3rdGenCunarder

I think that's what it was for QA when I did an early booking. I figured QA is supposed to be a big deal so they didn't feel a need to offer much. But compared to HAL's early booking of free grats, wifi, drinks and a little OBC, it sure seems meagre.

FLL and Tampa stations have checked luggage. You could check in your luggage and then go somewhere for brunch. There's nothing easily walkable from the station. I walked a half mile or a bit less to a convenience store to fetch coffee while DH sat with our carry-on bags.

I think you were on the same Alaska cruise I was in 2022. We tendered in Juneau because all of the docks were taken. Rather than compete with the early rush, I went to the Queens Room for my tender ticket after an hour or two. I sat there for at least an hour. It wasn't worth it, especially since my whale watch excursion was cancelled. There are too many passengers arriving at some of the ports, and I expect to see more restrictions about number of ships and number of people. Lines like HAL and Princess have been going to Alaska for something like 40 years. If "longevity" counts for anything, Cunard could be at the back of the queue to get berth assignments, unless being part of Carnivore has some weight.

I hate to ask, but I have not disembarked in Miami in a long time. HAL moved the embark/disembark port from FLL to Miami. FLL has me spoiled, with the luggage service and easy taxi to the airport. Last winter, it was 30 minutes from leaving the ship to a mimosa in the United lounge. I don't expect that this winter in Miami. So here's my problem. I booked a 12:30 flight on United. They just moved it to 11:21. There are six ships, more than 15,000 people at the port that day. It's the Saturday of Presidents Day weekend. So is the 11:21 flight doable? I could change to 2:30, but I really don't want to hang around at the airport for hours, and there's no United Club (I get passes from my credit card). I could do self-disembark in order to make that flight. How available are taxis at the port at the early hour? FWIW, Zaandam is scheduled to be in first at 5 AM, two ships at 6, one at 7, and one at 8. IF this turns out to be true, we should be the first ship to disembark passengers. But that's a big IF.

I don't know if the rules are the same for the UK, but in the US, if you book through an agent, any changes in the booking must be done through that agent.

I just booked one of the new 2025 cruises. The pricing is crazy. I chose the refundable deposit price (Explore With More), not the lowest fare guarantee cabin. As I was selecting my cabin, in the menu with all the choices, in the cabin grade box it suggested upgrading to BC and gave a price. But when I made the change, the price was more. So they teased me with the guarantee price, but then showed me the "Explore" price. I've never seen an upgrade suggestion like that before. They're pushing the upgrade thing from the get-go. Question about the bidding (to get back to the original topic), what about "do not upgrade" on the reservation? I always tick that because I choose the cabin I want. I bid on an upgrade to PG for my cruise later this month, not remembering that my booking says do not upgrade. So does that mean they won't accept my bid? Moot because at 3 weeks out, there's unlikely to be an opening anyway, but I'm curious.

You may have to enlarge the image, depending on your screen, but the little + signs are on the deck plans on Cunard's website. Connecting cabins are also shown.

Commodore Club's Mary Picford or Honeysuckle Daiquiri Rack of Lamb Opera Cake

I was surprised to see a reference to covid testing when I made my booking today. Vaccinations and/or tests are not required, but there is this paragraph: If you're displaying any symptoms of Covid-19 or feel unwell in the days leading up to your voyage, we highly recommend that you take a Covid-19 test before you travel and only travel to the ship if the result is negative. If you’re symptomatic on the day of embarkation, we ask that you declare this to the terminal or check-in staff. Guests who test positive within five days of sailing will not be allowed to embark. So I guess it's honor system, like the old Noro form we used to have to complete.

It's a typ 114, five years old. It has a lot of pictures on the "odometer," but it's still working well. I've flirted with buying the 5 for this trip, but it isn't terribly different, and that's a lot of money I could spend on excursions. It's actually my second typ 114. The first one was not quite 2 years old when it went swimming with me when I fell of a floatplane dock in Alaska! Saved the memory card, so I didn't lose the pictures from the flight, but I spent the rest of the cruise borrowing DH's little point-and-shoot. I think I read the 114/5 comparison on dpreview. I will check the site for aurora photo hints. @kaisatsu, I love Norway, so please don't take it the wrong way when I say I don't want to be "stuck" there, unable to catch up with the ship. So I'm taking ship's tours. Not as good as the private ones that go by van. They say they will get you back on time, but I won't enjoy the trip if I'm constantly checking my watch and worrying about getting to the port and seeing nothing but water. My freezing point threshold goes back to my riding days when I would wear the silk liners under breeches and gloves on cold days.

