CHOPPERTESTER

Longer itineraries Late night Lido buffet HAL staff Ninja cabin attendants

We call the regular reservations line at HAL, provide our Mariner number & casino offer code. They look it up and make the booking. They may call the casino department to confirm things like OBC to be applied, cabin upgrade costs etc. You pay up front for the discounted or $0 rate, taxes & fees, sometimes mandatory buying OBC (usually $200 USD pp in the cabin), 100% due upon booking. When you get a copy of the initial invoice it will show a balance still owing. Don't worry as it takes a couple of days for the casino department to apply their discount to the fare. You should get a revised invoice showing a balance of $0.00 owed.

I smell a rat. Our Rotterdam 4 Jan 2023 cruise got Bonaire cancelled and replaced by San Juan. The reason being Bonaire since 1 Jan 2023 only allows one cruise ship at a time now and Carnival Spirit is scheduled for Bonaire on 15 Feb.

From Amsterdam central take the tram to the cruise dock. Very easy, we did this with ours on in a wheelchair last time we were im Amsterdam. We took the tram from the cruise dock ro Amsterdam central than another tram to a location where they had wheelchair accessble access canal tours. Strolled over to visit the Rijk something museum then a tram back to the Dam square (google it) for some lunch/sightseeing/shopping, then a tram back to Amsterdam central, transfer to another tram to the cruise dock. Get a day pass for the trams.

Two pinnacle class ships (5,300 pax), decades no, only since 2018 (minus a couple of years for COVID). Space is still an issue when two Vista class (3,832 pax) are visiting and that would be decades since 2003. Yes, HMC is close but so are Key West (yes, big ship issues there), Freeport & Nassau. Or just skip it as a number go to Amber Cove for a "private" port day.

Check the number of ships in port that day and when you arrive. It will influence if you decide to rent a clamshell or to get off the ship or not. We were there (Rotterdam) on Jan 13 an hour after Niuew Statendam had arrived and not a chair availble in sight. Walked the beach and left. A waste of time. What planner schedules two Pinnacle class ships at HMC at the same time.

Could be some ports are limiting the number/size of cruise ships like Key West or Venice. Our 4 Jan 23 Rotterdam cruise got bumped from Bonaire as the local government as of 1 Jan 2023 is limiting dockings to one ship per day.

Koningsdam is good. Eurodam has deck 11 "balconies" that have no room for chairs. The doors open so you can stand at edge like Juliette in Romeo & Juliette. Good grab !

Which ship, how long a cruise? Did you end up with a Juliette balcony?

Celebrity did this to us as well automatically switching to a different cruise. They changedour BCN to VCE cruise to end in Ravenna, dropped a day, dropped a port, Kotor, and then had the gaul to say there was no price change. Not even for the port charges. Didn't work for us as one of our party uses a wheelchair and Ravenna to VCE airport was out of the question. After escalating got the cruise canceled and even our NRDs back.

If you're 4* and less than 14 nights, I would rather spend the $$ on 50% off Specialty Restaurants every night than pay the $25 per person per night for Club Orange.

Barcelona – Use HOHO bus. Visit Sagrada Familia, Parc Guell, magic fountains Palma de Mallorca - Take city bus or ship transfer. Visit cathedral, castle Provence (Marseille) – Take ship transfer to city or ship excursion to Carcassonne Nice (port of Villefranche) – Get to train station. Take train to Eze then to Monte Carlo and back Santa Margherita Italy – Haven’t been to this port Florence/Pisa from La Spezia port – Take ship excursions for distance Cagliari Sardinia – Haven’t been to this port Sicily (Messina port) – Walk to city square and check out Noon clock etc or take ship excursion to Taormina Naples – Take bus/train to Pompeii (on your own) then visit Naples castle, or take ferry to Capri or to Sorrento (on your own) Rome - Use HOHO to see city then visit sites the list is long

Assuming a mainstream cruise line like Carnival/RCCL/Princess etc (not Europe based Aida, Mein Schiff, etc) your onboard account is in USD only. How you pay at the end to clear your account is where you get into the decision to let the cruise line charge your CC used for your onboard account in USD or to let the cruise line convert your balance (at their exchange rate and fee) into a currency other than USD and then charge your credit card in its native currency.

And cruise lines like RCCL are still making requirements up where none exist... Testing Requirements Guests 5 and up who are not fully vaccinated must bring a negative test result for a COVID-19 antigen or PCR test taken within the 3 days before boarding day, regardless the duration of their cruise. On sailings 10 night or longer, fully vaccinated guests age 5 and up must bring a negative test result for a COVID-19 antigen or PCR test taken within the 3 days before boarding day. Testing is not required for fully vaccinated guests on itineraries of 9 nights or fewer. Required testing for all guests, regardless of vaccination status, can be completed using any type of PCR or antigen COVID-19 test. It can be professionally proctored at your doctor or drugstore, or it can be a test you administer to yourself at home without supervision. Tests must be arranged on your own and are at your own expense. Ditto for Carnival... TESTING REQUIREMENTS Vaccinated guests (with proof of vaccination) – are not required to take a pre cruise test except on cruises of 16 nights or longer or when required by a destination.

Where is RCI getting the 10 night or more requirement from?

A large number of cruise ships with azipods have installed metallic debris detectors in the lubricating oil systems of the azipod bearings. These detectors can track number and size of particles over time which can be correlated to loss of bearing or bearing race metal mass. Based on the rates of metallic debris and size, the system can predict when critical mass of the bearing will be lost or can be used to monitor changes in the rate of debris generation by, say, reducing engine speed or use. Cruise lines can use this information to predict and plan when the bearings need replacing, even months in advance.