Breakaway - Bottled Water, Canned Soda, Swollen Ankles

[CruisingCate]

Is there bottled water readily available on the ship and what is the cost? And is canned soda also available (rather than fountain soda)?

 

I know the water onboard is desalinated sea water, but it affects my ankles which swell up quite a bit. I am planning on taking a case of water onboard, but will no doubt need additional.

[OceanBlue123]

I am planning on taking a case of water onboard, but will no doubt need additional.

Then why not just take 2 (or more) cases of water on board with you? You can bring your own soda, too. A nice thing about NCL!

Edited September 29, 2013 by OceanBlue123

[puddles99]

Yes there is bottled water available - I believe you can buy a package of some kind. In my experience, canned sodas come with room service but you get fountain sodas everyone else. Also, room service sodas aren't (or at least weren't a year ago) included in the soda package.

[CruisingCate]

I will carry on one case, but a second might be too much and managing luggage as well. I don't see a beverage package that includes bottled water. I wondered if bottles were available in one of the shops?

[Medtech2]

I will carry on one case, but a second might be too much and managing luggage as well. I don't see a beverage package that includes bottled water. I wondered if bottles were available in one of the shops?

There was actually a table set up when we boarded where they were signing people up for the water package. Sorry don't remember the exact location because we are fine with the ship's water but it was definitely in a public area. If you ask when you board I am sure someone can help you.

[jerzigal]

I'm not sure about NCL, but on Carnival, HAL, Princess, and I think RCCL, we've put luggage tags on cases of water and checked them with the rest of our bags. We've always gotten it delivered to our cabin.

 

Our first stop is Port Canaveral, so I suspect you could pick up more.

 

I'm planning on taking soda. NCL only has Pepsi and I'm a Coca Cola gal.;)

[ColinIllinois]

Just curious and absolutely not trying to be rude but how would the ships water make you "swell up". My understanding is that it's pretty much the same quality as the bottled water you want to bring on board.

[mresend]

Yes bring your cases of water or soda on the ship- add a luggage tag to it and it will be delivered to the stateroom. As for salt, I'm sure there is a lot in the food which may also contribute to the swelling.

[CruisingCate]

The ship makes drinking water from the sea water, removing the salt. I think they get as close to 100% removed as possible, but I'm not sure. All I know is that my ankles swell up when cruising and I am drinking drinks that use the water. I do move a lot while on board, which is important, and keep hydrated. Excess salt can cause swelling, and it's possible it could be coming from the food preparation as well. Usually by morning, I am back to normal, but the cycle starts all over again each day.

[Demonyte]

Is there bottled water readily available on the ship and what is the cost? And is canned soda also available (rather than fountain soda)?

 

The bottled water onboard is really expensive (IIRC about $5-6 plus gratuity for one liter bottle, I don't remember hardly any price difference between spring water and carbonated ones like Pellegrino) compared to cases that you can buy from supermarkets in US - after one cruise when we bought several large bottles of Pellegrino onboard, I have bought cases of more convinient smaller (I think about 0.5L) bottles from Publix or similar store for a fraction of the price we paid on that one cruise. The "water package" mentioned is a group deal for multiple bottles at once, but the water costs still a lot more than I'd be willing to pay for it. Water bottles can be bought from pretty much all the bars so they are readily available throughout the cruise.

 

Canned soda should generally be available if you specifically order one, I have no experience of Ships sailing from NY but on other ships I've sailed when I have remembered to order the soda as "a can of X" I've always received a can but if just ordering a soda without any instructions, the results vary and nowadays it's usually always a fountain soda when a couple of years ago it was usually the full can. (I never buy the soda package so I prefer getting my money's worth when I get a soda since the price is the same and the can contains about 1.5 times more than a glass full of ice topped up with fountain soda.)

[davy jones]

As others have said, you can carry water onboard a debarkation. If you are running low, you can also restock while in port.

[Single Cruiser]

I don't think it's the water. Mine did something similar a few cruises and i think it was more to do with diet, extra salt and extra alcohol which alters the amount of fluid processed by the kidneys.

[kcwingwalker]

Is there bottled water readily available on the ship and what is the cost? And is canned soda also available (rather than fountain soda)?

 

I know the water onboard is desalinated sea water, but it affects my ankles which swell up quite a bit. I am planning on taking a case of water onboard, but will no doubt need additional.

 

Why not check with your physician and see if he/she could recommend something OTC or write you a prescription? In the end it might be more effective.

[dolfinmusic]

I thought maybe they would have a some sort of water package online but didn't see anything. Since we are flying into FL - this means we will need to find a place to go buy water to bring with us. I know there are stores but I do not think any place right near our hotel.

