videolady

The OP asked about jet lag. We live in the Pacific time zone so have a 9 hr time diff for most of the places we go to in Europe. Also, I sometimes travel to the UAE on business with an 11 or 12 hour diff depending on the time of year so I have to deal with significant time changes fairly often.

 

I do several things to deal with jet lag and the combo really works for me:

 

- What I think is most important is that I take a homeopathic product called No Jet Lag - a little pill I chew every 2 hrs when I am awake (tastes fine). Why this works is a mystery to me and if it is all a placebo I don't care since it does benefit me.

- On the plane I use 0.5 of a Benadryl to get some sleep. Much better than sleeping pills for me.

- When I arrive I try to stay up as close to the local bedtime as I can and try to arrange for a good sleep in the next AM ( not always possible on business trips but when you can leave the alarm off and wake naturally it seems to work better).

- At bedtime in the new time zone I take one whole Benadryl and 3 mg of Melatonin. I have another 3 mg of Melatonin next to the bed and take that if I wake up before 3:30 am local time (if I take it later than that I am groggy in the AM). I repeat this for 3 nights in the new time zone.

 

I realize this is a lot of steps and products but I rarely experience jet lag. Several others who have tried it have had similar results.

 

But a caveat: You must check with your Naturopath or MD before you try this to ensure these options are ok for you. I have no medical background so can only share what I have learned based on what works for me.

Thank you for your input regarding jet lag. Hopefully it won't stop us from having the time of our lives!

We have a rather heavy camera also which does take excellent pictures but is soooo bulky. I am thinking about investing in a point and shoot (or finding the one that I probably put away several years ago :')). I really am glad that your posted all of the pictures. My husband and I are taking some time to look them over and get ready for our trip.

My husband and I are taking our first cruise this summer. Are you doing the river cruise Viking Grand European Tour?

We walked about a block or two away to De Drie Graefjes for lunch.

 

 

We were not to be the hardy souls eating outside. It was drizzling, cool and windy so we went inside.

 

 

We took the last table, in a corner by a spiral staircase. We came to realize that there was more seating upstairs, but we were glad we hadn't needed to climb that staircase. Sally and I discovered that neither of us ate meat but had added fish to our diets when our doctors advised it. I had a toasted sandwich of goat cheese with honey and a fried egg on top. It was delicious!

 

 

This shop was right across the street from the restaurant, and I meant to come back and get my picture taken. I totally forgot once we left the area.

 

 

We took our time walking back to the hotel, and our rooms were ready when we arrived. The key cards work on wifi and you hold your key card up to the device next to the door to enter. The elevator works only with a key card too. If you want the lights on, the key card goes in a slot inside the room next to the door.

 

My room

 

 

 

The Radisson Blu was in a great location, close enough to walk anywhere in old town but on a quiet street. It was clean and the staff considerate.

What a wonderful review. I'll let you know how we liked our river cruise. Your input has been valuable!

Thank you so much for your input! We are so looking forward to our river cruise. If you don't mind, have one more question. Do most female passengers carry a purse with them on the tours? Now days you hear so much about thief that you can't help wonder what is best for security.

My husband and I are going on our first ever Viking River Cruise in June - The Grand European Tour. We'll be cruising on the ship Skirnir. Since this is our first time we have questions. For example:

• What do most passengers wear for dinner? Can you wear jeans and t-shirts? Or is it best to wear dressy attire?
  
• How did you cope with the vast time difference? Our departure is from Minneapolis.
  
• Since we are flying and can only take so much clothing, is it expensive to have the ships crew do your laundry? Did you wash some of your own clothing then hung to dry?
  
• How was the food?
  
• Anyone sail on the ship Skirnir?
  
• When you were touring off the ship, did you get sick from eating in any of the restaurants?
  

Sorry for all of the questions. Just trying to avoid any pitfalls.

I didn't see any roll calls for any of the Viking River Cruises on this website. If there is one, can you please let us know.

Thanks!

Videolady

Just curious if you have done a cruise that stays in NO for Mardi Gras how you liked it? We are considering doing the Reflection in Feb 2018 and just trying to get opinions on the cruise from those who have been.

We have booked this cruise already. A friend has taken this cruise and she said it is the best cruise that she and her husband have ever been on. They do a lot of cruising.

Thanks to all of you who have posted to this thread. Now I know what to wear :)

We are taking our first cruise onboard the Princess Ruby. I recently heard that they keep the internal temp of the ship on the cooler side. Am trying to figure out how to dress. Any suggestions would be helpful.

I just want to welcome you to CC. :)

 

We will be sailing Ruby for the first time on Feb 14th, but IMO, you have a great cabin !

Our favorite place to hang out is the IC, the International Café. A lot happens there---entertainment, relaxing, and the wonderful, mostly free, food.

 

You will enjoy this cruise soooo much.

 

Patti

Thanks for the info. Hubby and I are cruising to Alaska on the Ruby May 22, 2016. This is our first cruise and we are so excited about going to Alaska and to experience being on a cruise ship!! Our cabin is on the Caribe deck 434. We looked at the deck plans on the Ruby and they have B1, B2, B4, BD, and BE. What does that mean? :D

What everyone else has said is absolutely true: you never have to go outside to access any of the dining rooms or restaurants.

