Iwant2BatC

21 hours ago, bluesplayer said:

Not many options to choose from these days.  Many of the spa choices are for couples.   My husband is not a spa person.  There used to be many more choices to redeem your points.  What is everyone using the points for?   

The web site says your best option is to use your points for credit on your credit card. It seems pretty generous. 

Oceania is the only cruise ship that stays for three days in St. Petersburg. That gives it the edge IMO. We went and had a great cruise on Marina.

I believe Seabourn and Azamara also stay three days in St Petersburg.

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Hello -I am seeking information from anyone who has cruised on the Marina in this front facing veranda. Is there any sense of claustrophobia in this cabin or do you really have a wide vista? Anything you might tell me about this cabin would be appreciated. Thank you.

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We would definitely not leave Honolulu, but that brings up an interesting subject, since technically sightseeing planes do.

 

 

 

I'm intrigued by the bus so I will look into that, I've heard taxi fares on some of the other islands are pretty steep, can the same be said of Oahu?

You can take a lot of taxis for what a night in a Waikiki hotel will cost. And, although the beach is nice in Waikiki there are other less crowded beaches. Waikiki is a tourist trap IMO and there is so much beauty and history on Oahu it might be a shame to limit yourself to that area. A taxi from the airport to Waikiki will run about $35. From the ship about $12-$15. You can get a day pass on the bus and if you have a Medicare card it’s really inexpensive.

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There is a bus stop right outside the terminal and you can access almost any point on Oahu from there. Downtown Honolulu has great restaurants, China Town, Walmart etc. it is a short walk. Waikiki is a short bus ride. You can take a bus around the entire island or go to Pearl Harbor by bus. Go online to The Bus and you can look at all the schedules. It’s the biggest bargain in Hawaii.

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It was really fun before they put up the divider between the NLbalcony and the bridge wing. Fun to hear and see everything going on and chat with the officers. Personally I always try to get a suite on the Starboard side then you have access to whatever is happening on both sides. Miss that golf center too.

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The Hilo side hasn’t really been affected by vog but the Kona side has had major problems. I think Pele has calmed down now and even air quality on the Kona side is good again.

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CHPURSER - That's actually really funny, since IMHO a WA Chardonnay is probably better off Madeirized. I know a lot of people will be incensed by that remark, but even though I live in WA it's wines rarely suit my palate.

 

But the more sober point (sorry!) is that the wines we might buy on board are not kept under optimal conditions, not even close, a truth of which I was heretofore blissfully unaware.

 

So yes, I did know about the $18 corkage. What I didn't know was that I would have to get multiple cases of wine, by myself, to my cabin, and store them there. That makes it seem impossible, unless I got a folding thingie and only took two cases.

Since you live close to your embarkation port why not pack the wine in a heavy duty wheeled suitcase packed with bubble wrap or those cardboard separators. It would be heavy but probably much easier to manage than wine in boxes. Just a thought.

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I loved the Daphne

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I was over 75 when I did it and wouldn’t have missed it for the world. On the other hand I’m not rushing to do it again. The walk, through the cliffs, was as spectacular as the buildings. I took two 50 oz bottles of water in my backpack and also drank water in a cafe at the bottom. On the way up I drank from one bottle and kept pouring the other on my head to stay cool. When we got back to the top I needed to buy more water. Just take your time. No need to race. It is fabulous.

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Last month I carried my own luggage off and was on my way (in a taxi) to jfk at 7:20. Btw. A hint. Don’t go to the room they tell you the to if you are carrying off your own. Queque near the gangway out of sight. I was 4th off. The room they tell you to meet in is a long way from the gangway.

