Westerdam Panama Canal April 15, 2011

[bcirish]

We have this booked tentatively and hope that it works out- we love the longer cruises. I love this that we start and end in a the states and in two places that SWA flies - will not have to worry about open jaw. Hope to see someone else joining us! 22 days of pure delight and a wonderful ship. Hope we have the same great chef we had in January in the Caribbean - some of the best food ever!!!

[bcirish]

Looks like the ship will not be crowded =- maybe we will upgraded to the penthouse : ). I know I know - I am a bit ahead of the game! At least there are lurkers!

[NoWhiners]

We just booked this. Anyone else out there booked or thinking about this cruise? it's a long way off but sales appear to be brisk, so we decided to book now. Rate went up $100 since we first checked in October 2009.

 

Sign in if you will be on board,

Mary Lynn

[bcirish]

I am really looking forward to this cruise - right now I wish it was this year instead of next year but we have not been off the Westerdam that long - guess we should let someone else have a chance to cruise on her. So now I will have to be content to looking forward to next April- hope eventually someone sees this and joins us on this roll call!

[bcirish]

Wow when I look at the count down - thanks Andrea - it looks like forever before we will be cruising again - may need something in between - think I will start looking- anybody out there- feels strange talking to myself : )

[NoWhiners]

In case no one noticed, I already set up a roll call on this board for this cruise.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1152895 (a few down from your posts)

 

Lets decide how we want to do this so we don't end up with multiple split threads.

 

We booked a guarantee and I think cabins are selling pretty well. When we spoke to our TA (a major warehouse that starts with C), they didn't have any interior or fully obstructed OV cabins left, only guarantees. They had 8 unobstructed OV left 2 weeks ago. i have no clue how they manage their inventory, but it seems to be diminishing every week--and prices went up about $100 since October (for obstructed OV).

 

Can't wait for this--I retire in December and the cruise is my celebration!!

 

Mary Lynn

[NoWhiners]

I saw another roll call for this cruise. Post to the original and we can coordinate a little better!!

 

I was worried we were the only ones who booked this early!

 

Mary Lynn

[bcirish]

I started the roll call Feb 10th and did not see anything on the roll call at that time- ie why I set up the board- did not see yours until today when you posted to it. Sorry - thought mine was the original

[NoWhiners]

lets decide which one we will sue and be sure to keep that one active. I suggest the one that was posted first--what do you think?

 

Looking forward to this cruise--still more than a year out! Way too long.

[NoWhiners]

my eyes are getting too old to read smaller print!!

 

sorry

ML

[bcirish]

Works for me- know what you mean about the eyes- I too am looking forward to this - we love the Westerdam and much of this cruise will be different for us. We quickly have come to choose cruises by the length and now love the sea days- think that is what retirement has done for us. So far our longest has been 28 days and it was great. This one looks very promising too.

 

We are actually thinking about what we how we will get home once we get to the end of the cruise- the possibilities are endless and I love the research.

[bcirish]

Well now there are two of us - wonder if we will get excellent upgrades since the ship is empty:).

Have you been on the Westerdam before? She is going in to drydock in April - not anything big as far as I understand -we were on her for 2 weeks in January- nice ship/ Saw something about adding Caneletto and maybe retreats- both would be fine with me although the retreats do take away from the seating by the pool

[bcirish]

Just checking to see if we have gained anyone or if there are lurkers. So have you guys ever done the Panama before? We have done transatlantic and loved it- looking forward to this one. Looks like we may have another during winter before we get to this one - am checking that one out right now- have a chance to cruise with our Westerdam friends from this year

[NoWhiners]

bc

 

I am going to start responding on the other roll call. This will keep it on top of the list!

 

see you over there--maybe between us we can keep it going and recruit others!

[NoWhiners]

"Well now there are two of us - wonder if we will get excellent upgrades since the ship is empty.

 

Have you been on the Westerdam before? She is going in to drydock in April - not anything big as far as I understand -we were on her for 2 weeks in January- nice ship/ Saw something about adding Caneletto and maybe retreats- both would be fine with me although the retreats do take away from the seating by the pool"

 

 

We have never been on the Westerdam but I read about the dry dock changes. Never been to a Caneletto so we are looking forward to trying that. hoping for an upgrade but not expecting one. This is the first time we have gone with a guarantee and i am sort of enjoying the suspense. Going with our cousins and another couple, so we should be a good sized group. We are going with open seating for the first time too.

