trixiegal

Christian Dior 'Dune' which he created to remind himself of seaside holidays in Normandie when he was a child and also his 'Eau Sauvage'

Dune is an old fav of mine. Thanks for the reminder!

Does the son really want to do the graduation exercise?

 

 

 

My kids would rather have had the two thousand to put on a car or college...

It's her DAUGHTER. And that's the point, your kid is different than her kid. Different strokes for different folks.

It amazes me the gall some people have to ask these kind of questions.

To the OP-

I would go to Bermuda on the Journeys cruise. Have fun!!!

This is cute:

http://www.ebags.com/product/all-for-color/travel-tote/283230?productid=10333762

 

I love that bag! How much is it?

Tumi is on sale today at Amazon.com

Just a heads up, but I live in this area and I see deals on Groupon and Living Social for hotels in the Inner Harbor area everyday. These hotels won't show up on travel websites so you have to look on Groupon or Living Social. Just filter by city and state for "getaways" and "escapes".

Better yet, sign up for subscription for Baltimore, MD deals and just unsubscribe after you book at the hotel.

As of today, 2 hotels are showing up on Groupon for $110 and $144/night, respectively.

This is a nice hotel. I know quite a few employees there from when I worked at the casino. I can't see why they wouldn't take you to the port when you are ready in the morning. It's a 20 minute drive. Just ask!

I searched for a thread like this because DD is upset with me for booking yet another cruise next year. I got married on my first cruise 16 years ago and I thought it was a cool way to take family vacations. After a bad experience on a 9 day cruise trapped in a tiny balcony cabin on a mega ship (my fourth cruise), I took a 6 year hiatus from cruising. My kids got older and I decided to try out Carnival. I was surprised that I forgot it was so easy to plan a family vacation on a cruise because everything is basically paid for upfront and you can control how much or how little you want to spend on extras. Plus, my teen son loves a week of relaxing and socializing with kids his age in the teen club.

So I admit I got cruise happy after that cruise and booked one for 3 months later, the next summer, next fall and this past summer. Basically, five cruises in 24 months, which may not seem like too many to some of us on CC. Yet my DD is just not into it. She gave the same reasons as some of the the posters on this thread. It makes me sad but I understand she is tired of cruising and wants to do something different. I asked her if she wants to bring a friend but I don't know if it will help. She's in college now so I hope she can plan some fun trips with girlfriends and still come with my son and I for family vacations.

As for me, I'm going back to school and will have two kids in college starting in 2017. I won't have too many opportunities for vacations for a few years so I'm looking forward to going on the Carnival Vista next year. I do agree with some of the gripes but I still get excited about boarding a cruise and seeing 3-4 different ports in a week.

I'm trying to get my sister to book one of these for our cruise on 11/27/16. I priced them out and they are not too expensive for what you're getting. The idea of a dedicated lounge and offer of kid's menus for specialty restaurants makes it worth it to me. Especially for families with little ones under 12.

However, my kids are older teens so I booked two Havana aft extended balconies side by side. I'm just happy to be going on the Vista at all but I'm glad I snagged those cabins!

We're also going on the 6 day out of MIA booked in a Havana aft extended balcony but right after Thanksgiving in 2016 on November 27. We got 2 balconies side by side. The price was right for that time of year plus will give me a few holiday paid days off of work the week before in order to get to Miami before the cruise.

Couldn't wait for 2018! Just booked on 11/27/16 sailing from Miami. FINALLY got my aft extended balcony but with a plus, it's a Havana balcony. [emoji2]

Just curious if anyone has had an inside cabin on the Sunshine? We normally book indow or balcony. Just want to know if its as bad as it sounds.....also any luck in the casino?;)

I won $100 on the Wheel of Fortune slot machine after a $6 bet on the 2nd night. But, of course, I lost half of it throughout the week so I gave u playing. I heard MANY people complaining they were tight around Thursday and Friday.

We are planning to go on our first cruise ship as a family. I have a question regarding ground transportation. My last cruise was over 11 years ago, so a bit rusty. We plan to book separately, air travel and cruise.

 

 

 

My question:

 

 

 

Which would be more cost effective, using the airport MCO to Port Canaveral via taxi shuttle or the one's endorsed by the cruise line themselves? It is a family of 5.

 

 

 

TIA!

Most people would advise you to rent a full-size car that you can drop off at Cocoa Beach. It's much cheaper for 5 than paying $25-40/person each way with a private shuttle or on the cruise bus. Pricing for a rental for the day varies in Orlando but you should be able to find one for less than $60. Try Hertz, Avis or Budget.

