outdoorphoto

You stated: "Not cruise lines. Never have, even pre-covid. Domiciled in tax havens offshore" You stated: "Small amount of US taxes is related to their Alaskan hotel and tour operations." So which of your statements is factual? Do they pay none or a small amount? Words have meaning. Both can't be true. Directly from the 2019 Annual Report: Regulations under Section 883 list certain activities that the IRS does not consider to be incidental to the international operation of ships and, therefore, the income attributable to such activities, to the extent such income is U.S. source, does not qualify for the Section 883 exemption. Among the activities identified as not incidental are income from the sale of air transportation, transfers, shore excursions and pre-and post-cruise land packages to the extent earned from sources within the U.S. This supports your original statement that cruise lines don't pay US Income Tax is false, which is all I've ever claimed. You just keep moving the goal posts and talk about things that were never questioned. We can 'quibble' over the exact amount paid, but the fact remains that US-based cruise lines pay US Income Tax when they have taxable earnings. Please stop spreading disinformation! I'm done.

All of that is great but has nothing to do with the poster's incorrect statement that cruise lines pay no US income tax. Now the argument has shifted to cruise lines don't pay US income tax on ship revenue and they only pay a little income tax on non-ship revenue. It seems we are all in agreement the poster's original statement that cruise lines never have paid US Income Tax is incorrect. They just don't pay Income Tax on ship-generated revenues.

You obviously didn't read the link. The earnings report specifically says "Income Tax - Current Domestic". Contrary to your statement, US-based cruise lines do pay US income tax on their earnings.

The last year CCL made a profit was 2019. They paid $70m in US income tax. https://www.wsj.com/market-data/quotes/CCL/financials/annual/income-statement

If it is an actual stretch limo you want, make sure the service provider has them. Some only have a Town Car that won't hold 4 people and luggage and use large SUV's for larger groups. We've used kjlimousine.com twice and had good service, but only two of us so a Town Car was fine. Rob

Careful, you're showing your age. I say it to my 31 year old daughter and get the blank stare. You are referencing the Three Stooges? Rob

Glad you are liking the lens! I'm coming up on retirement and want to get my 'final' camera gear, so I've been doing a lot of equipment research. The Canon R6 really has my eye! The AF system is second to none and great for birds in flight. Now that the mk II is out maybe the price on the original will crash! It's really tough to hand hold at 400mm and is compounded if using a crop sensor camera. I also have a monopod. I've experimented using it with a Wemberly-type mount. It works great but is a bit heavy and cumbersome. Have fun with your new toy and keep us posted on your results! Rob

Bench test review from LensTips: https://www.lenstip.com/514.4-Lens_review-Tamron_18-400_mm_f_3.5-6.3_Di_II_VC_HLD_Image_resolution.html In summary, remarkably good center resolution at frame center at f/5.6 throughout the zoom range. Must stop down to f/8 to get usable resolution at the frame edges. Also, even with image stabilization it takes really good technique to handhold at 400mm. Rob

Yeah, that's what we did several years ago, but I didn't see it offered for our date. I think we paid about $30pp then. Maybe just sold out for our day.

We've been to Nassau many times and still enjoy it. It isn't the shopping mecca as other islands are, not as cheap as Cozumel and doesn't have a ton of 'free' things to do around the cruise terminal, but it's still an enjoyable stop for us. Depending on your interests, there are a number of things to do. Junkanoo Beach is an easy walk from the ship, just past the new Margaritaville. The beach is public, but vendors will rent you chairs and an umbrella for a reasonable cost. There are several bars there, too. Walking around looking at the colonial architecture and history is enjoyable for us. https://www.bahamasairtours.com/nassau-self-guided-walking-tour/ https://howisjt.com/posts/travel-bahamas-nassau/ Good map third image down. Walk up to the Cricket Club Restaurant & Pub for some Fish & Chips at an authentic English pub! It's near Fort Charlotte if you're on a walking tour. https://www.bahamascricket.com Ardastra Gardens is a surprisingly good small zoo and botanical garden. Nice photo opps! We walked once, but wouldn't do it again unless in a large group. We now take a cab each way. https://ardastra.com/visitor-registration/ The Atlantis Aquarium and Marine Habitat is the best we've seen and we've been to many! It's pricey and you have to purchase an Atlantis Day Pass to see it ($190pp). Plus a cab ride to and from. We've done it twice over the years. https://www.atlantisbahamas.com/daybooking We are on a similar Liberty cruise the week after you. We'd planned to go to Ardastra Gardens followed by lunch at the Cricket Club, but changed our minds to do the Blue Lagoon Sea Lion encounter through the cruise line. We really weren't looking for a beach day in Nassau since we're at CocoCay the next day, but my wife loves seeing the animals up close! Vendors can be a bit aggressive in Nassau, a polite no thank you and keep moving always works for us. Don't drift too far from the tourist districts. You'll know immediately if you drifted too far! Have a great trip! Rob

Something I read on here and works for me is after you check Flights and click the green 'Begin' button, wait a full minute or more before clicking the blue 'Book and Manage Flights' button. I was unable to access flights until I tried this and now it works every time. My flight is May 2023. Rob

Found the cub picture.

The main question is how good is good enough for image quality. If sensors of the same generation/technology are tested side by side, the larger sensor will always have better image quality. It's physics and no amount of software/firmware or wishful thinking can change that. To save weight and space, I bought a Canon SX50 several years ago. This is a small sensor superzoom (24-1200 equivalent). Image stabilization is outstanding. I took a photo of a lion cub at a zoo from about 50 yards away. I printed an 8X10 and the individual whiskers are visible on his face. Good enough for me! However, the Achilles heal of all small sensor cameras is in light sensitivity. As you move up from base ISO, image quality degrades rapidly. You are pretty much stuck at base ISO with small sensor cameras which is problematic in low light conditions. It's tough to handhold or freeze moving subjects at 1/15th second shutter speed. Good light is needed with the small sensor cameras. "Good' light in terms of sensor needs may differ dramatically from 'Good' photo light, i.e., sunrise/sunset. To carry it a step further, I bought an APS-C sensor mirrorless. Image quality is pretty good up through ISO 400 and still usable at 800. However, it's pretty hard to shoot moving subjects, including wildlife looking at the rear monitor. I like the size and weight, but rarely use this camera anymore. We're leaving Friday for an Alaska cruise. I'm carrying a 'light kit', Canon 6D full frame for wide angle, Canon SL2 APS-C for telephoto, Canon 20-35 2.8 and Canon 70-200 2.8, along with the 1.4X and 2X converters. This covers from 20mm wide angle to 640mm equivalent. I carried only the Canon SX50 on our last Alaska cruise. It did fine in good light but really struggled on our whale watch. I'm ready this year! The downside is my gear weighs close to 20 pounds. If you are only going to view your images on your phone or computer, a small sensor camera like the SX50 is great. If you are going to crop the picture or make larger than 8X10 prints, you might be disappointed in the image quality. Other items for consideration are, do you process RAW files or shoot jpg? Are you willing to carry a camera bag and several lenses? Will the extra weight keep you from using the camera? Now specific to your question. I think at times you'll want a bit more reach than the 400mm. The 400 will be plenty MOST of the time. Remember, telephoto lenes excel at making close subjects larger, i.e. birds. Not necessarily making distance subjects more identifiable. Atmospheric conditions degrade image quality over distance. Hope this helps a bit! Rob