2theship

It has been our experience that anytime the ship is in port very late, you may dine at whatever time you wish. Obviously, you won't have your usual table and tablemates. Your serving staff may mention the revised arrangements the night before.

While we haven't been on Princess during Hanukkah, we've sailed Royal Caribbean and Celebrity at that time and there would be a service every night. There were no real candles to be lit, just an electric menorah but it was fun to get together with other passengers at the same time each evening. The food provided was often a little weird, one night there were some cookies that looked a lot like hamentaschen but there were also attempts at latkes and sufganiyot. On one of the cruises, the Rabbi's wife gave the chef her latke recipe and they got a lot better after that.

We were on Summit in AQ with a group of eight people for a Bermuda run in August. We had a great cruise but we probably had several factors working for us. Those of us who wanted an early evening drink picked one up on our way to the 7:00 p.m. show. The Martini Bar staff knew what I wanted before I asked. When we went to Blu, we were generally only requesting wine and the sommelier took good care of us. Of the eight of us, five had cruised in AQ before, three frequently. We all commented on the outstanding service we experienced. 

Just do if for Blu and access to Persian Gardens. Yes, I know that PG isn't as fancy on M-Class as it is on S-Class but it's still a nice perk. Blu is amazing!

4 hours ago, Thrak said:

 

Close but not exactly as it implies that Cointreau is in the same amounts as the other ingredients.

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Chairman of the Board

 

3 parts Grey Goose Vodka
3 parts Bombay Sapphire Gin
1 part Cointreau
Chilled over ice and strained

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I agree this is a great drink! Some get it with olives but I always have it with a twist. Today is Thursday. We sail on Saturday. Guess what I will order for my sail away drink.

When I make it at home, I use even less Cointreau. It's absolutely my favorite drink on Princess. I'm not a fan of sweet, fancy drinks.

Once upon a time, we knew we could cruise with a passport that was only recently expired (yes, we're old). That was the good old days. It's annoying that you have to renew it before it expires but that's life, just do it.

Thrifty car rental has a location at Port Everglades, along with a shuttle bus. You can pick up a rental car there, wander for a few hours and return the car to the airport.

I think that there are other car rental companies near Port Everglades as well but we've successfully used Thrifty several times.

Since good bagels require both boiling and baking, it takes a lot of work (and money) to create a quality product. Somewhere along the line, Princess must have decided that the frozen ones were a better choice.

3 hours ago, cruisestitch said:

You touch the key to the door.  Same with the slot machines.

Does this mean I won't leave my card in slot machines anymore?

We would probably choose Aqua Class just for Blu although the aft Concierge Class cabin looks inviting. We like the Deck 11 AQ cabins because you're a flight of stairs away from the buffet and aft bar.

On our Bermuda cruise in August, on the second chic night, everyone in our family group of eight ordered the lobster. DH was the last one to order and requested a second lobster tail. They served two to everyone at the table! I think the fact that we were dining late and they knew how much they had left was a factor.

The critical phrase is "Christmas cruise". Because of your timing, there may be more kids onboard than usual. Having said that, I have two daughters who grew up cruising. Once they passed their mid-teens, we stopped cruising with them for a while because the activities were not as interesting. The critical issue is that there are some other kids their own age on the cruise. You should check your roll call and perhaps see if anyone else if traveling with teens.

A few years ago on an Equinox transatlantic, we tried to go to dinner in Blu about 7:30. The Maitre d' told us that while they were in Europe, no one ate before 8:00 p.m. On the TA, everyone came between 6:00 and 6:30 so the restaurant was full when we arrived. It was just a matter of a different type of passengers. Over the years, we've had different wait times for Blu. Sometimes none, sometimes 30 minutes.

On Equinox a year ago, we decided that we would go to the 7:00 p.m. show and then go to Blu; that always seemed to work for us. This summer, we did a family cruise on the Summit to Bermuda with 8 people and used the same tactic. We told the Maitre d' about our plan and, when we arrived in Blu every night around 8:00 p.m., the same table for 8 was waiting for us. On that cruise there were a lot of family groups even in Aqua Class so I think they had to make a plan to accommodate everyone.

We often sail with my sister who travels solo and does not drink. We booked a transatlantic for next fall under Sip & Sail and it seemed silly for her to pay double for an included drink package that she would barely use. My TA checked and got her a significantly reduced fare without drinks although she had to pay a non-refundable deposit.

It's not a quick sail-by. You may spend the better part of a day in the area where you are doing your scenic cruising.

Because we were going to be in DC, we got our appointments at Dulles pretty quickly. Unfortunately, an old speeding ticket stopped DH from getting his until he cleared it up. By that time, we were back home in Central Ohio and he had to choose between Detroit or Cincinnati for interviews and both required a significant wait.

Can anyone mention how much time Global Entry saved you when coming back to the U.S. I'm looking at flights home from Rome, and my options are Chicago, Newark, and Dulles for my layover.

We've returned to the US through PHL and DTW. Both times we breezed through, just walking straight to a kiosk while the rest of the plane lined up. If you travel outside the US with any frequency, it's definitely worth the bother.

Have them contact you by E-mail and check your E-mail as often as you feel the need to.

This is exactly what I do. I can log onto my smart phone, download email, take a quick look and log off again in just a minute or two. For your family to call you, you'd have to be in your cabin waiting by the phone. You can have your smart phone with you wherever you are. Then, you can use whatever method you have available, like wifi calling, and get back to the family.

I know that plenty of people think that you should totally disconnect while you're gone but in this day and age, I like knowing that my family can reach me if necessary. If a problem arises, I can be with them in spirit, if not in person.

Our renewals came back in two weeks.

Probably shouldn’t cruise during the height of hurricane season then.

But that's when westbound TAs happen.

It takes most of the day to make a full transit and you won't want to be in the same spot the whole time. At the beginning of the day, the area at the front of the ship will be packed. On our first Panama Canal cruise, we wandered about the ship during the day. I think that the only time we spent on our own balcony was when we grabbed lunch from the buffet back to our cabin for a quiet sit-down.

If you go for a week long cruise in the summer, you'll see a fair amount of kids. Celebrity has great programming for them. The difference between Celebrity and a super "family friendly" line is that there will not be 1,000 kids on board but mine liked it better that way. There may not be much for your 18 year old to do although I think they've added some activities for that group. Your 11 year old will have a great time.

If it's a longer cruise or during the school year, there are far fewer kids.

I would interested in the location of window washing equipment on the Equinox, starboard side. Thanks.

I can't speak for the Infinity but I know for a fact that it sits outside Cabin 1554 on Equinox. The cabin has an extra large balcony so that's the trade-off.

We cruise both lines and base our choice on itinerary. All of the Millennium class ships will be undergoing a complete refurbish in the coming years but the Infinity isn't scheduled until 2121. They will be changing everything about the ship, including the staterooms. We are fans of Aqua Class on Celebrity but our next two cruises are on the Emerald Princess.

Assuming that you will be in New Orleans on a cruise, you should check your roll call. Someone may have already done that research.

You might see if you can get a day pass to the airport lounge for you airline. We have a similar situation in January. Considering that you should arrive at the airport two hours before your flight, that's 3:45 p.m. I'm with Pam, I'm happy to sit in a chair and read a book for a couple of hours.