Boatdrill

It's where the money is. People on the east coast and midwest tend to vacation in the Caribbean. Tens of thousands of travelers choose ships to get there instead of planes (better value) . With Explora's 7 day itineraries + the Caribbean, Explora should do well. West coasters go to Hawaii or Mexican Riviera But most people fly to Hawaii, so that cruise route isn't lucrative, and can't be done in 7 days. And Mexican Riviera cruises don't attract the same numbers as the Caribbean.

Actually this was a very traditional way to cruise in the 1960's. Children's tables were set in a room off of the main dining room. My sister and I were initially assigned to the children's dining room during a TA crossing on Italian Line (SS Cristoforo Columbo). My father came got us, and from then on we sat with our parents.

With respect I ask why do you cruise ? Everything you like to do, you can do at home.

Just curious as to how much notice they gave you about the itinerary change ?

Yes, or strangers he was partying with. Reportedly he was only 20. It's good that the crew knew exactly when/where he went overboard. I hope the CG finds him.

By the way, high praise and many thanks to the captain for his commitment to the safety of his ship, crew and passengers. There is no doubt he was in touch with NCL Marine Operations back in the US and they made the decisions together. If I was in his shoes, there would be no way I would allow an unfamiliar foreign vessel to pull up next to mine to return late passengers in a part of the world known for piracy. I would have no way of knowing who else is on that boat. Unless it was SEAL Team Six, no one could change my mind.

Not at all. It's a goodwill gesture, and the right thing to do. The passengers were required to get to the next port of call (Gambia) at their own expense, and they did so. It wasn't the passengers' fault that the ship couldn't get in, and had to move on to the next scheduled port.

NCL is reimbursing them only for the Gambia to Senegal portion, not their entire "adventure" which began in Sao Tome. This makes perfect sense, since the ship wasn't able to get into Gambia, which was the scheduled port after Sao Tome.

The location for filing law suits against a cruise line is printed on the cruse ticket's terms and conditions.

1962. Matson Lines.

There have been two responses to the "Gothenburg person" question. One said it was a typo, another said it was a stereotype of a Swedish person. I still don't get it, and I can't be the only one. Will the OP please explain it ?

Thankfully many of us still don't.

Susan, it won't happen again. I'd delete my post, but it's too late.

A few years ago when HAL was still using the beautiful plates with the HAL logo, my MDR waiter would place the plate in front of me with the logo at the 3:00, 5:00, etc. positions instead of straight up at 12:00. I finally mentioned it to the Maitre d', and he was also "horrified". Problem solved, never happened again. Another example: serving hot tea without a small pot of hot water, so the tea bag steeps in the pot, not in the cup. It happened once (ass't waiter), and after I mentioned it to our table waiter, it was corrected. Occasionally there's the impression that some waiters think we don't notice if the service is correct or not, or that we won't speak up if it's amiss. HAL has a reputation for excellent service; if we let it slide, it will slowly erode away.

Gale warning for southern California waters yesterday, last night, and today. Maybe it was better for passengers' comfort to stay in port a few extra hours.