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Showing content with the highest reputation on 03/23/2019 in all areas

  1. twangster

    Dog Has Accident

    These types of incidents are exactly what set a trained service animal apart from a supposed 'support' animal. It's why many airlines are tightening rules for 'support' animals but it also makes it hard on people who truly rely on service animals as they get painted with the same brush.
    7 points
  2. Day 8 - at sea Today was our first of two sea days headed back to Miami, and it was wonderful! I got up early and took my laptop down to the promenade about 7:30 to get some stuff done, it was wonderfully quiet down there, and I grabbed some fruit from the Cafe. A little later in the morning, they had a Bloody Mary bar set up on the promenade There was a “flash sale” on accessories, and it got pretty busy I stopped in one of the shops, and noticed that the ship models have already bred updated with the new slides and such, but a lot of the picture related items have not While wandering around, we came across the Stowaway Piano Player. This guy is awesome We went to a Q&A with the singer/dancer/ice skaters that was quite interesting. Did you know that the singers and dancers will help out backstage with costume changes etc. at the ice show, and the other way around? They also run spot lights for each other’s shows Tonight was formal night, we went to the main dining room With celebrations of the the 50th anniversary for Royal, the had birthday cakes Tonight’s headliner show was a Whitney Houston tribute, she was great! She was backed with all live music from the house band, they are incredible. After catching the late show, we wandered around the ship more, made a stop at the R Bar and got a red velvet, wow! After playing some late night (early morning) mini golf, we decided to call it a day. Last full day tomorrow!
    5 points
  3. twangster

    Dog Has Accident

    The challenge is that any company is limited in what questions or support documentation it can ask with respect to disabilities, by law. People who seek to scam and cheat know this. A perfectly healthy person can ask an airline for a wheelchair assist just to board early. The airline has limited means to seek proof of need. Some people truly need a wheel chair. Some cheaters lie and cheat just to bypass the lines. One can only trust that on their day of judgement it will be dealt with, and that karma can be a b*tch and they will get theirs in due time.
    5 points
  4. SpeedNoodles

    Dog Has Accident

    I have seen small "potty" greens for dogs on cruise ships, most likely for service dogs. The problem is that people often claim they have a service dog when it's not really a service dog. A trained service dog would NEVER do that. It's people like this who make it very difficult for those who depend on their well-trained, well-behaved service dogs to take them into public. Emotional Support dogs are NOT service dogs.
    5 points
  5. Titanicrul

    Dog Has Accident

    So I was just coming up to the Solarium on Anthem of the Seas, and on the ride up I came across an older man and canine. While a family left the elevator , this dog peed on the lil girl as the man stepped into the elevator, I told the man this, to no reply. Gentleman got off a floor or two later, and I went back down to check. Upon arrival the father was talking to a crew member and explained his anger at the incident and how it was even possible to get a dog aboard. All in all, I recorded the convo and it got pretty heated, the father was very angry as this is the last night of the cruise. Pretty upset with this gentleman who didn’t respond, I hope he’s banned from the line as I personally told him about it and tried to stop him, shame on people.
    4 points
  6. Jason12

    Dog Has Accident

    Oasis in November, lady very over weight in a powerchair which was extremely big, she a had a very small dog on her lap, while in the schooner bar she lowered the dog by its lead to the floor where the dog did it’s business she then pulled the dog back by the lead chocking the dog and drove away not even informing crew, people were discussed and some actually confronted her, she started to rant and rave how she had a disability and the crew are there to tend to her every need and should clean it up. ? we live in a world where people pretend to be something to get extras and real people miss out..
    4 points
  7. twangster

