Christie

Do you guys remember when a lady "lost" her phone on Disney Cruise Line and when she got home and logged into her computer, all of these selfies of a cast member started popping up? He had stolen her phone but didn't bother to wipe it clean and it automatically synced the photos to her iCloud. Dummy

 

Edited to add link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/23/disney-cruise-iphone-thief-uploads-photos-to-photo-stream-facebook_n_1539353.html

 

The pics are pretty funny :-D

So looking at this cruise compass from Jan 2016, these are the MDR nights:

 

Night 1 (Sept 4)- Mojo

Night 2 (Sept 5)- Saffron (formal night)

We have one of these that we use for situations like this: 

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005K6JQXQ/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_1?pf_rd_p=1944687462&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B00HYXHPNG&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=61KBVS82FHVTNS1Q4HRP

 

It's not the most secure thing ever, but at least it keeps the honest people honest.

 

You could also attach it to your beach chair.  Once again, not 100% secure, but it would take a lot more than picking something up quickly.  

I must be completely missing the boat here- is the Saffron menu the Italian menu?

 

Remember, I've never even eaten in the MDR  :huh:

Really?  What do you like on the first formal night?  I've just heard the second one is better.  We would be ok with any night, really.

While listening to this week's podcasts (become an Insider, you get them a day early), I became curious about the different photo packages offered on board. Usually we will select a few photos and pay a la carter for them at the end of the cruise. I looked up what was offered for the Freedom of the Seas group cruise. A few thoughts:

 

1) The photos are handled though an outside company. If you book beforehand, you'll be using a credit card. If you buy photos on board, it will be charged to your Seapass account, so you could use OBC towards the cost of your photos.

2) They offer different packages for the digital downloads. Here's how it breaks down for this particular cruise:

- 10 photo downloads: $174.99 ($17.50 per photo)

- 15 photo downloads: $249.95 ($16.63 per photo)

- Unlimited photo downloads: $299.99

- Unlimited photo downloads + prints: $399.99

 

Not sure what the prints include, but $100 worth of prints goes a long way on something like shutterfly.

 

I'm not sure the digital photos are that much of a discount because you'll still spend a couple of bucks printing a decent quality 5x7 or 8x10.

Bummer. If you could talk him into it, I would try a different one :)

Get him in to see a chiropractor! Hope he fees better soon and can enjoy the trip

Hey can you switch me in Sept 2016 from Anthem on the 3rd to Freedom on the 4th for the group cruise?  Thanks!

Yea, I need to update that.  My dad is having major cancer surgery in July and my mom won't be able to keep my daughter anymore.  I really wanted to do Anthem with just my husband and I, so we cancelled that one and booked on the group cruise instead with our daughter.  

Also, we would love to do the Chef's Table on Night 2 (first formal night, but not the great Surf and Turf menu in the MDR), if anybody would like to join us.

I looked and looked for a FOS Group Cruise thread, but couldn't find one.  If there is one, feel free to delete and point me in the right direction!

 

So who all is going?  What are you most excited about?  

 

For us, it will be my husband Nick and I celebrating our 3rd wedding anniversary (Sept 1) and our almost 2 year old daughter Mackenzie.   

I'm excited to stay in the panoramic ocean view room on Deck 12 and for the bike riding excursion we booked in Grand Cayman.  

 

96 days and counting!

Has anybody done this?  It has great reviews on Trip Adviser and seems to be a cool way to see the island.

 

http://www.westbayloop.com/

Somebody that is not me (for real... I don't have that kind of disposable income) buys watches and expensive jewelry (yellow diamonds) while on cruises.  Once they had a time during the last night where you could go and declare your purchases.  He showed up and the agents were all drinking a couple beers and looked at him like he was crazy for actually showing up.  Other times they have declared it while getting off the ship and the agents told him he should have just worn it on his wrist.  

 

Do what you're comfortable with.  I agree with not having the box.  I also wouldn't count on anything to be shipped to you.  This person usually requires a larger band, and they promise they would send it or extra links, and it never happens.  So get exactly what you want while you're there.  

We are staying Star class in Dec and would love to compare that to the same room exactly 1 year prior, but not sure you want to wait that long.

Total cost

Yeah, those wedge-shaped rooms look REALLY big. 

 

When are you going to be on Freedom ?  I'm going June 26.

 

I'm hoping that they will start upselling/upgrading rooms soon for this sailing.  I'm hoping to snag a Grand Suite.  We're in a JS but would love to upgrade to a full suite.

For the group cruise Sept 4.

 

When you guys say checking, do you mean online or do you call? Does it matter if a TA owns my reservation?

We have one of the panoramic balcony staterooms (P2) on Freedom, but I would love one of the wedge shaped ones (P1) since we will have to set up a crib

Is there a certain date when they open up accessible rooms to everyone?  

This is the reason we cancelled Liberty for December and booked back on Oasis

Wow.  That is flat out unacceptable.  I would be livid

Those pics make me want to book an Alaskan cruise. Maybe in 2018 :-/

Had a chance to read over this- it looked like a blast!  I need to save some of your information, as the itinerary is similar to what we are doing on Liberty at the end of the year.  

 

We have only sailed Oasis, so pardon my questions...

 

- We tend to like newer things.  Like I would rather stay in a new Holiday Inn Express than an old Ritz Carlton.  Do the smaller ships feel older and "grungy"/dated to you?  This is something I'm worried about

 

- Would you feel comfortable bringing a 2 year old on the excursions you did?  I wouldn't be interested in the air boat, as I grew up in New Orleans and they're not that special to me haha

 

- Not a question, but the Costa Maya park looks ridiculously awesome.  I'm sad we won't be stopping there.

 

- You mentioned the souvenir glass at one point.  If you have the premium package, do you get the drinks of the day in a souvenir cup?  That's really cool

 

- If you've sailed bigger ships before, is there anything you missed being on a smaller class ship?  

 

Thanks for all the details!

I'm pretty sure they will accommodate the food allergy.

 

I'm not a big drinker, and really only like sweet white wine. I took just a sip of some of the wines just to see how it paired with their food. I actually liked that cause I could see what they were talking about where I would never spend $$ on a recommended wine at a restaurant lol. I loved it. Great great night.

Oh man. I'm listening to a podcast right now but can't wait to read this. I hope it convinces me to sail a smaller ship :)