uprivermama

1 hour ago, MacMadame said:

@uprivermama I am 15+ years out from gastric sleeve surgery. Depending on when your cruise is, you may be able to eat slightly more volume per meal than 3oz (maybe 4-6oz). However, even now, this many years out, I look at the pictures of meals people post here and think "No way I can eat that much!" My plan is to eat a bite or two from every course otherwise I'd be full after the appetizer.

We cruise in a month so I'm not sure about increasing volume but it will be the first cruise post-surgery and it will certainly be different than previous cruises! I can't even count the number of times on previous cruises that we rolled out of the dining room too stuffed to do anything except lay in bed 🙂 Can't do that anymore!

Yet another Plus Package question...I searched but couldn't find the answer to this specific question.

I will be the 3rd adult in our cabin. The first 2 adults (DH and DS) have the plus package included as a promotion during booking. I am 3 months post-op gastric sleeve surgery and don't drink alcohol, sugary drinks, soda, or specialty coffee; I barely eat 3 oz of food per meal; and don't really need internet for this Alaska sailing. However, I might enjoy the fitness classes. 

I thought I remembered reading somewhere that certain benefits are tied to the individual (drinks especially) but some benefits are just pooled for the cabin (casual dining, fitness classes). DH and DS certainly won't use the free fitness classes, and if they aren't, it would be nice to use them myself.  Has anyone had any experience with whether some of the plus benefits can be shared among cabin mates? Just curious (and I'm certainly willing to pay for the classes if necessary!)

February 19th we were cleared for self debark a little after 7am; we are platinum and the diamonds were released a few minutes before us. It was a very smooth debark process for self debark passengers.

On 1/18/2023 at 11:06 AM, Mary521 said:

Can I ask where did you find info on the water taxi? Thank you!!

https://www.promenades-en-mer.org/shuttle-service-ajaccio-porticcio-decouvertes-naturelles-balades-en-mer-ajaccio-6-en.html

At the top left of the page I've linked here is an "EN" you can select to translate to English. The ticket booth was near the vendor booths set up next to the harbor, and they were happy to direct you to the boat nearby.

On 1/23/2023 at 3:59 AM, sunfish8 said:

How much was the water taxi? Where did you pick it up and what beach was it please

The water taxi was something like 8 euro each, round trip. I think it was just called Porticcio. You would see it when you exited the water taxi, as you exit onto a dock that adjoins the beach

The earlier you disembark the easier it is to get uber/lyft. We've never had to wait more than 5-10 min when we self-debark and get off the ship as early as possible. We've never scheduled on in advance; I think that would be tough since you never know what hold ups there may be w/ customs and other odd situations that arise.

We are usually in this situation as well, with flights being cheaper to FLL but cruising out of Miami, and our west coast flights usually end up arriving fairly late. We usually stay at the Hampton Inn Blue Lagoon in Miami. Its near the MIA airport, tends to be pretty reasonable (by Miami/Fort Lauderdale standards), and there is a Walgreens, fast food, and a grocery and liquor store all within a block. Its nothing fancy, but it serves the purpose for one night.

We spent a nice easy beach day in Porticcio via the water taxi. Very easy to do and a really nice beach.

We have been back from our cruise for a few weeks now and I wanted to report back on this topic. We ended up taking a water shuttle to Porticcio and enjoyed a lovely afternoon at the beach there. The process could not have been easier. We walked off the ship, headed toward the beautiful little harbor adjacent to the cruise dock, and found the ticket merchant near where vendors set up their stalls. We were able to pay via credit card, and the fare was a very reason 8 euro round trip. The boat ride was about 20-30 minutes, and there were both inside and outside seating for passengers.

When we arrived at Porticcio, the beach was immediately on the left, and had lots of sand, space, and a roped off swimming area. We didn't venture past the beach, but there were some small shops within easy walking distance just beyond the beach. We didn't see any vendors with chairs or umbrellas, so we were very content to lay our towels out on the sand. There was a kayak/SUP rental vendor down the beach but it didn't appear to be open from what I could see. There was also a restroom but it was not in great condition.

All in all, a really pleasant day,  and a really nice break from the rigors of a week long Med cruise with all the port stops and go go go! Remember to keep your receipt/ticket for the return trip, as you will need to show the shuttle staff.

See below:

Panoramic video from where we sat on the beach of our surroundings and also photos:

1. Looking out from the beach to Ajaccio, the cruise ships are towards the right side of the image

2. My view from the beach 🙂

3. View from where we sat to the water shuttle. Very convenient!

4. Water shuttle schedule

Hope this helps!

We will be in Ajaccio via the NCL Epic and would like to visit Plage d'Argent. I've read that one can catch a speedboat from the port area that will take you there, which seems to be faster than via land taxi. Is anyone familiar with this practice? I would like to know more about availability, cost, and how to arrange the return trip. Thanks in advance!

9 hours ago, newpherchris said:

We had cabin 11480, exactly one level above 10468, and loved the larger balcony. Here are some pics: https://photos.app.goo.gl/1aFs4b1VjW7poKHu6. 

 

Thank you, that is very helpful! Looks like a great balcony!