    Spring Break

    A few years old but the trend remains close to this. All peaks in this graph correspond to school and/or college breaks. Source: https://www.cruisemarketwatch.com/articles/category/cruise-lines-market-share-marketing-research/page/2/ Want a cheap cruise? Dec 8 or 15 on Oasis. Freshly refurbished. Cheap rates. The early December time frame and mid-January remain some of the cheapest times to cruise and are mostly K-12 free. Right after Labor day is not bad either.
    4 points
  8. Costa Maya For Costa Maya, we had pre-booked the Aqua Adventure Park "excursion" from Royal. Excursion is in quotes since it's really just a bus that drops you off and the rest is just your ticket. What's nice though is that they have shuttles that run often to take you back to the ship when you are ready. They offer different types of tickets; just the waterpark, just the zipline, waterpark + zipline, and waterpark + beach (don't remember if that includes zipline as well). We figured that the waterpark would be enough so that's the ticket we purchased (great deal on Black Friday). When you arrive, you check in and get a locker to store your belongings. Then you're off. DS and DH went to the grown up slides, which are quite crazy. Apparently the green one on the right does a free fall; which my son didn't realize until he was on it. Don't think he rode that one a second time. DS enjoyed but DH said they were rough and he banged up his arm a bit. Not his thing. DD and I went on the lazy river, which is quite peaceful and nice ... well, calm until you are forced to go under the waterfalls that they have at various spots...lol. But it's fun. I like too how they have animal sounds around like you are in the rainforest or jungle. There is a more "normal" set of slides as well that both of our kids enjoyed. The first time, my daughter didn't notice the huge bucket that fills up and drops water on you as you go up the stairs and oops...she got soaked. The place also has really nice pools (although they do have a bit of sand in them) As mentioned, we didn't sign up for the ziplines but they looked like fun. You could see/hear some of them around the pool, lazy river and slides. They have some that end up in water, and some that are normal and end on land. It's nice that the park has all these different options. There is no beach at the park, but they have shuttles that take you to one (not sure which one or where it is as we didn't purchase this). We were warned that the food was pricey and not very good, so that morning at breakfast we took a few extra boxes of cereal and a couple bagels with us. Thus, that was sufficient as "lunch" until we were done and returned to the ship. The park was a fun few hours.
    4 points
  9. Even more interesting. What ships generate the most revenue for Royal? https://cruisemarketwatch.com/ship-revenue/ In numbers: Harmony $485,570,000 - 295,000 passengers Ovation $443,940,000 - 293,000 passengers Allure $422,500,000 - 313,000 passengers Oasis $403,340,000 - 307,000 passengers Symphony $396,500,000 - 171,000 passengers Anthem $371,150,000 - 232,000 passengers Quantum $366,160,000 - 442,000 passengers Explorer $318,350,000 - 122,000 passengers Freedom $283,200,000 - 198,000 passengers Radiance $256,910,000 - 72,000 passengers Independence $ 256,190,000 - 210,000 passengers Liberty $245,160,000 - 210,000 passengers Voyager $234,480,000 - 168,000 passengers Mariner $224,230,000 - 295,000 passengers Adventure $219,370,000 - 175,000 passengers Navigator $212,870,000 - 146,000 passengers Serenade $174,410,000 - 90,000 passengers Jewel $168,660,000 - 112,000 passengers Brilliance $152,600,000 - 113,000 passengers Enchantment $151,980,000 - 257,000 passengers Rhapsody $139,520,000 - 117,000 passengers Majesty $137,110,000 - 269,000 passengers Vision $ 133,020,000 - 95,000 passengers Grandeur $ 128,570,000 - 89,000 passengers Empress $ 113,720,000 - 139,000 passengers
    3 points
  10. This is Eva of Ripcord......my kid is now saying when he grows up, he wants to do Eva's job on this ship...... sigh. The other day he was going to be an astronaut.....
    3 points
  11. Luciano got us in for another skydive today, roller skating is reserved for 4:30, we met two other families in star class and are having them for cocktails at 3:30. I was sorta surprised when I asked Luciano if we could have a bottle of champagne for this and he said yes, but he would have to charge me for it.n bummed that this is an inconsistency across the genie fleet. On days at sea, there is a bar cart service from 3:30-5:30 so we can also order from that. Yesterday we were invited for a cocktail in the royal loft suite.....holy cow that suite is just massive. I feel like we live in a little hovel here on "dick 10" (this accent on the word "deck" I am told, is not Aussie but rather a kiwi accent.....but I use that word allllll the time now when we are out and about doing those stairs and hallways, and I laugh out loud every single time.....). Anyways back to that royal loft....it's really special. But this grand loft we r in is super awesome as well, so no complaining! if you are doing the skydiving simulator, try to get booked in with Eva........she was soooo much fun with each rider, doing little tricks with them like flips or taking them up high. Then at the end, she went in herself and wowd the pants off all of us! She did this impromptu acrobatic show that had my son saying to me afterwards "mom......now I know why they say boys drool and girls rule!!" If I could have tipped her I would have. And FYI, we had one little girl in our group who was about 5 and she rocked it for her first ride! dinner tonight at Jamie's. Chefs table tomorrow night. tomorrow is another day at sea. a video from the balcony as I type...... capturedvideo.MOV
    3 points
  12. WannaCruise

