All That Jazz

Our first food tour was in Shanghai with Culinary Back Streets -- enjoyed the first tour so much we engaged a different tour the next day. (Yes, we know Shanghai is not possible now.) However, Lisbon is one of the cities they serve. We've been on their tours in Istanbul (2 different tours), Barcelona, and Athens. They take you into the neighborhoods where the locals live and eat. They are our first choice always for food tours. Lots of city guides and information on the website even it you don't book with them.

There are two authorities to satisfy when you travel internationally to board a cruise: one is the country of destination, and the other is the cruise line. These are two separate and distinct sets of requirements.

First, you must satisfy the requirements to enter Spain by air. IATA (International Air Transport Association) is the website that the airline employee who checks you in at the departure airport will consult to verify your documents. You can consult IATA yourself. Follow this link and click Spain on the map. https://www.iatatravelcentre.com/world.php

Sorting through Spain requirement number 1 it appears that you meet the proof of vaccination condition and need only complete and present the Spain Travel Health form: https://www.spth.gob.es/

You do not need the EU certificate, in lieu present the completed Spain Travel Health form.

Silversea requirements are here: https://www.silversea.com/lp-silversea-hrts-consumer-eu.html

"The EU requires that all embarking guests must hold proof of a valid antigen negative test result (administered by a verified third party, either a laboratory or pharmacy) performed within 24 hours of embarkation.

If you arrive for embarkation with a valid antigen negative test result (administered by a verified third party, either a laboratory or pharmacy), please make note you will enjoy expedited boarding. If you require pier-side testing by Silversea at embarkation, please note this will result in a delayed boarding process for you."

That pretty much sums it up.

The answers lie on the websites of each individual cruise line. There will be similarities, and there will be differences. And the protocols are constantly evolving, so what was mandated a few weeks ago may be very different a few weeks from now.

We use packing cubes for most cruises. The cubes go right into drawers, taking up no more space than the items inside. We use vacuum bags only for (very) cold weather cruises, to the Arctic or Antarctic regions. Using the vacuum bags conserves space for sweaters, down coats, etc. Note that they conserve space, but not weight.

The real answer to your question is that various cruisers prefer different packing methods. There is no right or wrong or even "best." Your "best" is what you prefer and what works for you.

Margaritaville at Sea  https://margaritavilleatsea.com/

sails two and three day cruises out of Palm Beach to Freeport.

The name says it all.

Debate. Debate. Debate. To what end? Cruise lines have formulated their policies re vaccination. Comply or don't cruise. If you don't like a particular policy, don't cruise. Of course the policies will evolve over time. Maybe sooner, maybe later. Our cruise line of choice mandates ALL guests are fully vaccinated. No waivers, no favors. We're good with that. For the inquisitive, here's a list of cruise line vaccination policies as of April 16:

https://www.travelandleisure.com/cruises/cruises-that-allow-vaccinated-travelers

Going right to the source:

https://www.us-passport-service-guide.com/can-i-put-2-passport-renewals-in-the-same-envelope.html

To sum up: place all the documents for each adult application in separate envelopes. Then put those two envelopes into a larger envelope for mailing.

Suggest you visit https://tripinsurancestore.com/

Steve and his staff will be happy to answer your questions and help you design the policy that is best for your needs. He is also active on the Cruise/Travel Insurance forum here at CC. They answer calls and emails promptly.

I wouldn't approach the cruise line asking for "decorations." You have a visual need for assistance to locate your stateroom. Once a few years ago, Crystal attached some balloons to a door for someone visually impaired. I can't imagine a cruise line would deny this request when you frame it as a medical need.

5 minutes ago, Shmoo here said:

Typically, you don't pay the TA and the TA then pays the cruise line. ln my experience, the TA takes your credit card info and transmits that directly to the cruise line.  The cruise line is the one who actually charges your card.  The TA shouldn't be taking your payments directly, but is just a facilitator.

Exactly our experience. In fact, one of the essential questions to ask a new TA is how your payments are handled. If the TA holds your payment and does not immediately pay the cruise line, that's a deal breaker.

There is a common misapprehension that all "discrimination" is illegal. Certainly I would not expect a swimming pool to hire a 10 year old life guard. This is an example of reasonable and legal age discrimination. Viking Ocean Cruises from its inception did not permit children to cruise. Perfectly legal age discrimination.

Even prior to the covid crisis, cruisers had to verify their health status by signing a questionnaire prior to boarding. Someone with obvious flu symptoms would be denied boarding, no waivers. In this exceptional time, cruise lines do have the right and ability to "discriminate" against cruisers (and crew) of any age who cannot provide proof of vaccination. No waivers, no favors. A new corporate policy of protecting the health of cruisers and crew by insisting on proof of covid vaccination overrides any protestations of "but whatabout, but whatabout", let's SUE!

Crystal's newly announced policy:

"....according to the latest scientific data and expert guidance, we have made the decision that guests must be fully inoculated with a COVID-19 vaccine (with both doses if recommended by the manufacturer) at least 14 days prior to boarding any Crystal ship and will be asked to provide proof of vaccination before embarkation. " ......"Unfortunately, at this time we are unable to accommodate anyone, no matter what age, who has not been vaccinated. " 

In a year or two or three, this pandemic will die out and we will all return to whining about chair hogging and tipping.

It's the Jones Act that is often confused with the PVSA (Passenger Vessel Services Act). Here's a definition of the Jones Act that should be understandable without a legal education.

