rtdiva

I emailed a suggestion to Michael to consider a sail from SFO to the Hawaiian islands; included in the itinerary would be jazz ukulele musicians of which there are some who are notable. Such an advantage for us west coasters not to take at a minimum five and a half hour flight to FLL. The fee for the cruise may go up, however we will save thousands on airfare, hotels and transfers. In addition having many sea days to and from the Pacific islands will provide more music to enjoy. While the music is most important the Caribbean ports are no longer interesting. Our turn to sail from here! Those from other countries may enjoy a change of venue too.

Ah! Sailing out of FLL in the wintertime: Once I found myself pulling out of my carry - on a sleeveless top and shorts to change from slacks while waiting to board. It was miserably humid. Another year I pulled out fleece sweatpants to pull over lightweight pants. The weather prediction sometimes fools you. My packing habit is to always have at least one short sleeve and one long sleeve top, and a large scarf. My favorite long sleeve is a light weight cotton hoodie for sitting on the deck in the day. I’m finding those easy to pack chiffon Kimonos do the trick to ward off air conditioning at night. You will find shops onboard and off board who will gladly sell you whatever you need. We sail the Caribbean for two weeks in January.

I too have been on multiple cruises and was going to say I didn’t use door decor, when I realized many years ago when it seemed as if all the halls, doors and carpets were monotonous and kinda scary to get lost in, I used a ribbon on a railing. I found out that door decor now is a big thing on Disney etc. This month Im hanging on Halloween day, two Day of the Dead flowered colorful skeletons. One day would be fun to see but then it does get a bit tacky. What the heck! Life is short! Enjoy a fun door.

All great suggestions, here is a few more for you: I always have a warm wrap, such as a sweater, hoodie, poncho, or pashmina type scarf. Usually if I’m packing minimally it would be a large scarf. Great for wearing on the airplane, on the beach for a towel or to sit on, if it rains or is exceptionally windy it adds protection, one time it was used to shelter a grandchild. It is almost ALWAYS chilly in the ships dining room, if not there somewhere else. Ships temperatures are not regulated. Off board I always bring an unstructured backpack. Plus a bra friendly credit card sized holder for credit cards, ship card, ID. Yep, it goes in my bra. Evening Shoes: Shoes make a difference in a look. I bring a pair of black embellished flats to wear every evening, including Gala nights. I don’t usually wear dresses, however if traveling with Europeans, and on Cunard where the standards are dressier, one or two little black dresses are packed.

Thanks…got it. ann

Still 🫤 confused- I’m under the impression medallions are part of the cruise package. So why order one? Or do you mean the medallion will be sent to your house for convenience?

R we supposed to order a medallion?

The little black dress looks good on Australian and New Zealand women too.

It seems to me the Caribbean cruise will be casual, some guys as stated, wear Hawaiian collard shirts for formal. My husband brings a long sleeved black shirt on all cruises. He wears black sketchers on board for everything other than around the pool. The Norwegian cruise may be dressier as often times European passengers dress upscale. That said the little black dress, or black shirt with pants or skirt, topped with a lightweight colorful “ kimonos “ are an easy way to look nice, vary your look, and lighter in weight to pack. Check out Amazon. Costume jewelry helps. Plus embellished flip flop type sandals work for evenings. Always bring a wrap, the ships most often are not regulated in all areas with heat. However, don’t deprive yourself of the opportunity to enjoy yourself to experience cruise dressing up, especially after staying in casual clothes the past Covid years.

Cotton or linen Capris for women are in my opinion to casual, however, shorter above ankle pants that are made of a dressier fabric would be fine. Flip flops that have decorative embellished straps are o.k. as well. You can wear them later in Mexico. I bring walking shoes, sketchers for onboard, black embellished fabric TOMs style shoes for evening. Or embellished flip flops. My husband wears comfortable walking shoes off board, brings a pair of black Sketchers to wear on board, works for all events. Plus a pair of flip flops or sandals for beach or poolside. Seems to me as long as a guy has on a collared shirt he is going to fit in. Strangely husband’s want to fit in and can become fashion conscious.

I agree it depends on the cruise line.

We are on another cruise this fall our third this year, will pack nasal spray, more cough drops ( double sized bag from Costco) uncover an ice bucket, have wet towels plus stay off of elevators, stay away from others coughing, masked, gloved wear a haz mat suit. 😀 We are in Rio Vista, on the Sacramento River.

OMGosh ! Should I recite my health reports ? World cruise, 7 day cruise, length of sailing or different ship seems not to differ. One of us at a time would either get a cough or sinus infection. Weve just back from Cunard QE got a cough, been on HAL, Princess, etc etc etc. same thing! Which lines in your experience have the best HVAC filtration?

What is on our luggage for every trip is a bright pink JAZZ CRUISE luggage strap. Np problem seeing our luggage among others.

We’ve cruised a fair amount, I’d say on about half of the cruises one of us, despite being diligent with hand washing etc. becomes infected with a cough or sinus infection. Any suggestions as how you stay healthy are welcome. Ann

OMGosh, I’m 77, 5’3” great grandmother, Ive traveled around the world with one of those unstructured backpacks 🎒you get from donating to a charity. I guess I’m missing out on new tech, but “ it works”. No one thinks I’ve anything of value in it , cause I don’t. Credit cards a bit of cash, ship card, I.d. goes in my bra. 😀

Just returned from Alaska/ Vancouver 12 night cruise. hubby wore a light windbreaker over a heavy weight hoodie. he also wore a long sleeved cotton tee shirt and those zip off legs came in handy when the weather changed. We always take an unstructured backpack to carry an umbrella and the outerwear we shed over the day. I wore a medium weight stylish hoodie under a lightweight waterproof jacket. Our pants were treated with a water proofing spray. most likely when we cruise from Quebec City to Florida in late October, we will pack the same.

Bob the Bassman and Ann here. I’ve got to count the tee shirts to see how many of the jazz cruises we’ve been on. Looking forwards to another great cruise.