cmdrfrag

Don't show my wife this suitcase. My backs already broken carrying her stuff though the airport

Don't show my wife this suitcase. My backs already broken carrying her stuff though the airport

I get quite nervous about going too far from the ship when we head off by ourselves and keep checking my watch. 
I usually try and get us back at least an hour before departure time.
I remember on one cruise we where about 40 minutes late departing from Lanzarote and we where sitting on our balcony just looking out over the port when we saw this taxi screaming though the security point, lights flashing horn blaring. He pulled up right next to the ship and a couple got out and legged the remaining 20 feet to the gangway. Needless to say they where met with many cheers from the on lookers on the Balconys.

Don't know if these guys were guilty of it or not as you cant seem them approach but I hate when people are late for the ship and you see them Walk across the port.....
RUN!!! The rest of us where all here on time, you move like you've got a purpose!

Don't know if these guys were guilty of it or not as you cant seem them approach but I hate when people are late for the ship and you see them Walk across the port.....
RUN!!! The rest of us where all here on time, you move like you've got a purpose!

Don't show my wife this suitcase. My backs already broken carrying her stuff though the airport

I get quite nervous about going too far from the ship when we head off by ourselves and keep checking my watch. 
I usually try and get us back at least an hour before departure time.
I remember on one cruise we where about 40 minutes late departing from Lanzarote and we where sitting on our balcony just looking out over the port when we saw this taxi screaming though the security point, lights flashing horn blaring. He pulled up right next to the ship and a couple got out and legged the remaining 20 feet to the gangway. Needless to say they where met with many cheers from the on lookers on the Balconys.

