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jb008

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Everything posted by jb008

  1. I can confirm I did navigator on my web browser last month on my phone and it worked pretty well, the only downside is that you need to refresh to see if new messages come in as they won't give a push notification like it does if you're using the app. You can even save the link to the browser site as a favorite on the home page of your phone and it works very similarly to having the app installed. I didn't see it well detailed on the ship, a lot of the handouts were really pushing the app. But, the browser link worked great and thankfully I still had it in my favorites from the previous cruise 🙂
  2. We disembarked Eurodam on 12/27 in Port Everglade. The Lime 1 tags were not the first tags called, Self-assist and Luggage Direct were first iirc, followed by some colors that weren't available at Guest Services (what I presume were priority disembark options for suites and higher-tier repeat cruisers). They were prompt at calling the Lime 1 tags though, and we picked up our bags and did an Uber to the airport and were dropped off at the airport at 8:54 AM. The lines at the airport were pretty brutal, we flew Delta and had priority access so we only waited about 10 minutes to check bags - but I bet the line to check bags otherwise was probably an hour or more. The airport lines are probably your biggest risk to catching a 10:30 AM flight. Noting here that many airlines let you buy up to premium economy seats that come with priority line access and might be worth considering.
  3. If I’m in a booking on the navigator app I can see menus for the MDR - are those samples or the actual menus for Day 1? just curious since the lunch matches (iirc) the embarkation-day lunch last year on Rotterdam.
  4. Thanks all for the input! I have the Travelpro international rollaboard (which is the 2-wheel version) and I was fine on Lufthansa flying from MUC-AMS (they didn't check weight, thankfully). I like it because it is light and maximizes space since it only has 2 wheels. I'm now deciding between adding the Travelpro compact carry-on spinner and the international carry-on spinner (4-wheels). Both are about the same size, 38L & 5.1lbs vs 39L & 5.3 lbs. I'll probably go for Option 2, the international version, since my domestic travel is typically on Delta and I seem to have good luck with them not caring what size my carry-on is as long as it's a typical and smaller carry-on. We inadvertently flew with a 24x15x9.75 inch bag on our last trip and never got a 2nd look from the Delta gate agent or flight attendants even though it was pretty oversized for a carry-on.
  5. I can't find a good general question area to post this, so I'm hoping I found an appropriate spot for my question. I need to buy a new wheelie carry-on and am torn on sizing. I mostly fly domestic, but do enough international travel that I'm considering a smaller carry-on. I'm torn between two options and could use some advice on which will be a better purchase. Option 1 "Compact carry-on": 22 in x 14 in x 9 in (total size including wheels and carry handles) Option 2 "International carry-on": 21.75 in. x 15.75 in. x 7.75 in. (total size including wheels and carry handles) Thanks in advance for people's input!
  6. I used the ship Wi-Fi with decent speeds while lounging on shore in Grand Turk and slow speed from the beach at HMC. So I don’t think they turn off Wi-Fi while in port. Just a minor fyi. also used ship Wi-Fi onboard while in various ports with very good speeds.
  7. I was going to do that, but DW wouldn't let me. Apparently someone did lose one on a cruise, and they've been sharing the tags location on one of the facebook groups. I haven't found the group, but someone on my cruise mentioned it.
  8. We sailed out of Port Everglades on Dec. 21 and there was no usage of Verifly. I even asked because the email had indicated there would be an expedited check in line if you set up Verifly, but no such luck. They did not ask to see any proof of vaccination during check-in (nor is it required), although they did have a health questionnaire that we had to fill out online a few days prior to departure fwiw. Questions basically asked if we were experiencing any COVID-like symptoms within the last few days.
  9. I did't want to bother him to ask, I ended our last message exchange by telling him please don't hesitate to contact me if he need anything from me to get his luggage. He dropped my bag off at FedEx and has the receipt from the drop-off which includes the tracking number so he can pull up the FedEx page that shows a 50 lb bag being shipped from him to me fwiw.
