Stevesan
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Posts posted by Stevesan
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Is there not parking AT the port? Like new orleans has?
Park And Cruise is across the street from the terminal.
You can either drop off, or wheel your luggage across. I do the latter.
http://galvestonparkncruise.com/
Covered parking is available.
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Those are land rigs.
Didn't say it wasn't.
I used the article as an example of the oil industries current condition.
It likely impacts both land and off shore rigs.
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A number of rigs have shut down due to the drop in oil price.
A short quote from today's Houston Chronicle:
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More oil rigs have vanished from gushing shale plays in Texas and North Dakota, an oil field services company reported Friday, as a split emerged again between international and U.S. oil prices.
Both benchmark crude prices rose, but U.S. oil lagged behind Europe's Brent, weighed down by market perceptions that while a falling U.S. rig count will hamper the nation's new oil production, it won't be enough to stem the tidal wave of shale oil.
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After peaking at $108 per barrel earlier this year, oil prices have been cut in half.
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Your first formal will be the first sea day.
The second is dealer's choice. It will not be the last night.
The most likely is the second sea day.
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On the other hand, you can't find a better place to overnight than Seattle!!:)
http://www.seattlesouthside.com/attractions?gclid=CIz0nPXH5MMCFY0AaQodqD0ABA
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I've used Eagle Ray a number of times.
The guides are first rate. There are two options.: 3 reef and 2 reef.
I strongly recommend the 3 reef.
Final stop on the 3 reef is at the Money Bar for lunch.
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Read GradUT's post (number two).
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Once I had to cancel the day of the tour. Got lucky: They sold it, so no loss for me.
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Sorry, I really do not mean to be unhelpful, though I do mean to be honest.
With air travel, when things go well, they go very well. When flights are cancelled there seem to be very fewer empty seats on other flights to accommodate displaced passengers, so when things go badly, they really go badly.
My recent example: This Sunday at 12:50 pm , DH and I were scheduled for a nonstop flight from IAH. At 12:05 pm, the airline cancelled the flight. We showed up as standby for every possible flight thereafter, but so did many other stranded flyers (and all the scheduled folks). We finally boarded a flight at 9:30 pm Monday. That 36+ hour wait is still fresh in my mind as I think about your decision.
I know many people fly in the day of the cruise and everything goes well for most of them. If your day-of-cruise flight is a nonstop domestic flight at a time of typically nice weather, the odds are in your favor. Still, scheduling your flight a day or two earlier does increase your odds of making the ship. It also extends the vacation; maybe the GF and boys would love to see the Space Center or another local attraction.
Well said, Starry Eyes!
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Just made my final payment on a midship balcony on deck 11 starboard for the Grand Princess 10 day pacific coastal in April. I see that there are still premium balconies (deck 10) and mini suites on this cruise available, if the opportunity arose would you upgrade? Would you change to deck 10 "premium balcony"?
What are the advantages with this deck?
What about mini suites? What advantages are these over regular balconies?
First time on princess so I have no idea what to expect. BTW we are right near the stairs and I know about the limited access to all decks. I will enjoy the walking to forward or aft.
Thanks
Greg
go to the deck plan for Dolphin
http://www.princess.com/deckPlans.do?shipCode=AP
Hovering over a cabin will display a picture and size which includes the balcony's size.
Pictures and descriptions of the cabin categories can be found here under staterooms.
http://www.princess.com/learn/ships/ap/
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Eagle ray in Cozumel.
I strongly recommend the three reef trip. Excellent guides and great snorkeling.
http://www.eagleraydivers.com/snorkeling_caribbean.htm
Coral Breeze In Belize
http://www.coralbreezetours.com/current_category.15/Product.2/tours_add.html?t_product=2
Tabyana Beach In Roatan. Good shore snorkeling and nice beach. Your ship will run round trip shuttle throughout the day.
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The highlight of our cruise: Edinburgh Military Tattoo!!
With Edinburgh Castle in the background, this show is a must see! 600 military musicians, with more than 100 bagpipers! Each tableau showed the extent of these military bands' skills in music, drill and even dance! The choreographers were all unique and original. The projections on the castle added to the magnificence of the event. Along with the Scottish Pipers were military bands from Switzerland, Chili, Japan, Nepal and New Zealand. The pinnacle of the event was the poignant performance of the Lone Piper on top of the castle! Unforgettable!
Interesting fact: The word Tattoo comes from the Dutch in the 17-18th c. when they were calling the Scots to combat, the piper would play while they told the pub owner Doe den tap toe - Turn off the taps!
