klfrodo

17 minutes ago, leaveitallbehind said:

If you are referring to Captain Kate McCue, she is with Celebrity and is the Captain on Beyond, not NCL.

You're right. My bad. But same story.

I'm guessing that those who discredit and demonize vloggers on cruise ships feel the same about Captain Kate from NCL? She has people and crew in the background who most likely didn't give her written permission to be in her videos.

MJA kicks in as long as you're 150 miles from home.

So, living in Seattle, If I travel anywhere in the States and find myself hospitalized for some reason, MJA will kick in to get me to an inpatient facility near my house if stabilized of course. I usually don't get travel insurance if I want a weekend getaway to Vegas, or LA, or go to STL to see my grandkids, etc.

2 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

As someone who only recently started consuming material from YouTube vloggers, I've come to realize that there are two different types. (Or probably more, but only two I can think of that relate to cruising.)

 

One type are made by disruptive entities who are out to shock people, break rules, etc. and generally annoy people on film. I call these the sensationalists. Japan, for example, has recently arrested, fined, banned and/or deported several non-Japanese tourist "vloggers" who have done things like riding long-distance trains without paying, shouting provocative statements, behaving badly in restaurants, etc. I believe I remember hearing about at least one similar incident on a cruise ship a few years ago when several "youtubers" booked a cruise line specifically to see if they could get themselves thrown off. (Spoiler alert: they did.)

 

The other type are the helpful ones such as those mentioned above. 

 

The former should definitely be banned. I have no real issues with the latter, but TBH I haven't actually encountered any of them on my cruises so far.

 

You must have an interesting search history then that cause the YouTube algorithm to suggest the aforementioned videos.

Ive done many years of research of ships, cabins, destinations, etc and have never once viewed such videos on YouTube. Not to say they’re not there, but,,,,, I’m just sayin. Paul Harvey and such,,,,

I'm researching and watching tons of YouTube videos on NYC.

I've never been to NYC. I'm apprehensive about the experience. I'm glad people have taken the time to video NYC. How to best use the subway. What is Uptown vs. Downtown vs. Midtown. What are the latest scams I have to be aware of? Best way to buy theatre tickets. Can I get in to see a late-night show be taped?  These people spend thousands of dollars learning how to video, how to edit, how to produce, purchase expensive equipment.... why shouldn't they make a buck? and yes, there are people in the background who didn't give their permission.

I do the same thing when researching cities I'm cruising into, visiting for the day, and sailing out of. Hell, I even used YouTube to learn how to remodel my bathroom.

I support vloggers. I have zero expectation of privacy in the common areas of a cruise ship or cruise port.

1 hour ago, cruiseny4life said:

Do you take a tour of the city/go see any sites, or just enjoy the sweet silence of being in a hotel?

Depends on a few factors. Have we been to the city before and been there done that? Is there something special we want to do?

Or? Will we have to be up at 4AM to catch an early flight back home so we get back at a decent hour?

I always leave my bags out the night before. Then, we are up early, grab a bite, grab some coffee and watch the show as everyone and their brothers and sisters fight, scratch, yell at dads and kids, struggle with luggage to be the first off the ship.

Then we leisurely disembark, grab our luggage, jump in an Uber to our hotel to relax the rest of the day before our return flight home the day after departing the ship.

Everyone is off the ship by 9:30/10:00

Let's see if we can help break down a few of the differences.

Carnivals Trip Protection (notice that they don't call it travel insurance):

     1. Does not include any medical pre-existing conditions waiver.

     2. Medical coverage is maxed out at $20K

     3. Medical coverage is "secondary". They reimburse after your primary has paid or denied the claim. In the case of denial from primary, you must provide proof of denial before secondary will consider.

     4. Carnival does not consider age a factor when pricing.

3rd party providers of Travel Insurance:

     1. If purchased in the allotted time frame, they will waive any pre-existing conditions for the traveler and non-traveling family members.

     2. Policy can be selected that has max limits of $100K, $250K, and higher.

     3. Since many facilities outside the US require payment up front before service begin, many (not all), insurance providers may work directly with the hospital to advance payment so treatment may begin.

     4. Many policies are "Primary". If you have a medical claim, you only deal with them.

     5. Policy holder age does become a factor when setting prices.

My experience is that the hotel shuttles become a free for all with 25 or 30 people all scrambling to get 20 seats on the van.

my opinion only, spend the extra money and schedule private transportation.

STOP SCREAMING !!!! AT EVERYONE!!!

Turn off you caps lock please

Thanks to @CruiserBruce and @FlyerTalker for the information. Allows me to start a gameplan.

Situation : Looking to use miles to get to Venice, Italy next year. Way too early, but just doing research.