 

keep posting and we"ll get the party started!

No Whiners

[bcirish]

Confused - thought we were using this roll call since it was first one started- probably too early for most folks - IMO. We have been on the Westerdam three times before and really like her- nice size. WE found the Caneletto on the Eurodam - okay- nice change- if they put in the retreats- it will take a lot of the free space in the pool area - might be kind of pricey over 22 days too.

 

We have a couple other cruises pending before this one but this is the one we are really looking forward to - really like the longer ones.

[bcirish]

Roll call

Welcome to all who are thinking of doing the Panama Canal with us. It should be a great trip.

I set up the meet and greet for our last cruise on Westerdam and will be glad to do it again. I guess we may as well start the list of the those people who will be cruising this time too. With all of our trips we have made some really great new travel friends through the CC boards and know it will happen with this one too - travelers tend to be happy people!:)

So far we have

bcirish - Ed and Barbara from Chicago

nowhiners - Mary Lynn and Doug ( I think) from Albuquerque

 

As we gain members to this board I will update and keep track of all of our fellow passengers on this board.

 

I think this trip will be great and the time of the year will be perfect for this!!!

[NoWhiners]

BC

 

Now I'm confused. You started a roll call after mine, which you acknowledged. Then you agreed we would use the original roll call (the one I started). Now you are starting a list on the wrong roll call.

 

I don't want to sound snarky, but I started the initial roll call, which you admitted you didn't see and started another one. I admit its still early, which is why it would be best if we resolve this now.

 

I would respectfully ask that you STOP posting to this one and use the original. Just review the posts on the one you started to confirm this--see your March 7th responses.

 

Just booked a cabin for my husbands cousins, so we are up to 3 couples in our group--any new recruits on your end?

 

No Whiners.

[NoWhiners]

For anyone on this cruise. I think we have finally worked it out and will be using this board for the roll call.

 

Any other long-term planners out there?

 

No Whiners

[bcirish]

I hope this clears the air and settles the confusion we seem to be having about the original post. Let me know if you have any questions after you have a chance to sort though this.

 

This is your original post to my knowledge and it was posted Feb 27th

 

We just booked this. Anyone else out there booked or thinking about this cruise? it's a long way off but sales appear to be brisk, so we decided to book now. Rate went up $100 since we first checked in October 2009.

Sign in if you will be on board,

Mary Lynn

 

This is my original post for the roll call and it was posted Feb 7th

Panama April 15, 2011-Anybody repositioning with us

We have this booked tentatively and hope that it works out- we love the longer cruises. I love this that we start and end in a the states and in two places that SWA flies - will not have to worry about open jaw. Hope to see someone else joining us! 22 days of pure delight and a wonderful ship. Hope we have the same great chef we had in January in the Caribbean - some of the best food ever!!!

 

 

 

My response on the 7th was to your post on the same day which said:

lets decide which one we will sue and be sure to keep that one active. I suggest the one that was posted first--what do you think?

I agreed and unless I missed something to which I would apologize profusely I am posting on my post which was the roll call for this cruise as far as I can tell and what you agreed we should be using.

 

I am not trying to be difficult- I am merely doing what it appears to me that we agreed to do.

Hope this clears up any confusion.

 

I guess the good news is our posts keep showing up :) - how nice that you will be having family join you on the cruise- will you be doing it all the way to Seattle or getting off sooner?

[NoWhiners]

bcirish

 

I went back and checked all the posts and you are correct--you posted before me!! So, we will use this post for the roll call. I am still very confused because we booked on 2/27 and I posted the next day but the board shows it was march 9. I give up--I hate computers.

 

yes, we are all on the same page and this is the official roll call. In that spirit, I can add 2 more couples:

 

Carol and John from Michigan

Kitty and Jim (also in Albuquerque)

 

I hear rumors that others are thinking hard about this cruise, so we need to encourage them!

 

Now we are only 13 months away--time is flying by. I have been looking into excursions and haven't been able to form up a plan. Do you have any thoughts on this?

 

No Whiners

[bcirish]

No problem - I have been on this board for over 4 years and am still discovering things. I am a huge techie ( according to my family and friends ) and just when I think I have it figured out I discover that I have missed something. I actually have been posting to travel boards for over ten years and love getting to know people and learn. We had a awesome roll call group for our January Westerdam cruise- in fact next winter quite a few of us are cruising together again.

