bralli

On 3/26/2019 at 1:57 PM, CanadaCathi said:

 

 

Wow! We booked in the cabin next door (12-594) in July. What a coincidence.

Aren't all cruises pretty sold out? Having a slew of school aged kids, I'm pretty used to traveling over holidays. I've found cruises are a great way to spend the holidays. I will be on the Splendor the week of Christmas; should be a lot of fun.

Which nights were the formal nights? Thanks

For PV, the Crown Paradise (Right next to where the ship docks) has a great deal! Here is what they sent me:

 

For people who come in cruise the cost of the day pass is $ 45 dlls per person and the hours are from 10 am to 6 pm, it includes use of facilities, drinks and meals inside the property.

 

It is necessary to bring an identification that will be delivered in reception in guarantee for use of the towel cards and the identification provided by the cruise.

That sounds perfect for our family. That looks like you could walk right there from the ship. Anyone been there?

Has anyone done a day pass that the Hyatt Ziva? We are a family of 7 and thought that might be nice to check out an inclusive resort for a day. Not sure if you have to book through the cruise or if it is better to contact the restort directly and arrange our own transportation.

I got a refund last night.

It was crazy good (Inspiration on June 12). Hopefully these pics link ok:

This was a vegetable parfait with a grape broth (one of my favorites)

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bx3MrKOR5YHqOWtnOEE4aS1Fdjg

Crab cake

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bx3MrKOR5YHqdVdDU3JmNTdkVkk

Duck

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bx3MrKOR5YHqc0dfMzhWS3FNMzQ

Tomato Soup

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bx3MrKOR5YHqX3VzRUNxdk9kRFk

Sea Bass (the best one)

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bx3MrKOR5YHqSDhKQ0lHY0R1MTg

Waygu Beef

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bx3MrKOR5YHqR1NCTTRObFU2alU

Desert

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bx3MrKOR5YHqZ2ppUHIyT1ZpRkk

I used it on the Inspiration a few weeks ago. It was nice having our room ready right away. Crowds of people were milling around with luggage waiting until 1:30 for their rooms. Also the guest services line was like 15 people deep on the first day. We were also let off the ship in front of the crowd, so there really wasn't a line at customs.

Thanks so much for the info!

Due to my teens testing schedule, I do not have the luxury of coming in the night before, so to play it safe I booked a very early flight that gets us in at 5am. Coming from the West Coast, that's like 2am our time. Is there a hotel at the airport or even an area of benches that we might crash for a few hours to catch up on sleep and wait for the Disney shuttles to start up? Thanks for the reply.

I actually just cancelled my Cheers order. I think it was putting too much pressure on me to drink more than I would typically on vacation. I think I'll just enjoy a drink or two in the afternoon and maybe enjoy some of my own supply of wine.

Good for you! We've cruised several times with babies. I've always said, I had a much easier time dealing with babies on a cruise ship than taking them to Disneyland.

We did the Chef's table on the Inspiration and it was really good, considerably better than two I have done on the Princess. The meal was served in the library as opposed to Princess where it was served in the MDR with everyone staring at us the whole time. Highly recommended.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that feature now. I clicked it and received a confirmation within an hour that I was confirmed. They didn't say what day yet but I am confirmed at least.

I really like that cruise. Catalina is really nice. I'm not sure how often they skip it due to weather; it's always been nice when I was there. I'm sure you will be fine in the summertime. Ensenada isn't really to my taste. I usually stay on the ship for that. A lot of people dump on this cruise but I think the ship is just fine and you can't beat the price. I'll be on that cruise next month, so maybe my opinion might change but as of now, I highly recommend it.

It's a little different for me because my teens are daughters (now 13 and 16), but I DO let them roam as long as they stay together. The last time we cruised, we did let my oldest who was 14 at the time roam but honestly, it was a little stressful. We had her check in regularly. They didn't have the wifi app back then, so there was one time she blew us off and I had to scour the ship to find her.

If you haven't ever been to the Zoo, I think you HAVE to go. Not many opportunities to see live Pandas. Be aware, it is a very big zoo and you will be doing a lot of walking.

I have 5 kids and, yeah, we cruise a lot and we cruise when the kids are out of school. I'm kind of sensitive to rude parents but honestly I don't see that many of them on the ships (and I'm going on the "cheapskate" Long Beach cruise a lot). Usually the crowd that seems the most obnoxious to me are the loud groups of intoxicated middle aged women who seem to go off the rails when on vacation. My advice if you are sensitive to kids is to avoid the main pool area when possible. The higher decks (sun deck?) usually have available seating and plenty of sun. The dining room is usually not that bad. People with the out of control kids usually don't have the patience to sit through a long meal and tend to congregate at the buffet. Best of luck!

My theory is that the food has probably remained relatively consistent but in the age of Food Network, Master Chef, etc..., we are all becoming more discerning foodies than in previous years... :)