Babsy47

I think Beach Club value depends on personality. To me, the party scene at the Oasis pool is unbearable. Thus, if your group is full of introverts who want a pool and calm, Beach Club is it unless you spend the day at the water park. The water park is great for kids and you can spend the day at the wave pool, but the price is high. If you want a beach experience without a pool, no need for the Beach Club. Nice beaches with abundant seating are everywhere, even with two bigger ships. If you are energized by a party, no need to go to the Beach Club. In the end, it really depends on what best suits your traveling party. On a recent trip, I just wanted a quiet, beautiful place to swim and relax. I paid 200 for the Beach Club and was happy because that was exactly the experience I wanted. But, if you want activity, music, just the beach or energy from lots of people, I don’t think I would pay the Beach Club price.

We used the train both for this transfer and to get from Rome to the port there. The trains are relatively easy and fast. Luggage is a bit of a pain, but not unmanageable.

Ship leaves LA at 4:00. Conference calls are supposed to end no later than 11:00am. They do not. Get in car and drive to port while finishing calls. Arrive!! Calls done!! Vacation with my family ahead (kids and grandkids waiting for me on the ship for lunch). I open the back of my car to get my bag and . . . No bag. It remains sitting by the garage door at home. What to do? Board with nothing but what I’m wearing? Try to make it home and back on time? I went with the dash for home praying for traffic cooperation. Traffic cooperated and I made it on the ship. I can now attest that if you arrive late, there are no lines and one boards very quickly (like less than 5 minutes).

A lazy river utilizing the space of the larger ships. They have the elevation differential. But, I don’t think the engineering will work because it requires too much water. Engineering impossibility aside . . . It would be popular! It is not impossible on Coco Cay, and every time I have been there, I have thought what a great addition it would be.

I find the beds perfectly comfortable. I love my bed at home, but I spent days trying mattresses to find the perfect fit. Mattress comfort is awfully personal. In purchasing one for our guest room, I consulted with many sources to find something comfortable to the largest percent of people. It was quite an eye-opening experience! Ad a person who does a great deal of work travel, my experience is that the RC beds are better than many.

I have, unfortunately, cut close the boarding time. You can find the planned departure on your cruise itinerary. You are supposed to be in the check-in line 90 minutes prior. I’ve been later than that a couple of times in LA and boarded with no issue. I would not, however, recommend the stress that accompanies not knowing whether they will actually allow you to board.

I just was on the Independence out of Port Canaveral in a JS. We were not permitted priority boarding (I asked). It was no big deal as we went right through onto the ship with no wait in the regular boarding queue. Also, we arrived a bit before our 1:00 pm start of our boarding window and boarded with no problem or issue.

My 17 year old loved the teen club up through our final pre-COVID cruise when he was 14. Since COVID, he has not participated. He just says now that he would prefer other activities. He has never had a bad cruise experience. I let him know spending expectations, and he always follows. He loves the freedom of being on a ship. We set meeting times for activities and meals we want to do together and we do great. Cruises have given me great appreciation for just enjoying his company and conversation without feeling pressure to be a parent. I just love that!

The Beach Club is a tough question. 290 is too much. I do not like crowds or noise, so the Oasis pool is a no go for me. The Beach Club is the only alternative for a quiet pool experience. The meal is fine, but not spectacular. If you like a party vibe, I cannot really see paying all that much for the Beach Club. Also, if you are fine with the beach rather than a pool, you can find lots of great beach and beach chairs without paying for the Beach Club.

I book one bigger suite and a bunch of nearby normal cabins for my family. I get everyone keys for the suite from the suite concierge on the first day. It always works out great.

On our last cruise a couple of weeks ago, door magnets multiplied on our door from some unknown source(s)? I just left them thinking that someone might eventually retrieve their property. They were happy magnets, so they were fine. No idea why and I’ve never had it happen before.

On Independence a couple of weeks ago in a JS. We had one every night without asking.

Look on Amazon for cruise approved, buy one without a cord, and put it in your carry on bag (your purse or backpack). You should be fine.

