Sun lover 123

Thanks for the information DCCruiser!:D

Formal nights are the first sea day and Freeport (Monday and Friday).

Can anyone tell me which are the Formal/Elegant nights on the Carnival Pride 7 day out of Baltimore please:)

You can do the pink "hop on / hop off" bus. You get it right outside the cruise terminal and it does a good job of giving an overview of Vancouver. Very convenient:)

I'm perfectly fine in an ocean view cabin--even an obstructed view one. It's been a while since we sailed in an inside, but I wouldn't mind doing that again. Just get me on the ship.

 

My usual cost point is around $100 per person. If it's less than $100 per person to upgrade us from an outside to a balcony, I'll do it. If it's more, then I won't. But then I also look at total cost. If it's less than $100 per day per person, I don't mind booking a balcony cabin even when the difference is more than $100 per person over the cost of an ocean view.

Wow a $100 per person sounds like a great price...does that include taxes and gratutities?

Ha, ha Sadie...I'm from Ontario too...the one without the palm trees and with the snow:D

The ocean view that I'm looking at is on deck 2 with just other room above it...and I don't know what's below it.

I've only sailed on balconies that were much higher up (I think deck 6 was the lowest)...so that was the other part of my question...how is it in an OV so low in the ship?

I've cruised a few times but always in a balcony stateroom. I'm wondering if anyone can give me an opinion on ocean view cabins...and this one that I'm considering is on deck 2....the itinerary is good, the date is good and this cabin is 1/2 price compared to the balcony one. I'm thinking of booking it for these reasons...but I'm also a bit nervous.

It on the RCI Grandeur of the Seas from Baltimore. Opinions would help...thanks!

We're sailing to Alaska from Vancouver on May 16....will we need boots or will shoes be OK?

I know that we are allowed to bring 2 bottles of wine (1 each) on board the ship with us to enjoy in our cabin, but I don't know where I can buy it. We can't bring it with us on the plane in our carry-on and I'm afraid to pack it in our checked in luggage in case they break. We are taking a domestic flight (Ottawa to Vancouver) so we won't have access to a duty-free shop.

Can anyone suggest where we can purchase a couple of bottles? Is there a store in or around the airport or cruise port?

Thanks for your help:)

HOHO (Hop on/Hop off) Tour Vancouver

Information 1-877-451-1777

The companies below are all the same company now:

Big Pink Bus

Grey Line Sightseeing

West Coast Sightseeing

Big Bus

The cost is $40.00 per person CDN

You can hop on or hop off as many times as you like. They do not provide luggage service. But there is a luggage service at the cruise port provided by WestCoast Sightseeing (look for the “Port Desk”). You check your luggage in with them and they transfer it to the airport for you and you pick it up there. The cost is $40.00 for up to 4 pieces of luggage.

Hope this information is helpful to others as I did a lot of calling around to find this out.:D

I'm confused about the 2 HOHOs. Are the Big Bus and the Big Pink the same company? I've read several boards and it seems as though they're different...although that might have been in the past and now they're combined:confused: The price is the same, the route is the same and when I click on the link I see icons for both on the route map. Thanks for helping me to clarify this:)

http://bigbus.ca/home/route-map

The same people (Priority Baggage) also run the facility at YVR. Unfortunately your flight is too early to make use of their 'transfer 4 bags to YVR for $40' service, as they won't arrive until after 4pm when you'll already be in the air.

 

While the Canada Line skytrain does make getting to & from YVR much more convenient, it's still an hour for the round trip - with such a short period available, an unacceptable choice IMO.

 

Stanley Park is walkable, 45 mins at a leisurely pace (stopping for photos of the mountains, reading the plaques along the Seawall etc.), from Canada Place. Again though, with a short time available I'd recommend getting there fast to maximise time inside the park - local bus 019 is only 500 yards from CP, at Pender & Burrard, and gets you inside the park in 20 mins total.

 

A HOHO would nicely fit your time-frame, as well as bring you back to CP to collect your bags, and allow a little flexibility in spending time as you choose at the various stops. Tripadvisor paints a distinctly middling picture of all the HOHOs, but read the actual reviews not just the average score - a lot of both 1 and 5 star reviews are frankly nonsense over there, very few experiences are actually near-perfect or nearly-worthless! Also, we have three of them - Trolley, Big Pink, Big Bus. For what it's worth I enjoyed my time on the Trolley HOHO with my parents despite a breakdown and one utterly incompetent driver-guide (didn't even know the local CFL team!).

 

A straight-up tour, e.g. with Land Sea, may seem a more sensible option as this also allows you to stash your bags under the same bus and get dropped off at YVR all in one package but the value on this is poor IMO at $75 per person, as you could assemble all the components using HOHO (~$40 per person), Bag Storage ($7 per big bag), Skytrain ($4) or taxi ($35, but that's for the whole cab) with more flexibility - and more importantly, not have to hang around until 10am waiting to start the tour!

