debuskjt

Texting while driving. :cool:

 

So smokers don't text? That's a hell of a false equivalence.

The apps have not been available that long. The messenger app hit on 3/7. Barely two weeks ago. And as other users in this thread noted features like push weren't working on the last sailing. I'm sailing on the Regal Sunday so I'll let you know.

 

Before that messenger was web browser only. But I'm talking about getting push notifications on your phone.

I don't see how it is harsh. It's just accurate.

 

Princess could allow unmetered access to mobile app stores but it would also allow people to download other apps and updates as well, which I guess is why they don't. That may change once the Carnival owned lines upgrade all their Internet in 2016. I imagine we will soon have some signage in the room on embarkation day advising people to find and download the app on cellular data prior to leaving port once they're ready to do a broad roll out.

 

I got a notification from Princess and their first advertised roll out is I think this coming Sunday on the Regal only.

And I can't stand people dictating to me how to live MY life!!! There are things that nonsmokers do that endanger other people's lives but no one feels that it's acceptable to bash and harass them! Enough on this subject. Obviously I am a smoker but I make every effort to be considerate of others. But when I am in a designated smoking area my opinion is that if smoke bothers you DON'T GO THERE!!!

 

What, pray tell, do non-smokers do to endanger the lives of others by virtue of their being non-smokers that goes unremarked?

It's possible through the Enterprise Program, but not really for this use case. And for good reason. People like that iOS isn't a heap of malware like Android and they don't need anti-virus/anti-malware installed.

 

Also not all Android devices will have the ability to side load apps. For instance, phones distributed by a company and administered centrally can disable that option and not allow the phone user the ability to turn it on.

I've never seen it as a great deal. If anything, it's an opportunity for them to hook you in before you have a chance to comparison shop with a TA or against other cruise lines running similar itineraries.

Some of the ATM advice is bank dependent. Check with YOUR bank, as they might charge a currency conversion fee that can be quite high. And/or charge you a high withdrawal fee if you don't withdraw from a partner bank (look up Global ATM Alliance).

 

The *best* thing you can do is just use a credit card if it doesn't have a currency conversion fee. Make sure you notify the bank that you are traveling so they don't think it's fraud, then use it like you would at home. If asked for a PIN, just hit the enter key. (Ask ahead of time and they may be able to issue a new Chip + PIN card to use instead.) It will go through and will print out a US-style sign receipt. I just use my Capital One No Fee card everywhere I go. No conversion fees.

 

For ATM withdrawals I usually use my CitiCard at a Citi ATM, since they're global.

 

Not quite the same thing as MANY places in the world take US dollars however, in this instance it is correct that the countries mentioned do not

That's pretty much limited to countries close to the US with weak economies / infrastructure. Any first world nation is going to have extraordinarily limited acceptance of currencies other than their own.

Scotch is a pretty close color to original Listerine, so if he really wanted he could put it in that bottle. However, a bottle of Scotch is around 700 ml, and trying to bring on 700 ml of mouthwash is going to stand out. Especially when every one of those full mouthwash bottles just happens to have the seal broken.

 

Worst thing that can happen is they take it, so if he's adamant why not let him try? But if it's expensive Scotch he needs to understand the risk.

[quote name='Lovetocruiseprincess'][FONT=Comic Sans MS]Unless they scored them with a glass cutter it would be a little embarrassing to have the bottle bounce off the bow of the ship. [/FONT]:D:D[/QUOTE]

That's exactly what they do. They score it with a glass cutter. Because otherwise the glass is so strong there's a good chance it won't break. [URL="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7348038.stm"]BBC News reported on it once.[/URL]

[quote name='caribill']I had a co-worker who had bought a bottle of red wine in Puerto Rico paying the Commonwealth tax and brought it back to the mainland in his suitcase.

At customs in New Orleans after inspecting the suitcase the agent told him "I have good news and bad news for you. The bad news is that you paid the Puerto Rico tax, but not the mainland tax so that needs to normally be paid now. The good news is since the bottle broke in your suitcase, you will not need to pay the tax."[/QUOTE]

That's just an anecdote, and [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anecdotal_evidence#Faulty_logic"]we all know anecdotes aren't indicative of much[/URL]. I'm not saying it cannot happen, but it's incredibly unlikely and probably due to a blemish in the glass already. You should still try to put them towards the center of your luggage just to avoid it from taking direct impacts, but the odds of breaking are really low. Even more so with something bubbly, as those bottles are even further re-enforced.

