Faux pas?

[kyriecat]

Where did you read that baggage fees were increasing that much? I checked Continental's website and found the following fees listed.

 

1st Bag Fees (each way) for flights from US to:

United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands (Except Hawaii) - $25

Hawaii - $25

Caribbean - $25

Mexico and Central America - $0

Asia (except Japan and Hong Kong‡), the Middle East, Africa**, Australia and New Zealand - $0

Micronesia* - $0

Japan - $0

 

2nd Bag Fees (each way) for flights from US to:

United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands (Except Hawaii) - $35

Hawaii - $35

Caribbean - $40

Mexico and Central America - $40

Europe, India and South America† (except Brazil and Venezuela) - $70

Asia (except Japan and Hong Kong‡), the Middle East, Africa**, Australia and New Zealand - $70

Micronesia* - $70

Japan - $0

 

* Bag fees listed for Micronesia apply to travel to/from the following locations: Guam, Saipan, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Marshall Islands, Palau, Koror (ROR), Kosrae (KSA), Kwajalein (KWA), Majuro (MAJ), Nadi (NAN), Pohnpei (PNI), Truk (TKK) and Yap (YAP).

**Bag fees listed for Africa apply to travel to/from the following countries: Cameroon, Egypt, Malawi, Morocco, South Africa and Zambia.

† For travel to/from Venezuela and Brazil, no bag fees apply.

‡ For travel to/from Hong Kong, no bag fees apply.

 

I'm flying Continental to San Juan in February. It's bad enough to pay $25 each way for a bag, but $100 is unbelievable!

[Bearnaise]

I'm flying Continental to San Juan in February. It's bad enough to pay $25 each way for a bag, but $100 is unbelievable!

Traditionally the checked baggage allowance has been 2 x 50lb bags (used to be 70 lbs) per passenger without charging "extra bag" fees. Only recently have fees been imposed for the first two bags and those fees are still waived in certain cases (elite status, Continental credit card used to charge the tickets, etc.).

 

I read the words "extra piece of luggage" as meaning a 3rd piece. If "extra bag" meant 2nd piece of luggage, then the fee is $35 for domestic (including Puerto Rico and Canada), $40 for Mexico, Caribbean, and Central America, and $70 for the rest of the world except Japan and Hong Kong.

[Bippie]

Traditionally the checked baggage allowance has been 2 x 50lb bags (used to be 70 lbs) per passenger without charging "extra bag" fees. Only recently have fees been imposed for the first two bags and those fees are still waived in certain cases (elite status, Continental credit card used to charge the tickets, etc.).

 

I read the words "extra piece of luggage" as meaning a 3rd piece. If "extra bag" meant 2nd piece of luggage, then the fee is $35 for domestic (including Puerto Rico and Canada), $40 for Mexico, Caribbean, and Central America, and $70 for the rest of the world except Japan and Hong Kong.

 

Anyone who packs more than 100 pounds/two suitcases per person might want to rethink their packing philosophy!

[ehnotsomuch]

To avoid packing, I've rented a tux. It's waiting in the closet in my stateroom when I board and I give it to my room steward after the last formal night. Neat, clean, affordable and NO hassle.

 

Hubby did this on our last cruise and really liked it. He also wanted to avoid packing his suit.

 

 

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[GeriatricNurse]

Yes, he would be out of place. The smart casual code does not extend to formal nights.

 

 

It certainly does for both the Lido and the Canaletto, (on formal nights)! ;)

[Randyk47]

Where did you read that baggage fees were increasing that much? I checked Continental's website and found the following fees listed.

 

1st Bag Fees (each way) for flights from US to:

United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands (Except Hawaii) - $25

Hawaii - $25

Caribbean - $25

Mexico and Central America - $0

Asia (except Japan and Hong Kong‡), the Middle East, Africa**, Australia and New Zealand - $0

Micronesia* - $0

Japan - $0

 

2nd Bag Fees (each way) for flights from US to:

United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands (Except Hawaii) - $35

Hawaii - $35

Caribbean - $40

Mexico and Central America - $40

Europe, India and South America† (except Brazil and Venezuela) - $70

Asia (except Japan and Hong Kong‡), the Middle East, Africa**, Australia and New Zealand - $70

Micronesia* - $70

Japan - $0

 

* Bag fees listed for Micronesia apply to travel to/from the following locations: Guam, Saipan, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Marshall Islands, Palau, Koror (ROR), Kosrae (KSA), Kwajalein (KWA), Majuro (MAJ), Nadi (NAN), Pohnpei (PNI), Truk (TKK) and Yap (YAP).

