Kekohia

Thanks for responding.   I am in the Aura balcony class this trip, which includes the spa amenities.

Great logo with the sailboat.

That's awesome to be in the YC, away from the crowds etc.

You go the week after my cruise on the Seashore.

I have been on the Devina only thus far.   Any suggestions from those who have sailed the Seashore?

Can anyone give me advise on MSC cruises.   I hear that they are Italian "style" with most reviews saying their staff not being as friendly as other lines that mostly cater to "Americans".  I fully understand those thoughts.   Their on board announcements are made in 5 languages, which is great but maybe annoying to many.

Any recommendations you can give me re MSC in comparison to other lines?   I tend to go with NCL and Holland as I love their awesome private spas to relax all day down there and to steam, soak and read.  Thanks for any and all thoughts.

The cruise was an eastern Carib trip to Nassau, San Juan, St. Thomas, and private island Half Moon Cay.  HMC was not fully in operation because of the storm.  Otherwise it was a superb cruise on a beautiful ship that is only 1.5 years old.  I put my cell phone (turned off) in the cabin safe on embarkation and left it there until we were back in FTL.  That is the only way to get full relief and rest while on vacation and not get hundreds of work emails every day.  I do that on every cruise including the prior two-week cruise from Miami to Los Angeles on NCL.  That was also awesome on the NCL Star as I was on her maiden cruise to Hawaii and had no connections to the world then either.  Do join MMOB and see if others are on a cruise you would like to take and the possibility of a cabin mate.

My preference is still Holland America.  Bars may close around midnight but casino goes into the wee hours.  The food is the best, and their new entertainment venues were terrific in my cruise a week ago. 

Before I go on a cruise I check out Meet Me On Board and look for cabin mates.   If I find none, I go solo.  I have a long list of buddies I have met before on cruises, and email them to see if any interested in going as well, even in our own solo cabins.

I wore my speedos and then saw that 5 guys wore em the next day.

I just got off the N/S after a week in E. Carib.  It is a superb ship.

Eat in the Tamarind for only $15.  They have a great crusted steak!

The spa was wonderful and I spent 2-3 hours a day in it with separate dry rooms and one large steam room done in green slate with sprinkler hoses.  Leaving snow behind I needed that.  ENJOY your trans A.

Nothing to fear being solo on an Atlantis cruise.  I prefer RSVP.   Gay cruises are far more $ than regular cruises and the added cost is just not worth it.   The entertainment quality level is less.   I went on one in the Mediterranean and it was a disaster because of the management overplaying the gayness in Turkey.  We were pulled off the tours and rushed back to the ship.  Regular cruises today are far more welcoming to the community and in fact they have nightly gatherings that are very popular.  Small gay groups are better to go on then a full gay cruise.    Plus I wear my speedos every day on a ship on deck or in the awesome private spas that do not have the crowds.

Anyone going?????

Anyone on this cruise? :cool:

The Escape was wonderful. I loved the spa all day everyday!

I am back on the Star (again) for a trans-Panama Canal in mid-Feb 2018 having formerly sailed her while watching the lava flows upon returning to my other home, Hawaii.

Nothing better than a 14-day cruise as that is when you can truly RELAX. 7-10 days barely does it for me anymore. Just when you fully relax you are pulling back into home port again.

Reservations supposedly open in January....so I am waiting for info. As I have booked an Alaska cruise on Princess this coming September I will now book Bliss on her crossing. Since the cabin set up on Bliss should mirror Escape I hope to book a cabin overlooking the bow. Curious as to what air fare NCL will offer. Hope there will be a fun crowd on the Bliss.......👹

Do you mean Feb 16, 2018 departing Miami? Yes, I am aboard!

Email: sjesfh@gmail.com

I'd agree with your comments on Holland and NCL having the best gatherings. Later hours are ok with me as I am a night owl and love longs chats over cocktails. I will even grab a late dinner seating to try my best to show up and stay a half hour. If no one shows then I'll leave. I'll give credit to the ladies as they have always been friendlier than a few male couples that have not stayed when just single men have been in attendance.

We were on the Summit in October and while LGBT was in the daily bulletin, attendance was basically non existent. There were a couple guys at a table for two who seemed to have no interest in speaking to anyone and a couple who wandered through. Timing was a problem and the time was changed several times. But it always seemed to collide with dinner seatings, shows or even with a straight party in the same space and time.

 

RCL and Celebrity seem to have been the least well attended. Cunard, Holland and NCL the best.

 

There was a good group on Breakaway last January and we're hoping that will happen again when we sail Jan. 19, 1918. (Still some good deals available.)

Kailua-Kona; Wow! Sure miss my home away from home! Now at my 2nd home in Santa Fe.

Next cruise is on the Star in Feb 2018 Miami to Los Angeles.

I can go solo or with friends, and have always felt comfy at FODs with straights that happen to be present by mistake or gays that are there intentionally.

Our experience has been positive on NCL in terms of meeting other gay couples and solo travelers, but this was facilitated by the posted LGBT (FOD) get togethers, occasionally hosted unofficially by someone from the CD staff. We had some fun impromptu events and dinners grow out of it.

 

On Azamara, we’ve met and talked to other gay couples... but on a smaller ship, it was more like, “hey, there’s another gay couple in the neighborhood.” However, friendly hellos were the norm.

