WAYNO

Dozens of choices, mild to wild.  Less than a hundred to over a thousand, per person.

We are easily amused.  A bus or streetcar tour, ending in the port shopping area for lunch, a treat, or for shopping. 

Many ducks in a row.  A lot of rows.

We are almost there!

We have also had dining arrangements changed without our knowledge or consent.  One time especially, we were booked in a party and our dining was to be at the same table.  Nope.  And they were unable to fix it, insisting we were never booked together.   Best we/they could do is change us to MTD and we dined together a couple times. 

All the more reason I print copies, and/or take photos of our reservation documents. 

I am a supporter.  I get zero ads on my desk top.  But this site is so covered with ads on my phone, it is at times impossible to use. 

The 737 is a great airplane.  Yes, there have been some snafu's, which   have happened elsewhere too.  That's not meant to be a defense. Balls have been dropped. 

Other than the shape, there's little common between the original FLUF's and the extreme range, re-engined stretched versions of the 21st century. 

What is different, is modern digital technology.  Depend on robots and computers completely, there is a loss of some checks and balances. 

Am I bias'd?  You betcha.  If it ain't Boeing, I ain't going.

Yours truly in a very early 737, 53 years ago.

22 hours ago, Obdave said:

Wayno, I booked a refundable delta flight boi-Atl-tpa  three weeks ago as a backup.  The flight gets into Tampa at midnight but at least we’ll get there. Alaska has refunded our flight but without a backup we’d be paying through the nose for a flight with three or four legs. I’d suggest you look into doing the same. I was tipped off that our flight wouldn’t get an equipment swap when they quit selling tickets earlier this week when there were still empty seats

Well, looks like the stars are aligned for us. 

Our upcoming flights have been continually changing. Sometimes just a flight number change, sometimes just a time change, and sometimes a whole 'nother flight.

I checked the history of my flights.  Right now, the scheduled aircraft are all the unaffected (so far)  737-8's.  And no flights have been cancelled. 

I have also checked for substitute flights with other airlines.  I will continue to monitor this before I attempt a preemptive correction.  If I do have to make a change, the prices have escalated considerably since I booked the original flight. 

I don't drink as much as I used to.  And now I am D+ as well as Signature in the casino.  I'm finding I don't use all those drink benefits.  I probably never drank my moneys worth when I'd buy the Deluxe Drink Package, but that was not my whole persuasion to do so.  The drink package is so convenient.  And I was able to experiment with drinks that I normally would never buy.  Or if a drink became warm or stale, or even boring, I could push it aside and order another. 

Value, as in getting your moneys worth, is not my whole consideration.  I think convenience is valuable too. 

On Navigator, as recently as November, we still received the nice folded card invitation.  I've never been interested and have never attended a top tier event.   One of these days...

59 minutes ago, Obdave said:

As feared my flight to Tampa was cancelled with 36 hours notice. Alaska stated in the cancellation notice that no alternative flights are available. Strongly urge anyone with an Alaska or united flight to have a backup in place. Looks like the max9 grounding will run well into February and maybe longer

I am sorry for this.  Please keep us posted on how you are handling this or an alternative.

We leave PDX for Miami in a week.

The one and only time we booked a red eye to catch a cruise on the day we landed, the flight was cancelled.  We lost that cruise. 

And in fairness, it must be said we were flying West Coast to East Coast, against the clock.

That could have been the one time in a hundred that such a cancellation would happen, but it did happen, and I will never take that same chance again. 

There are mitigating circumstances  where such a flight is less chancy.  For example, short flight with no transfers, and with only one time zone involved, or when racing with the clock, gaining time, such as East to West.  Then there could be time to get another flight. 

In the same time zone scenario, for example, PDX to LAX, that's a short flight.  Leaving PDX at 6 AM, we get to LAX in plenty of time, and if the flight is delayed or cancelled, there are other flights to LAX one after another. 

My experience... There are times that excursions, beverages, and other add-ons are not shown on the website, while they are shown on the app.  And conversely, sometimes they are shown on the website and not on the app.  And sometimes they are not shown on either. 

