Nizzie

Yes another NEW COKE. I remember RCCL stating that they had done research on this form of dining and designed the smaller, broken up different type of dining venues on the Quantum around this research???

 

NOT ONE PERSON ON CC EVER SAID THEY WERE IN ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM POLLED OR QUESTIONED DEALING WITH THIS NEW IDEA... WHO did they do research with? Granted CC members are not the only people out there, but don't you think one or two may have been part of research into such and expensive investment in ship design alone?

 

bosco

I can tell you how most companies do their "research" - focus groups. I used to be a regular candidate for a local marketing research company and I was called frequently to at least be screened for groups. I did focus groups on a large coffee shop brand, a mobile tablet device, blown-in attic insulation, a B2B website pertaining to my industry, and "alternative adult beverages" to name a few. The focus group periods would last a couple of days and in that time they would do in-depth Q&A sessions with fewer than a hundred people. Corporate giants would make massive decisions based on the opinions of a few dozen individuals who were being paid between $20-$100 cash for their time.

I could tell in my sessions that some group members were spouting some complete BS - and a couple admitted to me privately over the years that they had lied on their screenings to get into some of the more lucrative or fun ones (like the alcohol one that involved tasting various beverages and getting free transportation to and from the firm.) Therefore it's entirely feasible that if a research company called around to candidates asking "Have you ever been on a cruise? Would you like to come participate in a focus group on cruising?" then it stands to reason that at least a few participants might lie to get some cash under the table. They would also never reveal the client until at least after the focus group started, if at all. I never did learn who the possible manufacturer of the tablet was or the could-be producer of the flavored malt beverage we were comparing to recognized brands.

Basically, "extensive research" isn't always that extensive and it certainly isn't always very accurate.

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On our last cruise all our ports were in North America so we just used our regular mobile plans while on shore to get updates from home (mainly checking in with my mom, as my father had recently been placed in a memory care home for advanced Alzheimer's with dementia.) Other than that I did periodically go through my work email because I could and because it was free with my mobile plan.

On our Caribbean cruise of 2015, we didn't have any ports included in our cellular plan - it was actually less expensive to pay for a few minutes here and there aboard ship than to pay for a month of international data that we could only use while in ports. We would log in and let email download to our device and sign off - using a minimum amount of data. We'd then check for important emails, mostly from our pet sitter (our beloved kitty became ill shortly before our cruise and while travel insurance policies allow cancellation if a family member falls ill, it seems that pets do not count as family members [emoji13]but our pet sitter is awesome and our cat is just fine now) and read them. If we needed to respond, we would write up the reply in offline mode, and then quickly jump on long enough to send the outbound message. In all for the entire time we spent less than $12 and part of that was because the first time we did this routine we accidentally had Background App Refresh turned on and all our email inboxes set to push new messages - so we used a far bigger chunk of data than we needed. We got that sorted, and our subsequent bills were significantly less than that first round.

I don't think we'd ever go for an online data plan unless it was free/included. We don't have the need of that much usage.

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How do people find thirteen-year-old threads to bump?

If you or a loved one do not have an anxiety disorder you probably wouldn't understand, but my bet is that a search for "cruising with anxiety" brings this up. For some sufferers, knowledge and preparation are coping mechanisms. Conversations like this one (some replies excepted, of course) can be extremely helpful to some. If even one person with an anxiety disorder is assisted by an ancient post, then it's a great thing.

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Nizzie, What packing app do you use? Very helpful hints.

It's called "Packing Pro" - I don't know if there's an Android version but this is the Apple one:

Packing Pro by Quinn Genzel

https://appsto.re/us/Z-mNs.i

I use it for cruising, land trips, camping, weekends, whatever. I've gone through the Master Catalog and deleted anything that doesn't pertain (for instance, we are childless so the Babies and Kids categories are pointless) and added a ton of my own categories and individual items. I use it for my pre-travel to-do's and my post-trip checklist as well.

I love that I can set up bags by description (and give each an icon and a photo!) and assign items to a bag, and/or a person. You can even take pictures of individual items in your list.

I adore this app so much (the anal-retentive side of me particularly) that every time I set up a trip I go into the Info area and send the developer a tip (in-app purchase) because it is that awesome. Your mileage may vary of course, my very-Type-B brother tried it and said it was far too deep and fussy. I like it though.

