Dan Curtis

Hogwash !!  Do it !!

I try and tip the assistant waiter and waiter the same, both work hard, I go to the bank and get about 20 two dollar bills to tip the bar staff,  we tip most staff, the one I don't get aggressive tipping is the head waiter who walks around and ask how the food and service is, we tip him, but I give the two that serve our table more, but to each their own, the staff works hard.

We are on the Mariner next week, if I am looking at this right, we are both on Coco Cay the same day, the good news, we get to see the ship, the bad new, 14,000 people on that island.

We are on the Mariner next week, if I am looking at this right, we are both on Coco Cay the same day, the good news, we get to see the ship, the bad new, 14,000 people on that island.

😎

The new changes to the photo process are great! I selected my 100 pics and was immediately able to download them in the app.  Here are some highlights of our shenanigans or as @WAAAYTOOO called us #starclassbehavingbadly. 🤣🤣
One picture is not obvious, so let me know if you see it.  It took me a minute to see what was going on.  🤦‍♀️ I knew something happened because the photographer was laughing.  The 3 photos we now call “crouching tiger hidden dragon” started off with good intentions. The photographer asked Lindsay to crouch and then crouch more. We all assumed our legs wouldn’t show and then we see the end result. 🤣🤣 Pictures can get boring night after night so this kept the guys happy and cooperative.  We have laughed more at some of these picture's and will for years to come.  Our group, has become very recognizable to the photographers. 🤣🤣 A few stopped by as I was picking my 100 just to see them again.  





 

 

So a bit of an update on the medical evacuation on our last cruise.  Apparently the significant delay at Grand Turk was due to the fact that the patient required a full air evacuation (plane) so we had to wait for the aircraft to arrive from whence it was dispatched.  I don’t know the origination of the flight so I cannot say for sure where the patient was ultimately taken.  To say would be pure speculation.  From someone watching the entire event first hand, it was well after midnight by the time we left GT so we were alongside at GT for at least 3.5 hours.  I certainly hope that the patient is well and will fully recover - but can you imagine what an aircraft medical evacuation from a foreign country would cost ?  Buy your cruise insurance, people !  Make sure it covers medical evacuation !

Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach - Oceanfront One Bedroom King Suite
Main living area



Bedroom



Master bathroom inside the bedroom 


Second bathroom 


Balcony and Views

Our ride just pulled up to the gate. Another good sign. 
 

I am happy to say that other than going to bed early tonight, there is not much else I can do.
I am also excited to show you guys my newest Beis additions for this trip. Bought it for myself as a birthday gift last month. I told @Jax to talk me out of it, but she was no help. 

