USCG Teacher

I've stayed at the Caribe Hilton a few times and thoroughly enjoyed it.  Beautiful pool area.  Don't think there's shuttle, but a cab was about $20 from the airport.

2 hours ago, twangster said:

Oceans are rising, never say never.

Was on the fence as to whether to laugh or cry at this, as both seem appropriate. Split the difference and went with “confused.”

2 hours ago, FManke said:

I've got Chicago covered as soon as RC docks here! 

Our first cruise was in May of 1999 on the Enchantment of the Seas.  I proposed to my wife on the stage of the Orpheum Theater with the assistance of the Cruise Director who tricked her into getting up on stage under the guise that she had lost her SeaPass card.  Pretty lasting memory if you ask me.   

50 minutes ago, Phillo said:

If you follow the advice given earlier and show respect by attempting their language and saying "Bonjour... parlez vous anglais?" (good morning... do you speak english) then you are usually fine.

This was very much my experience throughout France, and especially in Paris, as well.  When respect was shown, it was almost always reciprocated.  We went to one small family restaurant off the beaten path where I struggled through an entire meal leafing through my French to English dictionary (it was pre-smart phone days!), then the waiter shared the dessert selections in perfect English.  He wasn't a bit malicious about it, and we all had a good laugh.  He told us that it seemed like we needed some practice on our French, so he gave us the opportunity.  He wasn't wrong.

28 minutes ago, FManke said:

If you have Surf and Stream, can you switch devices on the plan as long as only one is on at a time, or are you locked into only one device for the entire time?

You can switch back and forth.  

August 16, 2020 - 7 Nights Bahamas on Oasis of the Seas.

5 hours ago, L454S said:

Yeah, like Rated PG says, don't waste that Euro outlet. Get one of these(3 USB chargers), really work well.

If I may, where might one find one of these?  A quick Amazon search turned up some questionable results...

On 9/12/2019 at 4:20 PM, marti314 said:

GO to the pub, ask for a pint of Cider (if it's on tap) or a bottle of strongbow.  Might have to wait a few minutes (some bartenders wont serve you a shot and a beer).  Get a short of Fireball, proceed to dump the fireball into the cider.  You now have a cinnamon-y delicious and strong concoction.

This is a traditional Halloween drink around my house.  You can't go wrong with it!

Jim, you took a metric crap-ton of amazing shots (yes, that's an official unit of measurement), but this one belongs in the formal portrait folios you get on board...

6 hours ago, Dimension said:

Does anyone know if I would be able to access the back of the TV to be able to run my Firestick on Brilliance? If I am able to access the back of the TV what remote would you recommend I use to be able to change the source?

 

-Eric

I called RCCL twice with this specific question, except on Oasis.  Neither person I spoke to (or the various people THEY spoke to on the line with me!) were aware.  They're small enough that even if they don't work it's not as if you took up a bunch of valuable packing space by bringing them, but I certainly wouldn't count on it working.

1 hour ago, twangster said:

The Captain of the Port is typically from the US Coast Guard.  They run with military protocol and precision.  They don't deviate from the plan because a cruise line wants to do something.  If the port is closed, the port is closed.

5 hours ago, Traveler said:

They tried in Atlantic City with super modern Ravel Casino which was 100% non smoking. It bankrupt after two or three years .

As a former Atlantic City casino employee, let me tell you unequivocally that there were approximately 423,654 things that were more influential in the Revel going under than their smoking policy...

6 hours ago, Mljstr said:

I actually experienced something similar. RCCL didn’t own the hotel but it was a pre cruise package through RCCL. The morning of the cruise a team came to the hotel lobby, took our luggage and checked us in. We got our sea pass cards and transportation and walked on the ship. It was years ago and I believe it was in Tampa for a Panama Canal cruise and San Juan!  We loved  it!  

We experienced the same program for a sailing to the Western Caribbean on Enchantment ages ago. I think it was out of Port Canaveral, but it may have been Miami. It was our first ever cruise, and it made everything extremely smooth and relaxed. It was a great 1st impression. 

