NoWhiners

Thanks Mic. I just noticed Formula 1 racing is in Melbourne, happening now. Hope you're watching!

Thanks for posting Mic. The Swans win again!! Nice start for them, I hope they keep it up. Must have been a great 2nd half 😉

Yep, still here, thanks for the shout out! Still rooting for the Swans, can't break the habit. Hmm, Carlton?? I think they finished pretty well last year, if my memory serves, but I'm not so sure. I love the idea of taking screenshots at the beginning of the season and comparing it to the actual results. Maybe also send it to the person who made the prediction?? Can't hurt to keep them honest! Looking forward to another great season.

Thanks Mic. been a busy year--new puppies, trip t Galapagos and Macchu Picchu, then a trip around the Med and a TA home, returned just in time for Xmas. Now I can follow the Swans, without Buddy 😞 Hoping the Swans can keep it up.

Hi mates I was reminded last week that the season was starting. I meant to start this thread then but I got distracted! I went and checked the standings and, to my relief and surprise, the Swans are 2-0. What a nice way to start. So, who ate the favorites to win it all this year? Which teams did the most to improve during the off-season? Can the Swans keep it up? Let's get this party started 😁 Special thanks to possum52 for the reminder. (And we play Essendon this week?? Good luck to both teams!)

I think this is it. One of the friends going on this cruise said she was locked out of her X account too. She had to call them and they cleared her cache and she was good to go. I will try that next week when we are back home. (In Las Vegas now for CES) Thanks for the info.

Hmm, I wonder how that could be. The only other person who could look at it would be DH and he leaves all this to me. I have signed out multiple times and I only use my PC, so it's not like I opened it somewhere else. Maybe it's this but I suspect it is just more confusion by X. Thanks for your help.

I just tried this and now the site says "The reservation number is locked. Try again later." Every time I try and make progress, X's system puts a new roadblock in the way. I'm starting to feel that it doesn't like me 😁 I'll keep trying. Maybe by the time we cruise, I can actually get in! Thanks.

Even more good news--this is what I was hoping they would offer us. Thanks, I feel a lot better about things now 😁

This is excellent news, thanks. That was going to be my backup plan. Enjoy your cruise and Happy New Year!

That's a good point, I had forgotten there was a chance at a discount. Thanks

Yeah, I thought that too but when I tried, it made me login again and didn't do anything. Go figure 😉

Hi all I have searched for the answer I need but had no luck, so I will try and ask for your help. We have cruised X a few ties but I can't remember how booking dining works! We are a group of 9 celebrating our 50th year since college graduation on a Canada/NE cruise in late Sept/Oct. We all took Open dining, so we would have some flexibility. A few of the folks are brand new to cruising and they have questions. One wants everything set up NOW!! I tried to go online and reserve a table in the MDR for all of us but I can't find a spot to do that. I also looked for a way to reserve a table for us at Tuscan Grille (this is on the Eclipse) but all I can find is dining packages. I did manage to find a spot to reserve but it only allowed for 2 of us. When I clicked on "add guest" it asked to sign in again and I was stuck in a vicious loop! Can anyone provide any help? Am I trying to book too early? Does X not allow reserved tables during Open dining? (I know Princess does but X isn't Princess). What am I missing/doing wrong? Thanks for any help.

I'm pretty sure no one in our group will have the unlimited package. In fact, for most of them this is their first cruise. We have one person who is obsessed with early planning and wants to book Tuscan Grille 1 night and wants to do it now. I'm not sure the others will go along but I'm happy to help her understand how to do some things. I emailed her the basics but realized I wasn't sure what the booking timeframe was for X, so I thought I would check with all of you.

Good idea, I'll give that a try. Thanks.

Oh, now I get it, thanks for clarifying. I wasn't catching the difference between those with a package and those just trying to book a night or two. Thanks.

What about just booking one night? We have a group going on a cruise in October as a 50 year college reunion and want to book one night in a specialty restaurant. I was thinking it was too soon but maybe not??

How soon in advance can you book specialty dining? I thought it was 90 days before the cruise? Thanks for any insight.

Did anyone take the tour with Spain Day Tours today? We had some friends ask about it and wondered where the meeting point was--across the street from the big Memorial?? After you walked across a green-covered (in fake grass) bridge? The ship was sort of far from the entrance gate but it was a nice walk. Thanks.

Had the same experience on Island this week. When we boarded, none of the token machines were working. Went to the front desk and asked for some to get us started and they gave me 4! Then later, when the machines were working (sort of), we paid for 4 laundry tokens, got 2 washer/dryer, 2 soap. Went to the front desk and they exchanged the soap tokens for washer/dryer. The front desk has been very helpful. We are only platinum.

You both did well to make it to 9:30, I feel your early-morning wake up pain but I feel my eyes closing, so maybe I will fall back asleep soon. And we will walk to/from the Vatican, plus the tour, so we should sleep great tonight! Looking forward to seeing the Sistine Chapel.

Looks a lot like the streets in Rome. We were surprised to see so many people out, maybe because it's a Sunday? Not cold but windy, but everyone is bundles up like it's mid-winter! I wonder how they dress when it's really cold?? We tried to stay awake. Went to an early dinner, had a bottle of wine and a mushroom pizza then some tiramisu. Walked back to our hotel (Hotel Navona) and I feel asleep sitting at the desk reading email 😯 Woke up and decided it would be more comfortable in bed! So, here I am awake at 5:30 in the morning 🙂 Vatican later today, hope we stay awake. We couldn't get tix until 3:30, so we'll have time for a nap before we go! Safe travels to all.

We arrived in Rome a few hours ago. Our seats and food weren't nearly as nice LACruiser's! And we used the delta app to track our bags and that worked really well. it's nice to know the bags are onboard with you. Now to stay awake until at least 9 pm...

Maybe it would work out to order a bottle of your preferred gin and some tonic for your room and make your own? The room steward can bring you ice and if you want a particular glass, order a G&T in your preferred glass at a bar, then take it to your room. Maybe this is harder than I think?? Anyway, just a thought.

While I think this is mostly true, we were on the Flora earlier this summer and had better luck with more flexible arrangements. For example, one tour ended up being a lot more up and down thru rocks and was going to be about a mile of that. We told our guide we didn't want to risk falling, so they sent one of the guides to escort us (and a few others) back to where we landed. They then called one of the Zodiacs back to pick us up. Plus, there are other crew who help with the Zodiacs who always assist with loading and unloading passengers, and can help with people who stay at the landing areas. I would ask your tour guide what the options might be. I think they will tell you to give it a try and if it doesn't work out, they will either let you sit and wait for the group to come back or get a Zodiac to pick you up. The guides and all the crew are very accommodating and they understand that people want to try things and not just dismiss them without trying. And, while it's true you can't just wander around wherever you want, they will tell you where you can/can't walk, and will try and send someone from the ship to keep an eye on those who don't want to finish the tour. Just our experience, might be different for others but it won't hurt to talk to your guide in advance and see what your options are. Have a great time, it's a wonderful place to tour--or just sit and watch the birds, waves, flora and the rest of nature.