Cruiser58

On 9/23/2021 at 5:20 AM, AHollyS said:

Is there a plastic sleeve anyone is using? Some think the card can go in and out, but is still super slim. I have seen the "plague pass" carriers, but they are bulkier than I'm looking for. Ideally it would be paper clipped into my passport.

I bought a new passport cover on Amazon that had a clear window you could slide the card into. Less than $20.

Does anyone know how far ahead air2sea opens up? I've tried to look at flights for both cruises in 2022, but it won't let me access the ship name field.

On 9/22/2021 at 4:42 PM, PG Cruiser said:

Why "never again?"

We tend to over pack and the every time I turned around, I was bumping into my wife. We made it work, and perhaps never again is too harsh, just I'll really think long and hard about booking one, and it will 1) be a good deal vs other balconies, and 2) it will need to be a cruise I REALLY want to take.

On 9/16/2021 at 1:27 PM, KLA said:

Understood... yeah they still have slots open all the way up to 8 PM. Given that we sail at 6, I feel like something is going to change. 

I think our plan at this point is just try and get late checkout at our hotel and try to be as patient as we can. 

We booked our Sept 5 cruise in early August, and the first available check in time was 2:30, so we took it. A week or so later, we were looking, and they had opened up slots for 12:30, so we snagged one of them. We dropped off our luggage about 9 am, on the morning of the 5th. Showed up about 11:45, and were allowed to go directly in...

On 8/29/2021 at 6:40 PM, PG Cruiser said:

 

Have you had personal experience with this double promo since they launched it?  

Yes, we just got back from a Western Caribbean cruise in an OV room (never again!) We received 14 points instead of the 7 the room would normally receive.

On 9/13/2021 at 11:20 PM, twangster said:

Flights to Seattle will almost always be less expensive but...  the only way to reach Hubbard Glacier (on Royal) is to sail from Vancouver or Seward.

If you are putting the money to do an Alaskan cruise budget more money for excursions and if you can afford it, look into flights to Anchorage/Vancouver.  They may a couple hundred higher but Hubbard Glacier is a much more impressive glacier to sail past.  

Sailing from Seattle is still a great way to see Alaska.  I have cruises booked from Seattle.  But if you've got the money there are elevated itineraries from the more Northern ports. I also have cruises booked from Vancouver.  It's a very easy port to sail from.  

We are doing a NB from Vancouver to Seward next fall. We will be flying into Vancouver the night before. Any recommendations on hotels / restaurants in Vancouver? It also works out our cruise is ending in Seward Labor Day weekend. We'll definitely be taking the train to Anchorage. Any recommendations in Anchorage?

16 hours ago, MicDay said:

We overpacked but it could be we had 72 F temperatures but for one stop.   

I think it depends on when you're going, what you plan on doing and your level of coldness?

I wore jeans with a couple of layers with a rain jacket and my hiking boots when touring the towns, ended up in my tee/jeans only.

When we where on our boat excursions it got chilly so layers with a hat and rain/wind jacket worked great.

Same for my husband.

When it was raining he mentioned he'd liked waterproof pants but wasn't really necessary.

We went August 27th 2021

We live in NC so it gets cold here but nothing like the North so our cold tolerance was medium/low.

 

Thanks, we're going August 26th, and we live in Northeast Texas, so our experiences are similar.

So we finally booked an Alaskan cruise for next fall. What advice would you have for clothing to pack? I don't think I'll be needing too many pairs of shorts or swim trunks!! I plan on taking a base layer, my waterproof winter Columbia jacket, heavy socks, and med height cold weather boots (like that isn't going to make my suitcase weigh a ton!). Will blue jeans cut it, or do I need to take some waterproof pants? I'm thinking of taking a Frogg Toggs rain suit to go over my regular clothes.

This is a  GREAT post! Very informative. We've sailed from Galveston a few times, most recently 9/5/21. I agree with everything you've said, although I can't vouch for all of the restaurants because we don't get to Galveston as often as we'd like.

Just repriced our room for $705 less! Woohoo!!! And didn't lose the shipboard credit.