 

However, on most Princess ships, it is an option. This can be very convenient because the main interior "thoroughfares" on the ships can sometimes be extremely busy and crowded with passengers, especially just before or after a show. But, the majority of Princess' ships (with the exception of the newest, Royal and Regal Princess) have a covered exterior Promenade deck that runs the full length of the ship (and even circles the bow and stern). If the weather is nice, this can make for a lovely stroll and help avoid the crowds inside. We will often take a stroll on the Promenade after dinner when the weather is nice.

 

Just thought I'd add that information in the event you might find it helpful once aboard.

 

Happy cruising! :)

Thanks for the info. It has been very helpful to this novice cruiser! :)

Look at the diagram of the ship on cruise line web site. I have been on ships that you could not walk down the hallway straight into the dinning room.

 

You had to go up one deck to catch the elevator to go down to the dinning room. If you are given a folded ship map when your arrive at the terminal, carry it with you.

 

Bob

Thanks Bob.

You can always get there from inside.

Thanks. I figured that was the case but just wanted to check. I'll be happy once we get our first cruise under our belt, then we won't have to ask these silly questions :)

We are taking our first Princess Cruise on the Ruby in May, 2016. This may sound like a silly question, but when you leave your stateroom to go to the dining rooms for dinner, can you walk inside the ship to get there, or do you have to go outside on the deck to get to the dining rooms? Just asking in case there is inclement weather.

Hubby and I are taking our first cruise to Alaska in May 2016. We booked stateroom C434. Has anyone ever stayed in that room? Just curious.

B2 is a Premium Balcony. Some of them on the Caribe Deck.

We are also on the Caribe deck...B1. Is that considered a premium balcony stateroom?

It is far more likely that you would be offered an Upsell than receive a free upgrade. In that case you will know exactly where the new cabin is located and how much it will cost you for the upsell. You can accept or refuse the offer at that time.

 

We accepted one for last month and refused one for the end of 2015. You can look at your cruise and see how many cabins appear to be available. That will give you some idea if an upsell may be possible.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

Thanks for the tip. We are currently booked for a balcony stateroom, mid ship. It appears that all of the mini-suites are sold out. As for paying for an upsell, we'll pass on that. I believe we'll be happy with our original choice.

Free upgrades are becoming scarce. Also even with a meta-upgrade to a mini, you could end up at the very front or very back of the ship. There could be more motion for you in these areas.

Thanks for the tip. I certainly don't want to have a stateroom anywhere other than the mid ship. Is it possible that they would give us an upgrade at the time of check in? If they do, can we decline it at that point?

IC is an inside category B2 is a balcony category.

Thanks for the explanation.:o

I absolutely love this!! BVE is so fun!! If we have family or friends from our departure port we always look to see if they can join us. I find it to be worth it. You get to board early with your family/friends taking the cruise (that's more the benefit of those on the cruise than the person doing the BVE), you get a photo, and lunch in the MDR for your entire party, plus a glass of wine. Plus you can use the cost of the BVE towards a future cruise, but I think that needs to be booked fairly quickly, 3 months or something.

We love it!! Although my sister was so disappointed she couldn't stay on the cruise with us. That was the only downside

Thank you for your insight! One question though, what is a MDR?

We are doing a BVE with our son and his girlfriend for our Alaskan cruise in May. We sail out of Seattle. Have never been on a cruise or done a BVE. Judging from the posts on this thread, it sounds like it will be a fun experience! Can't wait :D

My husband and I are taking our first cruise in May. Will be on the Princess Ruby, sailing out of Seattle.

We see that Princess Cruises offers a Bon Voyage Experience to family and friends prior to the ship leaving port. Has anyone ever had family take the Bon Voyage Experience, and if yes, was it worth the $$? What was the experience like? Did you get to eat the lunch with your family/friends who did the BVE?

Thanks!

I am not nearly as experienced as many here. My understanding is as follows.

If you absolutely do not want to move, have your TA Mark your reservation "no upgrade".

If you will only want an upgrade to a higher category (not within your current category) have reservation marked meta upgrade only.

Even with all of this, I have heard of cases where Princess still moved folks to places they did not want to be, though folks were sometimes able to go back to their original cabin.

We marked meta upgrade only, and did not find out about our good fortune until we were checking in at the pier. We were so surprised, that we thought it was a mistake. At present it seems that free upgrades are becoming increasingly rare.

Enjoy your cruise.

Thanks for your input. We'll see what happens!:D

My husband and I are taking our first cruise in May. Will be on the Princess Ruby, sailing out of Seattle.

We see that Princess Cruises offers a Bon Voyage Experience to family and friends prior to the ship leaving port. Has anyone ever had family take the Bon Voyage Experience, and if yes, was it worth the $$? What was the experience like? Did you get to eat the lunch with your family/friends who did the BVE?

Thanks!

Very nice! We received an unexpected upgrade from an IC to a B2 on a coastal cruise earlier this year. It was totally unexpected but quite a nice surprise. Enjoy your balcony.

I'm a new to cruising. What is a IC and B2?

Is it typical for a cruise lines to ask you if you want to get a complimentary upgrade at the time of booking? I'm a first time cruiser and I wasn't sure if I should say yes. We currently have a balcony room booked mid ship. We chose this option because of the potential for motion sickness. We were asked if we would want to get upgraded to a mini-suite, if one should become available. Any thoughts?