Petersonfcu

Another question in advance of our boarding the Ruby this coming Friday. My medallion app says I can buy internet coverage for $150 for the ten day cruise. Being a platinum cruiser, I am supposed to get the internet for 50% off. Is the normal price for the internet on the Ruby Alaska cruise $300 or $150? If its $150, I guess I will wait until I am onboard to buy so I can actually get my 50% discount.

This must be only for US trained dogs. The "fruit dogs" that we often see at Mexican ports do sit down when they smell fruit.

Tom You probably already know this, but there is no need to pay that 3% Carnival fee for table chips. Simply go to a slot machine, load something (say $1k+) from your sail and sign, spin the slot machine once, go to the cage to pull out your $1k+ in cash, and then take the $1k+ to the table to buy your chips. No 3% fee. Also, if you use your credit card to buy carnival gift cards at a 10% discount on AARP, then load the gift cards to your sail and sign, you get both the CC points and the 10% discount on everything you spend on board. Yeah, that includes those table chips. Why pay carnival 3% for table chips when they will sell them to you at a discount?

Thanks for the embarkation info! And its also nice to be able to Uber to the cruise port instead of to the airport.... 🙂

Thanks for the info! Makes me happy. 🙂

@Istone19 You are familiar with the Ruby casino. Perhaps you can tell me whether the Fun21 BJ game is hand shuffled or dealt from a machine. Thanks!

My wife and I will be embarking the Ruby for our Alaska cruise the day you get back to SF ( August 25). So I am glad I found your live review! Thanks for doing it! Two questions if I may. I just finished checking in for the cruise, but the medallion app does not give me an arrival window for embarkation. Where do I find that time window? There is a countdown clock on the app that suggests my arrival time might be 10:00. But based on your boarding experience, I am thinking it might be a good idea to wait until 11:30. Also, could you swing by the casino and look at the Fun21 Blackjack table? It used to be the only table game on Princess ships that is not dealt from a machine - but I hear now that some Princess ships may have converted Fun21 to machine dealt. I hate the machines, and am really hoping the Ruby’s Fun21 still doesn’t have one. If you can take a picture of the table, great. If not, just look to see if there is a black plastic object in the far right corner of the table (that would be the machine). Thanks for doing this!!

We sailed MSC once, and do not plan to repeat the experience. Here is my list of reasons why. 1) We were on the MSC Divina repositioning from Miami to Brazil. After we booked, MSC changed the dates of our cruise, moving it back six days. Uggh. Making it worse, MSC did not inform us of the change. We found out about it only after reading a thread on cruise critic. When we called MSC, they said, "oh, yeah, sorry about that! Here is some OBC . . ." Turns out they made the change not out of operational necessity, but because they wanted to rent the ship out as a floating hotel during the world cup in brazil. 2) Guest services were nonresponsive and surly. We thought they treated us like cargo, not passengers. Oh yeah, MSC is primarily a cargo line. Guess that is the root of that. 3) The commenter above says that all the announcements were in four languages. Well, on our cruise, all the announcements were in SEVEN languages. It was like an episode of MASH . . . the constant drone of the PA system. In the theatre they even made a joke out of it . . . the Captain made a preshow announcement in seven languages, and then added TURKISH at the end for an eighth language. 4) Yeah, the pizza was good. But not the rest of the MDR food. And the MDR service was lousy. OK, the caveat here is that we sailed on the Divina more than a decade ago. Maybe MSC has improved. But we aren't going back to MSC to find out.

Definitely bring a hardcopy of your specific offer. We have had different experiences on different HAL ships - sometimes the casino has a list with your name and benefits and sometimes you have to fight for those benefits.

This analogy made me laugh. You can buy and sell stocks in an online account in a couple of minutes from the comfort of your living room. Hardly the equivalent hassle of venturing out to sell plasma or subjecting yourself to a timeshare presentation.

Same quick turn around on the Volendam this past October.

