rudeney

Good grief, what a bunch of cheapskates! Would somebody please just buy this damned cruise so RCCL can turn a profit this quarter?

Never had a problem with cruise ships, only a few with airlines. I just retired my 25+ year old Delsey. It has served me well, but the plastic bits inside began to deteriorate, mostly from age. I just replaced it with a highly-rated Travelpro. We'll see how that works out. If it lasts as long as the Delsey, it will be the last bag I buy.

He didn't say "at least"; he said, "I think pre cruise testing is going to be around for another couple of months." If I had to place a bet, I'd put my money on testing ending to coincide with the current refund/quarantine assistance policies expiring September 30th.

But getting bacon from the buffet means being able to pick out pieces cooked exactly to my liking, and avoiding the server's surprised looked I get when I ask for 12 pieces! 😜

It will be of little consequence to me unless Canada also rescinds its cruise ship testing requirements. But I can always hope for a double!

I don't believe so. I think the only "suite" benefits for a JS are priority boarding and an extra C&A point.

CK is only on Oasis/Quantum. We've yet to sail on any ship larger than Freedom class. I'm not sure we will, either. I am looking at some options for Alaska next year which could be on Quantum or Ovation, but I'm also looking at <gulp> jumping ship to Celebrity for that one.

One of the perks we really like with suites is the option to eat breakfast in a reserved restaurant instead of the Windjammer. On the Voyager/Freedom class ships we sail on, it's usually in Chops, adjacent to the Windjammer. I will go grab a plate of some of my favorites from the Windjammer buffet, but enjoy the table service in Chops.

I've not seen any travel insurance that pays anything for missed ports. Looking back at a few policies I've had, this is the only mention I found: Itinerary Change In the event a cruise/tour supplier makes a change in Your Covered Trip itinerary which prevents You from participating in an event/activity prepaid prior to departure and scheduled on Your Covered Trip itinerary, Your non-refundable prepaid event/activity expenses will be payable up to $250. Benefits will not be paid if the event/activity is rescheduled during the course of Your Covered Trip. Verification by the cruise/tour supplier of the change in the scheduled Covered Trip itinerary will be necessary for claim payment.

I believe it was @ReneeFLL who gave us a "live" report of her time in quarantine aboard the ship.

I seem to recall this being for all onboard purchases in some ports. I questioned it once and was told "our cash register systems are down". Now this makes more sense - they don;t have to charge sales tax if the sale isn't completed until the ship is off shore.

Meh, it doesn't exactly roll off the tongue. But really, this needs to not be an "app", but a built-in feature of the phone O/S. That way, you don't have to rely on anyone installing anything. Isn't that how AirTags works - in that all Apple devices can sense and report on AirTags?

"AirTalk" would be a good name, except that it's already taken. As is AirChat, AirMessage and AirText.

Yes, but like I said, if you can get a good group of people on your roll call to use the app, their phones all act as "repeaters". I played around with it at home and the range is much better than typical Bluetooth. For example, my BT earbuds only work within about 35 feet. I was able to get this to work inside the house, through walls and floors in over 50 feet. I have not tried it on a ship, but I thought it might be worth something to someone. I think some of these may also work with wifi, which could extend the range. I am really surprised that Apple or Google has not come up with a built-in software like this. They do use a "crowd sourced" type of network for Tiles and AirTags, so it's not much different.

The messaging app won't alert you - you have to check it manually, so it's a bit like using the whiteboard on the cabin door, you just don't have to return to the cabin to read messages. I guess paying $56 for 4 people to message is better than nothing. You could try a "mesh messaging" app: https://gizmodo.com/how-mesh-messaging-apps-work-and-why-you-might-need-on-1837859615 These use direct phone-to-phone Bluetooth and/or wifi connections. Of course you have to be in range of each other or connected to a "chain" of other people on the ship using the same mesh app. If you haven't done so, join your Roll Call group and see if you can get a bunch of people to try this with you. It might work, though sporadically. For email access, see if your phone carrier offers any sort of international plan. It won't get you Internet on the ship, but in port. I've had variable experiences with the "free wifi" offered in port. Most are offered by bars and restaurants for paying customers, and speeds can be not so great.

I've never been a big fan of chicken. It's not like beef where you get better marbling and flavor in higher grades. It all tastes the same, which is bland and with very little actual flavor from the meat itself. Also, some years back, I began having problems with chicken giving me some lower-GI distress. I found out it's because of a bacteria present in most chicken that I don't tolerate well. I'll eat it if I have no other choice, but otherwise I pass on chicken.

I remember decades ago, a local woman was arrested for going into the men's restroom at our coliseum during a concert event. Apparently, the line for the lady's room was too long and she couldn't hold it any more. The charges were dismissed, but it was big news at the time. These days, I don't think anyone pays attention to who is in which restroom, much less someone helping a disabled person.

If you have travel insurance and have to use onboard medical, make sure you get detailed medical records including diagnosis codes. Our daughter had to visit medical for bronchitis on the last day of our cruise and they gave her nothing. I thought we could stop by on departure day to get a copy, but they were closed. It took several calls and a few weeks to get a copy of the records we needed for insurance to pay.

Yep, you're right - I reversed the sign on that equation! I really have no clue what the daily per-passenger meal cost allocation would be, but $15 per meal sounded somewhat reasonable. Normally we only do a couple of specialty restaurants per cruise, but this time, I decided to buy the UDP and try "all specialty" dining on our next cruise. It's just an experiment to see how we like that. We very well may miss the MDR. OR not - we shall see!

True, but that could cause other problems, like everyone showing up at 3:00pm, drunk and unruly after hanging out in the nearest bar getting loaded with with cheap happy hour drinks! 😜

But again, there is already some money spent on the included food. I don't know what value to assign to that, but let's say $15 per meal per person. That means a $60 upcharge for Chops is really just $45. That doesn't sound too bad, except that I've had some really good meals at Texas Roadhouse for $25. We bought the UDP for our next cruise and intend to eat all dinners in the specialty restaurants (even though Voyager has only three). We'll see how that goes.

I was thinking the same thing. I don't have any problems with the included MDR or Windjammer food, and I find it to be better than anything I could get at Applebee's, but sometimes I just want what the specialty restaurants offer. And I do think the food in the specialty venues is better (subjective, I know). .

Alaska will be our next cruise, and I was talking to some neighbors who have done it several times. They said don't go in September because many things are already shut down by then so a lot of shore activities and attractions won't be available.

Flight for us out of BHM are always a pain - very few directs and high prices. We booked flights for our October cruise before the crazy summer prices, but we are still driving 3 hours to fly out of Nashville. That gets us cheaper (in points) airfare plus direct flights. It's an hour's drive for us to BHM airport anyhow, so an extra 2 hours for better/cheaper flights is a no-brainer. I do the same thing when I fly to my office in Richmond, driving and extra 1.5 hour to ATL for a direct flight and better schedules.

Cocktails with alcohol are $13. Mocktails are $7, but I don't think you can pay just a $6 upcharge. My guess is they would charge you the full $13 cocktail price. Maybe a solution is to order a $9 shot, ask the bartender to put it in a large glass, and then ask that your mocktail be put into the same glass. I'm not sure if that would work, but it's worth a "shot".