Lady Chew

13 hours ago, LXA350 said:

It would really not be a bad idea that X and or RCL will dedicate one or two ships each year during European / US winter for a world cruise, which is a niche market and if done right with unique itinararies could be high yielding business for the cruise line.  One option would be to book the whole itinarary and the other one would be to split the cruise up into various seperate itinararies that could be booked with duration of let's say 14- 21 days for instance. Like this there shouldn't be a issue to fill the ship at higher yielding fares.

This is how the itineraries are set - you can book the entire cruise, or any number of segments.  Segments are anywhere from 10/11 days to 30 days.  However, on our long cruises we have seen people get on & off at ports that are not official end/beginnings of segments.  (not talking about crew or entertainers)  We had actually discussed doing this on our world cruise, and our TA & HAL told us that as long as the port had customs/immigration capability, people can get on & off.

9 hours ago, Sir PMP said:

Not really, most of us don't like the big ones without a promenade deck, but since we are running out of small/medium size ships especially if the Zaandam and Volendam are leaving, the vista's offer not much and getting old too than the new Rotterdam will become our only good choice for a cruise, if they make this a true flagship..

What makes a "true" flagship?

Did a WC on Holland America in 2019 (and thank goodness we didn't wait a year!!) and would LOVE to do one on Celebrity.  I'd do the whole thing, Mr Chew would probably do 30 or 40 days in the middle.

Now if I can just find my lottery ticket ... gotta win sometime, right??

Love the "Old Soup Tureen"  !!

At least most of these are actual nicknames, and not simply shortening the name, as in Celebrity Silhouette to "Sillie" or HAL Westerdam to "Westy"    That type of nickname has always bugged me, don't know why ... 

We think that masks are probably here to stay at least for several years, vaccine or no vaccine, especially for those who are at risk.  We would probably take a cruise if masks were required at some times in some places.  Depends on the itinerary.  

We wear are masks now when & where we are supposed to, we don't like them, but we're not stupid!!  

We really, really miss traveling, not just cruising, and can't wait until we can get back out there again.

5 hours ago, BigAl94 said:

I've recently had a couple of hotel stays - good value due to the current situation. I was quite happy that there were some limitations to service including the fact that your sanitised room was not entered by staff at all during your stay, fresh towels would be left in a sealed bag at the door if requested. No room service of any kind. I would not, however, cruise under these limitations given the cost.

I agree with this ... staying in a hotel is one thing. Cruising is very different.

We are hoping to build a road trip in November, around a family wedding.  We'll be taking a very close look at hotel protocols for where we want to stay on the way down to Mississippi and back.  We probably won't stay in any one hotel more than 3 nights, and in a hotel are comfortable with no service during that time as long as we can get fresh towels.  I think I'll probably pack some of our own towels anyway, just to be sure.  

23 hours ago, JAMESCC said:

I ain't got 2 nickels to rub together and I know no one. There is going to be millions of vaccine shots right off the bat on this one. I bet within 6 months I will be able to get it or sooner actually I woukd say.
I'm just a dumb truck driver that takes a cruise every year with a few extra sheckles I scrap together. I do get 4 weeks vacation though so that's nice.

Sent from my Pixel 4 XL using Tapatalk
 

This country would not survive without the trucks who deliver us EVERYTHING we need to lead our lives.

So ... thank you!

3 hours ago, iancal said:

HAL did not dump those 4 (plus 1) ships because they were in tip top condition, making lots of money for HAL, and meeting the Carnival Corp targets for revenue and profit per passenger or per ship.

 

HAL loyalists seem to think they were wonderful and made lots of profit.  Really?   HAL's decision to quickly sell them  tells a very different story about their condition and their profitability.  Not to mention HAL's future sales and marketing direction.

This is exactly right.  Orlando Ashford explained this to us on the 2019 WC, along with some of the strategic planning staff.  

No surprise these ships were sold.  We're waiting to see what happens next ... how much will HAL change?  Probably a lot, if it even stays in existence!

5 hours ago, GarlicBread said:

 

I'm sure I read something from Captain Kate that they had special permission to dock there to change crew and to deliver supplies to those still on the island, but no one is allowed off the dock onto the actual island, which is all they've been doing the last few months anyway. 

But it was on one of her instagram stories that only last so long so I cant find it now...

Right now, 5pm on Tuesday, there is a thread on the first page of the Celebrity forum showing how the 4 Celebrity ships anchored off Coco Cay are getting & delivering  Covid tests.  Edge, Eclipse & Silhouette ... can't remember the 4th ... 

Just went back to find the link ... video is on page 3 of the thread

This is really no surprise.  Orlando Ashford & the senior management team were on the 2019 world cruise, had a presentation & Q&A session with passengers.  The theater was completely full.  It was very clear that the small ships were not and could not be profitable at the HAL price point.  Ashford stated that they could not create a business plan for a new 1500 passenger ship and make it work.  This statement basically said that any new ships would be in the 2500 passenger and greater class.  The key to this is, they were trying to build the business plan around the HAL price point.

The implication was that they could not put new capital into these old ships and operate them at a profit.

The current crisis has made things worse.  These ships will certainly not be worth more when this is over than they are now.  We are wondering if the new president of HAL is tasked with rebranding the line or overseeing a merger with the Princess brand.  

I think there will be a lot of ports around the world that will ban the large cruise ships.  If that happens, I wonder if they will just be used for 7-day cruises to nowhere with stops at the cruise lines' private islands??

We prefer longer cruises on smaller ships anyway ... but once in a while we like to get on the large ones.

I don't miss ANY of the things posted above, but, man!, do I miss cruising!!

8 hours ago, Ride-The-Waves said:

My understanding is that the restrictions apply to all types of tourist travel from the US into the EU, not just cruising.  

