KWong

I just realized that RBC is effectively using "Royal Bank of Canada Royal Bank" in Canada...

48 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Land vacations...over-rated lol

Some truth to that. But there's no cruise excursion that can get me to Alberta and back in time, so...

(also, I've been rewatching TAR Canada, and it does a pretty good job of highlighting many, many places I've never been to in this country)

2 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

^^^This right here is what some people don't realize.  Also why we always pay in USD for our vacations.  Unless we are vacationing in Canada, which never happens lol.

This reminds me that I really need to go back to Calgary/Banff/Jasper at some point. 

4 hours ago, Rene Desmarais said:

Hi folks

 

I currently work with a Flightcenter Travel Agent,   She's great, but the company had a major temp layoff and store closures across Canada. She was affected.  

I was working with the agent on my Nov 2nd Miami sailing (now cancelled) I was trying to get the agent to do a Lift and shift.

I also have a Mediterranean cruise in May 2021.  

We don't know her future with the company, so I'm asking any RC Canadian members here, who they  love to work with for Cruising vacations.  (as a backup)

I've booked mainly with a local GTA chain called Cruise Holidays. They're pretty good. But they also mainly cater to Hong Kongers and mainland Chinese, so a lot of discussion is in Cantonese or Mandarin. 

Didn't realize they did Geoblocking.

They might have it on Smithsonian Channel in the US.

On 8/24/2020 at 7:13 AM, HeWhoWaits said:

Watched it once. Two hours I'll never get back.

Much better use of time is to watch various YouTube videos of people's time onboard various ships.

In fairness, you can say this about the majority of Hallmark movies. It's best to watch it:

- as a drinking game

- in MST3K style

- both

Ahem. Anyways, the thread title works whether you're talking about the ship or the movie. And if you really need to watch some cruising, watch Mighty Cruise Ships.

I think a lot of people know, and personally I'd been looking at possibly going to Hawaii at the end of year (changed mind and it will likely be a Caribbean resort if we go). And because many of us are not working or working from home, I think that the self-isolation period becomes less of an impediment.

But I think that many Canadians are still wary of going to the US because of the numbers there. If the numbers start going down and stay down in the US, then we'll see an upswing in southbound travel.

I think the airlines do have some strong lobby groups. But also, when you fly there is a paper trail that leads to your theoretical end point. I think it's still a little weak, but at least there's something to go on if contact tracing is required. 
 

The land border would have far too many people  crossing to make this possible without tracking the car or something of that nature. And I'm pretty certain that this would not go over well. 

1 hour ago, LandstromCruise said:

I wouldn’t care if nobody was tested. I don’t believe any company should be able to force any person to do any type of medical test or procedure. If there was cruising this entire time and no test being done I would still be on the ship. I believe if you are the one that is afraid and wants everyone else to be tested, maybe you shouldn’t be on the ship to begin with. Besides, someone could test negative to get on and the next day have it, so what good does the test do anyways???  

I think you have this backwards. If you're so selfish that you refuse to get tested when everyone else is required to, then maybe you shouldn't be on the ship to begin with. 

I can only imagine how dead the Windsor bar scene is without 19 and 20yo Michigan kids going over on weekends. 

9 hours ago, twangster said:

I don't recall large volumes of splash liquid occuring at the machines up to this point.  There is some I suppose but with clean liquid going in would need to be mixed with a lot of virus in a cup to reach the point of concern.  In the interim they could simply close the machines and only use bar glasses/cups to dispense beverages at bars.  Bring your souvenir cup home unused - it's a souvenir.  Honestly I'm more worried about elevator buttons and railings in the stairwells.  

When cruising first restarts I might even ask my cabin attendant to just drop off towels and skip the daily room refresh.  A cabin attendant moving from cabin to cabin to cabin is more likely to spread a virus than splash from a cup IMO. 

Yeah I don't think it's a huge amount of splash from the dispenser. But all the same, you could have respiratory droplets on your cup and not know it, so probably an easy ask (although perhaps not an easy task) to switch from the chipped cups to a paper or plastic cup. Even if it makes zero effective difference from a health standpoint, it might be a good psychological move.

13 hours ago, twangster said:

As far as the Freestyle machines I guess they could have a crew member wipe down the Freestyle touch screen and cup base between guests much like a big box retailer that does at the self check out registers.

The cups themselves are somewhat contact-less in that you just sit the cup in the machine, only the bottom touches anything.   The points of contact are the touch screen and the place where you sit the cup. 

Think of this like a self checkout machine at Walmart or a grocery store.  If staff wipe down the scanner area and touchpad it seems to work at home so this approach should work at a Freestyle machine.

With the cup I think the concern is more about the splash when you're filling it up. 

It's a good question. I don't partake in the soda package, but I liked the souvenir cups from the "reusable" standpoint. Clearly we're going to pivot away from that.

I'm sure that to start with, the freestyle machines will be off limits, and you'll only get the fizzy stuff from the bars. Inconvenient, but not a big deal in the long run.

What comes next will be interesting, and it's probably predicated on what advances Coke puts into the freestyle machines. I'm reading that they're trying to add bluetooth/mobile app  support for the next gen machines, so that might work. 

But from a cruiser's standpoint - and I realize that this is easier said than done - it might be best to transfer the freestyle activation chip to a card (or maybe even the Seapass card) and the scanning location to the front of the machine. Again, easier said than done, since I'm sure that on the inside there are circuits and wires running everywhere to make a simple drink dispensing operation work. 

