AndyTheK

This is shocking

Not shocking at all! US law states that all earnings by US citizens no matter where earned are subject to US Income Tax. There are some exemptions, but gambling income is not one of them. Even less known is the fact that someone receiving Social Security type old age pensions from a foreign country is subject to a "double dipping" reduction (up to 40% IIRC) in their US Social Security pension payment! Uncle Sam has his hand in my pocket no matter what.

Hello! I've read on some random posts that the ships are now making US citizens complete a tax form for large jackpots, even in Intl waters??? Can anyone confirm this?

 

 

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Yes. See http://www.oceanplayersclub.com/vip-services/faqs.aspx

Has anyone seen anything official from Princess in this regard? We're due to embark on 31 May. I've scrutinized my Personalizer for the cruise, and find:

 

1.We purchased Princess Shuttle transfers from LHR to Southampton (paid dearly for the convenience but worth it to us). The information on the Personalizer specifies meeting the Shuttle at Heathrow "between 9:30 and 10:00 AM" - this implies arrival at the pier in the vicinity of noon.

 

2. Green bar at the top of my boarding pass indicates "PREFERRED BOARDING". Yes, I read the note abouve about Platinum and Elite in the posting above.

 

3. DW uses a Princess-supplied wheelchair with pusher for embarkation. Do you think these nice folk will stand around until 2 PM - our time on the Aloha deck - if there is nobody for one of the "earlier decks" needing the service?

 

4. In truth, we don't need to be first n the ship, since we don't need to reserve Sanctuary space, Chef's Table, or see the maître-d'hotel for anything.

 

Let's see what will actually happen.

 

Shalom, Andy.

Oh [pshaw]! What a [goodness gracious] bummer... We're on the Emerald in a few weeks for 28 days B2B and I like only one of the special drinks.

 

Shalom, Andy.

Thanks for the picture... it's a starter. May I ask what a "people mover" is? Never heard the term in any other context except the Times Square area in NYC, where it is merely an urban planner's pipe dream. Is it lie what's called an LRV these days, or like a flat escalator? And where does one find it?

 

Shalom, Andy.

We will be cruising in June. DW will be using a manual chair off-ship - basically cannot take more than a couple of steps and cannot do stairs at all. We have previously been to Venice (not on cruises) and have visited all the "usual suspects". What we'd like to do this time is quite simple: if the weather permits, take the vaporetto down the Grand Canal to the area of Bridge of Sighs, and in that area have a leisurely lunch and do some strolling along (that's euphemism for "shopping" I think LOL).

 

What I'd like to know is the mechanics of getting from the pier where the ship (Emerald Princess, if that makes a difference) will dock to the vaporetto terminal. On our first visit, I had a detail or two wrong which led to a difficult situation.

 

Can anyone familiar with current conditions lay out for us what is involved in getting from the ship to the vaporetto terminal? Unfortunately, I am no longer the great "pusher" I once was, and I feel that trying to do this with her full size scooter would not be advisable.

 

Any help greatly appreciated.

 

Shalom, Andy

We just finished a cruise that was booked with the "3 For Free" Promo .... Our $100 per person excursion OBC was listed as a credit on each of our accounts, AND the $50 for the specialty restaurant dinner was shown on my cabin mate's account, since hers was the first name on the booking, instead of being on $25 on each account. A gift card in the cabin upon boarding indicated the dinner OBC.

We got to choose which restaurant and when.

Really glad to hear that. DW and I don't care much for Italian food, so have zero interest in Sabatini's. As the casino comps us a couple of dinners also, and we love the food in the Crown Grill, we're going to be happy campers.

 

Shalom and Happy Holiday from Tel Aviv. Andy

Expected or not, when using Southampton we always tip.

A pound or too is more then welcome for the good job that they do.

Dear sir, I was not asking if a tip is expected, nor what your particular practice is.. I was asking HOW one tips if there is never any contact with the people handling luggage, which is the case when taking the shuttle! The previous posts make it clear that since none is expected, the point of my query is moot.

 

Thanks Dave and Pia for a good clarification. See you both soon.

