jollyjones

Apart from the occasional special wine tasting, there aren’t any charges for activities. Trivia occurs once a day and is taken very seriously, often described (jokingly) as a blood sport.

Each person makes a log in which you use for one device at no charge for regular Wi-Fi, or an upcharge for premium. So it’s one device per person. If you wanted to use a second device, for example if your cabin mate wasn’t using theirs, you’d have to log in on their log in and password to use their device. For 2 factor authentication, I have the code emailed. And BTW, I have absolutely no need to be online, watching what’s happening in the world, and communicating with friends, but I CHOOSE to and it’s nobody’s business but mine. And I always buy the premium Wi-Fi, my choice.

Sorry, I’m really boring, I never go to the shows. I don’t gamble either but the Casino is open from 10am according to the Chronicles - it’s only closed in ports, as are the shops. Everything is generally open when in international waters.

Kinda lazy posting - not even offering a commentary or opinion?

Dunno if this will work but here goes: Day 16 - 4 May - Day at Sea.pdf

I suppose the Marquee (an outdoor space) but I never bother to 'be tolerated' - it's just easier to get in the habit of changing from shorts to trousers at about 6pm. Since I bring enough pairs of trousers to deal with evening wear, it doesn't seem worth the possible difficulty of being in shorts in the evening and then wanting to go to an indoor venue - for example I usually have a pre-dinner drink at the Dusk bar, outdoors so shorts are OK, but if it suddenly rains I'd need to go indoors to either the SALT bar or the Shelter bar (my other favourites) where shorts are not OK after 6pm. Normally I live in shorts all the while, but I find it more relaxing when on SS to change from shorts at 6pm so I don't have to think about where I might not be in acceptable dress.

Whilst this is generally accurate, I totally disagree with wearing bathrobes 'from the suite to the pool and vice versa, or to/from the spa.' That's totally tacky, I really hate seeing pax around the ship in robes that should IMO be only worn inside your cabin or inside the spa. Wear at least a proper cover up if you are walking around the ship. And I'd define a proper cover up as something that actually covers so that you can't see the swimsuit underneath - some mesh cover ups leave so little to the imagination that they are functionally pointless.

OMG are we even reduced to AI funnies now? Not that it isn't funny but ...

Whilst I aim to never stay in the Barbados Hilton again - big soul-less hotel with rude staff - it may be the only thing available for a one night pre-cruise stay. Be aware that most Barbados hotels used to have a three night minimum stay (pre-covid) I don't know if this has changed, but I'd be a bit surprised if it has. I always fly in a few days early when embarking there and stay in a hotel on the south coast - I really don't see the point in flogging all the way from the airport in the south east of the island up to the (admittedly lovely) north west coast, then back to the port which is more in the south west. The traffic in Barbados is bad and getting worse, traffic jams, especially to get into Bridgetown are common. On the south coast I have found both Blue Orchids Beach and Butterfly Beach hotels to be satisfactory. Maybe you can wangle a one-night stay, I don't know, sorry. Yes, definitely avoid the Accra Beach or anything in that immediate vicinity. One idea that may help you - if you use a third party booking site - such as the one that owns Cruise Critic - you may be able to use their greater heft to get a one night stay at a greater choice of hotels than would be available to you as an individual booking directly with the hotel. And FWIW you can read their reviews ... Look at a map of Barbados to get an idea of a geographically useful location to stay.

I'm with this opinion - as I'm not a mother and my own mother is dead, I do find the endless 'happy mother's day' chirping to be a tad grating. And regardless of the origin of the idea, nowadays all these 'days' are just Hallmark 'celebrations' to prise more money out of people's pockets.

Unfortunately, SS does not tell you ahead of time which are tender ports, you cannot find the definitive answer to that until you are onboard. You can do a bit of research yourself using the https://www.whatsinport.com website, that will tell you which ports are always tender ports but that doesn't guarantee an answer for ports where there may be more ships visiting at once than there are docks - then there's no saying who gets to dock and who gets to tender. If you can find the website for a specific port, you should be able to find the docking / anchoring schedule but you have to do all the work yourself.

I sailed on the Cloud and Wind a lot in my early days with SS, occasionally the Shadow and Whisper, but am now committed to the newer girls - both Muse class (incl. Spirit) and Nova class - because I so much prefer the greater choice of dining venues. And the Arts Cafe!! The bathrooms in the newer girls are much better too, something that is important to me. I don't do expedition cruising so can't comment on the Endeavour or Origin (or the post-conversion Cloud and Wind).

One of the things that is great about SS is that, apart from the extra real estate and a few perks like better WiFi that come with booking a bigger suite, all pax in all cabin grades are treated equally. None of the Cunard class system or the many mass market lines 'ships within a ship' exclusion zones. And you don't need the 'special treatment' that these things bring - no need for priority boarding, early cabin availability etc. etc. - the SS experience is special for everyone. The joys of smaller ship cruising.

Just reviving this thread to report back on my real life experience - which, after all, is one of the most important facets of these boards. Thanks to LindaD22 for not only allowing me to intrude on her thread but also introducing MidWilShuttle - https://www.midwilshuttle.com I booked rides with them from SNA to Long Beach and then from Long Beach to San Pedro and was completely satisfied with their efficiency, with prompt friendly responses to my possibly over-worried emails. The drivers turned up on time, were pleasant and drove well, and the cars were clean and comfortable. For anyone else who like me prefers not to use Uber for whatever reason, I thoroughly recommend them.

Silversea Nova class ships - Silver Nova and Silver Ray. Absolutely the best elevators I have ever been in on any cruise ship, and I've been on a lot of different ships. Avoid the Cunard QM2 like the plague, I found her to be a very inward looking claustrophobia inducing ship.

I don't think you need to put in an address at all, I never have in the past since the ESTA is good for two years and multiple trips. There should be some sort of option on the application to allow for this but I may be wrong.

I am very fussy about my cabin type and location. I always buy the cabin I am happy with, I’m not interested in gambling on an ‘upgrade’. I never do a GTY. For the obvious reason.

First sea day, beautiful morning, sailing southwest at 17 knots under sunny skies and high pressure, meteorologically speaking, all else is low pressure. Until 4.45pm of course.

Here in SoCal, waiting to board the Moon tomorrow, the forecast is a high of 63 degrees today, 10 degrees below average, brrrrr for sure. Supposed to be a bit warmer tomorrow.

Some of the sales T&Cs specify 'for new bookings only, cancel and rebook not eligible' which I suppose is meant to supersede the Fare Guarantee, but it's not a bad idea to ask if SS will reprice a booked cruise and see if they'll allow a reduction. Works sometimes.

I don't know if this has anything to do with it but there is currently an increase in Yellow Fever incidence and deaths in Colombia which has declared a nationwide health emergency this week.

Don’t think the Moon is going to San Fran, she goes directly from Maui to Vancouver.

Interesting! Also some years ago I was in the same situation but my visa and my passport were five years out of synch - I managed without any trouble to travel extensively with my passport and my corner-cut-off passport holding the visa for the whole five years. Never had any problems - go figure ...

Yes you can order something else when entering the Venetian Lounge - I have done so - you indicate whereabouts you'll be sitting and it should arrive, might take a little while.

Hi Spins, Glad you have smooth sailing and something to watch - I always feel the haul up from the Canal to LA is the least interesting part of the trip. Any thoughts on the library yet?