GeezerCouple

This! 

23 minutes ago, MEFIowa said:

It is relevant to O's cost-cutting issues. See issues with turn-down service and how many times they "do" your cabin. I think many of us would say, "Drop this IF it saves staff time and money." Cut the "easy" things that provide little or no value to passengers. This seems to be one of them.

Here's an idea, given that some people do want the little bedside footie protection mats (wording here is a joke; I know what they are called formally; see comments above from several posts 😉 ) whereas others do *not* want them.

It follows from instructions/requests given in some hotels, and I can't remember if Oceania does this about bath linens.

There are instructions that IF you want fresh bath linens, if you want them replaced with fresh ones, leave them on the floor.  But if you do *not* need/want new ones, then just leave them on the towel holders... or however that is worded.

How about a similar message the first evening, or just keep the message as a permanent note: 

"We have left this <footie protection mat> at your bedside <give reason or not>.  IF you would like to have a mat placed on the floor of your bedside each night, please leave the mat next to the bed.  If you do NOT wish to have the bedside mats placed each night, please move them off to the side or leave them on the bathroom floor."

I'm sure there is a shorter way to write this! 😆

It just seems a shame to continue to seemingly approve of having them, meaning there is more laundry and just general time/effort spent in each room, every night, when it's actually not wanted.  The staff time plus laundry all adds up long term, plus they are actively disliked by many.

(This also alerts new passengers that they don't have to "put up with the mats every night" if they don't want them.  In other words, it's OK to say, "Nope, no thank you!" about the mats.)

GC

1 hour ago, CILCIANRQTS said:

Descente de lit.

Ciao!

🙂 

GC

Here is a *possible* link for Travel Insurance for UK RESIDENTS:

>>>>>   https://www.biba.org.uk/find-insurance/   <<<<<

NOTE:  I do *not* have personal experience or knowledge about how useful or accurate this "find insurance" for the UK actually is...

I know there are frequent requests about suggestions for travel insurance policies and agents or brokers for non-USA residents. Hopefully this will help others in the future.

GC

I'm inclined to be a bit more blunt.

Please don't have a "catheter leg bag exposed on a cruise in public", whether or not it's a clear bag.

This just is not necessary, given that there are quite a variety of products for sale *precisely* to avoid this particular situation.

Please don't "expose" the rest of us to seeing your collection bag, not even if it is "covered" by some sort of fabric or whatever.

... Not if it's still going to look like it might be "a collection bag"....

[Please forgive me if I have an incorrect picture in my mind's eye of what you are suggesting or planning.]

I've searched online for "catheter leg bag cover" or such.

None of the products included seemed to show a "catheter leg bag exposed", nothing like a bag "poking out beneath shorts".  (Or, at least, I could not find anything like that.)

There are quite a variety of ways to handle this situation (do the same search for more ideas), but ALL of them are much more discreet.  They seem intended precisely to *avoid* having a catheter leg bag exposed.

Thank you.

And also enjoy your trip without fretting as much about this particular concern, on your own behalf and also on behalf of others sharing common spaces.

🙂 

GC

50 minutes ago, debcip said:

Hi Steve, 

Maybe I didn’t express myself correctly! I understand that we would have to purchase separate medical insurance for each trip, if we relied on the cc insurance for the non-medical piece.  My questions really are, 1. does this make sense from a financial perspective, and 2. is the travel piece from the cc as good as one would get from a policy we could purchase from someone like you? 
Thanks!

Debbie

We aren't Steve (obviously! 😉 ).

However, we've purchase quite a bit of insurance from him/TIS, and have made several claims, including some large ones.

Please make sure that you understand the following:

On 2/17/2025 at 12:22 AM, iamtrustworthy said:

Unfortunately, very few travelers are aware that the pre-existing medical condition exclusion not only applies to themselves, but it often also includes if they have to cancel or interrupt their trip due to any of these people: travel companions or a non-traveling family members.

[emphasis added]

That is, this is the potential problem:

53 minutes ago, debcip said:

I understand that we would have to purchase separate medical insurance for each trip, if we relied on the cc insurance for the non-medical piece.

That is, it is NOT only "medical expenses" that are subject to the potentially "pre-existing conditions" difficulties; it's also about the "non-medical piece".

