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AdventureKenandCar

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Everything posted by AdventureKenandCar

  1. I know this is an old topic, but I have the same question about my July 2022 trip! I hope the Kronet Restaurant is still in business!
  2. It gets pretty windy on deck, especially at night. I'd invest in a lightweight rain jacket that could double as a windbreaker. They pack up small, too.
  3. I too am cruising Europe/Scandinavia in a couple months, and have similar questions. One big thing I’m wondering: there seems to be a lot of concern about iPhone vs tablets, etc. So, is it possible to have one person hold the phone as “cameraman” while the other person does the test? Then switch roles for the next test?
  4. If you're in port somewhere, and you decide to hit a local grocery store for a picnic lunch or something, it's kinda nice to have a knife to cut cheese or sausage for crackers. Or a corkscrew for a quick bottle of wine.
  5. In July we will be on Voyager OtS in Scandinavia & Northern Europe. One of our ports is Riga, Latvia. We are docking at 11:00 am on July 7, and sailing at 4:00 July 8. Two days(ish) in Riga. My question: Is there any time that boarding back on the ship is “closed,” or is reboarding open 24 hours while in port? We are thinking about renting a car the first day and driving around outside of Riga. We wanted to return it around 9:00 the same evening, then get back on board around 10:00 at night for a good sleep before getting off again the next day.
  6. We were some of the people that had bad luck with the Cuba cruise. We were booked on the Empress, counting the days until we could sail to Havana and Cienfuegos, all land-based (and government-accepted) excursions secured…when they pulled the plug. This was 2 weeks before we sailed. RC made it up to us, though.
  7. I wouldn't rely on a rental computer. Bring your own and learn all the ins and outs before you dive with it. And make SURE its batteries are charged (I made that mistake.)
  8. We were scheduled for a once-in-a-lifetime cruise to Cuba in 2019 (Empress of the Seas.) Florida to Grand Cayman, then Havana and Cienfuegos, Cuba. Unfortunately, two weeks before we were to sail, the US Government pulled the plug on all travel to Cuba. Needless to say, we were really bummed out! Royal Caribbean offered us the option of either a full refund, or 50% refund with the opportunity to sail wherever they could go (“dealer’s choice” lol.) Since we already had the airfare from Chicago to Florida, we took the deal to go wherever they could sail. We ended up going to Costa Maya Mexico, Cozumel Mexico, and Key West. Long Caribbean crossings on the fleet’s smallest ship, but a really great trip! Crew, food, entertainment were fantastic. As the captain said on our last day, “The Empress is the smallest ship with the biggest heart.”
  9. We're booked on Voyager otS, sailing from Stockholm to Visby Sweden, to Helsinki Finland, to Riga Latvia, to Tallinn Estonia, back to Stockholm. It's going to be an amazing trip, and we're super excited...but why all the doubling-back and forth? Doesn't this seem like it would waste a lot of fuel? I'm just wondering (not complaining.) (EDIT: I accidently also posted this in the "shore excursions" thread. Sorry about that.)
  10. We're booked on Voyager otS, sailing from Stockholm to Visby Sweden, to Helsinki Finland, to Riga Latvia, to Tallinn Estonia, back to Stockholm. It's going to be an amazing trip, and we're super excited...but why all the doubling-back and forth? Doesn't this seem like it would waste a lot of fuel? I'm just wondering (not complaining.)
  11. I'm keeping my eye on this as well. We sail on the Voyager July 1 to Helsinki, Latvia, and Estonia from Stockholm.
  12. July 3, 2022 Voyager of the Seas, Stockholm, Sweden
  13. Ditto, here. We're booked on Voyager of the Seas with "Spacious Oceanview Balcony," so pulldown Pullmans aren't an option - just a big bed and pullout couch. My 12 y.o. daughter and 17 y.o. son don't want to share the pullout, nor do they want to sleep with me or my wife. We're thinking of one kid sleeping on the couch (not pulled out), and the other on the floor with pillows/blankets. I'm not sure if they have rollaway beds or not, but that's not a bad idea.
  14. Thank you for this helpful information!
  15. I'm following this too. We sail in July on Voyager of the Seas in Scandinavia/N. Europe, and my daughter is 12, but turns 13 a month later.
  16. I'm trying to figure out what is/will be required for a 7-Day Scandinavia and Northern Europe trip I have scheduled for the first week in July, departing from Stockholm. Totally new at travelling abroad during Covid, and I don't understand what's required as far as testing and acceptable timeframes. Heck, RC doesn't even LIST Stockholm as one of their departure ports!
  17. We were set to sail on the Empress on June 23, and planned to do "Support for the Cuban People" in both Cienfuegos/Trinidad and Havana. From my interpretation, private car tours and private city walking tours qualified for "Support..." rather than RC's official excursions, which fall under "Group People to People." This may all be a moot point if RC does indeed stop all cruises to Cuba.
  18. Still, it's just a CNN correspondent's Twitter feed. I'd like to see some more concrete, definitive proof.
  19. Sailing on 6/23 on Empress. I've seen a lot of references to the elimination of "people to people contact" which would include RC-sponsored excursions. On the OFAC form, we intended to check "Support for the Cuban People"(31 C.F.R. sect. 515.574), and keep a full-time itinerary of at least 6 hours of activity (including car tour, walking tour) with a Cuban independent guide. What gives with that? Is "Support for the Cuban People" still a thing?
  20. I'm supposed to sail in about 19 days on the 23rd on Empress. We planned on checking the "Support for the Cuban People" box on the OFAC form, and doing a private tour to Trinidad, and a half-day car tour in Havana, with a self-guided walking tour of Havana for the other half of the day. Are the changes only affecting "Group People to People" Royal Caribbean sponsored tours?
  21. Well, crap! We are booked on Empress of the Seas for June 23, 2019! What does this mean?!
  22. Geocaching is fun in port! If, for no other reason, it's a great way to add another country/location to your Geocaching statistics. We were able to add Haiti, Curacao, Aruba, Puerto Rico (I know...it's not a country...), USVI, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Mexico to our list. The cache in Curacao (GC2M1VJ - "Curacao's Swinging Old Lady") was our farthest find south, AND the farthest find from home!
  23. We wanted to rent a car on Cozumel to drive around for the day and see some of the off-the-beaten-path sites, like the Mayan ruins and the north shore beaches. After a taxi ride to town, then a walk through town to the "rentadora", at the desk I realized that I didn't bring my driver's license or auto insurance card with me. It was back in the cabin safe! (I had my seapass and passport...why would I need a driver's license?!?) Luckily, the woman rented us the car with the promise that we'd drive STRAIGHT to the cruise terminal and get the license. I guess the Cozumel police can occasionally pull you over, and there are hassles if you don't have a license.
  24. We are really looking forward to this cruise to Cuba and Grand Cayman! We are a family of 4: 2 adults, 2 kids (son 14 and daughter 9). We definitely love "traveling off the beaten path" and are always up for an adventure! Who else is booked for this trip?
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