Lovefuninthesun

I have the same reservations about an upcoming TA -- well, "reservations" is probably too harsh, since I am beyond excited about the ports (Greenland! Iceland! Scotland! Northern Ireland! Ireland!)

Nonetheless, I'm very curious about those 10 sea days in the north Atlantic, and wonder if we will go a little stir-crazy.

Have read on multiple sites about construction at the Manhattan Cruise Port, and the resulting closure of one of the terminals, thus moving departures to the Brooklyn port.
I have not read what the expected ETA is for reopening in Manhattan -- does anyone have reliable intel?
We are due to sail out of Manhattan for a TA cruise next June; so plenty of time, but just interested if we, too, will be relocated.
Thanks in advance.

Our favorite activity is the Sea Day Brunch.
However, our very favorite thing to do is a non-activity: doing nothing -- lazing on the balcony, watching the world go by!

Many of the "big" poolside activities are on sea days -- for example, the Hairy Chest Contest (if you're into that, LOL).

As an experienced cruiser, I have been in a ship's infirmary twice -- once with my daughter who developed strep throat, and once with my SIL who fell and had a bad sprain.  Both times. we were treated very compassionately and efficiently.  Charges were around $100, par for the course I thought.

As a very experienced (read "old") ER nurse, I work in a hospital (in a port city) that receives patients all the time from cruise ships; they have been airlifted by the Coast Guard.  Each time, I have been impressed by the care the patient received while on board, before coming to us -- they have received heart attack and stroke care consistent with all current care standards, and have had their lives saved.

So please excuse the eye roll at going to the infirmary for a Bandaid and then complaining .....

Current gift (1 week ago) -- a little cheaply-made blanket.

Haven't see Cigar Dude on here for a very long time -- too bad -- he was always a wealth of info!

On most (all now?) ships, you no longer receive your sign and sail card at check-in.  It is at your cabin, either in the mailbox or tucked into the doorframe.

We always carry on DH's CPAP just like we do medications and valuables. It just makes common sense!

On our most recent cruise there was a suitcase belonging to someone which never was found -- yikes! I'd sure hate to have to replace a pricey CPAP machine!

Just off Paradise -- room service was not available on embarkation day until around 5 pm

We love the Paradise! We just sailed on her, too, over New Year's Eve.

We think the crew and staff is the friendliest and most helpful of any ship!

And we, too, think embarkation and disembarkation in Tampa is a breeze!

Booked our first extended cruise, a 16-day transatlantic, and sure not interested in having to take clothes for even one elegant night, let alone 2 or 3  -- the baggage fees flying to New York, and then flying home from London will be crazy enough as is.  Hoping to get away with just one seriously dressy outfit.

On ‎12‎/‎24‎/‎2018 at 11:20 AM, matt1119 said:

Yes, the new menu, which appears to be on Horizon only at this point, has the pay option.

I was going to ask if the menu had gone anywhere beyond the Horizon ..... disappointing!  We're sailing in 5 days and I was hoping!

I'm not surprised -- the Sunshine Skyway bridge was closed for most of the that day and the waves in the bay were crazy high. 

We were delayed boarding for a cruise several years ago in Tampa due to fog -- incoming ship couldn't get in, so we couldn't get on!  We didn't board until after 8pm, and the ship didn't set sail until after 10.  That was a loooong day in the terminal.

What about the little girl last year that fell from an upper deck (inside) in the atrium and was killed?

That was really weird -- I couldn't for the life of me figure out how that was possible.

We are ready to set sail on our 4th New Year's Eve cruise -- each year there are people that look lovely and elegant; last year, in addition, there was a guy in a red sequin tux jacket, another in an all-over flamingo suit, and even a couple of UK gentlemen in kilts. Each year everyone has a wonderful time, and the tuxes/gowns are much admired.

Go for it!

I take the ginger pills, but only as an adjunct to the Bonine (meclizine) -- ginger pills 4X/day, meclizine 2X/day

We booked this TA too! Couldn't get a 4K with a decent peek through the lifeboats, so just got a balcony.

I am so excited, I don't know how I can wait 18 months!  I'm retiring February 2020 so we were looking for a "big" trip -- and have wanted to see Iceland and Greenland for a while.

My one concern is being cold for 2 weeks!  (Were Floridians so we are wimps!)  I sure hope the Legend has adequate heat!  We got a surprise last year on the Paradise when the temperature plunged on our last (sea) day -- we slept with clothes and shoes on because it was <50 on the ship!  Went to GS and they said there was no heat the ship, period.

Doing mock bookings for the 4 cruises we currently have booked is so laborious!

I often just bag it, which is what Carnival is counting on, I know!

Someone said they call CCL and ask them about price drops -- anybody tried that? I was a little skeptical when I heard.

On ‎11‎/‎9‎/‎2018 at 6:35 PM, bury me at sea said:

 

Because I can picture bread soaked in any liquid for twelve hours.

 

 

That is how you make bread pudding before you bake it! The saturated bread is delicious after cooking.  Expand your horizons! (pun not intended)

Seriously not my cup of tea on a cruise. Eye roll.

But to each his own......

The $200 isn't "required".

We have started cruises with a cash (Carnival gift card) deposit of only $100.

Since we live in Tampa, we have sailed Paradise 3 times so far, #4 coming up over NYEve; this will be our first trip after the dry dock, so we finally get our balcony that we have missed on previous Paradise cruises.

We love the Fantasy Class ships for size and easy navigating.  We have thought that the food on board was pretty good -- better than some ships we have sailed, for that matter.  We have always found the crew to be lovely.

On our last Paradise cruise, on our final sea day the temperature bottomed out, and we discovered that they have no heat on the ship; it was so cold we slept in all of our clothes, and we still froze.  (It was 45 when we disembarked in Tampa the next morning.)  We'll never sail again without one set of really warm clothes, heavy jackets, and SOCKS!)

Those port schedules are frequently wrong -- go by your itinerary

We've been on Paradise 3 times, but not since her drydock and upgrades; we'll be on her again this New Year's Eve, so we'll see!

But, previously, there were options outside the buffet area: grill on one end, comfort food area in the middle, and Mongolian Grill at the other end.  There was also pizza and the deli.

Interested to see if they have added a Guy's and Blue Iguana.