bighairtexan

Thanks for posting. Some of us "forget" to go on the ports boards.

I've never in my life traveled on a public transportation bus in the US but I LOVE the buses in Bermuda. On time, clean and bright and easy to navigate. Last time I rode on a bus in Bermuda a couple of young teenagers were horsing around. NOTHING over the top and it sure didn't bother me. But the bus driver stopped and made the boys get off the bus. I, too, highly recommend getting a bus pass in Bermuda.

But the premium drink package doesn't include stateroom set up. I guess I'm just confused b/c the drink package and getting a bottle in the stateroom aren't the same thing. :confused:

I have to agree w/ you on several points. Though food is subjective, I too was underwhelmed by the often bland food in Blu (tried it 3 different cruises... won't try it again).

And while I LOVE Luminae, as you mentioned, those super brief descriptions on the menu leave a lot to be desired. My cruise mate on my upcoming Equinox cruise was assigned to Luminae last time she cruised and she NEVER once ate there b/c she found the menus and descriptions to be uninteresting.

I, OTOH, always started with a spectacular soup course in Luminae and some of the things I ordered that sounded "meh" were AMAZING (for instance, the zucchini spaghetti w/ San Marzano tomatoes sounded indifferent from the description, but was a real stand out).

Based on your rave review, I may try that white chocolate dessert b/c I usually avoid white chocolate as not being REAL chocolate!

I'm following your review with enthusiasm!

I'll add my thanks to the others. I've been to Barbados many times but I have to say it's always been a beach day for me. If we get "beached out" on our upcoming 11 night Equinox cruise I may recreate your trip. With a mandatory stop for a flying fish sandwich! Thanks for the ideas and the photos.

So weird how toilets back up, dogs get sick, sprinklers start spewing... all right before a cruise. I feel your pain.

You'll need a cab. I've done Mr Sanchos and it's great when you want a more "lively" party atmosphere. For a more relaxed, quieter experience I recommend Nachi Cocom.

http://www.cozumelnachicocom.com/

Plus complimentary mimosas.

SHARE for me. I'm from Texas and we have exceptional steak houses everyplace (though our sushi is crap) and lots of cruise lines have a steak house. Share is a bit of a different concept. And the menu appeals to me (though my BF maybe not so much).

They offered me "still or sparkling" and I asked for "plain water with ice" and had no issue getting it. So while I agree they didn't offer me "tap water" as I recall, it was there and it was free.

Actually I've been to nicer restaurants stateside and was offered "still or sparkling" and have had the same thing happen when I asked for plain ice water.

They don't charge for ice water from a pitcher. At least they didn't when I sailed MSC.

Although for the most part, Celebrity is my line of choice, I'd have to agree w/ Host Jazz. I'd select Princess. I realize OP has it narrowed down to HAL and X but just in case Princess wasn't originally in the mix, that'd be my suggestion.

I recently got a freebie thru the casino for Vision of the Seas. I almost didn't take it b/c it was an older ship. I've been on 70+ cruises and I have to say it was one of the best cruises ever. The ship was in very good shape. The Captain (Marek) was one of the most present and engaged Captain's I've ever come across. And b/c of that the staff and crew were also engaged and happy and very anxious to please. I was talking to a few of them and they said that the captain was as present and engaged w/ the crew as with the passengers and most of the people working would go all out to please him.

For me this replaced any bells and whistles that were missing. The vibe was so much FUN and just HAPPY. Go for it!

On my October Liberty cruise the UDP wasn't available. Then it was (and I jumped on it) and then shortly thereafter it was no longer available. So keep checking I suppose.

Not sure why, because it may not be of interest to you or me, this isn't of interest to other people nor why the kerfluffle if it's posted on a public message board as this information is readily available if one knows how to google.

http://work.chron.com/cruise-ship-jobs-nurses-14090.html

I"m on 4 r/c's. 2 Celebrity, 1 Princess and 1 RCI. None of them are very active. In the past we had roll calls that even had to be closed down by Cruise Critic and a new one started b/c they got too long. Now it's mostly crickets. Very little excursion planning on any of them.

I do think part of it is alternative options for getting groups together on other social media outlets. There's less censorship and sometimes it's just "easier."

