melissa84

3 minutes ago, KeithsKelly said:

Question about the inhalers?  Can you tell me what kind?  My mom has COPD and uses 4 different inhalers daily (not sure off hand what they are) and would be happy to pick some up for her....  THANKS!

We bought Albuterol inhalers - the brand we get here is Pro-Air.  The pharmacist put them side by side and showed us that they were the same.  Cozumel Drugstore has a website, so you might look to see if they have other brands/medications.  

We have a cruise booked in a few weeks.  DS has a school trip planned, and the timing was just perfect for us to squeeze in a quick cruise while he was gone.  With all of the conventions and business travel cancellations that I am seeing, I am starting to think that it would not be a surprise if his school trip were cancelled.

Do you think that lots of people are cancelling their cruises this close to sailing date?  I am wondering how hard it will be to add him to our cruise if his trip falls through.   We have a two person cabin, and would need to upgrade to a 3-person cabin.  I am thinking if there are lots of cancellations then that will be pretty easy to do.

We went to Cozumel Drugstore last summer - very nice people, great prices.  At that time they mentioned that if you contacted them ahead of time they would have your order ready and you could just run in and pick it up.  We spent about 45 minutes there, debating over the Retin-A, and also looking at inhalers.  Now that we know, I would just contact them ahead and run in.

We have also bought inhalers at Mega ($4/each! ) but not the Retin-A.  

We like Paradise Beach.  The pool is nice, there are water toys (for an additional fee - I think $12 each) if your kids are comfortable playing out in the ocean.  The wait staff is attentive but not pushy.  It is $3 each for your lounger and umbrella, and they ask that you spend $10 each on food and drink (total - so $40 for the four of you).  Check out their website and look at the menu.  

You can travel with just a birth certificate, but I think it is just easier to get passports for everyone.  If there is ever a problem, you have it, and the line at debarkation is a lot faster with a passport.  Passports for the kids last 5 years, and after age 17 (maybe 16) they can go get their own without you waiting at the passport office with them.  It's well worth the cost and little bit of time required for the peace of mind.

On 2/11/2020 at 4:13 PM, spinspokes said:

Does anyone know of a great indoor swimming pool at a hotel or park that would be an option?
 

 

There is Schlitterbahn in Galveston.  Check their website, though, to be sure they are open on weekdays in April.  

Not as dramatic as the other "excursions" above, but a couple of years ago I fell while touring the Mayan ruins in Belize.  Nothing major, missed a step and skinned my knee pretty thoroughly.  Limped back on board - many crew members stopped us and offered help, asked if I was OK - yes, fine thanks, just clumsy.  Got to the cabin and realized that we only had small band aids in our kit.  Went to the infirmary, reassured them that I was really OK, and was able to purchase several 4x4 gauze bandages with adhesive.  Basically giant band-aids.  I think they were $1.50 each.  The nurse offered help when I was there, but I told him what happened and he told me that if it got worse or bothered me to come back, but he agreed with my first aid approach.

The facility reminded me of a free-standing ER you would see back home.  Several exam rooms with O2, EKG equip, X-ray machines, etc.  Seemingly well-equipped and very nice.

On 10/13/2019 at 4:41 PM, legaljen1969 said:

Cozumel is one of the few places I feel comfortable to "wing it." I am a planner too, but not terribly worried about planning in Cozumel.  

 

Same here.  Cozumel is very tourist friendly and easy to get around in.  Last time we went, we took a taxi to Mega, bought some inexpensive souvenirs and bottled water, then walked north along that main street to the tourist shopping area.  Stopped along the way to look at little shops, wandered around the tourist shopping area, walked back to a restaurant along the Rafael Melgar street, and then took a cab back.  Very laid back and a nice day.

We did al a carte with no problems.  3 drinks, 3 waters, 3-4 food items totaled about $60 plus tip plus the $3/chair fee.  That was plenty for 5 people.

Used AT&T with no problem.  Mexico is included in our regular plan, so did not need the international plan.