That is, the pre-existing condition issue also applies to claims for travel cancellations or interruptions, etc, *IF* these are due to something related to medical issues, even if there are *no* medical expenses at all.

We would have had several claims, including some of our larger claims for complete trip cancellations (that's cruise, hotels, and international business airfare) denied because the cancellations were due to a medical issue, even though the claim didn't include even a single penny for medical expenses.

If you already do understand that, then I apologize for repeating this.

(I'd rather do that than worry that maybe I "should have" emphasized this.)

Enjoy your travels!!

🙂 

GC

25 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

That pales in comparison to the single biggest abomination in the ongoing “corner cutting”: See the pic and despair at the disappearance of the poppy seeds on the multi-seeded rolls (now replaced by black sesame seeds! - OH THE HORROR!)😳

Hey...<major eye wink!>

I think you got this one wrong! 😉 

I think I see little poppy seeds there, too, PLUS you got regular and black sesame seeds.  Next time, they may be charging extra for this "triple seeded" roll. 😆

On a more serious note (especially in a thread on foot mats!?? 🫢) I thought that having both light and black sesame seeds was sort of a new (or "new again"?) thing, something meant to be, well, special.

Back to the feet:

It's actually good to know that I'm not the only one who *hates* those foot mats and actually trips over them sometimes.

GC

1 hour ago, Harters said:

So there's "choice prime rib" and "prime prime rib". 

Yes, actually!

We've seen "prime rib of choice beef" !

Never seen the double "prime" used however. 

Many (most?) places don't serve true "prime" beef, and I suspect that most (?) of the places that do... don't need to state it; it's assumed, or the menu may someplace mention something like "All of our beef is USDA prime..." and whatever other "credentials" 😉 they want to provide for their beef.

GC

Just now, ORV said:

Among the things that would bother me this one would be low on the list. FWIW, I've seen them come and go, and it might be ship dependent. We had them on Nautica in Dec. But much can change in a couple of months. 

 

Personally I find them in the way. If I'm not mistaken they are a holdover from many years ago when the floors in hotels were not as clean as they are today. 

Right... these mats aren't "for the shoes".  They are for the nice, clean feet, so that when you first get out of bed, you don't have to - 😱 - put your bare feet on the floor (regardless of construction material).  In some hotels/etc., the hotel slippers are right there, too.  And the slippers don't need to be protected from the floor, as they are likely to be used all around the cabin/room/suite and... that bathroom! 😉

(I don't remember what Oceania does regarding those hotel-style slippers.)

In any event, we always bring our own (real) slippers, and place them right where we'd have our sweet little feet if we sat up, ready to stand up.

And like ORV and Janet-, I find those mats to be totally "in the way".  I'm likely to trip over them at some point.  So among the things we tell our Butler or Steward (or both) is please NOT to use the little mats.

Also, although I don't remember exactly what Oceania does, but I don't remember "towels" being used.  They tend to be more of a flat finish (not terry cloth), almost like a heavy table placemat.

I just looked this up with trusty (?) Google.  One source indicated the mats were to clean your feet before getting into bed.  That makes little sense (most of us haven't run around in dirt with bare feet just before bed, and many people shower or bath last thing at night).  I mean, there's no soap or water... so in most cases, how much could one "clean one's feet" on it?

However, maybe that is indeed the original purpose.

No matter the actual purpose, I still tend to trip over them!

GC

14 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

A few of us here on CC (including myself) have posted about the strategy of using credit card cancellation/interruption insurance combined with a trip medical policy.  In our case, we have long suggested the Chase Sapphire Cards (Preferred and Reserve) which have cancellation/interruption coverage up to $10,000 per person or $20,000 per trip.  That come with the card and there is no additional fee.  We have never suggested that one rely on the medical coverage that comes with those or other credit cards.

Perhaps I haven't understood the terms of the charge card coverages.

They may not have sufficient coverage for serious medical events, and in that case, yes, another policy could make sense (as long as the two policies play nice together, etc.).

However, my understanding of pre-existing condition exclusions was that it didn't just exclude payment for medical expenses.

I thought that it also meant that there would be no coverage for *any* claim that was due to some pre-existing medical condition.

