JimInBuffalo

Today the stock rose 30% after 2 board members purchases $100 million each of a $2.2 billion loan according to Reuters.One of the board members, Alexander Wilhelmsen is the largest individual shareholder with 11% of the stock.

It appears that he may know something we don’t!

15 hours ago, Wolf 8 said:

My wife and I sailed on the Silhouette to Aruba in December 2019 just before the ship went in for it's upgrade.  We were very impressed with the product (clean, elegant ship, excellent officers and crew, good food & drink and entertainment geared to their clientele).

 

As an investor I saw a well run operation that people were eager to purchase again and again.

 

When we sailed RCL stock was $135 a share.  Today, more or less on a whim I bought 115 shares at $21.60.  My expectation is that the Corona-19 virus panic will subside, RCL ships will resume sailing in April or May and the company will meet it's debt obligations rather than go bankrupt.

 

I expect that in 12 or 18 months I'll have turned $2485 into $7,500 to $10,000 and enjoyed several free $100 OBC bonuses afforded to those who own 100 or more shares of RCL stock.

I agree with the above. So much so that I also have purchased 200 shares over the past week. The lowest price I paid was $22 per share. I am betting that most, if not all of the cruise companies will come back slowly. I can wait. In the interim, I can utilize the savings per cruise since we use RCL and Celebrity quite a bit. 

I had actually been watching the stock for the past two years since speaking to an older cruiser on one of our trips. She had purchased her stock in the early years when it was low and kept it to get the OBC’s. I held off buying due to the price at the time so now with it getting to the 
$20’s, I decided it was time to _____ or get off the pot. That being said, I used money that was in a bank account and not doing much for me. I am only expecting a return on my investment through OBC for now and if the price goes up, so much the better. No one should invest money that they cannot afford to lose.

Another boost for the stock could come from the government if a ‘bail-out” is given. There has already been talk about prohibiting the companies from buying back their own stock to boost their profits and the price of the stock.

It’s way to early to say what will happen. I am not a gambler. I made the investment on what I have seen about the company and that I have basically been waiting for the price to experience a downward shift to where it became practical for me to get a ROI that I can justify.

I jumped in on Friday and bought my first batch of RCL. I am going to buy more on Monday. I admit it is mostly a gut feeling based on my experience with the company and  reviews with other cruisers like those on this site. I do believe that RCL will come back. Not to the level it had previously, but it will be enough to provide a goo ROI. I am also betting on the the OBC sticking around as well as the dividend but due to the recent drop, everything could change in the next few months. It was nice that the stock went up a bit at the end of the day of Friday but we will have to wait and see.

As noted above, no one should buy these stocks unless you have to where with all to sustain losses on the amount that you invest. If you want something safe, go with mutual funds. There are a lot of bargains now and to come in the next few months.

Our transportation from the hotel was to the Bayonne port

We have been cruising from Bayonne for the past  four years, driving in from Buffalo, NY.

We always stay at the Ramada Plaza at the Newark airport. We reserve through Trinity Reservations. They offer a room (double) for about $200 which includes the room, parking for up to 10 days and limousine to and from the port. They also have a shuttle bus to/from NYC for $50 R/T with convenient trip times conducive to show times, etc. Drops off and picks up 2 blocks from Times Square

Hi Bob, the dancers were, of course, females. Stardust does not provide hosts for male leaders.It wasn’t an issue of how much the hosts should be paid since the amount paid for the cruise included the dance hosts as advertised by Stardust and reinforced on the cruise by the management during the cruise. They had already paid for the service ( of the hosts) when they bought their ticket for the dance cruise. Since it was explained to every one ahead of time that hosts are included in the price of the cruise, it does not become an issue of the other participants subsidizing those who will utilize the hosts. I am sure that Stardust does not want to lose a significant number of single female participants by not providing hosts.

I agreee that 10 days of being a dance host is a lot but that is what they have signed up for. A very good friend of mine who is a dance host for the cruise industry tells me that he is most frequently assigned to cruises that last an average of 25 days. Those cruises typically have the larger number of single (widowed, divorced) women traveling. You have to remember also, that the (official) dance hosts who sign up for the dance cruise are being compensated for their time as well as getting a “free” cruise out of the deal.

Any single woman who attends a cruise like this and is serious about learning new steps, needs to practice those steps while they are fresh in the mind in order to build muscle memory. I can imagine how frustrating it is for someone who wants to dance at the events on a dance cruise and has no partner (even if is for a few dances) to participate.