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I do not suffer, but my husband has had GAD (generalized anxiety disorder) for most of his life and takes daily medication and has weekly talk therapy. As part of his ongoing treatment, we gently push to do things outside his comfort zone, but when it comes to travel I indulge his anxieties a little because let's face it - travel is a huge stressor so I want to keep him as happy and relaxed as possible.

I do all the travel research and planning and just keep him informed on the important bits. Too much information all at once is overwhelming for him, but he also needs to be kept in the loop, so I will present him with 2-3 options at most, if not a "done deal" for a particular day. Before we leave I will have drawn up a detailed schedule in PDF format, for his phone and a hard copy in each of our bags. It outlines where we must be and when, and soft copies include links to maps, phone numbers, web sites, and so forth.

We always plan to arrive at our departure city at least a day in advance, even if sightseeing there is not on the agenda. We do not check luggage on our flights. We always have a Plan B, and maybe C or D, on deck in case of an emergency. Between the two of us we do not carry the same credit cards. We each have stashes of cash in various places. We both have not only our passport books but cards as well, and photos of both in our smartphones. Family members at home also get copies of our itinerary.

His anxiety manifests itself in some major gastrointestinal issues so he carries not only meds for that, but also some protein bars so that he can skip a meal here or there if needed.

Once on board ship, we take the first hours to orient ourselves on the ship and find our muster station and actually go to it, after studying our escape route shown on our stateroom door. We locate the life jackets, and if we are on a line that doesn't require bringing them to the drill (Celebrity) we practice putting them on. We go to the drill early and pay close attention.

While on board, we photograph the daily schedule and keep it on our phones for the day. If the ship doesn't have an app that has them, we download deck plans as well.

While he does carry Xanax for unexpected anxiety attacks, sometimes being so far out of routine is just too much for him. On those rare occasions, we are fine with throwing the day's plans out the window and just sitting in our cabin quietly. It can be disappointing but my husband's mental well-being is more important than a shore excursion or specialty dining. Fortunately I'm a flexible traveler so unlike him, I have an easy time going with the flow.

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I use a packing app - it's highly personalizable and I can copy last cruise's packing list to the current journey. As I'm packing up my cabin to leave, anything I didn't use (besides something like our mini solar panel or first aid kit, which we bring with the hope of NOT needing them) gets axed off the template list. Using the app to repack the cabin also insures I leave nothing behind.

I bring a limited color palette of clothing, a Tide stick and a few Shout wipes for stains, Febreze To Go for second wearings, and if need be plan to take advantage of the laundry service. I have a single LBD (little black dress) that I wear for all formal/chic nights and add one of several brightly-printed scarves and a coordinating pair of ballet flats (Tieks - my favorites - they fold up and pack small, and can go from a port tour to dinner no problem!) to keep it interesting. I doubt the average passenger realizes I wear the same dress 2-3 times a cruise. My other shoes are sturdy walkers (that get worn on the plane) and a pair of flip-flops for the pool/spa/beach. I also carry an extra pair of insoles for the walking shoes. After a long day of walking in port, I just pop out the insoles and hang them in the closet clipped to a pants hanger. The next port day, after the shoes have aired out, I insert the other pair of insoles. It's like having a second whole pair of shoes without the bulk. This saved my bacon on a port-intensive Med cruise where I absolutely did not want to check bags on the plane.

My daily clothing choices are almost all performance fabrics - they pack smaller than their non-performance counterparts and wash up easily in the sink in a pinch and hang to dry overnight. My socks are Smartwool and I can rotate between 3 pairs for a two-week holiday and not need to launder.

I pack minimal toiletries, and either make a drugstore stop in the departure city or have a box shipped via Amazon Prime to me at our pre-cruise hotel. This is especially important for sunscreen because we go through a lot and the quantities we need won't fit in the TSA-approved zipper bag. It doesn't help that I prefer the spray format and my husband likes the lotion, and that I can't wear the active ingredient Avobenzone on my face so I need a more-expensive mineral formulation for the neck up. It's just more efficient to have all our sunscreen waiting for us at the hotel or go pick it up locally before checking in.

For cosmetics, I limit myself to neutrals, choose flight-friendly form factors (stick products rule!) and only bring a single all-in-one palette. Generally I can fit my whole face of makeup into a little cosmetic bag with some careful planning. I always have samples of stuff from makeup and skin care subscription boxes, so I will pack up things like cleansers, moisturizers, primer, mascara, etc. to use, and then toss them out before our flight home. The sample sizes are perfect for travel and I don't feel bad at all about binning them after only a week or two.

