MKESail

We just got off Anthem yesterday so my 2 cents on the New Year celebration. The party up on the pool deck with the countdown and the Northstar going down was AWESOME!!! Very crowded though. Seaplex glow party looked like a lot of fun also.

I thought having brunch till 2 pm (or later?) on New Years day was an excellent idea with a lot of people sleeping in after all the partying. If only it could work :( First we wait to get a table at American Icon, then we sit down and wait to get our order taken. Then we wait some more. We only got one of the items we ordered and already breakfast was taking us over an hour so that's when we just got up and left. :o:( I can tell they are all trying really hard - the waiters and the head waiters all trying to help each other out but I guess something is just not working. Sorry, didn't mean to hijack this thread with my whining. :(

New Years eve parties were great and the ventriloquist was too funny! :D

Yes, luggage valet would be perfect but it is not offered in Cape Liberty. We just got back home yesterday and I did end up going with Luggage Forward and was very very glad I did. Their guy met us outside after we got done with customs, we gave him the suitcase and went off on our excursion. When we got dropped off at Newark afterward - the airport was crazy busy, I even got an email saying I should be there earlier then usual, because they had longer lines and all. So I was very very happy that we didn't have to wait in yet another line to check our suitcase in, but went right to security instead.

Mine also says boarding group C. How are you getting to the ship (transportation-wise). I'm on a transfer from the airport and I thought maybe this was why?

Yes, we also got RCI's airport transfers. This is what mine looks like.

I just completed the online check-in as well and I could not figure out what our appointment was? Doesn't say anywhere on the SetSail pass, all I see is Boarding Group C up on top. Where do you, guys, see it? :confused:

Can we combine a shore excursion that will take us to the airport on disembarkation day and a luggage delivery program like Luggage Free?

 

Our airport doesn't participate in Holland America's Valet Program.

Hello, I am just wondering if this ever worked for you, not sure if you already went on your cruise. I am sailing RCI in a couple weeks and am thinking of doing this same thing at Cape Liberty - having Luggage Free or Luggage Forward handle my luggage, while going on a shore excursion post cruise. So were you able to do this?

thank you.

This is kinda related, tried this in the RCI forum with no luck so I thought I'd try it here as well. May be the OP or anyone else can help me with this.

We are sailing on Anthem this coming New Years and on the way back we wanted to do a Shore Excursion that would drop us off at Newark but it is kinda tight time-wise. The RCI rep said we should still be ok but I want to at least eliminate the luggage check-in step to save us some time before the flight. Has anyone used any of those services post-cruise? How does the whole pick up work? I mean you go through customs, get your luggage, then what? And since there is an excursion scheduled, it all has to happen BEFORE we are on the bus. We normally use luggage valet but Cape Liberty does not have it, so I am trying to find an alternative.

Anyone has any experience with this?

So the free champagne at the Promenade you already know. It was super crowded but super fun :) Balloon drop at midnight, the big screen countdown. I actually think the Promenade party started earlier, it was very very busy around 10 already, we could hardly get through. They were also giving out hats and, I think, noise makers, etc. for the New Years. Sorry, couldn't find any good pictures. You are in for a lot of fun! :)

We actually sailed on Indy for New Years - 2 years ago. I will have to see if I can find any pictures but it was AWESOME!

We are sailing on Anthem this coming New Years and on the way back we wanted to do a Shore Excursion that would drop us off at Newark but it is kinda tight time-wise. The RCI rep said we should still be ok but I want to at least eliminate the luggage check-in step to save us some time before the flight. Has anyone used any of those services post-cruise? How does the whole pick up work? I mean you go through customs, get your luggage, then what? And since there is an excursion scheduled I guess it all has to happen BEFORE we are on the bus. We normally use luggage valet but Cape Liberty does not have it, so I am trying to find an alternative. :confused:

Anyone has any experience with this?

I just spoke with a lady from Schedule Change department - yes, they actually do exist! :D All is well, they had us rebooked on another United flight so everything is good now. Lesson learned - always keep checking your air reservation when booked through Air2sea, the sooner you find out about those changes the better, and this is crucial when travelling during holidays.

critterchick, now that I think about that other time a couple years ago when they did notify us - that was Delta, I'm pretty sure. But this time, even after seeing my reservation with the new flights that arrive late, I went back to Air2sea site and that reservation still had my original flights listed, which don't even exist anymore. :rolleyes: So it could be United's fault, yes.

Phew, that was close, I need a drink now ;)

Great that you caught it!!!:eek:

I KNOW!!! :eek:

I really had no complaints about ChoiceAir/Air2sea up until now. A couple years ago when we also went on a Holiday Cruise and an airline also changed flight times on us, it was actually ChoiceAir rep who called me to notify me about this with a resolution already in hand just to verify that those flights were ok with me. It was all resolved within a day. This time, I just keep asking myself what if I didn't check United's website until the day before our flight to go check in?! :eek::eek::eek:

So I went to look for United's phone number and while on their website I checked my reservation. It looks like I am booked on both my old set of flights (that would arrive late) AND a new set of flights. The new flights are far from perfect but since I see both of those sets showing up my guess is that MADflyer was right and hopefully they ARE looking for a better connection. But the good news is - they are actually doing something not just sitting around.

