kwbound

The reason guests were not being allowed to go ashore is because those flying home today were not informed until this past half hour. Carnival did not want someone to go ashore if the are scheduled to leave today. As far as activities, in lieu of the printed Fun Times, the cruise director has been making periodic announcements stating where activities are taking place and the times of the activities. We were told that the Fun Times are completed, but we personally cannot locate one.

I misunderstood. I thought that passengers had indicated to Carnival which day they wanted to leave. I didn't realize there were people on board who didn't know whether or not they were scheduled to leave today. I understand them not letting passengers off then. That uncertainty of not knowing when you were expected to leave would make it difficult to fully enjoy the day.

Forcing drinking and gambling? That's insulting.:mad:

I didn't mean they were forcing people to drink and gamble. My concern is they were forcing people to stay on board hoping that those people would then want to drink and gamble.

I was there in July 2015 and bought 30mg phentermine 30 in bottle for $59 at the Discount Drugs above the Diamonds Int. at the Forms Shops

Where are the Forms Shops?

how will preventative care prevent this? A ship is like your car. You do all of the regular maintenance work at a regular interval, yet they will always be that one part that will fail at random or something unexpected happen.

Just because something is random or unexpected doesn't mean it could not have been prevented with a thorough PM and inspection policy.

I couldn't agree with you more! I would still be having a great time. St. Thomas is a great place to be stranded!

But so far today no one has been allowed off the ship to enjoy the island.

Letters stating which passengers are leaving today are currently being delivered. Originally we were told last night that we would be flown home based on "zones", but I spoke to a a Carnival Care Specialist, and was told that they are disembarking those guests that have indicated that they want to leave as soon as possible. The Fun Times for the rest of the day is being distributed as I type this. We are still waiting for clearance to go ashore.

Paul - What reason are they giving for preventing those passengers who are not flying out today from leaving the ship? I would be getting annoyed if they had stranded me next to a beautiful island, but wouldn't let me get off to enjoy it. Are there any activities taking place? I guess that would be pointless if the Funtimes hasn't been distributed to let people know about the activities. I hope they aren't trying to recoup some of their losses by forcing people to stay on board to drink and gamble.

Thanks for your factual and level headed reporting.

Thank you!

 

 

 

Do you happen to remember how much your imitrex cost? My preferred med for migraines is maxalt (rizatriptan) but my insurance will not cover it, and will only give me four imitrex per month. I'll be checking for both when I'm there in December.

 

 

 

Overall it sounds like the 'good ol' days' of cheaper meds in Cozumel are over. :\

Last week in Belize Imitex was $5/pill and Maxalt was $4/pill. Phentermine was $75 for 30 30mg pills. I forgot to check on the migraine medicines in Cozumel. Phentermine was not available there without a prescription.

It was in port. Long story short, this was an unexpected but very welcome port for us in lieu of a cancelled visit to Roatan. Whike walking around I was in sincere disbelief at the prices in this place. It was practically extortion. Whoever said they charge "cruise ship prices" is incorrect. The prices were actually worse than cruise ship prices on some things, some food and beverage included. The knick knack shops as I call them were double on most of those cheap crappy things you see everywhere if not more compared to other ports. This is one port you have to haggle with and sometimes we could observe them flat out refuse other people on lowering their prices. Point proven is that they wanted double on those woven fabric bags people buy like crazy with sports teams etc on them than any other port on that trip. Se for another shop and a resin Mayan calendar. Same calendar that was 29 dollars in other ports they actually put a sticker on it for $89!!!

I think your experience would have been different had you gone into town. The town is actually quite pleasant.

I just would like to know WHERE in the OP did he ever state that he was getting ticked and having a poor time? He said it was unfortunate but also said it didn't ruin his cruise. Sometimes people just need to vent. I don't understand from your 1st post on this thread you have been negative towards the OP and anyone in favor of supporting him, finding reasons why he should just let it go, and excuses about the picture taking of the smokers. Like really, what is your deal?

 

It's very easy to say let it go, but you yourself aren't in his shoes. Maybe the smoke on the balcony isn't a major issue if you were in that position, but it is to him. Maybe something that is major for you, others may look at it like let it go.

Well said.

Well lets see, the OP complained to everyone on the ship that he could find. He even tried calling the company. Obviously they intend to do NOTHING about it. So what should he do? Throw a temper tantrum in the Promenade and hope they do something? At this point you can either accept it and deal with it after or continue to be a PITA to everyone you can find and get even more worked up and more ticked off or you can get on with your life and enjoy what you can of the cruise. You know that old saying? Lord help me change the things I can change and recognize the ones I can't.

Wow...so the OP is the PITA and not the smoker? This should be something that he could very easily change by reporting the transgressor, if the company would do what they should, when they should, at the time of the initial complaint. I would say that it is the smoker and RCCL who are the PITA to to the OP.

a smoking thread that morphed into a tipping thread. If we can somehow relate this to the way the smoker dressed in the mdr, we'll have a trifecta. :d

lol!!:d

I'm sure most countries welcome tourists with the expectation that they will spend some money while there.

Get an idea of airfare before you decide to book it. It might be expensive...more so than you might expect.

Good advice. I'll look at that tomorrow.

I agree with the OP's sentiments. This is the ONLY port of the 19 I have been to that is this over-priced. No where did someone actually try to charge me over $7.00 for a beer.