  10. I don't suppose anyone has a list of Carnival sailings out of port of Los Angeles from Feb. 2002? We're trying to figure out a past cruise that my folks would have taken. I tried googling but was overwhelmed by the hits. Any suggestions or pointers on resources for this type of info? TIA!
  11. Correct - and there are other devices out there. I think the largest ecosystem though is Apple and the AirTags since any iPhone, iPad, and many apple laptops are potential passive detection points to update an AirTag's location. Tile is probably 2nd largest, and then Samsung appears to have released a competing tracker but is restricted to their high end phones and won't piggyback on all Android devices. If you google "AirTag alternatives", there were some articles I found on this.
  12. I want to add, my green strap AND the paper tag for my room on Rotterdam from 12/21 were still attached when my bag arrived this afternoon. the lab inspection came back OK for me to open my bag 😜
  13. Somebody mentioned that to us the last evening before disembarking. I wanted to stash an AirTag on Rotterdam, but DW wouldn’t let me.
  14. 7 days later and I was just reunited with my bag! FedEx delivered 3 days late, but I finally got my dirty laundry back 🤪 I saved the daily planners in case anyone’s interested. cheers!
  15. If you have a non-metal bag, I recommend placing the tracker inside. The signal attenuation (aka loss) is not that significant in my limited experience, and I don't want the tracker to fall off while the bag is being handled. A number of Delta frequent flyers losing their annual "medallion" tags in transit is a regular gripe on social media. I also don't want someone to nick my AirTag since the tag and holder is worth >$30. I currently have my AirTag riding in an outer pocket (not locked), but in the future it will be buried in the main compartment behind a TSA-approved luggage lock (noting that luggage locks are a minor deterrent mainly intended to keep the nearly honest out - don't google this though, it'll just freak you out).
  16. Apple released a product called AirTags that run for about $29 or $99 for a 4-pack. They are small gps trackers that use bluetooth to transmit current location and piggyback on any nearby Apple device to upload their location back to the cloud, which makes them pretty effective since Apple devices are assigned to their staff by some companies including delta airlines. Apple does not report the location history on an AirTag - only showing me the tag’s last updated location. The battery is supposed to last about a year and is a replaceable coin battery. Tile is a similar tracker device that is Apple independent, but the number of devices that passively detect and report the tile tracker location is less than any Apple device. I’m not sure if there’s an equivalent for Google (at least yet?). I don’t know technical specifics, but there’s been numerous travel articles about using AirTags in luggage to track bags, which is why I bought some before a trip to Europe about 2 months ago.
  17. Update: FedEx has now updated the tracking number to show that the item has arrived at the depot, indicating the item which arrived to their facility late in the afternoon of the 12/29 was finally scanned in on 1/2 (although they were closed the 1/1 for New Year's Day). The delivery date now shows as "on time" and has magically updated from 12/31/2022 to 1/4/2023. I've got my fingers crossed that this all goes smoothly from here. Disembarked on 12/28 and hopefully will get my bags home exactly one week later. I knew I should have stayed on board for the b2b 😉
  18. UPDATE: And.... FedEx has now lost my bag. I spoke with customer service and they originally said it didn't leave the drop-off location (FedEx pack & ship) but I pressed them because the tracking info on their site says that it got to a regional depot in FL. The rep mentioned that sometimes scans get missed, so the bag might be in transit but just not tracking fully in their system. I shared that I have an AirTag in the bag, and it is continuing to ping at their regional depot address. Based on that, the phone rep called the depot and they've determined the bag is presently missing in action at the depot and they've opened a "tag" to track it down and get it back to its regularly scheduled travels. I'm sorry to sound like a salesman, I promise I'm not. But, the hero of this story continues to be the AirTag as I was able to tell a day early that there's no way the bag is getting to me as scheduled and that was the prompt that allowed the phone rep to push the depot staff that the bag is already late and in limbo.
