DDaley

I have stayed at the Hilton Hawaiian Village across the street from the Illikai and the neighborhood is definitely nice enough and fine for your purposes. Keep in mind you'll be a 20 min walk from the hubbub/restaurants/shops of Waikiki so expect an Uber or a luxurious stroll to and from dinner. 

3 hours ago, barjpoe said:

what would be a good price a drink package? about $48/day or less = 4x$12 drinks/day?

Lowest I have seen the DBP on its own recently is $53/pp/pd, and bundled with Voom for one device, $61/pp/pd. If you see any drink package that starts with a $4_ buy it ASAP, that's an amazing deal! 

I went to Coco Cay on my verrry first cruise in 1998. I gotta look through my old photo albums to find some pics of that trip on Sovereign of the Seas!

I went with my grade school best friend and her family. Her grandma was the cruise master and paid for us all, I remember hoping that one day I would see as many Caribbean islands as she had! So far I've got 8 under my belt with 6 more scheduled between now and April 2023. 

The only major show I can think of that has a Can Can in it is Moulin Rouge?! Seems a little risqué for a family ship, though. Although if we're getting the murdering wives of Chicago what's a little drug use and attempted suicide? 

I have been on that itinerary before and was just as interested in the Pitons as you! I went with the Castries zipline and Aerial tram (worth it, I loved it!!) and missed seeing the Pitons but we DID see them as the ship headed south to Barbados. 

These are the last glimpses we saw before dinner so I think you should be able to see them! We sailed in August and left port at 6pm so the sunset time may be a factor. Hopefully your cabin is on the port side? Or park yourself on a deck on that side about 30-40 minutes after leaving harbor and you'll be golden. 

8 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

I spend 10 minutes in the morning looking over the CC with my coffee. I'd get odd looks if I sat next to a kiosk doing that.

For the third time I offer the in-cabin tv suggestion, surely you could enjoy coffee while using the other hand to press the down arrow on the remote? 

2 hours ago, SpeedNoodles said:

Not trusting the app I usually used the interactive giant tablets near the elevators to get current information.

This is what I think when I hear the argument "I dont like carrying my phone on cruises." There are kiosks every few feet.. If people are anti phone, the ship is certainly not lacking in other screen options from which to get their precious scheduling info. The in-cabin tv could also easily host this content. 

As for me I like keeping them but definitely don't look at them for anything other than the hours in port (which I obviously knew before leaving the house!)

36 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

I doubt you see that going away.

I was thinking the exact opposite, why DO they need physical printouts when having it available digitally (app, in-room tv, kiosk screens) would be about a million times easier for them to implement and to keep updated? 

8 minutes ago, reedjgc said:

I was just looking at my time dining times and I'm only seeing 7pm and later

I noticed this when I went to make My Time Dining reservations recently for an upcoming fall cruise, I am pretty sure it's because all the better times have been snapped up already. I made dining reservations for a sailing that's next April and still had my pick of options between 5:30-7:30.  

I would love this one! I have been in this show twice because I don't mind doing/hearing it over and over. (Beat only by 3 runs of Avenue Q totaling 90 performances)

I have a staunch anti-Cats stance so when entertainment had opened on my May 2020 cruise I didn't even reserve it. Bring us anything else!! 

On 3/31/2021 at 4:32 PM, DDaley said:

Currently 4. 

I am hoping to add a Nav out of LA when they open! That will be awesome to be able to drive to the port. 

Oops, I am up to 6 now, only a month later! I added a Navigator from LA and Brilliance to Grand Cayman as it's the itinerary I most wanted to see from my cancelations this year. Snagged a corner aft balcony on Brilliance, we are always forward so I can't wait to see things from that new perspective. 

I booked one 4 night but have been searching again for a 7-night to accompany it, Navigator is too good to pass up without having to fly across the country to board! 

2 hours ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

Mine have stayed relatively same...

I think you're on the Nov 3 Oasis with me and I got $134 reduction yesterday when I called! I used to owe a balance above my FCC from this same cruise in 2020 but now it's down to just a few bucks. 

45 minutes ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

I am booked for November 2022 but since the cruise is heading South I figured the weather should be decent enough for the water slides.

Oh definitely, but as a native San Diegan, anything under 75 or so is a no-go on water activities!! 

I have not yet been myself but I have been taking notes when I see other people ask this question as I'm booked to the ABC's in April 2022!

The coolest thing I have seen suggested is to rent your own quad ATV in Aruba - 8hrs for only $240 for a 2-seater. Any excursion that lets you ride ATVs in Aruba is way more for a shorter time period, although you'll lose the benefit of a tour guide. 

