PRC

Saw the crane on the webcam this morning!

I've never pre purchased inet before as I use C&A discounts onboard, but next week on Freedom I have Voom free for one device as part of the booking. Curious as to which flavor I receive, as there was only one back when I booked. Also curious as to if it will be available when the rooms open up. I've had to wait till after sail away before as the new sailing data was not set up and no one could purchase!

I've requested it before, but its never been done when I have arrived. I just mention it to the cabin attendant, and its done that evening at turndown. Like Todd said, it only takes them a minute to do it.

Exactly. TSA provides no more than the illusion of safety. The garbage can full of discarded items is a perfect example of such. Lets face it: If someone wanted to cause mass chaos and destruction, why bother trying to sneak something onto a plane and harm 200 people, when you can waltz into the airport with a standard size carryon or two of explosives and shrapnel, unimpeaded, and put yourself into the middle of 2 to 4 THOUSAND people all crowded together to be xrayed. They are nothing but a reaction to something that has already been done. Someone tries to ignite a shoe? lets remove shoes. I'm really surprised that some group hasn't made a show of pulling dentures out at 35,000 feet and "igniting" them. Within a week we would see the TSA with their blue-gloved hands in everyone's mouth and forcing all dentures to be removed and x-rayed. Hell, the same could be done with eyeglasses, hearing aids, so many ways to make life miserable all because of the reactionary way the TSA tries to justify itself. OK, I'll put the soapbox away and show myself out...

TSA's Security Theater: Now playing at an airport near you!

A taxi to any of the beaches will give you a fun day. I'm a Paradise Beach guy myself but they are all good.

Oh... Back when I made DP they created a whole new category for me! Yes, I really am an old crow... PRC. (Paul R Crow) :D

Houston has 2 airports. Most all aitlines will fly into IAH (Bush Int'l) Southwest (and some smaller) will fly into HOU (Hobby) - the smaller airport. Hobby is closer to Galveston by half. transportation from the airports to Galveston Island is the biggest challenge. Being a local (40 min from the pier), I have no advise or experience on this, but I'm sure others here can help you out.

Just like a bath: once a week wether you need to or not!

^ Ditto.

Sorry. :( I like invicta watches, but I buy them from Amazon.

Having no personal experience with teens on ships since 2001, I don't have much to offer, but from what I've read over the years the ammount of crossover varies from ship to ship and with the total number of teens onboard that sailing. Hope you get more/better answers than this! ;)

I think everyone becomes jaded over time. Familiarity allows for you to notice the flaws in anyplace. I don't spook very easily, but there are a few places that i simply do not like to be. Falmouth would be one. YMMV, but to me the area outside the gate is dangerous. However, I am completely comfortable walking along in Roatan (Coxen Hole) with no concerns. Belize would be another spot. The area outside the "tourism village" is more of a turnoff to me. I actually sat one afternoon and watched a "street pharmacist" and a police officer working together to shake down tourists. After every sale and bust, where the officer would kindly let the tourist pay a fine and avoid arrest, they would meet up and split the proceeds from both the sale and bust. Only been to St Kitts once, so we took a ship tour to get an overview. It was great and it showed us a beautiful island. On the way back to the port however, the driver let everyone know that he had no choice but to drop us off where we had to walk thru a market area outside the port walls. He told us he did not consider it a safe place, and urged us to walk straight thru and get inside the port quickly. Of course he also asked us not to mention it to the ship, as he didn't want to lose his job but his conciense wouldn't let him say nothing. On the other end of the spectrum, I've walked all over Cozumel and Costa Maya/Majahual many many times and never felt unsafe or worried. I jokingly say that here in Texas we usually consider ourselves Texans first and Americans second, so I fit in with people of the same mindset, as they mostly consider themselves Mayan first and Mexican second!!! Of all the other spots I've been fortunate to visit in the Caribbean, to me its usually just common sense safety just like here in the states. Except Nassau. Nothing good can be said about Nassau. ;)

Now THAT sounds interesting...

I've never "done" anything in Labadee. For me its just a relaxing day, a larger version of CocoCay. There are trails up into the hills (paved), walks out to the rock formations at both ends, of course the beach... The walk up through the "artisans market" can be a bit daunting to some, I'm not bothered by them. I'm not the zip line or coaster type, but both are very popular.

For my next sailing on her (May 22), the online cruise planner shows 3,4, and 5 night packages. Basically make 3,4,0r 5 reservations and get a reduced rate.

Either at checkin on the pier or first thing when you board, but definately in your stateroom, will be a one-sheet planner with an outline of all the entertainment and such listing times, etc for the whole week. You can use that to determine when you want to make reservations in the 3 specialty venues. Sabor is on deck 4 forward across from the Schooner Bar, and both Chops and Giovanni's are up on deck 11 at the entrance to the Windjammer cafe (likely your lunch stop when you board!). You usually can go to one of the locations and make reservations for all 3, or you can visit them all if you like. All will be well, have a great time!

Was on Indy for a week last September. You'll have a great time!

A thought: Perhaps since the dining is a gift from your TA, perhaps you have to let it show up on your account that first morning so that times can be chosen.

Thats strange. I will be back on her May 22, and have all three dining venues booked online. When you go to the "Cruise Planner", does anything show up? Dining, Spa, Shore Excursions?

What is your sail date? Freedom has no Entertainment that needs to be booked/reserved, but usually all of the specialty dining reservations can be done online. You can make the dining reservations from the TV in your room or by going to any one of the 3 specialty venues (you can make all reservations from one).

Sabor Modern Mexican Adjacent to the Schooner Bar on deck 4 forward. YUM!

Off topic but radio related: Back in '75 I was a 15 year old kid with a ham radio license (my dad was into it big time). We returned to school after Christmas/New Years for 2 days and were blasted with a snowstorm (no, not Tejas, I grew up in coal mine country). Anyway, we were out of school for over a week. It was so bad that going outside had lost its appeal, so I started searching the airwaves. I started conversing with someone via CW (morse code) and it turned out that he was barely 18, was in the Air Force, and was sitting underground in Thule, Greenland. Radar station on the DEW line I suspect. Hadn't seen daylight for weeks! He was making radio contacts in his off time. We "talked" for a bit and discovered that they had a "Battleship" game in the rec room. We must have played dozens of sessions of that game over the next few days! To this day I have visiting Greenland on my bucket list. May have to sail Hurtigruten if the lottery gods bless me!

Oasis is replacing Freedom November '16. Majesty is replacing Enchantment... (soon but I forgot the date)

All RCCL ships have a channel on the TV that displays this. One note about phones / tablets: I don't knbow if it holds true for iOS (Apple) devices, but with some Android devices, you must take the device out of "Hi Accuracy" location mode. High accuracy mode uses the built in GPS as well as any WiFi and/or cellular connections you may have. The Wifi and cell service onboard always seem to identify themselves as the homeport location. You will have to set the device to "GPS only" to get a true location.