 

 

 

Additionally, I bartered for a souvenir for a friend. I ended up paying the price I saw the item for in a prior port that trip, Cozumel, rather than the $20.00 markup this shop added over the other vendors in the other port!

 

 

 

To add to my irritation, the shop keeper then tried to extort a tip from me for simply selling me an item when he's already clearly making a profit. By extort - I mean he actually demanded a tip.

 

 

 

I told him in America we tip for service, not for retail sales. He told me by lowering the price he was giving me service and then he actually told me I need to buy his lunch so he can eat. Had I not already handed him the exact amount needed for the purchase but hadn't yet gotten possession of the item, I would have told him exactly where he could get eat his lunch once he could afford to buy it. Needless to say, he didn't get another cent. I did feel better once I loudly alerted everyone in close proximity that the guy was actively and forcefully soliciting tips for retail sales. We tourists have to stick together.

 

 

 

By far, this was the rudest and most price-gouging port of the 19 I have been too... Everyone from my group also had consistent sentiments when we got back to the ship and compared notes.

Was this in town or in the port area?

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Thanks for all the suggestions. We'd definitely prefer the most lush islands. And I do like the idea of having a sea day at the end, although we may stay an extra night or two in PR, so that could be our relaxation days.

Both itineraries are very nice. Best to do a back to back and decide for yourself which one you like better.

That sounds wonderful. Unfortunately we'll be limited to just one this time.:cool:

We leave Sunday on the Navigator. We are thinking about booking a cruise on board for next fall out of San Juan. We usually sail from Galveston or New Orleans, so I'm not familiar at all with the Southern Caribbean ports. Which itinerary do you prefer and why?

We are early-mid-50s, and active. We love to snorkel, hike, kayak, explore and of course, beautiful surroundings.

Looking forward to hearing your suggestion.

Donna

RCCL docks in Coxen Hole. It's an entirely different sea environment than the old Dixon Cove where Mahogany Bay is located. The cove is very narrow and shallow. Doesn't take much wind to push the water. Ships back in, so they can pull out easier in the afternoon. That's a whole different ball game than pulling into a port bow first. If there was another ship scheduled to be in MBCC with your ship and they arrived first and will leave first, they probably took the berth nearest the ocean, meaning the Magic, big ship as it is, would have had to back up further into the cove under windy conditions, risking collision and really ruining two sets of passengers cruises. So yes safety first.

 

I understand it can be disappointing not to dock in a port, and for some sea days aren't eventful...just chill and appreciate the down time and money saved on excursions. Not the end of the world.

 

RCCL has been starting to direct some cruises to the mainland and if that happens on the RCCL cruise you book, you'll miss Roatan again. So check itineraries carefully. And just grin and bear it as to the weather.

I hadn't heard that. Where on the mainland did they go? Was it day of decision were passengers informed prior to sailing?

When is your cruise OP? I want to check the list a couple weeks after and see if it's added. LOL

 

Out of curiosity, your going on a cruise that you paid good $$ for. Why would you want to hula hoop when you can do all the other billions of things they offer on the ship?

I bring books to read. And when all those billions of things are happening on the ship, I'll be happily laying on a sun lounge enjoying my books. If hula hoop is what the OP enjoys...it's her vacation, more power to her. She's welcome to come hula hoop next to me, as long as she doesn't block my sun, or the let the hoop knock over my DOD. :)

so, i did some googling and math and with the rentals ($15 pp), entrance to the park ($21 pp), entrance to tequila place ($10 pp), and cab fare ($22 round trip) the ships excursions was cheaper. $114 doing it on my own > $105 excursion. Thank you so much for your help!! :D

We were not charged to enter the little tequila village when we were there last year. There are a couple of small little buildings and a little patio area. It's cute. We tasted a few of the tequilas but did not buy any. We've tasted better tequilas in some of the shops in town, but I couldn't tell you the names of the shops or the tequilas, and unfortunately the bottles are long gone.

I'm also concerned with a language barrier. my Spanish is barely passable. Also, will they take USD or do i have to do an exchange and/or use a credit card?

I wouldn't go to Playa del Carmen just to shop. You'll lose a lot of your day traveling over and back. You can find plenty of tequila and places to snorkel in Cozumel. In either place, the people in the shops will be able to speak enough English to communicate. Everyone took USD from us in both places.

Have fun whatever you decide to do.

I understand it is a matter of personal preference and some people feel thesame about the scotch that I enjoy, but in my opinion, WHY would anyone WANT to drink Red Bull? It's vile, nasty stuff.

I like Red Bull. It reminds me of the old Nihi sodas...light and fizzy. I don't like any other energy drinks and seldom drink other sodas. I don't drink coffee or beer either. I HATE scotch, whiskey, bourbon and the like...they all taste like bad cough syrup with some sort of industrial cleaner thrown in. They ruin the ice their poured over.

Thanks for all of the responses. I think I will just get the premium package and see what happens.

Phentermine 30, 30 mg $59

May I ask which pharmacy you found the phentermine at, and when? Thanks.

It is included in the Royal Replenish package if that helps.

I found a disclaimer on the RCCL webpage that says the packages do not include canned drinks. How did the serve it? I didn't think Red Bull was available anywhere as a fountain drink.

Thanks.

Does anyone know if Red Bull is included in either the premium or ultimate drink packages?

Thanks!