Moving on to our NYE sailing on Odyssey of the Seas…
This is our first time on Odyssey. We were booked on the original inaugural sailing of this ship with quite a few others from this blog community. That was cancelled by the pandemic, and this NYE was our first opportunity to re-book this ship. I booked this sailing the day new itineraries were released. I am truly looking forward to this. I feel like OY got lost a bit in the shuffle by Wonder, and then Icon, but she is still fairly new and has a lot to offer.
As many of you know, I am not a fan of Quantum class ships, however, I am intrigued by how OY will differ.
Who’s Going?
Me, Hubby, D17, D15
Flight
Delta from DTW-FLL; booked through Air2Sea. Flying in on the 29th (tomorrow!) as our family policy is now 2 days early if we can swing it. Flight prices are horrendous for this trip, even compared to past NYE trips that we have taken. We were able to price it down a few times before final payment, but it was still double what we paid last year at this time. We even contemplated driving down, but in the end, Hubby was not up for that. Hopefully this doesn’t backfire, and he ends up driving anyway!
Pre-Cruise Stay
I booked our pre-cruise hotel for this trip the as soon as hotels released prices for our dates. The first reason was because I knew from the last few NYE sailings we’ve done; these hotels sell out fast and prices skyrocket the closer you get. Also, booking early allows me to grab the room type that I wanted because there was something specific that I had in mind.
When we sailed out of Port Everglades in the past, we have always stayed on 17th Street. I cannot even remember a time when we did not. However, because we are flying in 2 days early, and because we have no idea which, or if any freeloaders will be cruising with us for future NYE sailings, we wanted this one to be a bit more special. D15 has always looked longingly at the beach during our PE sail aways. She always asks why we cannot stay along the beach (Hello child, you know this family loves La Bamba right?), so for this pre-cruise stay, we are doing just that.
I have always wanted to try the Conrad on Fort Lauderdale Beach, however @Jax persuaded me to try out the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort. I was really impressed by her review on this property last year and I’ve been following them on Instagram for about a year now. I think this property is a better fit for the 4 of us over the Conrad. In addition, I persuaded D17’s best friend to stay there with her family back in September, and they loved it as well, so we are pretty excited for our stay.
This will sadly mean that we have to Uber/Lyft our way to our beloved La Bamba.
Itinerary
29 DEC Arrive Fort Lauderdale, Florida
30 DEC FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA
31 DEC FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA (Cruise Day !)
01 JAN PERFECT DAY COCOCAY, BAHAMAS
02 JAN CRUISING
03 JAN LABADEE, HAITI
04 JAN PUERTO PLATA, DOMINICAN REP
05 JAN CRUISING
06 JAN FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA
Cabin
The recurring theme for our next few family sailings is, “Go Big, or Go Home” because D17 is graduating high school this June and we have no idea what that means for sailing as a family of 4 in the future. For this sailing, we will be revisiting a cabin that we fell in love with when we sailed Anthem to Norway.
Pre-Cruise thoughts
-        This is probably one of the most relaxed sailings for me in terms of pre-cruise planning. With two beach days (PDCC and Labadee), Hubby and the girls are going to do their beach things and I will likely not get off the ship at all, except for the day in Puerto Plata.
-        Long time blog members, @recogneyesand @WannaCruise will be on this sailing too. Hoping that we can find a time to finally meet each other. Canadians need to stick together lol
-        This was unfortunately one of the first times where both hotel and cruise fare never dropped since initial booking. Both were booked on the day it was released, and prices have just climbed over time. Zero opportunities for price adjustments this time around.
-        Once again, in the spirit of a live blog, please do not hesitate to ask any questions.  I will do my best to find out whatever I can for you.
-        When responding to a post with a series of pictures, please do not include the pictures in your reply.  It just makes for easier scrolling.
-        Lastly, I will try to post videos and stories on Instagram.  You can follow me @lovetocruise2002

"New Year, New Odyssey. Our Journey into 2024…" – OY 12/31/2023 – 01/06/2024

I am writing this blog with a heavy heart. Even as I write this, I am not sure if this sailing will be a go for us or not. I even contemplated not blogging, because I was not sure if I had it in me at this moment. However, blogging makes me happy, and these blogs remain a great way to record our memories, and that is what these trips are all about. Making memories with the ones we love.
About 3 weeks ago, our lives were unexpectedly turned upside down. My Dad is going through a major health crisis that took us completely by surprise. If you asked me 3 weeks ago if I was going on this sailing, I would have probably said no. However, as awful as the situation is, our health care system in Ontario has not totally failed us, and my Dad has received treatment, and is stable for the time being.
I have long supported the whole “YOLO Book It” mentality, the pandemic fueled it. However, with the events that have transpired over the last few weeks, it has only strengthened our resolve to seize each moment, to not let a single opportunity pass us by, to truly live, and have no regrets, and to take every moment to enjoy each other because life is so fragile.
We have no idea what 2024 is going to hold for our family. But one thing is certain, we take heart in knowing that God is working for our good in the midst of all of this, and there is always joy come morning.

The app isn’t even reliable when you’re on the cruise itself !

Obviously this is something easily searchable on google, no?

@WAAAYTOOO and @RCL_Cruiser_Dan Christmas cruise on Adventure

We are on the week after you, we have a excursion that takes us to a beach and a chef helps you cook a fresh fish over open fire, you have the fish, sides dishes and margarita bar plus beach time, reserved thru royal. Enjoy and save us dome fun.

