PSCruiser

I think I already posted this but can not find it anywhere.  Is anyone planning a trip to the rain forest?  My granddaughter and i would like to go there.

is there a rum factory in San Juan?  I seem to remember taking a ferry.

Does anyone have recent information that a shuttle for National will pick you up at the port to get a rental car at the airport? I know that an airport bus did this in the past for National/Alamo, but have seen conflicting info about whether they still do this.

Do this all the time at Baltimore. Basically, you pay a fixed amount and get parking for a set number of days, a room for the night either before or after the cruise, usually breakfast, and shuttle service to and from the pier for the cruise. The package is often less expensive than parking at the pier.

Two websites I like for these packages are Stay123, and Buy Reservations.

Have an upcoming cruise on Indy, so I'd like to hear about the problems you encountered.

I would LOVE if they replaced the shower curtain with the doors! I can't get my wife to sail on grandeur anymore (and we live in Baltimore!) because she can't stand when the shower curtain sticks to you in the shower LOL. She says there are plenty of other ships without the shower curtain ;) It's so convenient though because we are 15 minutes away from the pier.

On deck 8, there are about 10 oversized OV cabins midship that are called Panoramic OV. They were added a few years back from the remodeling of lounge areas. Since they are relatively new, I'm fairly certain that the showers have doors.

I would not be surprised if the certificates replaced the blocks soon.

I don't like to report second-hand stuff, but a friend just off the Serenade TA told me that were handing out certificates only. I'm wondering if its possible the blocks were to follow later.

If a change in policy, maybe this could be confirmed first-hand by someone.

My wife prefers the Radiance class and wants to try the Vision class. She likes the smaller sizes. I like the Voyager and Freedom class. We haven't tried any of the "big sisters" yet. It's great to have such a wide variety to choose from.

I think you are asking for disappointment. Vision class is very nice, but I think of Radiance class as using Vision as the starting point and then making improvements in every area. So, I think you will find Vision facilities as a slight step down.

Depends what you're looking for -

Want to see the ocean and feel like you are on a ship - Vision or Radiance

Like the mall? - Voyager or Freedom

Crowded resort? - Oasis

Theme park? - Harmony

Seriously, my personal pick is Radiance class - tons of glass, ocean view elevators, stabilized pool tables, great lounges in Colony Club and Viking Crown, Park Café for the roast beef sandwiches, and finally, enclosed Solarium for swimming in any weather.

Can't see any Radiance class ships leaving before the Visons are retired. Some of the Vision class have already been seen as listed for sale with ship brokers.

Hope to see a radiance class in Baltimore! - yes it will fit under the bridge.

We've done 14 TAs and counting and I much prefer west-bound to east for 2 reasons: first, its nice to get the flight, and the sometimes tiring euro travel out of the way first, and then relax on the ship back to the US. Second, we find that the 25 hour sea days make a big difference compared to the 23 hour going east - seems like there is never enough time that way.

As for route, we have done both north and south and never had really bad seas. Since air temp is very dependent on sea temp on the open ocean, the temps are just what you might expect on each route.

Air2Sea airfares: you will be pleasantly surprised by the prices. Recently booked one-ways to Barcelona this fall for $270, when the same seats are showing at $2500 on Expedia. However, this type of discount on international only, on domestic little or nothing.

Medical emergency: yes, there are a few days in mid-ocean when the only medical care is going to be on-ship. However, we were on a west-bound TA cruise where the ship turned back to Europe and ran for 1 1/2 days to get back to helicopter range. BTW, the ship does not need to have a helipad, the patient was removed by basket from the jogging track, midship.

Sounds like you got a good deal. Brilliance is one of our favorites, we will be taking her back from Barcelona this fall. If you are lucky, you might have Clo as CD - she is the best!

Before getting involved with a TA, I would call RC directly and have them make the new reservation while keeping the original booking number.

I have done this to change dates on a booking, not sure about changing ships, but might as well try.

After everything is straight with RC, then you can transfer to a TA.

If it were just nice shorts, that would be no problem. But, knowing how these things go, the shorts will be complimented with tank top and baseball cap.

Wait, that's what I just wore on today's hot, sweaty excursion! Since my clothes are OK for MDR, no need to shower!

We started ballroom dancing on RC about 10 years ago, and have noticed that as each new type of ship comes out, the dance floors are smaller than the preceding version. I'm guessing that the reason for this is that tables with drinking guests produce more revenue than dancers.

