joyandjerry

Ooh, doing a TA as part of a B2B is a really inspired idea! And, yeah, I already narrowed the Alaska thing to Princess or HAL. Princess seems to have better access to their trains and lodges, with less travel time. But I realize that is another thread, and your help here is greatly appreciated.

Yes, thank you! I noted that on the plans. Being across the hall can make a difference. The stateroom that we had noise problems from inebriated pax at the bars singing into the wee hours was only a few doors down from a cabin in which we stayed the year before that was silent. Cruisers are the greatest - always so happy to help! OT, but my next big trip questions will be dealing with Alaska (would like a long land/sea tour) and additionally if it is more efficient to cruise Europe from a European port or embark in the US. One would have to get to the European city a few days ahead (to be well rested) to deal with a port intensive itinerary. Lots more research!

Thanks, I misread that. It looks like1137 is under some bar areas. I have bionic hearing and am concerned that would bother me. Should have booked when cabins were available under MDR. Others will likely be available in the coming months.

Wow, 45 sailings on her! I did a courtesy hold on 1135, but likely will not go through with that as it is across from (not under) the Red Frog Pub and Sports Bar. My pref is cabins on all sides. Although once on RCCL, we were right next to the MDR (same deck) and never heard a peep.

Jerry and I are sailing on the Pride to Bermuda in October and are thinking of doing B2B cruises to do the 14 day Journeys Southern Caribbean itinerary also. We did it last year and loved it. The TAs in my small town don't seem to know much more than I do, with many cruises under my belt. The only rooms left now (although I check daily) are on deck 1, Riviera. I have read the dry dock replaced the dance lounge with more rooms. We are fine with an inside cabin: our only concern would be noise, as I cannot see what is directly under each cabin. We always get cabins above and below, as once we had (even after telling the TA we wanted quiet) a cabin under a bar. It actually was on the Pride, and the cabin they wanted to move us to upon complaint had clunky engine noises (to me) and so we stayed put. There must be a reason that so many cabins are left on 1, but we are fine with being as low as possible. Not once have we taken an elevator, and walk the steps (1 to 10) daily 4-5 times for exercise, plus run, left weights, etc., so our only concern is sleeping. I am going to call CCL and see if any other rooms are available. Letting the cruise line pick our rooms is out of the question. Any experience or input is greatly appreciated!

Be nice to meet someone from our "tribe" on a cruise someday! I swam quite a bit many years ago, so it is no problem. We never pack dressy clotin, as we are there for the ports not to eat in the dining room, which is generally very slow service. The cruise lines have your age on record with your booking, so one cannot lie about it to them.

Thanks for the info. We never got our own equipment, as it is rather bulky to pack. Apparently the four of us are atypical cruise ship pax. Jerry and I both exercise daily. I run and lift weights, plus stair walk. Jerry is exceptionally fit at 70 and rides an exercise bike at a high intensity daily, plus lifts weights. (We have a gym a True bike and treadmill.) I am 64 and many of the cruise ship excursions cap age participation. We did the Mt Pimard hike in St Lucia several weeks ago, and others much younger than us in another group had to drop out halfway. Booking was through SEG. RCCL capped the age limit at 63, and the hike actually fell on my 64th birthday! On the ships we use the gym regularly and never the elevators. Daily we start at deck one and got to the top deck continuously four or five times. Use it or lose it!

Could you please tell me how you did this, if you remember? Where did you go and was there equipment available for rent? TY. Jerry and I were very disappointed with the snorkeling on Silver Moon. Here is a copy of the review I posted on Trip Advisor: Catamaran 5 stars, Snorkeling 1 star Mar 2024 • Couples This tour on the Silver Moon 3 is geared towards those that want a relaxed catamaran trip with minimal snorkeling. The captain stated he was taking us a place that would not be as crowded with the cruise ship excursions, but it was crowded with private vessels, so much so we were bumping into others and saw just a few stingray. The stop was very brief, and we had to get back on the boat as it was getting too crowded. Those that took the cruise ship excursion stated they saw a lot of fish. We were told we would go to another stop with a shipwreck, and sat there for a while with our vests still on, waiting. After about 30 minutes, a fellow passenger got back on the boat, stating she had to swim back a distance to get there. Apparently she was dropped off at the shipwreck, which she said was unbelievably crowded. We were incredibly disappointed, as the snorkeling was the main reason we took the trip. The captain said he made an announcement when we were at the shipwreck, but the others did not hear him. No other beach or snorkel stops were made (it did rain a short time), so before 11:00 AM, we were done for the day and had hours to spend sitting around on the boat. We were told there would be two snorkeling stops of about 25 minutes each, and we were very disappointed. So basically, we had an expensive boat ride. Lunch was great, but so is the food on our ship. On the positive side, it was not crowded, service was impeccable, and the meal was very good. It is a beautiful catamaran, very clean and comfortable. But if you want to do more than lay around, this may not be the trip for you.

