motherof2

We’ve sailed north from Norfolk and from Baltimore, Baltimore is pretty smooth embarkation. But wherever you sail from, don’t miss Quebec City, a really lovely town, an UNESCO World Heritage site, and have lunch in the Frontenac Hotel, save time to explore its exhibits. You can get an Uber either from or to the airport from the cruise port area. 

How to travel from Seattle Tacoma airport to Pier 91 for Royal Caribbean cruise?

More of the cruise lines are giving passengers a choice of embarkation times and it has really managed the process. They monitor those times, you don’t get in ahead of your designated time( but you get in if you are late for your scheduled time) .On our last 3 cruises our room was ready when we got on board, so we drop off our carryons. We are not elite class and just have regular veranda, no suite. We watch the muster video and then go to the muster station to check in, then find lunch. We eat in the buffet, then go wander about the ship or do as so many have already suggested and find a comfortable seat in a public place and read, make last minute phone calls, make dinner arrangements if not already made. A ready room does not mean your luggage will be there. But there really isn’t chaos anywhere. We tip our room attendant when we meet them ( above the stated daily amount) and ask that we have one additional bath towel in our bathroom. It creates good rapport and gets me an extra towel for hair drying. Have a great cruise- it’s a great way to vacation. 

Check with your ship, we just got off Celebrity Edge and they had cornhole boards, you might need to brings bags.

Just now, motherof2 said:

It’s a tossup between the Grand European Cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest with extension to Prague and The Baltic Cruise. Both were perfect, simply spectacular.

Obviously, the first is a River cruise!

It’s a tossup between the Grand European Cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest with extension to Prague and The Baltic Cruise. Both were perfect, simply spectacular.

We are a couple ages 76 and 75 and have been on 3 cruises ( each a different cruise line) in the last 9 months and have come home healthy after each one. We are both fully vaccinated and have not had Covid ( to the best of our knowledge). We were mindful of people around us, tried to social distance like sitting in less desirable seats in theaters so as to be farther away from the crowds. But we ate in dining rooms, buffets, etc, and just changed places when we became aware of people coughing a lot. We didn’t see much evidence of constant room service outside doors of cabins near us ( could be evidence of quarantine). We recommend cruising when there’s less likely to be alot of children, although we were on a mega ship last June and still remained healthy. Wash hands frequently, bring Covid tests with you, and be aware of your surroundings. Cruising remains a wonderful way to vacation. 

Cruising to Tortola on Enchanted Princess in Dec. this year, which beach ? Which town to visit? What not to miss? We are couple in our 70’s, don’t dive or hike 😥

What are good choices for beaches in Aruba with amenities like bathrooms, food choices, and chairs to rent?

8 hours ago, Dawniepoo said:

yes, good point 👍🏻

We cancealed our Regal Princess Cruise on Friday (supposed to have sailed today, and has now been cancealed by Princess) but we were refunded and given a FCC. I think anyone can cancel a Princess Cruise departing til end of May and get a refund, or FCC. At this point, it seems like the wise thing to do if you are a senior citizen, and esp if you have a underlying condition. I am diabetic, so discretion seemed the better part of valor, and we have til Dec. 2021 to sail on the Future Cruise Credit. 

Has anyone stayed in one of the 3 hotels that Princess uses in Barcelona? Or private hotel? Is there Uber? Cost from cruise terminal to town center? 

We used SPB and owner Vika was just fabulous with helping us plan what we wanted to do, our guide spoke excellent English and was highly educated and intelligent. We’d use them again for sure. We bundled our tours and everyone in our party of 7, including children, loved it. You don’t even have to pay til after the last tour. BAck on the ship we heard lots of complaints from pax who used the ships excursion. We carefully compared what the ship offered and for how much and we saw more things and paid much less than the ship would have charged. The Baltic was a great cruise. Enjoy.

We’ve done 22 cruises and have taken about 5 ship excursions. We always research private companies or even just go to the transportation area at the cruise ports of call, and in almost 100 % of the cases we had no problems and got more for our money than those who did ship excursions - because lots of those pax complained. But there are a few exceptions- when you have a long distance to travel to the site, use ship offerings, like Cozumel to Mayan ruins on mainland Mexico, Denali Park bus ride, Haines Alaska to Skagway. Of course Viking includes lots of their excursions in their price for river or Ocean cruises. They are Spectacular, to say the least, but very expensive. Everyone should have a Viking cruise at least once in their lives, it is a highlight.

Don’t miss Berlin, even if it’s just one long day! We did the BLtic cruise and used Spb for all our tours. They were wonderful and always got us back to the ship in plenty of time. We listened to complaints of those who took the ship excursions- much more money, guides not as well spoken or knowledgeable, and not as much seen. You don’t even pay SPB tours til after completion of your your tours! Now we are looking to use SPB for our Med cruise next year. Try to get a cruise that spends 2 or 3 days in St. Petersburg, you won’t regret it🛳🛳🛳

After 23 cruises our packing list includes a few clothes pins, a travel size laundry liquid detergent packet for washing out underwear, a magnetic white board and pen to leave notes for family, a few extra clothes hangers , a few plastic bags of different sizes, chair clips for towels at the pool, a small sewing kit, small bottles of pain/ cold/allergy/antacids because while usually available at a ship store, theses items are much more expensive. Of course every one should always bring a good attitude because problems occasionally do occur- but really, does that need to be mentioned? Another hint, we never buy ships WiFi, we just go to a coffee shop at various ports of call, enjoy the java and get free WiFi.