Piggeldy

We will be on St. Thomas in November and I am wondering if we can fit both a ship excursion and a bit of snorkeling at Coki Beach into the day?

We arrive at 7 am (and will have to go through immigration - dreading it already), the excursion starts at 8.30 am and is listed as lasting 3 hrs 15 (Buck Island Sail & Snorkel) so we should be back around 11.45/12.00.

A taxi to Coki needs about 30 minutes? So if we head directly from the excursion to catch a taxi, we should be at Coki around 12.30?

We are in port until 5 pm so assuming all aboard is 4.30 pm... we'd have at least three hours at Coki. I understand Coki will most likely be busy if we arrive around noon (only two ships in port but with Indy and Carnival Vista that still means ~8000 people).

Do you think that's doable? Is three hours at Coki reasonable or not enough and not worth it? How is traffic from Coki in the afternoon (I think we will be docked at Crown Bay?)? Skip the excursion, go to Coki early, grab a taxi to Sapphire at noon and hope for turtles there?

Mitsugirly, you might have already answered this... but if you had to choose between Sapphire Beach and Coki, which one would it be? I am trying to decide between the two and you have been so enthusiastic about both that I can't seem to decide :D

For snorkeling that is.

I have had carry-on weighed on Air Berlin, SAS, Norwegian, WOW Air and City Jet (who also made all of us gate check our carry-on and only allowed the personal item on board). Weight limits on carry-on luggage is quite common in Europe and it may be enforced. That's why we could never cruise with carry-on only.

Congratulations!

Send her my way... there is a Royal Family Suite available on our upcoming sailing that I wouldn't mind being upgraded to :D

I'm going on Nos in November from Southampton to Miami all us ports. Would I have to go through go through customs and immigration again in Miami? my flight is 1pm on the day we disembark.

Not Royal but X TA 2013. One of our ports was St Thomas (USVI), immigration on St Thomas was a pain but we just breezed through on arrival in Miami. Quick, easy, painless. We pretty much just walked through immigration, just a quick passport check. If I remember correctly, we must have been of the ship around 8 / 8.30.

We are on a 5pm flight this year. I am still worried :p I am a worrywart. Can't help it.

ESTA is the "Electronic System for Travel Authorization" you would need to enter the US (by plane or ship), it's not needed if you cruise from Athens to Barcelona (assuming there are no US ports somewhere along the way ;) ).

(As the UK is still in the EU,) you are a European cruising in Europe... you do not need an ESTA. The cruise pass is incorrect.

Upthread someone posted the replenish/refresh package was up 35-37% but if you add 18% for gratuities which were previously included aren't you really up more like 53-55%?

We paid $22 including gratuities for our (old) replenish (with current exchange rate for Euro)... if the new refreshment package is $26 + 18% gratuity that comes to $30.68, a price increase of $8.68 or 39.45%. But I agree it "feels" like a lot more.

We have gone back and forth over getting the Royal Replenish for our IOS TA for weeks. With the upcoming price increase, I have just bought it for the two of us. At least that gives me another few weeks at that price to cancel it or not. Can I make it worth the money? Definitely... but do I have to?

Thank you both for your input :)

Yes, I am aware there is very little risk to miss the boat. We have talked about it again and he is adamant he won't do it. As it's his vacation as well and I don't want to force him into anything, I am actually okay with not going on a full-day tour. I want him to relax as well. I am aware that realistically the risk to miss the boat is probably zero but why make him worry all day?

Maybe we will do the RCL tour (though it doesn't seem very popular on cruise critic, very little info on it) and then add a few hours at the beach. We still have sixty days to figure something out.

We fit your demographics...

As we haven't yet cruised much can't really give as many recommendations as others, but we really liked Celebrity. Cunard wasn't for us (liked the plays and lectures, cabin was nice but that's pretty much all that stuck... we ran into far too many rude people, including staff, food was only okay and we thought the buffet was a mess). We are also looking at Princess, HAL and Crystal.

I am not overly sociable, so I prefer mid-size and larger ships (1000+ pax). I don't think Windstar or Seadream would be my thing. I know why I moved away from rural village life into the anonymity of a larger city ;) We loved Hurtigruten but their 'cruises' aren't focused on socialising, really. I don't mind kids but would still try not to cruise during summer break, I also don't mind college students but wouldn't consider short spring break cruises. Celebrity Eclipse fit my bill quite nicely (enjoyed the food, cabin, layout of the ship, experienced good service, entertainment... really had not much bad to say about it).

