SusieKIslandGirl

Our last cruise out of San Diego we had a box with 11 bottles of wine tied to the top of our rolling carry-on sized bag. They looked at one bottle, wrote out the corkage fee slip and gave us the stickers.

I would appreciate some information--Does anyone have an approximate length of time it takes to get off a ship in St. Petersburg if not on a ship's excursion? Since the ship is not tendered I'm thinking there shouldn't be any hold-ups but with the visa requirements, I'm just not sure. Once the ship has cleared is it reasonable to assume you could be off in 1/2 hour or less? Thanks so much!

I think everyone has already said most of what we've been thinking but have to say this was an amazing cruise despite the weather. Having been involved with such a large and active roll call certainly helped to make the cruise memorable.

It was interesting to see how the "vibe" of the ship changed with so many getting off in San Diego and the birders, with their assorted equipment, getting on. They all had to get off in Vancouver and then the party people arrived. I saw more buckets of beer being delivered that day in Vancouver than I did the other 33 days combined! It was a crazy couple of days. Thanks to Ann and Pat for having Victoria give us such a glorious day!

I hope Loren and I have the opportunity to sail with all of you again. --Susie

Thanks to everyone for the hopes of calm seas and sunny skies. Less than a week now---a dream is coming true.

Riesling is usually less dry than the rest of the white wines. It's generally the only one I can drink-everything else is too "sour or bitter(?). Once in awhile a zinfandel isn't too bad.

I don't get that message-I get the one that warns me the website certificate is compromised and suggests I don't sign on. Anyone else having that issue? Thanks!

A little off the laundry topic but the how to pronounce city names is a fun game. When DH was a lowly airman in the Air Force we would get together with friends from Florida. We'd have Washington and Florida maps and take turns pointing to cities and then guess the proper way to say it. That's when I learned the right way to say Kissimmee, Florida-before the Disney World era. Thanks, you brought back good memories.

Boarding in Rome......is there stores that carry cases of bottled water close to the port?

We took the train from Rome to the port. The train station had a great little store on the lower level where we purchased wine and soft drinks.

The signature of the cruise director...........

Signatures of crew members from X number of different countries (you can decide how many different ones you want)

A trivia answer sheet

That is such a sinking feeling when you realize something has been stolen.

You can add a daily amount to your casino bank, play a couple of pulls on the slot machine and then cash out. The ship may say something after a few attempts but at least it will lessen the amount you need to pay the percentage on at the front desk.

We're booked on a 35 day cruise leaving in April. Booked over a year ago but about 6 months ago a promo came out for pre-paid gratuities. We paid a bit more but wasn't close to what the promo gave us plus we were able to keep the dinners from the previous promo. Keep checking!

If you can't get pared down quite as much as you want, look at a Bag Bungee from Magellan's travel catalog. It straps on to your larger bag and then cinches over a smaller carry-on bag on top of the larger bag. (The photo on the website shows much better than I explained!) I have two and love them. Plus we use medium sized back packs.

metal hanging over-the-door bars with several hooks. We plan to try hanging these on the existing hooks on the side walls near our bed. We will have 10 hooks instead of two.

 

Has any one tried this ??????

Is there a photo available of this hook system? Thanks!

The known traveler number is correct and in his profile and Alaska Air is part of pre-check. Not sure why he isn't selected 100% except for what the TSA agent told me about it's not a guarantee, even with signing up for any of the known traveler programs. We will see what the February flight brings.............

We stayed at the Embassy Suites-nice breakfast and evening reception. It was a fairly easy walk for our mid-60's legs to the pier. Walking the length of the pier to the elevator was the worst of the walk.

 

I will certainly be on the lookout, too, for the Nexus/GE line next time!

 

BTW, we drove across the border at Blaine, WA, last week, and there was one Nexus line, and one that said RFID - anyone know that one?