Take a look around at the next dance that you attend. If your local dances in the GTA are like they are here in Buffalo, I’m sure that you see a larger number of single women than single men. That’s great if you are a man and you want to dance. It’s terrible for the single ladies who are there to dance but have to wait until a single man asks her.

Speaking of that, I think that all dance venues should have a protocol making it easy for single dancers to get together. I attended one venue where the protocol was for anyone wanting to dance to stand on the side of the floor in a designated area to signify that they were available and willing to dance. Any other person could then approach the other (male or female) and politely ask for that dance with them. This works very well and I can’t understand why it is not done at more venues.

Let’s face it, there is no dress code on any of the ships anymore. Cruising used to be the one place that you could expect to dress up in your best clothes and expect others to do the same.

I have never seen anyone kicked out of a restaurant for any clothing choice.

Be cautious about dining in the specialty restaurants on the first night of the cruise. We had an assigned table but decided that the dining package was a good deal after getting the sales pitch from the staf upon arriving aboard.

We went to the Asian restaurant and enjoyed it but on our second night when we reported to the MDR we found that our assigned table had be changed since we didn’t show up the first night!

I complained to the Matre’d who promised he would make it right but of course, nothing was done. I’m sure that they knew we had signed up for the specialty dining, therefore giving them 3 nights that we wouldn’t be around the MDR.

We ended up at at table for 4 with no other table mates for the duration of the cruise.

If i had known this, we would have gone to the MDR on the first night, get our assigned table and then do the other restaurants later in the cruise.

I have a problem with the proliferation of the fancy beds that they put on many of the ships. I’m talking about the ones that are suspended by ropes or have curtains around them.

They are made to be very conspicuous and therefore signify privilege to the person who is the earliest in snagging them for the day. Rarely do you see these “beds” vacant save for the personal items left on them to convey “ownership” for however long they decide they need it.

Adding insult to injury, these units take up much more room than would be necessary for a standard deck lounge, therefore reducing the overall capacity for passengers to have a place on the deck.

Invariably I will walk past one of these monsters and see only one person or no one at all using them. But the flip flops, books and other personal items are there the entire day.

To me, they seem impractical and a nuisance. More headache that they are worth. It si my humble opinion that they are placed there only to provide nice pictures for the ship brochure.

We found out that it pays to have the insurance after we missed a flight out of Buffalo and could not get to the port on time for our cruise. We got all of our money back from the insurance company.

We get the insurance every time. It’s worth it.

One other thing. Make sure when you arrange for the insurance that you include travel days before/after the cruise or vacation. Most agencies will automatically use the dates of the cruise as your “covered period”. If you are flying ahead of time or staying after the cruise, the additional days are not covered. Make sure that the policy shows the dates that your are away from home, including air transportation or travel by car for any trip that is covered by insurance.

We are surprised too. We were on the Equinox last fall and even ending up buying a vase at the auction. Knowing how much infrastructure Celebrity must have invested in the attration, I am sure that it had to be a pretty compelling business case for them to make this decision.

Snowing and 18 degrees in Buffalo today. Six inches of snow fell last night. Ready for a cruise (anywhere).

Since I first posted this thread, we have been returning to Bermuda every year and are going again in May 2018. Last year we were thrilled to be in Bermuda to see the practice runs for The America’s Cup races. There was so much to see in the harbor and the improvements made in advance of the races should benefit Bermuda for years to come.

In our last few trips, one of the favorite things for us to do is to visit the “Sea Glass” beach. It is easy to get to (if you follow the directions). It is very close to the pier and you can easily walk there.

I talked to some local dancers who were on the

Costa cruise in January. They said that Stardust had a problem with providing enough dance hosts for the singles that were on the cruise.

I would have thought that with Stardust’s experience in this type of cruise, plus their dance weekends at their home locations, that would never be an issue. It can be very frustrating for singles who want to practice what they are learning when there are not enough hosts to go around.

Overall impressions were favorable for the cruise but this one issue was is a deal-breaker for many who are considering their options for future dance cruises.

Going on the Anthem next month for the second time. We really enjoy the Music Hall for dancing there.

-Jim

Wow, it is kind of a good problem to have:

On our cruise, we are getting Pre-Paid Gratuities, Premium Beverage Package AND $350 OBC.

As is looks now (until we are on the ship and try the Casino trick) we will have to spend the OBC on Merchandise, additional tips or possibly excursions.

Any other ideas from the readers of this thread?

-Jim

29 degrees F in Buffalo today, we had two inches of snow overnight which was more than the total we had for the entire month of March this year.