I'd call, at least to see if United gives you an option to change.

 

I feel like you do, the longer you wait, the fewer options you have.

 

I found this other number for Choice Air, don't know if it will be any different for you: 800.533.7803.

Yes, that's one of the numbers I called last week. But I will try calling United, I guess it can't hurt. Thank you :)

Will United work with you at all?

I haven't tried calling them directly, I thought I wasn't supposed to, since I booked through Air2sea?

All I have is their emergency number: 800.256.6649.

Yeah, that's the last number I called and was told I could not speak to the Schedule Change department but "they are working with the airline on this". I just feel like I am sitting around waiting for all the flights to get booked.:mad:

United changed our flights so now we won't be able to make it to our New Years Anthem cruise. The fact that I had to find that out myself, completely by chance and Air2sea had no idea about that is besides the point :mad: I have been calling them for almost a week now and they keep saying they are working with the airline and I shouldn't worry because of Assured Arrival and blabla. The cruise is less than 4 weeks away. It is probably the busiest travel time of the year - during the holidays. Does anyone have a phone number/email for the Schedule Change department? Or anyone else I could email that would help?

Thank you all for any help I can get

cherylandtk,

Thank you so much for all the advice :)

Not quite understanding - you are on a direct flight but trying to get insurance that covers missed connection; if you're on a direct flight, there isn't a connection to miss.

Sorry, that's probably the wrong technical term "missed connection" can only happen if there is a connection to miss :)

My point is, if we miss the ship because of late flight.

HawksFan74

Yes, we are flying from Milwaukee, and yes, it is too late, the Southwest flight is booked. :(

This is what I found in here: http://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/documents/pvsa_icp_3.pdf

It is important to note that a cruise itinerary may be compliant with the PVSA, but a

passenger that disembarks at a port other than those designated as part of a compliant

itinerary may still cause the vessel/carrier to violate the PVSA depending on where the

passenger embarked and disembarked. For example, a passenger that embarks in

Seattle, Washington on a round trip itinerary that includes Alaska and disembarks early

in Juno, Alaska will cause the vessel/carrier to violate the PVSA, regardless of the

reason for the early departure from the cruise ship.

Thank you for all your help :)

zoncom,

No, we cannot fly the day before because of work, so that's why I got the only direct flight that leaves the morning of, which actually is Southwest.

cherylandtk,

Thank you so much, that is a good point, I totally forgot about PVSA, so then if we do miss the ship, I guess I shouldn't even bother trying to make it to Alaska, but just head home instead :( Yes, packing those several days worth of clothing into our carry-on is a great idea, I will do that, and I will definitely take pictures of the luggage. But you think taxi will be faster than RCI's transfer? I just thought the sooner RCI people see us at the airport, the better. Not that the ship is going to wait for us, of course :(

Hi, all.

Just booked our Alaska cruise on board RCI's Jewel of the Seas next month from Seattle as well as the flight. We ARE flying in the day of the cruise, yes, I know, a big no-no, but flying in before was not an option :-( I did not use ChoiceAir, because they do not offer any direct flights from our airport and since we are flying the day of I did not want to have the connection in between there too adding in more risk for flight delays, etc. So we are scheduled to arrive at noon which is good, we are still making it in that case, RCI's latest arrival time was 12:45 they told me. I will be adding RCI's airport transfers as well later. I've tried insurance shopping and they all have 3 hour minimum until missed connection coverage kicks in. Well, in our case, we could be 2 hour late and miss the ship in which case we are SCREWED. :mad: I spoke to several places (Travelguard, Travelex, Insuremytrip.com, tripinsurancestore.com to name a few) - they do not offer anything else, all their policies have that 3 hour minimum.

Anyways, I was just hoping someone here would have a word of advice for me for this situation.

Thank you!

Sailed both Indy and Freedom, both pre dry dock though. They are pretty much twins, Dreamworks characters are the only difference really.

I did like Freedom better though, not really sure why :confused::)

Had them every night on our Christmas cruise on Oasis :)

We were on this same cruise, just got back Saturday :-)

I just wanted to add that they were having some issues with the traditional dining as well, not just My Time Dining. I asked for Traditional Dining when booking the cruise months ago and so I did get it but when we boarded I noticed my Sea Pass card did not have table number or dining room name printed. Guest services told us to go to Deck 4 (Grande) about 10 minutes ahead of time - when we went there, they sent us to deck 3 (American Icon), there we had to wait for like 10 minutes, then they took us back up to Deck 4 again, we had a temporary table for just that first night, the next day they sent us a note to our stateroom stating our permanent table number in Grande (deck 4). So no big deal, since it was all straightened up after the first night but they ARE having lots and lots of issues with any type of dining for sure. :(

We just got off the Oasis this Saturday, the 27th. Our flight from FLL was at 11:55 am, and we did use luggage valet. They said we could leave the ship any time after 8 am, but we actually left at like 7:50 am. We do not have TSA pre-check or Global Entry, and we still made it. Yes, the cut-off time is 11:30 am to use luggage valet, so you can use that. When you use it, you are in no specific group or anything, you are basically free to leave the ship whenever (before 10 am I think), since you are not picking up your luggage until after you get to your destination airport.

Hope this helps. Enjoy your cruise! :)