TouchstoneFeste

7 hours ago, frankp01 said:

Yup. Wish it were that way in Brooklyn.

Thanks for that info!

8 hours ago, david,Mississauga said:

On the eastbound crossings a UK official travels on the ship so the inspection is carried out on three days during the voyage. Upon arrival in Southampton you simply get off the ship and go to your transportation. If you have nothing to declare you follow the green arrows and walk away. There are customs spot checks occasionally. It has been about a dozen arrivals in Southampton since I was pulled over. We were asked three questions and we were waved on our way. Let us hope this civilised procedure continues when crossings resume.

On the Southampton end, is there any difference if you're a US citizen (versus UK or Canadian)? Still just a disambark and walk away?

9 hours ago, buchanan101 said:

Thanks, so along with machine in the room, sounds like even though it's $10/day/person it's not really necessary with a Grill's cabin.  (Assume coffee with meals). Don't need specialised coffee, just need good coffee!

From the context, I'm assuming "Cambridge" means Massachusetts, USA (rather than UK), so I''m guessing when you ask about coffee, you mean regular old percolate-through-a-filter coffee ("a proper cup of coffee, made in a proper copper coffee pot", as it were).

As far as I can tell (can anyone help?), the in-room Illy machine uses capsules and makes only espresso or what they call "cafe lungo" - more or less cafe americano (i.e., diluted espresso). I've tried the lungo for my Nespresso machine, and it's ... okay, I guess? Still tastes like diluted espresso. (Don't get me wrong. I like espresso just fine; it's just not something to linger over. And diluting it seems like a crime.)

But it does sound like the concierge lounge has a pot of the good stuff. I presume that's what you can also get in the morning in the Grills Lounge, and at meals. I also wonder if room service would bring you pot in the morning.

(I've seen some sniffy remarks here about "American style coffee". Save 'em. It's what we drink.)

10 hours ago, Lakesregion said:

16 hours ago, LewiLewi said:

There is discussion in the US of green digital vaccination technology for worldwide recording of Covid vaccinations. I think that it is a great idea.

Personally I like to stay below the radar when it comes to my privacy. Way too many scammers and people with power complexes that could use this and other information that is solely mine to disperse as I see fit.

Live free or die, eh? :)

President Biden has made a clear declaration that there will be no required proof of vaccination, but of course that doesn't preclude voluntary participation.

13 hours ago, NCCruzQueen said:

As far as the Hell's Canyon jetboat rides go,  I was on a Cross Country Road Trip in 2019 and we took one of these day trips (5 hours).  As I suffer from back pain, I didn't notice the ride being that bumpy at all.  You may want to go on TripAdvisor and read some of the reviews there for more information.  It was a delightful day we enjoyed our ride down the canyon.

(Forgive me if I'm double posting ... hit the wrong button)

Thanks for your thoughts. It's strange, since I had a career in IT, but I just can't get my travel information search process together; so I'm doubly grateful for the suggestion to try TripAdvisor.

My wife and I are booked on the October 21 voyage up the Columbia and Snake Rivers (the Lewis and Clark one) on the American Pride. This will be our first river cruise, and only our second cruise of any kind (the other was on a 250 cabin Aegean tour).

I've read (or at least skimmed) through the posts in this Board along with a number of reviews of the Columbia/Snake cruises. I think I have a pretty fair handle on the actual excursions and also on what to expect from American Cruise Lines in general, but I'd appreciate any insights into:

Do the ships normally dock in port overnight, or do they cruise to the next port? If they dock, is it possible to have a leisurely meal on shore? If so, any recommendations for this itinerary? Any other thoughts about the various ports of call. I do know they can change without notice.

Any thoughts on the ship American Pride itself?

I posted a question about how bumpy the jet boat rides in Hell's Canyon get on the Where Is Everyone? thread (my wife has been experiencing some back trouble), but in case you miss that, I'd love to hear your comments.

- A first time river cruiser who'd be happy to go ANYWHERE right now.

On 3/4/2020 at 8:38 PM, CdMAgFox said:

Hello again, Tom,

Yes, the jet boat ride is a bit on the bumpy side, but perfectly safe, I think. Myself, I am 81, as were many aboard all of the THREE jet boats, but we all survived just fine. The boat captains are very expert and do these trips many times a day, every day, so they really know the river and where all of the rapids are. It is quite thrilling, never the less! 
I am glad to learn that you are also on the longer version of this cruise - 11 days. Makes the trip first DOWN the Columbia to Astoria seem like another cruise. I hope you have better luck with the weather at Mount St. Helens; it was all socked in when we were there.

Even in October when I went, it was quite cool so I can imagine that your trip will be even colder; yours is the last such cruise of the season, if I am not mistaken. 
Enjoy!

~Ron

I wonder if I can prevail on you to expand on the comment about the jet boat ride being "a bit on the bumpy side". My wife is experiencing a resurgence of some back trouble (she got it from many years of horseback riding and ... yes, whitewater rafting and kayaking). We'd really love to do this excursion, but obviously not if it's going to be very jouncy. Maybe on a scale from 1 - "barely noticed" to 10 - "almost intolerable"?

13 hours ago, BigMac1953 said:

Not quite true. In Glasgow, the subway is called..."the subway".

Well, of course you call a Subway "a Subway". The question is what do you call a Royale with Cheese?

For what it's worth: I just logged in and started a search. This message appeared at the top of the screen:

"If you are expecting to see Future Cruise Credit (FCC) associated with your account and, once you've selected your desired stateroom, none has been applied, please call Cunard Customer Service at (800) 728-6273."

I'm in the US. And I'm not planning any real voyages beyond the one I've got (re)booked, so I didn't look further. I earlier confirmed by phone that the FCC from a cancelled voyage had been applied to the rebooked one.

15 hours ago, BaumD said:

Tipping is not required, however, they will appeal for tips at the end of the cruise and I believe most people do tip.

I had other reason to call ACL just three days ago, and I can confirm "that's all included", according to the customer service rep. I didn't ask if gratuities are explicitly called out on your bill, but it was implied that they are not. It doesn't surprise me to hear there might be an appeal at the end.

Again, thanks for these excellent ideas.

As for men not needing the dressing table ... hey, remember Masquerade night!

Of course for future masquerades, we'll probably all look like this:

Thanks for these replies ... very helpful. A few more things I don't have to angst about!

My wife and I will be on the May 1, 2022, crossing on the Queen Mary 2. This will be our first time on Cunard and only our second cruise of any kind (the other was a 300 passenger one on the Adriatic). We're having fun planning and thinking about the journey, and I have a lot of questions, but I'm parcelling them out over the next little while. Feel free to offer advice on related issues, if I've missed anything obvious I should know about.

Okay, let's start with Electronics!

Somewhere in the Cunard FAQs it says you can't use surge protectors for the crossing because they interfere with the in-house system. Really? I use a surge protector to protect myself from electrical systems like that! Can anyone explain?

I've read that there are two 220 and two 110 outlets. Are these on the console in the main room and in the dressing area makeup table (we have Queens Grill suite)? Or what?

There is apparently a Cunard app, but only for Apple devices? I've looked at the Carnival Android app and it doesn't list any of the Cunard ships.