On 8/4/2020 at 12:54 PM, JennyB said:

Thank you for this review!  My mom and I are (hopefully) cruising in April 2021 for our 75th and 50th birthdays...and we're looking for a nice beach the day we're in Cozumel...question...if you reserve this...can we go anytime?  Like if we wanted to walk around Cozumel for a bit before heading there, is that doable?

I don't recall there being a time frame for arrival. They do ask you to indicate what ship you're sailing, but I think that's it. Stores might not be open when you arrive, so if you intend to look around, consider taking your time before getting off the ship  

Also, many beach clubs - including Nachi - are closed on Sundays. If this is the case with your cruise, your options will be limited. 

The problem wasn't so much the kids, but who was making the final decision on what they would bring, and the inability to edit things down from "just in case" to "this is enough". 

23 hours ago, krhardy said:

This is what we almost always do. When we first started cruising 20 years ago, like so many people, we waaaay overpacked which necessitated using the luggage service (our hands had to be free for the duty free alcohol  )....now, we pretty much have our packing down to a science and even for a 7 night cruise my husband and I have 1 suitcase and 1 backpack so we can walk off whenever we want. Much easier (in my opinion).

Wish I could do that, but can't yet with the kids (too much stuff for me to carry). But soon, soon.

On 8/7/2020 at 12:21 PM, Jill said:

Your very first signs will also be when we can gather in larger groups again. That has to happen on land before it can happen at sea. 

I think this. And also, the US needs to start on a downward trend on new cases/day, and keep going down. I simply don't see the CDC even considering letting cruising start from US ports before then.

18 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

Sorry to dredge up an old thread, but I wanted to share some new information.

I began my renewal process for Global Entry in Feb. 2020.  I paid the fee and filled out the application....just to be told a few weeks later that the offices were shutting down.  IMO, I shouldn't have had to be re-interviewed since this is a renewal, but for whatever reason, they insisted that I must schedule an interview.  My application was conditionally approved, but I had to make an appointment for an interview to complete the process.  No appointments available since Feb.

I just happened to check the GE website today (https://ttp.dhs.gov) and it seems that they have started scheduling interview appointments.  Mine will be Jan 5, 2021.  YEP...5 months from now.  I have to go to Dulles Airport so it's not that big a deal for me.  At any rate, for those of you who have been in my <limbo> situation, check and see if you can now schedule an appointment.

If it makes you feel any better I had to schedule an interview as the final step in my NEXUS renewal (which includes GE. If you cross the US/Canada border often NEXUS is absolutely worth the $50). I think they reserve the right to interview you but it seems like for all intents and purposes they're trying to make sure that you are who you say you are.

Best xiaolongbao (soup filled dumplings) - Asian Legend here in Toronto. I know Din Tai Fung has the pedigree, and I've never been able to make it over to the HK location with the Michelin Star, but the one I tried in the Arcadia, CA location wasn't as good.

Best street tacos - 100% Taquito in Houston. Being that it's off the Southwest Freeway it's a little out of the way for anyone heading from IAH to Galveston, but the food has some great flavour, to the point where I don't even mind the cilantro (and I HATE cilantro).

Best pho - Well, it WAS Lac Viet Bistro in Orlando. But they've closed down and now I gotta figure out a new "best" place. Their pho was really flavourful without tasting too salty. It was a go to for us whenever we went to visit The Mouse. I will give a shout out to Saigon Noodle though. They got some shine on DDD a while back, and it's certainly deserved.

Smoked Meat - I keep trying to think of a place I liked better than Schwartz in Montreal, because that's almost a copout statement. And yet, it's really good stuff.

Look man, it's not an addiction. I can quit whenever I want to.

6 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

One of the ++ of the Coronner...I have begun making my own pizza.  SOOOO much better when you make your own !

I cheat and use the premade dough (the ones in bags, not the one in tubes), but I agree - it's tasty, you can put what you want on there, and the kids have fun doing it.

OT, but I've also made garlic knots and sticky buns using the premade dough.

3 hours ago, JLMoran said:

Because, like me, many of the cruising population is actually at least 1/4 Hobbit. Hobbits love mushrooms!! 

 

Ah, that explains why there's second breakfast and elevenses...

58 minutes ago, jaredhamburg said:

I would like to see more Asian dishes added (like Pad Thai, curry, etc).  I know some of it can be requested on the side, but it would be nice to have it formally on the menu.  This can also cover lots of vegetarian/vegan needs as well for menu coverage.

I know the chefs work hard at crafting a balance of meat, veg and starch with the daily entrees, but I wouldn't mind some sort of build your own thing (Column A | Column B | Column C) for the "Classic" ones.

I'd like to see more Asian dishes, and hopefully they can refrain from making them too sweet.

1 hour ago, RWDW1204 said:

Better than Little Caesar's in our opinion. 

Not that high a bar to clear.

37 minutes ago, HeWhoWaits said:

Papa John's

That is barely pizza, imo. If I were to rank chain pizza places I'd go:

1. Pizzaiolo (Toronto area chain)

2. Pizza Nova, Hut, -ville

3. Pizza Pizza (my replacement level)

4. Mamas. Little Caesar's

...

(Indeterminate ranking) Week old leftover pizza.

...

Infinity + 1. Domino's and Papa John's

Actually, the closest you're going to get from a chain is Little Caesar's "Deep Deep" pizza. The look is meant to be recognizable as a Detroit-style, but the taste is definitely Chain Pizza Place.