CarRex

is there any information on pricing?

What is the cost of wifi on Quantum?

are you looking at a Grandeur cruise?

 

would love to cruise with you again :D

Hi Chris: Just thinking about it with Rex's retirement group. No definite plans yet. I guess by now you are a seasoned cruiser.

Carole

Theater seats were a real problem after the 6 pm dinner on the Enchantment a few years ago. You had to get there a full hour early in order to get a seat. Is theater seating for the second show an issue on the Grandeur?

Has the Grandeur ever been stretched to add more cabins like the Enchantment was?

Is checked luggage turned over to porters before boarding the shuttle to the ship or do you have to drag all of your luggage all the way to the ship? Also do you have to take laptops & cpap machines out of the cases like you do at the airport.

Never sailed out of Cape Liberty, but going to in Dec. Thanks for all the info.

Yes! On one of the last sailings of the Song of America to Bermuda. It was formal night & we had to meet in the library to be escorted into the dining room. We asked our waiter why we were selected & he said "I don't know. You probably just looked good."

In conversation with the captain, we discovered that when not on the ship, he lived about 20 miles from us in VA. That might have been part of the reason. He really liked to talk about his home.

The hi light of the evening was that he invited the entire table to a private tour of the bridge & his private quarters. Quite an experience. The captain has a lot more space to live in than we do in our cabins.

It would be easier if that cruise went out of BALTIMORE!:D

My DH said could cruise out of Baltimore and fly a Ravens flag upside down.

I live in Kansas City, Mo and work across the state line in Kansas. There are a couple huge Steeler fan clubs in the area. I also think that the price of this cruise is crazy!

My wife suggests that Steeler Nation organize it's own cruise. Not a charter, but a cruise that we decide to fill up with Steeler fans. She herself is not a fan, but she realizes how big Steeler Nation is!

Once a Pittsburgher, always a Pittsburgher. I also left in 1966 and moved back in 2007.

I also think a Steeler Nation cruise with normal prices is a great idea. I live within walking distance to Steeler Training Camp, and I always see license plates from all over the country & Canada in the training camp parking lot every year. Steeler Nation is everywhere. Carole

Wow - great Packer stories. Gotta love football. I'm starting to look for retirement 55+ communities for a few years from now, and one of my questions is "When there's a football party, which team does the community root for?" Very important!

 

I just can't justify the cost of the Steeler cruise, although I debated with myself long & hard. They're advertising this cruise in Pittsburgh heavily...

I grew up in Pittsburgh, left for 40+ years and retired back in the Pittsburgh area. I also thought about this cruise, but the price for what you're getting is just not worth it. I currently have a 10 day RCL cruise our of Bayonne booked for a lot less than the cheapest cabin on this cruise & I don't have to add on airfare.

I have just finished reading this thread, took me about 5 nights (off and on). We are going on Explorer 5 nights in August and could not be happier. One person on this forum asked if the travel passes for Bermuda ferries and buses were also sold on the ship, I didn't read an answer to that. It would be very convenient, but I have a feeling that we must get them once we dock. Could someone confirm. Many thanks all.

No I don't think they are available on the ship. You get them at the visitors center right where you get off the ship. Very easy and worth every penny.

Carole

My daughter lives in DC and we went out there to a winery last Sunday

Were you at LaGrange? It's about 1/2 mile from where we used to live. My kids loved to Trick or Treat there because the house always appeared so spooky & the owners gave out full size candy bars.

That's really cool you're so close to training camp and get to go see them.

We've had a few Ben sightings since he married a girl from New Castle...

 

I see you used to live in Haymarket - we were just there this past weekend!

What took you to Haymarket? We lived there for over 30 years and one of our sons still lives there. We go back alot. It used to be a quiet little town, but not anymore.

Carole

Just heard on the news tonight about a chartered Pgh Steelers cruise. March 10-15, 2014 on the Brilliance out of Tampa.

 

Of course it's not on the RC website - you have to book through a private website. It's priced high, but these specialty cruises usually are higher due to the personalities and entertainment onboard.

 

We are big Steeler fans and would find sailing with some of those listed, including singers, would be so much fun!

We're Steelers fans too, and live within walking distance of training camp in Latrobe, but this cruise looked a little too expensive for 5 nights with a not too exciting itinerary. I'll stick to our already scheduled December cruise on Explorer, and walking to training camp in August.

I know R.C. does not do cruises to nowhere, Carnival does only certain months out of the year.

 

You can call your TA and ask if they can set up a cruise tour, they would have to escort you after approved by the cruise line. Some TA's won't even consider it.

NCL does them out of NYC once or twice a year.

Thank for the review so far. We're booked on the EOS in Dec, so I'm looking forward the rest of the report.

Carole

Embarkation day....is there any place other than the WJ to have lunch?

I've been on 15 cruises and never had to pre-book a show. Is booking shows unique to RCI or is this just for the really mega ships like the Oasis?

They should credit your card, but with change in cards who knows. I've have full and partial refunds for the overpayments in the past.

Unfortunately Yes! The points don't count till they are posted, and that doesn't happen till the end of your billing cycle. You don't have to wait till the bill comes in the mail. You can see the statement online the same day that you account recycles. They will honor the points then.

If you plan to cancel the card, I would just stop using it and wait for the points to be posted.

Just received two 500 point certificates from two of our four BOA cards, and closed the accounts. No point in charging any more to them if we're going to loose the points at the end of the year.

It took twenty minutes on hold to speak to the rep who closes accounts. She must be busy. The loss of the rewards program will definitely reduce the frequency of our cruises. We'll also be looking at other cruise lines since we won't have rewards points to discount the booking.

As said before on this thread, all good things must come to an end.

I currently have almost 2000 points in the bank accumulated this year. I'm trying to decide if I should use them in 2009 or allow them to accumulate for another year and book for Europe with airfare.

Does anyone know if there is a maximum number of points you can use at one time? If you had enough points, could you pay off a garden villa or an air/sea package to Europe? What is the maximum you have used in the past on one cruise?

Sorry if this was asked but with the search being down how do I see how many points we have accumulated. We dont get a statement because we do online banking. Thanks in advance

You can view your statement online. Just go into your account and click on the the My Statement tab. It will bring up a pdf of your statement exactly like the one you would have received in the mail.

Is there a minimum $ amount of a certificate you can order?

 

I see you were on early cruises of the Norway....we were too! What

dates?

I believe that you need to order certificates in $500 increments.

We honeymooned on the Norway in March 1983, and then took a group cruise/training seminar on the Norway with other professional photographers in 1995. That was before we had certificates, but it was a business writeoff.

Both were memorable in their own ways. I wish the Norway was still around. I'd book her again.

Carole

Sorry to have started such a can of worms, & I glad no one else has been denied certificates for a spouse's account.

We've been using cruise rewards for about ten years, since they were a visa, then MBNA Mastercard and now BOA Mastercard. In the past I've never had to put my husband on the phone to get his certificates, but when I called to order them last January, they would not send them without his verbal OK. Maybe it was just the particular agent that I got.

I have signed my husband's name too, but it's a little more difficult to impersonate his voice.

Carole