 

On Crystal, most everybody was snooty, the other gay couples seemed especially standoffish when we would smile or nod.

 

On Avalon, there were no other gay couples were on our cruise, but we quickly became the sought after table mates for several straight couples, maybe for our brilliant and witty table conversation. It was so funny, even the entertainment they brought on seemed to gravitate toward us for drinks after their act... one singer even called us out in her act saying, “hey, my boys are here!” LOL.

Anyone going ?:cool:

On the 3 times I have been on HAL, the gatherings have been well attended and have maintained those friends over the years.

yeah, what they said. :p

David, Dee & Natalie:

Not long now...... no doubt we all need a fun, yet relaxing cruise away!

I hope to catch up with you all.

Im in cabin #11832, and we can always leave phone messages for each other to meet up with a where and time.

Scot

HA!!! I was able to talk her into coming in the day before. We're taking an afternoon flight to Ft. Lauderdale. We won't be checked in to our hotel until around 8. We're staying at the Intercontinental. Love that place. :-)

I saw the Intercontinental online and almost booked it. I am a lover of planes, so took a full suite with a monster balcony at the Hilton by the runway. And look fwd to meeting with everyone over cocktails.

We're flying in the day before, and booked a hotel (can't remember which one!) Both of us are terrified of missing the ship, so we've never chanced arriving that morning. One traffic jam or late flight and you get left behind on the dock.

 

We had a close call last year with a medical issue - we had to stop at an urgent care centre the morning of the cruise, and with all the delays with waiting for the doctor and whatnot, we weren't released until almost 1pm and still had to get to the port. We'd even called our travel agent to see if she could let them know that we were on our way and to PLEASE not sail without us! We were the last ones on board, and needed several drinks to recover from the stress of racing across Miami.

 

Nope... not doing that again!

 

Davy, want us to harangue your travel partner to come the day before? ;) Have they cruised before?

I always tend to go out of FTL or Tampa as the ports are much nicer and hotels half that of Miami. Last year I left 2 days early from ABQ to Dallas to FTL. Dallas was iced over, and against my better judgment, UAL sent me way up north to Washington DC to transfer to a FTL flight at midnight. We borded and they upgraded me to 1st class, and then 30min after departure they deboarded us with the flight cancelled. At 4am they ticketed me to a flight from Reagan so I did a 4am cab across town. Ended up landing in FTL 1.5 hours before ship launched. What a nightmare like your delay!!

I am leaving 2 days ahead again. This time I am at Miami Marriott, as the Escape is a Marriott Timeshare Owners cruise.

Thanks for this, Kekohia!

 

We are so excited about this cruise - we've been on the Epic, but this one on the Escape is just feels so over-the-top. I can't believe that in a month we'll be sailing!

 

Are you doing any of the activities on the main Roll Call page?

Not looked at main roll call yet. I roll my stuff on board on drop off to cabin. I luv to settle somewhere, and have a drink and start watching people. My travel buddy does the opposite! My first to do is locking away my flip phone in the safe for the cruise duration. I adore being disconnected. LOL

I am. :-)

Terrific..... and Welcome to Davy, Dee and Natalie!

If you are interested, join ************* (.com) for gay cruisers.

For immediate advantage on the Dream, here is a recent review by a gay couple:

This was our 13th cruise together on Norwegian and it did not disappoint. We have sailed on both the Getaway and the Breakaway which are similar ships (minus one deck of passenger cabins), but this one impressed us even more, primarily because of the variety and quality of the food offered in several different restaurants. We booked a mini-suite which was quite comfortable, although we wondered if we would have felt cramped in a smaller balcony cabin. The bathroom was spacious with an oversized shower. The balcony provided more room than on the other Breakaway class ships......NCL must have paid attention to the complaints about tiny balconies on those recent additions to their fleet. We hustled aboard as soon as the ship was available so that we could book a week pass in the Vibe Beach Club. It was worth every penny of the $99 fee. Secluded on Deck 19, adjacent to the Haven private sundeck, it had nice padded deck chairs, a large Jacuzzi, a private bar and a water feature that provided a cool-down mist when the sun got too hot. By far, though, what we enjoyed most was the food in all the specialty restaurants. The Food Republic with its variety of Asian, Latin, Mexican and grill foods was terrific. Equally as tasty was the Pincho Tapas Bar and Bayamo, both with menus by Jose Garces, one of the Iron Chefs from Food Network. The Italian specialty restaurant has a new upgraded menu and Moderno, the Brazilian churrascaria was better than we remembered it from other ships. The LGBT happy hour was announced in the daily ship schedule and was held at a large, very public bar adjacent to the casino. There must have been as many as 40 or more "friends of Dorothy" on board. A crowd of 20+ gathered every evening there. The itinerary for this cruise is not impressive: St. Thomas (which we always avoid by taking the first ferry available over to St. John), Tortola BVI and Nassau, Bahamas. But the public facilities, the dining options and quality of cuisine, and the huge, luxurious spa all made for a great cruise experience.

If you would like to contact me directly, I am at: sjesfh@gmail.com

Aloha Nui Loa and look forward to meeting you on board!

I absolutely love sitting over cocktails with new acquaintances and having conversations.

Kekohia (aka Scot)

Anyone booked on this departure?:cool:

I am doing the same trip, but in early December.:mad:

I think those images of you in aussiebums are quite exceptional!:D