  19. UPDATE: The gent dropped my bag off to FedEx on Thursday afternoon. FedEx relocated it to a local depot where my AirTag shows that it still sits (Saturday AM), about 400 miles south of the delivery spot. I'm thinking FedEx is not going to make their advertised delivery date of end of day today. 🥺 This is the strap and style of how I'd had it on my bag (pic from Amazon, so not my bag) The last night of the cruise, DW and I discussed whether to carry our bags off or leave them outside the door. I wanted to do self-assist and she really wanted to just leave it outside the door... oh the irony.
  20. I have blaze orange duct tape - it will be going on my black bags before I leave for cruises from now on as an extra layer of visibility. The gent dropped my bag off at FedEx this afternoon, and the tracking number shows it is now in transit with an ETA of later this week. My bag will be a little late arriving home, but all's well that ends well.
  21. I didn't ask, but I'm wondering if my neon strap is what got me in to trouble this time. There was only like 4 in total in the sea of luggage, so I'm wondering if they grabbed the big black bag with the neon yellow vertical strap and assumed it was their bag because the strap was so unique? <shrug> I have an AirTag in my laptop bag and on my dog's collar. It was reassuring but a bit sad to check in from ST. Thomas on Christmas day to know she was safely at the boarding facility but to also see she was like 1,500 miles away. I wish I'd thought to watch my bag though yesterday morning - I might have caught it before leaving if I'd thought to beeline for it because of the AirTag. Live and learn on this one.
  22. Person offered to ship it overnight on his dime as way of apology (we're using ground because its cheap and fast enough). He was very apologetic on the phone, and been cool to work with on this. I sent him a FedEx label and will try to get reimbursed by travel insurance - if not I'm happy to cover the modest shipping charge for his efforts to get it shipped to me so promptly. I'm feeling pretty comfortable that this is just a silly mixup and I'll end up having to do my post-cruise laundry after all, ETA on a shipment departing today is end of day Saturday to me. The AirTag definitely provides some peace of mind for me, and has helped expedite getting this resolved. I'm sticking AirTags in all my luggage from now on fwiw.
  23. A relatively boring update to the story, the person who has my luggage reached out and we're in the process of arranging how to get my bag to me. His bag is still at the port, and the local port team is holding it hostage. They told him to take care of my bag first, and then they'll discuss how to reunite him with his bag 🤪 He heard the airtag pinging and is how he knew immediately his family member had grabbed the wrong bag.
  24. Turning to the crowd for some advice and hopefully some reassurance here. Disembarked Rotterdam yesterday in Port Everglades and couldn't find one of our two large suitcases (we use a neon vertical strap, plus it had a standard luggage tag and the paper and disembark plastic tags when I stuck it outside our stateroom the night before). Spent a ~20 minutes looking for it, went through every black roller of similar size and no joy. Filled out the missing bag form, did another search along with a shoreside employee, finally called it quits and got in a cab to go to the airport. Leaving the port, I get a ping on my iPhone as it turns out I'd stuck an AirTag in that bag (totally forgot and only my 2nd time traveling with it). My bag shows as 20+ miles North of me on the interstate and steadily progressing further North. I keep neurotically checking my "Find My" app throughout the day and I get home to WNY about the time my bag stops at its (temporary?) new home in Northern Florida (Zillow describes it as a >1MM home in a luxury resort area). I called the Lost Bags dept and had a nice chat with a Princess-HAL gentleman describing my adventure and sent him an email of my lost bag receipt and AirTag screenshot. We're hopeful this is all a silly mixup and that I might get my dirty laundry, my $8.50 in Puerto Rican coffee, and my probably irreplaceable Rotterdam Inaugural Season mug sometime soon. He reassures me people grab the wrong back regularly, and that the neon strap though helpful often fall off. 1. How often do luggage mixups like this happen? 2. At what point though does this transition from a "funny" to "but not funny ha ha, funny weird" 2. Anyone wanting to make bets on whether I get my stuff back? 3. Suggestions on next steps? For grins, I actually priced out a flight down since I considered trying to reclaim my lost bag... but it was too expensive to actually do. I have a lot of frequent flyer miles... so a random flight to FL may still end up in the mix depending on how the next day or two goes.
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