    Symphony Review - WOW!

    Ports We had 4 ports, 3 of which we got off and enjoyed. Roatan This was our first time visiting Roatan so we were excited. We had pre-arranged a tour with another family who had kids same ages as our kids kids. What was nice about this tour is that we could customize it for what we'd like to do. It's run by husband and wife and we had the wife as our guide for the day. She met us at the port and was lovely...so kind and warm. As we drove to our first stop, a beautiful view from above, she told us all about the culture; the schooling, the different groups, the history, etc. Pictures of the ship and view from higher land Then we got to our first main destination; the monkey and sloth sanctuary. Slots are the most calming peaceful animal I've seen and it was quite a treat to be able to hold (aka hug) them. Look how cute! There was also an area where you could go in the cage with the monkeys. They would climb around inspecting us and jumping from one person to the next (they particularly liked tall people). After they inspected us, they'd clean themselves It was quite funny. Here's one grabbing a snack. There are other areas where you can go in with the parrots and macaw birds. They'd either wrap their claws around our arms or stand on our heads as in my daugher's case. Once done, we went to the chocolate factory. They explained the process for making chocolate, gave us samples to try, and of course let us purchase their chocolate. It's definitely not your ordinary cadbury chocolate. And of course, the place smelled so lovely. Last we went to West Bay Beach and wow, so beautiful. The sand was soft, the water clear blue and there were soft but not rough waves. Perfect beach. It was nice as well as the tour guide watched our stuff and we were free to sit with her (where DH tended to stay as it was shaded) or head out to the beach with our belongings safe. Our kids played in the water, and snorkeled with face masks we brought. They also had boats that would take you out if you wanted to do more serious snorkeling. It was a full day but excellent tour.
    3 points
  13. SpeedNoodles

    Dog Has Accident

    I have a relative with a trained service dog (he's a diabetic alert dog) and one who has one who alerts for seizures. They have all kinds of problems due to those who have fake "certificates" and fake service vests (real SDs do not have these things - it's not actually a thing).
    3 points
  14. mworkman

    Dog Has Accident

    I think I would have rubbed the owners nose in it, just to be sure he didn't have doubts of said accident. Especially when he chose to ignore the whole event.
    2 points
  15. VACruiser

    Dog Has Accident

    Should we start a thread on our animals. SpeedNoodles has her Collie in the picture so I shall show my Shiloh Shepherd female, Kali Mae.
    2 points
  16. I went to Bikini Beach a couple of weeks ago, it was great! The restaurant/bar is all brand new (old one was damaged from the hurricane) and really nice! All the facilities are super clean. We rented 2 chairs w/ umbrella for $30. We used Bernard's Tours to get there, once we arrived the driver asked what time we wanted to be picked up. He was there right on time and was super friendly. Of course you can just grab a cab to bring you there as well. We had a great day at a very reasonable price as I too was trying to avoid costly excursions for the 4 of us. We did a similar thing in St. Thomas by grabbing a cab (more like a bus) and going to Megan's Bay for the day. There we were also asked what time we wanted to be picked up and he was right there on time as well.
    2 points
  17. Maybe on Oasis 6 we can get them to install those steaming cabinets that you can fit between a washer and dryer at home. Always seems like such a waste of water to steam the wrinkles out on a ship where water is limited, but as I tell my wife “they forced us to do this”
    2 points
  18. It’s amazing, that’s what it is! I will swing by there today and take a better picture of the menu
    2 points
  19. WAAAYTOOO