If you think you want to take wine and are really paranoid about it, I'd wrap it in a t-shirt you don't care much about and take an empty two gallon freezer bag to then slide it in to contain any spillage. But buying special containers or taking up lots of space by bubble wrapping it is unnecessary. Otherwise, like I said, just try to pack it in the center of your luggage away from all sides of the suitcase and make sure the suitcase itself is fully packed so items can't shift around.

A bottle is only going to break if it takes a rather strong direct hit. If it's in the middle of the suitcase, that can only really happen if the bag's frame fails. In that event, you probably have bigger issues, as all your liquids just got crushed, not just the wine.

I am new to Messaging, if two passengers have iPhones wouldn't Apple Messaging app work ? Assuming you have access to WI FI. Having said that would you need an internet package or does inter ship WI FI come free ?

 

Apple iMessages or SMS messages would work within Messages while onboard if using *Inter*net accessed via a Princess data plan (very expensive and by the minute) or a cellular data plan (even more expensive and usually by the kilobyte). VZW used to have a 100MB for $20 plan that worked on cruise ships and I used it for this purpose, but alas that plan is no more. (As long as you didn't go over data allowance you could turn it on the day you were boarding and turn it off once off the ship and they would only charge you $0.67 a day for the period it was on your plan.)

 

The Princess Messenger app works over the ships Intranet without an Internet plan and is totally free.

 

Hopefully the Princess Messenger works well. One of the most annoying aspects of cruising on a larger ship is trying to coordinate a group that has sprawled out during the day. You can use walkie talkies, but the channels are so congested and the constant static is so annoying that IME no one ever turns them on. Cell phones work way better, if everyone has data.

Nope, no notifications.

 

Also, we noticed that we often received an error message as though a message didn't send - but they DID always send. So we would end up with 2+ of the same message every time when we tried to resend them. Eventually we learned to just send it once and assume it went through.

 

Are you sure you had notifications on and that you had the brand new Princess Messenger app and not the old Princess app? The app just released to the store on 3/7 and the latest update was on 3/20. But it clearly says in he description on the App Store:

 

"Push notifications on your device when you receive a message"

You really don't need to pack anything all that special to protect a bottle of wine. That glass is very strong and it takes a large amount of force to break one. I've dropped one on cement and it simply cracked a bit and did not shatter. Whenever you see someone hit with a bottle on TV to great breaking effect, that is actually edible candy glass!

 

I've transported bottles around the world back to the US (from Portugal, Italy, Australia, etc.) in my checked luggage and never had one break and would not be nervous at all about having a bottle in my luggage as it heads onto the ship. I just pack it in the middle of my luggage where it isn't likely to take any direct hits.

^ I travel constantly and that's not the way it should work. It's very easy to activate a global plan online from your account effective the date you travel. You can then turn it off the day you return, effective that same date. You will ONLY be charged for the timeframe you use it at a partial rate equal to the cost of the service divided by the number of days in the month.

 

You will be told fees will be "prorated" because you pay in advance for service. So if you left it on, you'll get charged for what you used this month AND the next month on next month's bill. But if you only used it for 5 days and then turned it off, you only get charged for the 5 days you had international plan on. For instance, when I travel to Mexico for work it is $10 for data. If I'm there for two days out of a 30 day month and don't go over 100 MB, they only charge me $0.67. If I used 101 MB they only charge me $10.67.

 

So if you had turned on your service the day you left for your 22 day vacation and turned it off the day you return, you shouldn't have paid for two months. You should have paid for 22 days. The service reps are particularly stupid and the online interface is much, much better for adding and removing global features.

 

Cruise ship voice is still 2.49 per minute, 50 cents for msgs sent and 5 cents for received but as I mentioned they do have a 100 MB data plan that will work on the cruise ship.

 

PSA: That 100 MB data plan Verizon used to have for cruise ships appears to have recently bitten the dust and is no longer available. :(