avatheps

DW and I are cruising during Christmas with stops at Half Moon Cay, Georgetown, Ocho Rios and Key West. We love street food and had a positively delicious conch salad last year in St Maarten. Can we find this dish in any of the ports on this trip? Any other comments about street food here would be appreciated. Thank you.

Is there an extra charge for food/drinks at Café Promenade?

.......you partake of the Starbucks coffee or the Ben and Jerrys ice cream which are both there. Other than that though, the food is fresh and very good. I ate there more often than WJ. Much better food IMHO.:D

Pardon? Gosh, I am having a difficult time understanding you, I'm afraid. :(

 

 

 

I know, I'm not sure either what the problem is even though OP has replied a few times here. :confused:

 

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We just returned from our first cruise. We chose MTD because we simply did not know what to expect as far as dining and show times. We had no problems whatsoever. We were always seated promptly and made any shows we chose to see. IMHO it is a matter of personal planning. If you want to see a particular show at a particular time just go to dinner a bit earlier or later to make a smooth transition. I still am not clear as to what your beef is.:confused:

We just returned from a 10 day cruise on Explorer. Leigh and Erky were highlights every day. We saw the out and about constantly shaking hands and chatting with everyone. The farewell show that Leigh hosted was excellent and one not to miss.

Bob

Not that I'm asking if my children hanging out at the bar with me but if I stop and grab a quick drink to walk with can they stand at my side? Or do they need to remain outside?

I just returned from a 10 day cruise on The Explorer. It was our first cruise and we had a mostly wonderful time. We did however, encounter children in all adults only venues we visited. This included the "Adults Only" hot tub late at night. It would appear to me that most rules on the ship can be and most certainly are, ignored by many, including the staff in charge.:(

Ah, not true! Just off the Explorer today and for dinner in the Windjammer last night they had Eggs Benedict, as well as other breakfast food! :)

We ate both places depending on our daily plans. I ate smoked salmon every day and saw eggs Benedict every day no matter which venue we ate at. IMHO, the menus are pretty much identical except that you serve yourself at WJ and they serve you at MDR.

Bob:)

So the question still has not been answered. Can it be gotten on ship?? There have got to be beer drinkers here who the package is to much for, and has tried to buy a bag on the ship. Please we(allboys27 & myself) need to here fom you desperatly. We want to buy a bag, and not tie on. :)

I just returned from The Explorer so this info is fairly current. I saw the pails of various beers offered several times as special promotions, but always in pails, never in bags. The only place I saw beers in bags was on one of the islands and I do not remember where it was. No matter where, be prepared for sticker shock except in a couple of off the beaten track Lolos.

Bob:eek:

Interesting question. I would love to know the answer to that as well. Any experience cruisers know?

I just returned from a 10 day Caribbean trip on The Explorer. Dw and I each took our wine allotment as per reg. I wrapped both bottles in bubble wrap and put them inside one of those CC nylon cooler bags. I then put them n the top of my backpack that I used as a carry on. They fit very nicely there. I did not label them at all as I expected them to be searched no matter what. I passed through the terminal and through the ship without ever being touched or any questions asked of us. The same was true when I carried 10 bottles of rum off the ship when disembarking in Port Liberty. I neither saw nor heard of anyone having problems.

My thoughts are that the authorities have their procedures down to a science pretty well and that if you follow the rules, which are very plain, you will have nothing to worry about.

Bob:)

Hi we are sailing on the Radiance New Years cruise to New Zealand in two weeks, and can't wait. We booked with RC as we felt it was going to be more family friendly and are taking our daughter (15) and son (10). I was wondering how formal the 'formal' nights are, I understand there will be 2-3 formal nights including NYE and wondered if anyone could help with dress code? Is it suits or tuxedo for men? Does our 10 year old need a suit or just smart clothes? We are looking forward to dressing up so don't mind bringing it all!

Thanks!

Hi Macca5,

My wife and I just returned from our very first cruise. I had asked the traditional questions about formal night dress and received answers across the spectrum. I opted to let discretion rule over valor, and we dressed like going to church in the 1960s. That is to say, wife in a nice dress and me with a sport coat, dress slacks, shirt and tie. These days it seems that anything goes at church. We were glad we did, as most folks there dressed to the nines and the few that did not were severely chastised, either telepathically or verbally by way of loud discussions being held from nearby tables. The few children we saw were obviously seasoned travelers and were nicely dressed and well behaved at dinner.

My suggestion for you is this; if you are concerned about it do not even attend formal night dinner. There are lots of other places to eat where you can mingle with the hat, sandals, and Hawaiian shirt wearers. If you like to strut your stuff, go and enjoy. You will not be overdressed, trust me.

