jsn55

I assume they want you to have it on your phone. If that's not possible for some reason, they should take a paper copy, or the original. This stuff is important, you should not be relying on internet forums for answers. You will have to read the instructions from your cruise line or the authorities in charge of your departure port. If it's done done just right, you could be denied boarding.

Since all travel providers are providing little customer service these days, I think you need to get your case in writing and 'on the record'. Settling this claim will take forever ... if a cruise line can't even answer the phone, how can you expect any action? So write a concise, polite letter explaining what happened, just the facts, no blame, no anger, and tell them that you are requesting a claim form. Seek out the contact information for someone at HA that you can communicate with. Your travel agent should be able to lean on the HA rep ... if your agent isn't coming through, contact the owner of the agency. You might use social media to get started, I've heard that is often quite effective.

"REAL" service dogs of any type are not yappy. The animal's behaviour is an easy indiication of whether it's a pet or a service dog.

THIS is the epitome my thoughts ... wear whatever works for you and just 'look sharp'

Finally! Someone who UNDERSTANDS ME!!! Those of us who disdain most garbage on phones and social media really resent being forced to deal with stuff we don't understand and really don't want to deal with. Doesn't anyone realize that this DIY stuff is here so travel providers can pay fewer employees? I find that annoying. My fave response is someone who had no problem doing a virtual test at a condo. Well, a condo is NOT a hotel and the internet is probably much more reliable. Thank you, coo!

Makes no difference to me who requires the test. It's required, and there's a deadline. I don't even know where the camera is on my laptop, much less what to do with it. Nobody seems to understand that people who are unfamiliar with phones and the finer points of a computer need at least some basic knowledge of how to do the process. I can't just sit down and start banging around, hoping for the best. Maybe I can just hire a teenager at the hotel to tell me what to do, huh?

I understand that you're not talking 'required', but 'what's the norm'. My husband feels comfortable almost anywhere in a polo or dress shirt tucked in with a belt and decent slacks. As long as one doesn't look like having just rolled out of bed, neatness rules over 'dressed up' while travelling for all but a few, almost anywhere.

Thanks for this, but I am not the slightest bit confident that I can do anything with a video test at all, especially from a hotel. We'd be much more comfortable getting tested somewhere where they know what they're doing, unlike me.

That's what we thought too about embarking in Quebec ten days from now. Canada requires no test for vaxed pax, but NCL requires it to board the ship. The timing couldn't be worse, it's a 72-hour deadline and we're arriving in Quebec 3 nights before the cruise. So instead of enjoying that wonderful city, we'll be searching for a place to test. And I suspect that finding one will be quite the challenge. REALLY annoying ... we just keep jumping through hoops to travel. NCL should offer the test at the pier the day of boarding if they're so concerned about the virus. I'd rather wait an hour before boarding than chase around Quebec trying to get a test.

We've travelled spring and autumn for many years. There are few places in the western world that don't have good weather in October. My idea of 'good' is temps between 60 and 75 with nice breezes. To get a good idea of what to expect, do an online search for 'weather averages' in certain ports. I wanted to book a Med cruise over Christmas, and was surprised that it would be too cold!

Free 'anything' is good as long as you know the total cost and compare both the line items and the bottom total. Gotta check those itineraries, tho ... make sure it's something you'd book yourself and not 3 connections, one of them a red eye.

An excellent point. Too much perfume on a ship or a tour bus is really awful, even if it's a 'light fragrance'. I am really careful about the amount I use every morning. I want to smell 'nice', not make people recoil.

You need to get this information directly from Princess and the Italian government and the governments of any other countries you'll be visiting. Rules and procedures are changing constantly. You'll need to continue to monitor the official sources of information until you depart. For example, we're departing out of Quebec in two weeks. Canada does not require anything except evidence of proper vaccination. But NCL requires a test to board the ship. Had I only read the Canadian rules, we'd be outta luck.

Speaking of Paul Newman, a friend was celebrating her 25th wedding anniversary at a big-deal restaurant up in Napa. After they were seated, she looked over at her husband, opened her mouth to say something sweet, but no words came out and her mouth remained open. Larry thought she was having a seizure. Right over Larry's shoulder was Robert Redford, directly in her sightline. Poor husband, there was very little intelligent conversation that evening.

