lx200gps

21 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

You also do not want to drive to Boston - train or plane is the way to get there.

46 minutes ago, Loracpin2 said:

Thanks for the detailed info. Since we only stay at Marriott properties (Husband'sTitanium status as a result of 39 years of Corporate travel) will look at Residence Inn. 

I didn't even know there was a Titanium level ;o) The RI was great, no issues other than it's a hotel with in-room, rather than central, A/C. The room was huge, separate living room/kitchenette and bedroom. You can also look into the adjoining Envue, which is confusingly in the same building as the RI, on different floors. Seems a slight bit more upscale than the RI and was a bit more $$$ when we stayed at the RI.  Either hotel is great. and the huge parking garage in the same building serves both hotels and the ferry passengers.  There's even another parking garage, slightly cheaper, a block north for overflow.

12 hours ago, TheArtfulPenguin said:

There are other options for Android users.  I am a network engineer and a non-iPhone person.  To many restrictions on iPhone for what I do.

 

Non-Airtag options. There are others as well. 

 

• Samsung Galaxy SmartTag: Specifically tailored for Samsung devices and integrated with the SmartThings app.
• Tile Mate: Uses Bluetooth to track items and offers a premium subscription for extra services such as smart alerts for unknown trackers.

Quite correct there are plenty of options now. Heads up on the Tiles, there are multiple models available, in different sizes, capabilities etc. The Mate is a basic model with a non-replaceable battery, so basically disposable after a few years. We have Tile Pros in all our bags, longer range and a replaceable battery.  Working perfectly with our Sammy phones, we went with the Tiles and not the Smartags in case we ever switch phone brands away from Samsung.

9 minutes ago, Ozmodiar said:

Thanks for this, I may try this next time I sail from the MCT. Always wanted to try the ferry.

We were very pleasantly surprised at the whole process. Granted we took the ferry, both there and back to NJ, at off-peak times early on a Saturday morning so there were no crowds at all. The ferry terminals, ramps and the ferries themselves are quite flat and easy to navigate, and clearly others had the same idea as us, because there were other folks with suitcases on board as well. There are lots of Youtube videos out there on the while NY Ferry system to give you a good idea of how it all works.

9 minutes ago, broberts said:

 

In Toronto at least the passport office has been rolled into the service Canada office in the same building.

Same around here as well. They moved the Passport Office a few months ago from inside a Cadillac Fairview mall to a dedicated Service Canada building nearby. Since I well remembered the massive lineups when the Passport Office was in the mall, I decided to absolutely not go to the office they moved to, hence my suggestion to find as obscure a Service Canada office as possible. The one I went to was virtually a ghost town when I arrived for a 2PM appointment on a Friday afternoon.

6 hours ago, Milhouse said:

IMO, I find tipping percentages can be somewhat regional.  However, I think 15-20% is within spec. 

I'm curious if your credit cards have a chip & PIN which is the standard in Canada nowadays.  I also ask because many businesses (and taxis) use mobile credit card machines and a lot of the machines are set up with various preset tip percentage options, though some are set on the high side.

Very good point. With our credit cards having a chip/PIN, we almost never have to even insert the card into a machine anymore, probably 95% of the time it's a simple tap. I can't even remember the last time I used cash for anything, even the smallest charge.

On 3/14/2024 at 5:51 PM, Loracpin2 said:

Family Group (7) sailing out of NYC on the Norwegian Joy in mid July. We all prefer spending the night before in a Hotel in NJ that is the easiest ride from NJ to NY. Would very much appreciate any Marriott Properties recommendations. 

Thank you in advance.  