We bought some waterproof phone bags and fanny packs from Amazon.  The phone cases have a lanyard to go around your neck.  Used them both with no problems.  Kept money, etc in the fanny pack and it stayed 100% dry while climbing up Dunn River Falls in Jamaica.  A little dorky looking but peace of mind.

In Dec it was $10/pp over the group.  So 5 people, $50 expected.  But between a drink apiece for mom and dad (or, let's face it, three for mom and none for dad - someone has to be able to get us back to the ship!) and 3 waters for the kids, and then a couple of orders of nachos, we hit the total without any problem.  We felt like the prices were fair and the food was pretty good.  Of course that was after I had three drinks, so I was not the most discerning foodie...

If he is not a mingler, then he may not enjoy he teen activities.  My DS-16 did not want anything to with it and hung out with his siblings 20 and 21.  Other than casino, bars, etc, he can do whatever the older ones do.  And as far as the "bars" go, there are some that are more like piano music with a bar.  He can sit and listen, just not drink.  There is a late night curfew for the under 18's, around 1 am.  Lots to do, he will be fine.  Enjoy!

If I am worried about missing the ship, or we are taking a far-off excursion (from Cozumel to the mainland) then we take them.  Usually we take a ship's excursion or just wander around the shopping area or go nearby (for example taking the taxi to Paradise Beach in Cozumel) then we only take our passport cards and leave the book in the safe.

Agree with others that you should consult your doctor.  But, that said, in my family we have one who is terribly prone to motion sickness.  Car rides, amusement parks, anything that *might* make someone queasy makes her miserable.  She walks onto a cruise ship and doesn't bat an eye.  No issues at all.  Another family member never has any issues on land, but the first night of a cruise is always rough.  After that first night's sleep she is fine though.  Green apples, Sprite, crackers, mint gum, the usual remedies help and sleep helps, even an hour's nap.  So you may be pleasantly surprised.  If you are concerned, I would pack the wristbands, some OTC Bonine, and maybe get the patch but hold off using it until the ship is underway.

On 7/17/2019 at 8:31 PM, lifes-a-beach said:

The pictures are expensive, but what is expensive?  How much is the stick?  How many pictures are on it?  

I think it was $99 and came on a flash drive.  It had about 50 "stock" photos of the cave - some close ups of the cave and others of plants and sea-life.  Very nice pictures for your scrapbook or Facebook.  There were two families in our group - there were about 61 of just our family and a similar number of the other family.  The photographer accompanies you through the cave, so every time you come around a bend, put on a big smile and she will get you.  If you blink, just ask her and she will re-do it for you.  At the high point of the tour, they will group you together for a nice group picture, plus another at the beginning with the Rio Secreto sign.

We liked Mega but we are pretty easygoing. It’s a good place to pick up incidentals for cheaper than the ship (sunsceeen, bandaids, etc). They have a pharmacy but unless you need Rx stuff (or forgot something) the prices are similar to home.

We bought a canvas bag for about $8 and some hats for about $4, and quite a bit of candy and small snacks. 

It it was a good stop if you are over there but I don’t know that I would make a special trip. 

We were there in December and just did the $3 chairs + $10 food/drinks and it was great. We got there about noon and left about 3:00 and it was perfect. 

Yes, they provide life jackets and wet suits.

Lockers are provided and free.

I don’t know why you couldn’t wear your special goggles, you could probably wear your glasses as well.

It is a rough path to walk down to the river. Not awful, but not paved and smooth. We had some weak/non swimmers in our group and they were fine. The life jackets are *very* buoyant and you would have to work at it to drown. It’s very easy to just bob along in the deeper parts.

Definitely budget to get the flash drive of pictures. They will have lots of pictures of your group plus beautiful professional pictures of the cave itself. 

The ferry over over wasn’t too bad but it was bumpy coming back. If you’re prone to motion sickness you should keep that in mind. 

Great review and pictures - thank you!  Glad you had such a good time, we are on this same itinerary in August.

Also, I noticed your husband's shirt in the first picture - Go Frogs!

