about the lack of food available late at night, we sailed the Conquest in May and there were always hot sandwiches, French fries, hot dogs available on the aft Lido deck on the starboard side after 11:00 p.m. (same area where the adult only pool and ice cream machines are). If I remember correctly, they had chicken sandwiches and ham and cheese, sometimes we just ate a big plate of fries.

Now that's interesting! I did walk by that section one of the nights after picking up a plate of pizza and nothing was going on over there. Maybe they opened it on other nights, though, I didn't check. Or maybe because it was a shorter cruise, they did less, not sure. But I'm glad that at least some of the time, they have other options!

One thing I forgot to mention in my review that was also annoying enough to mention in my comment card was Room Service and night time food selection. On cruises, we stay up very late (or very early) for the deck parties, for the late shows, the late comedians etc. If you're going to bed 3-5 hours later than your usual, your body is going to get a little hungry. The deck party did not have a late night buffet or Mexican buffet like they used to; maybe because it was a shorter cruise? I don't know. So the only options were pizza and room service. The pizza line was LOOOONG every night. The worst part was trying to call for Room Service. We sat on the phone for over 12 minutes with no answer. I say over 12 because we sat for some number of minutes before beginning to time it, and then sat for an additional timed 12 minutes before hanging up. This is unacceptable.

Also, while I'm not thrilled with the idea of paying for room service items, I can understand Carnival trying to make extra money by providing items through room service that you can't get anywhere else on the ship. However, there is no way I will EVER pay $6.00 for cheese and crackers! That is outrageous. Also not impressed with the menu selection for the free items, definitely less than it used to be. It makes no sense why they can't provide at least the same sandwiches that they make in the deli - obviously they have all the ingredients.

So while food was plentiful and good throughout the day, the night time selection could still use a little work.

Thanks for the review! I look forward to sailing Conquest next year!

 

A question for you on the debarkation, as it has been many years since we have sailed out of Port Everglades (and we only did it once). I keep hearing about the debarkation issues and long waits and am wondering if you have sailed on any other cruise line out of Port Everglades as well and had a different experience? I ask because I am trying to understand if this is a customs/immigration thing like most others say it has to be or maybe a facility capacity based upon where they dock:confused:

 

Also I wonder if the cruise lines have any input or can request staffing based upon the number of passengers. I would think somewhere along the line, someone is paying the bill for these services (not sure how that works), because the port authority/government aren't doing this for free I am sure!.

 

Thanks again and I am glad you had a great cruise!!:D

Hey, yes, my Allure of the Seas cruise this past March was also out of Fort Lauderdale and it also was much smoother than all of my Carnival cruises, which have been out of all of the Florida ports except Jacksonville. I do think it's possible to be a combination of things including staffing. It could be that Royal/Disney have more staff assigned/supplied for moving luggage off the ship and setting it up in the terminal. It's also possible that they don't have a large enough terminal to put out all of the luggage at one time (I believe this is how Disney can let everyone off on their own terms), and so the wait includes not only people getting off the ship, but also having the new luggage laid out as space opens up. In which case, Carnival needs to upgrade their terminal.

I know customs/immigration or lack of staffing in those areas can sometimes cause problems, but there were plenty of customs lines going when we finally made it down to the area, and that has usually been the case on my cruises.

We did enjoy the shows. Epic Rock was awesome and the guy that sang Dream On was fantastic. Divas was enjoyable if not great, and Latin Nights slightly less so, although it may have been affected by being on the last night of the cruise and most of the theater was empty for the late seating, so tough to build energy from a nonexistent crowd. The comedians were GREAT, both the adult and family friendly versions. We saw/heard the DJ at various times, and he was pretty cool and seemed to be having a great time. We did not make it to the piano bar (or the Alchemy bar! My biggest regret of the cruise!)

