notscb

I'd just delay, split the difference and arrive with them if it's important to you to get onboard together. Anytime after like 1:00pm you'll probably all be fine as the terminal slows down significantly after the initial rush (11am-12/12:30pmish).

I actually prefer the later boarding time, it's so much less stressful 🙂 

5 hours ago, CruzerDeb said:

I’m also flying in the DAY OF the cruise instead of the day before.

My favorite rule to break depending on time of year and flight duration (nonstop is best for this, of course!)!

My first Royal cruise was on Freedom- I'll try to remember and answer what I can...

1. There's a few bars on the main pool deck, only one of which was open later at night if I remember right. It was very quiet on the pool deck at night.

2. If there's a show, I remember it being offered twice so folks had a chance to get to it (ice or theater).

3. The Crown Lounge hosted a variety of events at night and was usually open late. One night the silent disco was there, which was really fun.

4. Can't help you there, sorry.

5. Can't help you there- i remember it being open for some time but can't remember the hours. Another user suggested checking the app, which you might want to try to find specific answers.

As others have said, it's really similar either way. MIA airport is a major hub for many south-american flights so it tends to be busier overall. FLL is a bit of a ride to Port Miami, but is well connected by car, transportation service (private van companies, etc.), Brightline rail, FlixBus (my personal favorite/cheapest), and Uber/Lyft.

While I agree with the authors take on the design of Icon overall, I generally dislike opinion based journalism despite it being the most common form of journalism out there these days. This article is screaming "old man yells at cloud" vibes and is just poorly done overall.

Here's a link to Elliott Advocacy's contacts list- start with the primary contact and secondary contact and give each a business week to respond before contacting the next.

3 hours ago, Elaine5715 said:

To be clear, what we are calling travel constipation resolves itself (sometimes within minutes thus home court advantage theory) when you return home without dietary changes and we all aren't cruise overeaters as implied.  

To be clear I didn't say that you were an over-eater on vacation, and can read and contribute to a thread. OP was talking about 'chronic', not just travel, BTW.

If you hover over my username to the left, there's a little button that says "ignore." I'm going to use it, you should probably do the same.

Have a great day 🙂 

16 hours ago, Elaine5715 said:

And you are misunderstanding the actual issue.  

Thanks for your input 🙂 

4 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

(and oh by the way totally different than the other used for domestic travel).

I see and absolutely agree that there is a lot of confusion for average travelers, which is absolutely why the cruise lines website must be followed to the letter.

edit: deleting the rest of the post. I see what you mean that passport cards added into the mix cause additional confusion. I never really consider a passport card a valid form of ID, but I see where some do.

3 hours ago, Elaine5715 said:

And it has nothing to do with this topic.  

It'd be easier to say you disagree, but I am contributing to the conversation.

When folks are on vacation they tend to splurge in the diet department, which doesn't help and especially doesn't help when folks have chronic health issues. The change of diet on cruise ships is enough by itself to make things worse, so folks need to do what they can to control what they're taking in and not do the vacation splurge while onboard.

The "real"est overnight remedy is, in part, to maintain as close to your existing food intake as possible to not exacerbate the issue.

2 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

Of trying to be put into action.  WAY behind several deployment scenarios

Are you thinking REAL ID?

1 hour ago, puppycanducruise said:

But don't worry, I think HAL ships are too big to get through the Welland Canal.

I think all fish is tasty and have had fish from Lake Ontario.

The problem is that the Great Lakes (and not just Erie) fish come with a special warning. Fingers crossed HAL doesn't decide to venture into small-ship cruising

1 hour ago, Elaine5715 said:

It isn't self control

But on vacation self-control goes a long way to not worsen problems we already have. Travel already causes issues, so if we can keep to our diets, not gorge ourselves at the buffet, avoid the extra slices of pizza at midnight and practice good habits that alone will go a long way.

I'm not invalidating yours or OP's experiences by promoting self-control while on vacation. I'm saying that self-control is a piece of the puzzle while on vacation where many folks tend to forget how important everyday choices are to their health.

5 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

EDL has had a really checkered path…..timing included.

What?

5 hours ago, puppycanducruise said:

There already are cruises on the Great Lakes. 

I know that- I was commenting on HAL's "fresh fish" initiative, specifically.

Nobody should consume fresh fish from the Great lakes and HAL customers better hope that HAL never starts cruising there.

On 12/19/2023 at 7:44 PM, auntmeg said:

or embarking on adventures in other destinations around the world,

We all need to hope that they never start any sort of Great Lakes or St. Lawrence Seaway cruising, for all of our sakes.

A lot of this has to do with self-control, IMHO.

Although you're on vacation, try to eat the things you would normally eat and increase the amount of water you're taking in. If you're flying to the port- you should start drinking more water the day before you fly and continue throughout your vacation. No matter what you do, increasing water intake is a good thing.

As a last resort, increase fiber intake (veggies!) and consider adding a supplement like metamucil (which is just psyllium husk).

2 hours ago, Frank12 said:

Port Canaveral is so much better, easier, less stressful than Miami.

That's a string of words I haven't seen very often.

5 hours ago, Calgon1 said:

Hopefully, when they rebuild her, they’ll make her tall enough for larger ships to clear at high tide

Not to belabor the point (it's been made in several other threads), the Key bridge was just one of three that ships need to clear to get out of Baltimore. The next bridge out is 186' clearance, so  no chance that we'll be seeing bigger cruise ships anytime soon.

Plus, you have to consider road grade and engineering guidelines set by the DOT. To raise a bridge by that much, you'd have road grading issues with the existing structure (the undamaged portion of road that still exists on both sides of the span).

As another commenter mentioned, make sure your family actually has Enhanced licenses which are different from REAL ID and only issued by select (border) states. Most folks in the U.S. don't have an enhanced license but might have a REAL ID at this point. 

This topic at Carnival will be most helpful. Follow Carnival's guidelines and you'll have a great time!

22 hours ago, mz-s said:

The fiberglass skin isn't the funnel, I doubt it contributes to the structural integrity of the funnel. It's just branding.

Right...I'm asking about everything inside of it and what is done with it.

4 hours ago, Riles34 said:

I don't think they will fit under the bridge to get to NYC, but that would be awesome!

I really hope they consider showing off in NYC with an Excel ship. Royal has had an Oasis class parked in Jersey every summer doing Canada routes, and MSC has the Meraviglia in Brookyln. Carnival needs another actual Carnival brand option in NYC, IMHO.

Similar to others, my first cruise was on Carnival when I had graduated high school and I vividly remember that experience and keep coming back because of it. Nothing will ever beat coming into NY harbor on the Triumph at 6:00am and passing by the Statue of Liberty to end out my first trip. I also fondly remember being able to walk around the top decks at night and be completely alone on this floating city full of people. Also, my first slot pull at 18 was on that trip- I definitely didn't win anything and just wanted to pull the lever as many times as it would let me.

44 minutes ago, WhaleTailFlCruiser said:

Pretty sure it was reported that the captain turned the ship into more rain to help put it out faster.

I had heard that as well.

I'm more asking about the condition and integrity of the ship- both portions of the funnel are used for exhaust and various functions. If one side is compromised, how does engineering on the ship handle that to keep the vessel moving?

I'm wondering how they were able to keep going in a situation like this- @chengkp75 if you wouldn't mind imparting some wisdom here. Do they divert all of the exhaust/emissions to the other side or would the fire not have affected the piping in the area of the fire?