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Great ideas! Here are some others we've found really helpful on our cruises:

* Oversized portable clock (one you can see from anywhere in the room) (why, oh why, can't the cruise lines put clocks in the cabins?)

* Duct tape (always comes in handy!)

* Closet shoe organizer--this one only really works on Princess ships, which have huge closets. They're great for storing cables, flashlights, as well as shoes

* Walkie-talkies

* Yellow stickies--to keep notes on events you don't want to miss

* Water and coffee tumblers--I take drinks back from the buffet so I don't have to bother with room service

Hope this helps! - Musing About Cruising

One of the really fun things about travel, I believe, is to explore new places and new things. I've tried types of food on a cruise ship that I've never had before--such as lobster (not into seafood). At least to me, exploration is what travel is all about.

I'm sorry you feel that way about Indian food but I'm thrilled it's a staple on cruises because I happen to love it.

Everyone's taste is different and one of the great things about cruising is that there's choice! - Musing About Cruising

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As others have said, dress is beachwear during the day and the equivalent to business casual at night. Formal nights are getting less and less formal (used to be a lot of black tie) and you can get away with a jacket for men (no tie needed) and a nice pants suit/pants and shirt combo or dress for women.

Of course, you don't have to go to the main dining room on formal nights--you can just to go the Windjammer buffet and stay in shorts. Or order room service (for free) and never leave your cabin. Lots of choices.

You'll love the Freedom--the Promenade is the hub of the ship, there are bars, restaurants and shops, and it's great to hang out and people watch.

Fyi, Port Canaveral is less busy than some of the bigger ports, so getting on and off the ships is much faster and easier. Have a great trip! - Musing About Cruising

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We have two cruises coming up and are not deterred at all by Ebola. The chance of contracting it is so very, very small.

It may help to know that the cruise lines are hyper-sensitive about norovirus and take all health precautions. They take our safety very seriously. They have to--their business depends on it.

That being said, we use the cruise line's sanitary spray before all meals, as well as bring our own spray and wipes, and use them after handling any utensils/salt and pepper, hot sauce, etc. on the table. We've been on 15 cruises without a problem.

So, to paraphrase the song, "Don't worry, be happy. Take a cruise." - Musing About Cruising

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We were just in Bonaire and never left the port area. There's a lovely walk along the water, which is so transparent you see plenty of sea life. The main street in town has a lot of cutesy shops, which are fun to browse. Look for the local craft--painted gourds. I picked up a neat Xmas ornament. For an overview of walkable highlights from the ABC piers and photos, you might visit my blogspot blog, Musing About Cruising.

I have to say that of our 15 Caribbean cruises, Bonaire has one of the nicest port areas.- Diana

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We've been on 15 cruises since 2006 (on RCI, Celebrity, HAL and Princess) and have found the formal night to be getting progressively less formal. Back in '06, there were many men wearing tuxes. Now, hardly anyone does. My spouse has even skipped the tie, and just opts for nice pants and a sports coat.

Women's dress runs the gamut from simple skirts to prom dresses. I either wear a sparkly pants suit or simple dress and never feel out of place.

Honestly, it's almost anything goes these days (although if you showed up for formal night in jeans or shorts, you may not see the best side of the maitre'd). - Diana, Musing About Cruising

I loved your posting--it was right on! (As well as interesting and well written.) We practice a lot of what you pitch--instead of taking excursions in the ports, we walk into and around town, walk the jogging tracks, and are mindful of every bite and swallow. Alas, we do gain weight, but it's only a few pounds and once we get home and go back to normal eating, it comes off in no time.

I truly believe that you can be careful and carefree at the same time. But it takes work!

Thanks for putting so much effort into your posting--you should share it more widely. - Diana, musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

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We've been on 15 cruises (14 of which have been in the Caribbean) and of the islands we've visited, for us, the ABCs (Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao) are the best and here's why:

* Aruba--the port area is lively, attractive with lots to do within walking distance (many affordable shops, beach, park)

* Bonaire--my favorite; port area is immaculate with transparent water (no snorkeling necessary!) with blue and green fish swimming all around the pier, cute shops, etc.

* Curacao--port area has very colorful, Dutch-style buildings in the old part of the town, vendors selling fruit from boats, floating bridge, casinos

We've taken Princess to the ABCs and have never been disappointed. - Diana, musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com.

