debfew

I would have reported the ones who were smoking in their cabin. Not much you could do about the ones on deck.

 

DON

Why would you find it necessary to ruin someone's vacation for doing something that did not affect you. Would it make you feel good about yourself seeing them get carted out in handcuffs. Would you get some kind of pleasure in that? :confused:

Currently on the Jewel of the Seas and purchased the coffee card. It wasn't advertised anywhere except a flyer that was on the counter at the cafe Promenade. There is no Starbucks on this ship but they are accepting the card for fraps. The flyer was only out on the counter for the first day or two. It's a great deal for sure.

Calling it a reef was a poor choice of words. It's actually a rock ledge with some coral growing on it. :p The ledge is very close to shore and the water is only about 6 feet or so. I didn't go all the way up the beach to the Shipwreck but it looked to be too shallow and rocky to snorkel at that end of the beach. Actually, I think the best snorkeling is in the middle between Carambola and Shipwreck.

Yes, we did snorkel right off the beach at Carambola. The water was calm and clear. We saw lots of fish.

Here are a few pics. If you look close you can see the dark spot in the water which is the ledge.

If you snorkel from Carambola you can get behind the reef and snorkel behind it. I'm not sure there is an easy way to get on the back side of the reef from the Shipwreck end of the beach. You don't have to leave Carambola for snorkeling but no black sand.

Yes, I had the same problem with email. Try sending them a message through their Facebook page. I had better luck getting a response that way.

We spent the day at the Carambola Beach Club on South Friars beach and had a wonderful day. The scenery was beautiful, the beach club has clean rest rooms and a very nice restaurant. You can reserve chairs and umbrella by going to their facebook page, and I recommend you do reserve ahead of time. You can also just throw your towel on the beach for free if you like.

The snorkeling was actually pretty good. There is a ledge very close to shore that has a bunch of fish. The water was very clear.

I have read all of your reviews, and feel I know you and your wonderful family. That being said, I think you will love South Friars.

Here are a few pics of our day. (first time to try to upload pics, so hope it works).

In Cozumel I highly recommend Cozumel H20. You can do a google search and find their website. It's a small group of maybe 8 people max. They take you to 4 different locations. These locations are not where the typical cruise tour will take you. The tour guides are awesome and will accommodate any skill level. I just booked my second tour with them.

There really isn't any good snorkeling in Costa Maya. The beaches have a lot of sea grass. One is exception is Almaplena Eco Resort. You can purchase an all-inclusive beach day. The resort is beautiful and they only allow 20 cruise passengers max. The water can be choppy, and if so the snorkeling is not so good. But the beach at this resort and the service they provide is awesome. Highly recommend.

Belize does have good snorkeling but like someone else has said, it can be a chore to get to unless you take the ship excursion that will pick you up right at the ship rather than having to tender into port and catch the tour to head back out.

Roatan has excellent snorkeling. I recommend Tabayana Beach.

Have fun!

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I have also been looking for some feedback on this tour through the cruiseline but not much info out there. I do have this tour booked through RCI for Thanksgiving week. I will come back to this thread with a complete review when I return. It would be nice to hear from some others that have done this tour. Anyone??

I watched the weather before a cruise where it called for rain and didn't rain a drop. And where it was supposed to be sunny all day and it ended up raining. I wouldn't change my plans based on a forecast. Take a good rain poncho just in case and get out there! Have a great cruise.

And as others have said it may just be a shower and that shower might even occurr in the middle of the night.

I've been twice now, to Almaplena. There is absolutely no crowd. It's a small eco hotel with only 6 rooms. The property is drop dead gorgeous. The water is clear and there is a very pristine reef not to far off shore. The water can be choppy, however, which might affect snorkeling.

The Italian owners are charming and very hospitable. They serve a nice lunch and the drinks are served to you beach chair. I forget I'm on a cruise when I'm there because there are only a few people on the property.

They will pick you up and return you to the port in a pre-paid private taxi.

I come back from Almaplena feeling purged and renewed. The massages are cheap and professional.

I'm going back to Cota Maya in November. I'd like to do the Mayan ruins for change, but I can't seem to resist Almaplena.

Have a great time, whatever you choose!

I saw that price on Expedia too. After doing a mock booking I found that price to be the second person half price fair from the BOGO sale.

I would definately go with optopn 1. You'll have plenty of options for snorkeling in St.Thomas. Grand Turk also has some great snorkeling.

Not much snorkeling in St. Martin and no options for snorkeling in San Juan.

