Essiesmom

Yes, I remember. We are on Seashore again June 23, and then a short one on Magnifica July 19. After that cruises on Carnival Vista and Venezia. I try not to plan too far ahead. I was impressed with the quality of participants in karaoke on Seashore, hoping they are as good this time. EM

I’m Diamond, but sailing solo in Bella. EM

I asked the same question back on May 25. Thread is nOw back on page 4. EM

It used to be if you didn’t want coffee, you turned your coffee cup upside down on the saucer. I would do the same with the wine glass. EM

Have you discussed this with Special Needs for your cruise line? I think others have reported the cabin steward will supply biohazard bags and a needle container. EM

I gather you are on the Nov. 30 cruise? There are some cautions here. Grand Cayman is a tender port and there are five ships scheduled. Unless you can get a priority ticket for first tender, it might be an hour or more before you could get ashore. And GC is sometimes missed due to winds or waves. Ocho Rios has two piers, but the main one was damaged a couple months ago so only the Reynolds (James Bond) pier has been in use. And there are two ships scheduled that day. Most ships have been diverted to Montego Bay or Falmouth. No one knows when the Turtle Bay pier will be repaired. EM

Some people bring their own drinks, usually soda, because the ship does not have their favorite flavor. Coke, not Pepsi, diet this or that. Perfectly understandable. I just drink iced tea. EM

Yacht Club is a separate area on the ship that has its own restaurant , pool deck, lounge, etc. you have to book it as a cabin category. 2. If you booked YC or Aurea experience, you will have anytime dining. You go to the separate restaurant whenever you want while it is open. On Seashore I believe it is the Manhattan Restaurant. YC has its own restaurant. 3. Checkin, when you get boarding pass and luggage tags, is available 30 days before sailing. 4. The main casino is open to the center of the ship and non-smoking. There are also a lot of slots in the Sports Bar that are also non-smoking. There is a room off of the sports bar that used to have a pool table but that was removed and it is now the smoking part of the casino, slots only. Yes, it gets smoky. 5. Whether the specialty restaurants are worth it is a personal choice. 6. Many more international guests that Carnival, people dress better, not just in the evening. EM

Tell her to buy a souvenir with USD and ask them to give her change in the local currency. In the Bahamas the money is equal, so she could just give them US money and ask for the equivalent back in Bahamian dollars. Panama’s currency is also pegged to the dollar so you might do the same. EM

Most of the cruises visiting Aruba are closed loop, and cruise lines are no longer very agreeable to having guests boarding downline because it cancels their closed loop status, so there is more paperwork for CBP and sometimes longer debarkation formalities for everyone. But, there are options. Start with cruisetimetables.com. From the tabs, choose ‘cruises to’. And choose Aruba. Then choose the time you want to cruise. I started in Jan. 2025. Each ship/itinerary has a map next to it. Look at those maps for one that is not a closed loop. And that ends in the US. Many of them will be on luxury lines that do irregular itineraries. Some will be cruises from the west coast through the Panama Canal. Since they are not closed loop, you might be able to persuade them to let you board in Aruba. But you would not get a reduced fare. NCL has some cruises that start in Panama City, transit the canal and end in FL. I don’t know anyone who has tried this, so I would go through cruisetimetables and find some that you think are possibilities. Then I would use a travel agent to deal with the cruise lines. I don’t generally use a TA, it for an irregular situation, I think I would. EM

Swap out Stumpy for Star Princess. Stumpy is five years newer…. EM

Depends on your ugly measure, but Moby ferries are pretty distinctive. I first saw them in Livorno. EM

Solstice class of Celebrity also do not have aft elevators. EM

Most ‘ordinary’ non-handicapped doors are 22” or less. You would need an HC cabin. EM

Other lines have reported this practice for Greece. EM

I presume they have learned how to work the elevators…

What type device were you using before you tried the app? I was working on an iPad in Safari. No go. Then went to the app, and it kept sending me in circles. So I went back to the iPad but opened up chrome. Login, etc went fine. EM

One hump or two? EM

They used to have a lot of games in the cases in the library on Fantasy class. Some of the ships used to have a giant chess board on one of the upper decks…but I could be confusing that with other lines. EM

P&O and Princess were pretty much one line when they were absorbed by Carnival..which incidentally was announced while I was sailing on the inaugural cruise of Star Princess in 2002. Singapore to LA. Loyalty points were shared by the two lines. In fact, it has only been in the last few years that that sharing ceased, at least with P&O-UK. And though they may be a ‘new’ class of ship within the Carnival brand, ships of that class still sail from North America. Caribbean Princess is the Golden and Star with another deck added, and has the Skywalkers lounge - the shopping cart handle - off the back. Ruby, Emerald, and Crown are the same ship without the handle. It’s too bad the Pacific Explorer (former Dawn Princess) is a 1997 build. She is the right size to fit into the Fantasy class ports, and was built with balconies, rather than having them tacked on. EM

I believe Aurea dines in Manhattan restaurant on Seashore. EM

At St. Maarten take the water taxi to the boardwalk. Beach and restaurants right there. EM

Go to Amazon and type in EU outlet adapter. Any one will do. Just make sure whatever you plan to plug into it is dual voltage. EM

Its just that their elevators don’t go to the top…

Princess grand class does. HAL ships up through Nieuw Amsterdam. Crystal ships (at least Serenity). Carnival Dream and Vista classes. All Cunard ships. EM