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bjlbbk

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Everything posted by bjlbbk

  1. We’ve done private tours with Bodden Tours twice and we would definitely recommend them. The scenic tour and drive around the island to see the views was worth it in itself. We chose slightly different stops on each visit and it was nice to have the flexibility to customize your day (or change your plans on the go if desired). Both drivers that we had were born and raised on the island so were very knowledgeable and able to give us a true perspective of life on the island. On our most recent trip our driver worked very hard to show us some of the best views and unfortunately I got motion sick along the drive (it may or may not have been the overindulgence of food and drink all week that was catching up with me!). The driver was very helpful though and on his own doing stopped at a local store to buy me some ginger to help settle my stomach. Needless to say having our own personal guide and control of our own day helped tremendously as we did end up cutting our day a little shorter than planned. Had we been stuck in a group tour and that had happened I would have been at the mercy of the group. Their website highlights a lot of their most popular stops that you can choose from, but they are open to stopping at others if you find something in your own research. It is definitely worth checking out.
  2. The last few times we purchased the UDP we received a separate $20 daily credit for each of the a la carte venues. We would use our Playmaker credits towards snacks and/or late night dessert in addition to using a separate credit at Johnny Rockets and/or Port Side BBQ for another meal. They wouldn’t let you split up or save your unused credit for later in the day so if two of us were together (and neither of us were going to use all of of our credit) we would use just one of our credits towards our first visit and the other person’s credit for our return visit. It used to be that they would let you max out your credit more that once a day (sometimes even closing out one check and opening another right there on the spot to cover the rest), but I don’t think that is the case anymore. You can also reserve two dinners on the same evening if you want. We don’t make a habit of doing that but one time we made an early dinner reservation at one venue for appetizers and drinks and then made a second reservation later in the evening for our actual meal.
  3. For what it’s worth we almost skipped it on our cruise back in April because of comments and reviews here on CC but were so glad we decided to give it a chance in the end because our entire family ended up loving it. The theater was packed and the cast received a standing ovation at the end so I think it safe to say there are some fans out there. Don’t listen to the naysayers. Enjoy!!
  4. We’ve done a couple different things in that same situation. We took a taxi to Bayside Marketplace (an open air shopping mall in the Miami area) to explore and hang out for a while. We only had luggage for two though so maybe a little easier to navigate. We enjoyed a great meal with a view of the marina while there. We heard there used to be a few retail stores that provided luggage storage for a fee but we never found them so we just parked our luggage near us while we ate. We’ve also booked day use hotels… a great way to spend a few extra hours at the pool or catching a nap before you head back home to reality.
  5. We have done this a couple times now and thought it well worth it. We did it once for a group of ten in FLL and did it again just recently outside of Galveston for a group of four. We also had late flights, lots of luggage to deal with and did not want to sit at the airport all day. In both cases the hotel had a pool to help pass time and restaurants onsite or nearby. We did not spend much time in the room itself but it was nice to have a space to sneak in a nap, change clothes or take a quick shower before heading to the airport if you wanted. It kind of felt like we were extending our vacation by a day and it was a great way to regroup before heading home and to back to reality :).
  6. We were on this sailing with you (and at Sabor with you the last night too!). We absolutely loved Sabor and everything we tried. It was probably our favorite specialty dining meal all trip. You can’t beat that guacamole and pico. Soooo good!!! I enjoyed your review… thanks for sharing!
  7. We were on this sailing too and we must have been in all the right places at all the right times because we saw very few kids on board. We saw tons of babies (more than I’ve ever noticed before) and several preschool age kids with their families but very few school age or teen age kids (and none that were misbehaving or running around). We were shocked at how few people in general there seemed to be. This was the first cruise ever that we didn’t have to fight for a pool lounger or wait in any long lines (outside of Sorrentos and disembarkation). Sounds like we got lucky!
  8. We are still not sure what we are going to do…and our cruise sails out tomorrow! The best we could come up with is to possibly reserve a day use hotel. We did something similar in FLL once and just hung out by the hotel pool for the day. Not sure that would be much fun in January though! We are going to play it by ear ourselves depending on what the weather brings us that day. I’m glad you mentioned The Cruise Stop as that might be a great option for us too. $5 per bag seems way more reasonable than the luggage storage options I had come across. Not sure what we would do from there but at least we wouldn’t have to worry about dragging our suitcases everywhere we go!
  9. Good to know! I guess it won’t hurt to ask. If we are successful we can report back later to let others know. It is not a big deal or we would have made sure we were eating in the MDR on that particular night. Just thought it would be nice to take advantage of it if possible. We joked that we could just show up in the MDR long enough to order the lobster and then ask for a doggie bag to go. I’m sure they would love that. Ha!
  10. We will be on Harmony this upcoming week for a six night sailing and my app is showing lobster on the menu for day 5 (The Royal Night). It looks like the menu we will miss due to it being one night shorter is the Mexican night. A side question (but related to lobster)…if you have a reservation at a specialty dining venue on “The Royal Night” can you request a complimentary lobster tail as part of your meal since it is being offered in the MDR that evening? I have read where others have made requests for other items (favorite desserts, etc.) from MDR while eating at a specialty venue so was curious if anyone has ever tried?
  11. What a fun way to do a review! I love the extra info you added at the end too. Thanks for sharing!
  12. bjlbbk