We are trying Royal this year. For itinerary. We will see how it goes.

I am planning a Med cruise with my mom in 2018 and mostly considering Celebrity. We will try a different line (including Azamara and Oceania) if the itinerary is right though.

We will be on St. Maarten in November with three ships in port (port load of 10780 according to Cruise TT). I suggested Swaliga 2's 3 Island tour to DH but he is uncomfortable with a 6 hour tour. We are scheduled to be in port until 6 pm, the tour runs until 4.15 pm and our next stop is St. Kitts which is a 30 minute flight if we happened to miss the ship but I don't want him to worry all day so private full-day tours are out.

As RCCL doesn't offer full-day snorkeling excursions, I have cut it down to the Ultimate Beach and Snorkel Adventure (SMC2) which is a 3 1/2 hour tour around the island on a power rafting boat with snorkeling at either Creole Rock or Green Cay (depending on the weather I assume).

The alternative (private) option seems to be Captain Alan's 4 hr Snorkel & Beach tour. According to the flyer on the website this stops at Tintamar, Green Key and Pinel.

Both are pretty much the same price (Captain Alan's is a tad more expensive).

Any recommendations for either?

Has anyone done the cruise line excursion?

Does anyone know if there is an excursion that offers both Creole Rock and Green Cay in one tour (even if it's six hours)? It seems to be either or?

As we are from Europe, we do not know if and when we will be back in St Maarten. I hope sooner rather than later but who knows.

We are Nov 12th :o

Seems to be no rhyme or reason to their pricing... Not that I mind ;) Would not have booked for $400+.

Well... 247,50 Euros. With today's exchange rate that comes to US$279.

This is for November 16.

As to the food thing, that was really confusing...They give you the opportunity to pay extra for those meals...but "Gourmet"? The choices include Currywurst and Chicken fingers! Only thing I couldn't figure out at first glance was whether you HAD to order from that list or not get food at all...But, it sounds like you are saying that you DO get some sort of meal, correct? So, no need to pack along sandwiches?

All I can say is that we did receive dinner (the usual choices of "chicken or pasta") and breakfast in Nov 13 and that according to the German website you should. This is the German verbage

Economy Class Speisenangebot auf Langstreckenflügen

Das Wohl unserer Gäste liegt uns am Herzen [...] Wir verwöhnen Sie auf unseren Langstreckenflügen mit bis zu zwei Hauptmahlzeiten.

Auf unseren Langstreckenflügen servieren wir Ihnen auf Anfrage gerne kostenfrei folgende Sondermenüs:

vegetarische Menüs, glutenfreies Essen [...]

Roughly translates "Economy long haul catering - Our guests' wellbeing is close to our hearts. We pamper you with up to two meals on our long haul flights. On our long haul flights we serve you the following special meals on request without extra charges: vegetarian, gluten free [...]

I still take that to mean up to two meals included (it wouldn't make sense to charge for regular meals and then have special diets included). Of course you never know when airlines decide to make changes to everything they offer. But from our experience (and what we, as German customers would expect from a German airline like Air Berlin on an international, transatlantic flight) food should be included.

Could it be that you could add Currywurst or chicken fingers for the second lag of the flight? For inner European flights they do indeed charge for food and I think Sansibar Currywurst is indeed one of the choices they have (and as it's "Sansibar" as of "the" bar on the island of Sylt, rich and posh, pay what you'd usually pay for a full meal Currywurst...). Due to the length of the flight, there shouldn't be a reason for you to add food for it though. Also, you can get really decent food at DUS (just bought a warm ham and cheese focacchia at Bistrot Bar - terminal B, gate 22 - last Thursday which was lovely, huge and inexpensive at ~7 Euros).

We flew MIA-DUS on AB a few years ago.

Would do again if the price was right... food on long haul flights should be included (is according to AB's German website, they have just done away with free drinks on inner-European flights) you can upgrade to "gourmet" meals for a fee, in-flight entertainment was good (multiple different movies and tv shows, games etc.). DH was okay with the seat pitch though he is tall (6"3). If you worry you can book XL seats (emergency exit rows) in coach which give you 20% more leg room (can't find the price on the US site, 79 Euros according to German website).