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If you are going to make a table switch, it's best to do it the following day because after that, it gets increasingly difficult (the tables are more or less set after that). Of course, you can always do "my time" dining.

If you're simply taking a night off because you're eating at a specialty restaurant, I wouldn't think it would be necessary to tell anyone, but of course, it would probably be appreciated! (And you'd be nicer than many others!) - Diana, musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com.

What are some of your favorite food events at sea?

I've loved HAL's "tea ceremony," which is less of a ceremony and more a chance to have way better coffee than they serve at dinner (they make it with a French press), and try exotic and colorful Indonesia pastries.

Also, the seafood buffet on Princess in Alaska was a standout--salmon about half a dozen different ways, crusty breads, and all served against the majestic backdrop of the Inside Passage.

I do miss Celebrity Constellation's midnight buffet (what an event that was!) and their event by the pool, where they'd serve tropical fruits...It was memorable--I had guava and papaya for the first time. And the watermelon carvings were comic and eye-popping. - Diana, musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

I'd echo what others have said about when to get to the pier; how long you wait really depends on the ship, staffing and traffic flow. Few things:

* Advantage to getting there earlier: you can have lunch on board (buffet is always open at embarkation; some ships also have the dining room open). It also makes the trip feel longer when you can settle in faster.

* Disadvantage to getting there earlier: the staterooms are generally not ready until 1 or 1:30 (depending on ship), so you're stuck with roaming the ship with your carryon stuff. We don't care, though, we just plunk ourselves in the buffet, have a leisurely lunch and bask in the thought of the relaxing days ahead of us...- Diana, musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

Just visited your site for the first time--what a great idea to assemble them all in one place. Thanks for sharing!- Diana, https://musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com.

Thank you for your great response!

Do you, by any chance, remember how long the full selection is available in the evening?

It's so hard to find this info out...

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We're thinking about going on the Constellation and have a question about their cafeteria. Is it open for dinner? If so, is it a full selection, with hot entrees and more? What kind of food is served?

We're a bit confused, because we've seen references in some reviews to only pizza and pasta. We've found on other cruise lines that we like having an option to the MDR. RCI and Princess both have the same entrees in their cafeteria that are served in the MDR.

Thanks!

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We faced the same dilemma when we started cruising as well. On the one hand, when you're unsure, a shorter trip seems to make sense. But the more we looked into it, the more we gravitated to the seven-day. Here's why:

* We didn't see any price advantage to going on a shorter trip

* Shorter trips have a reputation of being more party-oriented. We're an older couple, so this wasn't appealing and we didn't want to get turned off cruising completely by getting the wrong impression

So, for our first trip, we opted for seven days. I'm convinced we made the right choice. We're going on #15 next month. - Diana, Musing About Cruising

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We wondered the same thing before our Alaska trip and in the end, went with the balcony. I'm glad we did and here's why:

* You get to see the scenery without fighting for space on the decks

* You can have your binoculars, cameras, etc. within easy reach (it's hard to have all that accessible when you standing elbow-to-elbow

* This was a biggie for me, because we went to Glacier Bay in late May and it was cold and rainy: you can keep jumping back into your cabin to get warm! (And sip coffee or hot chocolate)

It's not like being in the Caribbean, where you want to hang out on the verandah and drink wine, but on an Alaska cruise, it's still nice to have this little private space of your own to fully enjoy the view.

-- Diana, Musing About Cruising

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Ketchikan is great for walking around; it's compact and picturesque, with snow-capped mountains and a harbor filled with pleasure boats.

The Creek Street area, with its stream and cute shops, is a good destination.

The town overall is fabulous for shopping, with lots of shops big and small, where you can buy souvenirs or handcrafts at all different price points.

If you're interested, I've done a posting on my blog that talks about the ports of Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway. - Diana, http://musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

Hi-

I will echo what others have said--Ketchikan's shopping is the best of the ports. There are many more shops and a wider range of items at varying price points. Some suggestions:

* Eskimo art--ranges from totem poles (from desktop size to huge) to stone carvings and more. But it's expensive

* Salmon--as others have said, it's everywhere in Ketchikan and comes in many different forms. And they're packaged for travel

* Russian nesting dolls--inexpensive and different. They come in many different sizes and colors

* Other: we bought a lot of small mementos--Eskimo dolls, baseball caps, magnets, stuffed moose dolls, small totem pole made from a candle--they were all inexpensive. While they may look like cheap stuff while you're there, when you come home, you appreciate having it. And they make good conversation starters!

