iancal

Iced towels and cold drinks on re boarding at port stops-only on HAL???

Have had this on our last four Celebrity cruises (3 Med, 1 Carib), and on our Oct/Nov RCI Med cruise this year. Also had it on our last Carnival cruise two years ago.

We like HAL but no longer see much of a difference in terms of service, food, entertainment, whatever from other cruise lines in the same market.

No gimmicks? Really...no bingo, no art auctions, no inches of gold, no jewelry sales that are not really sales?

We have dealt with some great TA's.

We often search out and find a good in country TA where we plan to travel. We connected with a first rate TA in South Africa who not only understood exactly what we wanted but also provided product/services at a much lower cost that we could get from any local agents where we live. The beauty of Skype and email!

Over time we have found that there are some TA's, some tour operators, some cruise lines etc. that take financial advantage of people who book to distant places with different languages, customs, etc. It was true of our Africa trip and even more so with an aborted trip to South America.

herbanrenewal...this is exactly how we pack and why we pack that way. No matter how long our trip is we only pack for 7/8 days max. Each item has to earn it's way into our bag in terms of how often we wear or use it. Plus, we shop for clothing that travels well and is light weight.

Not the right approach for everyone though.

DW bought a Rick Steves 21 inch carry on. She loves it. I inherited her 20 inch red something with great wheels. Good to go, and good for carry on. Even if we check, we are never more than about 13kg/28LBS per back and usually more like 10kg.

Yup, time to try another agent.

We no longer bother with bricks and mortar agencies. We prefer an online agency that has extended hours and provides good OBC's. Not the least bit interested in a complementary bottle of wine or coupon book that one B&M agent tried to make a big deal out of......

Besides, we seldom went into our local TA office-did it all by phone and email. The only difference between the two was the OBC's so we went with the OBC's.

Re older suitcases. We have a daughter who flies in from the 'sticks' to shop. Well, at least more in the sticks than where we live. Typically one of our old suitcases goes back with her...filled with shopping. And we still have a few more for her future trips. They are becoming fewer and fewer thanks to on line shopping.

We have only one condition.....we do not want to see it again.

You are correct though. I have done volunteer work with the local food bank. It is not unusual to have a client come in with a large suitcase in which to take home their order.

We book with a TA but we also maintain a US dollar bank account and a no admin fee credit card for foreign purchases. This card eliminates the 2.5 percent admin fx admin fee that most Canadian cards charge on foreign currency postings. Until recently we also had a US dollar Visa card. This allowed us to take advantage of cruise line pricing discrepancies and to buy at the most attractive rate notwithstanding future currency fluctuations.

I do not understand the 'in control' business'. We have as much control over our booking as we would if we booked directly with the cruise line. Sometimes more, since on more than one occasion our TA has brought our attention to a more competitive offer on a competing cruise line and thus saved us money. On the last cruise we booked our TA had to remind the RCI rep that we were entitled to a $200. discount on our balcony cabin because of our Celebrity status. Had we booked directly with RCI we would have missed this. For us, the benefits of a 'sharp' TA far outweigh booking directly with the cruise line.

I think that you will fill a suitcase no matter what size you buy. And everything in it will seem essential to your trip. You may want to select a size that you are comfortable handling depending of course on where and how you travel. Going from home to airport to cruise ship is one thing. Shelping the damm bag in trains, cars, ferrys, what have you, is an entirely different proposition. We are down to a 20 and a 21 inch respectively. For a week or for three months. This what we are taking in two days for a three month trip to SE Asia that includes a cruise. Clearly, this approach is not for everyone but it works for us.

We have had the same luggage for quite some time. We shop for wheels, zipper, weight, and covering. Lots of luggage brands have low price product that is sold in the outlets and in the 70 percent off sales so shopping on 'regular price' can be very misleading. Like others, we have a storage locker with several pieces of luggage that we no longer use. It is too large and we cannot comfortably handle it on our own.

Never use them or any other type of locking device.