**Bag fees listed for Africa apply to travel to/from the following countries: Cameroon, Egypt, Malawi, Morocco, South Africa and Zambia.

† For travel to/from Venezuela and Brazil, no bag fees apply.

‡ For travel to/from Hong Kong, no bag fees apply.

 

I'm flying Continental to San Juan in February. It's bad enough to pay $25 each way for a bag, but $100 is unbelievable!

 

 

The bag fees notwithstanding I always kind of wonder of worrying about the fees in light of having spent several hundred to several thousands of dollars on air and cruise fare. After I've gone to all that financial investment for a vacation I guess I'm not in the mood to worry about another $50-$100 especially if that expense allows us to bring along the clothing and items we want to have and use. :)

[catl331]

It certainly does for both the Lido and the Canaletto, (on formal nights)! ;)

The OP was asking about the MDR. She explicitly said "Yes, we are aware that there is a buffet, but that's not my question. "

[Seren Ap Gwalia]

The bag fees notwithstanding I always kind of wonder of worrying about the fees in light of having spent several hundred to several thousands of dollars on air and cruise fare. After I've gone to all that financial investment for a vacation I guess I'm not in the mood to worry about another $50-$100 especially if that expense allows us to bring along the clothing and items we want to have and use. :)

 

That has always been our thought as well

[Cruising-along]

I must be the oddest woman on earth, because I truly believe that if God wanted me to wear shoes, well... I would have been born with leather feet! :o

 

Barefoot is the best! :D

 

I've often thought the same about myself. I don't need a different pair of shoes for each outfit, I'm just not into shoes that much. :p

 

I usually bring 3-4 pairs on a cruise, one for walking the deck or strenuous excursions, one for formal night, and one nice casual pair for the DR on smart casual nights. Throw in a pair of water shoes for beach excursions, and I'm good to go. :D

[luxurysailer]

Almost afraid to ask this question after all the posts I've read concerning formal nights. Would my husband be out of place if, on formal nights he wore a cashmere sweater, nice shirt and tie with dockers? With weight restrictions we just don't want to bring a suit. Yes, we are aware that there is a buffet, but that's not my question.

 

Thanks

 

 

I doubt that a suit is going to weigh more than a shirt, tie, dockers, and cashmere sweater. The difference either way can't possibly be more than a few ounces. This just sounds like an excuse not to honor the requested dress code.

 

On our most recent cruise, which was two weeks in duration, my wife and I took a total of two suitcases and a garment bag for my tux and her formals plus a few other items such as goretex parkas. Each of the suitcases weighed about 45 pounds, and the garment bag weighed only about 35 pounds. So, we were nowhere near a problem with overweight bags.

[kyriecat]

I guess my opinion of packing has changed over the years. When we first started cruising, my husband and I would have 3 checked bags - one each for "daily" clothes and a garment bag for formal wear. Hubby would bring his suit and I would bring long, embellished evening gowns for the formal nights. I have a gorgeous sequinned dress that weighs 7 lbs by itself. Prior to 2008, we were allowed 2 checked bags each up to 50 lbs (70 lbs for international flights) included in the ticket price. I didn't worry about luggage weight then.

 

Since airlines began charging for each bag, we've become more conscientious about our packing. I try to get by with a single checked bag and leave enough weight to bring a few things home. I don't wear embellished gowns on formal nights anymore unless we drive to the port, which is rare. We either dine in an informal setting or else I bring a long skirt with a dressy blouse or two. My husband rents a tux onboard. I don't really need a completely different outfit every night - mix & match works well. I pack a lightweight duffle bag in case we buy a few too many souveniers. It's cheaper to check it as a second bag than to pay overweight luggage fees.

 

It's not going to break our budget to bring 2 checked bags each and pack the heavy formal clothes and a different outfit with shoes for every evening. However, I've gotten used to packing lighter. It's not just a matter of fees - hauling around one suitcase is much easier than two. If airlines do start charging $100/bag each way, it really makes sense to learn how to pack lighter!

[woodofpine]

Almost afraid to ask this question after all the posts I've read concerning formal nights. Would my husband be out of place if, on formal nights he wore a cashmere sweater, nice shirt and tie with dockers? With weight restrictions we just don't want to bring a suit. Yes, we are aware that there is a buffet, but that's not my question.

 

Thanks

 

Man - if he isn't 'out of place' then it isn't 'formal night' anymore. I realize formal wear and formal night patronage (at least in popularity) appears to be declining, but a sweater and dockers with tie isn't even semi-formal. That's smart casual - with a tie thrown in...

