RedbirdFLCruiser

I know the internet package cost just went up, but does the ship have a cost where you can get internet for just a day or two? My husband and I are thinking we might want to check in with family and/or work once or twice while we're on the cruise, but don't need a 12 day package.

We stayed at the Days Inn that's only 3 blocks from the port and thought it was great. Our organization has a Wyndham corporate discount, but it still wasn't cheap (about $275 USD). But it was less expensive than other hotels near the port. The breakfast buffet was pretty good and the room was clean and comfortable. We took a taxi to the port, but only because it was raining. We would have walked had the weather been better.

Glad to hear this. I've been wanting to write one for our Yukon bus tour (loved it), but kept getting errors when I would try to log in and go to the Excursions page. I'll try to remember to write a review soon.

I've seen and made note of some of the favorite desserts at the lido buffet at lunch, but how about dinner? Are there any good desserts at the buffet at dinner? 

(We're not fond of eating in the MDR for a variety of reasons.)

TIA

Thanks for your review of the bus tour! We're doing that excursion next month, and I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed it enough to do it two years in a row!

4 hours ago, JeannyJ said:

We're headed to Alaska on the Volendam next month (out of Vancouver), and I was wondering if the MDR will be open for lunch on embarkation day. I've read that some of the larger ships sometimes have it open for lunch but I can't find anything about the smaller ships in the fleet. We'll already be going there to check it out and see if we can find where our table is so I thought it might be nice to avoid the Lido crazy until we've been able to eat something and get into our stateroom to freshen up.

We're on the Volendam in August. I hope you'll come back and give us your thoughts, tips, etc.

Have a great time!

19 hours ago, wolfie11 said:

Stay away from the coffee shops.

Why?

We are taking the Amtrak Cascades train from Portland to Vancouver and will arrive at the train station at about 11pm. Our hotel is in the downtown area and we prefer not to take the skytrain, due to our luggage. Will there be taxis available outside the train station that late at night?

If not, what would you suggest?

11 minutes ago, d9704011 said:

Walk over to the Canada Line with your luggage and just go to the airport.

Depending on how late we can debark, wouldn't that put us at the airport at around 10am? And I could be wrong, but I had heard that airlines won't let you check luggage more than 4 hours before a flight. We're on Delta aka Skywest.

We'd be fine heading to the airport unless we have to sit around prior to being able to check our luggage.

Our post-cruise flight in mid-August (on a Wednesday, if that matters) is at 3:24pm. We thought we'd get to the airport about 12:30pm-ish. What are some suggestions of things to do between debarking and heading to the airport?

On 4/19/2023 at 3:02 PM, xlxo said:

Hopefully you are not staying a Friday or Saturday night when the bar next door is operating late into the night.  The music and bass travels through a lot of hotel rooms til like 2am.

No, fortunately, our cruise leaves on a Wednesday, so we are staying on a Tuesday night.

The YWCA was already booked for the date we needed it, so we booked the Days Inn. It was the most "reasonably" priced hotel in the downtown/cruise port area at the time I checked and had pretty good reviews.

You might check out the Days Inn in downtown Vancouver. I got a pretty good price there and they have good reviews. 

I can't read the numbers well off the chart you've given, but how about going with the cabin that's in yellow that's three above the mid-ship elevators or the cabin that's 4 below the rear-ship elevators? Both of those are under the dining rooms and shouldn't be too bad and they're not too far from your friend.

Years ago, Carnival had message boards on their website and you could log into them for free using the computers on the ship. I remember this because my daughter and I went on a cruise for her 21st birthday and that's how I kept my husband up-to-date on our day. That was back in 2013. Since then, Carnival got rid of their message boards - I don't remember when that was.

We love to stay on the ship at a port, especially if it's one we've been to multiple times, like Nassau or Freeport. I echo what the others have said above - it's nice to have the ship be less crowded and is a good way to explore the ship, enjoy the (usually) non-crowded hot tubs, and not have to fight the crowd at lunch.

