K32682

1 hour ago, CDNPolar said:

 

I have used the word "Mandatory" as others have for dinner, but don't take the word as literally as the dictionary definition from my perspective.

 

All that is meant by that is you do what you want to do during the day and we will meet at dinner to catch up.

 

There have been many times that we have booked a specialty restaurant for TWO only and let them know just before we would meet that we would not be seeing them at dinner.

 

We have also decided just before dinner that we would prefer the buffet and they still wanted the menu in the restaurant.

 

In these cases we see them in the lounge after dinner.

A traveling companion who said something was "mandatory" or even "we will meet at dinner" would never be a traveling companion again. 

We've travelled with other couples. Sometimes it was great, other times not so much and the fast track to the second category is attempting to make anything "mandatory" or trying to tell us what we "will" do.   

19 hours ago, cruisinfly said:

While I'm glad these binoculars are working out for someone, I honestly do not recommend buying no name, or off name binoculars. I've tried it to save money and it does not work out very well. The name brands are a better product, more reliable, with a warranty. No names will have problem with the focus, alignment, and lower quality lenses. As well as moisture and dirt intrusion.

Buy quality pay once. The cheap optics will let you down when it matters most. The once in a lifetime sight that you can't see because the optics are fogged. The amazing animals you can't see at dusk because the light gathering qualities are crap. The eye strain from looking through misaligned cheap lenses that won't focus and make your head hurt. 

Those cheap optics from China will end up in the trash or at a flea market. There is however a robust market in high-quality used optics going to new owners that appreciate quality. 

It's a bad practice to travel with credit cards at or near the limit. Credit isn't hard to get and I always travel with at least two high-limit cards to cover most eventualities.

For cruising and travel go small but don't go cheap. The big Steiners shown above are great until you want to take them on a shore excursion. Try a few in the store. I prefer 7x-8x because 10 and above tends to amplify any unsteadiness you have in your hands.  

My binoculars for travel are a now-discontinued pair of Bausch and Lomb (now Bushnell) Elite 7X36. Were I to need to replace them I'd be looking at Zeiss, Leica or Swarovski in the $1,000-$2,000 range. Expensive but good optics are worth it. 

Panic is the result of poor preparation and not paying attention. I've been on two flights during which the oxygen masks dropped. A few of us put them on immediately but most people just stared at them wondering what to do next. How many flight safety demonstrations had they been through? Every single one tells you what to do when the mask falls. 

46 minutes ago, ldubs said:

I'm not surprised at the disagreement, but would like to see more info why or what is superior.  So far the only reasons I've seen is people are deluded into thinking a one day port visit is meaningful and ports with large ships are crowded.  I agree with the potential for crowds.  For the other, I guess it depends what someone enjoys.  

 

Your comment also made me realize as I have achieved some age advantaged status, cruises are just physically easier.  For people with mobility issues or even just the normal aches and pains that come with advanced years, a cruise is a pretty good option.  

The manner in which the question is asked makes the automatic assumption that cruising is the best type of vacation. The are reasons cruises are desirable and reasons they are not but they are not automatically the "best." It depends on personal tastes and what you prefer to do on vacation. 

It isn't.

$24USD per year is worth every Lincoln cent. With NEXUS/Global Entry I avoid the imbecile line at airport security, go through YYZ pre-clearance in minutes, breeze through at land crossings and avoid the horror show of customs and immigration when entering the U.S. from another country. 

The people who would do that are cruisers who know nothing about what they are buying and fail to realize that when they step off the big boat they are marks, walking ATM machines, who are there to be fleeced in every possibly manner. You don't find many reputable art dealers at dockside. Caveat emptor. 