    Spring Break

    Sorry. My mind is old and feeble. I have CRS.
    2 points
  20. I knew you would chime in and ask that! ?
    2 points
  21. Decor and Art Work One thing that I love about Symphony is the art work and decor. It's so fun exploring, and makes taking the stairs vs elevator that much more fun (except when you run into the stowaway piano player in the elevator). Every staircase has a different piece of art. We participated in an art scavenger hunt that was fun. ? I've already posted the candy apple that is near Studio B and the big statue in the promenade. Some stair photos our kids joining in with this one The space between the two elevators (going from ground to the top) And of course the Solarium at night There is also interactive art work that is really neat sound art on the Boardwalk (big pink wig) and outside Schooner Bar top of Windjammer has chef's drawing pictures (both within the art) entrance to MDR level 5 capture you and puts you in the art art that changes to another picture with the use of the xray vision on your phone And not art, but need to mention as well about the musical stairs going up to the WIndjammer. All very cool fun touches!
    2 points
  22. Sweety

    Spring Break

    Come on retirement. I will be cruising all the time.
    2 points
  23. @twangster posted this a while ago and I remembered it. December is usually not an option for me because of teaching. When new itineraries came out back before Christmas, we grabbed the Villa suite on HM (Star Class!) for early December 2020 for just over $1K pp. No joke! I couldn’t believe it either at first! I would be on that OA sailing this coming December too if I could.
    2 points
  24. VACruiser

    Dog Has Accident

    At my work office there is a service animal for a ex-Military person connected with a PTSD issue. The dog is very well behaved to the point that you really don't notice the animal at all. A very well trained dog that never interacts with her people but is around people all day long. We had lawyers come and talk to us before the dog was brought up and we were told not to interact with the dog. It was more for the comfort of the service-member who wouldn't want to talk about their service related injuries. They told us to no pay attention to the dog and just go about our normal duties. It's hard for me because I am such a dog lover and the dog is really cute. When you hear about these kinds of events you know the dog is not a service animal and is not trained; it is just a pet that someone is trying to pass off as a service animal. And, that person is already a very selfish person just by their actions so that he didn't respond to a dressing-down is of no surprise.
    2 points
  25. Well our room service arrived and with it a bottle of champagne......I guess six glasses is a bottle, so he said it's basically a wash. ordered some veggies and dip and fresh berries.....I thought it would be a break from the heavier fare we seem to be inhaling at every turn on this ship!
    2 points
  26. AlohaLivin

    Dog Has Accident

    You are right! It is funny that we have just been having a similar discussion on my professional listserv because we are so often getting patients wanting us to sign off on them using an emotional support animals. That category is more for housing restrictions and sometimes transportation, but has nothing to do with the criteria for assistance animals (specially trained to guide, detect medical conditions, and perform other critical functions). I love my pets and don’t like to leave them, but that is far different than it being a medical necessity that they be with me at all times. I had recently written a guide for my patients on the topic to reduce some of the useless discussions on the matter. Many organizations are now placing tighter restrictions on the animals that are allowed in/on (including RCL) since so many people have ended up with fake internet certifications. One thing many don’t consider is that as much as many of us adore our fur children, there are also quite a number of people who have fear related to animals and their presence in public places can sometimes be an “emotional” hindrance to them. @twangster I too often find myself hoping that karma will be a royal b*tch!
    2 points
  27. SpeedNoodles