I was so excited after boarding and finding out Wee Jimmy was the cruise director. I had sailed with him before and he had been my favorite cruise director since then. He absolutely still is! He is always involved and engaged with the guests, he’s funny and enjoyable to listen to, and his team seems to like being around him. He hosted two of the very best trivia games I have ever seen on a cruise ship, both held in the lobby. This had the effect of “crowding” the lobby which could have been annoying yet somehow really created a great atmosphere with lots of participation. One game was 80s songs where he played a snippet of the song and you had to write down the song name and the band, and the other was Disney songs/movies where he played a snippet of the song and you had to write down the movie. Then he would go back and replay them to give the answers but also pick people to come up and sing them, and wow, some people could really sing! This also led to some really funny, spontaneous moments and was part of why it was such an enjoyable event. I could also see from my vantage point that some of the atrium bar staff and the guest services staff were enjoying the music, pretending to hold up lighters and swaying, or dancing to the music. People gathered at the edges of all the floors above the atrium watching, and the atmosphere was just the best.

Wee Jimmy also led the Seussapalooza parade and read The Cat in the Hat at the storytime where members of the audience played the parts in the story. Lots of fun for the kids, and very cute to watch!

We spent time in the sauna in the spa, and at the aft adults pool during the day while we were in Nassau. Always love to stay on the ship and enjoy the pools and other facilities with no crowds since we’ve been to Nassau many times already. Unfortunately, we did not make it to HMC, in fact, they announced during the day in Nassau that weather would not allow us to even attempt it so we would be travelling on to Grand Turk. It was strange because we only got a little bit of light rain in Nassau, no storming, and the water while sailing that night really wasn’t too choppy at all. And the weather in Grand Turk was perfect. The good news was, we would arrive in Grand Turk at 8 AM instead of the scheduled 11 AM, so we would have a lovely long day in Grand Turk. But missing HMC was a big disappointment. Now, I am fully aware of the contract and that Carnival can miss or switch ports at any time, yada yada. I have no problem with that, and if I’m stuck on board with no ports for seven days, you better believe I’m still going to have a great time on my cruise! That said, there’s a point where if Carnival is missing HMC a significant portion of the time, then it is disingenuous to include it in the itinerary at certain times of the year. Either Carnival needs to start being a little more honest about their schedule, or build a pier at HMC. That’s my 2 cents on that subject, YMMV.

Now this is the second time I’ve missed HMC, and this is an example of how having a great cruise director can elevate an already good cruise. On the other cruise, the unexpected day at sea had a few extra trivia and karaoke times, that was about it. On this one, there was a special family friendly comedian show set up in the middle of the day and both comedians performed. The Dr. Seuss activities I mentioned above were moved from the morning of Grand Turk to the new sea day. Extra fun and games were scheduled out at the pool. It was just very clear that the entertainment crew in general and Wee Jimmy in particular were making the extra effort to provide a really great sea day in exchange for missing HMC, and this was something I REALLY appreciated.

Grand Turk was awesome, and having the extra time there was great. We did some shopping, swam at the beach, then hung out by the pool, grabbing a few drinks from the swim up bar every so often. Jello shots at the swim up bar are $1 apiece, if you’re interested in that sort of thing. (We were. :D ) The giant nacho platter is incredibly expensive but also incredibly tasty if you need something to munch on with your drinks.

On the last day of the cruise, which was the final (and originally, only) sea day of the cruise, we tried the seaday brunch. The huevos rancheros at the sea day brunch are very good, and so were the cheddar grits! However, service was not great, they kind of left us alone for long stretches of time, and I had to ask for my pineapple juice multiple times before finally getting a glass after the meal was served. I think it was just luck of the draw which server section we ended up in, I’m sure there were other servers doing a great job.

We also hung out on our balcony this day. It was the only truly rainy day of the cruise and was nice to sit out and get a bit of a mist from the rain plus the temperature combined with the wind made it very cool and comfortable. We had 1031 on Panorama near the front of the ship, starboard. We loved the location! Very handy to walk across the lido deck to the pools or restaurants, or take the elevator straight down to the promenade and atrium. Also, we almost NEVER felt the ship move. Seriously, it wasn’t until the last day that we could really feel it, and then it was just a bit. I’ve never been one to get sea sick anyway, but this was the most stable I’ve ever felt on a Carnival ship.

Now the minor issues – the room just never got better than barely cool. We lived with it because it wasn’t really hot enough to complain and have it checked out, but it is the warmest I’ve ever have a cabin be, and not very comfortable at night. Also, my bed was the worst Carnival bed EVER. It was a little saggy and not at all enjoyable to sleep on. I’ve loved the Carnival beds in the past but this one needed a switch. I did mention it to the room steward, hopefully it will get replaced soon. The stewards did a good job, no complaints there.