Can only hope so! 

9 minutes ago, JLMoran said:

I always thought part of the point of Bingo was to be quick at finding the matches and marking them, not just calling out "Bingo!" Would be sad if even that part of the game got stripped away. More or less becomes a lottery at that point, where you're just waiting for the balls to be drawn (and more slowly than any actual lottery drawing).

I do believe you just described Keno.   

51 minutes ago, lindy said:

not sure what you mean about walk off though.

If you're willing to carry all of your luggage off the ship on debarkation day yourself, you can be amongst the first passengers to exit the ship.  This procedure is commonly referred to as "Express Walk Off" or, more commonly, just "Walk Off."  Otherwise, you put all of your luggage besides your carry on in the hallway the night prior to debarkation and the cruise line gathers it all and transports it to the terminal the following morning.  You are assigned a group number and you disembark at an assigned time.  If you're in a rush, Walk Off is the fastest way off the ship, but if not leaving until 9 or 10 is fine for you, then it really is personal preference.

35 minutes ago, Rach0878 said:

How come they offer a water package if it’s free??  Sorry for all the dumb questions. Last time I cruised was 20 yrs ago. Lol

Those little Mio concentrated "water enhancer" packets can go a long way to keep the tap water more interesting, too!

36 minutes ago, FManke said:

What's Godfather 3 then? 

If it were me driving, I wouldn't even go through Philly, I'd bail off I-95 at the Delaware Memorial Bridge and take I-295 N.  Follow Route 40 and cross over to the NJ Turnpike, then it's straight up to Newark/Bayonne.  Sounds a bit complicated, but it's a really easy drive, and will get you around all of the Philly traffic.

2 hours ago, PatsFanBrian said:

Our cruise next month will be the first that we don't stay in a hotel the night before (out of Boston, a 1 hr ride for us).  We're just the types who prefer to get where we need to be a day early and leave less to chance, especially when flying.

Always prudent.   

Thanks for the clarification.  We're close enough to Port Liberty that it's an easy drive in, but if there was a hotel in the area Newark area with a free shuttle deal that came close to what a week's worth of parking cost, I'd certainly consider it for the convenience!  

3 hours ago, PatsFanBrian said:

When we cruised out of Port Liberty a few years ago, we stayed in a hotel near Newark airport the night before.  Most of the hotels in that area have packages that include one night, parking for the duration of the cruise and free shuttles to and from the port.  It certainly is less hassle than getting up early and dealing with several hours of traffic along with the boarding process.

Which hotel did you stay at out of curiosity?  While I've seen a bunch of the Newark hotels offering the stay & park option, I've seen precious few that also offer a free shuttle to/from the port.

On 8/18/2019 at 8:36 AM, KathyC said:

I've been driving myself crazy with that same thing.  Flying from NJ to Miami.  We will not drive to JFK or LGA to fly south - no lower price is worth the time, traffic & tolls.  So we look at EWR, PHL, AC and even ABE.  Won't fly Trenton as they cancel those flights a lot.  We look at flying into MIA, FLL, PBI and even MCO.

As a fellow Central Jersey type, I feel this pain so deeply.  An interesting and rare additional possibility: Boscov & Apple fly (or at least used to fly) charter Disney flights outs of Reading Regional Airport from time to time.  ONCE I was able to latch on to the charter as an air-only option as the dates lined up for me.  It was like half the price of flying from PHL, and that included spending the night before at the Holiday Inn Express across the parking lot (where I was allowed to leave my car for no charge!).  The stars have to align just right, but when they do it's pretty sweet!

Hmm... I guess I'm not a "select" sailing.

1 hour ago, marti314 said:

Emerald does not have any drink package discounts, Diamond does not even have any drink package discounts.

Reports lately from Diamond + Members are saying that even those deluxe drink package discounts for D+ are now gone.  

 

This was my impression, but I was willing to be optimistic!