KLA

Uh... is this RC Blog or CruiseCritic? Yes, I do. Love my city... horrible sports teams and all.

I will sit here quietly and continue to love my Skyline.

Joining in here - really crossing my fingers that the November cruise I'm taking with my mom won't be affected. May 2nd is my birthday even... can I just continue to have my opportunity to visit Havana and Cienfuegos for my birthday? That'd be great.

Yep!! Because of how many retirees spend winters in Florida it's the only area outside of Cincinnati that has a handful of Skyline Chili locations. Hi neighbor!

+1 to confirm that they do this - we had adjoining balconies with my parents in January and they were able to take down the divider. Make sure you let them know as soon as you get to your stateroom, and keep in mind they may not complete this until after dinner on the first night.

I can't speak for others, but as for me, I just about always prepay my gratuities. It's just one less thing that I have to think about on board. When you arrive at the port and hand your luggage over to the porters, it is customary to tip $1-$2 per bag. They're the ones making sure your luggage makes it on board after all. My husband and I typically get the deluxe drink package and indulge a bit on board, so we'll usually carry on a stack of $1 bills. On the first day usually, we'll find a bar and bartenders we like and we'll tip and extra $1 or two here and there. The bartenders will learn your name and drink very quickly - this has paid off for us many times during busier bar times. As far as stateroom, we'll tip an extra $20 or so if our stateroom attendant is great (though I've heard of others doing more - this is really up to you). Another consideration here is if your room needs some extra attention, or if you have a lot of people. For dining, again, we'll tip an extra $5-20 if it's really above and beyond. For both stateroom and dining I've had experiences in both directions.

Key West is super easy to just walk off the ship and find something to do - I absolutely love the charm and walk ability of Key West. As for Havana, I can't say because I haven't been but I did book a tour for my trip in November through Blexie Tours. It's a private tour in a classic car, but it is through third party. That said, I know lots of people who have used them with great feedback.

Technically I'm sailing Sept 29th, so basically October. Can't wait to get back on board!

I mean to be fair, I said "around" ... one month off. Give me some credit. 😉

Yes - it was around Sept/Oct 17 the azipod issue started, and it went in to dry dock in January 18 to fix the issue. We have her booked again this year in October and we're very much looking forward to it with how busy our schedules are lately, so reeeally hoping there's no impact. Also, hi everyone!

So, not ALL ships can have the balcony dividers taken town - seeing that you have Navigator and Harmony listed, it should be fine, but I know on some of the older ships they can't do it. However, in order to set this up you have to talk to your stateroom attendant once you board and get to your room. It might take them until the end of the first day, but it's doable.

Steak is definitely on the menu as well as a pretty nice looking burger, and I believe there is also salmon with a mustard sauce that is on the menu that I'm pretty excited for. Same situation as my husband and I - I'm a pescetarian and enjoy a nice cut of fish while on board, and my husband enjoys an occasional steak. We're looking forward to this for lunch when we board - we haven't been to Chops in quite a long time. We're choosing the MDR for the remainder of the cruise. Any time I've been at Chops I've had at least a couple really nice looking seafood selections.

This is a good point - probably not as many people going that direction as opposed to the Windjammer. Same reason why people recommend Park Cafe for embarkation.

I'm becoming increasingly convinced we need to swing by here during our pre-cruise stay in Ft. Lauderadale. We're staying at the Renaissance and everything!

Yep - 16+. But I think if kids are just going in there to eat rather than say, jump around the pools and run around and make a bunch of noise it's probably fine.