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/j/jonesact.asp

It's the PVSA that cruisers clamor to have repealed or suspended.

We are considering Hurtigruten for a cruise circumnavigating Svalbard. If you are on Facebook, there is an active Hurtigruten group that will accept new members if you promise to be nice. They are very helpful.

Check out:

https://www.hurtigruten.com/

and

https://www.hurtigruten.com/destinations/svalbard/#voyages

When I fly, I am always willing to switch to an equal or better seat to accommodate families. However, in the past, I have been pressured to switch to a worse seat. Not happening for the reasons mentioned by waterbug.

The answer is that corporations target multiple segments of the market by offering different products. How many different cars/trucks does Ford make? Lots - with each model tailored to a distinct market segment. Same with cruise corporations - their products (a combination of price sensitivity, ship design, and deployment stratagems) cover virtually all actual and potential customer choices. Want out and back from Florida every week? Gotcha covered. Want to cruise around the Cape Horn? Gotcha covered. Want a ship with 5,000 new friends? Covered. Want a luxury cruise with 300 new friends? Covered.

For the cruising market, there is a business plan for every demographic. Carnival Corporation currently owns nine brands: Carnival, Costa, P&O Australia, P&O, Princess, Holland America, AIDA, Cunard, and Seabourn. Nine brands, nine business plans.

Anyone who does a modicum of research and, if new to cruising, consults some knowledgeable TA's, will develop a feel for what each cruise line offers. There is a tendency, well, more than a tendency, for some to recruit for their own personal favorite line while disparaging other lines.

My favorite example is about two couples we know who have different favorite lines. One couple (call them A) always books a suite on Princess, the other couple (call them B) favors one of the luxury lines. A persuaded B to try the luxury line. B came along with A on the luxury line, but was determined from the onset to complain about everything and to promote their Princess experience above all. No way the luxury line could match their Princess suite!

We have our favorite line. Doesn't matter which one. Totally don't care whether others like it or not. But we also don't disparage the lines that others choose.

12 hours ago, LHT28 said:

What other lines do this besides Azamara ?

 The would be magical

We were on Crystal, I believe Regent does as well. The concert was arranged just for our group. Glad to hear about Windstar, they are one of our favorites.

Other cruise lines offer the evening concert at Ephesus.  The noisy crowds are gone, the evening breeze and bird song are delightful. The attendants serve hors d'oeuvres and wine dressed in ancient Greek costume. The string quartet performed in front of the facade of the library and the full moon was visible through the library "window". It is one of our top five shore excursions ever.

1 hour ago, SRF said:

 

In that case you "entered" that US before you boarded the aircraft. 

 

It just moves the point where the clearance is done.

Yes. Absolutely and totally correct. That is what the "pre" prefix indicates. Pre-clearance of both immigration and customs. If possible, I recommend Tim Horton.

44 minutes ago, sanger727 said:

 

Do you? I don't know. I live in the US so when I connect in the US it's international to domestic. So yes, have to leave through the terminal and enter US at first stop. But I know my airport has an international terminal. So, If you entered gate C6 and were leaving again out of gate C9 because it was an international to international flight, I"m not sure that you would have to go through immigration and enter the US. It seems like it wouldn't be that different than the Frankfurt example. 

Yes, it is government policy in the US that everyone must clear immigration at the first point of entry.* This is true whether travel terminates in the US, or you connect domestically or internationally. This website explains the process very well:

https://onemileatatime.com/us-airport-immigration-procedure/

*Just acknowledging the exception of pre-clearance in some airports in Canada and Ireland before someone jumps in.

When you call Delta customer service, most likely you will get a recording asking for your phone number. They do call you back. It's better than waiting on hold. Have your locators ready. Personally, I would not cancel online and expect to get a refund later.

The general term for itinerary planning is deployment. Fleet deployment is a complex process and is described thus in Cruise Industry News: (pre virus)

What Drives Deployment? The complex matrix of cost and revenue analysis that is itinerary planning really comes down to where passengers want to go. As the fleet grows, the planet generally continues to deliver the same options in terms of viable markets and sailing regions.Traditional sailing regions dominate the story heading into 2020. Capacity is up in Alaska, the Caribbean, and Europe is encouraging as well. Further east, the brakes have been put on in China, while Australia continues to perform well with a high market penetration rate. Cruise lines will move the ships to where revenue is highest, but that matrix is based on a complex set of numbers, including fuel costs, geopolitical issues, ticket prices, onboard spend, environmental regulations, local fees and more, making ship deployment and itinerary planning the key to success.

Someone at Silversea is charge of deployment. Don't know who.

Passports prove citizenship but not residence. An ordinary drivers license or state ID proves residence. A "real ID" is accepted by the federal government for "official purposes." You can google for a list of what qualifies as "real ID" and is defined as "official purposes."

If your cruise is other than a closed loop cruise, you will need passport (and perhaps visas.) If you fly internationally you will need a passport (and perhaps visas.) If you fly domestically......everyone should have this figured out by now.

Our "yellow book", the International Certificate of Vaccination, is still required for proof of yellow fever vaccination for some cruises.  We've been on a cruise that denied boarding to a couple that did not have that proof (or a letter of exemption.)

On the dedicated River Cruise forum there is a thread dedicated to "All Things Avalon."

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/115-river-cruising/

There is also a dedicated forum for Eco & Expedition Cruises:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/55-eco-amp-expedition-cruising/

Between these two forums you should be able to get feedback on both Avalon and the Galapagos.