vallierjenn

Take a look at this review of mine, it may help in your plans...

 

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2017/12/29/one-way-to-do-new-orleans-part-1/

 

Gorgeous pictures and great review! Thanks

HI, we are going on the Dream June 3 also, we will be with the square dance group. I am getting started with looking for hotels and airfare!!! Have you joined the roll call??

Hi, I think I joined the roll call. Lol. I’ll have to look. I’ve joined the one I found on Facebook for sure. Did you find a hotel or still looking?

Do you work at Sams competitor?

 

 

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Preface: This ultimately is a very positive review. I'm happy with the outcome. And even the process. But man, the process.

 

Trigger warning: if you don't do medical grossness well, stop reading here. I've toned it way down, but a few facts are unavoidable as they are material to the story.

 

The scene: NCL Pearl, a blustery June Saturday morning on the Pacific Coast of Canada, en route from Ketchikan to Victoria. Our author, well fed and rested after the first six days of his seven day Alaskan voyage, woke much earlier than planned in his mini-suite. He awoke not due to the dulcet tones of his children snoring, or due to the light Pacific swell rocking Pearl's 93,530 Gross Tons too and fro, but due to the throbbing pain in his big toe. The pain, which had first appeared with an inflamed ingrown toenail following Monday's shore excursion in Juneau, had grown familiar over the course of the week. But each day it grew a little worse than the day before. And each day the inflammation spread. Our author walked with annoyance through Skagway. Limped his way around the deck while taking in the sights of Glacier Bay. Then hobbled his way along the incredible shore of Nooya Lake in the Misty Fjords after the float plane ride of a lifetime (thanks Island Wings!). But it was still cruising as normal.

 

Then came Saturday morning. Let's just say that healthy toes aren't supposed to seep anything. And they're supposed to bend at the major joints. And not be bigger on one foot than the other. Over night, however, this one had turned the color of red wine, become unbendable, and had gone all...icky -- in ways best not posted on a genteel forum such as Cruise Critic. So, at 8:30 AM, our author left a note for his sleeping family, hopped down the hall to the elevator, and headed down to the uncharted reaches of the medical center on Deck 4 in search of antibiotics and perhaps a bottle of whiskey and a bone saw to cut the darned thing off, Battle of Trafalgar style (non-English naval history types, go look it up).

 

Pearl's medical center had all the charm of your typical suburban doctor's office. Without the fish tank or old magazines. But with watertight doors. It was small, impeccably clean, and smelled like...comforting antiseptic things that you use to kill things that make you sick. It was staffed by an incredibly friendly nurse / receptionist, who seemed to understand that most of her clientele tends to freak the heck out when they see the bill at the end of their visit. So she made clear that the visit itself would be $149, in addition to any procedures performed and supplies used, and provided an itemized sheet of all the potential charges. The same sheet is posted on their door. While a person might not be in the best position to do the math at the time they come in, or realize just how many of those boxes might get checked for a single procedure, the pricing was basically transparent [except for the medicine; more on that in a bit].

 

Enter Dr. A [name protected for privacy, although the dude is a hard core practical skills physician to whom your author owe great thanks and appreciation]. Dr. A took one look at the offending toe -- and yes, it was offending in every sense of the word -- and asked in a Spanish accent that was somehow fitting to the whole triage medicine-on-the-high-seas situation, "So, are you ready for some pain?" Now, those words can be asked in a couple different ways. And not all of those ways come through in print. The way he said it? It was conveyed with warmth and sincerity, and with honesty. It was a subtle message of "I know my business. I know I will fix you. But to fix you, first I must seek out and destroy that which offends you. With cold sharp things. And some pinchy / proddy / yank-y things too."

 

We went back into the examination room / operating theater / medical storage space. Again clean, well organized, and more like small hospital ER than anything else. A portable X-ray machine stood in one corner. A reclining table stood to the side. Shelves and drawers contained most all of the implements of basic emergency medicine. There was even a drawer labeled with what seemed to be intubation supplies. Not that anyone wants to be intubated at sea, but hey sometimes there's no choosing these things.

 

Dr. A went to work. Bigly. He communicated well about what was to occur next. He tried less invasive things, before going to more invasive. He tried without having to numb the toe first, because that was a separate line item on the bill [more on that later too]. He delivered on the pain. And he dug out the infection. Your author was not, in any respect, ready. As the people on Deck 7 likely heard. Anyone on the June 25 sailing of Pearl who heard shrieks on the last day at sea? Yeah, my bad.

 

Within 24 hours, though, and after some hard core oral antibiotics and an antibiotic topical creme, the offending toe, partially nail-less, no longer offended. It only whimpered softly under its band-aid. Its removal was no longer contemplated. Nor was death at sea from sepsis. Thanks again, Dr. A!

 

The following morning, and as promised, an itemized invoice arrived on our stateroom door. For $973. The breakdown:

 

• Office visit during posted hours -- $149
  
• Peripheral Nerve Block [read, lidocaine shot] -- $175
  
• Removal of Nail -- $369 [and man, did Dr. A earn every penny of this. Gross and challenging work, right there]
  
• Dressing Supplies for Medium to Major Wound Care -- $25 [curiously this was checked but not added to the total on the bill]
  

Medical total: $693

• Levaquin, 500 mg, 8 tablets -- $280 [this price is in line for the branded drug; but it's available on land for much, much less in generic form]
  
• Topical antibiotic ointment [didn't show up on the bill either. Yay, freebies!]
  

Pharma total: $280

 

Total bill: $973

 

Fortunately, before the sailing, we went with an AIG Travel Guard plan that included $25k in medical coverage. The total premium on that plan, purchased through a major website with a name that rhymes with inuremytrip, was under $300 total for everyone in our family. While AIG hasn't indicated how much they'll pay on the service yet, it'd be surprising if it isn't a significant amount.