13 minutes ago, Essiesmom said:

Many, many years ago when I was in grade school, it was popular to have a penpal in a foreign country.  I acquired one who lived in Japan.  He/she sent me a box of traditional Japanese things.  I wanted to return the gesture,  but back in the 1950’s it was nearly impossible to find small item that represented American culture that were not ‘made in Japan’.  EM

It's one thing if you know what you are buying is made elsewhere. No doubt there are cruisers in for a shock should they try and sell what they believed was genuine indigenous art from the Arctic and for which they paid full price. 

Might want to check the name on the bottom. You may have bought a fake. 

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-alaska-philippines-made-indigenous-art/

"The stone carving depicted a bear grasping a fish in its mouth, its supposed authenticity sealed with the engraved name of its Tlingit artist, Kilit. It was sold at a shop in Ketchikan that catered to the millions of cruise ship tourists who pass through this coastal town eager to bring home a piece of coastal Alaska. The price: US$3,200.

But Kilit did not exist, and the carving did not originate in Alaska. It was made in the Philippines, as part of a sophisticated operation that, for many years, stocked two shops in Ketchikan with humpbacks, bears, dolphins and eagles sculpted 10,000 kilometres away."

I bring prescription medications in the bottle with the label but not those medications I can buy over the counter.

1 hour ago, CHPURSER said:

If you are a Foodie, Tokyo alone has more Michelin Starred Restaurants than all of France and America combined.

If you are a Street Foodie you may never see the inside of a Michelin Starred Restaurant. Amazing street food in Tokyo. 

9 hours ago, kbconthemove said:

Thank you for the input - I have always wanted to go to Aus/NZ, but would want a lot more time to really tour it - but... now being old and poor, this may not be realistic, so thinking this would give me a chance to at least see it in case I never make it back down there and just deal with the sea days sitting and watching the ocean go by.

As for Japan, it is the only Asian country I have any interest in ever seeing so thought this might be a good cheap way to see it.

I've been to both cities. Sydney as described above is certainly more user friendly which is to be expected in any place where everyone speaks English and you can read the signs. Otherwise it's just another English-speaking city among many. 

But if you've never been to Japan and have an interest then I would definitely take that option. It is a fascinating city, with a very different culture, history and things to see and do. I have zero interest in going back to Sydney but would return to Tokyo.   

21 minutes ago, DarrenM said:

Oh completely agree.

 

We were sat with4 americans nightly who asked us how we managed to get burgers, and only when we told them they were vegetarian burgers did they realise.

 

They looked at us like we were mad.

 

We arent vegetarians, but those beyond burgers were fantastic. Better than any real burger I have ever eaten.

 

But there wasnt many other folk eating them in the MDR.

 

Actually just remembered.........we werent in the MDR. We were in Blu on that trip.

 

Maybe thats why? Memory like a sieve.

I have no quarrel with vegetarian food and eat it often but one taste of a Beyond burger and I was off the program. It is perplexing that the vegetarian movement seems committed to promoting food stuffs and look like and sort of taste like meat if you are sufficiently intoxicated. 

As you are not certain you will need cash I would suggest waiting until you are there and decide. ATMs are very common in Japan and consider any transactions fees as the cost of convenience. In the greater scheme of things the difference between a good deal and a bad deal on currency exchange is not that significant or worth jumping through hoops over.   

On 3/20/2024 at 5:58 AM, DarrenM said:

On Celebrity reflection 2 years ago we had their Beyond Burger numerous times in the MDR. Best vegetarian burger I have ever eaten.

 

Strangely, when on Celebrity BEYOND, last year, we couldnt get e BEYOND burger at all.

 

Very odd.

"Best vegetarian burger" falls into the category of damning with faint praise. 

The reason you probably couldn't get one last year is lack of demand. If you know anyone in the casual/QSR dining space they will candidly admit these offerings are there more for political reasons. Despite the media hype they aren't as big sellers as the vegetarian mafia would have you believe. 

