cruiselvr04

2 hours ago, island lady said:

 

 

True enough, though the typical Pinnacle cruises how many times a year versus the "once a year or less" family, that granted, most will spend big bucks on the short cruises?   

 

The point many of us were making, is Royal was starting to move away from it's older loyal subjects, who in the past, continued to cruise with them...filling the ships even during down times, and were the ones that started cruising heavily when restart after Covid began. 

 

This extension of a reward to their most Loyal Royal cruisers to transfer to a more quiet sister line...IMHO...was a very good move.  I know I appreciate it...and it worked for me.   Will it make a big difference for RCI?  Time will tell.  But I don't think I am the only Pinnacle who is now moving towards some X cruises....versus totally going away to other competing lines.    

The once a year cruisers spend way more than we do on a cruise.  But they don’t cruise 80-100 nights a years either.  Royal shouldn’t forget about the bread and butter as you stated so well.  We too appreciate the new perks on sister lines and are now more anxious to get to the big P so we can get better perks on Celebrity too.  And who knows?  Silverseas over Viking will be on our radar now.

We went from Azusa to San Pedro last month on a Monday. It’s about the same distance you’re considering.  We left Azusa about 9:30 and got to the pier within an hour. We had an 11 check in time. However LA traffic is unpredictable.  As long as you build in extra time you should be fine. I think we got lucky. 

This sounds like “ how can we put in a high end restaurant on a ship with no ocean views”. Let’s pretend we’re on a train….Having had fine dining on an actual train I don’t think this appeals to us. 
 

One of the things we miss on the bigger ships is being able to see the water while dining in the speciality restaurants. 
 

I’ll look forward to reading your reviews though. 

13 hours ago, c-leg5 said:

Yes I can understand that. 

 

Did your other B2B include New Zealand or just Australia?

We were required to do this on a cruise that went from Australia to NZ and back to Australia. 

On 6/8/2024 at 1:14 PM, c-leg5 said:

That is interesting and a hassle! 
 

was this only for the first turnaround? Was it because this was the ships arrival in Australia as opposed to point-to-point/RT within the country? 

This was for all ships coming into Australia.  When we went B2B around Australia we didn’t have to do this.  Just all ships coming in. 

We always hang a sign from magnets on our door.  It helps us find our way home.  
 

Interestingly, in Australia and NZ, it’s not a thing.  We were about the only ones that did so. 
 

Have fun, just don’t use tape, only magnets. 

6 hours ago, mo&fran said:

Today is not a good day. My wife Maureen passed away this morning.

I am so very sorry.  

They sometimes have a small discount for previous cruisers but nothing like Royal and Celebrity.  Viking is a good product but different. 

12 minutes ago, cruisegirl1 said:

I didn't realize they don't have a loyalty program. That seems strange not to  give benefits to loyal/repeat customers.  Of course, most of us  don't  sail for benefits, but they are nice when offered. 

Enjoy your cruises. 

17 hours ago, njkruzer said:

In Costa Rica in October on Radiance Canal cruise, all aboard was 9:30, sailaway wa 10.  When we left the dining room noticed only 1 gangway down, 4 officers standing on dock staring at the pier, waiting... there had been a rain storm earlier, we had to turn around because of a downed tree and were 1/2 hr late at 5:30. At 9:30 shore excursions were still stuck.  New buses had to be sent to rescue passengers.   Also saw police bring passengers back who were stuck other places.  Didn't hear that we were missing any passengers when we finally left.  

We were Radiance too.  The last passengers on were a couple who had taken private transportation and were also stuck behind the fallen tree.  It was an awful storm.  The tree fell just after we passed and we were late getting back too. Another bus that left the excursion site right after us got trapped and got back 3 hours late.  The rain was torrential.  

14 hours ago, vjmatty said:

They still heckle. I was on a ship excursion in St Lucia that was late, along with a several other tours totaling over 50 passengers. There were still shouts and catcalls from the balcony. Somebody in the group yelled “it’s a ship excursion, stupid” and everybody shut up all embarrassed 😂

We were on a catamaran in St Lucia where that happened.  We were after all aboard but just before sail away.

On both trips I’m glad we booked with the ship.  

We’ve seen security bring out documents/passports to leave with the port agents when people are late getting back to the ship. If we don’t go with a ship excursion I try to remember to take a picture of the port information on the compass. If you’re only a few minutes from the port, stuck in traffic, you could call the port agent and let them know what’s going on.  It might help them wait for you instead of no one knowing where you are or how long you’ll be. No guarantee but it’s worth a try. 

15 hours ago, Tlbecker1 said:

I agree with you.  The last time I did a B2B meeting was ten years ago.

We were on a B3B in Australia/NZ this year.  They had a well attended meeting each time.  Perhaps because it was more complicated and larger group?  First turn around you had to pack EVERYTHING, put your suitcases out the night before with special tags, even if you had the same room and once you got back on you couldn’t get off again to explore the city.  You could only leave the ship if you got off early and anything you didn’t want checked you had to carry off and carry around with you. This is the only time we’ve run into something like that. We didn’t want to cart around a heavy back pack all day with iPads, kindles, and everything from the safe so we just stayed on board and went to the lunch. 

If you want a hotel under $200 on a weekend in Galveston you need to stay north of the island near NASA in Webster or near Hobby Airport ( which isn’t in the best neighborhood.) Galveston is crazy high on weekends. It’s less than an hour drive from either of those locations.  
 

For actual Galveston I book as early as possible.  I got the Tremont for $300 months ago and it’s now over $600 for our night. The Tremont is nice but I wouldn’t pay that. So glad I booked early.  

We requested a lounger on our extended Brilliance balcony and got it. I’m sure it varies by ship on what’s allowed.

