Formerly known as Seabee

Monica…yes, we will be on the cruise. BTW, we currently live in Huntersville, NC. 

Onward sails at 6:00 PM. Would we be able to check in or at least drop bags prior to noon?  If so we would do that and then explore MC that afternoon. We are staying in Nice a few days so do have the option of visiting MC on the day before the sail date but it would be logistically easier to do so on the day of. Thanks. 

Greetings to all my CC friends from other boards.  We have taken the plunge and have decided to try Azamara after years of sailing on other lines, primarily Celebrity.  We are planning on the Onward in October.  One of the ports is Porto Santo Stefano.  All I know about this place is that it is in Tuscany.  Have any of you been here that can offer suggestions of what to do?  (I know about the Port Category here but it is silent about this and since Azamara is probably one of the few cruise lines to stop here, I thought this might be a better source of info).  thanks and cruise on!

Another recommendation for Tivoli.  Try to get to Villa d'est (right in town) and Hadrian's villa (a little more difficult to get to).

I’m new to Azamara having sailed often with Celebrity. Are all the Azamara ships pretty much the same size and configuration? I have looked at the various deck plans and that appears to be the case. Any preferences of ship or am I safe to just choose the itinerary and go with any ship. Thanks. 

Can you book flights through FBC which are several days (weeks) earlier than the cruise date?  We typically go to Europe (from USA) a couple of weeks before sail date…if we travel that far I like to stay awhile😁. 

On 8/9/2022 at 9:57 AM, bama4cruisin said:

Another house divided here . . . our 9 night repositioning cruise on Beyond only has one Saturday on the ship.  My team (RTR) is off that Saturday 😃 but DH’s team  (who wear orange and blue🙄) plays Arkansas that day.  If AA gets us home as scheduled, we’ll be home the night before the AL - LSU GAME.  I’m hoping to catch some of AL - MSU game while in NYC pre-cruise.

No problem Jennifer. Bama wins both games. So go and enjoy your cruise😁. RTR. 

I have not sailed on the newer ships (Edge and newer) and remember some negative reviews against the Edge when she first sailed  (apart from the Virtual balconies).  Some of the concerns centered on the “weird” interactions between the entertainers wandering through the ship and suddenly appearing “in your face” anywhere on the ship.  This was concerning for me so I have stuck to the older ships. However, I am curious as to what the ambience is now on the Edge and Apex.  I might dip my tie in the water if it has cooled off some.  Thanks

ps. I am not asking for review of the virtual balcony as there are plenty of comments on that…pro and con. 

57 minutes ago, Lois R said:

Hi Roz, I totally forgot you recently had major surgery!.......and hopefully you will feel more confident about  traveling next year.  You know I travel solo too and have been on 2 trips recently.....one to Greece and the other other to Alaska. Both went very smoothly. Hopefully my cruise next week will go the same way.

Wishing you all the best🙂

Hi Lo😇

Thanks 

I haven’t sailed with Princess in several years. If I recall, there seem to always be some if the dining room staff wandering around the ship, hawking the Specialty Restaurants with “deals” (once I got a 2 for 1 deal but it may have been on a different cruise line). The further into the cruise it got, the better the deals. Is this still the case? Can you book onboard and attract a “deal”?  

7 hours ago, davekathy said:

Agree. Yes she 😉 does a fantastic job concerning the number of tables, number of us they are responsible for by keeping our glasses full.  

I should gave made it clear that “she” was identifying as a “he” that night. 

Just off the Reflection. We had no intention of eating at Specialty restaurant but beginning on about the third night, we were approached in the martini bar with a special price at the Lawn Club. 1/2 price. We took it and were  delighted.  He offered us the same deal any night we wanted to return. We planned to go again in the last night but weather was rough and winds were up so we decided not to go.  Wonder if they were having trouble filling up the tables. I wouldn’t buy before cruise...deals seem to always be available on board

No need to buy a bottle of wine in DR.  The sommelier will come around and you simply tell him what wine you want. He’ll bring it and continue to come around and fill your glass during the meal.  During dessert, he will ask for your card.  I have no idea how he keeps up with how much wine you drink or if he even tries...but never been a problem.  Now if you don’t have a drink package, I don’t know what would happen or what you would be billed.  Never once have I been asked at the beginning of the meal if I had a drink package. 