 

Since your DH has never visited, a little of everything rather than spending all your time in one place seems logical - and you'll also see a LOT of changes since you last visited.

Thank you very much for this useful information. I think we will try one of the HOHO tours. It will give my DH an overview of Vancouver...I realize that we won't be able to see it all in this short time frame:)

On the luggage front you have two realistic options: store it at the pier with Priority Baggage (website has been toast for a while, prices may increase this season but have been stable at $5-7 per bag depending on size for several years) and return for it before you go out to YVR; or ask a bellhop at one of the hotels to look after your bags for the day (a preemptive tip will work wonders).

 

On the 'what to do for a few hours' front <snark>Vancouver is a world-class city with natural and urban sites galore to explore. If you don't feel like Searching the boards, or even reading back through the thousands of posts on this very thread giving more suggestions than you can shake the proverbial stick at, could you at least give us a few hints about you & your traveling companions preferences?</snark>

 

I think every local here would agree Stanley Park is awesome and most visitors think it's one of the most Vancouvery things you can do, but if someone in your party hates trees/can't walk far/would rather tour an art gallery even visiting the finest park in the world is going to suck for your group... give me an idea of the kind of things you like to do in & around Ottawa, and I'll happily point you toward the Vancouver equivalent!

Sorry, I should have been more specific in my post. My husband and I are early 60's and have no mobility problems. I realize that Vancouver is a world-class city. I visited there a few times 40+ years ago as my sister used to live in Burnaby. My DH has never been there. I've been to the airport but never to the cruiseport, so I don't know if it's practical (or even possible) to go from the cruiseport to the airport, drop off (or store our luggage) and then go explore for a few hours. Also if it would be better to take a taxi or use the local transportation. When I last visited there was only a bus, but now I understand there is a Skytrain...

I remember Stanley park being beautiful but unfortunately can't remember how far it is. I was also thinking about the Hop on/Hop off bus being a possibility, but there are negative reviews on it (different site) so I thought posting here I might get more opinions/suggestions. Thanks:)

Can anyone suggest something to do in Vancouver for a few hours (5-6)? We dock at 7:00 am and our flight home isn’t until 4:00 pm so we’re looking for something to do to fill in the time. We will have our luggage with us from when we disembark so I’m not quite sure what can be done about that…

Any recommendations will be appreciated, thanks!:)

We're in the Niagara region. The driving distance isn't too bad. Just concerned about actually driving in Manhattan as we've never been in the area at all. Did you have to pre-book parking at the pier? Is there lots of parking availability? My worst nightmare would be getting there and trying to find alternate parking. :eek:

No, you don't have to pre-book the parking at the pier...there's tons of parking. They are quite prepared for all the cruise ships that dock there...it was very organized. When you drive in (it's clearly marked BTW) they ask you which cruise ship you're going on and then direct you to the right place. At the top of the ramp for your ship there is another fellow there to direct you again. We used our GPS and it was actually very easy to find.

If you've never been to New York and live so close I'd recommend taking a trip there for a long weekend, or longer if you can. There is so much to so do plus you can book a Broadway show (if you like that). I'd also recommend taking the Greyhound sightseeing hop/on hop/off then go back and visit the areas that interested you. I know I'm off subject here but I love NYC and think it's really worth seeing.

Enjoy your cruise!

Sandy

Today we booked a last minute cruise on the Breakaway out of NYC in 3 weeks. I have been using the search function, but quite honestly my head is spinning. Last minute travel is exciting but doesn't give much time to sort through the options so I appreciate any help you can give me.

 

We might be driving from Ontario, Canada. I understand that there aren't any park and cruise options in Manhattan. Would it be best to get a "park and fly" option in New Jersey or one of other NYC airports and then take a taxi or airport bus into Manhattan?

 

Alternatively, if we can find decent flights, what area of Manhattan would be reasonably close to the pier, but in a safe area? Any areas we should definitely avoid?

 

Thanks so much for your help. We'll get our first glimpse of NYC this trip and then hopefully we'll be back another time to take in the sights.

You don't state what part of Ontario you're from, but we're from Ottawa and have cruised from NYC a few times. You're right the hotels in that area are very expensive. What we've done each time is drive down from Ottawa the same day, it takes us between 7 to 8 hours, depending on time of day and how long the lines are at the border. Total fuel cost for return trip is around $90 CDN, the toll costs are about $20 CDN and the parking at the pier is $35 per day. The parking is a bit expensive but it is so convenient! You park right beside your ship and walk just a few yards to get on...and then coming back the same thing...no need to wait for taxis or shuttle etc. You get in and drive home.

