Zacharius

5 hours ago, barjpoe said:

thanks, I was afraid of that. I know FLL is doable as it only a few minutes away, but didn't MIA was. drats

The fact that you are coming in to Port Everglades but leaving out of Miami is a very important detail that was left out. That traffic can be a pain and any little hiccup can make for a very stressful end of a relaxing vacation. I wouldn't do it. 

On 4/13/2024 at 8:01 PM, smokeybandit said:

AIr2Sea doesn't change flights. The airlines do.  
 

Legit question - is this 100% fact? As someone who flies constantly, I know that airlines change their schedules frequently...but I also know that Air2Sea is looking for the deal that is best for them, so it wouldn't surprise me if they make changes at times too so that it benefits them financially. 

21 minutes ago, tonyfsu21 said:

This would be more of a hassle logistically than just driving IMHO. 

Yeah that's my thought too. Brightline is definitely making some trips within Florida a bit easier, but this isn't one of them. 

I have absolutely no idea how it works on cruise ships, but I help out at my buddy's brewery + cocktail bar once or twice a month as needed and we do something a bit similar to what it sounds like may be happening there. We have a main bar area where people can walk up, order, and sit at as space allows. We also have roaming servers but when they take an order, and on busy days it redirects those orders back to a "behind the scenes" back bar. This is so that we have fewer bartenders bumping in to each other (and slowing things down) up front. On quieter days, it's not rerouted and the back bar isn't used too much. 

Some newer Starbucks do things like this too, in that they have two prep areas - one for drive-thru and one for in-store. 

On 3/15/2024 at 5:38 PM, Doug_Texas said:

The U.S. State department has said there are hundreds of U.S. citizens in Haiti wanting to leave and they have no plans to rescue them (said in briefing today, 3/15).

Not saying it's fact, but I am going to throw my two cents in as someone who travels to a lot of developing/third would countries, has been caught up in political situations multiple times, and still chooses to go. And I'm a US citizen (as well as a citizen of another, much less advantageous country). 

I know what I am getting in to when I go to places like Haiti, Somalia, C.A.R., etc. There's always a chance of something happening when I am there. Always. I can't count on my government to bail me out. Would it be nice if they do? Heck yeah. But there have been two occasions where they have not and I needed to get myself out of the country OR find some way to be safe while there. It's just the risk you take. I'm also guessing a lot of those US citizens are actually dual citizens living in Haiti (in addition to the more obvious aid workers and such). 

However, rescuing a few hundred US citizens is probably a lower priority to the US government than thousands of citizens on a cruise ship. That's just the way it is. 

Finally, it looks like the US government has since run a flight from Cap Haitien to Miami for US citizens. It only had like 30 people on it. I don't see them even trying to get a flight in to Port-Au-Prince. 

I'm just curious if it was really Royal Caribbean that made the decision, or if it was their insurers who did. I'm guessing the latter. 

By "NYC Cruise Terminal", do you mean Bayonne/Port Liberty? Because that's very different than, say, Manhattan Cruise Terminal. Largely because it's in a different state with the largest US city standing in between. 

Assuming you do mean Port Liberty...no, there's no way in heck I would try to get across NYC at rush hour to catch an 11:25am flight. Can you make it? Perhaps. Is there also a good chance you'll cut it extremely close and end your vacation with a lot of undue stress and potentially a missed flight (which can make for an expensive, last-minute replacement ticket)? Yep.

Might I recommend you look at flights out of Newark, which is significantly closer and easier to get to (and cheaper to get to). 

2 hours ago, bobroo said:

The US has sent troops into Haiti before and it was of little benefit, they aren't going to do it again.

 

Sending troops in to Haiti to "bring freedom" () is totally different than bringing them in on a counterterrorism raid to free/protect thousands of Americans and other allied country's nationals. They would absolutely go in the form of the latter, and I sure as hell hope they would. 

1 hour ago, GatorCruiser said:

Haven’t been to Falmouth. It seems like the consensus is that it stinks. What say y’all ?

Falmouth is shitty if you're looking for tropical Jamaica. If you're an adventure traveler, Falmouth is fine. I've strolled around Falmouth a few times, gotten a beer, hung with the locals. But I also have been on vacation to places like Somalia and C.A.R., so I admit I am not the normal cruiser. And I blend in more than many

2 hours ago, CanHardlyWait said:

To me, aside from being incredibly dangerous right now. Getting off there for a day of fun in the sun, seems like dancing on a grave right now. I find the situation to sad and it would feel just wrong to enjoy.

It's a real "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation. Labadee helps the people working there...they get money in a country that has an incredibly high unemployment rate, and those people would be significantly worse off without Royal Caribbean. People will suffer in Haiti with or without ships stopping at Labadee, but there will be ever so slightly less suffering with ships coming. However, it does also open Royal Caribbean passengers up to security concerns (whether big or small, they're still there more than some other places) and can also help a government that may not be worth helping.