    Spring Break

    I'm not ANTI kid (I know there are lines for adults only and I know Royal is a family-oriented line). I just try to avoid massive numbers, lol.
    2 points
  28. Omg, all we do are stairs and corridors! The elevators are full full full and slow slow slow! Walking off all these meals...... we did the skydive simulator in the afternoon which Luciano had booked us in for. It was fun......be prepared with running shoes......they provide the rest of the equipment. Met a lovely trio of fellow star cruisers who are in the royal loft suite. They invited us up for a cocktail and we got a tour of that beautiful suite......it's huge! We have invited them to our grand loft suite this afternoon after we all do another skydive. did bumper cars in the late afternoon.......special line up spot for star class guests and we essentially jumped the queue about five times. My ten year old son did rock climbing after that. dinner was at Wonderland. It was awful. Slow service, really imaginative food, which was expected, but the kids didn't like much of it and frankly, neither did I. Service took so long we politely left before the main courses ever arrived. Will not be revisiting that place. Kids went to bed and we went to the show. Went to a comedy show at 8:15 and the guy was hilarious. Can't remember his name, sorry! Then to vintages for a drink, to the casino for a look-see, then to bed. Luciano is only and always just a phone call away. We were escorted to our seats for the show, to the skydiving simulator. Laundry is free as is pressing. Tons of water and coke and juices in the room, as well as beer. Fresh berries arrived in the afternoon.....perfect! If u want spirits, they bring them by the glass. Very impressed with the service and perks! Here are a few random shots...menu is from CK breakfast....Baja eggs were awesome! Some shots of Sydney from the North Star (also a jump the queue situation!), goat cheese salad...seafood tower at sail away on the balcony.....
    2 points
  29. twangster

    Spring Break

    It depends. Easy measure - if cruise fares and airfares are expensive it's because a lot of people are trying to book it. In the spring this indicates popular spring break weeks. If prices are low, then few 'breakers' are trying to travel and you are safer.
    2 points
  30. Nassau Nassau was our last stop (last day of the cruise). Symphony is such a great ship that we didn't even get off. (We had been there before). We enjoyed an emptier ship that day. It was great as our kids went on the slides with no line ups. We also went on the zipline, Aybss and played Laser Tag.
    2 points
  31. One thing I've learned is that each Captain does it differently. Perhaps the ice conditions play a factor, time of year, pilot on board, winds, etc. The turn is kind of slow. You definitely know you are turning but it's not a whirlwind either. I'm thinking 2 1/2 turns at Dawes. I'll have a balcony on May 13 (Ovation) but I'll likely spend time on deck 15 simply because you can take it all in. The glacier is awesome but seeing the ship in such close proximity to walls of Endicott Arm is equally impressive and not something you may appreciate from a balcony. I encourage you to split your time. Some on your balcony but pop upstairs to see it all from another perspective. Two years ago on Celebrity I left my GoPro on my balcony running a time lapse at Hubbard. You can see the turn readily in that video within this post: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/5211-alaska-recap-celebrity-millennium-june-2017/&do=findComment&comment=51836 I hear you but Alaska is not the place to plop down in a bar and sit for a few hours. Get a drink to go and enjoy it outside. Pop back in to warm up and refill before repeating.
    2 points
  32. And finally.......That BODY PILLOW we ordered from the pillow menu...... the thing is hilariously massive. Pumpkin and I felt like we had a third person in bed with us....(which might have been fun a couple decades ago haha!) kidding!
    2 points
  33. The loft suite are completely and utterly aft. The nearest staircase or elevator is about 150 steps away. Be prepared, if you have this suite, to do a LOT of walking. Conceirge Club Lounge is 300+ steps and two long corridors away. Not complaining, lord knows I need the exercise. the club is large, quiet and also completely aft, hence the beautiful view. some photos of the long corridors you'll take to get here on deck 12 (or has my husband calls it "dick 12" in his best Aussie accent), some signage at the elevators, including an interactive sign. apologies for the poor photo quality......my husbands phone takes better photos but I can't download them right now for some reason. Will sort that out and post those later......
    2 points
  34. Some photos of 10324: ill post more photos later of the room, bathroom, etc. no bath tub in this suite which really bums me out.
    2 points
  35. What a nice surprise! Welcome to the group!
    1 point
  36. WAAAYTOOO