Here are some scenic spots you can cruise to in your quad: Baby Beach, Eagle Beach, Palm Beach, California Light House, Alto Vista Chapel and the Casibari Rock Formation https://www.arubaatv.com/#/rentals/rental-car4 

I was about to book for November but realized it's California, not Florida, and the whole point of sailing on Nav is frequenting the water slides! So I've got us a booking for September 2022, hopefully that summer weather will still be lingering.

While I was searching for a balcony room this morning, I saw the price jump $100 on at least 2 of the dates I was checking out! Crazy.

I am so glad I happened to check this board today since I had the thought "shouldn't those LA Nav cruises have come out by now?!" and now I am in on the refresh party! 

I visited Catalina for the first time in Nov 2020 and would love to get back there on a Royal ship but the 5-night to Cabo is so much more appealing.. A B2B could be calling me! 

Currently 4. 

Nov 3 Oasis 4-nighter to Labadee followed by a MAYBE Nov 7 Freedom to Nassau/Coco Cay.. still not sure how the vacay time works out for the S2S

April 17 2022 Explorer to the ABCs 

Aug 13 2022 Celestyal Experience to see a couple extra Greek islands that RC doesn't sail to. Although I am super excited for this one as it marks my first full suite on a cruise for my honeymoon! I have @WAAAYTOOO and @Lovetocruise2002 envy to thank on that one! I can't quite swing a full suite on Royal just yet but the new Experience (old Neo Romantica) has pretty affordable pricing and its certainly a perfect excuse. 

I am hoping to add a Nav out of LA when they open! That will be awesome to be able to drive to the port. 

On 3/14/2021 at 7:19 AM, twangster said:

These are some of the lowest prices I have ever seen for these activities.  In the past getting the zip line on sale for $92 was a good deal.

Wow, I had no idea it was usually that high. I just decided to book this and saw it was at the nice $58.99 you'd seen.

Question - how flexible were they on the zip line booking time slot pre-covid? I was about to book it for a certain time but if another excursion finally appears (Adult-only Sand Bar Boat thing) I may need to rearrange the zip line for the more desirable sand bar. I wonder if I could swap the time on my booked activity or if I would have to cancel and rebook at the prevailing price? 

On 2/14/2021 at 6:58 PM, twangster said:

It's definitely that way in CO.  Everything on the mountain costs more. 

For the last 3 years, renting ski/snowboard equipment on Mammoth Mountain property here in CA was only $75 for a 2-day! and to me that was worth the cost to not have to find room in the car for the gear on the 7-8 hour drive there.. this year it's up to $99! Definitely will think of renting in SD and hauling it next year. 

On 2/14/2021 at 4:39 PM, Matt said:

If you go on a weekend, plan to arrive right at opening because crowds arrive after 10am.

Lovvve this tip! We started going on Thursday/Fridays after waiting in a 45 min lift line on a Saturday morning!  We are heading up next week on a Tuesday mid-day to be able to ski all day Wednesday and Thursday, hopppefully avoiding COVID crowds! We'll see how the plan works out.

Glad you got some runs in before people started showing up, cruising on an open run is so much fun. 

How exciting! I bet she will love it. I used to go with my dad all the time for the 3 years we randomly lived in Massachusetts when I was elementary school aged, and we always had such a good time. 

This will be my 4th year in a row going skiing after having taken a 20-year hiatus prior, and it was easy enough to pick back up (aside from the body aches after day one) so I think you should be fine. Definitely pack a heating pad and an ice pack and be ready to draw a hot bath just to soak your calves in when you come in! 

I had to say "aww" to that cute little terrain map of NC, we have been going to Mammoth Mountain in the Sierras these past few years and the map is so wildly complicated in comparison, haha. Can't wait for the pics! 

Celebrity from LA in 2022! 

I have a cruise Nov 2021 and am already able to. Have you checked at the bottom of the Cruise Planner's dining page for the option to add My Time Dining to your cart? 

9 hours ago, mattymay said:

They're up.. Dec 2021 - April 2022

 

 

Wow! How did you search to find these? When I search by departure port, only the SC Explorer and Abc cruises come up. 

Yes! It was super easy to grab an open-air taxi (aka, the back of a truck converted to have seats and a roof) over to Magens. At the port entrance it was $12-14 pp one way, but we walked about 5 min up the street to grab some liquor/juice at a grocery store first and grabbed a taxi in that parking lot for $10pp!

The same taxi you take over will make arrangements to pick you up whenever you like but we never saw a shortage of the same type of conveyance coming and going all day.