    Isla Passion

    Is there a way to book this outside the cruise line? The only option I can find on RCI is with transfer by Twister (speed boat) which does not appeal to us and I can not find any other resources online. I’ve tried to go to their website (through Google search) and it was a dead end (showing the link as an error). Also in reviews I mostly see mention of Isla Passion as a Carnival excursion so wondering how crowded this option might be with several cruise ships in port on the day we will be there? Thanks in advance for any advice!
  13. Yep! We did exactly this on our recent Oasis cruise. In fact because there were four of us with the UDP we would split up our Playmaker credits throughout the day. We would get a mid day snack using two of our credits and then go back at night for a Touchdown Sundae or Campfire Cookie (or both) using the other two credits. We have even booked two dinners on the same evening. We don’t make a habit of it but one time booked Izumi Sushi early in the evening for an appetizer and then booked another venue late in the evening for our actual dinner.
  14. Nope… it wouldn’t sway me one way or another. Just thought it was interesting. My family thought it was kind of fun and joked that we apparently had a celebrity amongst us, but the family member who was in the photo wasn’t as impressed when he realized his shirtless dad bod was possibly out there on public display. 🫢
  15. Odd question… has anyone ever come across any photos used within the app (specifically the daily planner photos) and realized it was a photo of someone you knew? I was scrolling though my planner recently and came across a photo of a family member… from a family cruise we were on together in 2017. To say it was a surprise is an understatement…what are the odds!? Now it leaves me wondering if it is a total coincidence or if AI has recognized our connection from previously linked reservations somehow and then used that photo on my app? Either way it is crazy!
  16. Good point! I’ve never had a Texas Iced Tea but might have to give it a try. 😊
  17. Same. We’ll be cruising on Harmony for the first time in two weeks so I am both excited and encouraged to hear that OP is already having a REALLY good time! Following along to see which bars/bartenders we might want to visit!
  18. Happy to help! The Sundae comes with five scoops of ice cream which included at least three different flavors. Along with the Tahitian vanilla it also included a scoop of chocolate and one with carmel bits. Not sure if it is the norm (or if many people even think to ask), but they were very accommodating in letting us request which flavors we wanted in our Sundae. We never tried to ask for a flavor that was not already included so not sure if they would let you go that far…but it wouldn’t hurt to try!
  19. Fun Fact…back in the 80’s they printed and distributed a passenger list during our cruise that listed all of the passengers and where they were from. My Mom had saved this (and lots of other fun memorabilia) from our first cruise back in 1985. We only cruised a couple times during the 80’s/90’s and then added a few more cruises in the early 2000’s. Somewhere around 2012 (from what I can tell on my end) when they moved to the current Crown and Anchor point system I checked in to get credit for all my previous cruises. They were able to find my cruise reservations from 2004-2010 (which are listed in my history), but not the two prior cruises. I don’t remember having provided much outside the names of the ships and our sail dates. Not even sure if or how they verified that information, but they did give me the credit for those two early cruises. I would have to think they have the passenger lists in their archives (even if not printed for our enjoyment) and ways to verify that information with just the ship name and sail dates. If your son is having no luck with the one representative maybe calling back to get a hold of a different representative would do the trick? It would be worth a shot!
  20. The filet at Chops is usually our favorite, but I have to agree that the filet at Giovanni’s on our last cruise was top notch and actually better! We also love Playmakers for a lunch or a mid day/ late night snack…my family loves the Campfire Cookie and Touchdown Sundae if you are looking for something sweet.
  21. We have not been to Sugar Beach for ice cream (UDP does not cover it), but on our last cruise on Oasis we learned that Playmakers gets their ice cream for their Touchdown Sundae from Sugar Beach which is covered by UDP. My husband would request an all Vanilla Touchdown Sundae because the Tahitian Vanilla that came from Sugar Beach was his favorite (and in his opinion the best vanilla ice cream on the entire ship). On one visit they swapped out the Tahitian Vanilla with the vanilla ice cream from Johnny Rockets instead (our server got confused and thought it would be the same) and it was definitely not as good.
  22. Another vote for deck 8…we love the proximity to everything in Central Park and it is also our favorite deck to walk when crossing the ship.
  23. For our upcoming Harmony cruise on September 8 the entertainment opened up about 35 days out as well (I can’t remember the exact date). I usually start checking daily a couple months out. They definitely keep you guessing and on your toes!
  24. Yes, we would love to find a way to make the most of our day so a sightseeing excursion with airport drop off might be the way to go. I will check it out…thanks for the suggestion!
  25. Good to know! Do you think the timing of your trip on the way back played into the lack of Ubers in the area? I'm wondering if early morning is part of the issue if there are not many Uber drivers already in Galveston that time of day. Maybe there would be more available mid morning once the Ubers start coming in to drop off cruise passengers. We have a late flight so will not be in a hurry as long as there is a decent place to wait.
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