Some of our larger claims that were for pre-paid, non-refundable travel costs when we had last minute trip cancellations were due to medical emergencies.  And some of them *might* have been questioned if we did not have have a waiver of that exclusion.

GC 

3 hours ago, ToTheSeaAgainAndBack said:

We have always bought Traveled Insuranced insurance for cruises. We never had a claim but was wondering if anyone has information on their settlement of claims if needed. 
Thanks. 

Assuming you mean Travel Insured (there are several companies with similar names), we have been using them since 2013, and we've had several claims. That includes some large claims.

All were paid promptly (within ~2-3 weeks) without any quarrelling after we submitted all of our documentation.

We won't go on a trip without coverage from them.

(We get our policies from TI through www.TripInsuranceStore.com and they can help with claims if asked.)

(The only "regret" we have is that we've needed to file those claims in the first place. We would have preferred to have paid those premiums and NOT submit any claims!)

GC

Chances are very good that you could all stay together, emphasis on "stay".

That is, STAY together.  Don't do something like just the 2 of you go up to <wherever/whomever> and ask.  Go as a foursome, and say something like, "We're traveling together; can we board together" as you show the 2 higher level docs.

In other words, make it as easy as possible for them to say "yes", and more time-consuming/etc., to say "no" (and they discuss who goes where).

There's always a chance that someone got up and had the wrong bowl of cereal or whatever (!), or perhaps some very senior person is right behind for some inspection.

But it still would be better to give it a gentle try.

But don't do it with too much uncertainty.  Politely sort of assume you'll all *continue* to be together.

We've never had a "no", but that doesn't mean that the next time... 😞 

Enjoy!

GC

20 minutes ago, Cand1G1rl said:

Planning a cruise for my Dad's 80th birthday in 2026. Looks like the entire family is going. My Dad is in good health. My mother is also healthy, although she has had a heart attack in the past and does have several stints in various arteries. She does take a lot of medication however she functions normally day to day and is not currently being treated for anything specific other than taking preventative medications. I've been doing a lot of research on insurance the past few days and what I am still unsure about is, God forbid any of us are sick enough to not be able to travel, will insurance that we all plan to purchase allow for a reschedule of the trip or refund? I understand if my husband (who will be in my cabin) gets ill for a covered reason that both myself and he could use the coverage to protect ourselves but would my brother and wife be able to cancel or reschedule because my husband gets sick for example? There are 10 of us travelling in 5 different cabins and I'm trying to figure out the best way to protect us all. The goal is to all travel together to celebrate the milestone birthday. I hope this makes sense.

I think you'll be able to get the type of coverage that you'd hope for, especially if you haven't paid anything yet.

We strongly suggest that you CALL (don't just read the online summaries):

www.TripInsuranceStore.com (no extra charge to use them and IF you have a claim, they can help if necessary).

They are a broker and work with several insurers. They'll ask you some questions, and please also ask them questions!

We've used them since 2013 when we learned about them here.

And we've actually had some claims, including some large ones.  All were paid, and very promptly, about 2-3 weeks from when we sent in all the documentation.  No complaints there at all! 🙂 

They are open on Saturdays.  (And I just spoke with the owner, Steve, a short time ago, to start coverage for another trip we'll be taking soon, so there's a good chance he'll answer right away.  Note:  The phone prompt mentions a phone queue, but I think that prompt is for all calls even if you'll get right through.)

And enjoy your trip. It sounds very special!

GC

9 minutes ago, brittany12 said:

All this talk about self service in the TC being something relatively new, as it was for us on Riviera this past Dec, am I crazy but wasn't it that way as the standard operating procedure in TC, as at all buffets on all cruise lines, from inception and long before Covid?

Actually, no, self serve was *not* "standard operating procedure" on Oceania at the buffet.

It may be true that many/most buffets are true "self serve" where the person ("P") takes the fork or spoon, and takes whatever amount of the <whatever is in front of them> and puts in on their plate, and then moves along a bit to where there is another assortment of food, etc....

But in Terrace Cafe on Oceania, pre-Covid, there were the "sneeze guards" (which are often absent in traditional buffets) and P could see everything available.  There was a server ("S") facing P, with the food between them.  The plates are all on the S side.

So P arrives at a certain station, and sees a variety of goodies.  A smiling S is waiting.