What is odd is that the super expensive ones do not sell out. On my last cruise a couple of weeks ago, fewer than half of the beach club cabanas were taken.

Two more work days until we leave! Grandson was born yesterday, and I get to meet him today! We are flying to MCO from LA on Friday and staying at Universal. DS loves Universal, so it should be fun. We plan to enjoy two days at the parks and then head to the ship on Monday. Renting a car for a week with my work discount ended up costing less than a shuttle or Uber from MCO to Universal to Port Canaveral and then back to MCO even with parking at the port. The car also makes logistics far more simple (we have found). We have had so much rain this month! And, for us, its been cold (weeks of days in the 50s). I know, many cannot relate. We are, however, looking forward to warmer weather. We are packed. I do not get home from work until late on Thursday, so advanced packing will make Friday morning less hectic. We managed everything for the trip in carry-ons so no need to worry about lost baggage (or waiting for said baggage). I'm hoping for the bag of laundry deal on the ship! The big carry-on issue for me involves shoes. I managed a different dress for each cruise night, but only one pair of dress sandals. The difficulties of vacation . . .

I have never had an issue with UDP dining reservations through the concierge. When I get the concierge email, I email back with everything that I would want to reserve once on the ship. The only thing the concierge has not been able to reserve are escape room times — that you need to do on the ship. On Odyssey, the concierge found helpful times for iFly and the thing that goes in the air as well. Given our great experiences with the concierge, Sky Class is a great option for a smaller group. For my whole extended family, Star is great, but without priority for activities, it loses much of its appeal.

I’ve booked three cruises for not yet born child. You just call after the birth and change the name and birthdate. I never had an issue.

We had this issue with my sister and her adopted son. She had the birth certificate, the adoption decree, and the name change document. It went smoothly.

If you have Diamond drinks, it’s hard to see why one would not just pay for extra drinks in my view. For me, I buy a soda package and use Diamond drinks. I have a tough time using all those Diamond coupons every day.

Related question — if you have a package, is there somewhere you can get cans/bottles of sparkling water? How about plain water?

I’ve done red eyes to Florida several times from California without issue. But, I fly all of the time for work and my preferred airlines generally treat me well. I’ve never had a red eye cancel. I’ve only been delayed overnight once. It can happen — particularly these days.

Thank you for the reminder, @FireFishII that we need to have gratitude for what goes well. Your past few weeks sound far more stressful than mine! Well, no grandbaby . . . yet. I decided to buy new luggage . . . first new luggage in about 20 years. I'm looking forward to having an actual modern carry-on! I'm determined to get everything (including work stuff) into a carry-on and a backpack. I think shoes may be an issue . . . I'm trying to limit to one pair of walking shoes and one pair of all-purpose sandals.

I’ve taken several cruises with kids around this age, most recently on Navigator. We rented a car with a car seat; this was the most challenging logistical issue. You need to reserve the nursery ahead. We found that nicely stopping by each morning worked out well; we never had a problem with a reservation. The charge is not too bad, but they do charge for diaper changes. Our kids (now grandkids) have always done well in the nursery. The pool options for toddlers in diapers vary from ship to ship. But, we have always found enough to do with little ones.

No parking issues. I arrived very late and had no problem. In fact, a tram showed up at my car as soon as I got out of my car and took me to the terminal — easy as that!

Yes, two of our group took the bus back to Fira while the other four of us walked back. We were on Odyssey as well. Getting off the ship is a challenge. I do not know anything about the "Fira on your own" trip. We took the Oia trip starting at 1:30 and were one of the first groups off the ship. We waited on the tender until it filled. The tender took us to an area where we loaded a bus that they drove us to Oia. We did not need to go up the gondola or donkey path. You could split into two groups with some walking to Fira and some taking the bus back with the tour group. I'm not sure how much opportunity there is to find a way back to Fira once you start the walk out of Oia; it is relatively remote and I don't know that there are many cabs or other means of transport.