pcur

After every.single.sentence you wrote above, I kept thinking "the ending here is going to suck, big time............................and, it does. So sorry your great trip is not happening. May your substitute be a terrific itinerary, and my you have endless fun!!

Depending on the reason for cancellation, some credit cards cover trip cancellation or interruption. Chase Sapphire credit cards have good travel benefits.

Yes, it's up to us to prove to them we are eligible for the double points, and to keep the trail of booking crumbs. Seems backwards, doesn't it?

Please substitute the word "book" for "sail".

Remember the double points promo where you had to sail by 9/30? I got off the Allure on 9/25. When I moved my former booking that was cancelled by RCCL, I was assured I would received the double points. Yesterday, I checked my points. I sailed solo, so I should have received double-double. Got on the phone with C&A D+/Pinnacle line. First of all, Diego ROCKS!! So, polite and courteous. Long over 1 hour story made short (and a reminder to self): Always, always, always keep the money/FCC trail if you have to move a booking to another one, or RCCL cancels and you have to rebook. I explained to Diego, he went to Loyalty Resolutions. My current booking on the Allure was made after the deadline. It was because RCCL cancelled it after the deadline. Four "no's" later I told Diego to have them follow the money backwards, because the one RCCL cancelled actually came from another previous one my (former) travel agency cancelled by mistake. AH! They found that booking date, and gave me the extra points immediately. Would have been so much faster if I had the booking breadcrumb trail documented. While I was one hold I finally found it myself.

I have a friend that qualifies for at least an inside cabin every cruise. She goes to the hostess and asks for a printout of all the eligible cruises. She's more into the itineraries, and tries to see if there is any on the list that she can make a b2b+ on her existing booked cruises.

Call and ask about doing this. The policy is to charge the cancellation fee, but moving a cruise is sometimes considered just moving the booking number and monies. I've done this many times, can't remember if it was after final payment, and have never paid the large % amount.

cruisedeckplans.com will give you the dimensions of each cabin, sometimes with cabin numbers if there is a variance in the category.

I may be wrong. It might have been 2+ hours. It was so great I wasn't paying any attention to time, really.

I'll book any RCCL ship if I like the itinerary.

Mamma Mia is spectacular! The star singers are from Broadway and London. The writer of the original Broadway production adapted it for RCCL, it's only on the Allure, and they can not deviate from the adaptation. Full length show: 90 minutes. I've been in audiences where they gave standing ovations, but I've never seen an entire audience stand through 3 encore numbers. Book it through the app as soon as you get on the ship. They only had 2 shows for our 8 night cruise last week.

I live in No CA, also. I always fly into Long Beach, since it's a small and easier airport to get in and out of. I usually stay at a Long Beach hotel, and then Uber to the port. Lots less people, hotels are more reasonably priced, and no humongous traffic from LAX to deal with. I usually check hotels.com to see what's available in LB, and then use an Uber estimator to calculate the fare to the port. It's about a 15 minute drive.

Good idea. I think I'll do that!

Ditto. Oh, and my vaccine card that is also on my phone. Problem is no one allows for a 3rd document to be uploaded, and my vaccine card with 2 vaccines and 3 boosters is a 3 pic upload.

Domestic medical transport is also very expensive. If one needs to pay up front and then be reimbursed for a medical transport for a 2,400 mile trip, than having a policy that covers the cost up-front works very well. Sometimes people don't need more information, but actually have different needs where they DO have the information that works for them. One size does not fit all, and that's why I actually do advocate gathering information and knowing one's options before deciding.

Your granddaughter can take a proctored telehealth test 2 days prior, right? That seems the least expensive option. BinaxNOW can be done with a cell phone from anywhere. Cost is $70 for a 2-pack from the Optum.com store.

Keep your package for now, and watch the cruise planner for more offers. It could be they are no longer selling the package at the price you paid. You can cancel at anytime before the cruise (on the cruise, too???) and get a refund back to your credit card. If they have more for sale later, cancel yours, and then book for 2. I agree they most likely do not have every table for every night booked with the package. They're playing with the availability. They always sell the packages on board the ship, too.

I had a cruising friend call me up last month asking for suggestions about travel insurance. I told her to first check what the credit card she used to pay for the cruise provided. Some are very comprehensive about trip delays / interruptions. Secondly, I told her to call her insurance company and see what benefits she has outside the US. Then, I told her what I have, but to find out what she really needed first. My Medicare Advantage plan covers all health and medical transport, BUT it may be reimbursement only. That means a credit card with a large credit line for emergencies only. Southwest Airlines sells an Emergency Assistance Plus annual policy that I have for medical evacuation. Geo-Blue is my choice of additional medical that will pay and then coordinate benefit repayment with my usual health insurance. I find annual policies are much cheaper that buying by the trip, since I travel domestically to see family, as well as cruise.

I'm a baby Pinnacle with training wheels......the free wifi ROCKS!! If the other cruise line doesn't have that, it's no-contest IMO.

Be polite, very polite, but don't be passive. They can get a bit bullying in the crush. Me? When I passed "my" table, I would make a U-turn, go back to the podium, inform the person that table #XYZ is, indeed, for 2 people, and I would like it when the people sitting there are finished. Can you check and see approximately when that might be?

Most things are negotiable. Remember, they WANT you to eat at their restaurant. Be flexible and friendly. Go into the restaurant of choice after getting on the ship, and have a chat with them. Ask to use your BOGO for lunch, or other than day 1 and 2. We did this last week on the Allure for lunch, and I used my solo BOGO for 50% off.

Boggles the mind..................

West Coast: aka Seattle, SF, Oakland, Los Angeles, San Diego are a whole different economic situation. MUCH higher cost of living than FL, in my opinion. The salary.com info I posted above is from 2022, also.

I had dinner with a group on the Navigator in Izumi's, and one person had pretty severe allergies to shellfish and soy. Other than four of us smacking her hand when she reached for the edamame (she thought they were green beans), the waiter took very good care of her.

If skin cancer rates are increasing, then I'm thinking it's because people aren't using their sun screen properly, or often enough. I have almost translucent white skin. I have serious sun damage on my back, but only one incident of a small cancer on the back of my neck, eliminated with Mohs surgery. As much as experts and skin care professionals say anything over SPF 35 is a waste of money, I disagree. SPF 100+ is all I can use to keep my skin protected and not burn. Anything less I will visibly start burning in about 15 minutes. I mix it with a moisturizing lotion and use it all over exposed areas, especially the backs of my hands, forearms, neck and face. Every day, no matter what the weather. That way I won't forget.