Bob:cool:

Hello, all,

 

We are home after an 11-night Southern Caribbean cruise. A few highlights:

 

Priority check-in (Emerald), and on board by noon.

 

Our JS had fresh carpeting, new upholstery and draperies. Also finally, we get a cabin with a flatscreen TV! The bedding was excellent: soft and plush. Our balcony was repainted during a port day later in the week.

 

Brought on a case of springwater and a powerstrip; no difficulty.

 

Cabin Steward Jose Rodrigues from Goa, India kept our cabin immaculate! Full ice bucket, clean coffee mugs, and fresh wine glasses twice a day.

 

My Time dining went smoothly for our 7:30 reservation; requested and was given the same table for two each night.

 

We brought our own ground coffee, cone/filters. Kettle in the room was a great addition. Not everyone would be bothered with this, but we loved having a great cup of coffee in the morning.

 

Wrote-in items on the room service menu for breakfast; all of which were provided.

 

Non-dairy creamer, which we dislike, was the norm; however, we ordered a cup of half and half with our room service breakfasts, and stored it in the minibar.

 

Dining room food was very good to excellent! Same for Portofino's. Excellent service in all venues.

 

After 8 cruises, 6 of which were on the Explorer, crew friendliness and service was absolutely outstanding.

 

Labadee: we had a Nellies over the water cabana for the day. It DID include the Barefoot Beach buffet. Buffet offerings were great, including steak, shrimp, ribs, etc.

 

San Juan: Walked Old San Juan, bought some sterling silver jewelry, and hit the CVS for minor essentials (read: potato chips).

 

St Maarten: We enjoyed an empty ship for Solarium/pool day, after the downpours subsided :)

 

Antigua: Purchased day passes for Coconut Beach resort--all inclusive for beach, loungers, palapas for shade, pool, changing rooms, open bar, and lunch buffet. Cab was $6 pp each way, and the driver returned punctually to take us back to ship. Well-worth it--no vendors on the beach, quiet, and off the beaten path.

 

St Kitt's: Toured the island with an excellent driver, visited batik factory, botanical gardens, and a fabulous fort up in the mountains.

 

Great weather, except for the final sea day--50 mph winds, pouring rain, and wild seas. The outside decks were closed for most of the day. Spent alot of time in Viking Crown, for great views of the ship's movement, a number of rainbows, and quiet time for reading..

 

This was our longest cruise so far. A bit older demographic amongst passengers, with many nationalities represented. Probably not more than 40-50 children on board.

 

The Explorer is in need of a dry dock, but overall, is in pretty good shape. She is a beautiful ship!

 

That's it, but feel free to ask any questions.

 

Teddie

Teddie,

That is perhaps the single best review I have read since being with CC. Very concise, comprehensive, and no excessive verbiage. I really enjoyed reading it. Thank you indeed.

Bob

Hello,

 

I am a 17 year old girl going on a cruise at beginning of December, and I have less than month to lose 4 kgs! I am 51kg at the moment, 164cm tall. And.. I really don't want to feel self-conscious when I'm supposed to be enjoying myself! The staff are very nice, but I don't want people to stare when I go to the gym/get into shorts/tank. I'm not even thinking about a bikini at this stage. :(

 

arrgh I'm really stressed! I made friends last time, but there were these skinny, tall girls who were on the treadmill all the time and whilst jogging, gave rude glances because I was doing weight training. They were light weights, but I did 800 reps for sculpting not building muscle.

 

another question: what do guys think about girls doing weight training? I'm not a tom boy or anything, like I do pilates and yoga, cardio too. just wondering.

 

Soooo I know i need to lose weight.. does anyone have any tips?? e.g. green tea or something? I'm working out 7 hrs cardio/weights and 3 hrs pilates a week+ abs every night. should I do more??

 

I DON'T WANT EVERYONE STARING!! :( I'm not even thinking about bringing a bikini at this stage

 

thanks!

Athena.

At 112 lbs and 5 feet 3 inches, if I did my conversion right, I for one see nothing wrong with the package. You are by far in nicer condition than a huge percentage of your peers. The ones that are staring are most probably jealous anyway. Go ahead and workout anyway you find that suits your personal style and don't fret about what anyone else says or does. The people that are going to be your true friends care about your personality and not your appearance. You will only do yourself harm when you fret about others thoughts. Relax and have a great cruise.

Bob:)

I have to add my opinion to this discussion. Flamers please keep an open mind as I do have some working knowledge of the subject. As a beef eater of over 60 years, longtime beef farmer, food service worker, and concerned consumer I offer the following informed opinion for you to think about. Keep in mind, it is only my opinion, and we all know the old saw about "Opinions are like @#$%, everybody has one!", right?