Electronica is an area that eats up a lot of travel bulk - I do bring a Kindle for reading instead of treeware books, and I don't go anywhere without my tablet and smartphone. It means bringing charging plugs and cables so I've pared that down as much as possible but I can't bring myself (yet) to leave these items at home. I forego high heels, therefore I can pack my iPad - that's my philosophy.

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It looks like you have been cruising on other lines................have you cruised on Royal Caribbean ?

Not since 2003 - it's admittedly been a while!

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We have been charged the corkage fee for bottles we brought with us on board when we have taken them to the MDR or to a specialty dining venue. We are very open about it, place the bottle in plain view on the table and say something like, "We've brought this bottle for corkage, we'd like X glasses please." The sole exception to the charge was when we had brought on a very special bottle and the wine steward recognized it but said that he'd never tried it. We insisted that he have a taste. He didn't charge us the fee that time, but we've paid it on every other occasion. For bottles purchased on board you can take them to dining venues with no corkage fee - they will put a sticker on the bottle so the wine steward will know that it's a "retail" bottle and not brought aboard as part of the cabin allowance. Bottles brought on board and consumed in your stateroom (ask your cabin steward for glasses or acquire some at the nearest bar) are not subject to a fee.

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I don't know how it works on other lines as I have never booked an accessible cabin anywhere but NCL, but on Pearl our TA got us assigned to a HC cabin which we were asked to move out of as a passenger with a need requested it. Our TA made the arrangement for the move, which did not change our category but did net us $15 in OBC. We would have moved for $0 but were happy with the minor compensation.

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We try to do one land-based trip every other year (in which we apparently try to kill ourselves with sightseeing) and in between do a cruise where we relax more. Our shared vacation time is very limited so we have to be prudent and pick and choose wisely.

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THANKS!! You are a life saver. Is Lyft a pretty reliable company?

Very. For most drivers the rideshares are a side hustle and not a main job, but they take it VERY seriously and are fiercely devoted to their ratings (please make sure you rate your driver and ride) and will generally treat their riders very well. We've had drivers who will let us play our own music on their stereos, provide phone chargers, and cold bottled water on rides. When my husband had to fly out of town in sub-freezing temperatures (that our region is NOT used to) one cab company cancelled his ride and a second one wouldn't take his request. A Lyft driver made it into our snowbound neighborhood and got him to his flight. Made a giant tip.

All that said, I hadn't realized how far apart Cocoa Beach and Orlando are - you're looking at a ride of an hour or more. That likely won't be an issue but please inform your driver that you have a long drive planned - if a driver is nearing "quitting time" then it may not be convenient and the driver may ask you to cancel your request and resubmit it. No big deal - I live outside a major city and I get that it's occasionally not easy for a driver to go so far out of his/her way to take me home. I've never waited more than 5-10 minutes for a new ride.

In your situation a rideshare probably wouldn't be my number one choice - I'd probably stay in Orlando one more night and on cruise day go back to the airport and use a shuttle service like this one: http://www.cbshuttle.com/cocoa-beach-rates.htm that would take us direct to the port.

If you do decide on a rideshare between the two cities, then just be understanding and patient - you will find a driver willing to make the trip sooner rather than later. Many drivers actually like the longer trips because they know for that hour they are getting paid - sometimes a driver can wait for a long time before getting a rider. You can increase your chances of a first-response ride by not going too late in the day, and not too close to the noon hour when some drivers are itching for a meal break.

Riding Lyft has been really fun for me - I've met some interesting drivers, such as a mom trying out working outside the home while her kids are in school, a young man trying to make it in major-league soccer, and a woman running a tech summer day camp for young girls. The drivers are just regular people like you and me and they have cool and fascinating stories to share. Make the most of it!

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I have a question about Uber. Is their fee based on per person or just where you're going. We're having a hard time figuring out how to get from our Orlando hotel to our Cocoa Beach hotel the night before the cruise. Then their is a worry that if we have a driver who's car isn't so big, where will we put all of our luggage. We're a family of 4, so its not like there would be a ton, but we'll have 4 large suitcases and maybe a couple of bags... Anyone used Uber from a Universal Hotel to a Cocoa Beach hotel? If so, how was it? What was the ballpark price you paid for it?

You'll want to order an UberXL or a Lyft Plus. They are for 6 passengers and are usually SUVs. Plenty of room for you and your luggage. A bit more expensive but you pay by the ride, not by the passenger.