Called my brother who lives in Bellingham to ask if he had any idea about the RFID lane since he goes to BC at least twice a month. No clue but I did find the following on the good ol' internet.

Published: April 13, 2011, 12:00 AM

BLAINE, Wash. (AP) — It soon should be easier for motorists with an enhanced driver license to pass through Peace Arch border crossing at Blaine.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection opens a “ready lane” on Monday to expedite travelers with radio frequency identification (RFID) documents.

In addition to the Washington enhanced driver license, they include the NEXUS card, new permanent resident card and U.S. passport card.

Customs and Border Protection spokesman Thomas Schreiber says the ready lane should be 10-to-15 seconds faster per car, which can make a big difference over time in a line of traffic.

As for Pre-check and the Nexus card-my husband was rarely getting the pre-check. Maybe one out of four flights. He was getting it randomly so I knew the info was good. I asked at the airport one time and was told pre-check is never guaranteed but usually is applied to those who have applied for the various programs. He was just very unlucky with the random selection.

I wish I had seen this thread before I came back to Port Everglades last Sunday on the Nieuw Amsterdam. There were 2 customs officers for over 2000 people and 1 officer for wheelchairs and special needs.

 

I never saw any sign or notice that I could show my Nexus card and go in the wheelchair line. I found that out when I got to front of the line - took an hour to get there. I overheard the person in front of me ask about Global Entry and heard the guy say we could have used the other line.

Same thing happened to us at Port Everglades in Oct. When we finally got to the front of the line there was a little sign saying "Global Entry". Grrrrr......

It is a shame that most all companies are no longer taking customer service comments seriously. I just spent nearly 1/2 on the phone going in circles with Comcast-first with the computer voice and then with a real person. Never did get a clear answer. Hopefully if everyone who is dissatisfied contacts their cruise line when problems occur the head office(s) will get the picture. Several comments may not get their attention but many might. We can always hope!

I clicked on the link to Amazon and found several options. I did see one in white/clear that was a little less money. I like to read the negative reviews as well as the positive and was glad I did this time. The less expensive bag shown next to the colors is not an official "Ice Bag". Evidently the product is not as good as the official bag. Little details and assuming too much almost tripped me up. Reminded me that reading the fine print is always a good idea.

no Global Entry (or Nexus for Cdns reading). It's all the old fashioned way. I am quite sure that is true at most cruise ports.

 

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In April getting off the Carnival ship in Fort Lauderdale we waited in several long lines. As we got very close to the Customs lanes there was a small sign for Global Entry. I asked if our Nexus card would have gotten us through and the answer was yes-next question was why wasn't the sign back where the line began? Grrrr-now I know to look for the sign before I get in line.

On our Alaska cruise a couple of years ago, the bow area was opened when we reached the glacier viewing area. The rest of the cruise it wasn't open.

(Quote) The place is incredible - the views - the merchants - the cathedral and everything around it. I am having a hard time choosing pics so I am afraid I will post too many, sorry.

I didn't know there was such a thing as too many photos! Enjoying every one of them. Thanks for taking the time to share.

I asked the same question for our Roll Call next year end of July. Being new to HAL I didn't want to be the first to set up a roll call as I have no knowledge of the ship or the usual places to hold gatherings. Going to leave it until the new year and see if one gets started.

Go ahead and start the roll call. You have a great starting message-you'd like information on the specific ship and HAL in general. It will take off from there.

We cruise around six months each year, so we have developed our own system.

 

 

All of our regular monthly bills are charged to a Visa card. Then once a month, I download and study the Visa bill. If I agree with the charges, I pay the Visa bill on line from my checking account. This system seems to work for us.

 

Scott & Karen

My question is how do you securely pay your bill on line? We'll be gone for over a month next year and I can plan for everything except for the Visa bill. Not sure how secure the ship's internet is-or maybe I am and don't want to do it.

For everyone planning on forwarding their mail, make sure you check the Temp. Forward box and put in an end date.