rum & monkey

14 hours ago, Goodtime Cruizin said:

 

I'm not sure where they would port from. Princess trued to make a go of it from the Port of Houston. They left but I'm not sure why. Either the port fees or a lack of bookings. I'm not sure. The point is, the cruiselines have a choice. either the Port of Houston or the Port of Galveston. For some reason, both Carnival & Royal have selected the island. Yes... the island. Most people do not realize that Galveston is an island that is also a city that has a port. 

 

But the dredging of the Buffalo Bayou and Galveston Bay back in 1910 to open a 'ship channel' is a fascinating story and read.  It changed the landscape of shipping and left the Port of Galveston as a second choice. 

 

https://canalcartage.com/canal-cartage-company/the-interesting-history-behind-port-of-houston-texas/#:~:text=The Houston Ship Channel was created by dredging,45 feet deep%2C and over 50 miles long.

The Bayport cruise terminal (port of Houston) was a huge bust, it still was far from the airports, plus there weren’t hotels or things to do close by like there are in Galveston, but most importantly they couldn’t get the ships in and out of the ship channel during low tide. Princess had a ship that was stuck in the port overnight at least once. Princess and NCL weren’t there long but were given all sorts of incentives to be there, including waiving rent and docking fees as the City thought the terminal would boost the economy and jobs in Houston. It is no longer an option at all. They dismantled and sold the gangway system years ago and the port is now a container and auto terminal.

On 4/11/2021 at 7:22 PM, CatLadyFemme said:

Our Brilliance cruise next summer is out of Venice but really Ravenna (which is 2.5 hours south of Venice). We can apparently buy transfers but am not sure I want to be on 5 hours round trip of a shuttle. Depending on whether to change the cruise to a different itinerary, figure out a different place to fly in (like Bologna and take a train?), or such it up and do the shuttles. Anyone have thoughts on this?

We did a 9 day out of Rome and then took the train to Venice afterwards. From Civitavecchia (Rome) it was super easy. We walked from the ship to the train station and  when we got off the train, we went straight onto a water taxi for our hotel. We stayed 2 nights in Venice and then took a boat straight to the airport. It was way better than a port stop, especially if the majority of your day is going to be riding a shuttle. I would definitely suggest doing Venice either before or after your cruise. Both the airport and the train station a really easy going into or leaving Venice.

We bring both. You will not want to spray inside as the smell in your cabin will be way to strong & you are to close to people on the pool decks to use it and reapply and it can be quite windy sometimes on the pool deck. You can spray it on out on your balcony assuming you have one and in the ports. We always bring the coppertone sport , two of my kids have allergies to a lot of brands of sunblock so it is the only brand we use.

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As for Meals we do Chops and maybe another restaurant and we pay 18 percent on top of the daily gratuities, as i feel it is pety to take the auto gratuities off as these people do need to get paid and work hard and just because i want a specialty restaurant they should not be punished for it. So for 2 evenings i pay twice which should not even be an issue it a small amount and makes another happy, they deserve it in the dining room as they are very nice and work hard. (you can see it in their face, they are tired but smiling)

We also do specialty dining at least a couple nights a week and never imagined anyone actually removes their tips for that. In fact we have gone an entire cruise without going to the MDR or Windjammer for dinner. But we have never thought about it as tipping double. The same wait staff that are in the MDR work in either the MDR or Windjammer for either breakfast or lunch and I think they deserve their tip for that.

Both my husband & I worked in the tipped industry in our younger years when it was $1.68/hour plus tips todays tipped wage is $2.13/hour unless you live in one of the west coast states (they actually pay full minimum wage). We choose to sail on a Miami based cruise line which follows the American standard so tipping never bothers us. In the US the tipped wage salary can be paid to anyone in the service industry that earns more than $30/month in tips. We have never looked at that gratuity as nothing more than a service fee as it is an already factored in price of the meal, drinks, or service. We always tip extra with cash so it goes directly to the person. Tipping gives incentive for better service and if the service industry did away with tips and paid higher wages they would just charge you more to start with and most likely you would be paying more for a lower standard of service.

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Not sure what all you put in your letter, but you need three things : permission to travel, permission for medical, and permission to sign any waivers. We have taken kids that are not our own several times (friends of our kids and my niece). We have been asked at check in for the letter every single time. We have been asked for the letter to sign the waivers for the climbing wall & skating twice, have had to use the ships medical facilities once and had to get the letter from the room before we could be seen, and have had to have the letter with permission to travel going through customs on the way back once. You can have three separate letters or put all the info in one letter. Definitely would have permission for medical notarized. Every time we have taken an extra child with us, the letter was signed by only one parent so I would not worry about a signature from the dad.