I use this site to get an estimate on my Lyft rides. https://estimatefares.com

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We are not Uber users (we are Team #DeleteUber for several reasons) but are avid Lyft users - Lyft is slightly cheaper even than Uber and allows in-app tipping. We found that at Port Everglades, ridesharing companies cannot pick up or drop off in the commercial-vehicles area (where taxis are) unless the driver has a hack license officially known as a chauffeur's registration. Our driver there told us that many rideshare drivers elect to get the certification because they are allowed more places in Florida as a licensed commercial driver. Still many do not so if you are being picked up in Fort Lauderdale it's best to set your pickup in the Personal Vehicles area so that any driver can get you. Port of Miami has no such restriction.

Also, all paid pickups, whether rideshare or cab, have a $2 origination fee tacked onto the bill when leaving from either port, and every ride into or out of the airports have a fee added - $2 for MIA and $3 for FLL.

We've never had an issue finding the "one car" especially now that many Lyft cars have a light-up dashboard beacon that changes to match the color shown in your app, so if we see green on the bottom of the app, we know to look for a green beacon on the car dashboard, plus we always have the make/model/color/plate of the vehicle as well as a photo of the driver in our app. Makes things super easy.

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What I try to bring on every vacation, not just cruises:

* Patience

* Adaptability

* Positivity

* Friendliness

Some people forget theirs at home or have a limited supply to begin with, so I find if I pack plenty of each, then I can spread it around to people I meet, whether they are my fellow travelers/tourists, hospitality professionals, or locals at my destination.

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I do check the weather, mostly out of habit, but was especially glad I did before our 2009 Alaska voyage. I noted some high temperatures for our port cities and suggested we bring a pair of shorts each "just in case." It ended up being what we wore into town at every stop as it was 80-85°F everywhere. The cruise prior to ours experienced rain, fog, rain, wind, and rain. Some folks on ours only had warmish clothing and were buying up the t-shirts in both the ship's and towns' shops. You couldn't get a pair of shorts for love nor money in Juneau or Ketchikan, because all the locals, who were practically melting in the heat, had bought out all the stock previously.

I was SO glad I'd thought to pay attention to the forecast. Made us so much more comfortable.

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Bear in mind that the skeevier the neighborhood and the cheaper the hotel, the more likely that the parking lot (if cruise parking is even on offer) is not secure, patrolled or monitored, and your friends' car may be prowled, vandalized or, at worst, stolen. We had a car prowler hit our rental at a Holiday Inn near Disneyland - broke out a window to find that there was nothing in there - fortunately because it was a rental protected by our American Express, we were able to get another car the same day. Others staying at the hotel fared far worse, as their personal vehicles had been broken into and items taken. Those families ended up losing out on at least some of their hard-earned vacation time to file police reports and get their cars in for replacement windows so they could drive home.

It wasn't even what I would have thought of as a "bad" neighborhood. Mostly hotels nearby. Never thought it would happen there. At a more seedy motel in a sketch neighborhood? Some chances just aren't worth it.

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My husband and I are terminally social (we have friends who call us "joiners" which could not be more true) so we like meeting new people. We have had very good luck with tables for 6-8 and have stayed in contact with tablemates over many years. It makes me appreciate that cruise lines make sure they have plenty of two-tops for the shy and the introverted so that the fun and outgoing people who want to share and be social are the ones that end up with us!

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Ten items on a menu is nothing. I am used to ten or more items in each category. In fact I can't think of any land based restaurant that had such a limited menu except for a few fast food joints.

 

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Interesting. The restaurants we frequent in Portland (Oregon) generally have much MORE limited menus - we were recently at a farm-to-table favorite that had just four options for mains. One of our other recent visits was to a bistro with five, six if you counted the daily fish special. If we see a restaurant with ten options it's a surprise. I know that family-casual places like Cheesecake Factory and Red Robin have menus that look more like portfolios than "cartes du restaurant" but we generally only eat at those restaurants when we catch ourselves starving at a shopping mall - not for a planned night out, not for a special occasion and definitely not while on vacation.

In fact, one of the very best restaurants in town has no choices at all - the menu is a six-course chef-chosen prix-fixe dinner, but you can specify dietary needs at least 24 hours in advance so if you're a vegetarian or have allergies you can be accommodated. You still don't get to pick exactly what you eat at all.

I understand that many people like a magazine-worth of menu options but for me personally, a smaller, more limited menu signals a touch more elegance, refinement, and commitment to freshness. I'm not one of those Portlanders that needs to know what my chicken's name was on the farm, or its family tree, but I do like eating at places where the ingredients are locally sourced and not trucked in by Sysco.