What’s the reason stated for them being removed? Safety?  You can climb on a chair just as easy as a lounger or a stool.  Makes no sense.

2 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

 

Great advice. I have copied and pasted this into my notes. The sheet they gave me says to wear gloves when putting it on.

 

 

 

 

 

Im going to ask the doctor about that and using Vaseline. I would think that would help.

 

 

 

Hats don’t bother me just need to be more mindful of wearing it.

I had skin cancer go to a nerve requiring immunotherapy so do your cream. I’m still getting MRIs every 6 months.  Be very careful as others have said around your dogs or pregnant women.  
 

Having almost lost my life to skin cancer, squamous and Basel, not melanoma, I still cruise.  I wear sunscreen everyday.  Hats when out. Rash guard and shade with 50 spf on a beach or boat.  My days of sitting in the sun are over. I take Vit D instead.  But I’m not going to quit doing what I love to do or stop going to grands soccer games.  I’m just more careful about it now. 

The best part is watching everyone else put their bags out and leave.  Meanwhile you get to sleep in a little, and sometimes for an hour or so have the ship to yourself. 
 

There will sometimes be a consecutive cruiser lunch. 
 

Since you have the same cabin I would not consider putting in a Royal up. To us, it’s not worth the move.

Does anyone know if you can bring back unopened reindeer sausage into the US?  I wouldn’t want to buy it to just have to throw it away. 

Although it’s not listed we’ve been able to get a free hot chocolate instead of the americano or latte.  It doesn’t hurt to ask. We don’t care for the powdered stuff but like it with syrup and milk. This could be because our last 2 ships (Brilliance and Explorer) had non working machines in the lounge.

What we’ve been told with the BOGO.  Book for any day in the first 2 days.  They will go ahead and charge you at the time you book so it looks like you used it the first 2 days for accounting purposes. But we’ve actually dined further into the cruise with reservations made the first two days. Most of the time we’ve also been able to book Izumi with it.  YMMV on certain ships.

DH says he’s ready to jump in!  I’ll pass and hold his towel and robe.

I saw someone bringing one off Explorer a week ago.  However I would definitely fill out the form and add what you’ll be bringing on board.  You don’t want to be denied boarding. Do not assume because it’s not on the form that you don’t need authorization. 

10 hours ago, twangster said:

Brrr. Not looking forward to the cold but at least we’ll know how to pack for August. Rain boots, parka and layers underneath.  Do you recommend water proof pants? Guess we need to get some.

We have a tour booked with Blue puffin for the North Cape.

We wish Celebrity would bring ANY ship to Galveston.  There was talk but nothing has come out of it.  

I have C and A in my contact list and always use that number. 

We like the Tremont.  It’s on the higher end but is a lovely historic hotel on the Strand.  We have stayed at mid range too like the Hampton ( getting run down) and 2 other newer Hilton brand properties closer to the water.  Use trip advisor and read some reviews to get what’s right for you.

The parking right by the terminal is the easiest.  However they have gone from $18 a day to $23 a day now. It’s more expensive to park there than the San Pedro pier in LA! 

5 hours ago, firefly333 said:

I just paid a ridiculous price at target for a tiny sling chair. At least it folds it. I didnt see a brand, just said sling chair. I sat in it and seems ok, though it's very small. I will look around more later, but I made a appointment for spectrum to come out and install 2 small tvs and wifi at 10 am so I plan to be there by 9 am and obviously am not standing there waiting for a hour. I'm a,ready worried I dont have the right stuff. First she says go ahead and plug them in especially if they are smart tv. The samsung is only a few months old. 

 

Then she wants me to get on wifi before its installed to download the app so I can set up a pin number. I have 4 tv outlet places I see, and only 2 small tvs. For $65 set up fee. The guy who comes better be able to figure it out. 

 

The wifi here at the hotel isnt secure. He is supposed to call or text me on my cell phone to tell me when he is on the way. I'm currently south and driving up there. I'm assuming all the cords he needs are in the box they delivered friday. 

 

I've got my fingers crossed he can set up the tvs and wifi. All I have are the 2 tvs and my tablet I use for wifi. I turned in all my texas spectrum stuff last Monday morning. I want the same service but texas said the equipment cant cross the state line. 

 

Tell me I'll survive this and it gets get. Fingers crossed. 

 

I didnt have time to shop around much for a chair. Target is sure a overpriced choice to me but its maybe just getting hot and the season for patio furniture. In dallas in the fall it all goes on sale. Probably here season is year round. Something to spend more time looking for later on after I'm moved in. I needed a chair before tomorrow morning. I'll google search for a set I like after im moved in. 

 

I keep repeating I'll never move again. Bought a few shirts today too. I only came with 4 tee shirts thinking the truck hot on my heals. I'd pack more for a 7 day cruise than that. 

 

My house buyer in dallas called and said the next door neighbors tree fell over from the tornado and severely damaged the fence between us. I said ask him for his insurance, it's his tree. I have 0 trees. Our sales contract reads AS IS. But I've now got a damaged fence. New next door neighbor so far I'm not impressed with. He just moved in a couple months ago and has had two loud parties in his back yard. First one he rented one of those blow up jumping around play houses for kids. Must have a lot of family. I'm extra glad to not live next door to him. 

 

I know moving is the right thing for me. I hated that house, it was a money pit. Please please please let the moving truck arrive. And I want to live where I see water and nature and not a big city. 

Moving is always hard.  I feel your pain through your post.  
 

It will get better but it may take time.  Take one day at a time. Hang in there!

By the way, you got out of Dallas just in time.  We’ve had almost 10 inches of rain in the last week and there are still some in our suburb who haven’t had power since Tuesday morning.  We were fortunate, still need our fence and motorized gate fixed but have had power. Mosquitoes will be next….