DUS is fairly easy to navigate (much smaller than FFM or MUC) but Oslo really isn't bad either.

I have flown on Air Berlin quite a bit, mostly within Europe though (DUS is our closest airport and an AB hub) and have always been quite happy with them. Friendly and competent service, quite efficient, okay food, usually not too expensive.

I hope DH will appreciate his birthday present... I just booked an Over the Water cabana for our November cruise :) I didn't think there would be availability, but for some reason there was (81 days out). It was also not $495 :eek: I love DH but not that much (approx. $275 with current exchange rate).

We are flying on embarkation day this year... not by choice though.

We bought a package deal type thing (flights, transfers, cruise) because balconey cabins were otherwise fully booked (and the package costs about as much as only an inside). We hoped we might be able to switch the flight to the previous day, no chance.

So... we will arrive in Heathrow at 9.45 am (at least it's a quick 45 minute flight to London) and then have a bus transfer to Southampton for a 4 pm departure. Never again. It's driving me mad already. Especially as the TA has been less than stellar so far (84 days out, no reservation number yet...).

Nearly missed a plane once, because the 5.30 am train we wanted to take to the airport was cancelled. They didn't announce it until the quicker (and more expensive) train had just left. So a 90 minute direct train turned into a 2 1/2 hour trip with two stops. We were lucky though. Just made it. Also made a mini cruise to Norway with just 15 minutes to spare this spring (cruise was free, wouldn't have been much of a problem) because our train was four hours late. I will just have to keep my fingers crossed that we will be lucky again (and we are spending the night in an airport hotel).

All the of the clothing and shoes are equally split between the bags so we have some of our clothes if one bag doesn't arrive as oppose to one of us having nothing.

We do the same... I also make sure that I color coordinate when packing.

And, because I am chicken and we like TAs, we have one carry one with a few changes of clothes and a set of formal clothes (formal dress for me, at least slacks, shirt, tie for DH).

One of my coworkers had his luggage lost three times over the last year. I don't know how he does it. No matter where he goes, no matter if it's vacation or a business trip. Somehow they loose at least part of his luggage at least every other trip.

For us I think it would be

- ship wide smoking

- a bad (for us) value for money

- nude / swinger cruise

- bathtubs (DH has mobility limitations, we could handle a bathtub but really don't want to)

- having to go through our current TA again

- traditional (shared) late dining only

I think if the price and itinerary were right, we could come to terms with a lot (I even did late dining at a shared table because the price was amazing) but if I could avoid it...

There's some tremendous holidays around using ferries, where you pay as you go for food and entertainment.

Our go-to short cruise (because we can actually get to port by a quick 3 1/2 hour direct train) is what is marketed as a "mini cruise" from Germany to Norway on Color Line. The ships used to be mere ferries but have since been replaced by (small-ish) cruise ships that can (and do) transport cars and trucks but are also used by tourists as a vacation destination.

You can buy passage only (you even used to be able to not book a cabin) which starts at 99 Euros for a 2 nighter and just pay as you go for breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks, use of the indoor pool, spa. The only thing that is included is a show. You don't really have to spend any money... you can bring your own food and drinks on board, go to the show, hang out on deck and watch the coastline go by, read, watch tv.

And while we have done that (when we were both still in school), we actually enjoy the time much more if we at least have breakfast included (which you can either get by paying for a 4 or 5* cabin or by booking a package deal) and don't have to worry about additional cost for that (the breakfast buffet is 16 Euros / $18).

They also offer "all inclusive" cruises which include breakfast as well as dinner buffet (34 Euros / $38) plus drinks at dinner. Or "gourmet" cruises which include dinner in the (very nice) a la carte restaurants. If you go all in, you can actually spend 900 Euros per person (and that still does not give you complimentary access to the pool or all-inclusive drinks) for two nights and not even the owner's suite has a balcony.

For just a weekend I am all for that. Especially as many people use it as transportation from A to B because it's a long drive (600 miles, 10 hours) which takes you through at least three major cities. Even though it's marketed as a "cruise" it really still is a ferry.