    CROWN & ANCHOR PERKS

    Welcome !
    1 point
  37. We are also on HOS in late June. I found this place. Looks pretty cool. Restaurant/Bar with chair and umbrella rentals. I believe the green umbrellas pics are most recent after thr rebuild from the hurricane. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g1073588-d1046930-Reviews-Bikini_Beach-Orient_Bay_Saint_Martin_St_Martin_St_Maarten.html
    1 point
  38. 1 point
  39. Spring break in Ontario is mid-March. I would avoid that too if I could ?
    1 point
  40. Hi. I added a few pictures in my blog (not live, but after the fact ? ) Let me know if any questions.
    1 point
  41. In a desperate, last ditch effort to cure our post cruise depression, D10 and I finally had a chance to sit down and watch the replay of our sail away. This last pic is for @rjac. Here is another selfie for you. ? In the end, nothing fixes PCD, only the next cruise. Anthem GC, July 4th! 15 weeks dry dock until I finally get to meet @Matt and many other RCBlog friends! Cannot wait!
    1 point
  42. If folks are thinking about Alaska and particularly visiting glaciers here are some thoughts about Ovation. The natural tendency is think that being forward is the best place to see a glacier. That's only partially correct. Forward may be the best place to see the approach to the glacier but for viewing the glacier the sides of the ship are where its at since the Captain will turn the ship. Here is approaching Hubbard Glacier from Radiance last year: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/9160-not-so-live-blog-radiance-of-the-seas-alaska-southbound-83118/&do=findComment&comment=83677 For our approach to the Glacier the helipad is okay but higher up produced better overall view. Down low you miss the effect of the mountains and shear size of the glacier. Here is approaching Dawes Glacier from Explorer last year: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/6634-explorer-alaska-62218-7-nights-rclblog-group-cruise/&do=findComment&comment=73654 https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/6634-explorer-alaska-62218-7-nights-rclblog-group-cruise/&do=findComment&comment=73667 In both cases my best pictures and video came from the upper decks, outside, midship. Sure approaching the glacier is cool and being forward is the place to take that in, but once at the glacier the sides of the ship are where it's at. Having been to see them I probably won't put a lot of emphasis on being forward to catch the approach. I expect the Solarium and bridge wings will be crazy packed. The sides of the ship are where I plan to accomplish the best viewing of the glaciers.
    1 point
  43. Quantum class has two bridge wings, one starboard and one port accessed from the Solarium. They are small and will fill up quickly arriving in a port or other scenic area. The Solarium itself is two level and the lower level has great views looking forward. This is Anthem but same idea on Ovation: This level of the Solarium is on deck 13 and there are doors into the cabin hallways for deck 13 forward that would make this area accessible. It's also the level that has access to the outdoor bridge wings much like Harmony or Symphony. There is no helipad on Quantum class. There is a "winch pad" but it is not open to the public.
    1 point
  44. Day 7 -Aruba This is our last port stop on this trip, and maybe the one we were most looking forward to, because of the excursion we had booked. The ship docked about 7am and the gangways were down and open before 8. Our tour was picking us up just outside the port at 8:45, so we had a little time to grab a quick bit at the windjammer. Today's tour was a Harley ride, touring the island. We have done this kind of thing in Hawaii before, and have always said there is no better way to see the island. Today did not disappoint. We took off from the shop about 9:30am and the weather was perfect for riding, not so much for pictures though. Overcast for the most part Saw some beautiful sights along the way The last stop before heading back to the shop was Baby Beach. There is a new adults only bar/lounge/pool that just opened about 3 months ago that our guide took us to The tour lasted almost 5 hours, and it was incredible! After returning to the shop, they gave us a ride back to the port. We had gotten a recommendation from our guide about a place to eat, and we were hungry, so we walked there, about a 15 minute walk to a little place called El Gaucho. Incredible steak and fish! We spent some time walking around the shops, then headed back to the ship. All aboard is 6pm, and we were back on about 5. Dinner in the windjammer tonight was Indian theme, I didn't care for much of it, so I hit the Kids Corner for a burger and fries, perfect! We went to the main show at 10pm tonight, it was a ballroom dancing show by the Royal Caribbean singers and dancers, it was a lot of fun! As soon as the show let out, it was time for the 80's party on the Promenade. The people watching during and after did not disappoint! The cruise compass for tomorrow shows the drink card as coming available! That's about all for today. The next two days are sea days as we make our way back to Miami...
