BruceMuzz

18 hours ago, Blizzard54 said:

I wonder if they would consider sailing the ship at about 25% capacity to get past the ban.

Probably would not be profitable. 

Let's do the math with HAL's smaller ships (1200 passengers)

25% capacity would be 300 passengers

Minimum safe manning on those ships would be over 300 crew.

That puts the total souls at 600.

Vancouver's limit is 500.

No deal.

On 3/18/2020 at 12:49 PM, ed01106 said:

Why should they?  If the cruise lines want to sail directly from Seattle to Alaska they can, all they need to do is a quick change of the ship’s registration and start paying US taxes.

First they have to find a ship built in the USA. (Spoiler alert; Good luck with that one)

Then, after they change the ship's registration and start paying American taxes, they are required to hire American crew.

They also have to pay American wages, overtime, and payroll taxes. (Second spoiler alert; Your cruise fares will double)

The American Crew must be members of the US Merchant Marine to work on the ship.

The US Merchant Marine currently has very few members with any cruise ship experience.

To join the US Merchant Marine, your criminal background must be investigated by the FBI in all 50 states. This takes about 6-8  months and costs $1200 per crewmember.

So if they start working on this right now, you can expect to book a high-priced Alaska cruise on an American ship in 4 or 5 years.

My ship carries fewer than 500 souls.

We will be cruising in Canada and Alaska this summer.

Canadian ports are closed to most cruise ships until 01 July.

If they cannot call at a Canadian port, most cruises to Alaska are not happening.

Your only option would be an American Flag cruise ship that is not required to stop at a non-US port.

These ships are small, expensive, and not very nice.

There most likely will not be any Alaska cruises going before 01 July, as all Canadian ports are closed until then.

PVSA Rules require a foreign port call on an Alaska cruise by a foreign flag ship.

Unless your Alaska cruise is stopping in Japan or South America, it cannot happen.

You could look at the few American Flag ships that cruise Alaska - although they are not very good and also terribly expensive.

I manage smaller more upscale cruise ships.

We offer tasting menus all the time.

They are custom designed for whomever requests them.

There is no extra charge.

There are many thousands of cargo piers around the world where a cruise ship can tie up, receive necessary services (power, water bunkering, fuel bunkering, garbage removal, grey and black water removal, provision loading, port security) at reasonable prices. When cruise ships are laid up for whatever reason, this is what usually happens.

For the most part, things in Asia are under control.

Now everyone here is talking about avoiding travel to the USA - where the situation is not under control.

Currently in the USA there are 5 reported cases of the new virus and zero deaths.

Also currently in the USA 19 million Americans have contracted another serious virus.

180,000 have been hospitalized so far this year.

Over 10,000 have died - including 60 children.

What is this terrible disease?

It is the flu - the same one that hits every year.

Wash your hands.

Everyone can go about their normal business.

Hardly anyone ever goes to Daikoku Pier - except the employees who work there, handling containers.

Your hotel is very close to the Meeting Point.

There is a small park between the street and the meeting spot.

You will approach a tall wrought iron fence with just one or two entrances.

One of those entrances will get you access to a large open space with buses.

That is the meeting spot.

There are usually staff there at the entrance with direction signs.

There are countless threads on this board that specifically answer your questions.

Just do a search to get the answers.

I have called there on 5 different ships with 5 different cruise lines.

I have been a Senior Officer on all 5 ships.

As incredibly friendly and welcoming that most Japanese ports are to cruise ship arrivals, Kanazawa is even more so. Every time my ship calls there, the entire town shows up to welcome us and then again to see us off.

Typically they have gifts for all my guests, special Hapi Coats for anyone celebrating a birthday, free shuttle buses for guests and crew into the city.

On our last call, they lined up automobiles along the coast in the evening, shining their headlights out to sea, and installed giant speakers playing Auld Lang Syne as we sailed away.

It depends a bit on what sort of touring you are planning to do.

Kita Shinagawa is nearly halfway between Central Tokyo and Yokohama. Tokyo is certainly exciting, but so is the Yokohama area.

There are many subway lines, JR Trains, and Shinkansen passing through Shinagawa Station.

The MESM Hotel appears to be very close to the Tokyo Monorail station, which is next door to a JR Station, which is next door to Daimon Subway station on the O-Edo Line. O-Edo line is one of the best for getting you around Tokyo and connecting to other subway lines.

