jbrinkm

This is a really good idea and would have avoided the cabin wars my husband and I got into last cruise with that annoying table... Would you have had to pull in the chair if it rained? There's a What did you Buy from Bezos thread going and these are both great items (the portable charger and the fan), if you want to add to that thread? I also rely heavily on my portable charger, and my mom cannot sleep without a fan.

I just came back to say that I never felt like I was physically in danger - I was just emotionally uncomfortable. And I have a huge amount of sympathy for these vendors, and the circumstances that lead them to feel they have to act like that in order to generate some income for the day. I'm sure they have very little other economic opportunity.

I was last in Labadee in 2014 and I remember so clearly now how pushy they were back then and how uncomfortable I was. I ended up walking through that path on my way to get something (maybe beach floats ran out where we were?) and I clearly didn't have money with me - I was in a bathing suit with a towel and had my SeaPass card on a lanyard, but they still yelled and heckled and cajoled, non stop. I can't imagine how it would be having gotten WORSE.

Something is definitely up with this! I'm bummed because they sometimes have the oldies but goodies on the menu for lunch.

I use these on cruises, although I don't remember if I bought them specifically for cruising or just for travel/vacation. But these are some of my favs: Retractable hanging line - I'll drip dry in the shower and them move stuff to this in the cabin, strung from the ceiling, to dry the rest of the way and clear up the shower Small portable safe with cable - I attach these to a beach chair I'm using and put my phone, money & kindle in when I want to visit the water. I don't really let it leave my sight for long - I don't trust it that much - but it is better than just leaving anything in the open where it could be easily swiped. I just bought these compression bags for our upcoming cruise because we struggled last year to get everything shoved back in at the end of the sailing. Also recommended here, although I don't remember who/where. And finally, recommended by AFAR (although for the flight, not the cruise), I am trying out this airplane foot rest because I am short. We also do sometimes bring along a Pur pitcher for the stateroom. I know the water is safe but I don't like the chlorine (same as at home) and prefer to try to avoid single-use plastic if possible, and I try to drink a LOT of water. It is lightweight and we just stuff it full of stuff so it really doesn't take up much room in the luggage. And, I also echo everyone with the magnets, luggage tags, etc.

We also bought this based on a recommendation from this board and found it really helpful on our last cruise, usually for sending my husband to get beverages for early mornings for all four of us. We got this version:

The rideshare situation might be better now than what was happening in the past because Uber can now go into the port, whereas before, only Lyft had signed the contract to go all the way in to pick up or drop off guests. When we cruised from there last April, we took an Uber to the island the night before and stayed down the seawall a bit and then had a local taxi lined up for the next morning to get us from our Galveston Hotel to the port.

Has anyone used the travel insurance that comes with your credit card? If so, which type of card and how was the experience? I wasn't happy with my level of medical coverage from the plan I found on insuremytrip (my own fault for the plan I chose - I still like insuremytrip!) so I also bought a GeoBlue plan. Apparently the GeoBlue I bought comes with a little extra coverage, I think lost bags, so I started to feel like I might be able to make do with just GeoBlue and the coverage my card provides. I have a Chase Sapphire and the coverage seems pretty good, but I'd love to hear if anyone has actual experience using their included card insurance.

Looking for feedback on a number of places in Aruba to try to narrow down our sightseeing. We're doing diving & beach (different members of our party) in the morning and then have a rental car for the rest of the day for non-beach/non-water places on the island. We do love interacting with animals - but I'm just not sure we want to do the animal garden + the ostrich farm + the donkey sanctuary + the butterfly garden. I'd love feedback on any of the possible stops to help us narrow down what to do. If you went, did you feel that the time and admission cost was worth it? Dutch Pancakes (which one?) Butterfly Farm ($19/$16) California Lighthouse ($5) Alto Vista (free) Philip’s Animal Garden ($10) Ostrich farm ($15) Natural bridge (free) Donkey Sanctuary (donation) Aloe factory (free)

(P.S. I was already writing that before @asquared17 last post, which just proves my point...)

One thing I LOVE about @asquared17 blogs is that she (you) replies so thoughtfully and expressively to everyone's comments. She (you) really is/are a fantastic "host." If I do do (doodoo ) another blog, I want to try to replicate more of that rather than just putting content out there.

I thought the same thing about my last blog (first, last, only so far) - I put way too many words into each post. I would type them into a Google doc so I didn't lose anything and then copy/paste into the blog, but I felt like I should have broken up some of the content and interspersed the pictures. It also felt like it took so much time out of my day and I think just having a few smaller posts instead of one ginormous one would have taken less time all at once. I was debating whether I should blog or not on my next one because it is a new ship to us (Symphony) and I'll have less free/down time and my parents are sailing with us and will require more of my engagement as well. @Cactus527 I thought the same thing, and then:

I'm team early for these same reasons.

I just saw my first Utopia ad during a basketball game, and I thought it was Icon at first. I guess Utopia is getting many more slides than other Oasis class ships?

OH sorry! I just saw March and didn't check the year...

I guess every sailing has a different order. My entertainment opened on the website on Jan 5, I both checked in for my cruise and got the reservations email on Jan 7 and my app still shows "We're putting the finishing touches on your cruise. Check back for updated information." Are you on the March 21 sailing? I know @Sweety is active on here and hopefully can chime in?

Are you on your roll call? Could you ask the others if they have been able to book their shows?

The gatherings will look something like this in the app:

There's a program called Hyperlink: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2023/01/18/royal-caribbean-added-new-cruise-ship-activities-gen-z-cruisers-and-i-tried-them-out

I see Jamie's lunch for $14.99 pre-grat on my Symphony sailing in March right now, although I did not get a pizza email.

Allure now has Wipe Out Café Featuring El Loco Fresh - they switched the food over sometime between when I was on her in 2022 and when I was on her in 2023.

I've always been able to reserve before getting that email. Are you on the app? I was only able to do it on the website planner. If you are on the website, have you tried clearing cookies?

These are great; all of them very smart for cruising! But... what is up with the picture for this??? The diamonds (ice?) are jumping directly inside THROUGH the wall? And what the marshmallow fluff is that little white ball of stuff?

@asquared17 I think you need this cute one: https://www.amazon.com/Electric-Heating-Caliber-Stainless-Portable/dp/B09MYRLNN9?th=1 1. It's cute 2. It makes one cup for you at a time, and 3. Removable USB-charger lowers probability of getting it confiscated!

I wonder if the kettles that use USB would be different than the ones that plug in with a regular power cable? Like the difference between bringing a usb charger (allowed) vs a surge protector (not allowed). The USB typically comes completely unplugged from the kettle.