There is also lots to see and do in NYC itself but we always do it as another trip as the drive is so (relatively) short and the road are very well maintained.

Anyway have a great cruise wheter you decide to fly or drive:D

There is a special shuttle that goes straight to the entrance of the Visitor center. the "City Bus" is something different. that is the bus the locals use to get to and from downtown.

How can you tell which is which...the special shuttle vs the city bus?

Is it a different colour? Also where do you get on it? And lastly how much does it cost?

Thanks in advance for your help:D

If you want to stick to Mendenhall Glacier and the Tram, do it independently!!!

 

It is extremely easy to do it. There is no need whatsoever to pay the cruiseline for it. In Juneau everything is right in front of the ship...

 

 

This picture is taken coming down from the mountain with the tram. The white bus you see on the parking lot is the shuttle to Mendenhall. See how close everything is?!

 

You would not have had to book anything for Ketchikan either. It is pretty small. We walked around in the morning and, because we had basically sen it all by noon, did a float plane bear watching tour with alaskaseaplanetours.com which be booked in a shack at the port. Not cheap but unforgetable...

 

Follow this link to see more pics... https://plus.google.com/photos/115329951158712806430/albums/5996595592895437361?authkey=CKb86-jfvJWL8QE

 

Enjoy Alaska - it´s beautiful!

Thanks very much for sharing your photos...they are beautiful!

I'm now looking forward to our cruise even more

We are going on a cruise to Alaska on May 16 with Holland American from Vancouver. We've got 2 excursions booked so far, both through HAL.

In Skagway we're doing the White Pass Summit Scenic Railroad (Mon.May 19)

In Ketchikan we're doing the Ketchikan's Cultural Discovery (Wed. May 21)

Not sure what to do in Juneau (Sun.May 18). I want to see the Mendenhall Glacier, but don't know if we should just catch a shuttle from the port, it looks like it costs $8 per person per way, so $32.00 round trip. Then admission to the Visitors Centre is only $3 per person, and it looks like it would be worth visiting. Then, depending on weather, I'd also like to do the Mt Roberts Tram which is only a 5 minute ride each way and costs $31 per person. I've read that it's a beautiful view from the tram and from the top but not worth the time or money if it's raining and/or foggy as you can't see very much.

The other option I'm looking at is the HAL tour "Mendenhall Glacier & Tram, which also includes a narrated tour of downtown Juneau and costs $64.95 per person. Again depending on the weather...the cost includes the tram ride, but again if it's not a nice day you won't see much.

Does anyone have any insights or opinions for me on this? Or maybe I shouldn't book ahead and wait until we get there to see what the weather is like? Any suggestions would be appreciated!

I should mention that we've never been to Alaska before and might not be again, so I don't want to miss anything that's really worth seeing.

Thanks!:)

Thanks for the update Marianne. We have a drinks package with our upcoming cruise and wasn't sure:)

yes. The beverage packages include drinks everyplace you can buy individual size drinks on the ship except for room service and your cabin's mini bar.

 

Every bar, lounge and dining venue is included.

Thanks, that was a quick response. Would you also happen to know if it includes frozen drinks such as pina coladas with rum...I can find a drink price list on Celebrity's site.

thanks again:D

Can anyone tell me if the beverage package includes drinks and/or wine in the main dining room and the buffet?

thanks:)

We are going on the Carnival Dream in 4 weeks in a cove balcony with the guest relations desk above us. I'll review when we get back.

Thanks Tigereye and REL, I'll look forward to reading your reviews on the cove balcony. I've read good reviews on them, I'm just not sure about being on such a low deck to get one. All of our other cruises have been regular, mid-ship balconies on the 6, 7, 8, & 9th decks.

Before booking a Cove balcony just make sure you are aware of what is on the deck above you. When I was researching them a few weeks ago I found several threads and reviews that stated the galley was above them and that there was terrible noise all through the night.

OK, thanks Donna. What kind of cabin do you have booked for the Dream in May? I know that this is one of the ships that they are available on and I was thinking of trying one. Have you cruised in one yet?

Thanks,

Sandra

I'm booking a Cove Balcony for a trip on the Dream but am wondering if other ships (Carnival or any other lines) also have these discounted, but nice, cabin options.

 

Thanks!

Hi Robin,

I know it's been awhile but how did you like staying in a "cove" balcony. I'm thinking of trying one, but I'm not sure if we"ll like it.

thanks:)

That is good it will save some paper..

Hi "We're sailing away",

I noticed in your signature how many cruises you've been on....lucky you! May I ask which is your favourite cruise line and why if you don't mind. We're relatively new to cruising and trying to decide which cruise line is best.

Thanks in advance for your advice :)