Final thoughts - 
Liberty is starting to show her age in a few places, especially in hard to reach parts like the superstructure. I probably would be too after 16 years in the water, and we could look past the few blemishes. The crew was out painting throughout the sailing. The sports court was closed for the entire 6 days of the first leg because they were resurfacing it. All of the aft balconies need the same TLC - I believe they are covered in the same material, and there are major pock marks in the floor from the chairs.
Laundry - We sent out 2 Wash and Fold service bags the first leg since it was more than 5 days, but we had to specifically ask for the right forms. DH also sent out a couple of things on the second leg. Our D discounts were applied without us having to ask. Everything came back just fine except for our socks. They had all shrunk. None of the other items - t shirts, polos, undies, pants... just the socks. They stretched back out and fit fine, but it was comical just how much smaller they were.😆
  
 
Jayson, our concierge was amazing. We mentioned to him in passing that we elected to get an Uber and not wait on the turnaround day excursion bus to go to Miami airport before dropping us off. He casually asked how much our Uber was - $11 and change. The next day we had a $20 credit to our account. It certainly wasn't necessary, and it was a nice gesture. I don't think I have ever had anyone smile at me so much and it feel genuine. I hope we can sail with him again in the future.
Crown Lounge - I poked my head in a few times, and never did see the concierge. 🤷‍♀️
Flowrider lessons - worth it. To us anyway. My kids are at that age where Splashaway Bay isn't quite as cool, and they are ready for the next big(ger) thing. We have done the Flowrider in the past, but it was very nice to have dedicated instruction. We plan on taking what we learned and practicing here at home before our next sailing as we have access to one about 45 minutes away. 
Perfect Day - My kids continue to surprise me, especially DD who is on the spectrum. Before this trip Thrill Waterpark would have felt like a waste as they would have spent most of their time in the wave or adventure pools. We bought it on last year's Black Friday sale for just under $50 per person. Both kids went on multiple slides, some way outside of their comfort zones. For the right price, we would definitely go again. DS and I think they should add a few Flowriders to the island, but outside of the waterpark. It was nice to have 2 full days there so we could experience things outside of the waterpark.
Ship size - I still think the Freedom/Voyager class is the sweet spot for our family, but with only one experience on an Oasis class, and that being in Star class, it's hard to say that for sure. Our next cruise is on Harmony, so we will get a better idea then. 
Drink package - I think we are going to try to go with no drink package at all this next time. We dropped to only the refreshment package when we hit diamond and it has worked out fine for us, but DH and I are starting to drink less and less  as we get older so our Diamond vouchers are pretty much covering us. Instead, we'll get the 24 water package for the next one and save $600 on pre-cruise purchases. Well, maybe not save... I have my eye on an excursion or two in the spring.
Photo package - I will continue to pre-purchase a package. I use the images we get plus the pictures we take and make photo books. I have no baby albums for my kids, but cruise books, you betcha!😆 I usually get the 100 images so I don't have to think. The past several years it has been on sale for about $125 on Black Friday. This year's sale though has it over $200. I think I'm going to get the 50 image package instead which is $179 right now.
Crystal block - Jason had one waiting for us on day one, it was the old design. Brought it home in my carry one and it was not flagged at FLL as anything weird that needed inspection. 
Overall, our family loves to cruise, and we have 3 more on the books - one every 6 months or so. I don't see this changing anytime soon, especially now that we are expanding our itineraries. The three we have booked are all connecting balconies which will be different for us as we have only sailed in the 2 bedroom suites with the kids. I think current pricing is going to keep us to balconies instead of suites unless we drop to 1 a year, and right now I think we want to keep our current pace. We will turn D+ on the last night of our fall '24 cruise. 🥳
Thanks for following along!

Looking forward to cruise in late January.

Freedom
Navigator
Majesty..first cruise
Independence
Jewel....made diamond on it.

Freedom
Navigator
Majesty..first cruise
Independence
Jewel....made diamond on it.

Freedom
Navigator
Majesty..first cruise
Independence
Jewel....made diamond on it.

Freedom
Navigator
Majesty..first cruise
Independence
Jewel....made diamond on it.

Just wait until you hear about the process for your luggage on the last night

More chance of getting robbed by a TSA worker in Miami than someone stealing your bag on a ship! 

There will be an announcement made when the rooms are ready.  The key (your seapass cards) will be on the wall next to your door.