 

Shalom, Andy

DW and I use the Princes shuttle from Heathrow to the ship in Southampton. Our luggage (not hand-carry) is taken from us at the airport and trucked to the ship. We never see it until it winds up in our cabin.

 

A point is made on these boards that the longshoremen expect to be tipped, and we do so whenever we don't use the shuttle but come direct to an embarkation dock. But what about the times we do use the shuttle? Are the workers properly taken care of? How? Does anyone really know, not just guessing.

 

PS or luggage has always arrived at our cabin safe and sound - no evidence of mistreatment.

 

Shalom from Tel Aviv. Andy

I was not thinking of deep-tissue. Mainly brcause with a long standing program with one person working on me, my massages have become highly tailored to my particular situation (varies with tine), and I wouldn't want someone unfamiliar with me working that technique. Of course a straight Swedish would be more "relaxing" as you put it. But since I'd go in with that expectation, I would not be disappointed.

This link is much better and gives the requirements for massage therapists before they enter the Steiner Academy:

 

http://www.onespaworld.com/page/Global-Recruitment-Qualifications.aspx

 

Hope that makes you feel a little better about their qualifications.

Matter of fact, it does. I'll give the spa a try this cruise. T Thanks for your response.

 

Shalom, Andy.

For the last ten years I have had a wonderful massage therapist work on me once a week - it has saved my back on two separate occasions. I will be cruising this June (and also next February-Match) for 28 consecutive days. Up until now, on shorter cruises, I have not used the services at the spa. But this trip, I've been thinking of having one massage at the two-week point.

 

I know the price is about double what it costs here at home. Not the issue.

 

What I would like to know is whether the massage personnel are certified, or licensed in any way. Here in Israel, all massage therapists (not "recreational" ones of course) must be certified, and are required to keep up to date by taking courses every so often. This applies to all parctitioners of alternative medicine as well.

 

IOW if the spa people on board just can hang out a shingle and call themselves "therapists" I'll pass on the massage.

 

BTW I will be 100% resistant to any sales pitches. I can say NO as well as the next guy

 

Shalom, Andy.

We will be doing two B2Bs within the next 12 months. One turns around at Southampton, where you do not have to get off but just have to go to the gangplank and have your new cruise card verified.

 

The other one turns around in LA. Since this is a US port, we must get off, clear Immigration (we're US Citizens and travel on US passports so there's no IBP hassle) and follow the procedure outlined in this thread.

 

My question is this: DW uses a scooter on board. Is the turnaround (in LA) scooter-friendly in the sense that she will not need a ship-supplied helper (to open locked elevators, for example)? When the time gets closer (February 2014) I'll ask on the Disabled board, but it seemed logical to ask on this thread.

 

Has anyone actually done the turnaround in LA with a scooter or chair?

 

TIA and shalom from Tel Aviv. Andy.

I agree that tub wall is really high. I wondered how someone with mobility issues raises their leg over that? :(

They don't! No way we could book a regular mini-suite. Accessible minis have a roll-in shower. But very few accessible cabins of any kind on a ship... have to book early.

Thanks for a great report (as usual). Sorry you weren't feeling well, but it's good that you made the best of the situation.

 

We've sailed on the Crown three times, for a total of 41 days and she is one of our favorite ships. Your assessment of her vs. Carnival is right on, and is what the parent corporation wants it to be. Since we are not the "partying" type (for example, we don't drink much), the atmosphere on Princess matches our needs better.

 

There's one thing I want to add for those considering her (or any Princess cruise in Europe, most likely). I was surprised that the craps table was never opened on our last trip - Southampton to North Cape and return to Southampton. The floor manager explained that since most of the passenger demographic was from the UK and they are generally not craps players, the company cut ten employees and decided to keep the table dark. Likewise for all Europe itineraries. Unfortunately, our upcoming cruise is on her sister ship, Emerald Princess, in Europe with the same demographic, so I', not getting my hopes up for any action at craps. When I call in to check my perk status in a few weeks, I'll ask the rep if he can tell me what the 2014 policy is, and whether the table will be open.

 

If not, I'll be quire happy with blackjack.

