Desertbelle

Really? Why do you think most Baltic cruises are booked? I'd venture to guess because of St. Petersburg. People book for the ports all the time.

 

A better way to say it would be: Book the cruise, with the ports you want, but be aware that ports can change at any time.

While at the same time... "A bloody weekend of gun violence in New York City has left six people dead. In just 48 hours, 25 people across four boroughs were shot, CBS reports."

 

Which I guess is perfectly normal - or should cruise ships now stop calling at New York?

 

The different standards set by most on this forum baffles me. Any violence anywhere except the U.S. and we should ban the place.

 

No formal negative travel advice for Israel still from the U.S., UK or EU. Just suggestions to be cautious. The difference between the two is key... with a formal negative advice, in the EU, you get your money back... as happened with the Ukraine, Tunisia and Egypt.

 

There is a HUGE difference between deaths as a result of being in a city of multiple millions of people due to domestic violence, drug usage, robberies, and the like....and deaths due to terrorism and war.

 

I feel I can fairly protect myself from being killed in NYC or any large city, by being smart and careful, but I can do nothing to protect myself from random acts of terrorism and war.

 

We went to Israel and Egypt on a cruise two years ago and even then it was rather scary. Our tours had armed guards and in Jerusalem, on a walking tour, our Jewish guide (a lovely young man doing his best to tell the story with a Christian slant) was screamed at by a shop keeper for only giving "the Jewish side of the story" when telling us about the stations of the cross!! They nearly came to blows, but the men of our tour came between them and we pushed on and the shop keeper didn't pursue us. This incident was only a few seconds long, but it showed us clearly how volatile the region is and how dangerous it could be to visit now. I can only imagine how scary it would be now.

We have brought a port on board before, no problems. I don't think they even look at the label, just the shape of the bottle.

thanksgiving is the middle day of our cruise...so hopefully it will be done..never seen a ship get decorated for christmas.

 

Do not worry, the decorations start the very day after Thanksgiving!

Some people should not travel. :(

Maybe it's cruising that is losing its luster for many people and not the particular cruise line? And they are blaming the cruise lines for their diminishing sense of fun?

 

We have been cruising for a long time now and we love it as much now as we ever did, and we are not much bothered by the subtle changes. We still believe cruising to be a good value for our vacation dollars and we still can't wait for our next cruise! If we stop feeling that way we will stop cruising and find something else.

 

 

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Not working on any browser I have...Firefox, IE and Edge.

[quote name='bones43']Couldn't have said it any better. A positive attitude is very necessary especially on travel days[/QUOTE]
Thank you. We are so fortunate to be able to cruise, it seems a shame to be angry and upset during those precious few days a year we get.

Here's what happened the last time we were in Ft. Lauderdale port, in April....I had almost forgotten.

We get off the Allure (a wonderful cruise) and one of our bags is missing. I find it easily in the "missing bag area", thank goodness. Then we wait a fair amount of time to get to customs...but we expect that, and aren't concerned. The customs agent is pleasant and soon we are free! We walk out to the taxi line and get a cab immediately.

As we pull away the driver is fiddling with his meter, it doesn't appear to be running correctly. He pulls over to the side of the road just before the exit from the pier and continues to mess with this meter. He tells us he will get a $500 fine if he leaves the port without the meter working. We wait a few more minutes for him to turn it off and on and off and on and off and on. He's pushing buttons and he just can't make it start metering. Finally, I say, "We are meeting my sister for breakfast, when might we be able to continue on?" He again, tells us the situation of a fine if the meter isn't running. I suggest he call his dispatcher and ask what to do. He does this, she is no help. Now, I am finally getting a little upset. I tell him he needs to either take us to the hotel or take us back to the pier to find another cab. He reluctantly turns around to take us back to the ship. When he drops us off he asks for a payment??!!?!?!?! What? You didn't take us anywhere and it took about 25 minutes to not take us anywhere!! He starts to give us some attitude and the man who oversees the taxi line comes over to see what the problem is. When he hears what has happened, he immediately puts us in another cab and sends us off with sincere apologies. We see him and the cab driver having words as we leave....it didn't look like it was going well for the cab driver.

So, quite the hassle to get out of the port, but, it didn't have ANY impact on whether or not we enjoyed our cruise, or the lovely meeting I was late for with my sister, who I hadn't seen in a year.

Traveling is an adventure, and if you can't roll with the punches, traveling might not be for you.

[quote name='wieslaw']Hi,
I like your post and your attitude...... it seems that it did not change from the time I/we cruised with you number of years ago.[/QUOTE]

Thanks! It's been a long time.
Life is too short to be grumpy. :)

When I post using Tapatalk on my iPhone or iPad, it lets me post a photo right off my phone or iPad.

I forgot to mention the Cucumber Basil Martini at 150 Central Park. So yummy, plan on having two of them!!

Must see Central Park at night, and eat at 150 Central Park for dinner. The Park Café for lunch, for sure!

