Miami weather this weekend

[raphael360]

39 minutes ago, Tatertottie said:

I’m watching the live cam now. Two ships are now docking (MSC Divina and Oasis of the Seas) so at least we’re moving in the right direction. 

Can you paste the live cam link please? My normal webcam links aren’t working 

Edited December 17, 2023 by raphael360

[Tatertottie]

1 minute ago, raphael360 said:

Can you paste the live cam link please?

https://www.portmiamiwebcam.com This is the Miami webcam. 
 

https://www.cruisemapper.com/?imo=9804801 This is what I use to track all the ships.
 

https://m.facebook.com/profile.php/?id=100077295451993 Cruise Spotter also has a live cam.

 

 

[Tatertottie]

Norwegian Encore and Oceania Insignia are docking now.

[raphael360]

Looks like several ships are heading to the port entrance now. We were doing well but a royal Caribbean just overtook us on the inside rail.

 

I've sailed into the port of Miami many many times and I know seeing the port entrance is not the same as “we are not close“. I’m so glad I m not catching a flight. 

[raphael360]

14 minutes ago, Tatertottie said:

Norwegian Encore and Oceania Insignia are docking now.

Expected express disembarkation is now 1 pm. 

[Tatertottie]

1 minute ago, raphael360 said:

Expected express disembarkation is now 1 pm. 

It appears that Carnival Horizon will enter the channel next followed by Scarlet Lady. 

[raphael360]

We’re in the channel and coming down the home stretch 

[raphael360]

5 hours ago, Tatertottie said:

Do you mean Sunday as in today at 11am? Asking because I’m to board Scarlet Lady today and we’ve been told to arrive at the terminal 2 hours later than our current arrival time. 

It’s 1:45 now and I’m not expecting to get off for another hour due to 2500 people ahead of me. Maybe 2:30 earliest. 

[CruisingWalter]

On 12/16/2023 at 8:35 PM, TNGIRL16 said:

How is this ship? Considering an 18 night cruise in Jan 24, having only been on Royal Caribbean curious how you would compare? Staff available for food services, or crowds everywhere?  Is smoking permitted or is it contained to only certain areas? I have asthma, so it's a concern.  I would appreciate any and all information. Thanks so much.

 

As @cantgetin mentioned, you'll find some food and other reviews on my YouTube channel along with a lot of TikToks as well. 

 

You'll see all the restaurants in my review, excellent food for the most part. Some misses but that's true of every cruise line. No massive MDR, it's all restaurants plus The Galley. In The Galley you can simply sit down and place an order. Lots of folks are bringing their 'bad habits' from standard cruise lines and queueing up at the stations. There is literally no need to do that, wait staff will take your order and bring the food to you. Note that the Ramen and Panini stations and probably the Taco station will be closed for dinner. Dine and Dash, the breakfast joint, is your 24 hour food spot. Ramen being closed for dinner and not serving into late night is the head scratcher for me. Ramen is a known late late night food. I've always been curious why they don't keep that open till 1 or 2am like the Burger Bar. 

 

The trick about the Restaurants is that you must get reservations when they open up. 60 days out for Rock Star Suites, 45 days out for Sailors. The app can be very wonky so work with a good travel advisor who can make those reservations for you in the booking engine. Typically they have about 40% of reservations held back until you board the ship, but I just heard from a friend who was on Scarlet Lady this past week and they overbooked everything. Pizza is usually awesome, the Poke Bowls from the Sun Cafe on Deck 16 are often missed by Sailors because it has erratic hours. 

 

No crowds anywhere except when you get into the shows and of course that tiny tiny pool and small pool deck area. We sailed with a group of 28 folks, mostly Virgins, on a sold-out Valiant Lady for 8 nights for Thanksgiving. The comments we hear the most was "this doesn't feel like a sold out ship. When you're on Carnival or Royal, you KNOW the ship is sold out."  In fact one couple said "I don't know how we'll ever go back to Carnival after this" and they were probably the most reluctant to book the cruise. They only came along because their son convinced them to join us. 

 

The biggest surprise for many, and it was true of our Group, is the Social Club. A big, fun space full of board games, trivia, game challenges and puzzling at all hours with Karaoke at night. That area is hopping all day and all night with folks just enjoying games and puzzles 

 

Casino is fully non-smoking with one room off to the side for smoking. There are very limited smoking areas outside. 

 

Get a Sea Terrace at the minimum for your first cruise. After 18 nights with the hammock, you'll never want to leave your balcony. 🙂