The days of tasty succulent beef for the masses are gone never to return. Pork is following closely behind, as are most other meats. In the past five years I have found it more and more frustrating to first be able to find a steak I can afford, second once I have found it to be able to cook it tender enough to suit me (I prefer it mooing after just a quick sizzle on each side. I still have all my natural choppers) and third find a piece that tastes like it used to.

Well, the answer is simple and it may shock you. It is tied directly to the reason your fuel prices are going up and your mpg are going down; Corn! The best beef used to be fed mostly good old corn. Now a huge piece of our corn crop is being diverted to be used as a gasoline additive. Ask any qualified automobile mechanic and they will tell you that this can reduce your mpg by up to 25%. Don't believe it? Try it yourself if you can find some unadulterated gas. To replace the corn, the animals are increasingly being fed unhealthy mixtures containing everything but corn. If I elaborated some of you would be disgusted at what you have been paying premium prices for and eating. Some of you would undoubtedly turn Vegan.

I could go on and on, but I think you get my point. I can back up anything I say with years of research. Oh, you can still find good, tasty, tender beef, but it is grown on farms where they can afford to feed quality feed IE corn. The caveat is, dig way down deep in those pockets for wads of the crinkly green stuff. Think about what one poster said about paying $600 for 4 people. How many of us can do that?

Cruise well friends.

Bob

We are cruising in Dec. and snorkeling with turtles in Barbados. Our 9 and 11 year old Granddaughters would like underwater cameras for snorkeling. Any ideas on a camera that we could buy for each of the girls that won't break the bank?

Thanks, Doxie

Doxie,

I found a couple of nice Fujis at Wally World for 10 bucks a pop. I think they will work fine for the short snorkel trip we are taking at Sapphire Beach.;)

Bob

There is a large marine snail called scungilli which may be easier to find and is much better. We sold it in the seafood section of the market I used to work in. It is prepared in a savory marinara sauce with garlic and herbs. They are as large as a golf ball and when cooked right are truly wonderful. Much better than your usual escargot.

Bob:)

OP, I have not yet cruised and have never been snorkeling, however, I have been interested and planning for several months now. I have spent many long hours on many online sites including CC. I have drawn the overwhelming conclusion that Saphire is about as good as a newbie like myself is going to get. Oh I am sure there are more colorful or exciting places to go, but probably not on short duration visit like you are going to get on a cruise ship. I hope you enjoy Saphire. I know I am going to.

Bob

Does anybody know if a non passenger would be allowed to board a cruise ship in port, to "have a look around" and take pictures etc.? A friend of mine want's to know but I couldn't give him a definite answer seeing as I've never considered it myself.

I asked the same thing myself not long ago and was told much the same thing as you have found. I found out by chance from a CC member from out of my area that AAA was offering a 1 day tour of RCL Explorer of the Seas while it was docked at Port Liberty in Bayonne NJ on May 2nd. It took a bit of phone work, but I bought DW and I the tickets for this tour. It includes round trip bus fare from Allentown PA, a tour of the passenger areas of the ship, and lunch at the Windjammer. We are very excited to be able to actually get to see the ship before our very first cruise. I called AAA regional office here in NY and told them about what I was doing and they said they would look into it as well. I think it would be in the cruise business's best interest to offer such tours as an incentive to get more folks to travel. Maybe if more folks get on the horn with their cruise lines and travel clubs we would see more tours of this type. BTW, tickets were only $59pp.

Bob:)

First of all, we are very thrifty (our kids say 'cheap'!:)), we do alot to save money to go on a cruise-- and to save money while we are on the cruise....but we have never seen this before: While eating in the MDR of a Princess ship, at the table near us-- the lady pulled from her purse MIO drops to flavor her water! It was bright red-- and she did not offer to any of the others sitting at their table. I just thought it was kind of tacky... to each their own, I guess... I can see at the buffet or in their room-- or in their own cups by the pool-- but to bring to dinner... even on formal night... the waitress, I believe from Slovenia or the Ukraine- asked her what it was-- as she had never seen anything like that... am I being a cruise snob? :)

I am not even going to peruse the 3 pages of responses to your question before replying. I had decided to do precisely this same thing when I started planning my first cruise. I am going to take several flavors of MIO with me and use it whenever and wherever I like. It is good, it is cheap and I do not care what anyone else thinks about it. Let them call me a snob if they want because I can deal with that quickly and efficiently. They, IMHO, would most certainly be ignorant perhaps, but I tag folks as snobs for bigger crimes than that. Maybe if you offered to pay for a drink package for them it would make you feel better. :eek:

I have spent hours upon hours online trying to incorporate Amtrak into our next cruise plans. Not only do I not fly anymore, but I thought it would be nice to travel this way as well as maybe being a bit more inexpensive than airline tickets. I have come away with a bad taste in my mouth at all the problems I have encountered. I have been unable to get straight answers from TA's and can not seem to log on the Amtrak site and get info without filling out repeated registrations. The prices I do find for travel to ports such as NOLA, Tampa, and Miami are anything but inexpensive and take up to a couple of days to complete. Online reviews by those having traveled similar routes are fraught with negative issues. I have decided to either fly again or drive myself. I would opt for doing away with any further government subsidies for Amtrak.

Bob

Please start your own thread for this question. It is considered "off topic" to insert an unrelated question like this in an existing thread. You can do this by going to the "Ask a Cruise Question" page, and clicking the "New Thread" button near the top of the page. Thanks.[/quote

 

I must have hit a wrong button unintentionally. Would that I could erase it and start over. That's the wonderful thing about CC forums, there is always someone quick to assert themselves and correct an errant jerk like me.:o

I have a planning question and hope this is a proper place to start. My DW and I are booked for our first cruise in Dec of this year. It has been of tremendous value to us to plan it over several months time. With that in mind and already thinking that cruising might be something we would like to do again, we are now starting planning for another. This cruise is to the eastern Caribbean. I want to explore new venues so have decided on either southern Caribbean or Mexico for the next. We are on a fixed retirement income and find it most affordable to travel out of the NYC area because we can reach any of the ports by bus with little effort or expense. We would both appreciate any input from those of you having made these trips in recent months. Security in Mexico is a major concern to my DW. Thanks in advance for your help.

Bob

As noted above, it is done all the time usually with travel agents or Chamber of Commerce reps so they can go back and tell their clientele about the ship so they will book it. MDR is used for lunch for the guests before they leave the ship. They get a tour of the ship to see it and some of its features and many times they also get to see different categories of cabins as well. They may also leave the ship with a package of "goodies" consisting of items with the ship's logo on it. It's all done to increase sales of future bookings for the ship.

 

Passengers are not allowed in their cabins until around 1:30 PM. So the cabins are off limits allowing viewing of the cabins to be done while passengers are eating in the Windjammer. There is a method to RCCI madness!:D

 

MARAPRINCE

My wife and I have purchased a 1 day tour of the Explorer as she is docked in Bayonne. We got it through AAA out of Allentown, PA. It includes bus to and from Port Liberty, a tour of the ship and facilities as well as lunch in the Windjammer. It is on 2May and cost $59pp.

Bob:)

EEMAXX, Thank you for the speedy reply. It is just what I needed. Thanks again and Happy Cruising. Bob

I was just reading the newsletter from AAA and on the back page they advertise a one day tour of the Explorer on May 2nd for $59. It includes a motor coach to Bayonne, tour of the shop, lunch on board and motor coach back. I'm just wondering how they squeeze this in. After checking RC's schedules, it's a turn around day. One cruise is disembarking (the 5 night from Bermuda) while the 9 night Bermuda & Caribbean will be boarding. Has anyone ever done this before? I'm wondering if they'd let the tour people on early to get us out of the way before regular boarding begins? We're taking the 5 night cruise to Bermuda in June and although we've been on the Explorer before, this sounds like fun!

EEMAXX would you mind giving the date/issue number of the newsletter containing the info on this trip? I called AAA and they were unable to help me even tho I am a longtime member. DW and I are booked for our first cruise and it just happens to be out of Bayonne on the Explorer. This would be an excellent orientation trip for us. Any more details would be appreciated. Thank you. Bob

What a pleasant surprise. I really expected the OP to get blasted out of the water by the snobs and people that complain if you don't tip more than they think you should. Instead I found a wealth of worthwhile tips and advice. Thanks to all.

I chime in at risk of being blasted out of the water but could not resist. I will try and be brief and to the point. I might add that I have yet to cruise and am a parent, grandparent and great grandparent. I have gone out of my way to try and choose a cruise that will put me at least risk of being exposed to an exceptional amount of children. I have had numerous dinners out, trips to theaters, Broadway plays, church services, funerals etc disrupted by misbehaving children. That being said, I have also had the displeasure of having numerous happy or somber occasions marred by unruly adults. What I can assure you of is that I am not a person that will stand by and let the interruption take place and not say something. I will get in your face. You can rest assured of that. By the same token, if you are fortunate enough to have those children who are well behaved and polite as some most certainly are, I am also quick to congratulate you on the fine job you have done raising them. :D:D