I just got off of the Sunshine a month ago. There are a lot of people in the summer cruising but it was no different than any other ship. In fact, it was quieter in many areas than I had imagined with a sold out ship.

There are 3 decks of Serenity, so you will absolutely find somewhere to lounge. Some entitled people like things handed to them or they get annoyed quickly. But I'm more of a diligent and realistic type of person, so I will walk around and find what I need usually without too much effort. It helps to just be patient and someone will get up if you go at prime time. We went after 1 or 2 pm on sea days and found places to sit rather quickly and easily. It all depends on your attitude.

I've never understood people that cruise on mass market cruise lines that hate crowds. They are megaships, NOT private yachts.

This thread gets me excited to venture into the Casino more often when on a cruise. I won $100 my first night on a $1 machine and you would've thought I won $1000! But the common scenario seems to be playing the first few days and keep the winnings. Yep, takes discipline.

There are some people with serious personality disorders on CC. [emoji15]

Just wanted to state for the record, this was a thread about how to specifically handle what we had already decided to do. It wasn't to ask for opinions or be judged. My kids are both good with money. I haven't given either an allowance for years. Both have worked since they were about 11. First babysitting and refereeing soccer games and now bussing tables and being a home health aid. The older one pays for her own gas, spending money and books, which as a nursing major are not cheap. I don't need to be judged for treating them to a vacation and some spending money.

People on CC will throw their opinions at you whether solicited or not. Just comes with the territory but I applaud you for replying that is NOT what you asked for in your original post. However, it will probably fall on deaf ears.

Anywhoo... I would suggest you buy all 3 of the "kids" gift cards ahead of time with whatever amount on each you want to give them. You can actually buy Cruise Cash for them online, too. And it will be applied to their accounts. Less hassle than dealing with guest services and the usual line. When I'm on vacation, I do not want to stand in line dealing with administrative issues. I'm missing important activities like sipping on a margarita on deck! [emoji6]

Great advice, perditax! I'm going to look into the Korean and Japanese sunscreens based on your recs.

I'm really into skincare also but prefer more "natural" products. I like using a Vitamin-C serum on my face, neck and hands. I've tried a lot of things and I do see a noticeable difference in the texture of my skin when I use it regularly. I use the Mario Badescu Vitamin C serum. I actually use many products in that line and mix and match as needed. The moisturizer I currently use is the AHA & Ceramide one.

I bought Rose Hip Seed Oil based on reviews on Amazon and I love it! It doesn't break me out and has really gone a long way in lessening a small dark spot on my cheek and brightening my skin. It is oily but it absorbs so quickly. Best to use morning and night.

Always exfoliate but depends on skin type how much to do in a week. I do it at least 2-3 times a week, or every 2 days but with a gentle product or risk doing more harm than good. I have combo skin. I use Mario Badescu Enzyme Cleansing Gel and the Glycolic foaming cleanser. I also like a line I found on Amazon called Skincare Cosmetics Anti-Aging Cream Cleanser. I use them at night with the Clarisonic Brush on occasion. I don't like to use the brush that often but do like to feel I'm getting some use out of that expensive thing!

I highly recommend Ellen's Stardust Diner. We went after seeing Wicked for my daughter's birthday and I can honestly say I enjoyed it more than the show! You will have a lot of fun and the food is very good, especially the desserts. I'm surprised more people don't talk about this place but, then again, NYC is chock full of diners.

Loved your review--very informative! We are doing the same exact cruise in March and you answered a couple questions I had!

 

I do have a couple more, though...Do you recall if there were long lines for the Blue Iguana in the mornings? Also, did you find most people stayed in Aruba and skipped dinner on the ship? We've never been in port in the evening before. The sunset cruise sounds wonderful, and may be a good option for us.

No, the line was never too long at Blue Iguana. They take their time making each burrito but it moves along quickly in my experience.

We didn't plan on staying in Aruba for dinner but a few on our roll call had some recommendations on casinos and restaurants near the port. I'd ask on your roll call or on the Aruba forum. A lady named Arubalisa has lots of info on Aruba.

We got off the cruise around 7:30ish and got some amazing gelato from a shop across the street, then took the bus back. We were back onboard before 9 pm.

