GregD

Awesome, thank you!!!

I think this is one of the best things about sailing in Star Class. Just knowing that I don’t have to worry about dealing with last minute changes and that they are just taken care of makes my vacation much more of a vacation.

Have a great time!!! I can't wait to follow along!

In 421 days I'll be sailing in that same room........sigh Have a great cruise!!

You should be okay. "saloon cars" are typically 4 door sedans, so if you can fit your two bags in the trunk of a car you are good to go. Their next size up car is only about 18usd more which will get you a station wagon. When you book, you converse through email and can discuss the best size for your situation.

They will size the car appropriately. For the 4 of us and our three suitcases, they had a minivan. How big are your bags, and what vehicle did they run the quote you with?

As long as there isn’t one of the frequent rail strikes.

Norway is amazing!! Have a great time!!!

@Smithville Cruises we sailed out of Southampton in July with @Lovetocruise2002 on Anthem. You can read our joint blog for some perspectives. They were in London a few days early, and used blackberry cars (car service) to get to the port. We arrived the day before, as you are, and we immediately went to Southampton. We also used blackberry cars as our transport. IMHO, I suggest that if you are flying in the day before, just book a car service and head to Southampton. Yes, it does make that travel day a bit longer, but it will eliminate an uncertainty the day of the cruise. Traffic can be bad getting down there which can cause some departure day anxiety. @Lovetocruise2002 originally had a 3 hour drive! Also by continuing to extend your day, it can help fight the jet lag, especially if you are like me, and can't sleep on a plane. We stayed at a hotel that was a 3 minute drive to the port (Novotel Southampton). You can see the ship from the hotel. There is also an Ibis hotel in the same parking lot. Both are basic hotels, and are common chains in Europe, but are perfect for an overnight stay. FYI, unless you stay in Luxury accommodations, most hotels in Europe will have much smaller rooms than we are used to here in the States, so just keep that in the back of your head. I have pictures in the blog of our room. From this hotel, it's an easy walk to get out and explore the city. This is what we did to keep us up to fight the jet lag. They allowed us to store our bags as well since we arrived well before checkin. Southampton is a neat city, and worth the exploration. London is so big, and you will be tired, that its hard to see enough in the one day you will be there.

Like @Lovetocruise2002 said, we used Blackberry Cars. They were very easy to work with. FWIW, traffic can be a mess at all hours so paying a premium for your transfer for a visit Windsor to avoid traffic may not work in your favor. For our return trip from the cruise port to our hotel we actually didn't hit any traffic. Windsor is very easy to get to from London itself as well.

Just looking to see who would be on board in February. If I can think of anything else I'll let you know. I'm assuming there will be a blog to follow along with?

We pretty much missed those too on the last trip courtesy of the star class food coma. This time around, we are going to visit them earlier in the cruise This sounds like an awesome idea!

@mom2mybugs your trip sounds fantastic. One of these years I would love a simple, do nothing trip. We sorta have that planned, but we will see how it goes. I love to say that I would like to relax and plop my rear in a chair for a whole day.....but who am I kidding, I'm the adventure type and will probably end up finding something extra to do.

Sending good vibes for you and your luggage

GAAAH, Ive missed so much this week!!! Ive been away at new job training.....I love when I see a @Jax Christmas Blog, because that means it's getting closer to mine..71 @WAAAYTOOO long days. Speaking of which, are you willing to do some Oasis February genie recon for me? I can't wait to see all you have planned and do for this trip. I remember last year being a fun one to read! Those cards and socks are great. Did you have them printed yourself?

I was able to find a picture from the balcony of 7200 and your view shouldn't be too bad. Looking at pictures from other cabins on deck 7, you may have to top of the lifeboat supports in the lower 1/2 of your view, if you were sitting in a lounge chair. If you are standing at your balcony railing, your view will be just fine. https://youtu.be/g23Yk6ROhGY here is a video link of a similar cabin Don't get too hung up on your stateroom view. You will be surprised how little time is spent there. Just enjoy the cruise!!

I believe you can do that. Day passes are required for non-Atlantis guests to access Aquaventure, Dolphin Cay, the marine habitat, and beaches.

Wait......first there were people that ATE the tomato, and now you tell us that you have a family member that likes raisins in their apple pie!!! What is this world coming to!! Thank you for the entertaining read. I certainly does sound like you need a nice solo vacation, to decompress from your vacation!

Getting caught up again.....that is all.... Do you feel like all you have been doing is herding cats with your group?

So jealous!!!!!

Now this is better!!

We have used Victor Bodden twice now, and have had a great experience. I bet the teens would love the ziplines that they have. We had a blast on those last year. Our tour also included a stop at a chocolate "factory"

@Ampurp85 Thanks for the Harmony report. It's really interesting how the dynamic on every cruise can be so different. I know how some of the short12er ones can be wild with a "booze cruise" type mentality and a DGAF mood of some passengers, but you usually don't see that on the longer ones. I also agree that when the food stinks, or doesn't meet expectations that can really ruin a week for you as well. I bet it was super frustrating after having done everything as far as making reservations etc, to then have to wait longer for the ones that didn't before getting your seat, and then having just mreh food come out makes it that much worse. ....and seriously...... @AshleyDillo WHO EATS THE TOMATO!!??!! Like others have said, I would love to sail with you some time! We are a good bunch in my family, and I think our personalities would gel. @Lovetocruise2002 could attest to that. I laughed so hard about your "vintage" table guest, he sounded very fun! Have a great time on Odyssey, Northstar is really cool, and who doesn't love bumper cars! You should try a suite on quantum class some time. @Lovetocruise2002 and I agree that the CK on Quantum Class is the best. It is a really nice atmosphere. The CK in Anthem so far has the best food (granted my sample size is still small) but it was way better in July, than it was in February on Oasis. I'll be back on Oasis shortly so I will have an update soon. Good luck keeping your "vintage" ladies from getting hangry/angry