Oh p. s. NOT sailing on the Breakaway!

Edited September 30, 2013 by dolfinmusic

[loopy]

I usually take some soda on and restock at each port as needed. We have never taken water on but plan to this cruise.

 

I was wondering if you could put a luggage tag on it or not. I'm going to call NCL and confirm. Otherwise, we had planned to take an old school luggage dolly and put a few cases on it.

 

I only once spent the money on a soda package and won't again. I don't mind the water or tea with my meal but it taste strange just drinking it. I don't consume enough fluids otherwise.

[SliceOfLife]

Here is the info on the bottled water package

 

[SteveH2508]

I don't think it's the water. Mine did something similar a few cruises and i think it was more to do with diet, extra salt and extra alcohol which alters the amount of fluid processed by the kidneys.

 

I would tend to agree with this. The food on board is a great deal saltier than most of us are used to. The food is pre-prepared and kept warm (in a lot of cases) - this tends to concentrate the salt levels.

 

We also tend to drink more alcohol on board - this dehydrates you so concentrates the salt levels in your system.

 

I find the ship's water absolutely fine to drink (better when chilled in your fridge though).

 

I find my diet changes somewhat on a cruise - I am not a great fruit eater at home but on board I eat a lot of melon. I put this down to my body saying "I need xyz so eat/drink xyz". I do tend to hit the Martinis quite hard so I guess this is an anti-dehydration thing.

 

Works for me anyway :D.

 

(BTW - I refuse to buy bottled water - it is a complete rip-off IMHO)

[LizG12]

I think it's also partly related to the higher humidity on vacation than at home. Whevener I go anywhere that's got more humidity than home, I get swollen ankles/wrists/etc (cruise or not). It clears up a few days after I get home.

[theonlywaytogo]

My ankles and feet swell also. So much so that a couple cruises I could only wear flip flops. I don't drink alcohol & agree, it's the food and water. Last cruise it wasn't as bad & I had brought water on board. For my next cruise, I requested a low sodium diet. I'll see what happens. Just wondering: does anyone have a thyroid problem? I never had this problem until I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism,

[redfantum]

On my first two cruises my ankles swelled horribly. This time I slept in compression socks - no swelling, except for the one night I forgot. This thread is all about the swelling thing: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1637335

[silvercrikhix]

I also have the swollen ankles issue.

They start swelling on the plane ride to the port city.

The elevation does it for me & then it's hard to get them back down.

 

Watch the sodium in soda, too, most have plenty of sodium!

The Diet Rite brand have zero sodium, but not sure if available nationwide.

We use Brita filtering water bottles on the ship & bring some water onboard for taking ashore on port days instead of having to haul on a ton of water.

 

Going to get those compression socks & try them out. :)

[Winston Wolf]

FYI, the canned soda and beer in your mini fridge is the same price as what you get from the taps/fountains at any bar on the ship. So no extra expense usign the minibar. Also for soda, someone clued me in after we'd left the ship that there is a soda machine for 20oz bottles in the Arcade.

[dna529]

My ankles and feet swell also. So much so that a couple cruises I could only wear flip flops. I don't drink alcohol & agree, it's the food and water. Last cruise it wasn't as bad & I had brought water on board. For my next cruise, I requested a low sodium diet. I'll see what happens. Just wondering: does anyone have a thyroid problem? I never had this problem until I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism,

 

I was just diagnosed. My feet swell up horribly on a cruise. I think its the salt, humidity, and alcohol combination. But I might try drinking bottled water this time to see if it helps any.

 

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[Dinkachu]

We have taken cases of water with us and purchased the package from Royal. The cases of Royal water are larger bottles and we loved the convenience of having them delivered right to the stateroom. We put luggage tags on the cases we carried and there was no issue having them delivered to the room. It is just a matter of cash vs convenience. The bottled water actually has more sodium than the de-salinated water. We carry water as we travel with 2 handicapped people who have a difficult time getting to water and it is all they drink. In the dining rooms, they drink the de-salintated water.

[Ericktina]

The ship makes drinking water from the sea water, removing the salt. I think they get as close to 100% removed as possible, but I'm not sure. All I know is that my ankles swell up when cruising and I am drinking drinks that use the water. I do move a lot while on board, which is important, and keep hydrated. Excess salt can cause swelling, and it's possible it could be coming from the food preparation as well. Usually by morning, I am back to normal, but the cycle starts all over again each day.

Have the same problem--only on ships. The ship water is very pure, but very salty--food VERY salty. Avoid the soups, the water, potato chips etc. One thing that really helps is to raise the foot of your bed by putting the life jacket under the mattress--and if it really gets bad, wear pressure bandages at night.