Practical question about longer cruises

[Paulchili]

1 hour ago, rallydave said:

The problem Paul is that you cannot file a fraud case or dispute a charge until the charge actually posts which is one to three days after the card is charged.  And yes this is Chase or Amex which are the two types of cards I use most.  Have called with pending charges that I know are fraudulent and told I have to wait until there is an actual charge posted.  And both Chase and Amex cover all costs not just those over $50 per Federal Law.

Dave, 

I am not worried about filing a fraud case. I am more interested in closing the card to prevent further abuse by the thief and my notifying them will do it.

[mort&fran]

2 hours ago, clo said:

When we've had fraudulent use made of a card it was nowhere near where we and the card were. The two I can remember were thousands of miles from where we were.

 

Ditto for the one instance (which involved multiple purchases) I recall - I had notified the credit card company where we would be, so I presume that may have a factor in their being able to pounce upon it promptly. If I remember correctly, they merely sent me an email telling me of the charges and that I would not be responsible for them.

[don731]

Have mail held for 30 days, then delivered to your home and brought in by a neighbor.  Then have it held again for the rest of the trip.  Can do it all online.  In many locations you can schedule inspections by local police online.  Tell Alexa to guard your home (she listens for smoke detectors and breaking glass).  We have a security system by Ooma that notifies us, and we can call our local 911 anywhere in the world.  We have cameras inside and outside. We go south for 4-6 weeks every winter with no problem.   Doing B2B on Riviera in February.  

[Smokeyham]

On 12/6/2019 at 6:52 PM, YoPhilly said:

VPN!!  I keep forgetting to research and install one.  This is a good reminder.  Thanks.

There are a variety of VPN services out there.  I use PIA VPN and have had good service from them at a variety of places around the world.   I had hoped to be able to use them to allow me to access NetFlix and other such services as if I was in the States, but they (and Amazon Prime Videos) are wise to this, and so you have to turn your VPN off in order to use those services.  Of course, on a cruise that probably won't be much of a factor since there are so many other sources of entertainment!  🙂 

[KirkNC]

20 hours ago, don731 said:

Have mail held for 30 days, then delivered to your home and brought in by a neighbor.  Then have it held again for the rest of the trip.  Can do it all online.  In many locations you can schedule inspections by local police online.  Tell Alexa to guard your home (she listens for smoke detectors and breaking glass).  We have a security system by Ooma that notifies us, and we can call our local 911 anywhere in the world.  We have cameras inside and outside. We go south for 4-6 weeks every winter with no problem.   Doing B2B on Riviera in February.  

We rent a PO Box and forward mail to the box.  The best thing is they only forward first class mail so no junk mail when you return.

[Paulchili]

2 hours ago, KirkNC said:

We rent a PO Box and forward mail to the box.  The best thing is they only forward first class mail so no junk mail when you return.

That sounds like a good option.

What about magazines - Oceania brochures, Time magazine, etc

If those are included , and I suspect they are, then we would need a HUGE PO Box as we usually accumulate a full post office carrying box of mail/junk.

Edited December 21, 2019 by Paulchili

[KirkNC]

Just now, Paulchili said:

That sounds like a good option.

What about magazines - Oceania brochures, Time magazine, etc

If those are included , and I suspect they are, then we would need a HUGE PO Box as we usually accumulate a full post office carrying box of mail/junk.

Not sure about magazines but I would think no,  ours are electronic.  No to the brochures, only first class items, no junk email.  We have been gone as long as four months and it’s not even close to filled.

[Paulchili]

13 minutes ago, KirkNC said:

Not sure about magazines but I would think no,  ours are electronic.  No to the brochures, only first class items, no junk email.  We have been gone as long as four months and it’s not even close to filled.

Thank you - something to think about.

[rallydave]

Guess all these messages about forwarding holding and poboxes just proves we have the worst post office in the country.  Last long trip of almost a month we forwarded our mail to our son and  when we got home more mail came to our house than our son's house plus we had all of the junk mail both at home and at our son's.

 

Simply cannot wait until the postal storage service is done away with and mail is privatized so that people have to actually work and follow the rules and directions rather then now when the inmates are runny the asylum doing almost nothing while laughing at customers who expect to be taken care of while on break 8 hours per day!!!!

 

Yes, it is really that bad in our local non-working post office.  We actually drive to another post office about 30 minutes away to mail anything as we cannot trust that items will get here or there.

[clo]

1 hour ago, Paulchili said:

That sounds like a good option.

What about magazines - Oceania brochures, Time magazine, etc

If those are included , and I suspect they are, then we would need a HUGE PO Box as we usually accumulate a full post office carrying box of mail/junk.

When our only way to get our mail was from a PO box they used one of those white plastic boxes.

