bruzin_for_a_cruizin

14 hours ago, Bobroo said:

Another popular method to find which of the nearly 100 dive operators on Cozumel to dive with is:

1) Find which port you are docking at (there are 3 possibilities)

2) Locate that port on Google Maps and do a search for SCUBA around it

 

It's often preferable to find an operator that is walkable to/from the port at which you are docked.

 

Or, simply type "Cozumel" in the search box above and get 4 pages of recommendations:

Showing results for 'cozumel' in content posted in Scuba and Snorkeling. - Cruise Critic Community

2 hours ago, ontheweb said:

It does seem that people are more likely to post if they have a negative experience.

That's why I made the post. After reading so many stories of bad routes, terrible flight times and general airline issues, I was very pleased to not only get my flights so far out, but also very favorable times and airports.

I thought others might like to know that its not all gloom and doom. If one is going to take the time to write about a poor experience, one should also take the same amount of time to write about a good one. 

Well, so far, at least.

Our upcoming April sailing on Prima out of NYC is our first experience with NCL, having sailed many times on Royal/Celebrity. It's also my first time taking any cruiseline's air program offer. Coming from Toronto, I took a chance that the multitude of daily flights out of YYZ would give me a decent chance of getting favorable flights. I requested a 2 day deviation, so we would be arriving in NYC on the Friday prior to a Sunday sailaway.

This morning -- 69 days out -- I received our Air Flight Confirmation. We will be flying YYZ->JFK direct on Delta, with both the outbound and return flight departing at 2:30 pm. 

I am very pleased with this flight arrangement! The 2:30 departure means we don't have to be at YYZ at an ungodly hour, though it would have been nice to arrive in NYC a few hours earlier to enjoy some extra time in that great city. We will still get to our hotel well before the dinner hour, giving us the opportunity to enjoy dinner and a show that night and have a full Saturday to explore.

Best of all, the promo on the flights was CAD$222 return for 2 people. Checking the exact flights this morning on Delta, if I were to book today it would cost CAD$912, so a savings of almost $700.

16 hours ago, ninjacat123 said:

I just snorkeled off St. John and the mask kept leaking and the snorkel was allowing water in.  Not fun.  I'm going to a dive shop and get one fitted.  Does the dive shop have you put your face with the mask on in water?  When I was on the catamaran in St. John, I did the test of having the mask "suck" to my face and thought it was great.  Once in the water it wasn't.  Thanks for any input!

The best way to test for fit is indeed to "suck" the mask to your face. If it stays on without the strap, then it's likely a good fit for your face.

For me -- and so much of this stuff is very much personal -- I have a mask fit routine every time before I enter the water. I ensure the skirt is flat against my skin. I ensure the strap is secure and properly positioned near the top of the back of my head, and not too tight (a too-tight strap is often the cause of leaks). I then do a little "suck" to pull the mask closer to my face and tighten the seal at the surface. 

That last step is, I believe, what prevents leaks for me. I've found, through trial and error, that when I forget that last step, I have to deal with leaks throughout the dive.

All that said, if snorkeling/diving is something you plan on pursuing... get your own. Rental gear is never the best choice.

17 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

But you won't starve!!  Like you won't starve at Golden Corral.

At least the buffet at Golden Corral is fully staffed and laden with "food."

5 hours ago, rxlowry said:

I had it from Ocean Blue on Joy and even though calamari was not listed it was loaded with it.  It was so chewy, like rubber bands.  It sounded so good too

So greasy! You can see the oil floating on top!

That isn't, IMO, cioppino. Everything about that dish looks wrong, not to mention that it looks about 1/3 the portion size I would expect.

I hope it tasted good, at least. 

Be advised, the Coco Cay dive is 1 tank. It's very shallow, and you cannot "dive the tank." The best part of the dive is the jetski-pull out to the descent buoy.

It's a follow-the-leader dive, out and back over a pre-determined path. I surfaced with nearly 1500 PSI, and I have *never* surfaced with that much air left, before or since. There is some sealife, and some reef formations, and I booked the dive on sale so it only cost me USD$25, but I wouldn't be sad if I never got the opportunity to dive Coco Cay ever again. I'd rather spend the time going down the water slide a couple more times.

+1 for Gypsea. 

I dived with Catherine on Harris' recommendation and had a fantastic day. Mahuahal is an underrated diving destination with healthy reefs and abundant sea life, all not very far off the beach. And diving with Gypsea, I felt more like I was hanging out with friends for the morning than like I was a client.

If you've got the gear, why wouldn't you want to dive with it every time? The comfort & confidence one has diving with personal gear can't be overstated. 

I can fit BP/W/fins/mask/wetsuit and accessories into a 110L wheeled duffle, and still have room under the 50lb limit to add 4 or 5 packing cubes for a week's worth of clothing. Computer and regs go into a carry-on backpack with any additional toiletry items required for the trip.

After a dive, everything is rinsed in the diveshop rinse tanks, then again in the cabin shower. I am always in a balcony, so I just air/wind dry the gear over the balcony chairs until the next day's dive.

For our upcoming Nov 2023 sailing on Beyond, I've been monitoring the website for the opportunity to upgrade our Always Included classic package to the premium package. There is no option to purchase the upgrade that I see, only the full packages. Clearly, the reservation module isn't passing on to the store the details of my reservation. I've only previously sailed on X in the Retreat, so didn't have to purchase the upgrade. 

Is this something I can do online, or do I have to call in to give them my money?

I haven't dined in Eden, but I have been on both Apex and Edge and had cocktails in Eden (as well as the pretty decent sandwiches at lunch!). I think the Eden "show" has changed quite a bit from the original vision. IIRC, it was initially planned that there would be aerialist/acrobats/musicians wandering the space. On my recent Edge sailing, there was various permutations of "The Eden Acoustic Experience" playing live music every night. Nary an acrobat nor an aerialist. The dining room on the lower level could probably hear the music, but was otherwise not engaged in any format of "show" during meal service.