No, we did the one through RCCL and it was great! Nearly 30 minutes from port, place was See Thru kayaks. Much easier with RCCL supplying transportation. Guide was wonderful and we had plenty of time.

A few years ago, we were at Coco Cay March 29. It was sunny and high seventies, so that was fine for us. Chilly when you were wet, but we live in the mountains of Western PA so it's subjective.

Does anyone that has sailed recently know if the milk in the buffet is in cartons or pitchers? We are sailing on Vision this week. Last year in November CCL switched to pitchers and it was a mess. We like to bring the cartons back for a snack or excursions. Staff was unsure, and some pax on Harmony recently had cartons. In the late autumn, there was a general shortage for milk in small cartons (in schools) as only two places manufactured them, or something like that. So Jerry thought it was part of the reason; there was even a shortage at our grocery store.

We booked Silver Moon also.

Apologies for not understanding this reply, as everyone is just so friendly and helpful here. I must have missed the "derogatory" post. The only "terd" I could find was an acronym for a computer system.

Always learning! That is very reasonable. Yeah, we bring the ship's towels. Thanks again!

That is incerdibly helpful - cruisers are the best! Just the info that I needed. Thanks for the reply - not sure what the "ew' meant. We do try to do things on our own to be on our own schedule. Jerry and I always pack some protein bars for a meal. It saves money and time. One is not to bring unsealed food from the ship, as other countries are concerned with possible contamination (bugs, etc.) from food. If it is found or in areas with dogssniffing the pax, you will be forced to discard it. I have seen it happen. Joy

Following - Jerry and I will be there at the end of March for the first time. I noticed that SEG and Shore Excursioneer do not have any tours listed. So perhaps they all have to go through the cruise line when in port? We were interested in the kayaking tour by RCCL if we cannot get anything on our own.

Jerry and I will be there March 28. We did Captain Bob's Speedboat tour several weeks ago and was wondering about doing the Flying Dutchman,etc. on our own. It is only about 5 km from the port, and I was wondering if anyone has done this. RCCL does not have an excursion there. I don't know how crowded it will be, as we are on Vision of the Seas, and there is only one other ship in port then, Viking Sea. Other private tours do not pick up at the port, and I don't want to have to worry about getting transportation there by a certain time. So we thought we could do it on our own schedule, if one does not need advance reservations. Any experiences/thoughts/suggestions greatly appreciated. TIA. Joy

Jerry and I are going March 28, and have done a tour of the island on a previous visit. Does anyone have experience with snorkeling on your own, ship's excursion (RCCL), or other private tours for this? We are interested in the turtles and the shipwreck. TIA.

Yeah, all the other cabins on CCL, RCI and Princess had them in various room types.

This was on Enchantment.

We have cruised on different lines, and enjoy several. Even though we loved all that RCI had to offer, our interior room seemed much smaller than CCL, which I know has slightly bigger rooms. (We like the dark and quiet on an interior.) On RCI, the bed was butt up against the wall on one side, and I had to slide to the foot to get out of bed. Not having the cooler/fridge (not a real cold unit, I know) in an interior was a PITA. They have them on CCL on interior rooms. On RCI, what is the lowest category of room that comes standard with mini bar fridge? Anything below balcony? TIA.

I was there twice and traffic was awful. That was in late September.

De Palm tours has emailed me that due to their contract with the cruise line, only tours through them will be offered to cruise pax.

Which tour company did you use?

Following