There's no good solution. 

It also has been all but confirmed that Henry is in Puerto Rico and, as I said earlier, may or may not ever make it back to Haiti. 

4 hours ago, Vacation Crazy said:

Haiti's government declared a 72-hour state of emergency on Sunday after armed gangs stormed a major prison.

 

"Government" is a pretty useless term when it comes to Haiti, unfortunately. Especially since their President (who is also their PM, who is also under suspicion for having been part of the plot to kill the former President while PM) is probably out of the country and may or may not ever return, whether by choice or by force. 

Sadly, this is just another day for Haiti. I love Haiti, I love the Haitian people. I used to do some occasional work in Port-au-Prince and Cap-Haitien (which is one of the largest cities in Haiti and very close to Labadee), but it's one of those countries I just won't take work from anymore because I don't feel safe there...

BUT, I would still go to Labadee without hesitancy. It'll be fine, and you won't even know you're in Haiti. 

2 minutes ago, twangster said:

Looks like they make good money.

I bartend at my friend's higher-end brewery a couple times a month when he needs me (and when I'm not actually traveling for work, which is rare). The hourly pay I get with tips is just insane for the amount of work I do (and the amount of fun I have). 

18 hours ago, Suzanne Elise said:

East Rutherford seems to have a good collection of hotels because it’s near a sports stadium. There’s a huge touristy mall nearby too.

EWR to East Rutherford to Bayonne is further than EWR to Hoboken/Jersey City to Bayonne, and Hoboken/Jersey City have more restaurant/bar choices as well as a good view of the skyline. Just my two cents, but East Rutherford seems a bit of a wasted opportunity to me. This is with the assumption that OP is cruising out of Bayonne. 

This wasn't it?

Are you looking to have things to do, i.e. eat and drink? If so, check out Hoboken/Jersey City. Springhill Suites at EWR will leave you with extremely limited options on food/drink, and nothing to do except sit in your room. 

I do one-way rentals very frequently for business reasons. Sometimes they're cheaper, sometimes the same, sometimes more expensive...and you're not really going to know until you try to book it. 

3 hours ago, BrianB said:

It looks like the majority of the incidents involve gangs targeting each other.

Which is pretty much the case anywhere. Even in the US...you're very rarely going to have an issue as a common person walking through the streets of Chicago or St. Louis or Baltimore. Can it happen? Sure...but the crime statistics don't tell the truth for most tourists or even most residents. 

7 hours ago, Safemike1 said:

I normally don't go outside of the port for this very reason. But, what are your thoughts?

And if it is that bad, then why would Royal still be making port calls there?

Two separate questions, of course, but:

1) You're missing a perfectly fine place. I've been around even the "sketchiest" areas of Nassau and have been perfectly fine. Like most places in the world, trouble usually won't come to you unless you seek it out. 

2) Because they can make money and their insurance carrier(s) aren't too concerned about it. 

So I guess I'll be the first person to say that you should stay in the city. Jersey City and Hoboken would be my second choice, and are both nice to stay in...but I personally would just stay in Manhattan itself. You'll have plenty of time in the morning/early afternoon to get out of the city and to the port. 

First of all, unless you think you can get some good sleep on a redeye (which is tough even in business/first), be prepared for at least your first day of vacation to be pretty miserable. So, not only are you at risk with the same day arrival, but you're almost guaranteed to be in bad shape physically. 

Will you be okay? Probably. But what if you aren't? When is the next port, and how many days would you lose? 

Plenty of hotels in the area between Newark Airport, Hoboken, Jersey City. Book directly with the hotel. 

15 hours ago, happy cruisers 2 said:

Kind of sounds similar to other aspects of current life in America, doesn't it?

As someone who has lived in multiple countries on three continents and travels to about 30-40 countries per year, I can assure you it's definitely not just America.

20 hours ago, Kim8900 said:

Do you know if you miss your flight and then the ship and have booked on the Air 2 Sea will they allow you to get in at the second port? 

It depends. Does the second port have an airport? Some don't. Would getting on at the second port breach regulations? Sometimes it does. And, as always, even if there is an airport and it's allowed, there need to be flights with seats on them...which isn't always the case and Air2Sea can't add seats or bump other passengers. So as with most things, it depends. 

I would call. There seems to be a lot of inconsistencies across the board when it comes to these temporary paper IDs...some places are okay with them, some aren't. While it's 100% valid, not every state offers them so there can be a lot of confusion surrounding them. 

On 1/1/2024 at 2:22 PM, happy cruisers 2 said:

It's been many years ago, but I really enjoyed using the London Underground (The Tube).  Some of it is above ground actually.  

In fact, the majority is above ground. Just not necessarily in the areas that tourists go. But of the 250ish miles, something like 60% is above ground.