Finally, the one big Carnival complaint I have. It’s the same complaint I’ve always had when it comes to Carnival. I just don’t understand why the debarkation has to be so awful, and it has been every single cruise. I’ve sailed on Disney multiple times – you just walk straight off the ship when you feel like it. They do have you assigned to a breakfast time in their main dining room that you can attend and then leave, but you don’t have to. You can go to the buffet instead or you can just walk off the ship. There has NEVER been a line on the Disney ship waiting to disembark. I’ve only sailed with Royal once, on Allure earlier this year. It is a giant ship, but when our number was called around 9 AM, we walked straight off the ship, again no line until we got to luggage/customs. How is it that on Carnival there is ALWAYS a LONG LINE, and it takes FOREVER for the number to be called? We did self disembark and still had to wait until 9:30 AM to be called to leave! Almost two full hours after they started calling for self disembark! I can’t even guess how late the guests who didn’t carry off their own luggage had to wait. I know that Carnival does not control customs or port authorities, but on a standard day where they start debarking at the usual time, there is just no good reason for it to take so long to get off the ship.

Overall we had a splendid time and I wish I could jump right back aboard Conquest! I do have a family cruise planned for Carnival Vista in 2017, but I sure hope to sail again before then! Let me know if any questions, I’ll be happy to try and answer them. If you’re sailing on Conquest, I hope you have a great time!

Hello all! I noticed before my own Conquest cruise that reviews were difficult to find, so wanted to post a few thoughts for others. I was on the 5 night cruise 10/12-10/17, the final cruise to have the old menus, lol. Ports of Call were Nassau, Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk.

This was a girls’ cruise for me and my two cousins. We had taken a previous cruise together in 2010, a 3 night on Sensation, and wanted something a little longer this time. My son just began college this year, but they both have small children so we still couldn’t quite go for the whole week. The five nights plus one night in a hotel in Ft Lauderdale would have to suffice. :D

We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express and Suites on State Road 84. Great little hotel, excellently maintained and a good breakfast for the price. For dinner we ate at the Shuck n Dive, a small Cajun place about 12 minutes from the hotel. Pretty good food, but they don’t have a full bar, just beer and wine. We got flavored mimosas, but would have preferred a regular mixed drink.

We used Park n Go to park the car, booked online ahead of time for the discounted rate. This is the second time I’ve used them, both times were outstanding service. Highly recommend them.

Now the cruise itself, let me first say, I am one of those people who vacation with rose-colored glasses. :D Something has to be pretty wrong for me to get bothered by it. And since there were only a couple of minor issues, that means I had an amazing cruise! I’ve read some comments that the Conquest is showing her age, and maybe she is. When I think back, I suppose there may have been some scratches on the bannisters here and there but that’s not the type of thing I pay attention to. I thought the ship was the prettiest Carnival ship I’ve been on so far; most of the light fixtures were shaped like flowers, especially the ones that run the length of the promenade, and I just thought they were lovely. (I love flowers!) There were beautiful fluted flower-like lights in one of the small lounges and also in the meeting room where they held the weddings (multiple on this cruise.) There was floral wallpaper and curtains in the Renoir dining room, and a huge lit sunflower hanging in the small aft atrium area above the Monet dining room.

I liked how the Tahiti casino had bamboo-looking accents on the outside walls. I did NOT like that practically all of the slot machines were digital, and I did NOT like that the first few I tried didn’t win so much as a nickel. I’m not a gambler at all, but I enjoy stretching out a ten or twenty dollar bill for a few minutes of gameplay on the penny or nickel slot machines. However, these just dropped straight down to zero in a couple spins. Very disappointing. The last day of the cruise, I finally found a slot machine that let me play almost a half hour on $20, and walk away with $30, so that was nice.

Not much point in reviewing the dinner food in the MDR since those menus are gone now, but we enjoyed pretty much everything, with particular love for the lasagna Bolognese and the jerked pork loin. We did eat in the steakhouse on the first night (free bottle of wine!) and everything was excellent, particularly the escargot soup! That was something I’ve never had before and absolutely loved. Oh also, I’m not usually a big fan of focaccia, but wow, the rosemary focaccia in the steakhouse was amazing!