 

Shalom from Tel Aviv. Andy

Not Pia, but last year the only shuttle from the ship in Cartegena took you the short trip to the entrance to the port. Since you have been there many times, you know that all that is there is a large souvenir shop with all of the typical items plus a fair selection of Colombian coffee and some nicer items. There is also a Juan Valdez coffee store, a small open air restaurant and a couple of dozen pink flamingos.

We'll be stopping in Cartagena twice next Feb/March. Is the coffee they sell in good bean form, or is it ground-up stuff? Also, anybody know if there's a problem taking coffee beans into the UK? We're mot touching the USA, and there shouldn't be a problem bringing it home here if it's a commercially-packaged product.

 

Shalom, Andy.

Our personal experience:

 

Bayou Cafe (Coral 2009/10) - very weak. Food that should have a "kick" like the gumbo didn't have much.

 

MDR Fried chicken Southern Style - NO NO NO! Not only was it not "southern" but it was the only course DW refused to eat in any restaurant in her life.

 

Shalom from Tel Aviv. Andy

Just so you know, those are NOT poker tables. They are table games. Poker is No Limit HoldEm, Ohama, 7-card Stud, Horse, RAZZ, etc. All of which you are playing against other players. Tables games you play against the house only.

Seems to me that the answer given by HENDRICKSFAN01 is what the OP was looking for.

 

Shalom from Tel Aviv. Andy

Thanks Pia for the Live.

 

Congrats on number 75. Us Johnny Come Latelys are jealous!

 

Make sure Mike takes it easy. When we sail together in June (really looking forward to that), Jo will keep him honest.

 

Shalom, Andy

We have a B2B booked on Princess starting May 31. This is booked as two separate cruises (not offered a a single continuous cruise).

 

Does anyone know how the Players Club works with this? AFAIK their cash up front is based on rating from previous cruise. Do they take into account length of the upcoming cruise? For this type of B2B will they consider it one long cruise or two shorter ones? We are table players and are rated accordingly.

 

I haven't called this in to the Players Club yet. I usually do that about six weeks before the cruse. Maybe I can get some up-front knowledge here.

 

TIA Andy

<snip>

 

You should look at which way is the best deal when booking a cruise like this being sure to factor in the different values of OBC from Future Cruise and Shareholders Benefit that you might get for the two shorter versus one longer cruise durations.

 

Terry

There's a lot to look for when deciding 2 verses one booking. Our 2014 B2B is not offered as a single booking. But we got the "3-free" promo for each leg, and refared for onr of the two legs. Going in with a LOAD of OBC in total for the two legs.

[quote name='Bases5']I shouldn't answer this because I'm not sure about Princess
Yes any table game will except cash. Most cruise line let's you get cash off your cruise card at table games. Just sit down and hand over your card.
[B][COLOR=Red]There is most likely a 3% charge getting chips this way
.[/COLOR][/B]
Most casino offer 3 card poker, its is one of the most popular table game's. as far is house Texas hold em, I doubt it, I have only seen this game in larger casinos.

Other princess vets can confirm this[/quote]Princess no longer charges a fee for obtaining cash at the tables. They did away with this practice about 2011 or so. Actually, at the tables you receive chips (regular table chips) which you will eventually redeem for cash at the casino cashier's cage.

Warning: this is not meant to be a "free of fee" ATM! You are expected to use these chips to play at the table. If you don't, but immediately go to cash in, they will let you do this ONCE, and then your card will be locked out of the procedure.

Good luck and Shalom from Tel Aviv, Andy

Lynn, I answered this on the Princess thread you started, Please check there.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2007977

 

Shalom, Andy.

From personal experience: On the Crown class ships (Ruby, Emerald and Crown) the theater is two levels: the upper level has wheelchair space at the rear but we have found that non-disabled passengers often block this area from the intended use. However, the lower level has a generous area set aside for chairs, and is truly accessible. Check the deck plans since the entrances to the lower level are not as apparent as those for the upper.

 

Sorry I don't know about any of the other ships.

 

As for improper use of the upper level (Promenade Level 7) area, we have spoken to the CD on one of the cruises (one of the BETTER CDs) but the crew seems to be unable to improve the situation.

 

Shalom from Te; Aviv. Andy

There are crew members assigned who have a list of passengers who need assistance. During the drill they will check all cabins on that list.