Would anyone know if cashing in your OBC is an option on the "Summit"?

We are looking at a cruise in May that is offering $300 OBC.

I have never tried using a credit in the casino for cash but I know others who have successfully.

From what I have read above, it appears to be relative to the ship in question.

Thanks in advance,

-Jim

Currently 55 degrees F in Buffalo with overcast skies and light rain.

There is a large group of people from the Buffalo area who regularly attend the weekends at Stardust in the Catskills. They also do cruises however I have never known anyone who has attended them.

My wife and I are ballroom dancers and love to dance on our past cruises. We have been a bit disappointed by the lack of room on many of the dance floors. It always seems like there is great music however. Also, we have found that all of the bands/orchestras really respond favorably to having dancers in the room and cater to those who request specific dance music.

Currently 2 degrees F in Buffalo. We will see wind chill temps around -20 F on Saturday. A cruise is sounding pretty good right now.

-Jim

I would go on the Anthem tomorrow if they would allow it. We were on the cruise over Thanksgiving and loved the ship.

It is currently 2 degrees F in Buffalo and over the weekend, the wind chill is expected to be -20 F. Getting away from here, even if it took a couple days to get to the warmer climes would be much better.

Bottom line, the ship made it.

In a related story, the Titanic II is going to be built and will start sailing in a two years.

-Jim

Hey Jim from Buffalo... this is Jeff from Niagara. Same thing here. We are going to try MSC next. Kids always sail free. However, I don't think they have the same "waterpark" fun as you'll find on other lines but the prices seem decent and I've heard good things about the service.

Hi Jeff, Thanks for the comment. I had never heard that about MSC before. It is worth a look. I agree, that the kids will find something to do for fun regardless of the ship.

We really want to take the kids but don't want to sink too much money into something that goes by so fast.

-Jim

That's a good question about where we are going in Central Park. We are going to play it according to the weather. We will arrive at our hotel in NJ around 2 pm and will take our hotel shuttle to the airport to catch the Airtrain from the airport to the Newark station.

From NY Penn Station, we want to take the subway uptown to the park but do not have an exact destination in the park. I thought that we could walk around and see some of the highlights. From there, we want to walk to the 42nd St. area.

Finally we would either go on the subway or take a cab downtown to the World Trade Center. After touring that area, we will take the Path train to Newark Penn Sta. or got to NY Penn Sta. and take the NJ Transit back to then Newark Airport Sta.

Again, everything will be dependent on the weather. We both are used to walking and definitely need the exercise, before the cruise.

-Jim

Thanks for the updates. I didn't realize how complicated this would be. I guess the fact that we are not used to public transportation in Western New York shows how we tend to drive everywhere instead of taking alternate modes. Buffalo has one subway line and it goes for a total of about 5 miles.

I will continue to research this topic and welcome any additional suggestions.

-Jim

We will be in Newark next week, sailing on the Anthem on Sunday the 22nd.

I am driving in early and staying in Newark. My wife and I are planning on going into the city on Sat. night.

Based on info I saw earlier on this site, I am planning on taking the hotel shuttle to the P4 Airtrain Station and the free train to the Newark Airport Station. From there we will take the NJ Transit to NY Penn Station ($8.25 PP Each way).

From there, we would like to take a subway to Central Park. I assume I would take the #1,2 or 3 subway.

Question: can I get a free transfer for the subway when I exit the NJ Transit train?

Any other comments/suggestions about getting around would be welcome.

Thanks,

-Jim

We have been on many cruises in the past 30 years but next summer we are planning for our first cruise with our three grand kids (without their parents). Ideally, we would like to get a room which will fit us all. The kids are 11,9,and 7 years old.

I have seen ads for "kids sail free" and "3rd and 4th passengers go free" but most are for cruises that sail within the next 2-5 months. We are looking to go in July or August 2016, preferably from a port in the New York area. Bayonne is our first choice.

I have checked with two travel agents (online) and get the same response: Nothing is available at this time, wait til you get closer to the date. Well, since we need to plan the trip around their other activities, we want to get a reservation nailed down early.

I would like to know if anyone reading this thread has had the same experience and if you have sailed during the summer months, what did you pay and what deals did you TA give you?

Thanks in advance,

-Jim

Leaving in12 days for our Thanksgiving cruise on the Anthem Of The Seas.

Just so I have a better idea of how they load riders on the flowrider:

<> I assume they have assigned times for different levels

<> How many riders are on the wave at any time?

<> How many times during the day is the flowrider open?

Thanks,

-Jim

Forgot to add the response command.