Anyway, while dance instruction seems to be on the decline, the general rule of thumb is that the longer the cruise, the more instruction. Until recently, it was pretty standard that on long cruises like transatlantics, the ship would hire a dance couple that would give one or more lessons every sea day. On somewhat shorter cruises, like a 10 day, we have also had the feature dance couple from the production cast do regular lessons. Often on a 7 day cruise, a few short lessons might be fit into the sea day schedule.

So, not knowing the length of your cruise, and the tendency of RC away from ballroom, hard to say. Wouldn't hurt to find the cruise director ASAP, and ask if some lessons could be worked into the schedule.

Booked the Oct. 18 TA on the Indy this morning.

Some cabin types (especially Promenade) were almost gone within a few hours of the cruise being listed. Who is reserving all of these - is it blocking by TAs? If so, should not be allowed to that extent.

I don't think that anyone at the pier has any interest in those boarding times, they are just a ploy to spread out boarding by delaying the arrival of some of the newbies.

My feeling has always been that embark day is DAY 1 of my cruise, and I don't intend to spend 2/3 of it ashore.

Getting ready for our 15th TA this fall, and I would say that spring vs. fall makes little difference - it is luck and how southern the route is.

We greatly favor fall TAs, because all the hassle of the flight and the travel in Europe is gotten out of the way first, then the easy cruise. Plus, adding those hours instead of subtracting makes a lot of difference.

A pleasant surprise - check those one-way fares to Europe on ChoiceAir, and compare to the listed rates, can be as cheap as 10 cents on the dollar!

My understanding is that there used to be special D and D+ desks, but they got rid of them some years back as a cost savings.

The D+ desk, in particular, was so resplendent that it hurt the eyes to look directly at it - MUCH, MUCH higher than the lowly D desk, and, of course encrusted with large diamonds from top to bottom. The phone was gold, with a second platinum and diamond phone in case a Pinnacle called.

Agents fought to man that desk, as they got to wear a special hat/crown, and all the guests that called knew RC policies better than they did.

A complicated question, as there are many forms of shipboard entertainment.

As a start, what is your ship?

Don't worry, you will have a great time on Adventure.

In the future, book a Celebrity and give it a try, the ships just have a different vibe, especially late. Celebrity has its advantages, but we always come back to RC.

Another vote here for Chankanaab. Yes, a few dollars more than the other places, but we think is worth it. Its part of the national park system, and the facilities are extensive and extremely CLEAN. Never crowded, they can get a (free) lean-to with lounge chairs with reasonably-priced bar and food service and just chill, or take advantage of a show, or tequila tasting. Take a look at the website - you can't go wrong there.

This is all great information! Do you have a review posted anywhere?

No, I didn't do a review but would be happy to answer questions.

The Lucky Catch has a website with details.

The Budget location you want in St. John is located at 4 Water St. Water St. is the street that the pier is on, when leaving the ship just turn left, walk about a block, and cross the street.

The Halifax Hertz location is right at the pier. Just walk outside the building, don't cross the street, and turn right, about 1/2 block. The info booth inside the pier was extremely helpful, and outlined our trip on both street and road maps. Could not be easier.

Just off the Grandeur NE/Canada last week.

Excellent cruise, with great crew, food and shows.

At Portland we did the Lucky Catch lobster boat and had a great time. Upon boarding, you don rubber apron and gloves and help with the work!

Bar Harbor, just explored the town, good lobster lunch at the Rt 66 diner. We also went to the donut shop, supposed to be one of top 10 in US. Donuts are made with potato, VERY expensive, not impressed at all.

At both Canadian ports, rented cars and worked out great at both. At St. John we went to Bay of Fundy, Reversing Falls, Seacaves, etc. Halifax we went to Peggy's Cove and some other villages where the buses don't go. Budget in St. John, and Hertz in Halifax are both less than a block from the ship, and both cars rented for under $50 US.

The perpetual sale at RC ruined what was once a decent card.

The only redeeming value for this card is that it has no annual fee. I keep it as a backup card, and use it for RCL purchases, at 2% return. Other than that its just a 1% card.

Oh, how I long for the days when NCL had a free card that paid a full 3%, plus some bargains when redeeming for a cruise - only problem was that you had to cruise NCL!