Thanks for the review! Glad to hear you enjoyed the food.

We'll be on the Freedom later this month! Can't wait!

This has some non-port suggestions. Keep scrolling to see the spots they suggest that are not at KSC.

https://orlandoinsidervacations.com/best-place-to-watch-the-rocket-launch/

Port Canaveral will have great views of rocket launches because it's so close to KSC. We saw a launch from the deck of the Liberty as we were leaving port in January. It was fabulous! If it's not yet time to be onboard the ship when the rocket launches, then the top of the parking garage will have great views, or anywhere outdoors in that area. Just look to the north - you can't miss it. 🙂

The traffic will depend on the time of day and day of the week of the launch. If it's on a weekend, then traffic will be heavier since people will be off from work and will drive over and bring their kids. The launch we watched was on a Monday, and the traffic wasn't bad at all.

But Mondello's right - the Artemis planned launch dates brought in huge crowds and I heard the traffic on the space coast was insane. And yes, launches do get scrubbed or delayed frequently.

Four days! Last year, I booked a cruise on November 18 that left on November 22. We live 45 minutes from the port, so we didn't need to arrange flights or hotels. This cruise was Monday - Friday, including Thanksgiving. We loved being on the ship for Thanksgiving!

45 minutes ago, famof4togo said:

For those who recently got off ship....would you say the smaller capacity diminished the fun?  Meaning was the vibe of the ship not quite the same?  I enjoy the bars and nightlife on ship and am afraid that it'll will be quiet and dead all over the place...was this your experience?  TIA

We don't generally hang out at the bars, so I can't respond to that one. I was a little sad that the big shows in the theater were so much later in the evening. But since we were on the Elation at Thanksgiving and saw a couple of the shows, it wasn't too disappointing. The Liberty had 3 good comedians on board and we went to several of the comedy shows. Those shows had a decent sized audience, but they weren't crowded.

The scene around the pool usually seemed fairly lively, but it definitely wasn't the same vibe as it is when it's packed.

Also, we walked by the atrium several times and must have missed the music that was there. I had seen it on the schedule, but perhaps walked by in between performances. There never seemed to be many people hanging out in the atrium, even at the bar.

It was definitely quieter than it was in November on the Elation, and lots quieter than it has been on past cruises. We didn't mind, but I can understand that others might.

Just got off the Liberty this morning. Guest Services told me prior to departure that there were "more than 800" on board. Another passenger told me they heard 700. I would actually be surprised if it were that many, but I'm no expert at estimating crowds.

The ship felt delightfully empty. There was never a line at the buffet, even for the omelet stations at breakfast or the Mongolian buffet. There were plenty of deck chairs by the pool and the hot tubs were often empty or only occupied by one or two people. DH and I sat in a hot tub for about an hour by ourselves while the ship was in port at Nassau. No problems with social distancing inside or out! 🙂

As far as services, I would say the only differences that I noticed was that there was only one main show a night in the theater, and it was at 9:30pm. And that for the comfort food buffet, only one side was open at a time, but like I said, there was never a line. All the staff were wonderful, as always, and yes, we felt outnumbered by the staff, lol!

There will be signage at the port to tell you which terminal is being used by the Mardi Gras, plus there are workers at the entrance to greet you and make sure you're parking in the right area. Yes, the parking is right there by the terminal building. No reservations necessary.

I use Sea Bands and they help me a lot. I generally wear them on the first day, as I get used to the motion and then remove them and am fine. But, I have occasionally had to wear them on other rough days.

Interesting that the Liberty February 7 sailing has dropped Nassau, as has the Jan 31 Sunshine sailing. We're on the January 31 Liberty sailing and so far, it seems like we're still going to Nassau.

We don't usually get off the ship in Nassau, so we'd be fine if they change ours to Princess Cays. We've never been there.

We'll see what happens...