 

Regardless of my opinion of formal nights, I return to the 'reality check' - if a cruiser dressed 'smart casual' isn't out of place on 'formal night', then it isn't formal night is it?

 

Personally, I'm ambivalent about formal nights (but my family - including teens seem to like it). The business of 'weight restrictions' (hear it a lot) is nonsense though. Formal wear is neither voluminous nor heavy. I live in Florida and snow ski... parkas, bibs, hats, gloves, ski boots... many multiples a flat lying set of formal wear. Unless I'm just not packing rationally, I've never had a weight or volume issue.

[iancal]

After all is said and done this is not rocket science. If you are like us and prefer not to pack or dress for formal evenings in the MDR, then dine SOMEWHERE ELSE.

 

Really, how difficult or complicated can that be? And if you do decide to dress up, ask your waiter for our portion of the mini lobster.

[Bearnaise]

Anyone who packs more than 100 pounds/two suitcases per person might want to rethink their packing philosophy!

It depends on the trip and on the traveler. If I'm on a cruise anywhere in the tropics, I'll want to bring scuba gear. When I travel to dive (not on a cruise) I'll bring an underwater camera system that weighs 65 lbs in its case. On one trip that involved scuba photography and video and some land touring as well that involved nicer clothing, DW and I lugged six bags (three in the 50-70 lb range) plus several carry-ons. I'm very familiar with pushing the baggage limits.

[jtl513]

Man - if he isn't 'out of place' then it isn't 'formal night' anymore.

Once on the Noordam we had a "formal optional" night, and it was a strange mix with about 60% formal. I guess it was an experiment that didn't work, as we haven't seen it since.

[kazu]

Once on the Noordam we had a "formal optional" night, and it was a strange mix with about 60% formal. I guess it was an experiment that didn't work, as we haven't seen it since.

 

we had one of those two - just last year (I believe). i think it is captain's discretion:confused: first time I have seen it.

[Opinions]

Once on the Noordam we had a "formal optional" night, and it was a strange mix with about 60% formal. I guess it was an experiment that didn't work, as we haven't seen it since.

 

We had a "formal-optional" night on the Zuiderdam...It was a port intensive Med cruise with few sea days...It was a port day and seemed to work out well especially for those who had all day tours.

[lcand1923]

We had a Formal Optional night on a Panama Canal Transit quite a few years ago. I asked the young lady who was doing the Crafts classes why it was inserted. She said that this particular cruise had something in the neighborhood of 90% Mariners. Because the passenger base was so used to cruising on HAL, the Cruise Director and Captain had to change things to please the passenger base. They did away with a lot of the usual cruise activities and plugged in some different stuff. For example, no Talent Contest was held. The Crafts sessions were packed, so they came up with all sorts of different things to do. No Club HAL because no children were on board. The biggest change was the Formal Optional night was inserted. A lot of the women had brought extra fancy gowns and they wanted their pictures taken with the Captain. So, the photographer did an extra night's set-up, the Captain posed and smiled and the rest of us wore our "nice duds" an extra night. (On this partiuclar cruise, if you weren't in formal wear you weren't allowed to sit in the downstairs portion of the show room. You were directed to the balcony.)

[dolver]

<<<<If you are like us and prefer not to pack or dress for formal evenings in the MDR, then dine SOMEWHERE ELSE.>>>>

 

I'm new to cruising, HAL in particular. What would the "somewhere else" options be? Thank you.

[3rdGenCunarder]

<<<<If you are like us and prefer not to pack or dress for formal evenings in the MDR, then dine SOMEWHERE ELSE.>>>>

 

I'm new to cruising, HAL in particular. What would the "somewhere else" options be? Thank you.

 

The Lido buffet has a looser dress code than the dining room, so that would be the most likely "somewhere else," and room service is also available.

[iancal]

Our somewhere else would typically be the Lido. It is the buffet on one of the upper decks. We dress business casual, go to the Lido, and then to the show or to the casino.

 

HAL requests that cruisers wear formal attire in all public areas of the ship on formal evenings yet the rules are casual for Lido. When HAL tells us how to get from the Lido to our cabin without going through public areas of the ship then we may just follow that rule. Until such time......

[jtl513]

<<<<If you are like us and prefer not to pack or dress for formal evenings in the MDR, then dine SOMEWHERE ELSE.>>>>

 

I'm new to cruising, HAL in particular. What would the "somewhere else" options be? Thank you.

 

The Lido buffet has a looser dress code than the dining room, so that would be the most likely "somewhere else," and room service is also available.

Also the Canaletto is like the Lido.