My miles are on AS (One World) BA is about my only choice that I'm considering. (BA/AS is currently not offering a married itinerary that will satisfy my desires). Will be choosing Business Class at a minimum. Live in Seattle but want to begin travel from LAX if at all possible. Will pay cash for one-way tickets on AS to LAX and then begin the "mileage" tickets on BA from LAX to LHR, then into VCE.

Question

Is it no way/no how to get the AS check-in agent to check baggage all the way to VCE if we show the itinerary? Or, since all One World, it's no problem at all?

Any reason why the earlier check in time could just wait until the later check in time and then everyone could check in at the same time?

I'd just do a 1 policy single trip.

But, I would also recommend that you work with a broker who can discuss with you what you feel is most important coverage for you.

There are a couple of brokers whom I recommend.

Get the Best Trip Insurance Details, Advice (tripinsurancestore.com)

and Travel Insurance Quotes - Compare & Buy Trip Insurance (insuremytrip.com)

TripInsuranceStore is my go to but either way, call them and speak to them live.

1 hour ago, CAL7 said:

 Qualifying for the medical pre-existing look-back waiver is very important. 

 

Since I have no at-risk deposit, do I still purchase insurance now to qualify for the waiver? If now, for what amount? Should I plan on incrementally increasing the insured amount as costs are incurred? 

 

Thanks for any advice! 

Yes, purchase your insurance within the time frame required to ensure you receive the pre-existing condition waiver.

Most insurances increase the price at the $500 increment. Therefore, I'd recommend an initial Trip Cost at $500. Then, as you accrue additional expenses, call your insurance provider to increase the amount of the trip cost.

Also, completely understand the terms and conditions as to what expenses you must include to maintain the waiver. Some providers require ALL expenses, some require all non-refundable expenses, some don't care just as long as you purchased within the initial time frame. These requirements are based on provider and on the regulations governed by your State of residency.

My TravelSafe policy which I just purchased the other day includes the same as above that @GeezerCouple posted.

As a side note, my county of residence utilizes electronic jury pool notification and information system. I receive notification by mail, then you log into the system. The system allows you to electronically delay your jury duty date up to a month, I believe on a 1-time basis.

Was recently looking to book a quick getaway for my wife's birthday in May. Flying to Cabo and staying at an AI instead of a cruise.

 We've got cruises booked in December this year and August of next year.

Would be interested in hearing someone's experience with the new automated TSA pre-check screening that the TSA is testing at some airports.

15 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Personally I wish Royal would invest the  time and money on improving the food as they do on this unnecessary technology.

🤣 Tell me you're a Boomer without telling me you're a Boomer.

BTW, I'm a boomer who enjoys using new technology.

A quick google search confirmed my understanding that To qualify for any of these complimentary protections, you must use your Chase Sapphire card to pay for a portion or all of your travel expenses, like your flight, hotel or rental car. Depending on the coverage, your immediate family members may also qualify for reimbursement — even if you're not traveling with them.

Here's a link to the card benefits if you can find the language 

Guide to Benefits (chasecdn.com)

1 hour ago, Cruiser1862 said:

I will clarify. I am aware that the evacuation would only be from land. I was wondering if the evacuation would take place if in a foreign port (like Amber Cove) and they did have a medical facility, however they are not well versed in repairing a detached retina. From what the answers here seem to state I’m at their mercy and that’s the chance I take going out of our country. 

Only IF all 3 of the following happen.

1. The treating facility agrees that you need to be evacuated

2. The receiving facility agreed you needed to be evacuated

3. The insurance company agreed with the other 2.

If you have Medjet Assist, then you and Medjet could make that decision if you are a member and you fall within their guidelines.

I agree. Sounds like a single trip to me. Coverage will begin when you walk out your front door and ends when you walk back into the house.

In my opinion, travel insurance is a risk sharing business. If the expectation is to get insurance to cover 100% of all potential situations with no questions asked, then you'll be unhappy. Figure out what's most important to you and cover that potential. Travel insurance can be very complicated but can also be a life saver, physically, mentally, and financially.

I agree with calling TripInsuranceStore. They can help you find the coverage that best fits your needs. They might even have suggestions about things you haven't even considered.

Hope this helps. Safe travels.

8 hours ago, John Bull said:

 

In the UK and most other places probably including the wild & woolly NW of the USA, luggage is limited by law.

 

 

 

 

JB 🙂

 

Thank you for sharing some great info.

My experience here in the States is different though. When you reserve a slot in a shared van to leave your hotel to go to a cruise ship, the van shows up with a trailer hooked up to the van just for the luggage.

That's my experience and that was my expectation for shared transportation from London to Southampton to the cruise ship. As it turned out, my expectation was unrealistic. Fortunately, I was able to correct my mistake in time. My original post was to just share my experience for someone traveling a great distance and let them be aware of the different operational practices.