rtdiva

I use YouTube often along with CC to make travel plans. Kellybegs population under 2000 is a deep sea port exporting sea food around the world.

As an American who has sailed Cunard’s World Cruise, Alaska ( yes, dress is more casual) and East bound, dress attire can be easily misunderstood via customs & language. Living in a small river community between Napa and the San Francisco Bay Area, dressing up for a nice restaurant, the theater, funerals, some weddings almost always means in today’s lifestyle jeans for men of all ages up until age 70. Language and clothing continue to evolve. I was particularly puzzled by the use of the word “gown”for evening dress for women suggested a few years ago by Cunard. “ Does that mean Cinderella” I thought? No, it means an evening dress of any length. My experience along with others to lessen packing is to bring a little black outfit and a white outfit to wear with a “kimono” type wrap, shawl or jacket (keeps out the chill), adding appropriate color to the themed look. A set of long pearls, with a feather on a headband in your hair works fine for Roaring Twenties. White night, will require white. Tops that shed are not a good choice. A good quality fabric is what makes any outfit comfortable and attractive. Black shoes of any type works. No, not plastic flip flops. Cunard is above all transportation from one place to the next. Characters and a character can be found everywhere. Kindness counts.

Go to the website “ Whatsinport” .

Is your email address current?

Thank you Sadie Lady for the detailed reply! First of all: Why did I not think to hire a guide for the first hours off the ship? Just as I would in any port. Second; Nor did I think to book a hotel in another city out of Southhampton. Thirdly; The guide could drive us to the following hotel (s)! Most likely we will follow your plans to book in another city, then return to Southhampton for a day of local sites before flying to Dublin for our next cruise. We are off board for five days. CC as always comes through!

You said you packed in a lot in those three days; did you overnight in any of the cities? Did you feel you were rushed ? What would you change if you could? Generally we have a guide for one day, I’m curious how comfortable it was or not for multiple days. The debate is to “ do it on our own” as JB has given great points or hire a guide. We are 79-80 years old.

Be aware! I left my passport in the printer at home, 3000 miles away. After a few hours of panic we were able to get a new one cause we were sailing out of Miami. Spray bright paint using a stencil to distinguish your luggage from others. We use Allianze insurance to cover all our trips taken over a year. How it works: You have a bank of cash to draw on, once it’s depleted naturally you are no longer covered.

Flight to the states. Ask your TA to check the super low priced business class flights by United only for cruisers. Not found online.

My question is where to stay a few days between cruises; a place close to public transportation, we would take day trips both in and around Southampton. I understand there are several museums in this city. Do you recommend other nearby attractions? A company that gives tours? A train to..? Our interest are music history and contemporary art. Cathedrals, colleges and castles have already been explored. CC is brilliant, much thanks for poster support.

While I tend to not want to overpack, dressing for the events becomes a challenge, however that said, I encourage cruisers to enjoy the experience of being a part of the event by wearing evening clothing. Many people who dress in more formal attire are the ballroom dancers, they book Cunard to enjoy the dance floor, talented musicians, camaraderie. It really is a fun experience to see fans and feathers, mask, tuxedos and ties on smiling faces. Ladies can join in by simply wearing a decorative headband, faux pearls with their outfit, men a black or white long sleeved shirt under a jacket, clip on tie. As mentioned above, there are other dining areas other than in the MDR. Afterwards most people meet n mingle regardless of dress. Well, not jeans and tee shirts, but smart casual.

We are flying to Dublin to catch an “Irish Intensive “ cruise porting back to Southhampton, thus the question. Had thought about leaving the ship from Ireland to fly home. We r old, finding travel complications complicated and ( just paid our taxes) costly. I’ve read your information over the years, thanks. A

Am I missing something? Plans are to sail into SH, spend a few days, fly out from SH to Dublin. Is there a problem with SH airport? No one mentions flying from there. Is it not international? Can we fly back to the states from SH? Do we hire a taxi from the cruise port to the SH airport? A

Thanks to each of you for your take on the difference between American River cruise Vs European. Ericosmith clarified simply by say “ it’s history “ vs both history, relaxation, entertainment and lectures, additionally island lady stated supporting the U.S. economy. Most likely American River cruises will win over European, as overseas travel has become more difficult for us aging seniors.

