Fouremco

While going through a bit of an email backlog, I opened a message dated November 21 from the Trusted Traveller Program unit at US CBP telling me that "There has been a recent change to the status of your application" and asking me to "login to the Trusted Traveler Programs Website (https://ttp.dhs.gov) for more information." Just to recap, DW and I had applied for renewal on August 9. Then we received correspondence dated September 13 stating "We are pleased to inform you that your U. S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), NEXUS program membership has been approved." Given this approval over two months ago, we've been waiting patiently for our cards to arrive. Naturally, the notice this week saying that our status had changed was a bit worrisome, and I immediately logged in to determine what the change was. Had they cancelled the approval? Had they decided that one or both of us now required an interview? No, instead it was a new notification dated November 21 that my applications had been approved. Why they would notify us of the approval, having already done some 10 weeks earlier, is somewhat of a puzzle. Of note, however, is the fact that the initial notification letter had the signature block of the "Director, Trusted Traveler Programs, U. S. Customs and Border Protection" but had the Ottawa Airport address of the CBP. So, did it take 10 weeks for this approval to make its way into the TTP website, or was there some other reason for the second approval notification? I also wonder if the creation and eventual delivery of our new cards was triggered by the initial approval, or were the cards only ordered once the approval was entered on the website. With our next travel starting 2 months from today, it will be interesting to see whether we'll still be using our old cards.

EPIRB's and SPOT's are two very different pieces of equipment. While they share some functionality, the underlying technology is quite different and they operate on different satellite networks. Also, EPIRB's are designed for use on water, while SPOT and similar satellite messengers are designed for use on land, although both can be used interchangeably. Google EPIRB vs SPOT vs PLB.

You might want to consider renting a car and having a DIY excursion. There's lots to see and do, and you can spend as much time as you want instead of following an excursion's set time table.

No, still no sign of them. I'll let you know when they arrive.

There are 3rd party companies that will enable you to complete part of the renewal process with them online - for a hefty additional fee - but even then you will be required to mail certain documents to the Canadian government, including your current passport, as part of the application process. The regular process isn't onerous and you won't really benefit from the 3rd party's involvement, so save your money and do it yourself. All the necessary information can be found here: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-passports/renew-adult-passport.html

When I made the booking and again upon final payment, my confirmation made no mention of the OBC, just the dining credit. However, when I decided to pay the gratuities and avoid the increase, the OBC appeared on the confirmation as well as on the RCI website, with no indication as to whether it was NR OBC from RCI or R OBC from the TA. In any event, I've made the dining reservation and could use the OBC, so I'll assume that it was a gift from RCI.

We have a $50 USD Dining Credit from our TA that I had planned on using when making a reservation for an upcoming cruise. However, while I'm given the option to use some of my OBC, or credit card, there's no obvious way to use the dining credit. Given the current Black Friday 40% off sale, I'd obviously like to book now rather than waiting until we're aboard. Does anyone know an easy workaround? If I book now using OBC, will I possibly be able to have the dining credit applied retroactively at Guest Services in place of the OBC, or is that just wishful thinking?

Our only reaction was to say "Oh, good, they're touching up the varnish on the railing." I then opened the door, thanked the maintenance crew member for the good work he was doing, and asked about the drying time.

LOL. Back on January 4, 1999, 38cm fell on Toronto. On January 12th, another 21cm fell. The following day, Mel Lastman held a press conference and called for help from the Army to dig the city out. In 2004, while still living in Halifax, we were hit with White Juan and saw 96cm fall in under 24 hours! No calls for help, and the city simply went about clearing the snow away, just as other Canadian cities would do.

Poor Mel Lastman will be forever remembered for calling in the Army.

Here's a map of the airport: https://www.admtl.com/sites/default/files/2023/MAP-DEPARTS-ARRIVEES.pdf?panel=filters&dcenter=45.454073,-73.748789&dczoom=16

Once upon a time, airlines wouldn't sell you a connecting flight if there was insufficient time to make the transfer, assuming that both flights were on the same airline. Is this still the case, or do airlines now leave it to the passengers to make sure they've got time to make the connection?

Option 3 would be my choice. Start your holiday on Day 1 with a relaxed schedule, no rushing or worrying about making connections. When you first arrive, head to the hotel and drop your bags. Then go and have a nice leisurely lunch until check-in. Once you have your room and taken your bags up, you have the rest of the day and evening to do as you want.

Excellent link!

Using HAL's deck plans, you can see in the top left of this screen grab the + symbol and its meaning.

In both cases, there are docking facilities for more than one ship, and the distance to the excursion pick up point varies with your ship's location. The longest walk in Aruba would be approximately 300 yards, while in Curaçao it would be about 185 yds.

As the OP states "Probably will not use travel agent going forward", I don't think that money is the issue.

First of all, welcome to Cruise Critic and to the Canadian Cruisers board. Hopefully you'll find the answers to all of your questions. Queries on flight times out of FLL are frequent on most cruise line boards as well as the Florida Departures board. For the latter, head to https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/386-florida-departures/. Based on having read hundreds of such threads, I can say that 11:05am would generally be considered a safe time, and is one we would feel quite confident making. There are a lot of little factors that can save you time, such as self-disembarkation, having NEXUS, TSA PreCheck, etc.. There are many posters who state that they regularly make flights as early as 9:00am. Not something I'd try, but others do. A major question to ask yourself is what happens if you don't make the flight? What are your options for a flight back to Ontario later in the day or possibly the next day? There will probably be flights, but will there be available last minute seats? What's the size of your party? If travelling solo, your chances of snagging a seat might be ok, but not if you are a family of 4. Finally, what are your current alternatives to the 11:05am flight? We have a direct flight back to Ottawa in February that doesn't depart until 4:30pm, but there's a shore excursion offered by the cruise line that ends at the airport a couple of hours before the flight, giving us plenty of time for a relaxed check-in.

It's very unlikely that the TA, having done all of the work to book those cruises, will be willing to release the booking and lose the commission for each one. Unless there's been gross negligence on the part of the TA that you can prove to RCI, you are probably going to have to continue dealing with the TA until you have finished with the bookings. Of course, you could always cancel all of them and either book directly with RCI or a different TA. What has happened that has caused you to drop the current TA and to try and take control of the bookings? There may be other, less drastic, solutions.

This webpage might answer some of your questions: https://help.cbp.gov/s/article/Article-74?language=en_US

Hmmm, you've got me wondering now. Are the scanners and other hardware the responsibility of the airport authority or CATSA to purchase and install?

I'd have your TA pursue the issue. That's part of the service that any good TA should provide.

The entire Verified Traveller program, with its multiple variations depending on your destination and departure airport, is a CATSA invention. We can't blame the US for excluding YVR, so maybe CATSA thinks that it is already doing such a wonderful job that they don't need to streamline the system there. 🙄

According to the CATSA website, the full range of perks are only available when flying out of YUL (T-1) and YYZ (T-1, T-3). https://www.catsa-acsta.gc.ca/en/verified-travellers

RCI's cancellation policy is quite clear on the conditions under which a deposit refund will be made. There are many different reasons passengers choose to or need to cancel, some very sad, but the policy conditions must be met. This is one of the reasons that cruise lines and insurance companies sell travel insurance, to cover off these unforeseen circumstances.