On 9/23/2019 at 7:53 PM, jancl57 said:

We used Joe Banana (Italy tour sharing) in Naples.  We did the Sorrento, Positano, lunch at la Tagliata ( superb) and

Pompei.  We LOVED it.  We are taking another Italy/Greek Isle cruise in May.  Naples is a port of call and we are hoping to put together a tour to Sorrento, Ravello & Positano (hopefully with lunch at La Tagliata again). Can't say enough good things about them!

Just got back and used JB for this very same tour. Fabulous tour.  Our driver was Luca and what a personable and friendly guy he was.  Passionate about his country and loves what he is doing. He was courteous and entertaining.  As we were heading back to the ship, he received a phone call which he passed to me saying, “call for your group boss”.  It was Cindy from JB calling to ask us if we had enjoyed the day.  She was also a delight.  I would absolutely book with Joe Banana again.

I would ask to speak to the Engineer. 

What’s the revolution?

I’ve been cruising since 1995 and have well over 20 cruises with X.  I don’t know what EQ, RF or SL is. Nor do I have any idea what (or who) LLP is. I certainly have no clue who Capt Kathy is. Never knew the name of the Capt Club Hostess (frankly never laid eyes on one but I read about it here a lot). Nor wouldn’t know a Cruise Director if I saw one. So I guess I wouldn’t be the one to tell anything that you’ve done cause I probably would be less than impressed. All I know, is that I enjoy cruising but also take a lot of land based trips. I do enjoy picking up a few tips now and then from this site. 

Hi Lo😜

On 8/24/2019 at 11:59 AM, broberts said:

Do not use an incognito / private browser session and do not logout. If you are still getting logged out, check your browser settings. It needs to allow the saving of cookies for the website.

 

Thanks. I’m not intentionally logging out and have no idea what an incognito/private browser is. I am using an IPad.  And it doesn’t always make me log in...I’d say about 25% of the times I go to the site I am already logged in...other 75% I have to enter user name and ID. 

Is there a way to stay logged in.  Currently I have to enter user name and password each time. Used to be automatically logged in whenever I opened the page. This is on website not app.  

Y’all are being pretty tough on the OP who has in fact provided an excellent source of info for others who are doing just what you are criticizing him for not doing...investigating options. Thanks Leesre for providing this info.

On 7/4/2019 at 12:55 AM, stamptherapy said:

Just a note on this - there is a Paris Pass - IMHO, you DON't want this - what you want is the Paris MUSEUM Pass. We did the 4 day last fall - here is their website - http://en.parismuseumpass.com/

 

It was totally worth it for us, we got our money's worth. Versaille, Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, Arc de Triomphe, St Chapelle and some little museums we hadn't planned on going to. We stayed near the Louvre, so we could leave and go back the next day. Totally worth it! We ordered online and received ours in the mail about 10 days after ordering. Just be aware that you want the Paris MUSEUM pass and not the PARIS PASS.

With the PMP, do you still need a timed entrance reservation at Versailles?  Or do you show up and get skip the line privileges?

2 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

 

 

I do not understand why people wouldn't follow the rules.  I am also allergic to cigarette smoke and perfume-  Cannot control the smelly perfume, other then to remove myself from the area that person is but the cigarette smoke is another story. 

 

From a slippery slope perspective what’s the difference...I know, smoking is against the rules and perfume isn’t .  But if perfume is an allergen, why shouldn’t it be restricted to certain areas if the ship?  It hasn’t been that many years ago that the voices of a few grew to a groundswell and smoking went poof (😜).  And given today’s attitudes hat no one should be offended by anything, why should you have to remove yourself from the area of the perfume.  Stand Up for Your Right to a perfume free society!!

The same good folks who pay outrageous prices for Pre and Post Hotel packages through the cruise line will pay for the “Premier Pass”. $198 for inside access tour...really, what do you see that could justify that?