Syrreal

8046 is awesome! If you want some pics of it, check out my review of our trip on the Connie (Norway fjords) in 2012 that is in my signature. If we weren't taking the kids this next year we would have booked it again. Big balcony.

check out shabbyapple too

I know they can make soy milk smoothies at Aqua Spa Cafe as my friend had them a couple of times on our last cruise. It just takes a few extra minutes since they need to get it.

They say that the biggest view into who someone really is has to do with seeing how they treat their mom, their pet, and how they treat servers. That guy is definitely not someone I would like to spend time with.

Expect it to be a mellow cruise (in a good way) :)

We stayed at the Toren last year and it was great. Wonderful rooms and staff and waling distance from the central station as well as almost everything else.

The sushi on the buffet could be lot better.

Yes.

On our Norwegian Fjords cruise in 2012 DH and I decided to use the sushi as a snack before late dinner. That was over by day 3. Grocery store sushi is better. I'm not looking for top quality sushi bar sushi, but better than Kroger sushi shouldn't be too much to ask.

On our cruise, the North Sea was not rough at all. It was actually a very nice ride to and from Norway. The only time we would roll a little is when we would go parallel to the waves when we would go back out to sea at the end of the day to loop back to whatever town we were stopping at next especially when they were pretty near each other. The rolling wasn't bad though, DH is prone to sea sickness and didn't feel queasy at all. It was like being rocked to sleep on a hammock.

What's a "joiner"??

Shill64, my DH said that I didn't have to sugarcoat his "socialness" in my last post. He is proudly antisocial! ROTFL :D:D

Wow! Was not expecting so many comments on "joiner" :) LOL

I'll explain myself a little...

When DH and I go on vacation, we just tend to spend time together. Lois R was right when she said that we won't take part in the trivia, etc. And if Port Royal meant better things to do as "couple time" then yeah, we do have some "better things to do a lot of the time". Ha! If we are doing separate things, I may stop by and watch some game or see a show, but don't do it often.

Now, when I travel with friends, that is different! There we go to the CC meet up, we might play a game, etc. It's just a different vibe!

I am way more of a social butterfly (I tend to be the type of person that ends up making friends anywhere- i.e. on our last cruise together, DH was sick on a day we had an excursion planned to a glacier so I went by myself and ended up making some brazilian friends bc I heard them speaking portuguese so I just walked up to them and asked where they were from and then we ended up seeing each other all over the ship and ports etc) than DH is and we both tend to take over rather than join. We're both the type of people who will join a club or group and then practically instantly become board members, etc.

This chocolate cake should REALLY be taken off the menu

I'm where I was before. I was select with 7 points (1-2 cruises away from Elite) and am Select with 240 now (still 1-2 cruises away from Elite). It was going to be 2 cruises anyway for us because we are just booked in a FV on our next cruise (12 nights) and will still need another cruise to bump us up.

For us, the status really doesn't matter. We choose cruises based on itinerary. Anything else is just a bonus. We're not joiners so the happy hour and events of that nature really don't interest us and while the free laundry and internet will be nice once we get there, if I can't afford the let's say $100 that paying for those myself will cost me, I really shouldn't be taking the cruise anyway.

We did that cruise on the Connie in 2012. It was awesome! I have a link to my review of that trip on my signature :)

This was pre aqua but I still loved the ship

I opened this thread out of curiosity and found great spirit. Love it!

Well, you can see through them a little, like through a frosted glass pane

Your pediatrician's office may have a form that you can also sign giving permission for your parents to seek medical attention at the Dr's office. Ours does and we have both of DH's parents and my mom and brother on the list.

I don't know when your school is out, but if it's not, make sure that you let the school know that you authorize your parents to drop off, pick up, etc.

Most of all, just don't forget to have a great time! We had our first trip away from the kids last year and it was amazing! We spent some money on a phone package with our company so that we could call home internationally without a huge cost and also bought an internet package so we could keep in touch, but we made sure to spend as much quality time together as we could since who can guess when the next time we'll have the chance will be (we don't have any family near us)

Sigh, so many of those drinks sound really good and I can't have them because they are made with agave nectar. Boo on allergies!

I guess it's a good thing I'm on an M class ship LOL

We did that cruise in 2012 and hit most of the same ports. If you'd like some ideas of what we did and saw, I have our review on this page: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1671304

The change will basically leave me where I was before (more or less). I'm at 7 points so now at 240 (210+30 bonus). With our cruise next year (12 night in a family veranda) I was going to very 1 point away from being Elite in the old system. Now after our next cruise I'll be at 276 [240+(3*12)] and missing 24 new points.

If we weren't taking the kids we would have gone concierge and I'd be elite after this cruise but it is what it is.

Now it will probably take an extra cruise after that since I don't always have the time to take a 5 night cruise with work and other vacations etc. (and my cruise after the one next year will prob be RCL bc they have a 3 nighter on Good Friday and that will be a girls trip and I need in on a day when I won't have to take the time off).

Has anyone who doesn't usually have the same numbers as their SO checked if theirs is matching?

They may be assuming you are flying back to the states. In Sao Paulo it's recommended to get to the airport at least 3 hours before your Intl flight due to very long lines so arriving at 1:30 for a 4:30 departure would be the way to go. (I've done Sao Paulo to Miami countless times and the lines are RIDICULOUS)

National flights are different, you can get away with allowing less time but I would still get there at least 1.5 hours before.

We will be back in AMS next year (with our then 7 and 3.5 year old). We will be staying at the Hotel Estherea for 1 night before and 2 nights after our cruise. We like smaller "different" hotels and this one seemed really good with extra beds and family rooms and got great reviews.

You should take a photo ID with you anyway in case you lose your seapass. In the Bahamas earlier this year I lost mine somewhere in Nassau. Had I not had my drivers license with me I may not have been able to get back on the ship

During our Bahamas cruise in January, the menu said that there was chocolate cake with chicken and curry in it and when we got it there was NO CHICKEN and NO CURRY! False advertising if I've ever seen it!

We did a mixture of both cards and carried some cash. You will need kroner for most places in Norway but a few if the more touristy show accepted euros and dollars.

Hi DJ,

I'm glad that my trip report has helped others. It was such an amazing trip!

The biggest advantages to the balconies (and ultimately you'd be fine in either starboard or port in Norway since the fjords will be seen on both sides) is that they offer such a peaceful place to rest and watch the world go by. There are some chilly days and being out on deck isn't as feasible as pulling a blanket outside and watching the waves and sights. I usually spent some times listening to audiobooks while on our lounger with a couple of couch cushions and the throw. I would not have been able to get as comfortable if it wasn't our balcony.

Our roll call was very active. I'm pretty sure that you can still see it on the roll call board. There were plenty of people who did private tours. We didn't do any because we really didn't research as much as we could have. That's one thing both DH and I would change. For example, in Molde we did not have anything planned and wandered around aimlessly and that ended up my least favorite stop. We'll be stopping there next year again and I'm already trying to look for some things to do there.

The other thing I would change was that in Skjolden we would have toured the other stave church instead of the one we saw. In the other one you were allowed to take non-flash photos while you could not take any photos I inside the one we saw. Also the deer farm was just ok.