On 3/20/2024 at 8:29 AM, sparks1093 said:

A drink package calculator will help with this. https://cruisespotlight.com/drink-package-calculator/ Just put in the number of drinks you expect to average per day and it will tell you how much you can save (I think this is set up per person). (Our first drink package was with Royal and in one of the ports we were ashore for a long time and were wiped out by the time we returned to the ship. Only had a couple of drinks each on the package that day but overall we still saved money.)

Very helpful link. To make a drink package pay I'd have to drink more than I typically would. My wife would have to pay for the package too because we're in the same cabin and she drinks less than me. 

On 3/16/2024 at 6:08 PM, reallyitsmema said:

You originally posted this in the Ask A Cruise Question forum and that can be a tough crowd. 

Not only tough but frequently self-righteous and smug. Ask a question even remotely related to casinos and you are certain to get a disdainful lecture about gaming.

Playing in a casino is entertainment and fun. Dropping a few hundred at the tables is little different than the cost of a good pair of tickets to professional sporting event, a hit theater show, premium concert tickets or a gourmet meal. The difference is in the casino there's always the chance you won't spend as much, break even or win a few dollars. 

10 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

Is there anyone who does not understand that the reason heavy gamblers are “given” benefits is because the lines know that, in the long run, the more someone gambles the more they will lose to the house?  Of course they want to encourage high rollers.

Comps are given by casino companies to frequent gamblers so they will come back to their casino and not play elsewhere. It is no different than a cruise line offering incentives for return customers. 

14 hours ago, gerryuk said:

A cruise ship is private property, the owners have every right to stop people filming on their property.

The owners also have every right to allow people to film on their property. It is entirely possible a vlogger has the approval of the cruise line and may even be subsidized, in whole or in part, in return for a favorable review.

The prospect of my image appearing on someone's blog doesn't trouble me if the video is taken in a place with public access. If the filming becomes intrusive or irritating then complaints should be made to the cruise staff. 

3 hours ago, Fascin8ed said:

We cruise for the entire experience. That being said, the first and foremost consideration is the itinerary. After that would be the cruise line itself, and finally the amenities. The cruise would lose something if the destinations were great but the food and the entertainment, especially on repositioning cruises with so many sea days, were poor. 

I'd accept poor food on a cruise for a desired destination where a cruise was the best way to visit as opposed the most magnificent ship with the very best food that puddled around the Caribbean visiting one dreary island port after another. 

3 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

Well, if you have read the cruise line's guidelines and packed with them in mind, only to find out when onboard that you could have packed less because the cruise line doesn't enforce it's dress code it can certainly be a source of annoyance. (And not necessarily toward one's fellow passengers, but toward the cruise line.) A great number of things annoy me throughout each day but I don't let said annoyance's interfere with my enjoyment of life.

Some people however sweat the small stuff. For people with a rigid and authoritarian outlook not following the dress code annoys them greatly and they are annoyed equally at the line and the passengers who do not share their unbending adherence to guidelines. 

A rule that is not enforced nor carries consequences falls somewhere between a request and a recommendation and if the people who wrote the rules don't think they are important enough to enforce then they are not important enough for me to follow.

2 hours ago, Poly1979 said:

I don't cruise for the food, drink, entertainment, pools or activities.

 

I cruise strictly for the destinations. The ship is just transportation.

You are far from alone. We cruise for the itinerary and when a cruise makes sense due to distances, logistics, availability and qualify of tourism amenities, etc. Alaska, a Tahiti cruise that included the Marquesas, a repositioning transatlantic, a Panama Canal passage, Easter Island, Antarctica are examples that come to mind.

There are also sites where a cruise offers a better degree of security in unstable regions. A tourist who wanted to see the Great Pyramids of Egypt, for example, would better off taking a cruise instead of attempting a land-based visit.

Otherwise, cruising does not have that much to offer and ship board life is often tedious. 

I cruised on HAL in 2018 on a cruise that was longer than ten days. No one wore a tux, about half the men wore jackets and the rest of us wore collared shirts and trousers.