We just prepaid for unlimited Laundry on the Zaandam for a 14 day Panama Canal cruise in April. Our cost was $119 all-in, which I think comes to $8.50 a day. Laundry done by the ship makes me happy because, well, it makes my wife happy. On our Panama Canal cruise we are traveling with some relatives in an adjacent cabin, and as we have done in previous cruises we will do some of their laundry for them. Maybe alternate days. Makes the laundry package even more valuable.

Or something like that. We have cruised many different cruise lines, and phantom drink charges are not infrequent on any of them. BUT we have never had a problem going to guest services and having them removed.

Same here. Gone for a day or so, then reappeared. This actually happens periodically with Carnival's offers. There is a group disappearance, and then the group reappears. I knew that several of those offers that disappeared actually had expiration dates of February 28, more than a week out. So I expected them to come back . . . and they did. No problem.

In my experience at the Carnival tables they always log in your sign and sail card when you join the table. They then record the amount of chips you start with and the amount of chips you "color up" with (end with). This was my experience at the craps table as well as the other tables. At the blackjack tables they also try to track your average bet size. I am not sure if they try to track your average bet size at the craps table or not. It would be difficult if there are many players at the craps table, particularly since players can make many bets beyond the pass line bet if they want to.

OK, that made me laugh . . . ..

You can get both offers on the same card. I had both on my AMEX everyday preferred.

People acquire multiple AMEX and other cards for different reasons. My wife and I acquire and churn credit cards as much as we can for the sign-up bonuses. Over the years we have collected more than five million travel points and miles by doing this. It only makes sense if 1) you and your spouse have good credit ratings, 2) you can control your cc spending, and 3) you make sure you pay your cc bills in full every monthl

If you and your spouse each have separate AMEX cards in one name alone then the offers on the two cards can be used independently and usage on one card will not cause the offer to disappear on the other card. It is for this reason, and others, that my wife and I never do joint card applications and we never add each other as authorized users to each other's cards.

Login to your AMEX account. Scroll down to see your offers. If the NCL offer is there, click on the "Add to Card" button. I copied the fine print below. Sometimes these offers are only good on new reservations. But I am not sure how to read the current NCL offer. Enrollment limited. Must first add offer to Card and then use same Card to redeem. Only U.S.-issued American Express® Cards are eligible. Limit 1 enrolled Card per Card Member across all American Express offer channels. Your enrollment of an eligible American Express Card for this offer extends only to that Card. You must first add offer to an eligible Card by 10/14/2022 and then use same Card to make one or more qualifying purchases totaling $1000 or more for reservations booked online via US website only at NCL.com, via phone at 1-888-438-7114 or through your preferred travel advisor by 12/31/2022. Offer valid for reservations booked online via US website only at NCL.com, via phone at 1-888-438-7114 or through your preferred travel advisor by 12/31/2022. Excludes purchases onboard, Norwegian gift cards, shore excursions and transportation to and from the ship. Offer is non-transferable. Valid only on purchases made in US dollars. Limit of 1 statement credit per Card Member. You may not receive the statement credit if we receive inaccurate information or are otherwise unable to identify your purchase as qualifying for the offer. For example, you may not receive the statement credit if (a) the merchant uses a third-party to sell their products or services; or (b) the merchant uses a third-party to process or submit your transaction to us (e.g., using mobile or wireless card readers); or (c) you choose to make a purchase using a third-party payment account or make a purchase using a mobile or digital wallet. Purchases may fall outside of the offer period in some cases due to a delay in merchants submitting transactions to us or if the purchase date differs from the date you made the transaction (for example, the purchase date for online orders may be the shipping date). Statement credit will appear on your billing statement within 90 days after 12/31/2022, provided that American Express receives information from the merchant about your qualifying purchase. Note that American Express may not receive information about your qualifying purchase from merchant until all items/services from your qualifying purchase have been shipped/provided by merchant. Statement credit may be reversed if qualifying purchase is returned/cancelled. If American Express does not receive information that identifies your purchase as qualifying for the offer, you will not receive the statement credit. Limit 1 enrolled Card per American Express Card online account. The enrolled Card account must be active, not past due, canceled, or have a returned payment outstanding to receive the statement credit. Any benefit earned from this offer is in addition to the rewards (i.e. Membership Rewards or cash back) earned as part of your existing Card benefits, but your ability to earn spend-based rewards for the purchase will be based on the amount after any statement credit or other discount is applied. Amex Offers are available for varying and limited periods of time and are dynamic and personalized. If you navigate away from the Amex Offers page, you may see different offers when you return. For questions regarding your Card Account, please call the number on the back of your Card. By adding an offer to a Card, you agree that American Express may send you communications about the offer. POID: K4F5:0001