 

We have cruised Westerdam often and really like her -know she is going into dry dock in April- not sure they have planned for her- she was in good ship this winter.

We actually have done a lot of traveling independently but only recently have started incorporating cruising into our travels. I love Europe especially by land, have find the US fascinating. I love to avoid winter weather when ever possible so head south about 4-6 weeks each year.

 

We live outside Chicago and are now both retired and loving it.

 

Here is our first roll call update

 

bcirish - Ed and Barbara from Chicago first posters ;)

nowhiners - Mary Lynn and Doug - first posters ;)

BOARD NAME? Carol and John from Michigan

BOARD NAME? Kitty and Jim (also in Albuquerque)

[NoWhiners]

bc-

 

I don't think our friends are actual CC members ( I think they leave those details to me!!). I too spend a lot of time with tech stuff (I design and analyze security system for a living). CC still mystifies me at times!

 

I wish it were next March and not now--bad day, tired of all the work stuff, and ready to retire. I would rather spend my time finding great priceline hotel and car deals!

 

We have never been on Westerdam and are looking forward to it. I don't actually care about the ship, I just go for itinerary. I suppose there are differences but I never notice. We have been on Zuiderdam twice and Zaandam once. I actually prefer Zaandam (even though I don"t care!) but I think its because it is smaller.

 

we are still trying to recruit others for the trip, so lets keep posting to keep this board active and near the top of list!!

 

No Whiners

[bcirish]

Great - will put them under your name - not sure how that works if there is a connections meeting but we've plenty of time for that.

Know what you mean about retirement - I loved my job but I was ready to be done with it when the time came and we both did early outs - been doing leisure living for 5 years and was lucky they were trying to get rid of all of us so I retired before I was 57 -DH at 55 - since then travel and family have become our focus. we actually were in Albuquerque last June- stayed there on our way to see our daughter in Phoenix. We had dinner at the new cultural Center - very neat experience. I would love to see the hot air balloons but not sure I would like the crowds.

 

Most of our ports for this cruise are new for us - have not spent time in Mexico and look forward to all of the new experiences. I usually choose by ports except in the Caribbean - then it is escaping bad weather and as long as it is warmer than Chicago I really do not care. We really liked our last transatlantic - actually gave us a chance to rest up because once we got to Europe - we were very port intensive and by the end were almost overwhelmed by all that we had seen and experienced.

 

Where in Michigan do John and Carol live? Have you always been in the southwest- I find it to be fascinating but not sure I could stand the summers- hmmm - off to bed - finally sleepy - take care

b

[NoWhiners]

Hi bc

 

Carol and john are in Saginaw, as is another couple who may go. The other folks that are coming (Jim and kitty) are in Albuquerque.

 

I was born in New York City but moved to Albuquerque in 1976. Been here ever since. Hubby is from Dearborn Michigan and been in Albuquerque about as long as me, although we didn't meet until 1981. Our summers aren't as bad as Phoenix and las Vegas. rarley get above mid-90s, and it is a dry heat!! At night it cools down to at least 70, and often into the 60s. During winter it is perfect--cool dry air, rare big snow. Most of the time snow melts by noon. A little like Camelot!!

 

Balloon fiasco, uh I mean Fiesta, is actually lots of fun, but you have to get up pretty early to see mass ascensions (and fight traffic). We don't go every year, but when we do we can park at Doug's work (Honeywell) and walk right across to the balloon field. I would recommend it once! It is pretty spectacular to see 600 balloons up at the same time.

 

We are also fairly young (perspective changes as we age, doesn't it!), late 50's. I will retire a little early because company is changing medical benefits for retirees after this year. Doug will probably retire in 2011. We have 2 dogs and a paid off hose, so we are ready to live the retired life. We probably will only take one more cruise--maybe around Europe. We have been there before when i have been on business trips, so have seen a lot, especially Vienna. We also went to china back in 1999--that was quite a trip. i am in DC right now, while Doug takes care of house and dogs. I don"t go home until april 2, then 1 week at home and we go to Michigan. Then I come back to DC the day after we get home from Michigan. Then I get to be home for a week and return to DC for another week. Going to be a long tear...

 

cruising is a nice thought for me.

 

Going to sign off now--I hope more people sign up (so we can get great upgrades!!). I will tell carol and John to sign up. Jim and Kitty might have, they just don"t post. When we get closer we can submit names for a meet and greet onboard and can be sure everyone is registered here.

 

signing off

NoWhiners