Thanks, I will look for that discussion. Your settings look doable for my camera, which is a Leica bridge camera--I don't travel with multiple lenses anymore, but I do have a lightweight tripod. Wide angle opens to 2.8. I will probably experiment with the tripod and hand held shots with stabilization. The camera also has a special hand-held night shot function where it takes 3 or 4 shots in a burst and assembles the best pixels it can find. Sometimes those don't show much until I brighten them on the computer. It's kind of like hunting. You may not bag anything, but part of the fun is trying. My cell doesn't have a great camera, although I'll try it to see what happens.

Unfortunately, I booked the full moon week as well. My TA said the same thing you did. One of her customers said his camera saw more than he did, so keep taking shots in hope of seeing the lights that way. I saw them low to the horizon from QM2 docked in Quebec City last fall. Not terribly bright, but they were visible when the captain turned off the lights. I'm hoping to do better farther north. What camera settings did you use? I plan to bring a tripod.

Queen Victoria, we leave Narvik and Tromso at 1 AM or 1:30, so there are tours. I would like to take pictures, which is easier on land than on a moving ship.

I've read reports of trips in mid to late winter, but I can't find much about fall. I will be in Norway at the end of October-beginning of November. I'd appreciate any reports from people who have gone to Norway then. It hasn't been below freezing here in 6 months, so I'm having trouble remembering what cold feels like. Looking up weather/climate data is confusing. One site shows Tromso average low/high temps as -2C/3C. another says -5/-3. Not a huge difference on paper, but to me the freezing point is when I decide about adding warmer layers. I know the answer is to pack my layers and figure it out on the day. But I'd like a better idea of what to expect. And what about when you get out of the cities? I want to do northern lights excursions. How much colder does it get when you're out in an exposed area and probably at higher elevation? TIA!

I just looked at special dining for my winter cruise, and Canaletto was not available on the first night.

What about a 2-week Caribbean cruise that is not a B-2-B? We have three sea days. Will all three be Fogassy nights? The third one is not the last night. And if so, they would be silver, gold, and...? One of the sea days is Mardis Gras. Might the ship do something special for that?

I have stayed at Premier Inn West Quay several times and always been happy with them. It's also near the West Quay Mall.

For those who have gone out with Woodwind recently, how did you book? Their website says they only do tours on demand. Did you get a group together to make a booking?

Yes, some people do pack meds in checked bags. When there was a storm last winter and flights were delayed/cancelled, I saw a couple interviewed on the news complaining that they couldn't get their luggage and their meds were in there. My first thought was NOBODY does that! But, obviously, some people do. Electronics, meds, jewelry stay with me. I get a little worried if my carry-on has to go into luggage storage under the bus for an airport shuttle.

Victoria was so easy that when we got to Vancouver, I didn't remember we had already done the entry into Canada. I was surprised when the bellman walked me right out to the door.

Thank you. Yes, the male group I saw was The Four Ds.

DON'T GIVE THEM IDEAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I tend to remember the bad jokes. I don't know if they're quite "tribute bands," but last year on QM2, they had a group of women who call themselves "Heat Wave" (after the Martha & the Vandellas song) and they did lot of "girl group" songs. That was the northbound leg of the Canada cruise. Southbound, for equal time, they had a group of men doing the male equivalent. Both groups were fantastic.

Ohhh, my suitcase is always so full it would sink like a stone. In my early days of cruising out of NY West side piers, they used a conveyor belt like the one that takes bags into the luggage hold of a plane. They did have a net under it, but I always wondered if bags ever went "overboard" there. The cages always seemed so much more secure. Shows what I know!

You're right, final payment doesn't guarantee anything. I always wonder about changes in the last few months. If HAL promotes an itinerary more than a year out, why so many changes a few months out? Yes, stuff happens--landslide in Skagway damaging a dock, a port getting pissy about ship size. But some of the changes seem to have nothing to do with port issues. @KAKcruiser said there are no ships in Curacao on April 2, so it doesn't look like the port caused this change for Rotterdam. "Operational reasons" covers a multitude of sins.