MacGuffin3

Bummer, can kids order off the "proper" menu in the regular dining room?

Do the kid's menu have anything to do with the restaurant in question? Perhaps a small portion of bbq for example, Or just chicken strips everywhere?

Do those even apply at sea? Let alone enforced. In a hotel where I worked on land years ago food would go from the restaurant, to catering, to the bar, all the time, wherever it was needed. It was mostly harmless things like bread turned into croutons, old food going to staff, but I saw sketchier "recycling" on occasion.

I hadn't even thought about that, if Alaska is an hour behind Seattle, that gives me an extra hour to sleep in...I mean get to the buffet!

Only one that really counts though. PST baby!

I'd wake up at 6am if you promised to wear it to the breakfast buffet.

If your water's running, you can't be picky. Plumbers have the absolute power to control our lives!

So repeating the exact same thing is supposed to explain it to me? Your philosophy has nothing to do with the word "afford" it has to do with what you see "value" in paying extra for.

This is not the philosophy I'm referring to, I'm referring to your statement revolving around the word "afford" What does "afford" have to do with it? I make decent money and can afford lots of things in my life, I could walk outside today and could "afford" to buy another car. It's not about what I can afford, it's about making smart financial decisions. I'd rather use that same money for my next trip instead of throwing it away. I believe on Encore "The Local" is supposed to be open 24/7.

Excellent, if you want to know how to do a cruise right, just make friends with any Irish on board.

I do not understand this philosophy at all. You have already spent thousands of dollars on the food that's included and it's all you can eat. You can only eat so much and are wasting that money you already spent if you spend more on food.

Mmm good fatty Irish rashers, that's what I want now. Can you go into the sit-down Local and order two plates of soft-cooked bacon? Since the buffet bacon is probably too shriveled and I suspect they won't give you enough in one serving at a sit-down place.

That's debatable, I'd say over $100 and up to probably $250, I feel equally angry over getting ripped off.

9 isn't sleeping in. Noon is sleeping in. I'm paleo and just do meat and eggs for breakfast, So the 6am chocolate-filled croissants are all yours to enjoy.

If you go to bed early on vacation you REALLY miss out. And nobody better touch my bacon or there will be problems.

The prices are ridiculous, the $50 credit only covers one person, so if you are booking for a family of 4 you are still paying $150 for the other 3 for a dumb walking tour to cite the cheapest example.

Is everybody on a cruise a farmer? Why would you wake up before 9 on a vacation? The buffet should be continuously running, with gradual transformations throughout the day.

OK, well at least these municipalities are consistent then, that's what was bugging me. Well not completely consistent, as I assume they don't add tax if you eat at the buffet or regular dining room, just the up-charge dining. (Maybe I shouldn't even mention it and give the politicians any ideas)

I don't do shops, but I have eaten at restaurants on board while in port and never been taxed on that.

There are fancy-pants gins out there of course, but it's tasty and the point was it's in their list and in all other places in the world you could expect to get it in a martini for under $15. If anything is over-rated and belongs in the well it's Bombay Sapphire, or BS for short.

I'm just going off TexasGal's post above. If she's wrong, great. I will ask the bartender when I get on the boat what the deal is.

The scam is to name Beefeater in your list of choices for the package you payed for, but then charge you additionally if you ask to have it in a martini.

It's never unnecessary to rant against scams. I'm not going to walk up to a bar and say, "Give me a $15 martini." We aren't talking about some froo-froo Mai-Tai with an umbrella in it where the brand of booze just doesn't matter. A martini is nearly 90% gin, so you can't make one with crap from the well.

Beefeater and Tanqueray are in the allowed list on their PDF. So what the hell am I supposed to ask for to comply with their BS hoops? Two shots neat with a splash of Dry Vermouth, and then go hunt down olives myself in the buffet?

Yet last bus back is still at 11:30 when the ship doesn't depart until 1:15. So while on vacation, we get up at a normal time of 9, have breakfast and coffee, make it down to the double decker if we're lucky by 9:30 which is the last one out. The bus makes it into town by 10:00, walk 20 minutes to creek street, have about a half hour there before we have to head back. So put in triple deckers if you want, if we can't use them after 11:30 it doesn't help the issue at all.