Last week, while on the Independence, we booked 2 more cruises for 2022. One is in April, one in the fall to Alaska. As we booked them on board, we had reduced deposits ($200 total), and $100 shipboard credit.

I have been watching the price on both cruises to see if they drop. Today, the price on the Alaskan cruise dropped over $500, for the same cabin style (jr suite), on the same side of the ship. The room is a little further back, but that is OK. If we call in to try to change rooms, what is the downside? Do we lose our shipboard credit (which is a trade-off I'll take), or have an increased deposit?

On 8/31/2021 at 5:32 PM, stevendom57 said:

Please report back to us when you return about Maya Chan. I am considering visiting there in November.

Matt was there the day before us, and he posted a blog about it. It lived up to its reputation. Great service, food, and drinks. The ride there was a bit bumpy, but I would go again in a heartbeat. 

On 9/1/2021 at 1:14 PM, SarahBrown said:

I can't wait to hear about it!  Be sure to come back for an update. Via email, Mike just reassured me that it should be great and if not, he'll let us know and give us a refund before we get off the ship. They have such a stellar history of great service, so I'm keeping the reservation and crossing all my fingers and toes!

It is well worth it. The only downside was the bumpy ride back and forth. Great service, drinks and food. Breeze was blowing most of the time. The is a lot of sea grass on the beach next door, so occasionally, there would be a slight smell. But I would go again in a heartbeat. 

On 8/30/2021 at 6:26 PM, Steve in Orlando said:

We reserved a day at Maya Chan -  Had good reviews from CruiseTipsTV and Matt from RCB

https://costamayabeachresort.com

More later, but Maya Chan Beach was great!

Only drawback is that you have to walk a long pier, make your way through the maze of port shops until you get outside the port to reach the rendezvous spot.

Taxi ride (included in the Maya Chan price) was a about 45 minutes, and very rough! But once you get there, it's well worth it. The people are very nice, and quite attentive. The food (various tacos) was fresh and very tasty. The cocktails were good,  also.

You can do as little, or as much as you want. Snorkeling gear, kayaks, floating chairs, water socks are all included.

Nice breeze, cabanas, chairs everything was great. Service couldn't have been better. 

We hated to leave. 

2 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

Doesn't it cover up to $13, not 12?

I was reading in the ultra fine print on the description, and I probably need new glasses. Maybe it was $13.

The DDP covers drinks up to $12. If you order a $13 drink, do you only get charged the extra $1, or the full $13?

11 hours ago, SarahBrown said:

I'm so curious about Maya Chan, too! We have reservations for our Oct 1 cruise from Galveston, but the most recent review I see on Google says that the water is unswimmable and the smell is so bad, it's tough to stay on the beach even. I'm bummed because I know it's not the owners' fault, but I think we'll have to cancel.  Has anyone been in August who can give a review?  

We're planning on being there next week, so hopefully, it'll be a good experience!

16 hours ago, Vancity Cruiser said:

Another option is to do a B2B, turning it into a 14 day round trip 

Maybe when / if we retire, we can do a B2B...

3 hours ago, KJones said:

+1 to Maya Chan! We were there in September 2019, so unsure what the post-covid service is like, but pre-covid service was fantastic

Please post afterwards, and let us know how it was!

If you only have time for a 7 day Alaskan cruise, what is the consensus: a one way cruise, or a round trip. I'm guessing the one way cruise may give you more time at each location, but there is a hassle factor of 2 different airports.

14 hours ago, Steve in Orlando said:

We reserved a day at Maya Chan -  Had good reviews from CruiseTipsTV and Matt from RCB

https://costamayabeachresort.com

When were you there?

I'm interested in suggestions for things to do in Costa Maya. We don't want anything too strenuous. It looks like there is just the standard tourist shops at the pier. We're not interested n diving or atv type excursions - I'm not that adventurous!

Sailing on Independence from Galveston in September. I understand we cannot check in before our assigned slot. Does anyone know if we can drop off our luggage before then? I'd like to be able to drop off my luggage early, then spend some time on The Strand in Galveston before our boarding time.