We travel frequently. Never had anything stolen from our luggage. Not much of an issue for us since we switched to carry on only. We never buy anything that is obviously expensive designer type luggage. Our bags are actually plain jane and have lots of wear. We were always hoping that any thief would be attracted to a better looking or designer bags with a big locks on them!

We never did put anything of value in our suitcases-whether or not we are checking or carrying it them on. Just habit.

Besides, most of the locks that we have seen would fall open with either a sideways glance or two seconds and a bobby pin.

We have all but stopped using the Aeroplan card. The points just do not have the value. The surcharges are too high. The only out is to use them for United flights.

We used to use them for Lufthansa flights but that avenue was closed. For a transatlantic flight, Aeorplan adds anywhere from $200-$250 fuel surcharge, EACH way, to the admin charge. I have been told by an Aeroplan employee that Aeroplan is working 'feverishly' to fix the United 'hole' to enable Aeroplan to charge these same fees on United ticket awards.

There is value IF you are getting a business class award ticket. Just be aware that the admin charges on a business class award seat are actually higher than the admin charges on an economy seat on the same flight, same day. But getting a business class Aeroplan award seat is a challenge. Especially if you have multiple stops.

We are using our remaining Aeroplan points for a short haul flight that has very high air fares.

We have all but stopped using the Aeroplan card. The points just do not have the value. The surcharges are too high. The only out is to use them for United flights.

We used to use them for Lufthansa flights but that avenue was closed. For a transatlantic flight, Aeorplan adds anywhere from $200-$250 fuel surcharge, EACH way, to the admin charge.

There is value IF you are getting a business class award ticket. Just be aware that the admin charges on a business class award seat are actually higher than the admin charges on an economy seat on the same flight, same day. But getting a business class Aeroplan award seat is a challenge. Especially if you have multiple stops.

We are using our remaining Aeroplan points for a short haul flight that has very high air fares.

Just about all of our tours have been private ones. Sometimes arranged on the this forum, others arranged when we arrived at the port. Never a problem.

We have never spent much time chit chatting on the forum about these tours other than to get the itinerary, number of people on the tour, tour operator, and of course price. The basics-and sign up of course. We don't view it as a dating site and we are not looking for best friends for life.

We always take the earliest possible tour and like to be back in the vicinity of the ship 1 1/2-2 hours prior to departure. Touch wood, never had an issue.

Just about all of our tours have been private ones. Sometimes arranged on the this forum, others arranged when we arrived at the port. Never a problem.

We have never spent much time chit chatting on the forum about these tours other than to get the itinerary, number of people on the tour, tour operator, and of course price. And sign up of course.

We always take the earliest possible tour and like to be back in the vicinity of the ship 1 1/2-2 hours prior to departure. Touch wood, never had an issue.

We do not pre pay anything that we don't have to UNLESS there is a financial advantage for us in doing so. Never, ever.

Given the choice between somewhere like Jamaica or Cuba we will take Cuba any time.

I am Canadian and always refer to myself as Canadian. I never refer to myself as American or North American.

It does not bother me in the least if those in the US call themselves American nor do I find it the least bit arrogant or offensive. Most of the world refers to the U.S. as America.

So why split the atom so to speak? As Canadian. I view Americans as our neighbours and our best friends. If they want to call themselves Americans it is just fine with me. And I suspect it is that way with the vast majority of Canadians.

Who cares?

We got down to a 20 and a 21. It took some time, some knashing of teeth, and some compromises.

The downside is on a longer trip DW gets tired of the same clothes. The upside is that we do not have to rely on others to help us and our luggage arrives when we do. And it arrives intact with nothing missing.

We downsized our luggage to a point where we could each handle it independently. It was a challenge however it makes our travels much more enjoyable.

We carry them on. Actually, we now only do carry on when we travel.

Too cold, too dark.

We were on a cruise a few years ago. The topic of Cuba came up and we were shocked that most of the people at the table knew nothing about Cuba and seemed surprised th hear that it was only about 20 miles from Miami.

Vegas did not get built by giving too much money back to the punters.

The answer is in the math. The house wins. End of story.

My exception was 'at the street level'.

Clearly Cuba is not a capitalist country.

Only if you believe in Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, or the tooth fairly.