TARHEEL I had a VERY similar situation on a Celebrity Trans Atlantic. People were being suspended right and left. Actual physical threats were issues. It was SO UNCOMFORTABLE for the rest of us that many of us went to other roll call outlets and many of us cancelled completely.

HOWEVER to Cruise Critic's credit, the hosts did 'stop by' a few times. First to effectively say "play nicely, children" and to tell people that CC was a SOCIAL website and if people didn't like what they felt was "chit chat" they were free to skip those posts.

I used to think the longer the cruise the more active the R/C tended to be? But this doesn't seem to be the case currently amongst my 4 rollcalls. Some of them do have "off Cruise Critic" activity but I'm too lazy to invest my time in more than one place for the same cruise.

Maybe super active CC roll calls are no longer relevant? **SHRUG**

Weirdly b/c I have upcoming cruises on both the Eclipse and the Equinox I was wondering when the upgrades would happen. I mean like 10 min ago. This OP's post was very timely for me! And the post was very clear. Very clear that the upgrades will be AFTER MY CRUISES..... whaaaaaaaaaaaa. :D

Another vote for Stone Island in Mazatlan. Freshest seafood (as well as other Mexican food) and drinks and it's SO INEXPENSIVE.

Lots of places in PV. Just get to the beach, walk and the waiters will politely try to get you into their on-the-beach restaurants

THis is definitely an ethnic thing. Some say it originated in Harlem. Others say even before that it was a meal served by the slaves (hence the idea it started in the south. We'll never really know). Roscoe's chicken and waffles in LA and Pasadena is famous and perhaps the pinnacle of CHicken and waffles and really popular and President Obama eats there. And it's GOOD.

REAL chicken and waffles is a piece or 2 of fried chicken (not crappy chicken strips) usually a couple of drumsticks. Odd combo but it actually works. Maybe ask for it as a "shared entree" and try it. I love it and trust me you can't get real chicken and waffles in DFW. Torchy's tacos (or is it Fuzzys) had their own FAUX version and it's crap if you've had the real deal. Kind of don't knock it 'til you've tried it and if you don't like it then ... fair enough.

Agree 100% about accessing the website using an incognito browser. When I do that ... NO PROBLEMS (and you don't have to empty your cache or clear cookies by doing that). However when I try going in the "regular way" I have been having issues regularly EVERY single time for the last few weeks. Good luck.

A BRA! I wore my bathing suit under my clothes to board and apparently my bra was back at the hotel (or LORD knows where).

Nope. As above, I would only go for the Luminae burger so probably you should stick w/ Oceania or Crystal if you want a really good burger. No sense trying to "sell" anyone on any line when there are so many other choices that hopefully don't need "selling."

I always contact special needs in advance. For me it's 50/50 if it will be there upon getting to my room. If not they are very good about getting the cord and water upon request. Often times though I've gotten a huge fat orange extension cord that has to be 30 feet long.

Sometimes I've had to call/email to request a copy, sometimes it just comes relatively quickly on its own, and sometimes I forget all about it and it arrives in my email a week or so later.

I recently gave Carnival another try after a 10 year hiatus. I even stayed in their largest suite on one of their newest ships (Breeze). There was a REASON I took a 10 year hiatus (and previously I've cruised 20 times on Carnival SO I DO know the product).

I'd happily stay in the SMALLEST lowest down cabin on any Princess ship than ANY suite on a Carnival ship. Food, cleanliness (esp the cleanliness), lackadaisical service, sweaty hairy arm pits in the dining room (men in tank tops lifting their arms while adjusting their caps .... and there are some things I cannot unsee), men in "suits" and backwards baseball caps on "formal night". The F bomb floating in the air everywhere I went. That was my last LAST Carnival cruise. OMG Princess every time (and I've done Princess and Carnival on the Mexican Riviera).

They're done away w/ table cloths in the MDR (OK that's tacky in MORE WAYS THAN ONE, but some people don't mind). Fine but CLEAN the tables between seatings. TWICE my forearms STUCK to the table it was so sticky and dirty (faux wood grain disguises a myriad of filth.)

I used to get so annoyed w/ the Carnival haters. I guess I've become one.

For WHATEVER reason I couldn't find a single suite (other than JS) available on ANY ship even over a year out, on the RCI site. But using the link provided above... VOILA.