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We pay between $38 and $42 . Just buy it and watch it, if you find it lower cancel it and rebuy it. You can cancel all way up to three days before sailing.

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I can’t even get signed in

 

 

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When I looked at my families accounts I could only get into 4 out of 5 accounts. Could not sign into mine at all. After spending nearly 3 hours on the phone (mostly on hold) and talking to the IT department they basically said I would have to wait that they were trying to fix their problems & nothing they could do, however I was transferred to crown & anchor to resolve the missing cruises on my husbands account. C&A told me how to access both reservations for check in and the cruise planner without going through my account. They also said they would send me an email to reset my password and it may resolve the issue logging in. It did. Everything that IT should have told me & tried but did not was resolved in less than 20 minutes with Crown & Anchor.

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I can’t even check in. I hope they fix it really soon

If you want check-in go to the drop down menu in the upper left corner of the home screen for Royal Caribbean - click on already booked - click on check in. You will need your reservation #

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Firefox won't let me in at all.....says Bad Request. Safari lets me in.....I see future cruises; I see past cruises.....cannot get into any cruise planner either by the front door or the back door........Does anyone have access to their CP?

If you want to look at the cruise planner go to the drop down menu in the upper left corner of the home screen for Royal Caribbean - click on already booked - click on "cruise planner" - click on reserve now. You will need your reservation #, sail date, etc.

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You check in early. It is a suggested time.

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I'm 0/1 in the recent years and have stopped booking Bahamas cruises because of it. I'd rather be guaranteed a stop in Labadee (plus an extra cruise night or 2 can't hurt). We're trying again in September on Mariner when the dock was *supposed* to be done. With my luck it'll be a cruise or 2 after that actually docks for the first time. I guess Royal is going to rope us into another one. ;)

Labadee is not a guaranteed stop, we skipped it this January on Navigator, Seas were rough and tides were high. We're told the beach would not be good. We had an extra sea day, got to Curaçao early and overnighted there (around 10:00 PM - should have been there early the next morning).

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However, if you use a travel agent, they have much more capability to hold cruises.

Very true. We have had a travel agent lock-in the price and put a hold on a cruise for a full week before. The hold on the website used to be for 24 hours.

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Never heard of anyone who drinks "pineapple juice" daily...

OP may just like the taste but pineapple juice & pineapples have many benefits:

Pineapple is the only major dietary source of bromelain. Bromelain is a proteolytic enzyme, which means it’s a mixture of enzymes that digest protein. Its anti-inflammatory properties include the reduction of swelling and bruising. Bromelain triggers the body’s production of substances that fight pain and reduce swelling, and it contains chemicals that prevent the blood from clotting. Bromelain has the potential to act as an effective cancer-fighting agent, it works in unison with chemotherapy to suppress the growth of cancer cells. It also contains beta carotene, which can protect agains prostate and possibly colon cancer.

Due to the anti-inflammatory properties of bromelain, some research suggests that pineapples could be useful in the treatment of osteoarthritis.

Bromelain also helps speed up digestion, reducing both bloating and constipation in the process. Bromelain has been used in the past to help treat symptoms of bowel conditions like ulcerative colitis, potentially reducing swelling and even ulcers.

Another big benefit to drinking pineapple juice is the manganese content. It’s an essential nutrient that fights aging and disease by protecting your cells from free radicals, which cause cellular damage.

The vitamin C in pineapple juice may also help to protect against heart disease and a higher intake of vitamin C also reduces the risk of cataracts.

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Diamond "kids" have different perks than the adults. My Grandson was a Diamond member on his own points around 13-14 years old. At her age, she probably wouldn't benefit from even the kid's perks. It includes some time in the arcade, a shake or a BOGO on shakes at Johnny Rockets, and they used to get a special gift during the cruise, but that probably ended when adults who were Diamond members stopped getting the gifts. I don't remember any of the other perks for those under 18. I think those are the only two my Grandson ever used. There should have been a sheet of paper in your cabin with the perks or it may have been loaded on her/his SeaPass card.

25% off any coffee beverage purchase

Buy one get one free ice cream bar at Ben & Jerry's

10% of Y-Spa treatment

10% off 1 device surf internet

$5 back when you purchase $15 in arcade credits

$25 back when you purchase $50 in arcade credits

Buy one get one free movie rental in stateroom

This was Harmony December 2016

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Kids have different benefits than adults loaded on their cards

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Yes, that was my expectation. Different servers would have been ok, but I felt like we were really getting terrible tables/service because we were not there the first couple nights.