P would say something like, "Could I please have two of the lime tarts" or "3 slices of that cheese" (pointing if name isn't obvious) or even, "Could I please have the <name of item> in the third row on this end?"  With the latter request, S might point closer to the suspected item, at which point P might nod and say, "Yes, thanks, that's the one!"  Or P might point to something like mac and cheese, and say, "Could I have just one large spoonful of <that>?"  S will put some on the plate, and often ask, "Is this enough?" or something.

Some items are pre-plated, such as the lime tarts mentioned.

It's very easy; everyone is doing the same thing.

And there aren't long lines, because there are many separate stations.  That included a grill area, to request custom cooked items. And of course, Oceania ships don't have the same crowding in general, although sure, sometimes one thing is extra popular at any given moment.

There is no attempt to "portion control" what P wants.  However, it also means that the various Ps don't ladle up piles and piles of food that is unlikely to be eaten.😳

We have a family member who was *horrible* about this. It was absolutely embarrassing, and we only used to go to a buffet because her b-day was right at a major holiday and she asked to go *there*... and there are lots of major buffets available to choose from at that time of year! 

DH and I will return to get whatever we want "next".  More of the same, or perhaps on to some other items.

If I was trying to juggle two plates (one for me, one for DH) or even for myself, often someone from Oceania was promptly at my side asking if they could help.

It worked very well.

GC

8 hours ago, JPop9 said:

Hi everyone, going on my very first cruise soon. ( less than 60 days) 
I just found out that I have a couple of close family members who are suddenly in questionable health. I know I’m very late to buying trip insurance but, I’m planning to purchase it. I’ve been seeing CFAR upgrades. I’ve seen some policies that say this upgrade must be added within 15 days of making your first non-refundable deposit toward your trip and some policies are not clear about when this upgrade needs to be purchased. Does anyone have any guidance for a newbie? Obviously, I would very much like to be able to add this upgrade if at all possible however, I DO understand that I may very well have waited too late.  Thank you

Yes, welcome to CruiseCritic - and to cruising!

For travel insurance for residents of the USA, we strongly recommend that you contact a travel insurance agent or broker.

We are among those here on CC who use

www.TripInsuranceStore.com (no extra fee to use them)

But CALL them. Do not rely upon the limited info in the short online policy summaries (not on any website!).  There is no way those can include enough information to address *everyone's* questions or circumstances.

We don't know when you made your very first trip payment (refundable or not).

Most policies have a 10-20 day period after first payment to get the best coverage, but there are other policies that may well be helpful.

The 10-20 day range is because insurance is regulated by the states, so there can be differences depending upon where one resides.

So you should contact them promptly to inquire (they'll usually answer or return calls on weekends).

If you are concerned about the health of family members, you may do well to get coverage that includes non-traveling family members (but check just which "family members" are included).  After that 10-20 day window, it might be easier to get policies that would cover you if a close family member was very ill, than to get CFAR coverage, and it sounds like that's what you are most concerned about anyway(?).

Good luck, and enjoy your first cruise!

🙂 

GC

2 minutes ago, Birdhunter67 said:

For years, I’ve used an annual GeoBlue policy for travel medical insurance. I need to renew soon and was looking over the coverage. I see that the policy limit is GREATLY reduced (from $1M to $100k) when you turn 70 which happens this year. Who do you use for medical coverage when you travel. 

I'd strongly encourage you to call a travel insurance agent or broker.

What each of us uses, in terms of insurers or policies, is likely to reflect *our* specific needs.  Your issues could be very different.

Many of us use

www.TripInsuranceStore.com

They are a broker, so they deal with several insurers and a lot of policies.  There is no extra charge to use them.

But CALL.  Do not rely upon the short online summaries of policies.

They'll likely also ask you some questions, to try to help you get what works best for your needs.

We have used them since learning about them here in 2013.

Through them, we get policies from Travel Insured.  They can help with claims, too, if needed/requested.

Also, we are among those who *have* had claims, although I wish none of the claims had been necessary.  There were several large claims, and also smaller ones.  Each was paid very promptly (2-3 weeks) after we submitted all of the documentation.

You also might do well to do some reading here, to get information from others who have posted.

