mom says

There is bus service from the airport to Chioggia.

Have you looked at the Florida Departures board? I'm sure there's lots of info about getting from MCO to Port Canaveral and back.

Then let's make this as simple as possible: their excursion= their rules. Don't like the rules= look for a different excursion company. As Jelayne mentioned, restrictions or exclusions are usually a matter of potential liability. Liability coverage would be a part of any contract between an operator and a cruiseline. But those contracts may vary from one line to another and from one operator (and their own insurers) to another.

Practically speaking, where would you expect them to draw the line? It may have little to do with the actual weight, but much more with the ability to manoever on, off, and around the boat safely. You may be 6' 2"" and 300 lb in fine athletic form. But what about the 5' 6" 300 pounder who can barely walk down a hallway inassisted,  let alone manage narrow, steep stairs or ladders on a rolling boat?

Not sure what exactly it is that you want? Do you expect every ship on every cruiseline to have a full time Protestant minister, Catholic Priest, Rabbi, Imam (not to mention Buddhist or Shinto, or Orthodox priests) on board to provide for every type of service? Or only some of the above? If so, which ones, and why only those?

If you are Catholic, you know that only a priest can say Mass. But anyone can have a prayer service. You may not be aware of this, but there is actually a shortage of priests and deacons in North America. I'm not sure too many diosces would be willing to hire their priests out to a cruise line while their churches go without. However, I know from speaking with our parish priest that many who take a vacation cruise will volunteer to say a Mass. But how HAL can guarantee a priest for every sailing, I don't know. I've never heard of that on any other line.

As Sanger noted, all Celebrity ships use English as the primary onboard language. They use the fleet wide menus, with the addition of some Asian dishes. Entertainment was generally western oriented, with ( IMO) the welcome addition of some special Asian shows in the theatre. On our cruise from Singapore we found the majority of passengers to be Western or Aussies/Kiwis. Of course there were Asian passengers, but they were not the major demographic.

Are you aware that if you don't prepay the grats, they are automatically added to your onboard account every day? No need to worry about finding each and every crew member who is entitled to them, and tipping appropriately. Of course if you wish to tip someone over and above this, then give as much as you like.

On 5/16/2024 at 3:32 PM, Mum2Mercury said:

Yeah, in fact posts about pier runners are more numerous than pier runners themselves. 

One, or two pier runners; and hundreds of observers watching from the ship(s). So no surprise there.

By all means, check the Celebrity board, where this thread belongs. In the mean time, sandals for ladies are certainly allowed in the MDR. Flip flops are not.

6 hours ago, ecs66 said:

Do you know if you can buy yardage (for quilting), or is it mostly clothing?

A couple of years ago I was able to buy a few precut lengths of their fabrics. I think they were 1 1/2 yds, but don't quote me. I can't remember if they had bolts available for custom cut lengths. If you buy fabric, make sure you prewash it before cutting. You'll likely see some excess dye bleeding out the first time.

All of the M and S class ships have regular balconies. Only E class ships have the dreaded pretend verandah.

Infinity is an M class ship.

Thanks BeasleysMom. I've always overlooked that Underline option. Will use that in future for sure.

18 hours ago, phoenix_dream said:

Not sure why you had to shout it, but you are not limited to embarkation day for soft drinks.  You can bring them on at any time while in port.  I have not cruised extensively outside of US ports or Caribbean, so perhaps a particular port may have a different restriction, but generally speaking you can bring on soft drinks or water any time

No shouting; but perhaps you would be so kind as to demonstrate how to add emphasis to a particular point  without using caps. And I was quoting from the Celebrity FAQs. I don't usually recommend breaking the published policies when replying to a poster.

29 minutes ago, camella said:

we were forced to carry this while in a huge line for about 40 minutes!  Ridiculous.

Erm... it's right on the FAQs. If you want to bring it on board, you gave to hand carry it. You can't dump it with your checked luggage. 40 minutes in line -Next time bring a bungie cord.

You can check the FAQs, but basically you can bring on as much non alcoholic beverages that you can hand carry ON EMBARKATION  DAY. Feel free to include bottled water if you wish; but the tap water on board is perfectly drinkable, and you can get a glass of ice water at any bar or dining room, or from he dispensers in the buffet. You might want to bring a reusable  water bottle  instead of disposable bottles.

It's usually fairly quick on arrival in port. But you will want to be at YVR 3 hours before your flight, as you must preclear US Customs and Immigration before proceeding  through  Security.

Excellent choices Len. The Sun Yat-Sen garden is certainly unique (or close to it) outside of China. I saw something like it in Shanghai,  but the weather wasn't as favorable at the time. Bloedel is nice, but we have probably spent a lot more time in the Queen Elizabeth Park, which surrounds the Conservatory. There's a good reason why the QE park is a favored spot for wedding pictures. 

1 hour ago, lenquixote66 said:

I have been to the gardens twice .They are absolutely beautiful.

Which ones?

I agree with the PP. While it is physically possible to take the ferry or fly to and from VANCOUVER  Island as a day trip, it is very expensive to do. And most of that very long day will be spent just getting there and back.

If you want to see beautiful gardens, then just visit the UBC Botanical gardens and the Nitobe Memorial Garden. Both in Vancouver.

Um, no thanks. 

We try to book our cabin  at least a year in advance. Overseas flights can wait til 6 months out. Flights to North American embarkations can wait til 3 months. Once the cabin is booked we research ports of call for excursion possibilities, booking as we find them.

If you are brand new to cruising, and going solo, I'd really recommend finding a cruise specialist TA who can help you understand the solo supplement charged by most lines, or can steer you to ships with solo cabins. They can also help you find a cruise within your budget with an itinerary you want.

And your company would be fine with this? I'd clear that with either your boss or HR first. 

Every state has its own requirements that can be found by a Web search.

You will enter Canada, so you will need a passport. Or a passport card. Or a NEXUS card.

Look to the luxury lines.

I believe you are hunting unicorns. Most cruise lines (aside from the frequent Cunard run from Southampton  to New York) only do their transatlantic cruises to reposition in the fall for the winter Caribbean season. You could certainly book your mother on one of those, and then the next sailing in the Caribbean (a back to back booking.) And then book yourself on that second cruise. You will have to research which lines have fly and sail packages. I believe P&O does to and from Barbados. You might find more info that is tailored to UK fly/sail packages on the UK cruising forum:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/543-uk-cruising/

The Carnival forum is here:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/133-carnival-cruise-lines/