With MTD you can request where you want to sit (next to a window or next to the rail of the balcony, or tell them you do not want to be next to a service station, even you just want a different section than the night before). You may have to wait a little bit longer but they will accommodate you.

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can use second free day at any time.

 

 

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They may have allowed you to do this but it is not in the BOGO rules. They specifically say "two specialty restaurants for the first two nights of your cruise" in the overview and then state for a second time in the tips section "This offer requires dining on Days 1 and 2".

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I do D+ BOGO... and I prepurchase one dining via the cruise planner on line at the discounted rate, if there is one, and turn up at the restaurant with my free guest. I do swing past the restaurant first telling them there will be 2 of us!

 

 

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Pretty smart, have you ever done this for the 2nd night as well, to use 2 D+ BOGO discounts?

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When you say BOGO, are you referring to First Night Done Right? I don't think Chops or Wonderland qualify for that price.

 

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We have used both "First Night Done Right" & the "BOGO" through the cruise planner ($30 for 2 restaurants) for Chops. Although on our next sailing they have raised the price for the BOGO to $40. Upon boarding you can go to any restaurant and change the reservation they gave you to what you want.

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I am going to make Diamond Plus after my next cruise - woo hoo! My first cruise as Diamond Plus is Symphony in April. I just purchased the BOGO dining option today and was just reading on here that Diamond Plus get a BOGO coupon for speciality dining. Can anyone provide me any information as it sounds like I should cancel my purchase.

 

 

 

Also, anything else I should know about Diamond Plus - let me know! I believe D+ has access to the Concierge lounge - but on Symphony I see no such space. Would it be the same as the suite lounge?

D+ buy one get one is different than the cruise planner one. The D+ one is for buy one get a second person free so it will come out to 50% off for two people (since done onboard it will be discounted of the cost if booked onboard not the discounted price in the cruise planner). It is typically used on the first night but if you want to use your spouses also they will let you use it the second night.

The cruise planner one is pay for one restaurant get a second one free the next night for the same person (so everyone in your party purchases it). Sometimes the cruise planner one comes out cheaper sometimes not.

So if you do the BOGO through the cruise planner for $44 that will be $22 per person for each night. But if you do the D+ BOGO for Chops or Wonderland @ $53 you will pay $26.50 per person.

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I dislike the metal ties/rings as they indeed will come apart. I use those inexpensive and very durable plastic zip ties. Easy to cut off with nail clippers, etc. when I need to take them off.

We also use zip ties, they never come undone. We also use them to lock the suite cases & bring extras for the return home.

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Definately would do the 1:10PM flight

You arrive @ 6:00 AM. Self assist is not until 7:00AM. Tried to take a pic of the disembark sheet but getting error message.

6:00AM Arrival

7:00 AM Self Assist

7:35 AM Early flights (before 12:30 PM)

7:45 AM shore excursions

8:00 AM Platinum, Emerald, Diamond, & Diamond Plus

8:15 AM Pinnacle Club & Suites (GS, OS, RS, & RFS)

8:30 AM early transfer

Last time we were in RFS and walked off because we could get off earlier. By the time we took a cab to the airport, checked our bags, and went through security it was almost 11:00 AM. Security line was real long and took over 40 minutes after we started watching the time. Security lines are always unpredictable you may get lucky but so far we have not been in SJU. We also had a very long line checking our bags, maybe you are only doing carry on bags.

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Also with the Bank of America Royal Caribbean card your points expire after 5 years. Lots of restrictions and rules for a free cruise. We cashed in points for a 4 day Caribbean cruise (least # of points) because our points were expiring. Points were only good up to $1000 per cruise fare, anything over you pay the extra. Could not be on a ship less than a year old (this included older ships that have been reinstated in less than a year). Also had to book a highest available ocean view. For more points you can do a balcony but could not pay to upgrade to a balcony. The point value we spent could have been used for two separate $500 OBC's , but we did receive a total value of $2000 for 2 people. Haven't used the card since and will be cashing remainder of the points for OBC. We do much better with our Amex.

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DD was 18 last December and got all the D perks (including Internet) minus the drinks.

We even asked about it and was told they were youth until 21 on any N American sailing & they would only get adult benefits on sailings that they are considered adults. That was on Harmony last December.

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