Mountains.to.Sea

Many South America cruises around Cape Horn include the Falkland Islands, so it not that hard to get there.  An Antarctic cruise is often the only one which includes South Georgia.  Are you considering Antarctic cruises that include South Georgia but don't stop at the Falklands?

My wife and I plus another couple have used Adam Sparks (licensedblacktaxi.com) on several occasions in London.  In February of this year, we used him twice, once for pickup from Heathrow, with a stop at Windsor castle before delivery to our apartment in London, and a few days later a pickup from our apartment, with a stop at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, before delivering us to our Viking ship in Tillbury.  Previously we used him for airport pickup and a taxi tour of London.  He can customize whatever you want and can provide suggestions as well. 

We were on the Viking Star cruise which ended in Bergen on March 10th.  We spent 2 additional days in Bergen and flew to the US on March 12th.  That was the first day after Trump announced that "all flights from Europe" would be banned effective the following day.  Long story short - we got home as scheduled and as planned, but with significantly more confusion and crowding than we wanted.

First cruise was 1979 on the Carnival Carnivale.  A 7 night cruise to the Bahamas for our honeymoon.  People said we were crazy to book a 7 nighter for our first cruise experience, but we loved every minute of it.  We booked early enough to get one of the 2 cabins onboard with a double bed.  All the others were fixed twin beds, some with upper and lower berths.

Although I did not participate, they did offer a golf driving range off the back deck and also skeet shooting.

One final note, our luggage was sent to Ft. Lauderdale instead of Miami, so we described it to the Carnival reps at the airport and took the (provided) bus to the ship.  We anxiously watched as all the luggage was loaded and were releaved when our 2 pieces were literally the last ones up the conveyer belt to the ship.

It took a while to get back into it  but we've now done over 25 cruises.

An update on Vallerret gloves and over mitts.  We returned from our Northern Lights cruise about 2 weeks ago.  We had one absolutely beautiful and clear night in Tromso, with about 1/2 the moon showing.  As we traveled inland from the port it got colder & colder.  I'm guessing it was about 10 degrees F.  Our guides provided tripods to those who requested them.  

Now, on to the gloves.  The Vallerret Ipsoot gloves did a good job keeping my hands reasonably warm while allowing me to only expose my right index finger tip to operate the camera.  Only rarely did I need to expose my thumb.  It takes practice to be able to open or close the finger or thumb while your other hand is gloved and it is really hard if the other hand is wearing the over-mitt.  I eventually found that I could most easily use my teeth to open and close the finger flap (I know - kinda gross - but when its that cold, do you what you can to keep your hands in the over-mitts.)  The Alta Over-Mitts are what really saved the day and allowed me to stay out longer and capture some amazing photos.  I kept my hands inside the over-mitts except when I needed to access a camera function or operate the shutter.  I found the zippered flap on the over-mitt useless - with both hands in the over-mitts, it took more time to unzip and fold back one flap (and then reverse the process) than to just drop it from that one hand, do what I needed to do and quickly get the hand back inside the over-mitt.  The provided harness makes this very easy.  Northern Lights photos almost require tripods, so you don't have to hold the camera and, as they are usually longer exposures, I could hit the shutter with my exposed finger and almost immediately put my gloved hand back inside the over-mitt.

I am on this trip in late February and just purchased winter photographers gloves and over-mitts.  Both are by Vallerret.  The Ipsoot glove is a well insulated winter glove with  a fold back flap on the index finger and thumb so you can work the camera.  The Alta Over-Mitt is a heavily insulated mitten that slides over the Ipsoot glove.  The finger portion has a weatherproof zipper that allows the finger covering to be folded back so your Ipsoot gloves are exposed.  The mitts are really big and warm.  The mitts also come with a harness that holds the mitts if you do need to slip them off for something.

They are expensive, but appear to deliver exactly what they claim.

Jpalbny ... I just booked this exact cruise for 2021.  Can you give me any information on the tour guide you are using in Santiago?  What are you planning to see over your two days?

Previous posters are correct that the gratuity will be added at the time you purchase the beverage package - you do not get charged each time you get a drink. However, if you are on certain sailings (generally in the EU) the published price for the beverage package incules the gratuity, thus the wording in the original "fine print" quote.

On our January segment on QV, there was a flapper headgear making session on the acternoon of the Roaring 20's Ball. My wife and our friend made feather headbands to go with the flapper dresses they brought on the cruise.

I have booked air through Choice Air for a trip in Ovtober from the US to Rome and back. I found out a couple of months ago that prices for two one-way tickets can be significantly less than a round trip ticket for the same departure and destination cities. So, check both round trip and two one-way tickets for your next Celebrity cruise.

We sailed in Silhouette in #6241, a category 2C, partially obstructed cabin. Be aware that while the obstruction is not much of an issue during the day, the exterior flood lights of the ship turned the obstruction into a brightly glowing orange beacon at night. We usually enjoy cool nights on the balcony with a glass of wine before bed, but this balcony was not really usable after dark. See photos.

Tom - we used Dutch Business Limousine for our pre-and post-cruise transportation in Amsterdam last August/September. They were very professional, timely, and reasonable.

Dutch Business Limousine

Postus 71228

1008 BE Amsterdam

Nederland

Tel : +31 20 772 42 49

Mob : +31 6 25 023 472

http://www.dutchbusinesslimousine.com

I'm sure you will enjoy your Cunard cruise. My wife & I have been on both QM2 and QV and plan more Cunard cruises in the future. We've also cruised multiple other cruise lines. I agree that 6:00 (early) seating may be a tad early for some and getting there on time may be a bit rushed on port days; however, much depends upon how you like to spend your evenings. My wife and I enjoy dancing, so it is easy for us to start our evening at 5:30 with a pre-dinner drink and a quick dance or two before heading to dinner. After dinner, we may take in the evening entertainment, and then it's off to the Queens Room for dancing the rest of the night. We really cruise for the elegant evenings on board and not as much for the ports visited. In fact, our cruise on the QV was a 12 night transatlantic and made only one port stop.

My motto is "the more you dance, the more you can eat!"

Actually, my wife and I sleep late and eat only two meals a day, we walk about a mile or two each day, take the stairs, and dance (ballroom) before and after dinner. We usually only gain a pound and often none at all.

He should also plan to weigh himself when the ship is docked. My wife lost some weight 2 years ago and purchased a very slim and packable digital scale. We took it on a cruise last year and discovered that even in fairly smooth waters, trying to get an accurate measurement was nearly impossible. The motion of the ship causes the reading on the scale to bounce up and down 8-10 pounds as you just stand on it.