I just stick to it and keep looking until they magically reappear.  RC is not known for their IT prowess.  They have a lot going on, and I suspect with all the hands in the pot, so to speak, the app and website gets confused.

Not my cup of tea, but I've sailed with family that loved such a cabin.  And I don't know if they are all this way, but they were not allowed to open the curtain after dark while sailing. 

I've always used U.S. cash with no resistance whatsoever. 

We also, cannot always depend on the app or anything else IT related.  I visit their site often, and print whatever might be necessary whenever I see it.

It just might not be available tomorrow.

That is their IT legacy.  But we stick with it and everything works out in the end.

My Wife uses them.  Loves them.  Her shelves, the bottom three, you can see  some of her cubes on the shelf. She always knows where her stuff is.  Best I can know of my stuff, is some of my stuff must be in the stacks above.

And when we're not in the casino,  a restaurant, a show, or in our room, we're likely found in the Promenade, in front of, or across from Sorento's (or whatever it's called this week).

On 11/22/2023 at 4:02 AM, Sealegs said:

I have also heard a suggestion of renting a car and driving A1A. Has anyone done that, and if so where would we go/what would we do on that road? No kids on the cruise, just one happy couple.

We've always had a rental car and stayed busy just driving around, including Disney World.  I don't know what your schedule is, or how long you'll be in the Cocoa Beach area, but we drove all the way to Key West.  Maybe the nicest drive I've ever taken. 

And as far as restaurants go... Out on the pier at Cocoa Beach there is a restaurant.  Don't know what it's called, but you can't miss it.  I thoroughly enjoy eating there. 

https://www.cocoabeachpier.com/dining/pier-62-oceanfront-restaurant-bar/menu/

It's been a few years, but we were unable to find a shuttle from Bayonne, nor would the motels help recommend transportation.  It's a different culture there than I'm used to.  The counter person said we'd just have to google it ourself.  Thanks.

We ended up using Uber. 

3 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

That's very interesting. I've never even heard of anyone (until now !) getting a text offer.  Maybe that's new ?

Whoops... I mis-spoke.  I just checked, and her offer was also sent via email..  Seems I incorrectly assumed since she read it to me from her phone, that it was a text.

We get offers thru the mail often.  Often, as in multiple times a week.

I also receive an occasional offer via email.  The email offers I've mostly learned to ignore, as when I reply, I am met with untimely responses.

Over and above this, my wife just received a separate annual/Signature  offer via her email. 

It's interesting, different folks receive offers via different means, while other folks receive no offers at all.  Seems we're all added to data bases differently, and for different reasons.

Previously, we've always used a one-way rental car from Orlando to our hotel in Cocoa Beach.  That's always worked easy.  We have a cruise upcoming from there also March 24th, and this time we booked a shuttle.

Either way, to me it's easier to get a hotel and spend the night near the port, and create one less stress factor.

The Cocoa Beach area, and the beach itself is quite wonderful for decompressing.

My wife bought me two "Tiles" for Christmas.  Folks she knows that have used them say they work great. 

And she uses an Apple phone, so she bought the "Apple AirTag" for herself.  Reviews have been positive, and her friend used one on her last cruise with my wife.   They were always able to know where the luggage was, in and out of the ship, and in or out of the plane and airport. 

Victoria...

I've done it twice on Royal cruises.  No matter what else, it's quite beautiful.  Both times, we took the geezer bus and let them drive us around the area, pointing out the sights.  And both times, they stopped and treated us at Tim Horton's.  And when the bus tour is done, we walk around some more.  Doing it again twice this coming summer, and I will handle it the same way.

I don't do things much different in Alaskan ports.  We get on a bus, trolley, or other conveyance, let them drive around and point out the sights, then finish the tour with a walk around of the area. 

...in the pickup.

Oh I love my cruises to sunny places.  But I also love my snow.

This, from Timberline Lodge, Mt. Hood Oregon on Christmas Eve.

Merry Christmas!

2 hours ago, BMW Hoosier said:

Lots of airports are easy. 

I stand corrected.