GC

26 minutes ago, oteixeira said:

OK, this begs the question how do you know if the glass of wine is from my bottle that I brought on and had opened at dinner or from a bar or from the restaurant but their bottle?  This seems like such an odd thing to be bothered by but I am open to trying to understand why it bothers you.  Also, I almost always have a glass in my hand, we could have a fun game of you guessing where I got the drink that is in it.

Let's ignore for the moment "how anyone could tell".

This is one of those "honor system" situations.

Oceania is very liberal in terms of letting their guests bring on alcoholic beverages.

The main restriction isn't about what you bring on board.  It's about where you drink it.

"Your own alcohol" is allowed to be enjoyed in your own cabin or suite OR, for wine, the bottle can be brought to any restaurant, and they will serve it to you (same as with a bottle you purchase there), for a modest corkage fee.  If you don't finish the bottle, they will be pleased to store it for you and bring it to you at the next meal at your request.

Or you could have the bottle returned to your cabin or suite for you to enjoy the remaining amount later.

Here's the thing:  Oceanis *IS* very liberal about this policy.

So let's all abide by the minimal rules that they do have, so they don't end up deciding to change the policy.

Thank you.

GC

16 minutes ago, S4POPO said:

I'm not familiar with the 30-day rule.  Does anyone have any additional information or links to official policy?

Is that the rule that states that if you drop buttered toast upside down on the floor, you can't eat if if it remains on the floor for more than 30 days?

😆

GC

4 hours ago, SATaxman said:

I would still ask about subbing NA bottles.

Any "ask" would best be done once on board, much more casually.

If the answer is still "no", then ask your Butler for suggestions.  They may know of other guests who who love to have the extra liquor for some party they are hosting.  And maybe you'll get invited and meet some new cruise friends.

Or have a party yourself, and meet some new cruise friends, or get to know some better.

Your Butler may have other suggestions about making some use of the bottles, or some of them.  They've usually seen it all...

We've had a similar situation on other lines, because we just drink "fine red wine" (and we are rather picky about that! 😉 ).  We were occasionally allowed to swap for some nice wine that we would actually enjoy, but usually, not.
We found that we were not permitted to give the bottles to crew members.  Or maybe it was phrased as, the crew were not permitted to *accept* the bottles... I'm forgetting.  The effect was the same. 😞 

Once, on a ship where non-alcoholic beverages were not "included", we were allowed to swap for a lot of San Pellegrino and sodas (we had kids and grands with us, so we were able to use... lots!).

And once we were meeting old friends (from grade school, back in the 50's!) who lived near our port, so we hand delivered a nice big bag of booze to them.  "Surprise!"

GC

3 hours ago, CruizinKittie40 said:

Yes, I am from the United States.  I have a congenital heart condition and developed rhythm issues last year.  I was tried on a few different meds and had an ablation in June.  It is a stable condition and I have not had any recurrences. 

 

Thank you for sharing your experience!! I will look into Arch Insurance!  The one I hear the most about is Allianz and it seems to be a toss up if it's good or not

Given that you are in the USA and have a pre-existing medical condition, we strongly suggest that you contact:

www.TripInsuranceStore.com

They are an insurance broker and work with several insurers, so they have quite a few different policies/coverages to offer.

But *CALL* them!  Do not rely upon online policy summaries; there is just no way for those short summaries to capture ALL of the information that might be critical to all who read them.

TIS will answer your questions and, importantly, probably ask some of their own, as they try to find the "right policy" for your particular situation.

You want to hear about "a good travel insurance experience"?

Okay... how much time do you have (just kidding - sort of!).

Seriously, we are among those who not only had helpful experiences selecting policies, but we've had several claims. (We certainly wish we had not had needed to file the claims, but given that the events occurred, we had no complaints about the claims process, including speedy payment.)

All I can say is THANK GOODNESS we read about Trip Insurance Store here on CC just before we booked our first "recent" cruise (that was back in 2013, so not so recent now, but much more recent than in the 1970s or circa 2000!).

In late 2013, we had a last minute medical emergency, and had to cancel everything. At that point, everything was in 100% penalty, including $$$ long-haul business class tickets that we had booked with the cruise (never going to do that again, for various reasons).  Plus a fancy suite, as this was a double celebration trip, etc.   So while we were dealing with the very serious medical issues, we would frequently mumble, "I'm *so* glad that we got travel insurance so we won't need to pay for the trip a SECOND time when we finally go!"