 

Before our last trip out the the MCT, we stayed across the river in Weehawken, almost directly opposite the MCT. There are two Marriott properties in the same building, a Residence Inn and an Envue, both across the street from the huge ferry terminal, many rooms having great Manhattan skyline views. A large parking garage attached to the hotels was around ($25?) per day, far cheaper than at the MCT.  Rather than drive through the Lincoln Tunnel or cross the GW Bridge, we parked for the week at the ferry terminal and took the ferry across the Hudson. From the ferry terminal at W 40th, it was an easy 15 minute walk north up the pedestrian-only walkway to the MCT. We will do that again whenever we sail out of the MCT. The ferry system is very conducive to traveling with suitcases, getting on and off the ferry was dead easy, and as it was around 8AM on a Saturday when we did it, the ferry was pretty much empty.

On 3/15/2024 at 7:01 PM, Ozmodiar said:

One thing to consider is staying north a bit - there is a large Marriott in Teaneck close to both I-95 or I-80. You'd enter Manhattan via the George Washington Bridge and take the Hudson Parkway south to the cruise terminal. Probably 30 minutes or less and for the city a fairly easy drive.

We stayed at this very property before our trip last year out of Brooklyn. Worked out great, relatively inexpensive, large, full service hotel, and as you say, right off the GW Bridge and an easy drive to the MCT (though of course we drove right by it on the way to Brooklyn). Far less expensive than any Manhattan or Brooklyn hotel I could find.

1 hour ago, CDNPolar said:

 

Is this a new service?  Did you book an appointment?  How does this work?

 

We will be renewing mid next year and have not done so for almost 10 years so the process is a distant memory for us now.

I don't know if it's new or not, but it was a very easy and painless process easy. I went to:

https://eservices.canada.ca/en/reservation/

made all the selections for a passport renewal and selected my desired time, date and location from the offerings that came up. Knowing how slammed the passport system is these days, I made a point of selecting the most out of the way Service Canada office I could find near me, correctly assuming that it would not be as busy as a main Passport office. It sure wasn't, the office was almost empty. Note that you don't have to go to a busy Passport office, I went to a basic Service Canada outlet and they handled everything. Once I checked in at the front desk and sat down in the waiting area, it was no more 5 minutes until the lady called me in to her office, went through my application paperwork and photos, and took my $168 fee. I was in and out of the office in about 20 minutes total elapsed time. She handed me back my now cancelled old passport and confirmed I should have the new one NLT the end of April. Sad side note, we got to chatting about NEXUS and she told me that, as a new applicant, her application has been in the system for a YEAR and she was told it could be another year before she gets her NEXUS card.

2 hours ago, gnome12 said:

You go online in the same way you renew your NEXUS card and change the passport number in your file. 

Perfect, thanks. I'll get on it as soon as the new passport arrives.

I just came from a wonderful sit-down at a Service Canada office where I submitted my passport renewal paperwork. No waiting, in and out in 10 minutes. All's well, I should have it by the end of April. The new passport will have a different number than my old one.  How will this affect my NEXUS card, which presumably is linked to my old passport?  Since my current NEXUS card (expiring next year) has an "old" passport number linked to it, what would I have to do to ensure my two documents are properly linked? 

2 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

You are right! I just looked at it an Tile does now work differently than it used to. It now does work when in proximity to phones with the Tile app installed. I doubt that is as robust a network of phones as iPhones and Samsumgs, but hopefully would be a sufficient number of phones in crowded airports and maybe on cruise ships. Thanks for pointing this out! I might look into ordering a few.

 

No worries, by all means investigate them further. We've used them only about two years, on half a dozen flights and cruises and they have worked perfectly for us, they had no issues showing exactly where our bags were.  The only issue, and I don't know whether this is a common issue with other trackers, is that sometimes they might take 10 or 15 minutes to "lock on" to our Tags and show us their location.  It's always a bit nerve wracking to fire up the phone after landing at an airport and waiting for the app to show us the bags are still with us ;o)  But they've worked perfectly.

Montrealer here. Admittedly I've never taken the train from here, but Amtrak uses Central Station (Gare Centrale) which is probably 2km at most from the port, an easy Uber or taxi ride or an easy walk if you don't have luggage ;o). An 11AM train should be very easy to make provided all the usual caveats are understood. What if the ship docks late? What are the later trains like, is it easy to get on another later one, or is that the only train that day?

