Charles4515

Before there were larger ships, when the largest ships of their time were sailing out of Baltimore, it was a secondary market. There are limited itineraries from Baltimore because of the weather and it takes 10 or more hours to get to the ocean. It will remain a secondary market even if they increase the heights of the bridges.

They could move the cruise port south of the bridges. They could build ships that fit under the existing bridges. Why should the taxpayers pay for new bridges for foreign flagged cruise ships? If new bridges would enhance cargo it might make economic sense. For the cruising market I doubt it.

Cellular at Sea is not turned on until 12 miles out to sea. It is off in port.

Yes. They will be available when the ship clears. I have taken them at 8:30. They were there before that.

I do the same now after a couple of close calls. Getting the text message alerted me and I realized that in the hoopla of sail away I could miss the text message.

AT&T does the same. OP forgot to go to Airplane Mode after the ship left port.

It would illegal for you to get international charges while docked in Miami. Someone must have forgot to turn the phone to airplane mode before the ship reached 12 miles out of Miami.

They have to get the port open ASAP so I am not surprised by the time line.

It is risky but full disclosure I am considering it because my friends can only cruise then this year.

If the ship makes it to Bermuda it is a great Bermuda itinerary. Both St. George’s and Hamilton on Insignia. I did it on Insignia in late August a few years ago. Very hot and humid. I almost booked again last September and they had to skip the week I would have booked. Was looking at September this year but hurricane season made me hesitant. Last time I did Bermuda in September, on Celebrity we had to leave a day early.

Cruise ships are a nice to have for Baltimore but a very minor source of revenue. Hotels, restaurants cater to Baltimore not cruise passengers and if the cruise port closed I don’t think hotels or restaurants would take much notice. I think most cruise passengers drive in to Baltimore and don’t stay at hotels or eat at restaurants. That is the impression I got from living 35 miles from the port for many years. It might make sense to build the bridge higher or it might not. Maryland can figure that out. The other bridge project is planned to be an additional bridge, the old would remain so unless that plan is changed building the Key Bridge higher would not allow for taller ships.

Taxis can take up to 7 so if you have 6 people it will be approximately $49 overall (5-7 passenger rate) plus tip. I have accounted for a 15% rate increase that went into effect this month (April 2024). There is an additional surcharge for Sundays and Holidays.

Trains off the Northeast Corridor or that go off the Northeast Corridor, long distance service, have baggage cars. On the Northeast Corridor like between Philadelphia and New York they don’t use baggage cars.

I personally prefer the taxis even with added expense even for less than four because the minibuses are shares loaded with 18 to 35 people. They fill every seat.

Call Amtrak and ask for assistance getting on and off the train so it is on the manifest. Both the onboard crew and station services get manifests. Also inform the Conductor when they scan your ticket or otherwise see them onboard that you need assistance getting off at Newark and Red Cap assistance at Newark.

$2500 for medical expenses but really that is nothing these days. Evacuation looks like it would be enough. Some of the other coverages are enough. If you are delayed and the airline does not put you up on a domestic flight it is handy. I have been managing to have delays where the airline put me up so have not made that claim. The CSR insurance is better than nothing but as I said I think I need more coverage. I also have AMEX coverage but you have to book all legs of a round trip through AMEX while with CSR you don’t have too. Someone earlier this year made that mistake. They booked one leg on AMEX and another on a different card. CSR and AMEX would be sufficient for simple trips but the gotchas could cost on a cruise vacation.

At the end of the article is an update that the plan has been approved. https://www.royalgazette.com/general/news/article/20240403/tobacco-bay-plans-recommended-for-approval/

The best one I have found is the Chase Sapphire Reserve but it is a meh policy overall. It works for some travel but I don't think the coverage is sufficient for most cruises. I had a cruise with one foreign port and did not buy a more comprehensive policy but I can't think of another itinerary I would count on it.

When I moved here a couple of years ago everyone was telling me how friendly Texas was and I said sure, uh, huh. Just got back from my daily 2 mile walk on the Trinity Trail and practically everyone passing in the other direction said hi or waved. On the Crescent Trail in Maryland only people I knew said Hi but the people there did make eye contact and sometimes smile.

When I am 81 I will buy one of those separate medical evacuation policies which allows you to pick where to be sent. I always plan an hour and a half before all aboard and that has worked fine. I also always confirm that the tour guide is aware of the all aboard. On a couple of occasions others on the tour proposed adding something and I had to be the bad guy and say nope…

Since they have to replace the Key bridge they could build it higher with the future in mind. As for the Chesapeake Bay bridge the replacing it has been approved. There are 14 options on the table. Since projects to rebuild both bridges are now on the table future proofing both bridges should be done. If Bayonne has done 215 feet wouldn’t Baltimore want to match that to compete?

And in the above article: ‘However, based on a recent LinkedIn post from GigSky's Chief Commercial Officer Samuel King, the company has plans to roll this benefit out to additional banks and Visa credit cards in the future.’

US Bank Altitude Visa Connect. Reading between the lines Gigsky implies that more credit cards could get the benefit in the future.

There is also a Visa card benefit on one bank card. I don’t have that particular card but that is something to keep an eye on.

I think this board was a good initial place to post your question. More people will see it. I never would have seen it. Thanks for posting.