Kroozen

I'm booked and ready! My parents just retired, so I thought I'd invite them to come along as well. I'm sure they'll still have a great time even without the casino being open, but that would just add to their enjoyment. I'll just go ahead and book it for them today regardless.

I've never sailed on Costa, but I've been on several cruises on different cruise lines, but I think most of the information is universal.

Right now it sounds like you have an outside/oceanview cabin...that is, a room with a window/porthole while will allow you to see the outside. A balcony room will cost more (usually a lot more) than an outside. If you are concerned about seasickness, there are pro's and con's to balcony cabins versus outside cabins. Right now, you're on a lower deck, and people on lower decks will feel less motion, and thus you probably wouldn't get seasick. The balcony cabin is on a higer deck, and people on higher decks will feel more motion, thus making seasickness more of a possibility. HOWEVER, people report that being able to have fresh air from the balcony helps with seasickness.

As far as the ship being crowded and cramped...Will it be crowded? Yes. There will be A LOT of people on board. Will it feel cramped? No, probably not. I've been on really big ships, and also on smaller ships, and I've never felt cramped or trapped. The ships are designed to give you space so you never feel cramped or trapped.

As far as being charged more for picking your own dining time, you should probably check the Costa threads as I'm not familiar with their policies. However, most cruiselines make you pay your gratituties in advance if you want to pick your dining time, but there isn't an extra cost. It's a matter of paying all your gratituties up front, versus on a daily basis.

Yes, same here. I also called Royal Caribbean last night, and the rep told me that the 'casinos have always been open while in Bermuda'. I figured I'd get more reliable information on here...I'm hoping to hear something soon though. I don't want to want to get my parents the cruise if they won't be able to use the casino, as that is something they really look forward to.

Any word regarding casino's on ships being allowed to open while docked in Bermuda? I read some news articles, and threads on here, but I couldn't find anything really recent. I know the first ship just docked for the season, so I was hoping someone who was on board would be able to give me some information. I'm sailing to Bermuda next month, and I'm surprising my parents with a cruise for their retirement gift. They love their slot machines!

One of the main differences between NCL & RCCL is that NCL offers 'freestyle dining' on all of their ships. They have no set dining times. RCCL offers my time dining as well as set dining times on all of their ships except for on Quantum. On Quantum, they will not have any set dining times, and everything will be dynamic dining, meaning you can go to dinner whenever you want. I also noticed that the dress code on NCL seems to be more causal than on RCCL, however there are people who will dress up regardless.

I heard back today about my request. I was given a table for 2 :-)

The list of illness that may be contracted in contaminated water includes Typhoid which is transmitted in the same way as Noro. In investigating I've understood there is an Oral Vaccine. Any information regarding this would be greatly appreciated.

There are a myriad of illnesses that can be contracted by drinking contaminated water, but, drinking water on a cruise ship generally isn't contaminated due to the filtration process it goes through. You're more at risk of contracting an illness due to person to person contact than you are from drinking water, on a cruise ship at least. There are vaccines that are being tested, but I don't believe they are available yet. If they are, we haven't seen them at my hospital. However, it works like the flu vaccine does...It uses a weak strain of the virus in order to build up immunity, but it will not cause an infection. Your best bet is to wash your hands often, avoid direct contact with a lot of people, use the hand sanitizer stations on the ship, and bring disinfectant wipes to wipe down surfaces in your stateroom. If you are feeling ill, go to the ships' medical center for evaluation and treatment. I understand that you may be 'quarantined' for 24 hours, but you don't want to infect others as well. Also, norovirus hasn't even confirmed in this case...It could be anything really.

Dont' thake this the wrong way, but when i googled norovirus the other day it showed me word for word the paragraph you just 'wrote' :eek:

I just goggled it also, and hmmm...I can't find what you're referring to. Could you please provide me with that link. It's not that I don't believe you...I just don't believe you. And also, you're more than welcome to contradict my medical knowledge. You must know more about the epidemiology of diseases than I know. What medical school did you go to? Oh? You didn't? Makes sense...

Thanks. Fingers (& toes) crossed. I really don't want to have to eat in specialty restaurants every night for dinner if I get horrible table mates again.

That's why I only use cash to set up my on board account. I always start with $500, and then if I have to add more, I will. Depending on your bank, it can take up to 30 days to have the holds removed from your account, so you're essentially double charged until they're released.

I'm a 2nd year resident physician, and I can tell you will 100% certainty that norovirus has nothing to do with a cruise ship. Norovirus is a highly contagious virus that is passed from person to person, just like the flu. Norovirus is all around us, but it's more easily passed from person to person when you are in a closed environment for an extended period of time. This is precisely why it is common on cruise ships and on college campuses. Just like the flu, if one person in a house hold gets it, it is likely that it will be spread from person to person. Rather than expecting compensation from RCCL, why not hire a lawyer and sue the sick people that got on the ship?

I just booked a cruise using a future cruise certificate. I booked within the final payment date, so I had to pay for the full cruise up front, and then it took exactly 7 days to get the money back. I didn't have to email or send mine in though. I told them about the certificate when I was booking, and they looked it up by the number and just applied it. I'm hanging on to it just in case though.

Ugh, I really hope I hear back. I'm requesting a table for 2 because I had an awful experience last time I sailed Royal Caribbean. If I don't hear back in a week or 2, I'm going to pre-pay my gratuities and switch to my time dining.

In addition to looking for your table ahead of time, I recommend checking with the maitre'd as well. When I sailed Royal Caribbean, I went into the MDR to check out my table, and it was a table for 2 like I requested. Then, at dinner time, I went to the MDR, and the table numbers had switched and I was then at a 6 person table.

Thanks!

Hello,

Does anyone have the email address that I should write to so I can request specific seating arrangements in the MDR? I know I've seen the email address on here before, but I can't find it on any of the threads.

Thanks :-)

You will probably find everything in his book right here on this site. I think, having to PAY for a book to save money, you've already lost!!!

I agree...It's pretty easy to save money on a cruise, and the best way to start is on this website.

Hamilton was my least favorite part of Bermuda, but then again I wasn't there to shop. I felt like there was very little to do there for a tourist, unless you wanted to shop.

Must see's/do's in Bermuda (my opinion)...

Misc:

Take at least one ferry ride

Explore the dockyard area

Caves

St. George

Beaches:

Horseshoe Bay (Bermuda's most popular beach...pink sand...)

Tobacco Bay (good for snorkeling)

Alexandria's battery (Not the nicest beach, but a lot of sea glass)

Restaurants:

Frog & Onion (in dockyard)

Swizzle Inn (South Shore & Bailey's bay)

There is a small restaurant/cafe at Horseshoe bay. I think there are trees/bushes near the back of the beach, but I'm not sure how much shade they provide. They do however have umbrella and chair rentals at the beach.

You could look into snorkel park in the dockyard... it's a man made beach though, and they charge admission. But it does have all of your requirements.

I went to the Swizzle Inn on my last visit to Bermuda. There are actually two Swizzle Inn's in Bermuda. One is on the South Shore, and the other is in Bailey's Bay. Their signature drink is the Rum Swizzle, which is rum (a lot of rum) mixed with different fruit juices. The food was good, but nothing to write home about. I had the fish sandwich, which I believe is one of their more popular items.

Okay thanks. That's what I thought.

Hello,

Can anyone tell me if there is an outside dining area on Grandeur? I can't tell by the deck plans.

Thanks :-)