You can rent a cushion for £1 at the bottom of the bleacher a great idea cause it s not only more comfortable but also warmer. There are portable toilets available at the Tattoo, but the lines are long better do a pit stop at one of the Pubs on the Royal Mile ahead of time!
Finally take lots of film or memory cards with you!! I filled a 512 MB memory stick just for the Tattoo!
At the end of the show, we got back to the bus and left at about 23h30. We got back in Greenock at 1h15. Thankfully, the Horizon Court was still open and waiting for us. We joined the crowd for a quick bite before falling into our beds after a long but wonderful day!
True story:
We had drizzling rain all evening until a solo soprano began singing "Amazing Grace". The clouds parted and a full moon appeared lighting us up!
That was enough to make any one a believer!!!:)
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If your cruise stops there, be sure not to miss Takarazuka Revue.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takarazuka_Revue
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We took National Express from Victoria Station. It was only two hours. 8:30 am to 10:30 am. 13 GBP for the two of us Very comfortable. Bought the tickets on line. You could probably get it from Airport as well.
I did the same. Very satisfied with service, and frequent departures.
http://www.networkrail.co.uk/london-victoria-station/departures-arrivals/
http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/timesandfares/VIC/SOU/020215/1615/dep#outwardJump
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Hobby is at least a half an hour closer to the Pier but only Southwest flies into it.
there are NO rental agencies on the island to drop off other than Enterprise, which is strictly a drop off only( they are closed, you just park and leave your keys in the box) so you then need transportation to the pier. also one way fees aremucho expensive.
if you want to see NASA, you will need to rent car locally for that day and also book private transportation to the pier.
Seven airlines fly in and out of (HOU) Hobby airport.
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We will be driving in, so staying a distance from the port isn't a big deal. I'm planning to use hotwire and pick a hotel in the NASA area for the night before.
I figured the next morning we can drive (about half hour) to the parking garage area and then to the port.
Does anyone see any problems with this?
I don't see a problem. Park And Cruise is across the street from the "terminal".
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Drinking Water
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/1781431
The desalination process on a cruise ship uses either flash evaporators or osmosis. Flash evaporators boil sea water and re-condense the steam vapor, producing fresh drinking water. This method is similar to the natural water cycle, where sea water is heated by the sun, rises as steam to form clouds, and then falls back to earth as rain. The second method, osmosis, filters sea water through a fine membrane to separate pure water from salt and other minerals. Cruise ships do not desalinate water near ports or close to land, because coastal waters are the most contaminated.
After desalination, the water is passed through a mineralization plant, which adds minerals. This is necessary because the healthy minerals naturally found in drinking water have been removed by desalination. At this stage, the water is also checked for impurities, sanitized, and the pH is corrected. The water is then sent to massive storage tanks on board the cruise ship. On the Grand Princess, for example, these storage tanks hold up to 500,000 gallons of fresh water.
Next, the water is routed to hot and cold systems. Miles of distribution pipe move the water around the cruise ship.
After the water is delivered through a sink or shower, and used by cruise ship passengers or crew, it must be treated again before it can be discharged. All cruise ships must follow strict environmental laws in the treatment of waste water. Even after treatment, the water is not immediately released, but is held in special storage tanks when the ship is close to land, in port, or other sensitive environments.
It's a complex process, but necessary in order to ensure the health of cruise ship passengers and the natural environment.
The short version: It's cleaner than any water at home.
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Check in usually begins at 11AM.
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Most (maybe 80%) passengers adhere to the dress code.
However, there are no "fashion police".
The MDR head waiters will not turn you away as long as you meet the standard dress code.
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These holders are designed for cruise tags:
Or try Cruise Critic's holders:
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The balcony cabin next to yours, 622, has a bump out that may limit the view aft a little bit.
But that's not important.
Alaska views are magnificent, especially in the fjords. You'll want to be top side where you can have a 360deg view.
While in the fjord(s) the ship's guide will be there. Local naturalists board to provide information, stamp passports and sell souvenirs.
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I have cruised out of Galveston in March twice and in late February once and ALL three times we got fogged out of port as we returned to Galveston. We finally docked mid-afternoon in all three cases. Luckily, my embarkations have not been delayed. I am cruising out of Houston this March too. I'm expecting fog, but it goes with the territory around here.
An excellent argument for arriving the day before and leaving the day after.
Galveston has a number of excellent hotels, restaurants and places to visit.
IAH to Galveston - Why does this seem so hard?
in Gulf Coast Departures
Posted · Edited by Stevesan
An excellent recommendation!!!
BTW - Park And Cruise is across the street from the terminal.
Baggage Man can easily roll his luggage from there to the terminal.
http://galvestonparkncruise.com/