JennyB

We also don't do suites. Our first cruise was interior...NOPE.. never again. I would rather NOT cruise that have an interior room. I am claustrophobic. NOPE. We do balcony rooms. And I will never cruise without one. I might consider an ocean view, but seriously, the balcony is so worth it to me. We're taking our 16yo DS and his best friend on their first cruise this summer (Navigator OTS July 2019) and booked side by side balcony rooms. Those were still less than a suite at the time of booking. I haven't looked lately to see if that changed. The amount of time we spend in the room doesn't make financial sense to us. But I also understand that everyone has varying wants/desires/priorities when traveling.

there is a lot of storage in that room! I have never had a storage cabinet in the bathroom!

My hubby uses a cpap machine and hasn't needed an extension cord on any of our cruises. But it's good to know we can request on if it were needed.

i don't know but i like food.

I know there are others who travel besides "just" cruising...but everywhere I've ever traveled, even if "not required" to have my passport, i always take it just in case...even when getting off a cruise ship in a port that may not REQUIRE it...but that's just me. I've watched too many movies/t.v. shows LOL

and the ones who imbibed a bit much. I cannot imagine missing the ship...i'm having anxiety just reading this thread! LOL

We always just put them in the closet after unpacking.

We are also going to be on the Mariner in July! that is all. amen.

bahaha!!! yea, last day of cruise starts countdown to the next! 175 days for Mariner!!! 307 days for Harmony!!! We might just be addicted to cruising now!

Thanks...we prefer to fly Southwest and knowing they only fly to FLL was why we were asking for ideas/information...thanks again!

We will fly from Indianapolis and are cruising on the Mariner from Miami on Monday July 8 ...and we're trying to decide HOW to get there ...and WHEN...like, should we plan to leave Indy on Sunday and stay the night before embarking on Monday? We are open to options, but just don't know about traveling times...

convenience...wins...every time...

how long of a drive from FLL to port in Miami?

We are leaving from Miami...do we fly into Fort Lauderdale? Or Miami?

i would just draw straws because...well, cruising Europe...?

I purchased "gift cards" (from a fundraiser for our church) almost two years ago for a cruise that we took in December 2017 and then realized the same thing you did (that it had to have been used for booking the cruise, not just paying for it)...it ended up being useless for that cruise, so we have just kept them for the cruise we're doing next month and the summer of 2019...so they are no longer useless! Just look for another cruise!

good info... i also like the room to be cooler and do remember that embarkation days were a bit warmer, but not at all umbearable..then the rest of the trips were perfect...

good to know! thanks!

So I am assuming it is similar to the Disney Magic Bands?...but for those of us who are not in suites, we can purchase one to have/wear instead of carrying our sea pass card around with us? It would take the place of the sea pass card?

oH my goodness! Thank you so much for this blog update! It's been fun reading it all day today! It's definitely getting us more excited about our cruise next month...on the Independence. So many great photos and LOTS of great information! We're excited to keep building our points up! And thanks for answering all my questions!

THE ABYSS ISN'T A WATER SLIDE??!??

that's a BIG NOPE!

What is/are "Playmakers"?

What is a Wow band?

The first cruise we took a few years ago was completely arranged by my brother who is a seasoned cruiser...it was for our parents' 50th. He knew everything...we just kind of followed him everywhere...? Once on board the ship, we went to some sort of lounge and won some prizes that included excursion tickets... My question(s) is/are this/these...how do we know about this type of stuff to do? is there a way to know when and where this type of stuff happens before we get there? and if not, how do we find out once we are on board?