A few things that we have found helpful (YMMV of course!)

• A pad of post it notes and a pen/Sharpie and highlighter.
  When travelling with a group, it is nice to be able to leave a note on someone's door - "meet us at ___ at 5:00", "gone to the pool, back at 3:00" etc.   There is usually a pen in the room but an extra comes in handy.
• A canvas bag or small daypack - to carry on excursion/port days.  Mom always ends up being the keeper of everyone's stuff, and a tote bag makes it easier.  Also handy to take towel/book/sunscreen/goggles/water bottle etc to the pool and back. 
• A water bottle - someone upthread mentioned a Tervis, we like the bottle kind where the straw locks down to prevent spills.  We fill them with ice water at the buffet and carry to the pool and in port.  Being hydrated helps to counteract the alcohol and sun. 
• A few plastic grocery sacks or ziplocks - nice to put wet/sandy stuff in when packing. 
• A light sweater or sweatshirt / jacket - the casino and theatres can be chilly, especially when you have been out in the sun all day.

We've found that we don't need the over-the-door hangers, our regular travel dopp kit style bag works fine.  A binder clip or two is handy, or a small roll of tape, but not a deal breaker.

The main thing is any kind of OTC medication you might take at home - bandaids, neosporin, tummy medicine, allergy, headache.  You don't need the whole medicine cabinet, but it's nice to have the regular things available.  The ship has all sorts of sundries for sale, but the prices are high.  If you get hurt, the medical center can provide you with supplies, for a price.  I once fell in port and skinned my knee badly.  I had small bandaids and Neosporin, and the medical area had large adhesive bandages for $0.75/each.    I bought a couple and that kept me happy until I bought a box at the next port.

Don't stress.  If you forget something, it will be ok. 

We booked through the cruise line. I think it would be ok to book on your own. We left at 11 and were back to the pier about 3, so if you did it yourself you could leave earlier and have plenty of time to get back.

We did "Amazing Secret River & Playa Del Carmen" and it was an amazing time. We booked through the cruise line - we were the first group off the boat at 7:00 and the last ones on at 4:45 (all aboard time was at 4:30). Ferry to the mainland, then about a 25 minute ride to the location - the last 15 minutes are very bumpy, back/dirt roads. They will provide towels, so no need to carry them from the boat.

The walk down to the river entrance is a dirt path, quite a bit of steps, and the river itself is very rocky and uneven on the bottom. There is not a paved walk, or handrails like at Carlsbad Carverns or a park like that. The river itself is about 85% wading - between ankle and knee deep - but the bottom is very uneven and you need to step carefully to not fall. The deep parts are not terribly deep, a 6'+ person might be able to touch bottom for most of it. You are required to wear a life jacket, so just float along over the deep parts. There are a couple of sections where you have to crawl under some rocks, or squeeze over/past a tight way.

The guide was very helpful and made sure that everyone was safe. He gave extra help to anyone that he thought might feel unsteady with the rocks or to people who were nervous or weak swimmers.

Lunch was included - typical excursion lunch of chicken, rice, tortillas, fruit and salad.

Definitely plan to buy the pictures - $99 for all of the pictures they take, plus a lot of professional pictures of the inside.

You will have about an hour to walk around and shop in Playa del Carmen but there will be no time at all in Cozumel - straight off the ferry to the waiting ship. Do not miss your return ferry.

We really enjoyed it.

Fantastic! We had a blast. Our group was mostly teens and adults, maybe 4-5 young kids in a group of 30 or so. The guides were great and let us play / pose with the birds and monkeys for as long as we wanted. Definitely follow the rules about putting your belongings in the lockers. The monkeys ran off with one man's glasses that he had sat on the bench next to him. The trainers got the glasses back, but it was pretty funny (for everyone else).

There is a photographer who takes tons of pictures, and of course you can take your own too. You can buy the pictures for $14 per person, plus $5 for a flash drive. We thought it was well worth it. We have some great pictures of us enjoying the animals.