Jim_Iain - Solstice LIVE Mexico Riveria B2B - December 3 and 11

[bjahil47]

Thanks for another detailed cruise trip!  Sounded fabulous!  Happy Holidays to you, Iain and your family!

Bonnie

[eyecantwait]

Thanks again Jim for all your wonderful photos and thoughts about the Solstice. I'm even more excited for our August family cruise to Alaska!

[nslatin]

Jim,

 

It was great meeting the both of you and that was a fantastic whale watching experience.  We have done several and that was the best yet.  I was able to get a few hundred photos but here are just a few.

[Jim_Iain]

On 12/19/2022 at 9:48 AM, Happy Cruiser 6143 said:

 

I had the same experience when returning from a recent trip.  Taxi was cheaper than Uber or Lyft.  And definitely cheaper than my usual private car service which was unable to pick me up that day.

I really think that the drivers were purposely not accepting rides to force the prices to surge.   The app initially said there were drivers within 5 minutes.   San Pedro definitely doesn't have the number of drivers as LAX

[Jim_Iain]

On 12/19/2022 at 12:38 PM, JeanieC,Aston said:

The talk re coastal cruises…

Ive seen top to bottom of US,both East and West coast.

 

We are used to Round Britain cruises here in UK (only a small island).

 

I wonder how long a cruise around the US would take,,,say from Seattle to Boston.West to East coast through the Panama Canal.

 

There could be some great cities/places to see on that trip.

Unfortunately it would exceed my budget.

Has any cruise line ever done it.
 

Btw Jim,great blog again. 

 

I'm sure it could be done.    We once took a B2B Cruise originating Fort Lauderdale -  Through the Panama Canal and down to Lima for the first cruise with the second being Lima to Buenos Aires.  Was one of our favorites. 

[Jim_Iain]

11 hours ago, podsnel said:

Thank you so much for another great live trip report! Someday I hope to jump on in the beginning of the trip to "take the ride" along with you, but it seems I am always late to your party! Looks like you had another wonderful Celebrity cruise- I just wanted to say, another vote for Regent if you are looking to try somewhere new- I am just Elite, so still enjoying Celebrity very much. Have you been on Flora? We just came back earlier this month- was a great adventure!! Hope to go back for the outer loop to see all of the islands (this time we were inner loop) and animals in a few years- 🙂

Thanks for coming along.   We really enjoyed it and would not hesitate doing it again.  All me now need is for Celebrity to Cooperate and base a ship on the West Coast.

 

We have never done the Galapagos but is on the bucket list.  

[Jim_Iain]

10 hours ago, cachouonacruise said:

Thank-you very much, Jim, for taking the time to share your live cruise experience and pictures of Solstice and the Mexican Riviera. You are providing us with treasures in the shape of very detailed information! 

 

I wish you and Lain, very Merry Holidays and I have to say, that we will miss you on the Celebrity boards when you leave to join the Ponant Board! I really hope your Ponant experience will meet your expectations! 

 

Thanks for the Christmas greetings.    We have been busy since we got home. 

 

While we will probably be trying some other lines.   We definitely will be around on the Celebrity Board. We have 10 cruises booked through 2024.    I just booked the air on a non-stop  to Singapore for the Singapore to Sydney/New Zealand for November 2023.  

 

I was awoken rudely last night at 2:37 AM when my phone started shrilling - Earth Quake Alert - Take cover, Cover your head.   Part of the early earthquake warning system that is suppose to alert us 15-20 seconds before and earthquake.     We were far away and didn't feel a thing except my heart pounding.  

[Jim_Iain]

10 hours ago, bjahil47 said:

Thanks for another detailed cruise trip!  Sounded fabulous!  Happy Holidays to you, Iain and your family!

Bonnie

Thanks Bonnie -- I hope you have a wonderful holiday season.   Yikes being away I can't believe it's only 5 days til Christmas.    I'm off to the Central Valley tomorrow to pick up Alison, our youngest daughter.

[Jim_Iain]

8 hours ago, eyecantwait said:

Thanks again Jim for all your wonderful photos and thoughts about the Solstice. I'm even more excited for our August family cruise to Alaska!

 

Alaska can be so much fun.    Years ago we added the Land Tour to Danali   -  It was one of the best tours we had done.   There is so much to see of Alaska and we have only just touched the southern region.   Maybe we will have the opportunity to explore more of that beautiful state.

[jagoffee]

11 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

Thanks for coming along.   We really enjoyed it and would not hesitate doing it again.  All me now need is for Celebrity to Cooperate and base a ship on the West Coast.

 

We have never done the Galapagos but is on the bucket list.  

Galapagos is a wonderful experience.  A photographers and wildlife dream IMO.

 

Really enjoyed follow you on your B2B.

 

Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to you both.

Edited December 21, 2022 by jagoffee

[Jim_Iain]

3 hours ago, nslatin said:

Jim,

 

It was great meeting the both of you and that was a fantastic whale watching experience.  We have done several and that was the best yet.  I was able to get a few hundred photos but here are just a few.

