sparks1093

When you are in that country's waters you are in the country and need the documents required by their law.

Actually, you can fly back without a passport. There will be a delay while things get sorted out, of course, but there are provisions in the regulations that allow the waiver of the passport requirement for emergencies or humanitarian reasons. Fortunately for most cruisers the risk of having to leave in the middle of a cruise is low enough to be tolerable.

Still don't understand that extra math step- just figure out the net cost for the cruise when adding in the things you would need to purchase on X line that Y line includes in the fare. But one must remember that this is only for the add ons one desires on the first line that are included in the second- if one doesn't need the drink package it doesn't matter if it is included in the fare on the second line. (This presupposes that the cruises in question are of the same length, of course. And it must also be kept in mind that even if a 10 day cruise is a better value when breaking down the daily fare if one only has 7 days for vacation it's rather moot.)

I'm in the same camp that they will still go unless the number of cases really goes up, they'll make the announcements more prevalent, etc. I would go if it were just me, but since I'm traveling in a group I gotta go with with the flow.

Yep, always a good precaution. I expect that it will be business as usual unless cases really get out of hand. My travel companions are more worried about it than I am. We've cancelled our shore excursion for San Juan and will stay onboard.

I was just reading that Puerto Rico has declared a public health emergency due to a rise in dengue fever cases (500 cases). Any thoughts about what Carnival's response will be (if any) for ships calling in San Juan? We'll scheduled to be there in April on Mardi Gras.

You can also skate during open skate, if you want to (as I understand it).

When I priced the policies out we saved money buying individual plans when we had 2 trips in a year. If we were to add a third trip then it would save money to buy the annual plan. Essentially that is what you have to do for your own situation- price out the individual plans for the two trips and compare that total with an annual plan and then decide if the cost difference is worth the gamble if you do add a third trip.

And yet, ships have them. And ice skating rinks. And bumper cars. And sports decks. And ropes courses. As for the OPs comment, have we forgotten what it was like when we first started cruising, how certain things weren't as we expected them to be onboard? Some may have been sailing since they were kids so cruising is all they've ever known but most of us came to it as adults. Even though I "grew up" on Navy ships I was still amazed by cruise ships when we started cruising.

They did when we sailed with them and I can not imagine that they've stopped since it is a good source of revenue.

I had read about it but the reminder is still welcome, thanks! 🙂

@Warm Breezes Pebbles is just the cutest! Thanks for sharing! As for me every day on a Carnival cruise is a perfect day for me. From an early bite to eat at Lido, waking DW with a Mochaccino that's been freshly made, to a sea day brunch with DW and whatever family members have joined us on the sailing, to a leisurely day playing trivia, grabbing some sun on Serenity, to participating in Groove for St Jude (wearing one of the t-shirts right now), to dinner in the MDR and the night time entertainment whether it's a show in the theater or the comedy club, all topped off with a nightcap on our balcony.

We're on Mardi Gras for the first time in 24 days (woo-hoo!) and from what I'm reading should we tire of the itineraries we can always stay onboard and explore the ship more.

I read that one expert was predicting 1 month to clear the channel. I don't have a dog in the fight since we stopped sailing out of Baltimore but I do wish the folks that live in that area well and hope that no one drags their feet in getting things back to normal.

We are talking a year or two, most certainly, but since it took 5 years to build the original that is lightning fast. Given the impact on commuting in the area I would hope they don't drag their feet (of course anything is possible).

You know, I rather suspect that everyone who is citing another bridge collapse (including myself) is well aware of the differences. What will be similar is the rapid response as a result of the incident. Replacing the bridge is going to take some time, but it will still be fast tracked. Clearing the shipping channel will also take time, but no one will be dragging their feet. Since this bridge was originally opened in 1977 (after about 5 years being built) it wouldn't surprise me at all to find out that preliminary discussions and planning have been taking place long before this (quite possibly for years, given the normal speed of things).

We've found that this is something that varies widely. On some sailing it's easy to get a seat. On other sailings you can't even stand and watch the show.

I was using that example to show that when there is such a large incident the wheels tend to spin faster, that is all. No way was I trying to draw a parallel between the two incidents. I was also more focused on the opening of the channel than on replacing the bridge.

Just goes to show how often preliminary thoughts turn out to be incorrect ones. Glad that they got a Mayday off in time to get at least some traffic stopped.

All I know is that after winter reared its head again here in Vermont I could do with either right now. Have to wait 25 days though.

I wasn't really making a comparison other than to point out that when there is a huge economic impact due to something like this the wheels tend to turn faster. In any event the waterway will be open to traffic long before the road is, and the waterway is the main focus of this forum.

You are in line virtually and the effect is the same. You mentioned shows and the previous poster mentioned dinner. I didn't back up far enough in the convo, I guess.

Sailed on Capodanno that began life as a DE so I know exactly what you mean.

Ah, thank you.

I was just reading about the 1983 I-95 bridge collapse in Connecticut. They had a temporary bridge in place in 3 weeks and the bridge repaired in 3 months. When something that impacts an economy this much happens things tend to happen quickly. They need to ensure that there are no navigation hazards in the channel and once that's clear ships will be able to make that transit (my layperson's understanding, anyway). (ETA- just saw some pictures and parts of the bridge are visible in the water so those will need to be removed before the channel can re-open.)