6 hours ago, Lady Arwen said:

I don’t think US citizens can visit Europe under any circumstances.  Flights will not be available either.  Sorry, but Europe is not an option for you at this time.  However, once your stats fall within acceptable levels,  Europe will re-evaluate it’s decision.

Oh, we are well aware that no European travel is possible for us right now!  As well as travel to Australia and other places.  We're looking at the second half of 2021 at the earliest.

2 hours ago, broberts said:

 

A matter of perspective:

• Opportunity to express artistic creativity through fashion sensitive facial coverings
• More room in and around pools, no chair hogs
• More attentive dining and bar services
• Less crowding in lounges
• Less pushing and shoving on elevators
• More room in theaters and other performance venues
• Less crowding in ports

I would love to see any of these, but wonder about the last one.  I think the ports themselves need to limit the number of ships in port on any given day.  St Maarten with only one ship in port is heaven.  

We are also waiting to see what will happen in Europe over the next months ... we had hoped for a long cruise/land combo, but may have to "just" do the land portion ... 

7 hours ago, TeeRick said:

I just commented that I enjoyed watching the series.  I know it is not completely factual.  Nothing on TV, in Movies or in the Media is completely factual.  I personally am a fan of historical shows and historical fiction.  So why the comment?

Wasn't responding to you ... just agreeing with another post.  I enjoy all of these shows, I know they are based on actual historic events, but also realize that they contain a certain amount of creative license ... 

8 hours ago, sgmn said:

It's a great show, but remember, though based on actual events, it is still a show and not a documentary.  Sometimes it's easy to forget and think it's ALL true 

It never ceases to amaze me that so many people think shows or movies like this are completely factual ... 

We've usually taken a combo of cruises, road trips, and extended family trips (ie, if we drive up to northern PA to see our daughter, we might continue driving up into New York or New England for a while)

When we've cruised in Europe or Asia, we spend a good 3-4 days in the area beforehand, and sometimes another 3 -4 days after disembarkation.  I guess we would just have to fill in the time we'd spend on a ship and see even more of a country.  (hope that made sense)

With no cruising, we'd probably go back to spending a week in Las Vegas every year, and in the winter fly to an island in the Caribbean for a month or so.  A few more road trips in the USA, and a big land trip to Europe every other year.

1 hour ago, Roz said:

 

I've heard from solo passengers they found this to be true on the World Cruise. Some of the repeaters (of which there are many, apparently) didn't want to share their dining space, didn't want anyone but their cruise friends on the trivia team, saved seats in the theatre, etc.  

And complained & complained & complained about every picayune little thing.  And expected to be waited on first, in whatever venue, and waited on hand & foot wherever.  Tended to monopolize wait staff/bar staff/stewards/front desk/officers, but had no compunctions interrupting anyone else trying to communicate with staff about anything.

I do want to make it clear, however, that we also met some wonderful people on board, and had a wonderful time.  Would love to do it again one day!

DFD1, we were first-time World Cruisers (but already 5* with many long cruises on HAL) traveling with another couple with the same "status"    We found the overall atmosphere to be very clique-y, at least with the folks who had done 5, 10, 15 or more World Cruises.   Because we had each other, and met some wonderful folks on board, we had a great time and we never felt too negatively impacted by the many demands & expectations of the repeaters.

An earlier poster on this thread commented that different types of cruises would appeal to different types of cruisers.  We've taken all kinds of cruises on HAL and this is certainly true.  The WC was by far the "oldest" passenger mix we've ever experienced.  We ourselves are approaching our late 60s and felt pretty young on the cruise.  

When things have settled down and HAL starts up again (fingers crossed!) we'll see what their marketing strategy will be.  I think it will be very hard for any cruise lines to attract a lot of new cruisers, based on how badly most of them handled the beginning of the pandemic, so I think they will have to get their Regulars back, but I don't know if HAL really wants many of us on their ships again.  

3 hours ago, KirkNC said:

Hammish has done the last two world cruises so it would seem he has the approval of the in crowd.  It’s a thankless job even worse on the world cruise where sooooo many people feel entitled to special treatment.  I think he does a great job in a very difficult role.

We were on the 2019 WC.  The four of us thought he was dreadful ... the worst CD we had ever had.  Of course, we are in no way part of the "in crowd" !! although we are all 5* on HAL and frequent cruisers on other lines.

Appeal of CDs is subjective, of course!

A completely understandable decision.

I don't even want tourists from the US coming to my part of the US!!

We've done quite a few b2b cruises of various lengths, 7x7, 10x11, 9x12, with varying amounts of time spent in the  disembarkaton/reembarkation process.  You usually have to wait somewhere on the ship with the others who are doing a b2b.  Sometimes you have to physically get off the ship and sometimes you don't.  If we're not getting off to do an excursion or go shopping, we have our phones, water & books to pass the time.

Mr Chew LOVES hanging over the side and watching the luggage/trash/etc go off, and watching supplies coming on for the next cruise.  If they'd let him down there to help with any of that, he'd do it for free, and even do the really "grunt" work!

You usually have full access to your cabin at any time, you can usually get a snack or a (non-alcoholic) drink somewhere and there are plenty of lounge chairs available on the pool deck, in the sun & in the shade.  

We call those "turn around" days, and we find them very  relaxing.

I hope you come back & share the finished product!!

I've never had an infection, but it did take several months for the left one to properly heal. 

I had my ears pierced in college, by a pre-med student using ice cubes & sterile needles.  It didn't hurt.  He did a row of about 8 of us sitting in front of the mirrors in a theater dressing room.  I was first to go ... the last few girls chickened out!

I shudder to think about that now!!