We did Your Time Dining in the MDR the other four nights. The first night service was fine, the last night service was fine. The two in the middle, we were sat in Assadee’s section. She is OUTSTANDING, and she keeps her team moving and shaking throughout the meal, has her eye on everything happening, and was also very kind and smiling. She was so impressive, and apparently everyone else on board thought so too because multiple people, hostesses and other waiters, mentioned that she was highly requested. In fact we did request her again the last night, waited 45 minutes for our pager to go off, and still were sat in a different section because apparently there was just not enough room for all the people requesting Assadee!

Guy’s Burgers overall were very good, though the hamburger itself is just average, the bun is good and the toppings are great. The Blue Iguana Cantina was outstanding, really. I had a shrimp burrito for lunch and huevos rancheros for breakfast and just loved them. My cousins both tried the breakfast burritos and also thought they were incredibly good. Fish & Chips were the usual, fish a little greasy but tasty. However, the oysters were NOT good, tiny and muddy tasting. I think whoever the supplier was of these is not providing a quality product.

We had multiple umbrella drinks throughout the trip and all were good, generous pours. So generous, in fact, that our pitcher of margaritas had practically no margarita flavor and was essentially a gigantic shot of tequila! :D This is not a complaint, because we love tequila, lol. However, I do also like the flavor of a margarita, so a little more lime would be nice. It was nice to be able to order a pitcher, that was a first for us on a cruise. Other drinks were all good as well, and the Funship Special is still my favorite cruise drink!

Splitting this review into two posts, next up is the shows and ports.

I should have included my email adddress in my last posting...could you please send to me also? It is greatly appreciated!

ellanorasedai@yahoo.com

Two things about your review caught my interest immediately - the gorgeous flowers and your stays in Flagler Beach, as I live in Flagler County. :D

Everything about your wedding looks beautiful - thank you so much for the thorough review and pictures! And congratulations to you both!!

Just wanted to say thanks again to those who posted advice, and to give a quick review in case anyone else has similar plans.

We did eat at Bahia Cabana after getting into Fort Lauderdale around 12:30 PM. It was a little busy but we did not have a problem getting a table in the shade, though by the time we left, it was in full sun. However, the staff were slowly bringing out umbrellas at that time for the tables, so I'm sure the next patrons had shade again. We did valet as suggested, as you really have no choice - there are no parking spaces available for visitors. I think it was only $3.00, plus a tip, which was surprisingly cheap, I thought.

Service was slow, but the waitress herself was great. Drinks and food were both very good! The fish sandwiches in particular were outstanding. We really enjoyed the view of the marina and watching the water taxis sail in, and the Jungle Queen day cruise ship sail out. If you are not in a hurry and just want to relax with a drink and a view, I would definitely recommend Bahia Cabana.

After that, we planned to park at the beach and walk a bit, however, the beach parking was full due to an event. (AIDS Walkathon festival I think? Looked like everyone was having a good time.) So we went ahead to the Staybridge Suites in Plantation to see if we could luck out and check in early.

I have stayed in three different Staybridges in three different cities, so far every one has been outstanding. We were able to check in to one room early, which gave us a place to put our stuff down and get comfortable. the second room became available after a couple hours. We walked around a bit; they have a nice pool area, a very nice barbecue area, and a great firepit with seating area. The free breakfast in the morning was a pretty good selection, make your own waffles, premade (probably heated from frozen) cheese omelettes, scrambled eggs, heated ham slices, oatmeal, fruit, yogurt, breakfast breads, juice/milk/coffee, etc.

For dinner, we drove just a few miles up the street from the hotel to Landlubber's, which was a large sports bar & grill. Good prices, lots of food options, and everything was tasty, particularly the spicy teriyaki wings. We were very happy with our meal here.

We definitely enjoyed the area of Fort Lauderdale we were in - and I would love to spend more time there and be able to do the water taxi tours one day, and walk the beach.

We were on this cruise also. The headliner group was Abaracadabra but they aren't scheduled to be back on the Allure until the week of April 5th. It was our first Royal Caribbean cruise and it was great. We loved the shows and the ship. We had my time dining and had made reservations for 5:30 or 5:45 each night and we got right in as soon as they opened the doors and sat at the same table each night with our group of 4. Had excellent service from ShellyAnn. Our cabin steward was one of the best we have ever had. Overall it was a fabulous cruise.