I live in Orlando and visit the theme parks regularly (annual passes). I avoid the parks like the plague during holiday season. Not only are the lines outrageously long, but the crowds of people walking in the parks is like shoulder to shoulder. Plan on waiting an hour for a hot dog and nowhere to sit once you finally get served. I cannot emphasize enough how unpleasant the experience is. I feel badly for the people who spend their hard earned money to come here for a vacation that time of year. :(

I had visitors from out of town a few years back and we went to Disney the day after Christmas. I've tried to explain to them that it was just the holiday crowd that made the experience so miserable, but I cannot get them to go to the parks now even during the slow season. Just no way will they go back.

Actually, the final payment is set by the cruise line and has nothing to do with when you pay off the cruise. Usually the final payment date is 75 days prior to sailing. After that date, you can't get a refund is the price drops. But prior to that date you can. Even if you paid off the cruise they will give you a refund back to your credit card.

Well the prices dropped again so I thought I might try again to see what kind of price I would get for an upsell to a balcony. The price of a balcony was just a little more than my interior at this point.

Princess comped me the upgrade and let me keep my 3 for free perks to boot!!

Thank you Princess, and thank you CC posters who recommended that I try again later as it never hurts to ask. ;)

Wow, have you been incredibly lucky, because the cruise lines I know absolutely positively do have similar sales.

 

Someone wrote in how disappointed they would be if someone else got a deal for much less than they did. Why, if they were content when they paid whatever they did? I would love to see them on an airplane where virtually everyone seems to have a different price. Do they begrudge those who got a seat for less? I suppose they do. Sad.

I don't think it's a matter of begrudging those who got a good deal. And, it's not a matter of not being content with what you got, but knowing you could have gotten it for a lot less leaves you feeling like you got duped.

But by being in a group booking, you got a lower rate to begin with and maybe some amenities from yout TA.

The TA should at least tell you it's a group booking. Don't ya think??

Ok. Called Princess and found out it's not a FLASH sale. She said sometimes the travel agents buy group bookings, and that's probably why I can't get the upgrade.

She did a tap dance trying not to discredit the TA for telling me it was a FLASH sale. So this is the second time I was booked in a group booking and not told about it, and ended up losing an upgrade in the process. :mad:

Princess FLASH rates have been around for some time .

New Booking Only rule is enforced to fill the ship , not just let a cabin become available again while upgrading to another cabin . That will not fill the ship.

Makes sense to me ?

What constitutes a FLASH sale? I didn't see any kind of sale advertised. In fact, if you go to Princess web site, the cruise for the week before my sailing does say "For new bookings only", but for the week of my sailing (May 24th) it does not. So, not sure what makes it a "FLASH" sale, other than the Princess rep called it that. :confused:

I've read in many posts that said you can't get refunds after final (thats well understood) but usually can get an upgrade to a higher category. So, I'm kind of surprised I'm hearing all this now.

I did get an upgrade after final on the Freedom of the Seas, and also on Carnival.

Good idea!

Are these kinds of comments really necessary? :confused:

I'm a relative newbie when it comes to cruising and have very much come to appreciate the wealth of knowledge gained from this board. Thank you all!

I'm happy with my sideways interior on Aloha. The price for this category (IC) hasn't dropped much. And I did get the $100 excursion credit and free dinner for 2 which I would have had to give up. So, I really shouldn't complain. I will take the advice I got to keep watching and try one more time if there are still baclonies available in a few weeks. Never hurts to try. Those are words I've hard often on this board. :)

I was stoked last night when I saw that balcony price and really got my bubble burst this morning when I called my TA.

I know they won't give a refund for a price drop in your same category, but thought they would allow an upgrade. I have gotten an upgrade after final payment on Royal Caribbean.

I need to change my travel planning strategy now that this has come to light. Guess I'll just hold out till the last minute, since it seems that just about every cruise has major drops at the last minute.

I would hate to be one of those folks that paid 1500 per person for a balcony cabin that is now listed for 841. :eek:

I am booked on Golden Princess for Alaska cruise in May. There was a price drop recently. I called to upgrade to a balcony from my interior and Princess would not allow me to upgrade even though I would be paying some extra. Said it was a flash sail for new bookings only. So, rather then paying 242 extra per the current fair, they said it would be 800. Really??

Any other cruise line I've cruise with will let you upgrade your category if there is a price drop. I'm so disappointed. I think I'll stick with Royal Caribbean from now on. :(