shamda

We did Nachi 5 years ago in December and we are doing it again on our upcoming trip. The weather was perfect last time and we are expecting more of the same this time. I live in south florida too so i get what you are saying, but don't worry about it. Cozumel in December is beautiful.

This is like asking if you really have to stop at stop signs. The rule is no sharing. Who are you or anyone else to break the rules? Why bother having rules? Either just order when you want or buy the package for the two of you. That's it. No in between.

Ok I am sailing on majesty in May 2017

 

If only 1 of us buys the drink package , and gets the souvenir cup. Is there anything stopping one of us using it for say lunch one day and the other using it the next day.

 

Neither of us are that big of soda drinkers that we would need to drink soda every waking moment, we can endure tea or lemonade for a drink.

 

 

I've read where the cups have a chip in them, beyond that what. Would stop us?

 

 

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Many more than there used to be.

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I you can always use Uber or Lyft.

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I have been living in the South Florida area since 1969. Over the last 20 years it is definitely not the same Ft Lauderdale. My advice is to be careful. Don't wonder off too far off the tourist areas. If you have a car do not leave a bag or anything on the seat when you are not in the car. Stay by the water and you are fine. Las Olas and Riverfront are nice. Not sure what you like to do but Jungle Queen dinner cruise is always fun. You can see the intercoastal waterways, beautiful homes and yachts. Also dinner and a show. Not luxury but fun. Have fun and enjoy our beautiful city but be careful.

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Many good suggestions here. I have a D7100 with several lenses. Depending on what you are shooting the right lens can make a big difference. If shooting sunsets and shots around water use a good polarizing filter. Cuts out glare and adds a nice effect to your shots. On cruises I always do late seating for dinner so that I can go out on deck and take pictures of sunsets and around the outside decks. The decks are usually empty at that time and I usually get nice shots without the people around. I also get up at sunset to take pictures. Nobody around and lighting is good for interesting shots. I always use manual settings trying to keep the iso as low as possible. If taking sunsets use a tripod. Have fun and good luck! By the way a novice photographer takes pictures on vacation. A serious photographer goes on vacation to take pictures!

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I agree with the others, but to answer your question, yes you can rent from Royal a texting device at about $8.00 each for the whole cruise which allows you to text anyone else on board who also has one, and does what you said above. To reach anyone else, from home, you'll need VOOM at about $15 per day.

 

 

Hi, Roger!:)

Thank you for answering my question without all the opinions or or uncalled for remarks. I did not want to open up a whole debate here. We need to be able to contact each other in case of an emergency. Health issues involved.

We were on the Allure 5 years ago. We rented cell phones on the ship that allowed us to text each other while on board. They also had built in gps so we could locate each other. They also had the daily events schedule and other information about the ship and activities. Do they not offer this now? If we purchase the Voom package for 2 devices would it do the same thing using our own phones? With the Voom package if we wanted to text our family members back home would there be additional cell charges?

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We did the August 29-Sept 6 river cruise. We booked the Hell's Canyon Scenic Jet Boat, the Wine and Spirits on Red Mountain, and the Multnomah Falls and Vista House premium excursions. Enjoyed them all and thought the prices were worth the excursions. Did the hop-on-hop-off bus to the Bonneville Dam, very interesting and one not to miss! Hope you enjoy your cruise on the Empress. Friendly crew and good food!

I do not believe we are going to Hells Canyon. I did book the Multnomah Falls excursion. Thanks!

Thanks Calliope. Did you take any of the other premium excursions?

We will be on the American Empress Vancouver WA to Vancouver WA 8 night cruise 11/15/15. This is our first experience with an river cruise. I have heard wonderful things about the hop on hop off bus excursions. There are a few premium excursions available. I was thinking of taking the Lewis & Clark Experience in Astoria or the Multnomah Falls in Stevenson. Any thoughts? Should we just stick with the included bus tours? Does the Bus go to Multnomah falls?

For every exact reason you just mentioned we decided to try our first River Cruise this coming November. If all you say is true I am sure we will have a great time. We are so done with mass market cruising and mega ships. Living in FL we may as well go to Disneyworld. Really looking forward to the peaceful river cruise!

The intimate ambiance board; the easy camaraderie fostered by the small number of passengers; the proximity to the town/city center on most itineraries.

 

The lack of children (IME); lack of nickel and diming; no tendering; no lines; no overcrowded buffets; no "liquor police" - if you want to pick up a special bottle of wine you are able to do so without being treated like a criminal.

 

No overpriced bottles of water; no "sales" in the lobby; no loud announcements; no constantly trying to sell you something; no cheesy entertainment; no overpriced drinks with forced service charges.

