shippmates

So sorry for your loss. I lost my husband in December and did my first solo cruise in August. It was a trip we had planned together for a 50th wedding anniversary. I promised him I would go and I did and I was also brave enough to wonder around Germany, Belgium and Southampton by myself. It was a wonderful trip. I met wonderful people that made this 23 journey so much easier. The hardest part of the trip was getting on the ship and when I had his burial at sea. It was such a wonderful trip that I have booked another long sailing for next year. Get on the ship, make new friends, have a wonderful time.

Yes you should be getting excited. I am excited about my cruises in December and April.

The embarkation and disembarkation in NYC was very slow for my August transatlantic. The hold up on embarkation was partly caused by the passengers that had to stand there and scan their phones looking for the documents. It took the person 5 minutes or longer to find the paperwork to board the ship while everyone is standing waiting. They finally got checked in and it was my turn. I handed them my computer printouts and I was finished in 5 minutes. I think the cruise lines should all go back to paper documents. My crossing was wonderful once I got on the ship.

Grandeur was our favorite go to ship when it sailed out of Baltimore. The crew was great and when we would get on the ship the crew would remember us from previous cruises and it was like old home week. So many of the passengers on the ship would cruise that ship often and we all knew each other. The solarium is very nice with all the big windows and the glass roof. They would open the roof when the weather permitted. If you have an inside cabin make sure you get your beds separated as that gives you more space in the cabin. If the beds are together you have to crawl over the bed to get out. Not much floor space on either side of the bed. It is a smaller ship so board the ship with an open mind and remember you are not going to have all the bells and whistles like the Anthem.

Enjoy the lectures and the shows. Just sit back and enjoy the peace and quiet of the ocean going by.

I know cruise lines like to keep certain cabins for the longer cruises or combinable segments. The reason for this is the passenger doing the longer sailings do not want to have to change cabins after a segment.

I am looking at the QM2 excursion.

Capt_BJ I am doing the Norway fjords cruise next May on the QM2 and am looking at the Norway in a Nutshell excursions. Please give you thoughts on this and whether you felt it was worth the money. Thank you.

I was on the QM2 for 23 days and I wore a mask when in the crowded public areas. I tested 5 days after getting home and I tested negative. I heard a few passengers coughing, gaging and sneezing sitting without a mask, so I just got up an moved. It was a great 23 days and an amazing sailing.

I used OnPoint for the second time yesterday with out any issues. I clicked on the link in my confirmation email and it took me right to the correct site. I was early for my appointment but you can open the site 10 minutes before your time. Yes your results do come from HealthtrackRX. The proctor was a few minutes late but no big deal. Had my test results in 10 minutes and the document needed to board in 30 minutes. It was so easy and less stressful than traveling to a location for your test. It was well worth the money.

You maybe able to file a claim with your travel agent company, once you get the refund of your port charges. So sorry this has happened to you.

You can look at the same ship or look at the other cruise lines that sail out of that port. Do a search for cruises out of your TA ending port.

They were able to give my husband several units of blood on the Explorer several years ago when he had internal bleeding from an ulcer. The care was good and he was airlifted off the ship to a hospital for surgery.

I did not make reservations in June. The crew is slowly getting back in the swing of things, Some of the service was very slow but since you have no where to go no big deal.

I am not sure because I did a drive thru test. I know I am going to do a proctored test before my next sailing.

The results needed to have the CLIA # and other information regarding the lab that was used to process the test. The only thing the paper showed was my name, birthdate, negative results, store address.

The last time I had my covid test for cruising done at CVS, it did not have the information needed by the cruise line. I did a proctored test using one of the free test I had, it was so much easier and less stress than going to the store. The test was $10.00 and I had the results in 15 minutes and my documents in about 30 minutes.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on QM2. I am on her next month and would like to know what changes I can expect if any.