4 hours ago, WELDON said:

To lx200 GPS - May I make a suggestion as to staying in Woburn instead of Burlington? Woburn is not very far up the road from Burlington.

There is something called Logan Express. The bus goes directly to the airport. You then take Silver Line 1, go to the first station in the tunnel and transfer to Silver Line 2. Silver Line 2 goes to the pier.  Parking at Logan Express lots is $7 per day. There are a lot of hotels in Woburn.

Thanks for the heads up. Much appreciated. I certainly looked at Woburn as well when looking for a hotel. I chose Burlington because the Residence Inn was quite cheap (relatively speaking; forget downtown ;o) and was physically in the big Burlington Mall near to restaurants restaurants. As we will come in from the north down the I89 to the I93, it's on a direct line for us.  Woburn was also a good bet but I got a particularly good deal with the RI with my Marriott status. As to the train, my wife never travels light on a cruise so public transport isn't an option when dragging 475 suitcases behind us.  We have no choice but to drive right down to the port and hope we can find easy parking near the pier.

Sorry for the contrarian position, but twins all the way.  The queens are far too tiny for comfort for us. I am a very light sleeper at the best of times, and SWMBO uses 3 times as many blankets and comforters as I do, so having separate beds for a week is fine with us.

1 hour ago, JamieLogical said:

 

The only ones that actually work are specifically for Samsung phones. Again, not nearly all people with Android phones have Samsung phones.

 

I should clarify that the reason only the Samsung ones really work is that, like AirTags, they only require people with a specific type of phone to be in BlueTooth range, but it doesn't have to be YOUR phone. All the others, like Tile, require the tag to be in BlueTooth range of YOUR phone. Great for finding your keys in your house, but not great for finding your keys across town.

 

Sorry, don't think that's correct.  We use Tiles in all our bags and they work perfectly. Available for both Android (not just Samsung) and IOS. It's a great feeling to land at an airport and see that all your bags have landed safely with you.

https://www.tile.com/en-ca

On 2/3/2024 at 8:06 PM, Nanatravel said:

Did you check on Massport.gov or com? The garage across the street from the terminal is now private thus they lease spots to local businesses for long term daily parking. Massport used to have a street lot on D Street. Check it out. Leave off your passenger with your luggage and either walk back or take a shuttle if they still have one. Good luck. 

Any idea when this started? I ask because there was a thread here on CC from last year, where some folks actually parked at this very convenient covered garage and had no problems at all. They even asked the management at the garage whether it was OK to park for a cruise and were told no problem, just to park on an upper floor. We're planning on using this garage in July, otherwise one of the surface lots like C-1 nearby.

14 hours ago, girlgummy said:

I'm looking to stay in Boston for 3 nights prior to our cruises which is roundtrip Boston. Is there such thing as a hotel which will allow us to leave our car in the parking lot (at no charge, since we were guests for 3 nights) while we're away on the cruise for a week? Even better if they provide free shuttle to/from the pier, but willing to take an Uber.

 

I've been researching the best options for our mid-July trip, and as the others have mentioned, Boston hotel prices, particularly mid-summer, are massively expensive.  The two hotels right next to the pier, for example, are over $800/night for our dates. You may want to investigate a Park and Fly package from a Logan area hotel, as they do offer the option of staying one or two nights but leaving your car parked at their facility. From what I am seeing, the incremental cost of the extra week's parking isn't bad at all. The problem with those hotels is that they are far from the tourist areas and would require an Uber ride. That being said, I can't speak to the quality of the airport hotels and the relative safety of their parking lots. In our case, we are planning to stay up north in Burlington, where hotel prices are less than half of downtown, then drive down and park at one of the parking lots near the terminal, probably the covered garage one block north.  Best of luck, have a great cruise (and welcome to Cruise Critic ;o)

https://www.parksleephotels.com/Park-and-Fly-Hotel-Packages-Near-Boston-Airport-BOS.html

1 hour ago, Cable3232 said:

• You don't need your passport to get on or off the ship while in port (only your cruise card) 

 

Heads up for the new cruiser, but there are a very few ports where a photo ID is actually needed to get back to the ship, i.e. past the port security gate. It's a local port requirement, not a Princess requirement, as once you are back to the ship, all you will need is the Medallion to get back on board and go through the scanner.