I just did a posting on my blog about Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan if you're interested. - Diana, http://musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

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I can only tell you of our experience, which was on Princess in May 2012 (we did roundtrip out of Seattle). I thought they did a fabulous job; here are a few highlights:

* The itinerary was great--Glacier Bay, Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan and Victoria

* They had a terrific naturalist (a great speaker, knowledgeable and personable) give a number of talks on board and then he narrated over the PA during our passage through Glacier Bay. It was well orchestrated and an incredible experience

* One of the speakers was a woman who won the dog sled race, the Iditarod; she was quite captivating

* There was a special lunch buffet featuring all kinds of salmon

* The day of Glacier Bay, you could order (for a fee) a special champagne brunch in your room to kick off the event

I have a few postings (Cruising Alaska 101 and Quaint and Quirky: Alaska's Ports) on my blog if you're interested. - Diana, http://musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

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Just a quick note to thank you for your detailed and informative review. We're going on the Allure for the second time in late May and was noodling over doing the Chef's Dining Package as something different. Your terrific review is helping us make up our mind! - Diana, http://musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

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We went on the Golden Princess in late May two years ago and stopped in Ketchikan. The town was a very short walk from the ship and the shopping is a lot of fun. You can get expensive Eskimo art or inexpensive trinkets (including Russian "nesting" dolls) that are great reminders of the trip.

And if you like salmon, it's paradise. There's salmon everywhere, sold in every which way.

Ketchikan is also quite picturesque. Just a word of warning--it has a high amount of rainfall and it was raining the whole time we were there. But that shouldn't deter you from having a fabulous time! If you're interested, I have a posting on my blog about planning a trip to Alaska. - Diana, http://musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

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We took Princess to Alaska and have taken a number of HAL cruises in the Caribbean. I'm a big foodie as well and alas, don't find the food much different on any of the mass market ships. That being said, this is what I've found to be some of the highlights:

* Golden Princess on Alaska trip--one day (I believe it was lunch), they had a special seafood buffet with salmon made about five or six different ways. While it wasn't fabulous (some of the salmon was dried out), it was still fun.

One of the nice things about Princess is that if you like to nosh late, the cafeteria is open until midnight.

HAL--they often have a special dessert event at night with many different kinds of cake, etc.

By the way, we went to Glacier Bay as well. I talk about it a bit in my blog, if you're interested. I did an "Alaska 101" posting. - Diana, http://musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

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Princess and Holland America have the longest history of cruising in Alaska and are reputed to have the strongest programs. For example, they have permission to sail through Glacier Bay--an amazing, unspoiled narrow channel with snowcapped mountains on both sides and icy-blue glaciers.

We took Princess roundtrip from Seattle. It went through Glacier Bay, as well as three port stops. Princess did a fantastic job, with a great naturalist to tell us what we were seeing, seafood buffets, etc.

The ports--Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan--are very colorful and have activities that would interest your kids. For example, we didn't do it (we don't have children), but one excursion your ship may provide is panning for gold in Skagway.

I recently did a post to my blog about Alaska, if you're interested. - Diana, http://musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

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My husband is also into photography and he puts all his equipment in a normal carryon suitcase with wheels, and keeps it with him during embarkation. That way, he can keep an eye on it at all times and it's easy to carry around the ship until the room is ready. We've been on 14 cruises and he's done it this way each time.

There are really no restrictions that I'm aware of in terms of carryons. The only thing you should be aware of is that if you get onboard before you're room is ready (typically 1 p.m., but sometimes earlier), you'll be stuck carrying it around the ship. - Diana, http://musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com

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We've been on 14 cruises and still use a travel agent. (Though we never used one for any of our European travel.) There are a number of advantages to using them, especially those who specialize in cruising:

* They are very knowledgeable and can help you pick a cabin, give you info on the ports

* They have special relationships with the cruise lines and can do things like hold reservations

* They offer shipboard credits and other bennies

* If you have a problem while at sea, you have someone to contact who is used to working with the cruise lines

Hope this helps. If you're interested, I did a recent posting, "When the Middleman Makes a Difference," on this topic in my blog. - Diana, http://musingaboutcruising.blogspot.com