I am curious as to whether and when you find the free room pricing in your online account. A previous poster said that these email offers did in fact show up online, but that was not my experience. I had to call to book when I got my email offer(s) many months ago.

The offer was on my AMEX Everyday Preferred card. I am speculating here, but the offer could be limited to those cards that generate Membership Rewards points.

Get $350 back when you spend $1000. Showed up on my AMEX Everday Preferred card.

I cut and paste the fine print below. Even if you 1) apply for the AMEX card and 2) are approved in a timely manner and 3) are given the offer, the offer appears to only cover payments made on a new reservation (e.g., booked on or after October 7). So I don't think your plan will work to get you the credit. Enrollment limited. Must first add offer to Card and then use same Card to redeem. Only U.S.-issued American Express® Cards are eligible. Limit 1 enrolled Card per Card Member across all American Express offer channels. Your enrollment of an eligible American Express Card for this offer extends only to that Card. Offer valid only for reservations booked between 10/7/2022 and 12/31/2022 with Holland America Line at hollandamerica.com, by phone at 1-877-932-4259 or by contacting your travel advisor. Must be booked on US website only. Excludes onboard purchases, gift and services, Denali Square, McKinley Chalet Resort, Worldwide Emergency Assistance Services, Cancellation Protection plan, online shops, formalwear rentals and charitable donations. Excludes if not booked at time of reservation: airfare booked through cruise line, excursions, onboard celebrations, luggage valet services, baggage insurance, Flight Ease, travel Insurance, charters. Excludes Ship to Shelter programs and Exploration Café Charges. Excludes Carnival, Cunard, Princess Cruises, Denali North Star Inn, Princess Lodge Costa, Royal Hyway Tours, Seabourn, AIDA, Costa and Fathom. Ships’ Registry: The Netherlands. Offer is non-transferable. Valid only on purchases made in US dollars. Limit of 1 statement credit per Card Member. You may not receive the statement credit if we receive inaccurate information or are otherwise unable to identify your purchase as qualifying for the offer. For example, you may not receive the statement credit if (a) the merchant uses a third-party to sell their products or services; or (b) the merchant uses a third-party to process or submit your transaction to us (e.g., using mobile or wireless card readers); or (c) you choose to make a purchase using a third-party payment account or make a purchase using a mobile or digital wallet. Purchases may fall outside of the offer period in some cases due to a delay in merchants submitting transactions to us or if the purchase date differs from the date you made the transaction (for example, the purchase date for online orders may be the shipping date). Statement credit will appear on your billing statement within 90 days after 12/31/2022, provided that American Express receives information from the merchant about your qualifying purchase. Note that American Express may not receive information about your qualifying purchase from merchant until all items/services from your qualifying purchase have been shipped/provided by merchant. Statement credit may be reversed if qualifying purchase is returned/cancelled. If American Express does not receive information that identifies your purchase as qualifying for the offer, you will not receive the statement credit. Limit 1 enrolled Card per American Express Card online account. The enrolled Card account must be active, not past due, canceled, or have a returned payment outstanding to receive the statement credit. Any benefit earned from this offer is in addition to the rewards (i.e. Membership Rewards or cash back) earned as part of your existing Card benefits, but your ability to earn spend-based rewards for the purchase will be based on the amount after any statement credit or other discount is applied. Amex Offers are available for varying and limited periods of time and are dynamic and personalized. If you navigate away from the Amex Offers page, you may see different offers when you return. For questions regarding your Card Account, please call the number on the back of your Card. By adding an offer to a Card, you agree that American Express may send you communications about the offer. POID: K4GT:0001