The Captain issued a statement earlier
 

The Captain issued a statement earlier
 

Yesterday I experienced a trip delay returning on a cruise and I thought it would make an interesting "lessons learned" post.
My 4 night cruise on Brilliance of the Seas left Tampa on time and on schedule.  It was a great cruise with a group of friends and we all enjoyed it.  When we finished our day in Cozumel and re-boarded the ship none of us knew how mother nature had her own plans for our return to Tampa despite calm seas and smooth sailing.
Fog.  Heavy fog.  
To reach the pier in Tampa you need to pass under the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.  In 1980 during severe weather a freighter struct the original bridge sending a section of the bridge crashing into the bay killing 35 people.  As such, Tampa and it's pilots don't take chances when it comes to weather.
We arrived to the Tampa pilot station six hours ahead of schedule in an attempt to beat the fog but the fog beat us, arriving earlier than forecast.
Our attempt to beat the fog and arrive early didn't come without cost.  Running any boat, vessel, craft or ship at full speed consumes a massive amount of fuel compared to running at a nominal cruising speed.  Royal spent tens of thousands of dollars on fuel and it's an example how Royal does try to do the best thing for everyone involved even if it costs them significant sums of money.
Waking up early on debark day I noted our speed was zero but we were still outside of Tampa Bay. Oh boy, here we go.  Up on deck 12 I could see several cargo and tanker ships hanging around with us in the fog.  Beyond the lights of the other ships you couldn't see much of anything.  Fog.
The Captain informed us that the channel into the port was closed by the Coast Guard and we would need to wait until the channel opened and a pilot could come out to board the ship.  The initial estimate was a 2:30pm arrival at the pier.
Not long after the Captain informed us that he just got word that another cruise ship got stuck in port the day before and couldn't leave due to the fog.  The channel through Tampa Bay is narrow and only one cruise ship can occupy it at a time, two ships cannot pass each other in the channel.  It takes 2 to 3 hours for a ship to transit the channel.  We had no choice but to wait for that ship to depart and clear the bay before could begin our entrance to the bay.  Estimated arrival now 5:30pm.  
Lesson 1 - Don't book early flights.
While sitting around an airport for a day doesn't sound that attractive you need to understand the risk that comes with booking an early flight.  Delays happens for a number of reasons most of which are no one's fault and unavoidable.  Weather delays happen, some ports like Tampa or Galveston are more likely to experience delays at certain times of the year.  Do some research before booking that flight.  Delays can occur for many reasons beyond weather.  
In my case, I had booked a 6:30pm flight home because it was cheapest, like $175 cheaper than the 10:30am direct flight.  Over the weeks before the cruise I kept looking at that knowing I could pay the difference on Southwest and grab the earlier direct flight but if someone said to me "I'll give you $175 and all you need to do is stay at an airport for 8 hours" I'd take that deal every time.
I knew I could get some work done using the free airport wifi so my plan was to get off the ship early and spend the day working from the airport knowing if there was a delay, I could be relaxed and not stressed out.  Not only did I save money but the later flight also saved me a bunch of stress during this experience.
Lesson 2 - Travel Insurance.  This is a perfect example of how travel insurance needs to be high on anyone's list to consider. 
Our group of about 70 included folks with travel insurance and some "self insured" as they put it.  Some people were out $400 or $500 per person to rebook next day airfare and they had to pay for a hotel and meals on top of that.  For a couple that can be over $1,000.  For a family of four that could be over $2,000.  Those with insurance will get some, if not all of that back.  Those without just lost a whole lot of money.
However know your travel insurance coverage and limits.  My annual travel insurance policy was chosen primarily for medical coverage.  It has some trip interruption coverage but it doesn't have great reimbursement for delays of this nature.  
Lesson 3 - If you have travel insurance, know how to use it.
A lot of people in our group had insurance but had no idea what to do in the hour of need.  What is their phone number? What is the policy number?  What is covered and what isn't?  How much is covered?  Do you need pre-approval? What documentation is required?  The ship had letters pre-printed and available at guest services stating there was a weather delay and some insurance companies will need that documentation for a claim to proceed.  
If you buy insurance that's great, but know what to do when you need to use it.
Lesson 4 - They keep the food and beverages flowing.  
No need to worry about your extra time on board, they have ample food for such events and lined up more activities to keep us busy.  Most people took it all in stride and rolled with it.  It was quite enjoyable, much like any sea day.
Lesson 5 - Listen to announcements and pay attention. 
On the last night of the cruise many people put their luggage tags on their bag and place them in the hallway.  Bags are collected by the crew and prepared to be offloaded once the ship reaches the pier.  It takes time for the pier personnel to offload thousands of bags.  There is a reason why bag tags have numbers and bags are offloaded in order so that numbers can be called only when those bags will be ready and waiting in the terminal.  
During an event like this there a natural tendency to want to get off as soon as the ship arrives but cruise terminals cannot hold thousands of people waiting hours for luggage to be offloaded.  
Of course what occurred once we did finally reach the pier?  Hundreds of guests ignored the announcements, made a stampede to exit during the "self assist" time and found themselves having to stand outside the terminal waiting for up to 2 hours for their luggage, with no where to sit and no food or water.  If they had listened to the announcements they could have been sitting comfortably on the ship with access to restrooms, food and beverages. Instead they made the self-assist process more chaotic and accomplished nothing but misery for themselves in the process. 
Listen to the announcements, follow instructions.  
Lesson 6 - You can't fight mother nature. 
It's not the crew's fault, it's not the Captains fault, it's not the cruise line's fault. Don't be one of those people making an already difficult situation any worse.   Even if you are one of those people who choose to ignore the lessons above, at the end of the day becoming ugly or snarky with the crew or terminal employees accomplishes nothing.  Sit back, take a deep breathe and relax.  Life will go on and it will all work out in the end.  Put a smile on in the face of adversity.  Be kind to other's and don't get everyone else spun up.  Staying calm and friendly helps other's stay calm and friendly.  If you are stressed out, it will make your spouse and/or kids stressed out.  If you are calm and smiling through it, your loved ones will be more relaxed.  Do it for them.
Lesson 7 - If you don't buy insurance you've only got yourself to blame.
Accept the fact that you saved some money by not buying insurance.  You took a gamble and lost.  The money saved by not buying insurance may take a small bite out of your losses.  No cruise line can change factors beyond their control.  It's not their fault.  You took the chance and lost.  Accept responsibility and move on.  
Me?  I got lucky.  A lot of factors combined to work out in my favor.  I had booked a later flight.  I have travel insurance.  I always use self-assist.  Customs was fast.  Taxi's were waiting.   TSA Pre lines had no wait.  Southwest did an amazing job getting my luggage on the plane checking in at 38 minutes before departure.  The stars aligned for me perfectly and I didn't need to make a claim against my insurance policy.  I was fortunate but in a small group of lucky guests.