    1 point
  45. As @KristiZ hinted, the SP is a bit more "rustic" (not primitive, lol) than the Caribbean. It has its own charm, but just expect things to be done on "island time". Holiday Inn at The Rocks I can recommend. Great location near the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge and a very short walk down to the Overseas Passenger Terminal. I recently also stayed at the Amora Hotel, which is also walking distance (but with luggage a short taxi ride is the go). Mystery Island - a small, uninhabited, reef-fringed island that you can walk around in under an hour. Excellent snorkelling. The ship will anchor in a channel between Mystery and the (much) larger Aneityum Island, where locals make there way over to Mystery to provide offerings to the cruise passengers of the day e.g. fresh-cooked fish, beers, soft drinks, hair-braiding, various tours (e.g., glass-bottom boats, snorkelling, also fishing from memory). I really loved this stop, but my brother missed out on it once due to tidal conditions not allowing the ship access to the channel. Mare - Yedjele Beach is the main stop here for cruise passengers. After tendering, there will be a section where you can pay for a bus pass/ticket. The ride is 15-20 minutes with glimpses of gorgeous, clear, turquoise rock pools. At the beach, there is great snorkelling, plus all the usual fare offered by the locals. It was very windswept when I was there back in October, but that barely diminished the enjoyment of the place. If you're not keen on visiting this beach, once you tender you can simply walk along the road until you find a rock pool of your choice, but be aware there are no beaches in the immediate vicinity. Noumea - as KrisitZ mentioned, Noumea is the most developed of the island stops. We paid for the hop-on/hop-off bus pass from the main terminal. We got off at Lemon Bay (Baie de Citron). Lots of cafes and restaurants along the waterfront. We also visited the aquarium with the kids. If you get this pass, the timing between bus arrivals can be somewhat fluid ? Lifou - I've been here twice and both times I have snorkelled the Baie de Jinek. If I return a third time I will do the exact same thing once again. Highly recommend. You have to pay for it these days, as they have to control the numbers of people. It's a ten minute walk from the tender boat. There are also plenty of stalls and places to get some local food and a drink. At the jetty where the boats tender, have a look out for a turtle swimming around. Feel free to jump in and have a snorkel with it. You will probably have time to also visit a cave grotto which is a 15 minute walk in the opposite direction from Baie de Jinek. There is a small rock pool inside that you can jump in and have a quick splash about in. Isle of Pines - if you feel like something other than a beach day, there are local bus/van tours that take small groups for tours around the island. You will see them just before you reach the main beach. Be sure to make yourself known, as last time we were there we were waiting for the van to come back, only to find out another group had already booked the next tour and there was no room (we had to wait another hour if we were willing to commit, which we didn't, since we had done the tour on a previous visit). Of the above islands, if memory serves, Noumea was the only one that you may have an issue paying for things in US dollars or Australian dollars. We also carried A$150 worth of South Pacific francs just in case. Now, something to be aware of on the islands (which I was happy to let fly because I was dealing with people of a much lower standard of living that I am privileged to enjoy) is that sometimes when you pay in US dollars you will get change in Australian dollars. Or something will be offered in Aussie dollars and they will gladly take the same amount in US dollars without bothering to do the conversion. Like I said, I was happy to let it go because we are only talking a few bucks here and there, but some passengers got irate with the locals over this. So be aware. Auckland - lovely harbour city. You can take a ferry out to one of the islands. Another good option is to visit the Sky Tower and go up to the viewing level with glass-bottomed walkways. If you're particularly adventurous you can harness up and do a jump from the top. Great fun! That just about covers it. All the best ?
    1 point