Only one, but it was great fun. An RCCL Holiday Cruise through the Panama Canal. The cruise director was one of those 'hysterical types' who would get overly excited when the sun came up. One night we're in the theatre and he takes the stage and he goes on about our NYE celebrity tomorrow, he is so excited he can hardly get the words out. He goes on and on and on. Finally he yells "Charo, Charo will be here for NYE"! I don't think anyone was uncivilized enough to groan, but nobody cheered either. WELL, let me tell you ... the next night Charo rolled down the aisle in a pink sequined full-length sheath and dyed-to-match stilleto heels, singing something or other ... she was 74. She's a classically-trained guitarist and incredibly talented. Everyone just enjoyed her whole show immensely. Next day, I'm walking along with a friend, we're both about 6' tall. Charo is 'over there' signing autographs, there's a huge line of people waiting. Donna and I were just kinda standing there bemused, when Charo gets up and says she needs a little break. She's about 4'll" maybe WITH her heels. She turns toward us, and I just lean in a little to tell her how very much we enjoyed her show and she grabs me, chattering away, "we must take the picture, yes, yes, we must check our hair to be sure it's good ... because we don't want to look like sheeeet in the photo." She stands between us, someone takes a photo and we're just overwhelmed with laughter. Donna and I were both completely sincere in our praise of her talent, so it was a sweet moment ... I'll always remember Charo with great fondness AND admiration.

Clever girl!

I have FINALLY gotten to the point of complete agreement with this. Because 'nobody wears scarves', I wear a lot of them. My evening attire is a sheer shirt-jacket, weightless black velvet slippers and some large glittery earrings. For the everyday, I avoid the boredom of black & beige with one bright color. Makes life SO much easier when you pack light. Just wish I could convince DH to go along with this concept. But at least he no longer insists on bring two jackets 'for dinner'.

Too funny! I read that, thinking, Wow, these guys are really tough, riding a bicycle to far-away activities in the balmy* Caribbean. * I find it only balmy when under a palm tree with my book ... the rest of the time it's hot and humid.

No point in going on about the meaning of 'free, included, special promo' anything. If people can't sit down and figure out the true cost of things, then there's no hope. I've booked air through a cruise line several times, but only if I could be on the phone with the Air Desk and approve exactly what was offered and got the airline's confirmation. I can usually upgrade air one way or the other, so I rarely need the cruise line's offer. I do remember Viking booking Cathay Pacific first class home from Hong Kong at less than half what CP was quoting that morning. The horror stories you hear from others once you're at sea/river are enough to make me never relinquish control of the details. We have yet to take an NCL cruise (we sail 9/23) so I don't know if all the 'freebies' just mask a sub-standard product. When I first booked four years ago, it seemed like a fairly safe experiment. At least it's not Princess and the never-ending tales of their Medallion system not working!

I found our Panama Canal cruise one of the best ever. We sailed Royal Caribbean out of Galveston. I had read "The Path Between the Seas" and just loved seeing it all for myself. And now it's all 'new' again. I got up at 430 to watch the transit, all those little mules zipping back and forth ... utterly fascinating. I'd book it again, but we no longer like hot, humid weather. Read Eurodam's reviews right here on CC.

Oh my, sounds like it might be worth it to cruise out of the UK. This looks like a divine plan.

The river cruises are always far more expensive than an ocean cruise. Too few pax against total expense. You can cruise much more cheaply if expenses are divvied up by 2000 pax ... vs 92 on a river cruise.

I know how you feel about this new experience. It can be an ordeal, or it can be a satisfying exercise in research and planning. Picking might be slim this close to the holidays. Normally I would never advise booking air through a cruise line (they come up with itineraries that depart at midnight with 3 connections) but if it's a charter, that would probably be fine. Read the reviews here on CC and you'll absorb a great deal of knowledge. If you can find a real TA that's a cruise expert, you'd be pretty happy ... just be sure that the TA knows what they're doing. Booking cruises yourself is a lot of work ... I happen to enjoy it but many people don't. Does the UK have any groups of professional TAs like we have in the US? That would be a good place to start. Cruising at Christmas is magic and well worth the effort.