melmar02

I would change to earlier dining - 6:45 was too late for us when our kids were that age. 5:30 was great because we could eat, go back to the cabin to change if needed, get the kids to AO, and then hubby and I had the rest of the night to do whatever we wanted.

I actually need a sweater/hoodie more indoors than out - coming inside to the air conditioning from the humidity. You certainly won't need a big jacket.

Thanks for consulting the experts. I'm hoping it's not our last. We got our 2br ats cabin for the same price we usually get the regular 2br suite on Liberty so we couldn't pass it up!

@jbrinkmWe're star class this time, so everything else is included. Port souvenirs was my next thought too. I'd love to hear what your kids say about the VR in the teen club!

Do either of the Allure arcades have VR games? If so what kind? Trying to get kids to buy into a few more chores in the next few months.

We were considering fishing for our next cruise in April, but chose something else. I recall there being an option in the cruise planner for Roatan, but I don't remember seeing anything for Cozumel or Costa Maya. Shore Excursioneer was a quite a bit less expensive.

We just completed a cruise tour in June. The check in time was listed on the second page of the booking confirmation with the itinerary. We selected the 2:30 slot and I think the bus pulled up to the terminal at 3pm.

We just made our reservation for Maya Chan for April. So excited to see your pictures!

Thanks!

Hero of the Day! My kids are going to be so excited!

If it were me, I would book one ending in 74-98 because they are closer to mid ship. They are between the two elevator banks so it's quicker to get to either end of the ship from your cabin. You need to take the aft elevators to get to the suite lounge, so if you plan on using that benefit, the mid ship cabins are a little more convenient than a cabin by the front elevators.

Does galveston.com have a webcam that faces the new terminal? Does the cruise cam swing around to point that direction, or is there a better option? 95 days to Allure and we're getting excited - hoping to see sail away for Adventure tomorrow or Allure this weekend.

We cruised in February 2020 and 2022 from Galveston. Live blog posts are in my signature, but here are the weather highlights" February 13 out of Galveston last year had snow on the drive down from Dallas. We had to put on sweaters when in the shaded part of the pool deck for sail away, but it was warm enough in the sun on the upper deck to shed that layer. Day 2 was about 65° F. Day 3 was still to cold for the pools in my opinion. Day 4, 5, and most of 6 were great warm, but around 4pm on the 6th day, you could definitely tell we were headed back into cooler territory. Day 7 was too cold for the pools. No weather issues when we arrived back in Galveston, just a little chilly. February 7, 2020 we had snow and ice, not in Houston, but in Dallas and Lubbock where all of our party was coming from. We moved up our drive and MIL's flight a day to miss that mess. I don't recall hearing about delays at the airports after the weather hit, but I'm sure there were some. Build in time for connections / cancellations if you are flying. It was warmer on day 1 on this cruise, but not by much - no sweaters, but we were all still in jeans in pictures. Seas got very rocky on this trip. We came back to 40° weather and fog. Debarkation was delayed, and we finally made it to our car about 11am. Yes, it can be warm in February in Texas too, but after two trips where the kids couldn't use the pools for a couple days, we decided we would push future spring trips to April.

We used Dive Paradise, but it was about 10 years ago. They had rental gear, but we brought our own since we drove to the embarkation port. https://diveparadise.com/

Both MDR and specialty. My son still orders the fruit salad from the kid's menu in the MDR, but he orders an adult entree and dessert. He gets the lamb on the adult menu in Chops.

Who does the questionnaire go to? Everyone with an email on the reservation, or just the first guest listed?

My kids eat off the adult menu and we haven't been charged extra...yet. That could always change, I'm sure.

I wouldn't rule out the MDR. Our son was 7 and daughter was 10 on their first cruise, and some of the memories talk about the most from that cruise are from MDR. They loved it, and we ate there every night. I think it was partly because the staff gave them so much attention - jokes and magic tricks from the waiters every night. We did take time to prepare the kids before the cruise by explaining how dinner on the cruise ship was special and we practiced a couple times leading up to the cruise by going to a nicer restaurant and discussing manners and ettiquite. We looked at past Cruise Compasses to see what the attire was and let them plan out what they were going to wear each night, including Caribbean night. We built it up so it was something the kids looked forward to by the time we were onboard. Our picky eaters opened up on the ship and tried things they never would have at home too.

What are the port stops and embarkation ports?

That's a great option too. DH have been, but haven't taken the kids yet.

We always say we want to go to the aquarium, which is in downtown Houston, the day before our cruise, but we haven't really gotten in early enough. They have the exhibits, some rides, a restaurant, and they open at 10am. http://m.aquariumrestaurants.com/#2776 I don't recommend the children's museum as the exhibits will be a little young for your teens. My kids (14 and 10) would love the Color Factory too. https://colorfactory.co/houston/?gclid=CjwKCAiAk--dBhABEiwAchIwkSir8oPoc77JxtIBWFdwAXI7DpN6oE7x0GDT29h8R3Ax_jr68kHk-xoCIW8QAvD_BwE

San Francisco and up the Pacific coast. I'd book a wine cruise in a heartbeat!

Yes, sugar is everywhere! We typically eat pretty low carb anyway, but we've been eating out 3-4 nights a week since Thanksgiving. I'm hoping staying out of restaurants for the next month is not only good for the scale, but for building our cruise funds. I've got a final payment coming up and another excursion to book! @Lovetocruise2002 Thanks for the martini pic. In all the times we've dined in Chops, I've never actually tried it - that will have to change in April!

We decided to do Whole 30 this month, and your drink pictures are killing me. I'm living vicariously through all the food and drink photos!

No, suite guests carry their carry-on luggage around until rooms open. We usually try to keep it to backpacks - DD has used a rolling one, and it was a pain with so many people milling about. A lot of times, we will eat lunch and then just hang out in the suite lounge until rooms open.