boulders

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=247793

 

On the 4th day of our trip, my 7 year old son was running around, eating greasy food every night (pizza, French fries, chicken fingers) and had his third dessert for the night.

 

 

He vomited. We called housekeeping and was told by the staff that we should have our son checked out by the medical staff. My husband and I were fine with that but we knew our son just vomited because he ate too much and was running around. He had no fever or diarrhea.

 

 

I went to the nurse, she checked my son's temperature which was normal and then took his seapass card.

 

She came back and said that my son had to be quarantined for 24 hours to his room.

 

 

I was in disbelief. I said he had an upset tummy and no other symptoms to say he had the norovirus. He vomited once and was himself.

 

 

The nurse said the CDC and the captain of the ship take this very seriously.

 

 

My husband went down the next morning to try to talk to the staff to let my son out. The person at guest services said my son could be rechecked after 12 hours. Great!

 

 

My husband took my son back down to the doctor. The manager was already dealing with a woman who had a person in their party vomit from an allergic reaction to chlorine. The person in their party was also put on 24 hour quarantine. My husband knew we did not have a chance.

 

 

He basically told the manager that you are going to cause people to not be upfront with their illness in fear that they will be quarantined.

 

 

I even tried calling customer service for RCL and asking how they distinguish between people vomittng from the norovirus, motion sickness or upset stomach. The person could not answer that question. All I was told that this was for the safety of the ship.

 

 

Needless to say, they ruined a day that I wanted to spend with my family and get some nice pictures of us at the beach in St. Thomas. For the rest of the trip, I had to watch our three kids to make sure they did not overeat because I was worried that one of them would vomit from an upset stomach which was not uncommon with my kids. The staff even does "courtesy checks" to make sure that you stay put in your room. My son could not leave his room until 11:30 PM New Year's Eve. At least we got to ring in the new year.

 

 

All in all, our server and room attendant were great.

 

 

The shows were great. We did pre-book the show.

 

 

Another tip is when you are leaving the ship, allow yourself enough time for customs and the security line at the airport. We gave ourselves 3 hours and walked off the ship at 7:30 AM. Customs took awhile.

 

 

Then, we got to the airport and the line was very long for security. We had to be pulled out of line to make our 10:45 AM flight.

 

 

I am not happy with the overreaction caused by my son having an upset stomach with NO other symptoms and I think they handled it poorly.

As another poster pointed out, that's because this was a child. They do not take adults' cards.

 

And as I pointed out... What difference does it make if he was a child? The took the card. They had no reason to.

Nowhere in the review does it say that they kept the child's card. The nurse probably took it, took the info off it and then returned it. Just like they do any time you access a for fee service on a ship.

No package for canned soda.

 

boulders - congratulations on your 3,000th post and promotion to "Blue Ribbon"!

...

Woohoo! Thanks for the congratulations!

Three weeks from now is President's Day which is a week long holiday for many schools in the northeast. If the cruise line has been offering guarantee cabins, those available cabins you see online will disappear when the line assigns their guarantees. I would not count on a great deal happening. If you want to go, its best to book now.

You should post on the Disabled Cruising forum here

I live in Australia and have heard about B2B cruises, but I am finding it really difficult to find information on what is available and if there is a cost reduction. Any information would be appreciated.

A B2B is simply booking two consecutive cruises. There is no cost reduction.

Your luggage is x-rayed upon boarding.

Have a look at Holland America and see if their New Zealand cruises suit you. IMO, their cruises are nicer than Princess.

Rome in Limo.

Viator is a reseller.

Here's a link RCCL nursery that will give you some info.

The cabins on DCL ships are 30-50% larger than on other comparable lines!

 

The staterooms are a lot bigger then other cruiselines.

This is a myth. Disney shrunk their balcony staterooms by almost 10% on their new ships while other cruise lines have been increasing the size of their staterooms. The average stateroom on Disney's newer ships are about 10 sq ft smaller than the average stateroom on RCCL's newer ships. With Disney's split bathrooms, Disney's staterooms feel even smaller as 25% of the stateroom's square footage is in the bathroom. So, their staterooms have much less living space compared to RCCL.

Hi

 

I know you are able to leave kids onboard while in port, my husband and I are thinking about going off for a morning one day on our own then bringing the children off in the noon, have you done this and were u able to relax properly? We are going on Freedom and were thinking about doing this in St Maarten.

Thanks in advance :-)

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It depends on the age of the kids. I am comfortable with it now that the youngest is 8 years old, but I wasn't comfortable with it when he was a toddler.

I must be slow on the draw because I just found out about the Argentina fee two weeks ago. I don't seem to remember it being pointed out by Crucon although the Chile fee was. Anyway that adds $300 US to this Canadian couple"s very short stay in Argentina. Had I known about it I might well have chosen a different cruise. Our Baltic and Mediterranean cruises allowed us to visit Russia -Germany - Egypt without this kind of rip- off.

I just got back from my South American cruise on my Canadian passport. You will only need a single entry visa which is $75 pp.

Have a look at RCCL's Quantum of the Seas. It will be a brand new ship sailing out of Bayonne, New Jersey starting November, 2014.

I could buy tickets for similar artists at home for the same money. I don't see any attraction.