Thanks for the review. How much was the Santa Barbara day pass and how do you reserve it? TIA :)

http://www.resortforaday.com/Curacao-Santa-Barbara-Beach-Resort-p/cursbb.htm

I booked via the above website. They sent me a confirmation after I paid the $10. It was almost too easy. The only thing is it was hard to find the tour guide at the port. We asked someone to show us where the Resort for the Day shuttle was and he looked around (small port). They were outside of the terminal on a corner.

This is the review I wrote on TripAdvisor for the Santa Barbara Resort day pass:

Omgosh.... Santa Barbara Resort was FANTASTIC!!!! I love Cruise Critic posters for giving me this recommendation for an excursion in Curaçao because we had the BEST time there last week. Totally, totally worth the $99!!!!!

It is a long ride out there, about 40-45 minutes. But they checked us in quickly and we were able to get breakfast at the buffet within a half hour. The food was really, really good. We also ate lunch in the buffet right before we left at 2:45 pm. And the service was impeccable. Bring cash to tip because you can't charge it to your bill since the code they give you isn't attached to a room on the property.

Make sure you ask questions about how the day pass works before you leave the front desk. Most of the staff we encountered was unable to answer those kind of questions. But they did make an effort to find out if they didn't know. Only issue was with getting a towel but the guy just gave it to us after we told him we were on the day pass.

It wasn't that crowded at the pool. They had big lounge beds you can rent but, once again, you have to pay with cash. There were great views of the ocean there. The bay beach area had loungers available if you walked down toward the pier with the yachts. We spent most of the day in the water. There were inflatable floats available. My kids were told they could use the paddle boards with no additional fee. After more than a hour, a nice boy came to get them and apologized that we were given the wrong info. I don't know how much they were supposed to cost but my son was given a price of $15 for the kayaks. I didn't think it was worth it because the inlet area is not that big.

The buffet that was open for breakfast and lunch called Medi. The pool bar was called Splash. Both were included. I didn't look for the buffet price but the waiter was confused about what to give us on a day pass, so he brought us a la carte menus at first. The prices were all over $10 for the breakfast items. It's a really nice buffet with a lavish spread.

Breakfast consisted of bacon, ham, eggs, eggs benedict, home fries, assorted breads and pastries, oatmeal, fruit display, etc.

Lunch was hot and cold items: grilled chicken, salmon, tilapia, a carving station (no one was there to serve it to me when I walked up but I think it was ham or pork), pasta, soup, sliced meats and cheese for sandwiches with premium breads, assorted desserts and a salad bar.

Any drink you wanted was included. The drinks were nice and strong. The bartenders were happy to make whatever we wanted. I asked for dark rum and the guy pulled out Jose Cuervo, so I don't know if they were picky about premium drinks or not. I was mostly drinking rum punches and my DD had pina coladas. The bartenders were super friendly!

It was such a fabulous and enjoyable day! I wish we could've stayed overnight and had more time to walk the resort. My DD said we have to go back to stay at the property for a week.

Carnival cruises are VERY underrated for those that don't know and don't take the time to research the line and what it offers. The itineraries are great and the newer ships with the 2.0 updates are perfect for families that don't want to break the bank for a nice vacation. I've compared pricing for 3 years in a row to stay for a week at a local beach in a 3-star motel or average rental home to a 6-8 day cruise to the Caribbean on Carnival and it's always cheaper to take the cruise. And that's including travel to/from and expenses because there are no real food costs on a ship unless you want to spend more for drinks and specialty dining.

Great review! What an awesome coincidence, my son too will be celebrating his 16th birthday on the sunshine in October.

Make sure you look on Carnival's website for the package to decorate your room. It was fairly inexpensive for what you get and they do it when you specify, so you can keep him away from the room until it's done. My son loved it even though it's a little cheesy for their age. Just a small way to show that they're still special to us even as they grow into men. [emoji4]

I would not stay in Baltimore. It's a war zone.

Stay in the far outer suburbs of Baltimore.

 

Inner harbor, Fells Point, not going. No need to risk my family's safety.

NO. Not true. I was just at the Inner Harbor last weekend for a Sunday Brunch and that part of the city is fine. The disturbances that happened months ago were nowhere near the tourist areas. Please listen to us locals when we tell you it is safe and you'll have an awesome time in Downtown Baltimore.

Some people watch a little too much Fox News! [emoji19]

The website is orientaltrading.com

Get red, white and blue lanyards to match the Carnival colors.

What ports are you going to on the cruise in March? Get some tropical paper umbrellas for drinks and make some island-inspired cocktails. You could also do a drink making contest like they do on the cruise.