SailorJeff66

Great review so far. Can't wait for the rest!

On 7/2/2019 at 8:58 PM, 2Beeze said:

I still found it a bit sad - I cannot imagine sharing such close quarters after the age of say 30! I realize many on the ship do, but since I know many of the concierge’s on a different level it just seemed different.  I wonder if the couples like John and Katrina on the Grandeur get a benefit or loss by being a married couple in terms of living quarters?

Um, have you seen the living quarters for the average U.S. Navy enlisted sailor? An 8 person bunk room is a luxury senior enlisted get. Pay grade E-6 and below live in 60-80 person berthing compartments.

2 hours ago, AL3XCruise said:

 

Thank you for the explanation.  I've read many article talking about bearing issues, but that is the clearest, most concise explanation as to the unique challenges of azipod bearings.

 

Are thrust bearings on shafted ships generally accessible from within the hull?

On USN ships, there is an inflatable stern tube seal that acts as a backup to the normal stern tube seal. I have been on a couple ships where they used divers to remove the thrust bearing and shaft seal. Commercial vessels? No idea. 

My marine engineering experience comes from the "grey funnel line".  First ship was a carrier with 4 fixed pitched screws running off boilers. I also served on more modern ships with Controlled Pitch Propellers and APU's. Modern cruise ships are truly marvels of engineering. I'm up for the all access tour on my next cruise but sadly, My idea of "all access" probably won't match what's offered. 

ChengKP, an article I just read said Vista's pod issues stemmed from a bearing. Makes sense, bearing issues cause excessive vibration at best, significant damage at worst. Allure is speed restricted due to pod issues, but I haven't seen specifically what the problem is. The article also said that Oasis was fixing pod issues at Grand Bahama when the dry dock crane fell on it. 

Interestingly, USN ships I've been on with traditional fixed propulsion have been able to affect repairs in water. Even had main shaft seals replaced. I imagine it's considerably more involved and difficult.

Seems to be a growing trend across all the lines. Azipod issues affecting max speed. Two of Royal's Oasis class(Oasis ended up with a crane on top of her for their trouble), now Carnival is losing Vista for almost a month. From what I gather, these are all ABB units, but I seem to recall the lines had issues with Rolls Royce units a few years back. Hopefully ChengKP can weigh in on this. In the U.S.N., when a common component exhibited reliability issues, an inspection fleetwide was initiated. Understanding the cost/schedule impacts a program would entail, compared to lost revenue from missed cruises and cancellation it seems they would almost have to do it. Thoughts?

There seems to be two distinct mind sets here. Some, like going on the same familiar ships, with the same itineraries over and over. Others, like myself, are "one and done" on a ship/ itinerary. I want to go to all the places and try all the ships. My brother in law and his wife? Same cruise, every year. Thoughts?

Reduction of waste paper and plastic on ships. Look for less single use packaging in the future.

Link I meant to share.

https://t.co/KsYmDkMi3k https://twitter.com/beanotownphoto/status/1135096438424297473?s=17

Last year the Armonia crashed the dock in Roatan, now the Opera in Venice.....obviously not just an MSC problem( Norwegian, I'm looking at you). But they seem to have the crash bug.

Yep, the little pests are still here. Just saw a charter bus completely covered in them in Ocala at Zaxby's off of I-75....

I like Carnival's idea of the Brew Pub! Going on a "Fun Ship" for the first time in April. I'll report back afterwards.

One of the joys of living in Florida! NOT!!!! Harmless, but annoying. When the palmetto berries are ripe is another wonderful time. The mockingbirds eat them in droves, then you have purple poop splotches and palmetto seeds EVERYWHERE!

Yeah, mamma has a big ol' grin now that I booked Horizon. Grabbed FTTF while I was at it. Oh, and booked the tepanyaki for first sea day....  

So, after consulting with D.W. (Allicat), looks like we're gonna go for the FOS in December and the Horizon in April. I'll get the upcoming November Rhapsody cruise paid, get Horizon booked, then start looking at FOS for a winter 2020. Win/Win. Trying real hard to get two a year in, a shorty in spring and a 7day plus in winter. Thanks for the input gang!

Arriving when to port? Plus clearing customs, getting to car and loaded, plus check in and security at OIA???? I personally would go for the later flight, enjoy a leisurely breakfast, and not be stressed by making an 11:40 flight. 

Looking at two cruises for next April. Freedom of the Seas to Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, and St. Martiin. OR Carnival Horizon to Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman, Cozumel. Carnival is considerably cheaper, but the only port I really am excited about is Ocho Rios(wife REALLY wants Jamaica). The other issue is I've never sailed Carnival, so a bit unsure of how the experience compares. The RCI itineraries for Jamaica don't really excited me so I've kind of written them off for the time being. Thoughts???

I personally loved my cruise on Empress. She's a small, intimate ship with a lot of charm. Doesn't have all the features of a new mega ship, but makes up for it with great crew and the classic cruise experience. The afternoon deck behind Boleros was a wonderful spot to sit and enjoy a quiet moment.

Although I probably won't sail with them, I'm seeing Virgin has the right mindset on cruising. It's a vacation. You should be able to enjoy it fully without worrying about a big bill at the end of your stay. A look at the model that Richard Branson is rolling out sounds promising. 

1.) All onboard dining is included. There isn't a buffet, but guests can dine at any of the onboard restaurants for free.

2.) No separate gratuity.

3.) All beverages included.

The price point is a bit out of my range right now, and the adults only factor is going to keep a lot of folks out as well, but still, not a bad way to run a line.

As most folks living in the central Florida area can attest, The Villages is quite an "active" community. One of their "tells" is the display of bath "scrunchies". They have little ones on their key rings and also fly them from the antenna of their cars and on their golf carts( you can go anywhere in the villages via golf cart). 

https://cruiseradio.net/cruise-line-adds-fee-for-second-entree-in-main-dining-room/

As of December 2017 no. She's probably not going to I think. 

SailBreakaway, 

That was my point exactly. Rational people understand price increases over time as a normal function of business. But the cavalier attitude exhibited by the CEO of "screw 'em, we're gonna crank up prices because we can" is pretty galling. 

Full disclosure, have not sailed NCL yet. On my radar to try the brand as well as others. 

That said, I came across an online article where NCL holdings CEO basically laid it on the line, they intend to crank up prices as far as they can get away with. 

I'm not a Pollyanna by any means, and I understand that NCL is a business. It's main focus will always be to provide a healthy return to its investors. But this kind of stuck in my craw a little bit. Instead of, "we will look at ways of increasing revenue while striving to make our customers experience more enjoyable and exceeding their expectations", we got So we’re focusing on price; we’re pushing price higher everywhere we can both in 2019 and 2020,” he said. “While we still have a lot of cabins to fill, the emphasis will be on raising prices across all three brands". 

Just......Wow.....article link below. Maybe loyal NCL customers can register their displeasure with the board and they can reassess their strategy?

https://skift.com/2019/02/21/norwegian-cruise-boss-zeroes-in-on-higher-prices/amp/

On 2/21/2019 at 1:27 AM, Merion_Mom said:

 

 

You could even suggest to her to join Cruise Critic herself so that she can ask her own questions.  😉

You usually want the fish to bite before you set the hook!😂 Once she's booked, I definitely will point her over here to get some first time cruiser helpful hints. Maybe you could make a "safe room" for expectant first timers to keep all the jaded D+ and Pinnacles from contaminating their enthusiasm????💁