I'm a single mom with 3 kids too. On Royal Caribbean, you can get adjoining rooms, connecting rooms or rooms across the hall. Disney will not allow different rooms. I'm not sure about the other cruise lines as I haven't tried it. Our favourite rooms are Royal Caribbean's family rooms. Yes, there are pull down bunks, but no one has ever complained of feeling claustrophobic. They're just like bunk beds.

Most cruisers don't know about Cruise Critic. So, is the saying on the shirt the way we want to introduce Cruise Critic?

Explorer of the Seas, no question.

After our one and only Carnival cruise, ds12 and dd9 made me promise not to take them on another Carnival cruise.

I wouldn't say HAL is more formal, but it is more "refined" than your other two choices. Royal Caribbean is aimed at people who want to be on the go and very active while HAL is more for people who want a relaxing, peaceful vacation. There are plenty of things to do on HAL, but they tend to be more cerebral - while RCCL is more physical. The food is better on HAL. RCCL has better pools. I haven't been on NCL. I have not heard good things about the food on NCL.

Pay close attention to the size of the staterooms when you are comparing costs. Staterooms tend to be quite small and every square foot counts! Some cruise lines will include the square footage of a balcony in their total square footage of a cabin while some will list it separately.

I had to laugh at your comments about DCL "groupies". They are something, aren't they. ;)

Just looking for some advice. Considering doing a quick 3 day Bahamas cruise with wife and 20 month old daughter. We both have passports, but our daughter does not. I am going to try and get it for her in time, but if I cant what other options do I have? I know you typically need birth certficate and photo id, but I dont have any kind of photo id for a 20 month old?

 

Any help is appreciated!

If your daughter was born in the U.S., then her state-issued birth certificate will suffice for the cruise. It will not be sufficient if, for any reason, you need to fly home from the Bahamas.

I was bored by the Skagway train. There are much more interesting excursions to go on with kids. DS went on Alaskan cruises when he was 4 and again when he was 6. He loved the whale watching, sled dog and gold panning excursions we went on. There are lots more wildlife or interactive excursions to go on too.

Hi everyone! We are looking to bring the three kids with us on their first cruise. We are trying Royal Caribbean for the first time and would love some input from you about adjoining cabins, family suites, and more! The kids will be 13,12, and 8 at sailing. We are only considering balcony rooms or suites at this point on Royal Caribbean! Thank you:D

Did you have a particular cabin type and cruise ship in mind? Royal Caribbean has many many types of cabins and they vary from ship to ship.

I would recommend a family cabin over a suite or 2 balcony rooms for your family of 5.

Hi. I'm new to cruising and will be on Nieuw Amsterdam at end of Feb.

 

Cabin questions:

 

1) Are all the walls in the cabins metal so I can use magnetic hooks etc. for hanging stuff? (I have heard the idea to use the "command" hooks, but I am afraid of leaving a residue/sticky)

 

2) Does duct tape leave a sticky residue if you use it to keep drawers/cabinets from banging? Other ideas for this?

 

3) I've read that some people put things on the outside of their cabin door to decorate it or to make it easier to find. Do people sailing on HAL usually do this or is it considered tacky?

 

Thanks for your advice.

1. I was on the Nieuw Amsterdam for 24 days with 3 other people in an inside cabin. There was plenty of storage. There's no need for magnetic hooks.

2. No need for duct tape either. The drawers and the closet doors stay closed.

3. Have never seen this on a HAL cruise. You're more likely to see this on Disney.

On the sign in sheet, they ask you where you are going to be. If you are not there, they can 1) phone your cabin, 2) track your keycard, 3) talk to your cabin steward, 4) use the security cameras or 5) page you on the public address system. Ships are not that big. There are only so many places (maybe 10 or so) that a person can be.

We recently cruised with Holland America (van Ooosterdam) and found the onboard entertainment a bit sedate and amateurish which is a pity because the age groups of all other passengers appeared to cover all ages - an example was the 'Putt Putt' golf course which consisted of a narrow rolled up piece of green carpet, with a hole at one end and a tee at the other (about 5 metres in length) which was moved around the ship by the Entertainment Director to various areas and decks depending on other scheduled activities on the timetable. We sort of expected an actual 'Putt Putt' course as being a designated area as experienced on other cruise ships.

 

We did make attempts to participate in some activities for our age group (+50) but found them more designed for the 70+ (sorry, no offence intended)

 

What are people's thoughts on comparative cruise lines such as NCL -v- Holland America as far as quality of onboard entertainment for all age groups? :confused: (please refrain from sarcastic responses - it's not necessary in this forum) - I'm making a genuine query as a traveller who enjoys cruising :)

The HAL ship you were probably on was the Oosterdam.

If you want an actual mini golf course on board, you are looking at a Royal Caribbean ship. If you want the most entertainment options for adults, that would be on Allure of the Seas or Oasis of the Seas. It's doubtful that a Disney would satisfy your desire for adult entertainment. Their ships and entertainment options are designed for small kids and their parents. If you are looking for information on NCL (Norwegian Cruise Line), you would be best off asking on their board.

The best "entertainment" I've had on a cruise was on my recent HAL Zaandam cruise where we had many lectures on Antarctica.