HeWhoWaits

1998 - Song of America - New York to Bermuda Those were the days - docking in Bermuda meant being right downtown in St. George's (one night) and in Hamilton (two nights). Beach day at Tobacco Bay meant either a five minute bus ride ($1 per person) and two minute walk or a fifteen minute walk if you didn't mind the hills.

Nickel and dime? No, it's more like 50s and 100s. Yet another reason to select itineraries that don't include this stop or to spend the day on the ship with minimized crowds.

Those who don't want to spend two days at Coco Cay (myself included) can just avoid the itineraries that include it. Those who want the extra time there will eat up the opportunity.

As long as they are published as "recommendations" there is nothing that can be done. The requirement for no sleeveless shirts for men is enforceable.

This obviously varies greatly ship to ship and sailing to sailing. In our lone Concierge Lounge experience to date, our family of six were often the only ones in the lounge other than the Concierge and the bartender. When it was "crowded" we encountered as many as 20 people at one time. I don't care if all 14 others were Pinnacle (or even not really eligible to be in the lounge) - it's not as though our ability to enjoy the perks was compromised.

Any chance you could book it with a guest and then cancel just you and let the guest have the reservation?

Helipad is my favorite. Good second option is your own balcony if you have an aft facing balcony - wave "bye bye" to the unfortunates who aren't sailing with you.

Read a few live blogs - best therapy short of getting on a cruise of your own.

I don't know the full answer, but from checking a few posts in another thread I read, it requires no more than 24 posts to move from "newbie" to "member."

7 night cruise plus 3 night cruisetour will garner you 10 points (assuming you're not in a suite) and bump you to Emerald before your next trip.

Helipad for sail away. Facing east topside at sunrise.

If true, I envision spending what we normally set aside for extra tips on each cruise to purchase stateroom upgrades.

Whenever you renew prior to the expiration date, the new time (ten years for adults, five for children) is added to the original expiration date. Renewing in advance doesn't shorten the useful life of the passport.

No savings on anything we've purchased for October. Always worth checking, though.

Have never had a problem with online waivers.

Go to Guest Services the first time there's not much of a line. The process to get additional cards goes very quickly.

The aluminum ones are the earliest we have as well. Would the comparison be based on number of different style/color combinations or can I count the 15 or so of one style/color? 5 adults having at least one per night adds up in hurry!

Welcome, Tim. Be sure to list your planned cruise in the "When is your next cruise?" thread so @DocLC can add you to the master member cruise list.

$172 to the good for 10 minutes of effort - well done. That's a little over $1000 an hour which is good money for any of us that aren't professional athletes.

Man, I miss those! Last cruise we took, the layered drinks were offered in regular glasses. One of the main reasons we always got the layered drinks each night after dinner was to add to the loving cup collection.

I am one of those who dislikes the steady decline in the level of attire considered acceptable in the MDR. I don't begrudge the "I'm on vacation so I don't want to dress up" crowd the right to be comfortable at dinner, but the wearing of jeans (even "nice" jeans are still VERY casual to me) or worse on the more formal nights continues to bother me. The "issue" is that the so-called "formal" nights are only a SUGGESTED dinner attire - there is no formal requirement. If something is only suggested and not required, each individual has the right to do as they please.

It would be nice to have an updated Cruise Compass for this itinerary added to the site. There are also currently no menus for Grandeur posted.

Time zone does change once (for northbound or southbound trips) or twice (for round trips) while at sea. On a one-way trip it happens the first or last night, round trips will be first and last nights.

The presence of a balcony makes any cabin feel larger. Unless the weather doesn't cooperate, that time spent "just chilling" in your cabin can be time to enjoy sitting quietly on your balcony.

Enjoy the shared anniversaries cruise. Several years ago we took a family cruise to Alaska celebrating my parents' 50th anniversary, our 25th anniversary, and our youngest son's 21st birthday.