DunkelBierJay

Wow...there almost certainly is a US airport you can drive to to save money...fares from my part of the world range $178 to $183 US to San Juan. I have been tracking fares for the month of May for a few weeks, and they have stayed steady.

Ive been tracking Southwest and JetBlue flights from Nashville to San Juan and it has consistently ranged between $178 US and $183 US one way. If you can price out a connection through a second tier airport like Nashville, Fort Lauderdale or Tampa, that takes international flights, you might save a little cost.

I've used Allianz, Travel Guard and Roam Right whether cruising or doing something else. They are all reputable and competitive with each other price wise. I tend to use the company that has the easiest to navigate website at the time I am ready to book. I have never filed a claim. I am just paranoid about facing a horror story medical evac situation from a foreign country, so I think the $200-$300 cost is worth if for a family trip. Beware though...if you Google travel insurance, and you watch a lot of YouTube videos...you might get nothing but a travel insurance carrier's ads running on what you watch...over and over and over and over....I tried googling "I BOUGHT THE STUPID TRAVEL INSURANCE, QUIT RUNNING THE AD" to no avail.

On my first cruise on Enchantment a few years ago, a ship tour was listed in the Cruise Compass, and my wife and I took advantage of it. I haven't seen it since. Now that I have completed five Royal Caribbean cruises, I laugh a little at needing a tour back then, especially on a small ship, but it really helped save some time and get some insider tips from the guy doing the tour.

I was just looking for Mariner's repositioning cruise from Europe to the US, and nothing is there yet either...

@JLMoran I’m curious about your trip insurance choice from your original post. Did you get RC’s or a travel agent’s insurance for the cruise itself? Did you compare it against a third party like Roam Right or Allianz?

@BrandonOwen wouldn't know, but new Platinums get pin envy when they see this...

So....when do you get your pin?

I can be sensitive to it too, especially if I am dehydrated and it's been a while since I have eaten, like the early morning. My favorite strategy is sucking on a hard ginger candy (I order them from Amazon) and a glass of water followed by a meal including a green apple. Every ship has piles of them in the Windjammer. To me, it gets me back to feeling great the quickest. I have used dramamine and bonine, and I don't like how they make me feel. I have not tried the patch, because I have only been queezy a couple of times.

Here is the video for the final sea day. Thanks so much for watching!

I'm convinced that the same percentage of people sick on ships is the same as the percentage of people sick on land. I haven't seen studies, but I have seen a sensationalist press.

I am very intrigued by the budget airlines such as Norwgian, WOW, etc...the no frills economy fares are ridiculously low...some in the $179 one way to Gatwick...about $250 one way to Barcelona. I signed up for regular flight updates from Norwegian, for example and signed up for their loyalty program, and I get daily emails that make me want to book some thing now. You have to travel on days they offer like Sundays or Thursdays for the low fares, but I don't see that as too big of a deal. They fly out of Boston, JFK, Orlando, Ft Lauderdale among others. Before I started seeing these fares, I would have put a $900 RT fare under the bargain category. No more these days.

There are lockers at Labadee and Coco Cay. I believe they are $8 to use.

ahhh....cofferdams again!

I gave my waiter Joseph/Jose $20. We have had him both times we have been and he took great care of us.

Since both ships are in dry dock near each other, has anyone seen any pics? I have been searching and haven't found anything yet. The webcam in Freeport is offline.

If Ryde is a spin class, and it's $20 and it's eleigible, then that's a 20% savings. Still steep, but better.

Brilliance of the Seas 5 Night cruise...Day 4 in Cozumel at Nachi Cocom and a little wandering across the street from the International Pier. I hope you enjoy!

Yes! There were seven ships and about 20,000 people on Cozumel the day we were there. It took a little while to get past the traffic at the International Pier, and when we arrived at Nachi, it was full and didn't feel crowded at all. My next post will have the Nachi video....

Sure thing. There will be a link in this thread either this evening or tomorrow.

Thanks! I really like doing them and hope they aren’t too too amateurish! I am working on editing audio for the Cozumel video today. Lots of Nachi in it!

No, we haven’t been diving in a few years because of kids. We did it a lot before we started cruising, but never made it to Sint Maarten. I’d LOVE to do a shark dive though!

Video #2 Grand Cayman

They only provide pre-booking for entertainment on Oasis and Quantum class ships. I have seen Mystery Dinner Theater available on Enchantment's Cruise Planner in the past, and it may show up closer to sailing if they run it. All ships run behind the scenes tours which you can pre-book. As far as other entertainment, you won't have any problem at all just showing up to what is on board whether it is in the Orpheus Theater, the Centrum or any of the bars like Schooner, Boleros, etc. The main thing is when you arrive at the terminal, there will be a pre-boarding cruise compass that will tell you everything that is open on embarkation day (Windjammer for sure, some of the bars too). When you board, if it is before your room is ready around 1:00 pm, the Day 1 Cruise Compass will be available at Guest Services in the Centrum on Deck 5. That will have the most current information. You board on Deck 5, and enter near the Centrum, so you can't miss it. If they are running MDT on your sailing, and it wasn't in your Cruise Planner, they can clarify for you. You could also check in the Main Dining Room on Deck 4 to see if they know if it is being run. You can also check out your table while you are there. I am pretty sure they have run MDT in the back of Chops on Enchantment, but I could be wrong. They could also answer your question.

I'd love to know too...I know that Allure had bearings issues in one of it's azipods...I'd love to know if this is a revisit of that. I know that propellors take quite a while to be manufactured...not sure if a few months is enough time. http://www.rclcorporate.com/getting-our-bearings-straight/