vcmds

I'm sorry to have to bring up Covid again, but we are scheduled to be on the Westerdam on September 4.  My husband and I are travelling with our daughter and my mother-in-law.  According to my daughter, my MIL cannot be vaccinated due to her chemo treatments.  Does HAL allow any kind of waiver for people who cannot be vaccinated?  My daughter is currently out of the country and is planning to try and get in touch with HAL on Monday.  I was just wondering if anyone had experience with this.  Please be kind with answers.  I don't know anything about cancer and possible problems with the Covid vaccine, and I can't believe my daughter hadn't checked on this before now (she's in charge of my MIL's reservation).  

I've never used VeriFly.  Is it accessed through the Navigator App or is it a separate app I need to download?  My husband doesn't have a smart phone, can I register both of us together?  We're sailing out of Seattle if that makes any difference.  

My husband and I have been on several cruises but only Carnival and Holland America.  I have a few Royal Caribbean questions.

1.  When the itinerary says we would sail from Los Angeles, does that really mean San Pedro?  Is it better to fly into LAX or Long Beach?  Even though we live in Northern California and could easily fly the morning of the cruise, I'm a nervous traveler and don't want to risk the chance of a flight delay due to fog.  I would prefer flying in the day before.  Are there hotels with transportation to the port the morning of departure?  Where do you usually stay?  On debarkation day, does RCCL offer bus transportation back to the airport, or does everyone grab a taxi or Uber?

2.  I love to eat, and part of the fun for me on cruises is trying new foods.  I was so disappointed last time with Carnival's new American Table (or whatever it was called).  I don't need gourmet meals, but are the choices in the main dining room something other than steak or grilled chicken?

3.  We are scoping out RCCL in anticipation of a large family/friends trip in 2023.  Has anyone sailed in both the virtual balcony and interior promenade view rooms?  Which did you prefer?   Or if you've sailed in only one of those, what are the pros and cons?   I'm paying for all of my kids and grandkids, so we won't be sailing in balcony rooms!

4.  Are muster drills usually handled efficiently?  I've had good and bad experiences, and I'm just curious.  

5.  As a stockholder of Carnival, I get cruise credit on board the ship.  Does RCCL offer the same benefit?

I appreciate all answers.

3 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

Yes, those deckplans are still available, but I find I have to ask at guest services for one.  they are usually in a display at the desk if you know what to look for.  They used to give them out at checkin.  EM

Thank you!

On some previous cruises, there was a small, foldable deck plan map of the ship available, probably from guest services.  Are those maps still available?  We'll be on the Inspiration, so that's the ship I'm most interested in.  Yes, I'm sure that deck plans are on the Carnival ap, but I don't like to carry my phone around all the time.

1 hour ago, Buck Turgidson said:

Yes I've forgotten many, my wife remembers most of them, the first being the Jubilee

Our first was the Jubilee as well, in 1992.  I remember all the names because we haven't been on all that many cruises.  Hopefully that will change once we're retired.

Good for you for giving yourself a special splurge.  You know we all share your excitement about your upcoming cruise AND your special room.

Our last cruise was our first ever with kids.  They were our best friends' kids, ages 8 and 10.  We had early dining in the MDR (another first for us, we've always done late dinner.)  The first night the 8-year-old ordered off the kids menu and after that ordered from the adult menu.  They were willing to try some of the more unusual items, usually tasting off of an adult's plate.  We chose shore excursions that were mostly beach visits, nothing with a long bus ride or historical-based.  On ship they went to kids club a few times during the day and were excited to participate in the shows at night.  The adults went to the steakhouse one night, planned in advance, and we told the kids they'd be eating at kids club.  They enjoyed it so much they asked to eat there again the next night.  They enjoyed the pool and slide.  The best part for all of us was eating breakfast and lunch in the lido.  Everyone could get whatever they wanted--there wasn't any argument about wanting burgers over tacos over a sandwich.  This was that family's first ever cruise, and we'll be doing it again in a couple of years.  

Yes.  In 2007 I booked an inside guarantee on the Imagination 8-day Mexican Riviera.  We ended up with a balcony.  I booked it nine months out and the cruise was in January which is usually a slower time.

On our last cruise, we sailed for the first time out of Galveston, first time with friends and their children ages 8 and 10, first time for early dining, first time time for more scheduled meals in general, first time for any experience with kid's club, first time on the Freedom.

We had a great time with our friends.  They used to live here in California, but seven years ago moved to Louisiana.  Galveston was a good midpoint for meeting, but not very convenient for flying in for us as far as getting to Galveston itself.   Our friends drove about eight hours to meet up with us the night before the cruise.  

It was a little hard getting used to getting up earlier to meet for breakfast, but with the early dinner we needed to eat all our meals earlier.  

We did excursions together, but didn't always do things together on the ship except for meals.  

On the whole, it was a wonderful trip, we always have a good time with our friends, and we adore their kids.  It was their first cruise ever, and they enjoyed it enough to want to do it again in a couple of years.

That all being said, like the previous poster here, I'm looking forward to a short 3-day trip soon out of Long Beach where we'll go back to late dining and spend more time relaxing.

We went on one spring break cruise a number of years ago. It was filled with college students who took over every single chair near the pool and every seat at the shows. Never again.

Our honeymoon cruise January 1992. I'm sad.

Take a 14 day cruise on HAL in late September I can assure you there will be very few, if any children.

We were on a 14-day HAL cruise through the Panama Canal one time in January. There was one young person, a boy about 13 or 14 years old who was home schooled.

We've been on six cruises. On five of them we booked a guarantee room, and we've never been disappointed. On one cruise I booked an inside guarantee and we were upgraded, for free, to a balcony room. I enjoyed sitting on the balcony early in the morning, but my husband wasn't interested at all. For our next cruise I've chosen a specific interior Lido cabin. This will be our first time in an interior so I won't know until after our trip if I'll wish I'd upgraded to something different. Anyway, my point is that if a guarantee is booked it doesn't mean you'll get an awful cabin. We spend very little time in our cabin and just want to be on the ship.