 

A staff who knows your name by the 2nd day and is warm and gracious and welcoming. In the case of AMA, the wonderful attention to detail from the high end and generous toiletries provided to the special touches throughout the cruise; free internet throughout the ship and computers in every room; cruise managers and staff who really make the trip special.

 

On the very rare occasion we would consider an ocean cruise, it is only on a smaller ship that has similar qualities to what we enjoy on the river. And that is a very small list, indeed.

I know it is not comparing apples to apples, but I was interested in some of the comparisons between the American Queen River Cruises and the mass market mega ship cruises. We are very quickly approaching 60. Will be traveling just the 2 of us. We have been on about 25 mass market cruises including Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Princess, Celebrity, NCL and a few more. How will we find this cruise compared to the others for the following:

Main Dining & food quality

Buffet quality and selection

Cabin Amenities - Looking to book Cat A on the Empress

Excursions & Tours

Crowd control

Evening entertainment

Overall service

I think I already know the answer to some of these, but this cruise is much more expensive and in my mind am hoping the overall quality of the trip will be worth it!

I did research it but since the ship is new there was not much out on it. I saw a picture that did not show any obstruction, but did not realize it was the other side of the ship. This was not just a overhang. This was an obstruction. Here is a picture.

Just got off the Regal Princess today. Our cabin was M424 directly under the Seaview Bar. I was very upset to find out once on board that the balcony had an obstructed view. i like to take pictures from my balcony and I could not do it this time as the overhang from the bottom of the Bar was directly on top of me. Could not see the stars in the sky. It would have been nice to know this before booking. I never would have booked this cabin. Just a warning to those of you that are thinking of booking this cabin or the ones close to it.

Took these in Curacao with the bridge open. Our ship Crown Princess from the Island.

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yes, do call the first day to make your reservations. We were on Board by 1:30 and called immediately. We were able to get reservations for the Crown Grill but limited times were available even then. I've noticed that Sabatinis and Crown Grill have been very busy every night that I've gone by so if you know when you want to go book early. formal nights are Tuesday and Friday and I wouldn't want to miss either of those nights in the MDR as the food has been absolutely fantastic especially the 50th anniversary dinner menu for the first formal night on Tuesday. We've had a great cruise--maybe our best ever as far as the food and entertainment.

Which night would you say had the weakest menu in the MDR? I want to go to Crown Grill one night. Was planning on checking the MDR menu early in the morning. If the menu for that day was not that great I figured I could make a reservation for that day. Sounds like that plan won't work. Better to make reservations when we board. What night is best?

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Here is a really nice video that gives you a nice tour around the ship.

Is there a Crab Shack on the Regal? I do not see it listed anywhere.

I took this picture last year when we sailed the Crown Princess. I do not eat meat but these sure looked good at the Crown Grille.

Do you happen to know if they implemented the princessmessenger@sea app onboard, the one where you can text people you are sailing with at no charge using your phone? I got an email last week saying that you can download it from the app store but apparently it wasn't available yet. Other posters mentioned it will be available on Regal. Any info on this would be appreciated

What is the exact name of the app! I cannot find it for my iPhone. Do not see it in the store.

You can't go wrong either way. Waterway tour is closer and is a nice way to see Fort Lauderdale by boat. Airboat ride more adventurous. I personally would choose the waterway tour if you have never done it before. If you have kids with you then the airboat ride.

Reading this post is 5 minutes of my life I will never get back. Thanks Princess.

Definitely Celebrity. The Solstice class ships are great. More laid back like Princess. We were on the NCL Epic a couple of years ago and it is like a 3 ring circus. Hated it.

All of the changes they made are designed to cost us more and to make them more money. Sorry but I am not interested. Will stick with Princess.

Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Sea is coming out of dry dock and has some interesting changes.

Definitely not your grandmother's cruise anymore.

I'd like to see some of these on Princess

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=6022

 

Some of the highlights:

 

Oasis of the Seas will offer passengers 20 restaurants to chose from...

 

Other new eateries onboard include: Izumi Hibachi & Sushi with a full teppanyaki menu, Sabor Taqueria & Tequila Bar, first introduced on Navigator of the Seas, Wonderland Imaginative Cuisine, offering avant garde dining, and Coastal Kitchen, a restaurant serving suite guests.

 

Oasis' internet offerings have also been upgraded with Royal Caribbean's 'Boatloads of Bandwidth' program, which sees the line partnering with O3b to offer land-like internet speeds.

 

Royal iQ app that allows passengers to make reservations for restaurants, shore excursions and spa appointments.

 

A total of 10 new suites have been added to the ship...

 

The suite-only Coastal Kitchen eatery... the line has put in a new exclusive lounge, The Suite Lounge, and sun deck area, The Sun Deck, just for suite passengers