 

And if you're still reading the longest post in the history of the internet about a single toenail removal: I return to my title question why should you buy travel insurance? Because fixing an infected toenail on an NCL boat was a nearly $1,000 undertaking. During our voyage, we heard over the PA that two patients had medical events which triggered "code alpha" major medical interventions. It would seem bills for those kinds of events can easily hit five figures, and that's before the patient gets carted up to the helipad on the deck 10 sports court for a coast guard Dolphin ride to shore. Please, if you're going to spend a week or longer on a vessel away from land, and if you can afford to drop $x,xxx for the privilege, plan to invest the extra $xxx to insure it properly. You don't have to go through the cruise line, but please make sure you have a dedicated policy in place and that you understand what it covers.

 

Hope that some portion of this was helpful to someone out there. Stay tuned for an update here on the insurance denouement, hopefully within 24 to 72 hours.

 

The End.

It's because of stories like this that I purchased insurance for our 2nd cruise next June. On another note, if you suffer from ingrown toenails frequently you should check into laser surgery. I used to get them so bad my toe(s) would swell and it would hurt to walk. Never to the point of needing emergency care like you experienced. But I got tired of it and went to see a podiatrist. He suggested laser surgery. Only on the big toes and one at a time. They numbed it and just used a laser to cut/burn the sides of the toenail. The nail has never grown back and still looks normal. So glad to not have to deal with that pain ever again! Best part- insurance did cover it! Sorry to get off topic but i thought I'd suggest an alternative to the pain!

Holiday Inn New Orleans Westbank

 

The link above is a video on the Holiday Inn New Orleans Westbank (located in Gretna, Louisiana) that deals with their deal with their deal they have for people going on a cruise and the deal they have. Most of the Holiday Inn in the New Orleans area has this deal but some of them do not have it on their web-site (I know the Holiday Inn located near the Superdome, you have to call to get the deal). Some Holiday Inn Hotels have the deal on their web-site.

 

 

Hampton Inn & Suites New Orleans Convention Center:

 

This is the Facebook post the Hampton Inn & Suites New Orleans Convention Center posted on their Facebook page "Did you know we're the closest hotel to the Port of New Orleans cruise terminal? We also offer a FREE shuttle to/from the port and discounted parking while you're on the cruise.

 

 

If you're planning a Carnival Cruise Line vacation be sure to check out our cruise package: Hampton Inn & Suites New Orleans-Convention Center Cruise Package

Thanks for the recommendations! I went ahead and booked the Hampton Inn & Suites Convention Center. All the reviews looked really good, pics looked nice, price was similar to what I was aiming for, parking is still cheaper then at the port and they shuttle you to and from the port. So thank you!

Not sure what they looked like on your ship, but this is what they are on Conquest Class ships. Not a real mailbox, but that's what it is [emoji4]

Nope! Definitely didn't have those! Thanks for the pic though

The mailbox was where your cards were if they were in an envelope. There are signs on the doors telling you if you are Diamond, Platinum, or FTTF that your room is ready. They look like this but will vary slightly depending on the ship.

Ah- I remember the signs on the door but don't remember the bottom part. Probably overlooked it! Lol. There was so much going on and trying to take in the surroundings on our first ship. I am pretty sure there was no mailbox either. (At least not what I picture as a mailbox) .I am trying to remember and I think the envelope was taped and tucked in the door number plate. All well. Didn't mean to hi-jack this thread, I just saw the discussion about which ships this process was on and knew we just got off one that wasn't mentioned. Our next one is on the Dream! Looking forward to that one!

I am new to cruising so I don't quite know what you mean by mailbox vs at the room? We went on our first cruise on Carnival Victory on June 5th of this year and were not given cards at check-in. I didn't even know that wasn't the norm. We purchased FTTF but the doors were all shut so I didn't know we could still go to our room. Had lunch and about 1 or 1:30 we were allowed to go to our room where there was an envelope above what I assume you mean the mailbox? I just remember it to the right of the door. It had our cards in it. I didnt purchase any drinks prior to getting our cards so I don't know about that process.

Thanks for the responses and advice!

not sure why people do cruises in june given the heat. The WW2 museum would be good as it has AC. Give yourself time for some stops on the river road. Vicksburg battle field, plantations and Natchez. https://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/louisiana/riverroad.htm Cant imagine how to add any more NOLA recommendations than are already listed. A day in the quarter would be a good intro to NOLA.

With my work schedule and kids in school summer is the only time to go. I work retail so from the end of October to the January 1st is blacked out for taking any vacation time. That leaves spring break as the only other week to do a vacation. Where I live my kids don't get a full week off for spring break. To take them out of school is hard now also with them in Jr. High and High School. So if we want to vacation then summer time it is!😀

Hi, I have been doing research on these threads but it has made me even more unsure what to do. So maybe some of you can help? I booked a cruise on Carnival Dream for June 2018. We are driving from Ohio (we enjoy road trips and usually it's cheaper). Cruise leaves on Sunday and I plan on arriving in NOLA the day before. So we only need a hotel for a night. It's myself and two teens age 12 & 16 at that time. I have no clue where to stay. Stay near the river or closer to the French Quarter? Get a hotel that includes parking for the week of my cruise and deal with taxis or park my car at Fulton? I don't even know what my kids would like to do in NOLA for the one evening we are there! Lol! What to do what to do? Oh, and one last thing, how far out should you book a hotel? When I do a search right now many of them come up as no rooms available. I assume that is because a year in advance is too far and not because they are really booked? Any advice at all will be greatly appreciated!!! Thank you!

We were on the same cruise! First time on a cruise for me and my 2 kids and we had a blast! Booked our next one out of New Orleans June 2018!