DDaley

Wow! What an awesome tool! Looks like I am easily set to break even if I don't perish from dehydration. How early do bars open on port days? Can you sneak in any breakfast cocktails before departing the ship?

oh wow, and that's the port I most want to see as well. I hope you guys are able to find a beautiful patio and just sit and soak it in! Even just sitting and looking should be spectacular.. pack so much water! Ooh, now you got me thinking about packing my camelpak for the Caribbean as well, then you're not carrying as many bottles. ??

Oh good!! The thought of planning a land vacation to all those Greek/Italian stops is so daunting, cruising seems perfect.

I was worried about this for a 9-night Explorer sailing out of Civitavecchia for next August! Now that it'll be amped by then maybe there'll be TOO much to do!? Also I hope the Europeans don't judge us for the water slides! Big garish number comes sailing into Santorini marring the pristine coastline, haha

I wonder if all Freedom cruises out of San Juan to the Southern Caribbean on this itinerary got changed or if we're on the same sailing? Freedom August 18th! I have MTD scheduled for 7:30 that night and I can't decide if I should push it back or forward! More Barbados time or done with dinner in time for sail away? ?

YES! My friends and coworkers always make fun of me at pool parties for simultaneously having a cocktail tumbler and a water bottle with me constantly! Also I find that when I mix myself a vodka/vitamin water cocktail, an inch of so of water at the top never hurts. Cruise plan is a lot of vodka-water-splash-o-juices and just one or two sugar monstrosities a day.. those mudslides will GETCHA

Awesome, this is exactly the info I was looking for!

I booked my first excursion through RC (all previously through Shore Excursioneer) and I am wondering when you find out about all the details. My 4 Shore Excursioneer purchases were followed up with detailed PDFs outlining when/where to meet after the ship docks. Will RC provide this info prior to departure? Or maybe just in your stateroom once on board? Sounds like a hassle for the attendant/easy way to put the wrong info in cabins since it's not the same for every guest. As of right now I only have a confirmation that lists the price with no additional info and I can see it in my cruise planner calendar. I looked through the first 5 pages of shore excursion boards to see if I could find this info without starting a new topic but didn't see anything. Thanks for any insight!

Haha, I was thinking about doing the same with all the cruising items!

I am back from my pre-cruise summer vacation to the Grand Canyon and got to use my new cruisin' cubes in a trial run! I recommend them, pretty cheap ($36 for this set that also included a laundry bag I used for shoes) and seem well made. Gonex Compression Packing Cubes - Amazon They worked better than anticipated and once all my clothing was packed, left quite a bit of room in the suitcase for other things (on the cruise it's for floats, towels, plastic bottles, beach sheet and tent!) including my big a** hiking boots! I found them somewhat tricky to compress at first but once you know perfect finger placement to keep it from zipping up the interior fabric into the zipper, they are so convenient. This is a standard 22" carryon from Samsonite and as you can see once they were all in the suitcase, I still had plenty of extra room at one end and an extra 2 inches all over for putting things on top like my toiletry bag, cooler purse and stupid brimmed hiking hat. The small one I am holding in the last image contains 4 tank tops! Crazy! Overall in these cubes I packed: 2 long sleeves, 5 tank tops, 6 shorts, 1 pair of leggings, 5 dresses/rompers and 8 pairs of hiking and regular socks. Seems like plenty of items comparable to 7 days of cruise wear. The dresses I rolled into the largest of the cubes and I found I didn't have that many wrinkles to iron out upon arrival. I will get some more use out of these on a quick trip to Detroit for a wedding before my August Freedom sailing so I will update if they start showing any signs of wear and tear. ?

I love that the whole crew gets to come cruising!!

Yes! Planning on bringing my black Rothy's and a pair of sandals and that's it for footwear! Thanks for this insight. I gotta have the flips for beach days but if my Rothy's can get me by on formal night I am all for it.

This has happened to me before! I just switched browsers and it worked fine and the deck plan screen came up. Probably using Internet Explorer!

Can you re-price without using a TA? I am assuming no. I have only ever paid in full, is that not an option if you're hoping to re-price later? It's an August Explorer sailing in 2020 to Greece so I've got some time!

This is exactly my hope! Just gimme one season to take a bunch of 3 or 4 night weekend trips out of SD or LA so I can drive! The "new" ship would get my money time and time again without having to factor in flight pricing. I go to Puerto Vallarta yearly as it is so the repetition of that + Cabo wouldn't bother me. I am dying to go on a ship with The Perfect Storm and HAL is never gonna satisfy my deep love of watersliding. I don't think I can stoop to Carnival after things I've heard here! haha

Thanks so much! This was my main concern, looks like I'm booking asap!

So I've heard on these forums a bunch of times about the cruise planner sale on Black Friday but I am wondering if it's ever extended to actual cruise rates? Should I wait to book a spring and summer 2020 cruise until Black Friday? Or book now and re-book only if there is a sale? And I assume with re-booking I'd forfeit my chosen cabin to opt for whatever would be left at that time?

My plan is buying smaller bottles in port and bringing my own mixer/plastic resuable bottle with ice off with me.. However, I have the DBX so as soon as I get back on board the drinks are “free” again so my plan is only good for port cocktails, unfortunately. I haven’t yet figured out the in-cabin supply and am giving up hope!

That sounds amazing! I just put ordering it on my To Do Once Onboard list.

Not sure these prices apply to cruises from the Netherlands but here is a 2019 drink menu for beer pricing.

Always forget my binoculars on land vacations! I always want them in new cities and seeing new ports shouldn't be any different. They're on my packing lists (I use the checklist feature in the iOS notes app) for my Grand Canyon trip this month and the August cruise, we'll see if they make the packing cut!

Is there a la carte digital downloading the same as if I bought a one-off print at $19.99? Surely they won't take enough pics of me to warrant an entire package! But if I just wanted 1-2 images would I have to find my old scanner to make them digital myself?

Yes! I love how it slides over the handle and has the bottom section for my biggest shoes... AND fits under the plane seat. I haven't traveled with a checked bag since I was a teenager. I just buy a fresh 2 pack - 3oz 45SPF Neutrogena's and put my shampoo and conditioner into 2-4 emptied hotel size bottles!

I just bought a set of Gonex off-brand compression packing cubes on Amazon and they come tomorrow so I will report back on quality.. 5 sizes + a laundry bag for $36. Couldn't be as good as the Eagle Creek brand but we'll see! I am trying to go to San Juan this summer for Freedom with only a 22" carry-on and a travel tote from Lo & Sons and am planning on packing (aside from clothing) a quick-dry beach towel, float, beach sheet, popup beach tent, cooler bag, reusable plastic bottles and beach bags and really think I can get it all to fit with my new cubes in action. Maybe a trial pack job is in order? In cubes name we pray, amen.

As an experienced Disney goer here in California, there is no way in the world the price would be worth it even if you got 9 rides in with this excellent organization and time management! On a good day in CA, I have hit a max of 29 rides in one day, not counting 2nd and 3rds on Radiator Springs or 5th and 6th rides on Space Mountain. Only riding 9 things would be the saddest trip to the Magic Kingdom!