Headliner entertainment was an ABBA tribute band called ABBACADABRA. I wasn't too impressed with my 5 minutes of listening, but if you love ABBA you'd probably love the tribute band.

Thank you both!

Thank you for sharing your review. My family and I will be sailing on Allure in 11 days! Woo! :p

I was wondering if you knew who the Headliner entertainment was on your cruise?

1. I live across the street from one water taxi stop and work next to another. People NEVER wait more than a couple of minutes for one of the water taxis. At any given time, I see about twenty or so of their boats out and about on the water when we are out on our boat.

 

I also don't think you will be jumping on and off the water taxi. I would put it back on your list. Highly recommend this.

 

2. Southport Raw Bar, Kellys Landing, and Bahia Cabana would work for you. LuLus Baitshack and Aruba which are actually oceanfront would also be good as good.

 

3. I love Big City Tavern. It's been on of my favorites for years. Shuck N Dive is also very good but I don't know if I'd leave Las Olas to go there.

 

4. The top of the 17th Street Bridge is an excellent place to watch the ships leave.

Thank you for the info! Regarding the water taxi, I had orginally thought we would get on near the Las Olas shops, but it seems the parking garage is at the first stop and the shops are at the 3rd. So we'd get on at 1st, but I've read you have to get off at 3rd to board a different taxi. Then we would get off, perhaps the stop at Bahia Cabana? Then lunch and back to water taxi and back to 3rd, then back to 1st. It just seems like a lot of time could be spent in the waiting for taxi that driving straight to the restaurant would skip. I also expect a lot of people will be out and about on a Saturday in late March.

I really like the look of Southport and Bahia Cabana menu. But Bahia looks like more deck space and better views?

Good to hear Big City and Shuck n Dive are both good options!

I think I'm heading in the right direction here, just trying to make sure my whole group has a great time. I really appreciate the help!

How long is your drive on Saturday? Frankly, I would go to hotel and chill - don't worry about lunch, pick a nice dinner spot on Las Olas, get a good night's rest for your cruise

 

I would call the hotel at 8a on Saturday, request an early check in.

A little over 4 hours, not too bad, but for various reasons we won't get there until between 12:30-1:30 in the afternoon.

That's an idea, about the early check in, though honestly, with our past experiences, I don't expect it to work. But I do think we want to get out and see Ft Lauderdale a bit, since we've never had the opportunity to spend any time there. Especially if the weather is nice.

Hello all. I have been scouring these boards and other sources, and gathering as much info as possible on Fort Lauderdale restaurants and things to do. So many people who have been so helpful here, always really appreciate these boards!

Myself and family will be driving to FLL in 2 cars on Saturday 3/21. We are staying at the Staybridge Suites in Plantation and sailing on Allure on Sunday. There are six of us - parents age 60, me 39, son 18, son's gf 21, and niece 19. Mobility is not an issue, but there is a limit to the amount of walking my mom can do without rest stops. For this reason, I don't think we stand much of a chance at making it to the jetties to watch the ships sail out.

I expect we will make it into the city by 1:00PM. It seems nowadays you have little to no chance to check in early to your hotel, so I see no point in wasting time trying.

I originally was looking hard at the water taxi from Las Olas to a restaurant and back, however, reading the reviews it seems like a lot of time would be wasted just waiting for the boat to come to the stops, and while it might be fine if we wanted to do the full loop, we just won't have the time. So I've decided best to drive to the restaurant we want for a late lunch, then drive out to the beach, perhaps Fort Lauderdale Beach Park? Walk around a bit, then head over to the hotel to check in and relax, then back out somewhere for dinner.

For lunch, I really want somewhere with seafood, but needs to have a varied menu - son's girlfriend does not care for seafood. Also, not looking for heavy entrees, more along the lines of shrimp baskets, wings, fries, fried fish, chicken tenders, easy food for having drinks with and enjoying the scenery. I've heavily considered 15th Street Fisheries, Bimini Boatyard, Southport, and Bahia Cabana. Pretty much ruled out Bimini due to the menu. Southport looks good but seems like a quieter view, set back away from the main waterway. Bahia Cabana has the best looking menu for variety and looks like a big deck? Maybe a lot to see in the marina area? But the reviews run hot and cold. 15th Street Dockside gets good reviews but menu seems so-so for variety. LOL, really trying not to be picky but want to find a place we will have fun spending time at, can lean back and relax and really start our vacation.