 

Fantastic pictures.     I have to say by far that was the best whale watching experience we have ever had.   What amazed me was how close to the shore they were. 

[cachouonacruise]

19 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

was awoken rudely last night at 2:37 AM when my phone started shrilling - Earth Quake Alert - Take cover, Cover your head.   Part of the early earthquake warning system that is suppose to alert us 15-20 seconds before and earthquake.     We were far away and didn't feel a thing except my heart pounding.

Wow! I understand your feeling! I experienced one earthquake in my life, which made the building I was in, crack and shake and it's not an experience I wish to repeat!!! While the earth is shaking, you don't know yet the magnitude it will reach or to which extent, it could be life threatening....It's only well after the shaking stops that you know, if it was a big one or only a minor event.
 

I am very glad to hear that your recent event was only a matter of a temporary adrenaline rush!  
 

Enjoy your time at home until your next cruise! 

[Xyla]

On 12/19/2022 at 8:46 AM, Jim_Iain said:

 Tried for an Uber for 5 minutes without being accepted $58. 
 

a cab pulled up to taxi tank so cancelled Uber.  At LAX by 8:30 for a 11:00 flight.  

We had the same experience, Lyft/Uber wasn't surging yet but we couldn't get a driver to accept the ride. It was running ~$45-50 to LAX but pointless if no drivers were available.  We also elected to get a cab and  it cost ~$66.

My son was originally booked on an late afternoon flight but got to the airport in plenty of time to be standby on a 10:30 am flight and eventually got a seat on that flight. 

All in all, a super easy and uneventful disembarkation, we never stopped moving except to pause briefly at the facial recognition scanner. I wish they were all like that.

[abbydancer2003]

For travel between LAX and San Pedro we just prebook a car company.  It's pretty reasonable and no surge pricing.

[Georgia_Peaches]

6 hours ago, Xyla said:

We also elected to get a cab and  it cost ~$66.

Were cabs lined up outside when you left the ship or did you have to call a number?

[Jim_Iain]

11 hours ago, jagoffee said:

Galapagos is a wonderful experience.  A photographers and wildlife dream IMO.

 

Really enjoyed follow you on your B2B.

 

Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to you both.

Thanks much -  I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

[Jim_Iain]

9 hours ago, Xyla said:

We had the same experience, Lyft/Uber wasn't surging yet but we couldn't get a driver to accept the ride. It was running ~$45-50 to LAX but pointless if no drivers were available.  We also elected to get a cab and  it cost ~$66.

My son was originally booked on an late afternoon flight but got to the airport in plenty of time to be standby on a 10:30 am flight and eventually got a seat on that flight. 

All in all, a super easy and uneventful disembarkation, we never stopped moving except to pause briefly at the facial recognition scanner. I wish they were all like that.

 

I have to agree.   We found  Embarkation, B2B and Disembarkation the smoothest and least chaotic we have ever experienced.    Being at 50% capacity may have had positive effect. 

 

CBC San Pedro uses facial recognition and immigration and customs took less than 30 seconds. 

[Jim_Iain]

2 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

Were cabs lined up outside when you left the ship or did you have to call a number?

 

They had a taxi rank setup on the island across from the terminal with a taxi concierge.    We saw two taxi's there and no line when we couldn't get an Uber.    By the time we decided to take a Taxi the two taxi's had been taken and we were first in line with a line of 3 behind us.   A cab pulled up in 30 seconds which was our and I heard the taxi concierge call for more cabs.

[NutsAboutGolf]

If you self-carry off you'll most likely see a line of taxis

[asnaleah]

Thanks for the wonderful review and the great photos! Wishing you and Iain a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year! Looking forward to reading about your next cruise. We will be on  Azamara Pursuit Feb 25. I will let you know what we think, but I suspect we will prefer Regent. 

[san diego spartan]

On 11/29/2022 at 9:59 AM, Jim_Iain said:

I noticed that -   I'm not real big on Ensanada.   We've done the Catalina cruise on Millennium last year and really enjoyed.

Funny everyone is different - I was somewhat disappointed that we are not stopping in Ensenada on our 2/11 sailing.  We stop in San Diego (which is where I live).  I love Ensenada as it is the gateway to Valle de Guadalupe.  there are some excellent wineries there and we took a tour last year (Holland America Koningsdam) and love it. 

[bluwes]

Thanks once again for a great review.  Will be keeping an eye out for the next one.

Best wishes to you and Iain, have a great Christmas and a Happy and Prosperous New Year

[vickykay]

So very much enjoyed your review.  Looking forward to the next ones!

[CruisinBanka]

Thanks Jim for taking the time to do another outstanding review. Always a must read for us and will be on the lookout for your next adventure at sea. Wishing you and Iain a wonderful Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year!!! Take care! 

[Jim_Iain]

14 hours ago, asnaleah said:

Thanks for the wonderful review and the great photos! Wishing you and Iain a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year! Looking forward to reading about your next cruise. We will be on  Azamara Pursuit Feb 25. I will let you know what we think, but I suspect we will prefer Regent. 

Really appreciate the comments.   I've heard good things about Azamara.   Reality is any cruise is better than being at home.