I always print out a copy of our passports. Sadly the original passport was left in the copy machine at home, on the opposite coast. When we tried to board, the copy was a “no”. We jumped in a taxi went to the passport office, new photo, much whining and crying, after several hours we made it just in time to board @ 4:00. We were told not to tell the officials the passport was at home, cause they would say go get it. We lied.

Birth control?🥰

I need to add: Rest in between ports! It is easy to become exhausted in hot humid weather.

Our first cruise was a short three or four day cruise from San Pedro, Ca to ports in Mexico. OMGOSH! I fell in love with the music, the meals, the people, the crew! I loved all of it. The point was whether or not I’d get claustrophobic or sea sick. The only thing sad thing to happen was a weight gain. For real! A short cruise! And I don’t eat desserts. Regardless we’ve now sailed around the world to many many ports meeting wonderful people seeing unimaginable sites. We also booked and paid for a family cruise for twenty. I no longer gain weight cause I don’t often order all of the four courses and we walk a lot off board and on. I recommend a short itinerary for a first cruise, naturally it would be better to find a cruise line that suits their life style.

I’ve got to add this: bring several bras. I experienced having an uncomfortable rash between my boobs from wearing a bra that I hadn’t washed after wearing it. The rash never completely went away. Several you tube posters show they bring purses to use onboard. I bring an envelope sized silk bag, filled with jewelry for travel, then used for evening; iPhone, room card, tissue, lipstick. For onboard day time I use an unstructured hobo bag, often given free by the cruise line for carrying books, lotion etc.

Have you noticed more dresses worn in the Caribbean both onboard and on land than in the past? Or is it the YouTubers promoting dresses. Trying to keep packing to a minimum I use statement jewelry to add zest to a simple outfit in the MDR. .

Admittedly I’m an older cruiser, with many cruises under my hat, what I’ve experienced is “ no one “ cares what you are wearing. That said you don’t want to feel out of place. One shawl, kimono, or cardigan is fine for warmth during dining. For comfort most people pack at least one short sleeve top and one long sleeve, pack the same with bottoms, at least one short and one long pant. Weather is unpredictable. You are on vacation be comfortable. That said a lightweight hoodie comes in handy while you are on the deck. Several swim suits sound like what you need. A cotton sarong type wrap works wonders and is useful in many ways. I always have a tee and long cotton pants to sleep in. The pants should be comfortable enough for just lounging in your room. Stateroom temperatures vary. Bring and wear a hat, bring an unstructured beach bag. Comfortable foot wear is the most important items to pack. To recant: In the future on some cruise lines dress is important. You will want to dress to fit in. Regardless relax have fun!

Get well soon! After contacting Covid on a cruise in July ( haphazardly wearing mask) on our recent cruise we diligently wore mask, stayed out of crowded elevators, stayed out of packed rooms. Used sanitizer cloths. Cleaned our hands often. We didn’t even have the usual cough or contracted Covid. We got home safely. While having Covid wasn’t severe it does linger and sometimes have after effects. Take care.

A different take on the subject: oftentimes the itinerary is port intensive. Regardless of age, people are tired from time off board. On that note when we began sailing many years ago, we were the first off then the last on, as we are now closer to 80 than 70 a leisurely breakfast is nice. Oftentimes half day tours are preferred. I do remember a crew member once said to me as I was hurriedly rushing from one activity to another on a sea day “ Ma’am you are on vacation, take your time”. So to answer the question- yes.

Off topic- please don’t take this question wrong: There are 22 day cruises overseas for a fraction of cost of American River cruises. Please convince me why I should book. I understand air flights are a problem and a pain. Is it the river cruise experience? thanks, ann

Our HMO covers health issues; transportation, care,etc. The opposite of your thinking : fare refunds are a major expense. Longer trips on pricey ships are many thousands of dollars. You are saying refunds on fares will be a pittance. Egad! We haven’t bought trip insurance until this year where we find our aging bodies may deceive us.

I have reduced or eliminated several take ons, however I have added this past cruise, during Halloween, door decor - 2 Day of the Dead skeletons 💀dressed in painted roses, make up etc. were attached with magnets. I put colorful KN 95 mask on their faces. The reason I’m mentioning this is I’ve only seen a few decorated doors over the years on the cruise lines I book, a CC group suggested door decor as a contest. I found door decor is festive, I can easily locate my room AND the room steward 👍🏻mentioned how much he enjoyed seeing them!