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Look at the Anker USB multiport devices.

 

This one does not have surge protection.

https://www.anker.com/products/71AN3654WS-WA

I have that one! We love Anker products and have a lot - not only two multiport USB plugs like this (one 3-port and this 4-port) I also have a grab bag of Anker cables, two power banks for on-the-go battery charging, and a car jump starter. All products have been very reliable.

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On our May cruise on the Jewel, we ate at Teppanyaki, Le Bistro and Moderno. Le Bistro had the best food of the three, but wasn't really up to par with the specialty dining we've had on other lines (Princess, Celebrity.) That said I don't consider NCL to be in the same category of cruise as those so it probably doesn't count. We had the Ultimate Dining Package, so we didn't pay the fees, but a folio was presented to each of us at the end of the meals to add an extra gratuity, despite an 18% charge already being on our cruise bill - we prepaid those grats with our final payment and it was a little off-putting to be asked to tip a second time.

We enjoyed Teppanyaki, but the show is pretty much the same as any other teppanyaki grill restaurant so if you're into that, cool. Also, bear in mind that there is no such thing as a "table for two" there - you will always be at a half-square table of eight, and the chef will do his best to engage his diners. It's meant to be a somewhat interactive experience and those who are shy or hoping for an intimate dining setting are likely to be sorely disappointed. We noted that of the four tables running (two chefs work back-to-back serving one-half of a full square) in the room, two of the tables were quite loud and boisterous, and had the most enthusiastic chefs. The other two were pretty subdued, one of them you could tell the chef was trying to get the group to liven up but they were just not having it, and the diners seemed perturbed when the other groups would cheer on their chef. It was weird, and the woman sitting next to me commented on how she was glad she wasn't sharing a table with the "stick-in-the-mud fuddy-duddies." Apparently she and her husband cruise Jewel annually and always go to Teppanyaki at least once per trip, and her greatest fear is being stuck at a table with a parade-rainer. We chose to tip a bit extra for the fun show the chef did.

Moderno we dubbed the Protein Festival, as the meat Just. Kept. Coming. until you turned over the Please Make The Ride Stop card by your plate. I thought it was awesome as I try to limit my carb consumption - I was able to have a small salad and taste everything that looked yummy. I also had the great good sense to stop at a reasonable time, unlike the two gentlemen in our party who had made it a personal goal to try everything walking around. None of us had dessert - the ladies were being Good Girls and the men, well, were a tad overstuffed.

At Le Bistro, we had steaks. Our friends each had a beef tenderloin entrée, and my husband and I shared the ribeye for two - a 32 oz. monster of a steak. We ended up sharing it with our friends and still left some on the plate. Their signature beverage is Veuve Clicquot champagne - they have bottles on display in several places and it features prominently on the menu, but even the half-glass (under $10) is not covered by the beverage package. It's my favorite mid-priced bubbly so I did indulge in a glass on my own dime. We also elected to tip extra here as our waiter was stellar and did a very nice job of carving our ribeye tableside.

Compared to the MDR on Jewel, the specialty dining choices we made were very good - we were pretty disappointed with most of our meals in both Azura and O'Sheehan's, and only fared somewhat better in Tsar's, particularly at breakfast. If we were to go back to NCL we'd likely indulge in a cruise-long dining package and eat in a specialty venue every evening but the costs would need to be factored in to compare fairly with another line, where we might or might not do specialty dining - we tend to choose something like Crown Grill (Princess) or Murano (Celebrity) as a celebratory meal rather than a means of escape from their MDR food.

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I have dry bags for iPhones for us so we can swim with our devices and take pictures in the water (got some great video of feeding stingrays!) and we kept our IDs and ship cards in the same bag, just making sure they didn't obstruct the camera lens.

Whatever you decide on, make sure you do a thorough test at home by putting tissues in the box or bag and submerging it under water (use something heavy to hold it under if needed) for at least 20-30 minutes. We had a tiny leak in one bag that would have destroyed a phone, but we had plenty of time to contact the seller and get a replacement that was sound.

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I have to fly nearly everywhere to take a cruise - and because I infinitely prefer to carry-on my luggage (on both plane and ship) I must be mindful of both liquids and weight/size.

