Candleonwater

Not D+ really, but what's the current rule on bringing water onboard? We are boarding in Miami, and I'm very specific about the type of bottled water I drink (I drink 3+ liters a day). Ours is a short cruise, will I get busted if I throw a couple sealed water bottles in my checked bag?

I had forgotten about this, but on one of our drives to florida, a no name gas station placed a $300 hold on my credit card. Freaked me out, because when I saw it, we were already long gone from that location. Didn't know for sure if it was a temporary hold, or a charge. So, yes, be careful where you stop!

Last time we made the drive it was still there. The billboard are fun to watch for, but the actual stop is kind of seedy

I don't know if it has changed, but when we did this, we rented a car - Hertz one way. There was a Hertz counter at the train station. Was super convenient, and decently priced. Having said that, I know rental car prices at times go through the roof, so might not be worth it.

Thanks for the heads up. Will try to avoid getting gas in NC

You don't mention which part of MD, but keep in mind you will probably hit traffic around DC. Florence is only a 6 hour drive for me (Alexandria), so it could be too early for you guys to stop. Leaving at the time you are, you could easily have 10-11 hours of daylight driving. If it were me, and you don't hit any major traffic that slows you down, I would aim for Savannah. Ideally just before (Port Wentworth area) or just after (Richmond Hill). The hotels closer to Savannah (airport area) are more expensive, and tend to fill up faster.

Have driven from NOVA to PC MANY times. A word of warning... don't wait until you're dead tired to stop to try to find a hotel, everyone else has already stopped and you might find it tough to find a room. Depending on what time of day, and what day of the week, there can be a big difference on where you probably want to stop. For us, PC is 13 hours, door to door, and depending the time of day we leave, we have stopped anywhere from Florence, SC to Kingsland, GA. We are actually driving down to Miami in less than 2 weeks and I've just started looking at hotel options. We aren't leaving until 2pm, but are going to try to push to Savannah, so that we can take a little more time in FL the next day. When we first started making the drive to PC, I would plug in a hotel address of where I thought I'd like to stay (we're Hilton peeps) and see what time it said I would get there. Then, based on traffic, I would adjust location of hotel as needed. Then around 6-8pm, when I was fairly certain on what time we would arrive at stopover point, I would call and make a reservation.

I'm sure someone else has mentioned this, but DECLARED tips are taxed... big difference.

Schedule looks like this: pick up DD's boyfriend at the airport at 7pm, drop them off in South Beach, head to hotel, pick them up in the morning and head to port. Is driving back to the airport area just a headache, only to have to return in the morning? I don't know why I'm stressing so much, it's not like me (at least not when it comes to hotels).

Wow, I used to live in South Beach and never felt unsafe there, and this was just as it was starting to turn around (when the models started showing up).

Thank you for that! I will use it if needed.

We call cruises "samplers". After 7 stops in St Maarten, we decided to finally fly down for a visit. Loved it so much that my daughter flew down for a week. Going to Germany in the fall - not something I would get to see on a cruise.

I've had that happen - sheets not being changed on change over day. Imagine pulling back the sheets and finding curly hairs on the sheets. IT WAS NASTY, and I'm not even positive the sheets were changed when I complained.

We leave in 2 weeks and still waiting for "Gty" to be replaced with a number. I'm going with they don't want us to know what room in case we try to change within the category. Jokes on them, with the apple wallet trick, I can see the room number, and it's fine.

Keep in mind EVERY phone call I've made has provided me a completely different answer, but what I was just told is non-D+ cruiser gets status, but not the points. Therefore, if they cruise without you, they don't get the status for that sailing.

You are where we were about 5 years ago. After getting to D+, we were just over everything about cruising. Can't even really say just what it was about cruising that caused us to be done, but overall, it no longer felt special. We have since focused on doing destination trips and with the right planning, these trips have been tremendously fulfilling. I suggest giving cruising a break, then you can give it another try and see if you've missed it. That's what we're doing in 2 weeks.

Based on the sheer quantity of rooms available, I would have to disagree. I wasn't familiar with the Blue Lagoon area, so I will check that out. Thanks

I have a similar situation, but I'm more curious about suggestions for hotels. Didn't think about the fact that I'm sailing during spring break and some of the hotels are ridiculously priced. Can anyone chime in on good places to stay? Is the airport area okay? Just staying the night before our cruise. Had already decided to suck it up and park at the port.

I will be on Freedom in 2 weeks, so if there's anything you'd like me to find out for you, just let me know.

LMAO, I can just see it now, my health freak daughter surviving on cookies 🙂 Guess I'll make sure she knows to bring a stash of bars, in case of emergency

So true! We did one sailing just prior to drydock and they started working during our cruise. It wasn't as relaxing as it could be.

This is worrisome. Before we booked, we were assured there's a selection of vegan options each night.

Stupid question time. Getting ready to call to set my amenity... I'm not much of a drinker, so the 5 drinks I already get is more than enough. Any idea if the fruit plate is just made from fruit I can pick up in WJ?

Anyone know what vegan options they might offer in WJ for breakfast? Also, any idea if they still offer wheatgrass shots? We're on Freedom in a couple weeks.

Oh, I'd like to know as well. Also, wondering if we should just buy one "full cruise" package at the current sale price. I think it's roughly the same as we would pay onboard for 2 days (based on what you think the price is onboard)