The Haneda Airport Monorail was designed to carry passengers and luggage back and forth from the airport. When I fly to my ship from Haneda, I often take 4 pieces of heavy luggage by myself on the Monorail.

The MESM hotel may not be well located for nearby restaurants, but neither is the Shinagawa Marriott. Both locations will allow you to get to neighborhood restaurants on foot or via subway in just a few minutes. MESM does have the advantage of being a bit closer to central Tokyo.

Marriott hotel in Kitashinagawa (Kita means North in Japanese) is actually very close to the cruise terminal - as the crow flies. But you need to get across the water between the mainland and the island where the cruise terminal is located. So you need to go the long way around to find a bridge.

There are several Marriott Hotels in Tokyo. You are probably looking at the one in Shinagawa.

That hotel is nice, but in a rather out of the way industrial area.

I have never heard of the Mesm Hotel, but it is located in a great area; right on the subway line that runs between the cruise terminal and downtown. Very convenient. Also has easy access to the Haneda Airport monorail, several other subway lines, and a JR Station.

Hilton ODaiba is a Japanese business and family hotel for the Odaiba Entertainment District. Unfortunately it is in the wrong direction from downtown Tokyo

Only one mainstream cruise line maintained a kosher kitchen onboard.

That was Cunard. They discontinued the practice a few years ago.

Not all cruise lines will provide kosher food with advance request - but most will.

Bear in mind that the choices are usually quite limited.

The kosher meals are prepared commercially in a kosher kitchen ashore.

Then sealed by a Rabbi in a styrofoam container, frozen, and made available on ships.

They are micro-waved, then the styrofoam box is opened in front of the kosher diner.

Plastic utensils and paper napkins are provided - to maintain kosher. 

Over the 3+ decades I have been serving these meals onboard ships, the overall satisfaction levels have not been very good.

There are basically 2 options; taxi or city bus.

You might check if your cruise line has arranged shuttles - but it is unlikely.

My ship sails in Japan for several months each year. Many of the crew use mobile pocket WIFI during the time we were there. On a typical Japan cruise, we are rarely out of range of the mobile coverage.

Waiting times can vary dramatically based on the number of flights that are arriving at the same time. Typically - if you have all your  papers completed and in order - the wait for foreigners to get through immigration at Narita is much quicker than going through  immigration in the USA. You can expect to take about 20 minutes on average. By the time you get through immigration, your bags should already be on the carousel, one floor down. Customs is quick and painless. The entire process should take a bit less than 45 minutes.

When you exit Customs, the desk selling Limousine Bus tickets will be directly in front of you. The bus stops are located just outside the door - about a two minute walk.

Pearl,

This one you can do on your own.

Every foreigner who visits Hiroshima wants to visit the memorial. In the cruise terminal you will find a great deal of information on getting there. There will be English speaking volunteers who will be happy to write Japanese instructions for a taxi driver. 

Hiroshima has an excellent public transit system that can take you to the memorial.

Many of the exhibits at the memorial are bilingual.

You will not have any problems.

Boatharbour is correct.

I speak Chinese and Japanese, and I have lived in this area for decades, so these ports are DIY for me.

If you don't speak the languages and do not know the area, doing it on your own may save you a lot of money - but you will miss 90% of all the "good stuff".

Daikoku and Yamashita Piers are both commercial cargo piers that handle a few cruise ships when Osanbashi Cruise Terminal is full.

Yamashita pier runs parallel to Osanbashi pier, just a few hundred meters away.

As a commercial pier, the public is not allowed to walk on it.

You must catch a shuttle bus at the entrance gate on the main road that runs along the waterfront.

Sometimes they allow taxis to take you to the Yamashita Terminal.

Maybe they plan to collect you at the entrance gate?

Maybe you must take the shuttle bus to the Yamashita pier Terminal to check in?

Only Princess knows where they plan to pick you up at that location. You really need to talk to them.

There is not.

The cruise terminal is on an extremely long paved strip strip that juts out into the harbour. Some cruise lines arrange transfer buses that take you to the shopping / train station area about one mile away. Or it is about a 20 minute walk.

There are some taxis on the pier, but unpredictable.

Casofilia,

This would be a local Japan Railways train. There are many of them. Some might take you just a few miles; some might go all the way to Yokohama. They generally stop at every station on the way, so are very slow and very inexpensive. Going from Narita to Yokohama would most likely require several changes. All the details would change depending on the time of day you are traveling.

If you go to a website app like Rome2Rio and enter your starting and ending points, you can get all the possibilities and details.