MikeACY

Hello All. RCCL just canceled my excursion that I reserved thru them. So of course just about all of the excursions at Lanzarote are sold out. (There really wasn't much to choose from) We are coming in on Monday in October. Looking at private companies, (Catamarans) I see many are offered but leave at a different port. I'm worried about getting back to the ship. We are there from 8am to 5pm. Most of these Catamarans are 4 hours and leave at 11am...not sure if we have enough time. Question---has anyone taken any of these Catamaran excursions? BUT my main question is, are there Vendors at the port offering excursions, or do we need to go into town to find them? ANY suggestions would be appreciated. We like Catamarans, Beaches, etc. Thanks Mike

Thank you! Are there facilities at Coral Beach? (Bar, restaurant,) Do you know what the cab fare is? The cruise is offering a $25pp beach day somewhere for 4 hours. Wondering if it is worth it...or do our own thing... Thanks

Hello everyone. Going to be in Grand Cayman end of March....few questions... 1) Is there a hotel that will allow cruise ship passengers? (We Use used to go to Royal Beach Club....i believe it is closed?) 2) If yes, suggestions and do I need to reserve before we arrive? 2) Cost 3) Do they rent lounge chairs? 4) Cab ride cost? Wondering if this will be better then an Excursion to a beach offered by the cruise line. Thank you!!! Mike

Here is a question....and this is just a question.. Many on this topic has stated that a crew members..ie Waiters sign a contract with a specific guarantied salary paid monthly, bi-weekly....etc..doesn't matter....but here is my question. Let's say EVRYONE on board takes away the DSC from their account...which of course will never happen...but let's say it does... Does the waiters still get their salaries based on the agreed amount in their contract? or is it reduced?

It was a friendly conversation between us and the waiter, and my only concern is that the "Service Charge" is being given to the employees. The waiter could have not answered my question..and I told them they didn't have to and I would respect that, but they chose to freely. IT is ridiculous to state that the service charge supports salaries. Isn't that what the cruise fare supposed to do? If that is what the cruise line is actually doing, then how about another service charge to support the Captains/Crew/Entertainment/maintenance/support personal, etc. After all, we all expect exceptional service from those employees and they should be compensated accordingly? OR isn't it the cruise line that supposed to do that? Cruise lines have to "get on board" with All inclusive resorts that include EVERYTHING in their pricing, and we additionally tip according to the service we receive. I knew this was a sensitive topic when I started it, but I wanted to make sure the waiters are getting the actual gratuities. Or service charges, and the cruise line isn't taking a "cut" and cheating out of what they deserve.

This is what we were thinking..the cruise line gets to keep it and uses it to help pay the salaries. Again I'm not trying to cause trouble about tipping...i just want to make sure the waiters/room steward, etc gets to keep the extra money. Perhaps the "old system" of handing out envelopes to the waiter/room steward was better. Since I didn't pre pay, my account showed a "Service charge" every day.

At dinner we had a very friendly waiter and we started chatting. He mentioned that on this cruise there were 3000 passengers, next week there would be 3200 and the week after 4000. I ask him "That would be a good thing right?" He said he would be very busy. So I asked (i probably shouldn't, but he was very friendly) isn’t your salary depending on the amount of people on board? We all either pre-pay the gratuities or are charged daily. Therefore it makes sense the more people the more gratuities given to the staff. He shocked us by saying NO. He said his salary is fixed. Now IF this is true, then wouldn’t it be best for us to take some gratuities off our bill and just hand them cash to make sure they get the additional funds? I know this is a sensitive topic. Notice I didn’t say NOT pay them gratuities. Just want to make sure they receive them. I don't think he misunderstood me. The others in our group did ask him again after his reply to make sure he understood. Maybe it is just NCL cruise line?