Dinner - it will be Saturday evening/night in Fort Lauderdale during spring break, so I expect all of the restaurants will be insane. I like the idea of walking Las Olas shopping area, it looks pretty in pictures lit up at night, but am concerned about parking and crowds. Big City Tavern looked pretty good though. Or maybe we should drive somewhere else entirely, maybe Shuck N Dive?

Any and all thoughts and opinions appreciated.

My parents, my son and I were on the Ecstasy at Thanksgiving for the 5 night to Nassau, Freeport, and Half Moon Cay. Unfortunately we had poor weather and were unable to stop at Half Moon which was a big disappointment but obviously no one's fault. However the rest of the cruise was great!

We had Anytime Dining, and usually waited in line up to 15 minutes except one night we got a pager and waited in the piano bar with drinks for about half an hour after the wait in line. But that was fine. Food was good, service was generally very good.

Their was an outstanding guitar player whom we spoke with a few times. He was very nice and very talented. The band that played by the casino was also excellent, and also the pianist in the atrium. The bartenders at the atrium bar were superb - our rooms were porthole on the Empress deck, so the atrium was a big hang out of ours. Also the deck up by the waterslides is one of my favorite places to sit during the day. The day in Nassau was our only sunny day, and we spent most of it up on deck, cooling off in the water sprays by the waterslides when the sun got warm.

Our day in Freeport was windy and overcast, but we still were able to walk around the straw market and had a drink at Senior Frogs.

I can't remember the names of the comedians, but we went to the family friendly shows and really enjoyed them. The Hasbro show was amusing to watch, and the towel animal theater was cute especially if you have little ones.

Overall it was a great cruise, easy and relaxing. I hope you all have a great time on yours!

Love your review; the Valor looks especially gorgeous. It seems to have some of the best theming I've seen on any of the ships so far! Guess I'm going to have to move Valor further up the list of future cruises. :p

I'd really like to book the Dream sometime soon! Great review so far, thanks for posting!

So, having children accompanying us in our group, 10 at ages 15 down to 4, which the little ones especially, would have BC but would not have photo ID's??? What would we do? Where do you get something like that?

My son actually has a photo id that he has to wear for school, that was made by the school, but I didn't have it with me. It isn't issued by the state or anything, but probably would have sufficed.

Really, I think I just ended up with the agent who got out of bed on the wrong side that morning.

Just got off Carnival Freedom this morning, (ports of Jamaica and Grand Cayman) with BC/DL for me and BC for my 12 year old. (Yes, I know, passports are best, and they are on the agenda for next year.) Anyway, I had no problems until returning to Port Everglades and going through customs. The agent gave me a lecture on not having a passport (which I expected so that was fine.) What I didn't expect was for him to ask for photo id for my 12 year old. He became quite irate - looked very closely at my birth certificate and driver's license (names match, never married, and it's obviously my picture.) Then looked at my son's birth certificate (which only has my name on it as parent.) He said something to the effect of "see, I can't even verify it's him without photo id" and pretty much threw the papers back at me and said we could go, at which point we hightailed it out of there before he could change his mind. :confused: Never had a problem like that before. According to the gov websites, kids under 16 don't require photo id with their birth certificate in this circumstance.

whereas mid-August through ~ February are slow times

Thanks again for the information. I will probably go ahead and look at passports around Sept/Oct this year, as that will be when I start preparing plans for whatever next year's vacations will be.

First, I appreciate everyone who has made an effort at helping others keep up with the passport changes, with a special thank you to cherylandtk.

My son and I do not yet have passports, and I have been watching these developments with much curiosity. The only cruise in the budget for this year is a 3 night Disney, which is in two weeks, so we are good with birth certificates. I had figured that at some point over the following year, we would go ahead and get the passports, although I was hoping to just get passcards. I was surprised to see that passcards are not good for air travel - I thought they would be phased in as full replacements for passports. I wonder if they plan on changing that at any time in the future? If not, we will definitely get the regular passport so that our future travel will not be hampered.