Treasure Hunter

We are on the Getaway February break week. There isn’t time for the 10 days. We don’t take our kids out of school , just our rule. I have been on both ships. They will be bored on the gem( a much older crowd. Our grandchildren are nine and six. We are going to Williamsburg in Norfolk and Disney in Orlando but the space center is great if they haven’t been for a shorter day. There is much more on the Getaway. You will have more warm days on the Gem but the ship is really older.

We stayed at the Hyatt in Long Beach. Really great . Across the street from the aquarium, a fun comedy club and a terrific outdoor mall with a P F Changs ( hopping) a good seafood restaurant and shops. Taxi to the pier from the hotel was cheap and easy

Tours definitely sell out. If your plan is to book excursions thru the cruise line ( a good plan) you will be refunded if that tour is canceled. Weather will be a factor that early in the season. Expect very cold temps and maybe snow. The best tour we ever did in Alaska ( and a fortune but worth every penny) was a helicopter over the glacier to a dog camp where we went dogsledding with future Iditarod dogs. Amazing! Alaska is unbelievable and good you are going as there is half the ice and glaciers as our first trip 20 years ago.

See if there is a package that takes you from the port to Rome. One or two nights in Rome and then take the nonstop. You have to get to the airport by 7:30- 8:00 which means a very early breakfast. Our hotel ( years ago) packed us a lovely breakfast box with rolls, jam, butter, juice , cheese and ham that we ate in the car service which they arranged. You’ll never make the flight same day from the ship. The port is just too far away from the airport.

Million Dollar Quartet played at least twice. It’s fabulous! Broadway Unplugged is a different show ( really a review) with the same singers and that played in a different venue. It was entertaining and was one night only.

Take the round trip Hawaii from LA or San Francisco. Fifteen days, one stop Mexico. We did it on Emerald Princess but I think Celebrity does it too. Cold for a few days going out but the vibe on the ship was fabulous as were the. Hawaiian ports. Entertainment terrific. A nice change from our usual Caribbean, Bahamas cruises.

We also are on the NCL round trip NY to Bahamas that stops in Bermuda making it 8 days instead of 7 ( last time we did this cruise). It is winter school break and the kids would have been happier with another day in the Bahamas rather than Bermuda. I have been there in earl April ( cool with some beach days) and July ( 110 degrees and stifling). Hoping the kids club is open and there won’t be any reason the leave the ship. Not happy about the $40 each for the five of us

Just all go at 11:30. It will be fine

Also in my opinion, it is far faster to take a taxi. The taxis are there when you leave the terminal and you don’t have to wait for a Lyft.

I’ll try not to make this complicated. Unless you are in RCCL top suite and have a Genie to pave the way, you are treated like dirt at the entrance to the theater. At one of the specialty restaurants I really wanted a steak. The waiter ( who was actually very charming and amusing) said , “no you’ll have the lamb chops”. And the children’s pools are not cleaned properly. I would still cruise RCCL if the grandkids want to as long as it isn’t the Anthem from NJ. I love the big shows. The concierge in The Haven ( even the smallest stateroom in the Haven) goes above and beyond to help with any problem. The service in the Haven restaurant is so wonderful. If you have a show you can pre order dinner and the jumbo shrimp cocktails come out immediately on being seated. You can return for dessert after the show. These are all Bahamas, Bermuda, Caribbean cruises. For Mediterranean , Baltic, UK, Hawaii, South Pacific, Australia we have only been on Princess, Oceania and Regent so I can’t compare RCCL and NCL. But we are thinking of Greece for next year with kids so it’s a possibility.

We are Elite on Princess which was our first cruise in 1990 and was beloved. . We cruised December 4 and the food was not edible. We cruise suites so we were heartbroken because Princess doesn’t have a suite only restaurant, just a roped off part of the MDR . That said the suite life is a different ballgame on both RCCL and NCL. Our grandkids first preference will be RCCL with or without a suite. We took them on NCL for Thanksgiving and everyone had a great time. I find the food better on NCL whether in the, MDR or specialty restaurants and if you go Haven, there is no comparison to Costal Kitchen. CK doesn’t come close to the food quality in theHaven restaurant ( twin lobster tails etc). Entertainment has always been great on RCCL especially their broadway shows and ice shows but we recently saw Million Dollar Quartet on the Getaway and it was fabulous . Also Choir of Man ( I think it was the Bliss) was fantastic. It didnt hurt that I had four handpays in the casino. We cruise a lot. 5. in the last year. If we don’t book a suite, we go on Celebrity for the best all around experience.

It is a total rip off. You have to be desperate for entertainment. Only one person gets picked out of dozens who paid substantial money to play and end up, maybe getting a free photo. Just my opinion. I’d rather throw it in a slot machine.