For shampoo, I generally use what is provided in the cabin/hotel. My hair is pretty easygoing and can tolerate a lot. I have only stayed in a small number of AirBnBs that don't normally provide shampoo, and many hosts are willing to accommodate me when I explain that I don't travel with it. One hostess even did a drugstore run for me knowing I would be arriving fairly late in the evening, for which I reimbursed her and gave her an Amazon gift card (she was an awesome host in many ways!) If soap or body wash isn't provided, I use shampoo in its place.

Conditioner I bring my own, usually a bottle from the "travel sizes" area of the drugstore. Hotels are hit or miss and it's rare to find conditioner on a ship. I don't need much, so a little goes a long way for me. I also use it for shaving so it pulls double duty as well.

For facial cleansing I travel with Olay Daily Facials cloths. I can just throw a bunch in a Ziploc and there's no liquids to deal with at all. I also recently started using a stick cleanser which is really cool but I haven't packed it anywhere yet - it's a bit on the large side so I'd need to see how much room it leaves me in my toiletries bag.

For moisturizer I travel with a product that works for face, hands and body so a GoToob of that covers me (literally?) for all my needs.

I used to carry a liquid foundation but I've moved to a stick formula for travel so once again I can leave that out of my TSA-approved liquids bag. In fact so many of my makeup products are sticks now (blush, highlighter, contour, plus the usual suspects like lipstick) that the only "liquid" makeup I still use is mascara and gloss.

I also used to carry my own hand sanitizer gel when I traveled (and still do have a large dispenser in the car) but I've started using a multipurpose individually-packaged wipe for travel - it not only sanitizes both hands and hard surfaces (like airplane tray tables and armrests!) but also will actually clean up minor messes unlike sanitizer gel.

When I travel tropically I also carry insect repellant wipes that are individually wrapped. One wipe will generally cover the exposed skin of both me and my husband so we don't need too many.

The one area that trips me up is sunscreen. I have tried several stick-format sunscreens and haven't found a favorite yet so it's lotion for me. I generally bring one or two tubes that are 3.4 oz or less in my TSA bag and if possible, plan to buy more at my destination.

I will say I have had some great luck with shipping sunscreen to hotels - although I've only done it twice. Once was a pre-cruise stay in FLL and with a late arrival I knew getting to a drugstore would be a problem with no rental car. The other time was at a Walt Disney World resort, again with no rental car, and not wanting to pay the on-property premium at the resort gift shop. Both times I just used Amazon Prime to ship our preferred products to ourselves, c/o the hotel, making sure to note GUEST and our arrival date on the address and in "special instructions." I just carried the tubes on board in a packable reusable shopping bag, since cruise lines don't care about a max number of carry-on items. (We use a LOT of sunscreen.)

For toothbrush and toothpaste, I use the freebies from my dentist and toss out after using on the last day before boarding the plane. I use a sonic brush at home so it's a good use of those items. For "emergencies" I also have a couple of Colgate Wisps (awesome for most refreshment during long flights!)

For most everything else, I just get travel sizes - things like antiperspirant, hair styling spray, whatnot, are readily available in the drugstore. I will say that part of the adventure, particularly in foreign cities, is finding a pharmacy and figuring out how to ask for the stuff you're about to run out of or that you forgot at home!

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We sailed the Jewel in May and no bottled water was included. We purchased a few bottles here and there and the bartenders always made sure to remind us that they was a charge. There was a flyer in our room on day 1 advertising the "water package" where one could get 6 or 12 bottles delivered to one's stateroom for a charge.

I will say there was one station in the aft of the ship in the buffet area, not far from the La Cucina, that had a water dispenser labeled for use to refill personal containers. I saw no others, but we weren't really looking for them because we didn't bring on our Nalgenes - we are used to Celebrity where bottled water is included.

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You might consider a "cruise" on a freighter - a container ship. The passengers usually number no more than a dozen and the food, while hearty and of the stick-to-your-ribs variety (as its primary purpose is to nourish a hardworking crew of sailors) doesn't really lend itself to gluttony. The water and vistas are the same ones you might experience on any mass-market cruise line going to the same ports.

My friend who is a bit of a bohemian minimalist enjoyed his freighter voyage greatly and a mass-market cruise with its glitz and pomp would never appeal to him.

https://www.freightercruises.com/index.php

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We were recently on the Jewel and my husband (who uses an APAP, very similar device) was provided with a gallon of distilled water by the cabin steward who had been informed in advance by Special Assistance. My husband carries a 9-ft extension cord whenever he travels, because frequently in hotel rooms and AirBnBs the near-bed outlets are pre-populated with lamp plugs, or so far behind the headboard they are unreachable.

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