[Paulchili]

37 minutes ago, clo said:

When our only way to get our mail was from a PO box they used one of those white plastic boxes.

That is what they use to hold my mail now without having to pay extra for a PO Box.

It’s usually pretty full - plus they deliver it without me having to go to pick it up 😊

Edited December 21, 2019 by Paulchili

[clo]

17 minutes ago, Paulchili said:

That is what they use to hold my mail now without having to pay extra for a PO Box.

It’s usually pretty full - plus they deliver it without me having to go to pick it up 😊

We didn't have to pay extra and the only way anyone could get mail was the PO boxes. This was a Lake Tahoe where mail delivery is impossible.

[cbb]

Dear Moderator:  I really wish this topic was a sticky.  I still get notes from people asking what we did to prepare for ATW16! 

 

There are many who have now been on extended voyages lasting several months who will have many great tips and may explain what did and didn't work for them.

 

just a thought......

[BarbaraM]

I signed up for a service that blocks a lot of junk mail, as we tend to take long trips.I don't believe there was a fee for that service, or if there was it was not expensive-- (not perfect as my adult children still receive mail at my home). It takes a while, but does reduce the amount of junk mail.

I cancel any catalogue,  advertising mail as soon as I receive it -- It has helped also.

 I did the forwarding thing for my first ATW cruises, to a daughter who lived near -- and it was not a good experience.  For our last world cruise,  I fortunately live in a small town and was able to have our mail carrier hold all mail for 6 months.  Since I put so many bills on autopay, or did online billing,  I arrived home with no surprises. (except the tax change!)

 For those recurring bills with no online bill pay, I "guesstimated" the bill monthly, and paid online -- A six month trip does require being more proactive than a month trip.

 

1 hour ago, cbb said:

 

There are many who have now been on extended voyages lasting several months who will have many great tips and may explain what did and didn't work for them.

 

.

Have you made any changes for your upcoming ATW??

[Cruseforme]

1 hour ago, cbb said:

Dear Moderator:  I really wish this topic was a sticky.  I still get notes from people asking what we did to prepare for ATW16! 

 

There are many who have now been on extended voyages lasting several months who will have many great tips and may explain what did and didn't work for them.

 

just a thought......

Our friends That have been on 2 WC update the “world cruise” forum here on CC.   Lots and lots of hints, tips, generic and cruise line related info.   If nothing else, a reminder here that the forum contains a massive amt of information, not many folks know it’s used.   Most stuff here, has been mentioned on that forum multiple times.  

[cbb]

Hi Barbara-

we still have the adult Kid receive our mail.  That serves 2 purposes: Kid (only child) remains educated about stuff and throws other stuff away.  If the Kid receives something and doesn't know what to do with it, shoots an email/text to us and Dave explains. 

 

we have brought a few more small cabin organizers with us than in the past, and I'm bringing more clothes than i did last time.  2 months onboard this past summer taught me the need for more mix-n-match things! 

 

also bringing a couple of sizes of plastic vases to put flowers in.  (dollar store) We did this our last cruise and enjoyed shopping for flowers in local stores and markets on our way back to the ship. Our cabin attendant enjoyed them as much as we did!!!

 

other than that, we are pretty comfortable with what we did before and have repeated it.  How about you?  Did you 2 change anything?     Hey.....Happy Holidays to you both and hope to sail with you again! 

 

Edited December 22, 2019 by cbb

[cbb]

Cruseforme

I think too many great hints and tips are getting buried in leads that have nothing to do with extended cruise info. 

 

I think all that information deserves its own thread and the 'search' feature doesn't always produce.

[YoPhilly]

On 12/21/2019 at 7:59 AM, KirkNC said:

We rent a PO Box and forward mail to the box.  The best thing is they only forward first class mail so no junk mail when you return.

Wow, I never considered this!  Will have to look into it.  Thanks!

[Go-Bucks!]

On 12/6/2019 at 6:22 PM, no fuss travel said:

Next time we will leave him with some money to cover those unexpected bills.  

 

My daughters and I all bank at the same bank and can Quick Pay each other...the money is instantaneously transferred.

[robandlil]

I download lots of movies and whole TV series from Netflix before we travel.  TV in foreign countries is usually bad and WiFi on ships will just keep buffering.

downloading allows me to watch my own movie on the flight and evenings before bed I get to watch what I want, not the ships movies.

i use an iPad mini which fits easily in my,purse.  It works as a phone and portable TV.

[Hawaiidan]

On 12/19/2019 at 2:01 PM, Paulchili said:

Dave, 

I am not worried about filing a fraud case. I am more interested in closing the card to prevent further abuse by the thief and my notifying them will do it.

In my experience  ( CHASE)   Chase cancels the card pending the outcome and sends me another in 24 hrs...   In Paris last year and Santa Barb in dec.