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......this also happened to us once a few years ago and on challenging cunard in writing to tell us what this charge related to

 

a long correspondence ensued until they admitted they could not actually tell me what the charge was for except it was related to our stateroom. i was annoyed as i had left the ship assuming my account was accurate and accepted therefore paid in full. i had checked the account items on the sheet slipped under our door with all receipts, before leaving , altthough they did say it was too long since we left the ship to find out what the charge related to but as you only find out about the additional charge once your next monthly bank statement comes to your home something which is out of your personal control, we felt that this was unacceptable and as you must sign for things aboard and i had all my receipts to hand none of which applied to anything in the stateroom. we never even used the minibar as we do not drink so it could not have been applied to that that.we also actually had the pol acker taken away by the steward since we never even opened it.nor did i take any of their towels, bedding, dressing gown and slippers home.nor have anything delivered to the stateroom either like breakfast for example so no tip was outstanding so it was a mystery to both them and us.apparently you have to take their word for it that you owe them but it left a very bad taste in our mouths.although we have cruised with them since then, it has only happened once.however if it happened to me again i would begin to wonder what on earth was going on and demand a more acceptable explanation /outcome . it has never happened with any of the other cruise lines we have sailed with.

Sure enough. It has just happened to me as well. Does anyone know if there is an email address we can write to about this added charge? Thanks

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Often private car/driver are offered through Excursions. The advantage over doing it yourself is that if you are late getting back the ship is in contact with them. We often use them especially in ports where there may be security issues like in Cairo. In that case the car came with a driver, plainclothes officer with a gun, and an Egyptologist who was a wonderful guide. We felt quite secure and worth every penny.

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I was told by White Star in the US that the baggage could be handled by the purser. I used a luggage shipping service on another cruise line once and we definitely had to claim luggage and clear customs then drop it outside. Sounds like the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing. I reside in the US so that isn’t a factor.

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Does anyone know if you can leave your bag with the purser to hand over to White Star when arriving in NY? White Star told me the purser would handle this but I have seen others say you have to claim luggage and go through customs before handing it over to FEDEX

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Any chance you have old credit card statements or check books?

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Sea Life Center!!

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I don’t think people realize how dry it is in Antarctica. Nasal and throat passages become very dry on these cruises making one more susceptible to infection. We were actually putting wet towels in front of our registers and leaving water in the tub and in small dishes around the stateroom. Good old Vick’s and Vaseline can help a lot. When I fly or go anywhere where I know the air will be much drier than I am used to I use one or both.

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All the nicer safari lodges have safes in their rooms. If you aren’t comfortable using those ask the front desk to put it in their main safe and give you a receipt. Take photographs of any jewelry you are taking or think about whether it will really enhance your cruise.

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I had one of the finest meals in my life at the Cape Grace hotel fancy restaurant. Impeccable service and exquisite food.

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Besides setting credit cards for auto pay notify your cc companies of the countries you’ll be visiting. Else they may cut off your cards.

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Just to toss in another idea- NCL/Pride of America has a great product IMO. I have done both the HAL RT San Diego Hawaii and the NCL POA. For seeing the islands POA has it hands down because you have so much more time in ports. They do overnites in Maui and Kauai so you can pick up cars and see as much as you have energy for. POA has recently been refurbished and they offer a number of dining venues.

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I miss the smaller ships! You will never get me on these huge floating hotels. I don't even like the size of the Noordam. I think many of us old timers miss the intimacy of the smaller ships. I really do.

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One of my pet peeves is that they add it on to the acupuncturist as well. My feeling is these people present themselves as part of the medical community. Don't think people tip doctors

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I was so sorry to hear about your Rotterdam cruise Hank.

 

 

 

I'm with you on the P'dam. We'll only have 100+ days on her so nothing compared to you but it's where we choose to "invest" a lot of cruise dollars ;)

 

 

 

That's said to hear that Ashford doesn't "get it". :( But, why am I surprised with a man that takes out libraries and ravages Crow's Nests (JMO of course). If she isn't replaced, then I suspect HAl will lose a number of cruisers and they were willing to pay higher dollars to sail for this ship, it's crew and the itineraries it offers.

 

 

 

HAL has NO ship in the fleet that can get to some of the ports we are going to next year -nor sail down the rivers.

 

 

 

We'll just enjoy her while we can. :).

Don't you think that Seabourn will get "absorbed" by HAL and those will be the smaller ships to replace the P'dam? Seems to me things have been moving that way for some time.

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