Uber would probably be easiest and cheapest. There are always a herd of them circling around 17th St waiting for calls on embarkation mornings, we've never waited more a a minute or two while watching the driver approach our hotel. No sitting in a crowded van while the driver visits all the terminals before dropping you off because yours was his last stop ;o)

As others have stated, it's almost guaranteed that the trip will leave from and return to Brooklyn. Generally, Princess only uses the MCT as an intermediate stop on a longer voyage. It's hard to understand why Princess keeps up that (Manhattan or Brooklyn) wording, but they do. In 2022, when we left from Brooklyn on the Enchanted, we also saw that confusing wording, but noticed something change within a few weeks of departure. When I went into the Personalizer to look at the booking, on the "Itinerary" tab, it still said "New York City (Manhattan or Brooklyn), New York" for the departure port, but then right underneath, very clearly listed the address of the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, 72 Bowne Street etc.

Folks will chime in soon with lots of options, but one of our favorites is the Boatyard, just across and down 17th street from the HP, literally next to the big Renaissance. We like it because of its outdoor patio right on the canal for the yacht watching.

https://boatyard.restaurant/

26 minutes ago, JessRa said:

Going on my second Princess cruise and my TA got us a nice OBC.I want to confirm that the only way to use OBC to purchase the Plus or Premium plan is to wait until embarkation and go to guest services? Will there be any problem with paying for part of the price with OBC and part with my card? Will the price will be the same as if I purchased it before the cruise? TIA!

As stated, you definitely don't have to go to Guest Services to do the upgrade, there will be plenty of crew waiting in the Piazza just as you board who are there to help with just that purchase. Yes, the only way to use OBC for the upgrade is to do it once on board. The upgrade goes live instantly so you can enjoy the benefits right away. Every time we have done this, including last month, the price was identical to what we saw online before the cruise. As to paying with both OBC and credit card, that should be done easily. If you don't have enough OBC to cover the whole charge, then I expect the OBC would be used up first then the rest would come off your card which is already on file. If you want to do something different, such as only using a portion of the OBC for the purchase, then you would probably have to go to GS to make the special arrangement.

A very quick search on the Uber estimator site shows the fare between MCO and the Tampa cruise port would start around $100, taking between 90 minutes to 2 hours depending on route.

1 hour ago, JamieLogical said:

I called and they told me that it can take 24-48 hours for the system to update with my upgrade, so to try back then. Unfortunately, I fear the last few remaining reservations will be booked by then. Has anyone had any luck/experience with booking specialty dining when onboard? The rep on the phone told me that only a certain percentage of reservations are made available to book through the app ahead of the cruise and we should still be able to book onboard?

I literally just called in to Princess this afternoon to upgrade from Plus to Premier for one of our upcoming trips, in July. As soon as I hung up from talking to her, I went onto our account under that sailing and the upgrade was already in effect, with the Travel Summary showing our Premier package.

Interesting that the rep actually admitted that they only release a certain percentage of dining slots in advance. That has always been our understanding, certainly from our personal experience, I've just never heard of Princess admitting it. As to booking SD restaurants on board, we usually eat in the SDRs, hardly ever in the MDRs. We never book on line in advance and always prefer to book once we board. We rarely have any problem, and calling the DINE line is one of our first actions upon boarding, though we also will just walk up to each of the venues and book in person.