We sent in all of the documentation (get RECEIPTS for *everything*!), and within about 2 weeks, a nice big check arrived.

We had a few other smaller claims (at Barbados airport, after many delays, we all were finally [grrrrr!] told that the "very delayed" flight wasn't going to arrive at all. 😡

While the other flight pax queued up for information about hotels (it was the week before Christmas - good luck with finding hotels for a planeload!), we were already back at our hotel.  When I had called, they told us that our room was still available but only for one more night before the next guests arrived. Perfect for us!

Later, we heard that "the place" the airline found was nasty... not modern, not clean... Yuck!  We were sleeping comfortably in our nice 5* resort right on the beach.

We promptly got a travel insurance check for the hotel's full charge ($$$), breakfast, some taxi fares, and some airport food from the long delay the day before.

And then... overseas, I suddenly became very ill. After a couple of doctor visits to me at our hotel, he told the hotel to call an ambulance for me.  So instead of heading off for the middle week of our trip... DH spent several extra days at our luxe hotel, including wonderful meals, while I "enjoyed" fluids at the hospital. We had only planned to be there for 2 nights, but stayed almost a week because even after I got "home" (the hotel), I wasn't able to travel for a while. [Yes, get letters at the time to document!]

Insurance would have covered our last minute business class fare home, but we didn't want to go home; those tickets would have cost a fortune.  We still had a final week left at Lake Como, all pre-paid, non-refundable. But we didn't want the money back; we wanted to get to Lake Como, even if just to relax, finally.

However, to get there, I needed something other than the taxi, train, train, taxi, ferry... 

So with a bit of help of TIS, we decided to hire private transportation (car and driver) for door-to-door service.  And I was able to continue my recuperation on the shores of Lake Como. 🙂  Yes, all covered by the insurance.

And then there was a very special Med cruise plus a land vacation after.  Very elderly MIL got sick with a heart problem just a couple of days before our planned departure.  (Fortunately, she recovered.)

Again, we promptly got a large check: everything had been non-refundable at that point, no surprise.

We purchased all of the travel insurance from 

www.TripInsuranceStore.com (no extra charge for their services)

and the policies through TIS were all from Travel Insured.

(Steve and the others will help with claims if necessary.  We didn't have a problem with the claims, but that time including Lake Como... we initially weren't really sure what to do given we really preferred *not* to come home early.)

It is essential to READ the full Terms & Conditions of the insurance.  ASK the broker or agent to explain things to you or ask if there are any other questions that *you* should be thinking about!

We will not go on a trip without travel insurance.

(Our claims have totaled more than all of the premiums we've paid for, including many trips with NO claim.  We'd have rather so-called "wasted" the cost of the premiums and NOT needed to file claims.  Having those policies certainly made a difference!  Yes, we could have "afforded" to eat those costs, given there were no huge medical claims, which was just luck.  But if we had not had that insurance for that first big trip? We'd probably have been so annoyed that we may never had planned a "nice" vacation again.  I hate to even think about that, as we've had so many *wonderful* trips since then! 🙂 )

GC

16 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

@Hlitner - MSC as a private company with incredibly “deep pockets” is a force to be reckoned with in the cruise industry.

 

I really want to try their Yacht Club.

 

The only thing they give up is access to smaller and/or more restricted ports.

How much crowding/etc., is there when boarding?

And what does one *need* to access outside the YC?

We worry a bit that it might be the worst of both worlds, not the best...??

Yes, we've been on NCL Haven, but on older ships, so no restaurant or other extras (in Haven or outside).

We are not interested in the bells and whistles.

However, comments we've read about YC have sounding intriguing!

Thus far, our favorite ship has been Oceania's Riviera (PH suite to date).

Thanks.

GC

5 minutes ago, ColdAndMistyMornings said:

I live in the UK and want to travel directly to Canada for a holiday. I can't fly because of a health condition that is specifically only a problem if I'm flying and would be a non-issue for other means of transportation. I want to stay in the same place in Canada (which is Newfoundland) for anywhere from a week up to three weeks and then return home to the UK via a means that doesn't involve flying. How would I go about doing this? Thanks in advance!

