kadmgs

1 hour ago, Psycho and Barb said:

We tend to avoid Guest Services because there always seems to be long lines.

We were on Oasis 12/19-12/26 and the only day there wasn't a line at Guest Services was day three. 

I got $100 out of the ATM onboard and it gave it in $50 bills, so that was a little inconvenient. 

On 12/14/2021 at 9:52 AM, AshleyDillo said:

This is what I've heard as well.  I always got the impression that he manages other people's money for a living. 

Living on a cruise ship can be very reasonable financially if you do it right.  

We were on Rhapsody a few years ago and there was a lady that spent the entire winter season (Nov.-April) onboard. It was cheaper for her to live on the ship and spend the rest of the year with her adult children than it was to live in a retirement community, so that's what she did... 6 months(ish) on board and then 6 months splitting time between her children's homes. 

The table was outside the terminal down by where ride shares pick up when we got off Oasis on 12/26. I looked over as we were waiting on our Lyft driver, but didn't walk over to "peruse the goods" so to speak. I did see from where I was standing a full size iron and a fan on the table. DW, the porter, and I were all laughing at what people think they can bring onboard. 

14 minutes ago, calvink669 said:

You guys don’t happen to be on UA 581 do you?  That would just be too weird with the fact that my wife is Kelli and she also teaches HS seniors lol.

No, we are flying Southwest. That's just crazy that's she's a senior HS teacher, too.  

14 hours ago, Jax said:

Currently -21 with a blowing snow advisory. 🌧🌬

Ummm, no, thanks! There is a reason I live in Houston. I'm giving my last final exams this morning. Bugging out around noon. We will test when I get home. Fingers crossed for negative tests considering I spent most of my time in a high school. We fly out in the morning as well. 

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone! Got home yesterday and DW said she wanted to go over to Calle Ocho after we check in to get another ladies' guayabera. So, it looks like dinner will be Cuban in Little Havana. 

6 minutes ago, Neesa said:

We get a room with a dining table and a view. We stop at the Publix for Pub Subs, clean & pretty healthy depending on your choice of sandwich. We figure we are going to eat non stop on the ship so we literally do this every.single.trip.  We usually stay at the Hilton Downtown huge and safe parking deck attached and Publix is around the block across the street, this is our ritual when sailing out of Miami. We save the "dinner" for our embarkation lunch. 

Good idea! Thanks!

We are flying into Miami Saturday morning and are staying at the InterContinental. We are familiar with the area from a previous trip and know that Bayside is just a short walk the other side of the park. However, I would like to avoid tourist traps so to speak. What is your favorite dinner spot for your pre-cruise dinner when in Miami?

The boys decided they needed to help again tonight. 

On 12/11/2021 at 10:33 AM, calvink669 said:

BTW our CK reservation is 6:30 just after sail away.......

Ours, too, for the same reason. 

12 hours ago, Jax said:

Anyone else’s pet do this?

 

Yes! We use the guest bed to stage everything. I was working on packing yesterday and left the door open. Went in after dinner to put the carryon in there and both boys (one black & one tuxedo) were on the bed. That door is normally closed to them, so anytime it is open they want in there. 

On 12/8/2021 at 10:35 AM, Jax said:

I received a welcome email from the onboard concierge team. I think they may still have us on their list of sky class guests but the email contained some useful information on lounge hours and protocols. I am thankful we are star class given the limited availability at specialty restaurants and CK mentioned in their email (copied below) Especially that reservations are based on first reply first reservation  

IMPORTANT NOTE:  We encourage you to book your dining preference / requests (Specialty Dining, Coastal Kitchen, Dining Room) in advance to avoid disappointment. Our Restaurants are expected to be busy during your sailing as we have limited seats for the first seating ( 5:30 pm, 6:00 pm and 6:30 pm ) Reservations are based on first reply first reservations Please let us know if we can assist with your preferred reservation pre-cruise.  

We are Sky class & have UDP, so I responded as soon as I saw the email. Just got my response from Ricardo and Edwin with all the locations and times I requested. Still have my fingers crossed my Royal Up bid will be accepted, but I doubt it will happen. 