 

I guess I am a Central Park fan.:D

If you log in and then try to log in again, especially in a new browser, a very short time later, you will get this message for a while....I haven't timed it exactly but for 30 minutes or so.

 

As for the blank page, that depends on what browser you are using. I always get that with Firefox, and using the "Print" option will fix that.

Some years back we had a disastrous first cruise after a dry dock, on a Princess ship.

 

The worst issue was that the new engines they put in had a "breaking in" period and couldn't go full speed, so we missed many ports and only got half days at the 3 ports we got to (it was a 10 day 7 port cruise :().

 

Many things were out of use, even the pool was out of order for a couple of days because they were still painting and installing decking. The internet (which includes a lot of things you might not think of, such as ATM machines, television, etc.) didn't work until day 7 of the cruise. Carpet glue smells, paint smells, carpentry noise and dust was everywhere. Because it was a long dry dock, over 2 weeks, the crew was way out of practice, and it took a good 4-5 days for service and food to get up to snuff. Some people were so upset they were walking off the ship with their luggage in the ports...couldn't take it anymore.

 

I would never book a cruise after a dry dock again, until the price was something spectacular....worth the inconveniences that might occur.

We are getting a private shuttle (SAS) from Ft. Lauderdale to Miami in April and it appears the shuttle company is telling everyone (per our Roll Call discussions) that the pick up times start at 11 am. So, unless they plan on filling up a whole shuttle at one hotel, my guess is that they start at 11 am at the first hotel on their route and proceed to the other hotels until the shuttle is full. Which might mean a few stops to pick up people and probably a couple of hours or more....depending on how long it takes at each hotel waiting on people and loading them and their luggage onto the shuttle.

 

Not that I am worried, I am sure we will get to the ship with plenty of time to spare! :)

Since this is for your roll call group, why not choose 2 potential start times (1 afternoon and 1 evening) and take a vote? It sounds like fun, so I'll be looking forward to learn how it works out. :-)

I have already posted it for a vote on my roll call. So far Evening is beating out afternoon 4 to 1 :D

 

I'll post a report of how it all worked out....complete with things we would have done differently.

Your stateroom attendant can get you any number luggage tag you need. We have changed ours for earlier numbers on several cruisers - it was a non-issue.

 

Absolutely correct!

Love your spirit! Hope our paths cross on a cruise. Cheers!

 

Thanks! I hope we do cross paths some day! I'll be the one with the big smile on her face. :D

Just wanted to say that I have always thought about doing this on a ship and I would love to read an update on how it went once you have.

 

I'd be happy to report back afterward. :)

 

The big question now is afternoon or evening??? I think late evening would be more fun....but the hubby thinks late afternoon is better. Anyone have thoughts on that?

A few years ago I was walking back to my cabin very late (poker game broke up around 2 am) and I watched a group of 3 middle-aged women, very drunk, walking down the corridor ahead of me yanking down every door decoration they saw. When I mentioned to them that they shouldn't do that they just laughed at me. It's not always kids who can wreck havoc!

Given those itineraries I would go with the Adventure of the Seas. I love leaving from San Juan....Puerto Rico is beautiful! Go a day or two early and enjoy the town....we found a couple of amazing restaurants!

 

Even though the Adventure is 10 years older than the Reflection, Royal Caribbean does an exceptional job of keeping their ships fresh and new looking. And always very clean, just like Celebrity.

 

On the other hand, if they have never been to St. Thomas or St. Maarten, they are very nice to port in.

 

I have a cruise on the Reflection coming up in April, our first time on a Solstice class and we are very excited. We spent 29 days on the Mariner of the Seas 2 years ago, sister ship to the Adventure, and we loved that class of ship. And it was in wonderful shape, even though an older ship.

No guarantee that the hours will be the same on your cruise, but this if from Reflection in July

 

 

Wow! This is perfect, just what I was wanting. Thank you! And, I won't hold it against you if the times are different for our cruise! :D

I can't remember the last time we were on a ship that needed a card to open and lock...I think they have mostly gone to keypads. You can look at my signature and see the ships we have been on recently....all key pads!

I feel badly for someone who allows an hour or two of difficulty to shadow their whole cruise experience.

 

People do seem very rushed and cranky on disembarkation day, and it can be troublesome, especially waiting in long lines, but it's a minor fraction of the whole cruise experience and it's a shame to make a big deal of it.

 

Airport check-ins, TSA checks, customs, immigration checks.....all of it has become a very unpleasant part of traveling these days, and it is best to experience this with good humor and a light heart, and let it go as soon as it's over....not dwell on it afterward. :)

Are any of the other bar/lounges closed during the day that I should be aware of? Martini bar opens at 4 pm, but what about the bar next door, Crush? Or is Crush even a bar? What about the bar up in the Observation Lounge? On Royal Caribbean the bar in the Viking Crown Lounge is seldom open during the early part of the day, even on sea days. [emoji53]