Saw this one before Christmas and thought, yea I'm using this

Saw this one before Christmas and thought, yea I'm using this

Saw this one before Christmas and thought, yea I'm using this

Saw this one before Christmas and thought, yea I'm using this

Saw this one before Christmas and thought, yea I'm using this

They haven't closed CocoCay.  Its taking ships business as usual.  
The confusion here is because they had planned on taking two ships on certain days.  Two Vision class ships.  When the pier didn't complete on time they couldn't accept two ships on the same day.  One ship was given a new alternate port.  One ship visited CocoCay as planned.
They never closed CocoCay to work on Perfect Day. 

The only reason to stand in line at guest services upon boarding would be to add some cash to an onboard account.
Some people don't have or don't like to use a credit card and prefer to keep everything cash based.  Others, like myself add a credit during the online check in process up to 90 days away from sailing.  You can also provide a credit card or change it when you arrive in the terminal before boarding.
Charges on board are typically all in $ USD and for cruises out of the US region that might mean foreign transaction fees and exchange conversion for non-US residents.  That might be another reason why some cruisers would prefer to keep it cash based.

The Wife and I where on board Independence back in October for a week away and had a great time.
Towards the end of the week it dawned on me that this was my first cruise as Platinum and I vaguely remembered reading about a Pin you get. So I enquired at GS to see how that worked, was I ment to get it on board or does it get sent out to me later. Girl on the desk mentioned that I should have gotten it in the Stateroom when I arrived but that they didn't have any Pins on board.
Bit of a shame but I was having a great cruise and it didn't really bother me so I went off and enjoyed the last couple of days.
Last week I got a strange text message saying they where FedEx and that my delivery would be made on the 15th, "if you would like to see the status of the order click this link". I hadn't ordered anything and wasn't expecting anything so I ignored it as a phishing attempt. I don't like clicking links I don't know from emails or messages. Yesterday I got another text to say that the delivery would be today (yesterday). At this point I'm thinking the messages are legit and start getting "The Fear". What the hell did I order and why cant I remember it?
 
Got home yesterday and opened up the envelope and inside was my Pin. Was really surprised. Girl at the desk must have noted something on my account and sent it off. That was pretty cool of her and I'm sorry that I don't remember her name now, it was a throwaway conversation and I didn't really expect anything to be done after I wasn't overly fussed about chasing it.

The pier was originally supposed to be completed nearly a year ago.  March 2018, then June 2018, then December 2018, then January 2018, then March 2019.  It's a complex project that has been years in the making clearing protests and environmental hurdles along the way.
If their construction contractor (an American company by the way) notifies them of another delay they have no choice but to alter more sailings where they intended to have two Vision class ships share the pier.  That's the nature of construction underwater - sometimes you get into the project and discover something that calls for another approach and re-engineering.
Let's be clear, the impacted cruises involved two ships that were supposed to use the pier on the same day.  No pier, only one ship can visit that day.  
On the itineraries that were impacted they stopped advertising CocoCay many months ago.    I just sailed one of them.  
There were a handful of itineraries that were impacted.  That's it.  No other ships impacted.  They are not just randomly cancelling calls to CocoCay.
The intent was to have two Vision class ships share the new pier.  That will eventually happen.  When the pier wasn't ready for those ships that were double booked they had to make a decision and one of the two ships had to find an alternate port. 
For me on Vision last week we went to Miami instead.   That was changed and we were notified many, many months ago.  They stopped selling that cruise with CocoCay listed long before final payment due date.  For OP on Grandeur she was diverted to Grand Bahamas.  Same deal - Grandeur lost and Enchantment lucked out. 
There remain some Vision and Grandeur itineraries that were not impacted.  Next week for example the Vision ports of call are reversed in order compared to what I just sailed.  As a result, she isn't double booked with Enchantment into CocoCay.  That's why they continued to sell that particular Vision cruise with CocoCay still listed - it's still going there.  
Not bait and switch.

Good man, do this myself and then... "borrow" a document folder so I have all my hard copies together, in order and right where I can grab them when I need them.
I'm a delight to travel with lol

Good man, do this myself and then... "borrow" a document folder so I have all my hard copies together, in order and right where I can grab them when I need them.
I'm a delight to travel with lol

Good man, do this myself and then... "borrow" a document folder so I have all my hard copies together, in order and right where I can grab them when I need them.
I'm a delight to travel with lol