  46. Holy smokes......that is a long flight. Managed to sleep off and on for eight or so hours, so actually didn't hit the wall til about 9 last night. we arrived in Sydney at 10 am, and got a cab, which cost $100 Australian dollars. The train would have been the same amount. Limo is available but it was 150$ or so. We opted for the cab and it took about 45 min to get to the port. Traffic was apparently unusually heavy. pulling into the port drop off area was a circus with lots of cabs ahead of us and we couldn't see the star class flag til we were out of the cab with our bags. A porter tried to take our bags, but we told him we were star class and showed him the banner.....he sent us off towards that big purple flag, and we rolled all our bags in the drizzling rain over there unaided. At the flag, the star class benefits immediately became apparent....an agent with a star class sign called Luciano and stayed with us as we checked in with another agent who had an iPad to do that on. From there, the agent with the sign took us through to a customs agent, bypassing a snaking line of about a hundred people. After clearing customs, she took us through security (no dedicated security line for star class in this area and it wasn't very busy; not sure what they would have done for us if the security line ups were long). Then we were off to the ship, where Luciano met us at the door as we came in, told us our suite wasn't quite ready, so offered lunch at Coastal Kitchen. After eating, Luciano returned to escort us to our suite (10324), provided us with a brief tour and gave us our "schedule" for the week. (BUMMER ALERT: KIDS UNDER 11 CANNOT DO THE ESCAPE ROOM). Luciano said he would see what he could do but it didn't sound optimistic. The suite is gorgeous, silly amounts of appetizers were waiting, at least a dozen beers in ice, a bottle of premium champagne on ice, more pop and juice than we would ever drink.......the balcony is amazing, with plenty of chairs, chair towels, a small dining table and a small side table. We unpacked after popping the champagne and beer........two huge wardrobes upstairs, a good size small closet down, with tons of drawers up and down also. muster drill was painful, with the usual delays bc of people deciding not to show up. After this, we went exploring.....I put my name in for a draw at the spa and won a $50 gift cert! Of course you had to be present to win, and I wasn't there, but hubby was. They wouldn't give it to him (fair enough) but a swift call to Luciano resulted in a phone call from the spa manager at around 8 pm saying they would honor my win. That was a nice gesture, and I suspect only happened bc of SC. sail away was on time. We decided to do the Seafood Tower, and a couple of cocktails......it was fabulous! Then, kids were starting to fade, so we put them to bed at 8 and pumpkin and I headed for CK. Staff there are lovely, but service seems a titch slow. asleep by 9 in that wonderful bed! Kids ordered breakfast to the room which by my estimation arrived way tooooo early, but whatever..... the coffeemaker in our room doesn't seem to be working very well, so am presently up in Concierge Lounge drinking.....coffee. Bing is the Concierege for this cruise. pumpkin is at the pool with the kids (10 year old b/g twins) sipping a Pina colada. He looked very happy about his drink. It was 10 am. Getting the party started, I guess....... Some photos of check in:
    1 point
  47. The news story and video clips are likely part of the process as they try to edge the settlement needle in their favor. The cruise contract has verbiage that covers taking photos and video. A cruise ship is not a public place, it's the property of the cruise line. The crew can restrict you from taking pictures or video at any time. Bottom line - it's an unfortunate accident. Accidents happen across the country every day in theme and amusement parks. The media has an odd fascination with anything that occurs on a cruise ship while often ignoring the same events occurring on land as mundane and not news worthy.
    1 point
  48. Day 3, Labadee! Started this morning off at the Windjammer just after 7am with a nice little breakfast while watching us back into the dock at Labadee We went down to StudioB at 7:50 for our Key debarment, and were escorted off the ship about 8:15 Hopped on a golf cart that took us to our Over the Water Cabana We are in the one on the left. This is amazing! The water here is incredible. Remember, we live on the west coast, and haven’t ever been down here before. We have been to Hawaii several times, but it just doesn’t compare. Did some snorkeling under the cabanas, some neat stuff Spent the day relaxing. Amazing... Our attendant, Jantee, was awesome, and kept the Labadoozies and Pina Colada’s flowing! Definitely made use of our drink package today! Sailaway from our balcony Dinner was in the MDR tonight Tonight’s headliner was a Journey tribute band, they were...interesting Thats all for now. See you later!
    1 point
  49. twangster

    Breakfast in the MDR

    Welcome to the message boards! A typical breakfast menu for the MDR is here: This is from sister ship Navigator a couple weeks ago.
    1 point
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