One possibility is to sail on Cunard's Queen Mary 2.

Although she sails on other itineraries, she does (or has done in the past) a lot of New York to UK back and forth.

https://www.cunard.com/en-us/cruise-destinations/transatlantic-cruises?cid=13ab:CUUSCV5d4579f9b5374bbd8234f3ba0f45c67f&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAADO91jgfKK9VRBmwcZI23C4QP0Fhv&gclid=CjwKCAiAwaG9BhAREiwAdhv6Y3DvI_TGsGFhRQOvRqBXgvhlAi3bMo9Rf-0EGcwoz5vDpGPGS2MwpxoCssoQAvD_BwE

That would add about a week at the beginning and end of any travel within North America.

There would be other cruises, but those are likely to be longer and more expensive, because they are not just "trans-Atlantic cruises"; they would be stopping at other ports of call.

(Note: The QM2 also has a few kennels for those who wish to bring their cat(s) or dog(s) but don't want them to fly as "freight" if they are too big for "under the seat".  Those would also want a direct sailing.  And although other ships will accept service dogs, I'm not sure if there are other ships that accept other pets.)

GC

1 hour ago, DePaul94 said:

I also don't find small ship cruises to socially equitable in general, as cruises on small ships are not affordable for many people, whether a regular cruise or an environmental one.  I would love to be proven wrong.

What does this mean?

Is housing "socially equitable"?

Or to phrase this in a similar fashion, "Are very expensive homes socially equitable" in general or otherwise?  They aren't "affordable for many people".

Are cars socially equitable"?

What about just which restaurant one eats at? Can anyone just go into any restaurant, order food, and eat, without regard to... resources?

Clothing?

Etc...

How would you implement this "socially equitable" solution in general (not just with respect to cruise ships)?

How would you allocate resources, in a manner that could actually be implemented?

GC

2 minutes ago, MariettaGuy said:

I will be flying from the US into Sydney and then cruising to New Zealand round-trip.

From Sydney to NZ, roundtrip?

This seems to indicate that you are not disembarking in New Zealand, that you will have one or more ports of call there.

You are leaving your luggage and most of your belongings on board, in your cabin?

Is that correct?

If so, then the regs you are discussing aren't really relevant.

What you leave on the ship isn't important here.

At best, what is relevant is what you might carry in your pockets or tote bag while you are off the ship for the day.

Yes, arrival by ship vs. plane is quite different... UNLESS (!!) you have a private plane and are leaving your belongings on it, probably returning at night to sleep (!?).

🙂 

Unless I've misunderstood, this isn't a problem for traveling like this.

Enjoy your cruise!

Our NZ to Australia cruise was one of our favorites!

GC

1 hour ago, islandwoman said:

Now we're looking for shore excursions and dives on another cruise, Holland America Zaandam Tales of the South Pacific.  HAL does not offer any dives at all.  We wanted to book a hike to archeological sites in Nuku Hiva but the "recommended age is under 70 years".  Although we have dived the Tiputa pass previously, the dive op in Rangiroa is requiring a medical certificate and proof of dive insurance for us because of age. It's tough to find a doctor who knows enough about diving to say that we're fit for that sport.  We were able to book dives in two other ports without hassle, but I'm nervous that we might be turned away when we arrive.  This doesn't only happen on cruises.  Last year we were turned down for Bioluminescent Kayaking in Florida because of age.  I feel as if the world is trying to force us into the rocking chair ☹️

Quick question:

Are you working with the actual tour provider, starting in advance?  So there could be time to discuss this and then find out if there is any documentation that could help?

Or find different (or different but similar) excursions who *will* work with you?

Good luck!

GC

1 hour ago, HondaGirl05 said:

Call Steve at tripinsurancestore - he was amazing answering questions for us last year. Things I hadn't thought of

They are amazing.

They work with several insurers, so many policies.  They'll work with you and ask questions to find out what you need/want and what is available (esp since you've made the first payment some time ago).

They are a "no pressure" place (also no extra charge), and could also help with a claim should that ever be needed.

But CALL - don't rely upon the short online policy summaries.  They just can't capture what might be needed for specific needs.

GC