We will be in Bermuda for three days staying on Prima in April. I'd like to see the cave there; with the $50 excursion credit with NCL, is it worthwhile to book the Cave & Wave excursion at CAD$175 pp, or is it easy enough to achieve the same experience on our own?

It's our first time with NCL, and it feels like the excursions are a little higher in price than I'm used to with RCL/X.

Watching this thread closely, as X doesn't seem to be on top of this very well.

We're on the Friday, Nov 11 Edge sailing out of Port Everglades on a 10-night Southern itinerary. Our Air Canada flight from YYZ is scheduled to arrive at FLL at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday. I'm thinking the flight in might be dicey, depending on how the next 24 hours goes, but I'm not yet prepared to pull the chute on this one!

We are sailing with NCL for the first time in April on Prima. We've been on lots of RCL and X cruises, and I've always booked our flights separately but this deal was too good to pass up: two passengers return Toronto->New York for only CAD$222. Best I could find is about CAD$800, so saving about $600. 

NCL will be hard-pressed to find an itinerary with a connecting flight. There're dozens of daily direct flights between YYZ and LGA/NWK/JFK. I don't care which NYC airport, either, because I have the transfers and hotel covered through NCL as well. 

We were in a SS on Apex last November (Move Up bid), and upon embarkation asked the Butler to bring a lounger for my wife to sleep on the balcony. We had it delivered within the hour and she enjoyed it all week long. It was tight out there, but it fit alright.

We are in a SS on Edge in a couple weeks and will certainly be making the same request. I don't see why this request would be denied.

On our last Celebrity cruise, we had MovedUp to a suite, and barely used the butler services because the whole experience was kind of overwhelming. We're less than three weeks away from our 10-night upcoming cruise in a Sky Suite on Edge, and I'm curious about having our butler bring breakfast, something I've seen mentioned a couple times here.

Is that something which would need to be prearranged the night before, or could it be a "I slept in a bit and don't feel like getting dressed to go get coffee and a bagel" sort of thing? 

40 minutes ago, NorthStarStateCruiser said:

I get what you're saying, but the Royal Caribbean Group has a cruise line geared more towards adults, Celebrity.  They have status match between Royal Caribbean and Celebrity so loyal customers don't have to loose out on the perks of being long time customers.

Except.... while you will get tier matched, you start with 0 points. 

So, my Emerald RCL status matches me to Celebrity Select, but I need to earn ALL the points with Celebrity to move up to Celebrity Elite.

I burned 150,000 LP on this. Redeemed the LP, and *then* read the small print. No refund.

Cozumel: My last two cruises to Cozumel, I used Dive Paradise. I like that operator a lot because they provide a 10:00 a.m. Express Boat, so it will accommodate a later ship arrival. Both times I've only been with 6 divers maximum in the boat.

Costa Maya: I had a great experience there with Gypsea Divers in Mahuahal. The reef is in pretty good shape because it's not as popular a destination as Cozumel. I would dive with Catherine and co. again in a heartbeat!

I hadn't heard that, but it wouldn't surprise me. Liability claims are rampant and I'm sure the costs of insurance make these excursions unprofitable.

Personally, I have been booking fewer and fewer dives through the cruise lines. In just about every port you can find a quality, small-group operation which will cater to the later arrival in port of the cruise ship. 

Just ask here, and there's bound to be someone who can recommend an excellent dive shop in pretty much any port. Harris (@omeinv) is a forum treasure, for one!

On 10/10/2022 at 10:08 PM, YYJValerie said:

Is the ferry still running to Caye Caulker.  And are there any dive operators left over there?  So would it be feasible to take the ferry over, dive there, then come back?  Perhaps the more important question to ask is how dependable are the ferries?  Or would it be better / more reliable to take the puddle jumpers flight from Belize City  to ambergris to dive?

I don't know if I would take that chance off a cruise ship. Too many places where there might be delays getting back to the ship, and nobody wants to have to run the pier with a bag full of wet scuba gear!

In Belize, off a cruise ship, contact Sea Sports Belize. 

Thanks for the great review, @BenCoudon. Most everything I've read and watched about Prima thus far has been pretty effusive, so it's interesting to see some more balanced comments. We are booked for Prima in April, and it's our first experience with NCL (long-time RCL/X customers).

Most concerning to me is your comments on the theatre and the limited seating. My wife and I much enjoy the production shows and entertainment options on RCL/X, and have never been turned away from a show, except when we forget to book a reservation for the comedy club on Oasis-class. 

My wife is a huge Donna Summer fan, and is very much looking forward to seeing the show. It will be a big disappointment if we miss out on that in April, and will certainly have a negative impact on our future cruise choices. I guess we'll just have to wait for a few more months and see how things are when we board.

8 minutes ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

 

And that is not even traditional for everyone - even in America.

Which is why I put it in quotes! 😄

I did a Christmas cruise on Freedom in the Before Times with my wife and kids (teens at the time). I think all I need to say about a Christmas cruise is that I will never do one again.

It cost twice as much and aside from some halfhearted decorations and a "traditional turkey dinner" there was nothing to warrant the extra expense. 

My kids are post-secondary now, so I don't have to worry about keeping them out of school, but it absolutely isn't worth the premium IMO.

1 hour ago, Ipeeinthepools said:

You don’t need to test, all you need is a picture of a negative test result.  Here’s a picture of my test.  You’re all set.

LMAO!

I would expect no other response from a "rules-breaker" like @Ipeeinthepools! Keep livin' the rebel life!!! 🤣