On 12/3/2021 at 1:44 PM, calvink669 said:

What's even funnier is we are from Houston too!   See you on board!!! 

Holy cow, small world! See you on board!

On 11/29/2021 at 2:36 PM, calvink669 said:

Are you bringing a Festivus pole? LOL j/k

 

We will definitely follow along even though we are on board at the same time.  Kelli and I are in 1701 and we will be rearranging our night 1 dinner to try the filet at coastal kitchen.

Cheers! 20 more days to go and can't wait!

My first thought when I read your reply was, "Do I know you???" 

My first name is Kelli and I will be on this sailing. We are in a GS-1, so we might run into each other in CK night one. 

3 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

That’s a great price for CCBC. 

Yes, especially considering some sailings in the past had it at $160 pp. 

We sail on Oasis on 12/19. I saved $60 on Coco Beach Club Full Day Pass. Originally bought 2 @ $78 and cancelled/re-purchased 2 @ $48. However, I got the DBP cheaper a few weeks ago than the sale last week. 

We sail on Oasis on 12/19 & we received our itinerary change notification email in October. Originally scheduled for San Juan, Puerto Plata, St. Thomas, and Labadee. Now we are going to Coco Cay, St. Thomas, & St. Maarten with an additional sea day added. They also pushed sail away from 4 to 6 which is the reason we can't get to San Juan in time. 

We love Liberty! We are only about 45 mins from Galveston, so we've sailed on her twice. I will echo what others have said about the drink package. We probably break even because we always get bottled water with our drinks and we get lattes from Cafe Latitudes every morning on board plus a few or several beverages throughout the day/evening. We usually end up at the same bar each night. The first time we were on Liberty, it was the pub. The last time (March 2020, the week the world shut down) we spent most nights in Bolero's. The bartenders were great people in both situations and that's what drew us to those locations. We also do the unlimited dining package which makes the cruise essentially "all inclusive" as we are only really paying out of pocket for stuff we buy in port. We aren't fans of the main dining room, but I recommend you give it a try to decide for yourself. You can always try one the specialty restaurants once on board. 

Hey Lake Highlands!

I completely agree. I checked in for our 12/19 cruise last night and it was great to see those documents. We also had 4 cancelled. 

1 hour ago, stevendom57 said:

Texas must be different. I came back with 4 bottles. There was a sign pointing to the right, where you go if you have booze to declare. Just about everyone, even those openly carrying the cardboard bottle holders, turned left and didn't pay. Being to scared of the long arm of the law I went right. Doing that cost me about $17, if I remember. There was no "oh, it's just a few bottles, have a good day".

Thanks, Texas Legislature/TABC... Texas liquor excise taxes are ridiculous. $2.40 per gallon of spirits. 

In other words, most people do not declare any of it when coming back into Galveston. 

20 hours ago, Doak said:

Cool beans we will most likely be in the pub or schooner during the evenings.  Maybe we shall meet!

Possibly... we end up at different bar as our "go to" each cruise it seems. 

2 hours ago, Doak said:

Oasis Dec.19th for Christmas then Harmony for NY Dec.26th.

We are on Oasis Dec. 19th. 

What if it "breaks"? Are new ones available if I take the "broken" one to guest services? Wet and/or too tight is a no go for me. 

1 hour ago, AlohaLivin said:

There is one we liked and that is the one from Labadee 2 years ago that is on this profile  - we were a little shocked when suddenly we were floating around the Caribbean and up pops a photographer!

 

I think that would shock me, too! 

Hi Jim! While I don't really have any advice on how to proceed, I'm sorry you've had to deal with this type of discrimination. Maybe try getting in touch with another resolution specialist using the same method you used to reach the original specialist. With everything going on, you never know if the person you spoke with is at work right now. They could be out sick or even on vacation. 

5 minutes ago, Curtis Kari said:

Where did they change your itinerary to?

We also lost Labadee (like every other cruise right now) and our sail away moved from 4pm to 6pm. As a result of the time change, they cancelled our stop in San Juan made it a sea day. They added St. Maarten and Coco Cay to replace Puerto Plata and Labadee.