6 hours ago, hapytobehr said:

The cabins on Celebration may not be the same as on Mardi Gras.  I looked up my cabin that I booked for the Celebration on the Mardi Gras and it is a completely different cabin.

Thank you, yes I have compared the deck plans and the cabin numbers are different but the location and configuration are equivalent.

I have the equivalent of Cabins 10468 and 10469 on hold on the Celebration in February. They are showing under a standard balcony, but they appear on the deck plans as having a very deep balcony that is mostly shaded (which greatly appeals to me!). But, I'm not finding any feedback anywhere from people who have stayed in these cabins. Does anyone have any information or feedback from their experience? Did the balcony stay mostly shaded due to the overhang? Were there 2 standard chairs plus a lounger? I would love to hear your experience and see some pictures!

The eMed proctored tests do not need to be scheduled ahead of time. Just have the app all set up ahead of time and connect when you're ready to test.

We're sailing in February with a stop at Half Moon Cay. Anyone sailed since the restart that can tell me how the tender process has been for platinums? Do we still receive the priority water shuttle benefit?

Thanks!

If you have an HSA, the test kits are a covered expense, FYI

We're in the same boat, flying in from the west coast and arriving at 6 am on an Alaska Air flight. We have rented a car in the past and just putzed around waiting til it was time to board, and usually end up frustrated, bored and exhausted from the overnight flight. This time, we booked a day use hotel room that will be available at 7am in Miami. We will Uber/Lyft from FLL to the day use hotel, relax, shower, change clothes, nap *maybe* and then head to the port when our arrival window opens. We actually have to catch the 6:45 pm flight home when we return, and we've decided to book a day use room on the other end as well. 

Wow this is a very timely report! We too stayed at the Candlewood Suites on 36th the same night as you (just fine for a 1 night stay; no complaints), rented a car from Alamo (flew into FLL the night before, returned car at MIA and attempted to take LYFT from the same location as you and experienced EXACTLY the same situation, until we gave up and took the free but very slow shuttle bus to the port), and we were on the Carnival Horizon in the deck 6 aft wrap cabin in the Havana section that I circled in the picture I borrowed from you. We too are platinum with Carnival but had a rather disappointing cruise for the first time in 13 cruises, all with Carnival, and I am now looking at an  NCL sailing for our next cruise this spring. I will be very interested in hearing your assessment of this NCL sailing and also any comparisons/differences to Carnival. Keep it coming 🙂

We loved our Havana Aft Wrap Cabin (Premium Vista Balcony) so much we booked another for this January. Last time we had it on deck 9; this time we'll be on deck 6. A splurge for sure, but you can't beat the spacious balcony, proximity to the Havana area, and the view!!!

Walls are magnetic for sure. I used magnet hooks on our cruise

17 hours ago, Bees29 said:

How does it work when they deliver to the hotel? Do they leave it at the front desk or do you have to be in the lobby to meet them?

I can't exactly remember (it's been a year now), but I think it's like Uber or Lyft and you get notifications that your delivery driver is there. You can set up the place you want to meet--I specified that I would meet them in the lobby when they texted me, I believe.

1 minute ago, Stacie. said:

This is great--I live in a rural area that is slow to get these kind of services so I never think of them! I checked and can get both wine and soda delivered so we don't even need to walk to the gas station, plus I can also get larger bottles of sunscreen (the 3 oz rule won't really keep the seven of us free from sunburn for very long) and anything else we may have forgotten to pack. Our flight comes in around 10 pm so I could get my order put in when I wake up and have it delivered before the shuttle takes us to the port. I think I like this idea best (although all of these replies have been so helpful!).

I’m so glad it helped! The first time we used it I thought, this is a game changer for cruisers!

Instacart is a delivery service for groceries and liquor. We used this service in Fort Lauderdale/Plantation when we didn't have a card. You can set it all up and have it set to deliver whenever you want after you arrive at your hotel. It was perfect for us. I know there are other "brands" that do the same thing but Instacart was what we used. I believe we chose a Publix store near us from the participating stores and we were able to order both liquor and wine.

If there's a Name that Tune Trivia in the Atrium that night (or any night, really) GO! It is so fun when everyone lines all the railings on all the levels looking down at the lobby stage and everyone ends up singing along--it's like the last night at summer camp. Not exactly a farewell party, but it feels like one to me.

1 minute ago, K&RCurt said:

I will agree.  We did the ABCs this past February on a Charter cruise on the Victory.  We booked a snorkel tour to Klein Bonaire on a sailing catamaran and it was the best snorkel excursion we have experienced! They dropped us in the water at one end of the Island and we drift snorkeled to the other end where they picked us up.  The boat basically drifted along with us the whole time so if anyone had an issue they could bail out at any time.  After the snorkeling we enjoyed a great lunch and adult beverages as we sailed back to the dock on Bonaire.

Wasn’t it amazing snorkeling?!? The awesome thing is you don’t even have to book an excursion. If you take the water taxi, they will drop your bag (or companion as the case may be) at the beach area and then take you up the island to drop you off and snorkel the drift back. I found the water taxi info online before hand, I think it was around $15/person rt. Then the beach area was so lovely and you could snorkel right off that area too. We enjoyed watching a turtle popping up and down after our drift. I really felt like this was a highlight of my cruise.