markinct

Best analysis / rundown is from "What is going on with shipping" on YouTube: https://youtu.be/qZbUXewlQDk?si=BF2d3pgIghbyE5zT

This is tragic. The first video I saw clearly showed the ship losing electrical power twice. But it looked to me like she was already not in the channel. I suspect the cascade of events goes back before the power outages seen on the bridge webcam. It's a nightmare scenario for everyone involved. There will likely be pressure to clear the debris and open the channel as quickly as possible. I hope they don't do that until they've recovered every person possible. Their families deserve that.

I'm glad you evaded the storm!

Time to start packing.... since we're leaving tonight

NICE! Maybe I'll see you on embarkation day (Yeah, no..... ) We haven't done a B2B cruise... yet. Might have to look at the Feb 1 sailing!

My wife and I booked this cruise today. Who's ready to spend Valentine's Day on Coco Cay?

We did the gold star service in 2022. It was utterly fabulous. The rear of the car had an observation area that was open to the outside air. The views were fantastic and we met some interesting people. The staff on the train were informative in a very friendly way. There's a service called Orange Bike Delivery in Seward. They can take your bags from the cruise port to the train. It's a family run business that took very good care of us (and our mountain of baggage!) The hauled our stuff from the port to a hotel we spent the night at, then picked up from the hotel and delivered to the train station. https://www.orangebikedelivery.com/luggage.html

I'm certain Royal wouldn't stop if they thought there was a hint of an issue. But this is *your* vacation. If you don't feel comfortable, stay on the ship and enjoy a "crowd free" experience! Vacations are about reducing stress and anxiety!!

I hope you can enjoy your cruise vacation on Icon - and have a swift and uneventful treatment and recovery!!

I just want to take a moment to acknowledge the fact that you have THE BEST message board handle. EVER.

I'll be there on Saint Patrick's Day.... or at least scheduled to be there. If we call at Labadee I will go to the beach without a worry. If we divert to a different port or have an extra sea day, well, that's cruising, isn't it? Like the weather, strife is beyond our control. I feel badly for the regular people of Haiti. As @Zacharius has pointed out, their "government" has been a shambles for a long time. And when it wasn't a shambles it seems the only thing it was ever good at was terrorizing its own people.

"You must be this tall to sail...."

That, too, would be ... euphonic! But if this ship is destined for the Asia market as some have guessed, I wonder if that would make Melody a better name? I am fantastically ignorant of Asian branding sensibilities.

I hope you post a travel report! The Mountaineer is a 'bucket list' trip for me. I also want to do a few Amtrak long hauls - from NY to Chicago, then onto the Texas Eagle or the Southwest Chief.... then on to the Coast Starlight....

Look at the Rocky Mountaineer - they have routes in Canada and USA. Also, check into may favorite (non-cruise) travel YouTuber - a Brit named Paul Lucas who has a lot of bucket list train trips on his channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Paul_Lucas

Nova... No Va....

That would be great - as long as the ship has the "visibility" of a Radiance class ship.... with a small-ish Royal Promenade....

A commentator on Matt's blog article suggested Paradise of the Seas, and I think that's excellent. Though RCL may want to save that for an Icon class ship. But Legend of the Seas would be epic..... heh - as would Epic of the Seas . . .

That ALONE makes your TA worth the extra steps/e-mails. With the exception of the COVID shutdown, I haven't had problems. But it's nice to know there's someone I can call if things get craptastic.

Heh - I was going to stay up until midnight to hop on as soon as check in opened.... then I remembered I bought the key....

You may have to work with a couple of different TAs before you find a person who's a good fit for you. That said, add my vote for MEI. We've been working with @michelle from MEI since 2019, and she's great. She helped us navigate the ups and downs of having an Alaska cruise get cancelled/rescheduled/cancelled due to the pandemic in 2020/2021.

Underrated, but crucial advice! And not just for cruising . . .

This is why I love this blog and message board. I just checked in for a March 2024 cruise on Adventure and couldn't figure out why "Choice" was on my SetSail pass. And here's the answer from 2019.

I wonder if they had supplier issues in Vancouver if the problem was shipwide.