But for a cruise? I don't want to worry about spendings on vacation. I don't want to count money, I don't want to cook my own food, I don't want to clean, I don't want to go grocery shopping. I do all that 49 weeks in a year. That's why I enjoy all-inclusive land based vacation (rather than renting a cottage somewhere) and try to make my cruises as AI as possible by pre-paying tips and buying drinks packages. I know that I don't drink enough for a package and barely break even but I already pay for complimentary things that I don't use so I'd really just have it included and not worry anymore. I rarely watch shows so if they weren't included and I could just pay for any show I do watch, I'd probably save money. I don't use the gym, if that wasn't included and there was an extra charge, I guess I could save money on that. There could be a charge for using the casino and I wouldn't care. But I really wouldn't want to be bothered by all that and would simply pick either a different cruise line or a different type of vacation.

Its a stop at two places and a beach. Has anyone actually been on his tour and could tell me yes or no its completey unsuitable, despite the age guide?

We were on Mirabella in November 2013. If you feel comfortable having her on a catamaran I wouldn't call it completely unsuitable. There is shade and facilities, the slides are small but might be fun for her. If she is used to swimming in deep water and not being able to touch the ground.

My husband snorkled at the first snorkle stop but decided to stay on the boat at the beach stop. They would have offered to take him to the beach on a dinghy, had the sea been less choppy. Very nice crew, snorkling was okay (you need to stay close to the guide if you want to be able to hear what he tells you and to look at what he brings up), snack (bread, salsa, chips), fishing from the boat on the way back, watched the planes at Maho.

I think the beach stop was at Mullet Bay, from the map snorkeling must have been at Little Bay?

We are considering doing it again this fall if we don't decide on doing a private tour.

We are going on the Marco Polo soon and one of the ports is Rostock. Is it possible to get off the ship there and walk into town? Or is there a shuttle service or a reasonably priced taxi ride available?

Rostock port is the Warnemünde Cruise Center which is approximately 10 miles / 16 km to downtown Rostock.

http://www.rostock-port.de/en/cruise-shipping/passenger-information.html

However, there is a tram stop right at the port with a tram going every 15 minutes or so (more often it seems in peak times). The tram is really cheap - should be 2 Euros for a single ticket or 4,90 Euros for a day ticket.

http://www.verkehrsverbund-warnow.de/tickets-fares/tickets.html

Budget Hotels in London

Check Travelodge and Premier Inn

Transport from Hearthrow Airport to Hotel and then transport to Southampton Cruise Center

Budget? Go by bus.

Nationalexpress from Heathrow to Victoria Coach Station are 6 Pounds, if you book them now. Victoria to Southampton is 13 Pounds. I doubt you can find much cheaper and it's comfortable enough for the short-ish ride.

Would love to hear anyone's tips for surviviving longer then 8 nights or transatlantic ?! Thanks!!

We have our fourth cruise booked - third transatlantic - and our shortest cruise so far has been 9 nights (QM2 TA New York - Hamburg) which we found a tad short acutally :D

Our next one will be 15 nights, the longst yet (the others were 11 and 13 nights respectively) and I am so excited! I love sea days. I can go swimming, have breakfast, read, nap, do some kind of activity, have a cocktail, read and nap some more, watch a show and have dinner. Then St. Maarten, St. Kitts and St. Thomas for snorkling, San Juan for a bit of sight seeing (first time), Labadee for a beach day and another sea day to pack.

We skip a few meals per cruise (usually lunch, sometimes breakfast), don't drink much (never get alcoholic drinks packages) and limit ourselves to three for fee restaurants. We try to do stairs as much as possible and be active on port days (walking, swimming etc.).

We are considering a seven day med cruise in spring 2018 (my mom will retire in April 18) and I am actually scared that it might be too short and too busy and I might need a week of vacation to recover from vacation.

Azamara Journey has an eastern med cruise with stops in Mykonos, Patmos and Santorini (29 August). Seabourn Odyssey does Athens, Crete, Patmos and Mykonos on her 17 September cruise or Limnos, Rhodes, Santorin and Spetses from 27 August or Corfu, Lefkada (and Katakolon and Monemvasia) on her 10 September cruis. Jewel of the Seas (as do Costa and X) also has a few stops at Greek islands in September but they might all already be too big for your taste?