cantgetin

And price drops DO happen. We were able to save $400 + add a $600 bar tab with a cancel and rebook on a cruise that we thought was well priced when we booked it. interestingly, the price has steadily increased since we rebooked.

My TA has been working on forms and now reservations since the first announcement. I suspect is a matter of the time stamp on your form....good luck!

I don't tip for every drink, and I've never had bad service on VV. My logic is that VV has said that all tips are included, so I tip when someone goes the extra bit for me/us.

I should have mentioned that there are usually several solo sailor meet and greets and activities, starting with a meet up on the embarkation day before the sail away party. They may need to get the info from Sailor Services since they would not be in a solo cabin or sailing single in a 2 person cabin, but it is a good way to meet others.

Also, currently no fully accessible cabins available....so they are either holding them back from on line bookings or they are sold out/on 24 hour hold currently. Yeah, this price is double what we are paying for April....not quite double after applying an MNVV and PIF discount, but nope, as currently listed, not for us. The Barcelona to Athens has an amazing price.

There is an amazing price on the 9 night Spain to Greece in October 2024. I watched the cruise I might be interested in increase in price. I saw it, clicked on the Sea Terrace, got the 3 options, clicked on one, and got an error message. Started over and did it all again and it went thru, but the baseline cabin fare before taxes was $300 more than a few minutes earlier. No worries, there are no accessible cabins available at the moment.

There have been plenty of 18-20 year olds on VV. There is good music, etc. The entertainment is a lot less risque than I anticipated; much of it could be on Disney. Bottom line, at 18 they won't be able to drink alcohol, but all else is available to them...great food, etc. The pool is awful. Very tiny. The work out and other exercise facilities are great--basketball court, boxing set up, swings and other playground equipment in adult sizes, etc. as well as the standard gym equipment...fun exercise classes included in cruise fare. They certainly won't see anything on the ship that they can't see on a college campus.

More likely 8am Eastern time. As to McAlpin....chair of board means fat salary, little day to day work, and can still hang out with Jlo as long as VV pays her.

Cabins are assigned by the computer only if you book for yourself on line. You can request a specific cabin if you rebook while on board, book thru a TA, or book by calling VV directly.

I know that on each of our trips, we received a bottle of Moet as part of various promotions. I can't attest to what they were pouring at Sail Away or at the Sea Rover reception.....reception had sangria and something with bubbles. True, to be Champagne, the grapes must be grown and the product bottled in that region of France; anything else is "sparkling wine."

More fall 2024 cruises...Rome to Miami TA, etc.

Love everything about DBE....even those things we sometimes don't use. Great benefits.

One crew member told me that she gets paid three times as much on VV as she used to make on her previous line where she was tipped. When we offered a tip in the spa, we were politely told that it is included in the cost of the service. What we do is exactly as above--mention the crew member in our evaluations. This influences everything from a little extra time off on a sea day to promotions and raises. To help remember names, put a note in your phone or ask if you can take a photo of the crew member's name tag. Bottom line, no tips are expected. If you want to tip, it must be in cash. There will be a question on your evaluation asking if any crew member solicited a tip...that's strictly forbidden.

April 2024 TA is Scarlet Lady....I'm booked on it. She is returning to the Med for cruises and a dry dock.

You will get free champagne at the Sail away party. The free bottle that was previously included with DBE was replaced with a $100 bar tab, which you can use for "Shake for Champagne" or anything else you might want from a bar. Interestingly, on one of my upcoming cruises, a bottle of champagne just showed up under "extras." I have NO idea why. Not complaining, but....reality, I'd rather have loot or bar tab.

Yes, according to my TA

Then watch for "no single supplement" specials which do appear occasionally.

Unless it has changed, the policy is 2 bottles of wine or champagne per cabin, rather than 1 per person. Obviously, this only matters if you have a number other than 2 in your cabin.

Whether or not travel insurance will cover a cruise line canceling a cruise depends on a lot of things. First is the details of the coverage (which people rarely read). Next is the issue that they insurance will only pay what you are out of pocket after all recovery from the cruise line and airline. For instance, in this case, VV is giving 100% refund if you do not choose to rebook, so you are out nothing there. Next, if you have already purchased air, is it non-refundable or is it transferable for a small fee? If you can transfer it, even if you don't have plans to, most insurances will only cover the transfer fee. Have you booked non-refundable hotels already? Same deal. And while some travel insurances allow you to change the dates one time, many do not, so you are out that cost as well. So, bottom line is that if you choose the option to get a full refund and not rebook, you will likely incur some out of pocket losses that your insurance may well not reimburse. On the other hand, if you choose to move to another cruise date, you can try to turn some of that loot into take home money at the casino to cover those extra expenses or move to a dream cruise that might not have been possible otherwise and consider it a break even.

My first cruise, I did it thru sailor services on the phone because the app was not working. As above, I could book the first night only. Following cruises, my TA did it thru the first mate portal after the app failed.

I have a collection of them from Valiant, but they are from a longer cruise....so likely not going to be too useful. What I can tell you is that anything is subject to change of location, cancelation, etc. depending on weather conditions, illness or injury to a performer, etc. Most of the main shows are at 8 and repeated about 10 on the same night. Dinner normally takes about 90 minutes. The Wake took us 2 1/2 hours...they were just slow and the managers were standing around looking officious. Test Kitchen can be about 2 hours, but if you let them know you have plans, they can speed it up. Live entertainment is scattered around the ship for much of the afternoon and evening depending on which entertainer you want, etc. And you won't know that till you board. PJ party is always the first night around 11. We plan dinner later than normal on the first night as we have lunch late after boarding.

There can be a difference in the official designation and the way they refer to things. For instance, the MNVV is "Sea Terrace or better" and that specifically does not include the Lock it In rates.

The $300 you paid for the MNVV goest toward the deposit, another $300 is reduced from the cruise fare. And you get the $600 in loot.

The Wake seemed like the were trying to appear hoity toity with 3 managers standing around doing nothing while service took forever. This contrasted poorly with other restaurants where, when there was work to be done, the managers jumped in and helped with things like clearing tables or anything needed to make the operation run smoothly.

Bar tab is any beverage that has a cost--alcoholic or not. it includes premium tea, smoothies, non-alcoholic "mocktails," the bottomless brunches, and the beverage pairings at Test kitchen. It does not include activities that include alcohol like grog walk or shot for shot as those are billed as activities....therefore they use loot.