Bankshot

We live in south Florida and have met people from Europe who spend the Winter here.  Many come over in the Fall on a 14 day repositioning cruise, enjoy the Winter here, and return home on another repositioning cruise in the spring.  They can usually book these cruses for less than it would cost them to fly.  We have booked one for as little as $41/day, outside room.

We don't get personal but we always make an effort to interact with the crew members.  We know they have hard boring jobs and we try to make their day a little more interesting.  We also try to remember some we have cruised with before and they seem thrilled that someone remembers them.  We also let management know about those who are friendly and do outstanding work.

Also try Preservation Hall for some good music and Felix for roasted oysters.  We also like to take the streetcar out to the Garden Dist.  Jackson Square is always interesting and be sure to try the Benignes (sic) at Cafe' de Monde.  Deanie's restaurant has good local food.

I asked repeatedly because I wanted them to admit this was not the "Lowest Price".  Just trying to put a little truth in advertising so people would understand this was a blatant misrepresentation.  I hope you don't agree with their dishonest methods.

They are implying this IS the lowest cost ever that will be offered and we all know the price can be reduced many times before sailing.  Some newbees may think they are getting the best deal and are being misled down this dead end street.  They avoided answering my question many times.

Marketing sucks.  NCL tries to get you to book future cruises while on board by saying, "Book now for the lowest cost".  They forgot to add, "At this time".  They would not answer questions about future sales or other price reductions.

We've stayed at the Griffin Rd. location many times and enjoyed the free parking and a very good breakfast.  There are also good restaurants nearby for dinner the night before your cruise.

We had cruised twice on Windjammer Barefoot Cruises out of Tortola and one NCL cruise out of Miami.  Then, in 2009, my wife and I were both diagnosed with cancer.  Soon after successful Chemo and Radiation treatments we decided we'ed better hit the waves.  We started booking four cruises per year and completed 56.  We were nine days into our 57th when I was put off the ship in Falmouth, Jamaica due to heart failure.  After five days in a Montego Bay Hospital I was air-lifted to Ft. Lauderdale where I recovered.  Our cruising days are over now but it's still the best way to travel.  We did four Transatlantic cruises, Alaska four times and the Panama Canal West Coast three times.  We also did Quebec, the Maritimes New England plus eastern and western Caribbean never having a bad day until Falmouth.

Relax, chill out, this is a fun vacation. Save the panic for when you get home. If you constantly think you're going to flip it's going to happen. If so, what's the worst thing that can happen? It's happened before and you survived so just make a joke of it and keep on trucking. Bourbon usually helps me.

I also recommend St. Thomas (Megan's Bay) or better Trunk Bay on St. John. In St. Thomas take a taxi to Red Hook and catch the ferry to St. John. They have transportation to most of their beaches. Trunk Bay has the only underwater National Park in the system. Take your snorkel gear for a unique experience.

Order two 'Rum Runners" from Amazon for under $15. I use it to supplement the weak drinks served on board. I drink a lot of their offerings but I like a stronger drink even in the Diamond lounge where our drinks are free..

DON"T worry about it unless you fall overboard. Almost everyone gets disoriented and it's just a laughable event. Have fun where ever you are and don't sweat the small stuff.

While there don't miss Pike's Market and the interesting food and shops there. Also there's a very tall bank building near the football stadium where you can get a terrific view from 44th floor for $2. Beats paying $15 at the Space Needle.

We like the Las Ramblas Hotel, seventh floor or above, at the rear or West side of hotel. Found a great little Turkish grill just left from hotel, left on first street and it's on the left. The hotel has a terrific full breakfast also. Don't miss the indoor market up the street and try the lunch counter at the rear. Go several days early or stay late, you never know if or when you'll get back to this beautiful city.

57 cruises and never lost anything. This includes two Windjammer cruises where your cabin remains unlocked 24/7. There are no keys. Relax, have fun and don't worry about anything but someone breaking in line.

We've done one TA East and three West from Barcelona. We'll never do another Eastern trip. Some of the reasons have already been listed so I'll add more. When sailing East from Ft. Lauderdale you lose an hour a day for the first six days. On the seventh day you are having dinner around 1:00pm "Body Time". A Westbound trip extends the day by one hour which can be very useful during Happy Hour. Spending 3 or 4 days in Barcelona before the cruise helps reduce jet lag and also offers excellent tours or simply exploring the city on your own. We enjoyed the Las Rambulas Hotel, 7th floor or above, with balcony, on the west side. They have an excellent breakfast. Exit the front, turn left, and another left at the first street and there is a fabulous small Turkish Grill with outstanding food. Have fun.

We shared a table with a lady who finished second on Jeopardy and a gentleman who had escaped death from the World Trade Center. Seven of his coworkers weren't so lucky. And then... on a T/A we observed a deeply religious couple who wore a uniform everyday. His was a bright blue tight fitting top with equaling tight pants. She wore tight revealing clothes and very heavy makeup. We referred to them as Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker. He would sit at a table with his Bible open and she would bring him food.

Years ago my wife and I were sitting by the pool at a hotel in Jamaica. We met a guy from Ohio who was president of Dayton Tire Company. When he found out we were from Atlanta he said he had a business contact in there. He told us his contact's name and it was my wife's dad. Since then we have met people on ships we've worked with or lived next door to 55,35 and 5 years ago. We just moved to a condo in Daytona and across the hall is a guy we worked with 32 years ago back in Atlanta. There are three typed pages of other coincidences that I've accumulated. Sometimes it gets really scary.

Always get trip insurance. We're old but it can and does happen to the younger set. We were 9 days into a 14 day cruise when I started to have heart failure. The ship's doc could not stabilize me so we were put off in Jamaica. Spent 5 days at a new hosp. where they wanted $13,000 until our insurance could be verified. Credit cards covered it then we had a $17,000 medvac flight to Ft. Lauderdale. Eventually out trip insurance covered almost all expenses. Don't leave home without it.

Try the Las Ramblas Hotel--seventh floor--rear balcony. Step outside the main entrance, take a left to the first street, another left will lead to a Turkish grill with excellent, low cost food.

Just do the math for the cabin category you prefer or can afford. Generally $100 a day per person is typical and anything below that is a bargain. We've done a 14 day transatlantic, ocean view room for $41/per person per night. The bargains are out there you just have to work to find them.

We prefer May or early June. I wore shorts everyday with no problem. Later in the Summer you can be greeted by mosquitos and other treacherous flying insects. Late Summer you get to experience the rainy season.

We won a six day Windjammer Barefoot Cruise from Tortola, BVI. The sweepstakes was offered by a rural electric company. IRS considers this income. We had to pay our way to Tortola so we used transportation costs to offset most of the cruise value. We pad tax on a fraction of the total value. Loved it.

We lover Las Ramblas Hotel, seventh floor backside w/ balcony. Just around corner to the left is an excellent Turkish grill.

Avoid Falmouth, just stay on board. You know it has to be bad if ships are cancelling this port. We were harassed by the local guard when reboarding Never again.