croozluv

My PVP told me it ends Friday, and that the $50 deposits are only good on 2014 sailings.

Aaahh! I'm glad I asked. Thank you both for the clarification - I appreciate it so much!:)

I'm cruising the Ecstasy in February and the Victory in October. Lucky me!:D

Anybody know if the safe is type where I need a magnetic strip card, or are they push button combination type safes?

I know in the past they've had the magnetic strip safes, but for some reason I was under the impression this was changing and want to be sure I bring a magnetic strip card if I need it. :confused:

Thanks!

Thank You so much!

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Is there any way to know for sure when Victory will get upgrades? Just curious as all I've found on CC message boards states between Sept-Nov 2014 - but we're booked for Oct 2014. :confused: I'm the first to admit that I really don't understand what 2.2 exactly means, or how they go about it (take the ship out of service? or just work on it little by little?). I guess I am just thinking it must be some sort of remodel.

Yes! We got walkie talkies and they worked beautifully. BUT...we had rules.

The problem is - people tend to get annoyed with the beep-beep, and I don't blame them one bit! SO ANNOYING! However, safety is a concern, so we came up with a system for our teenagers.

1- They always had to stay with each other. NO exceptions.

2- They were not allowed to go into any areas of the ship that weren't public areas. We went with a group of 15 - this meant they were NOT to go into each others cabins, or even down hallways with cabins. They had no business there anyway, except to find trouble!

3- We got each of them a waterproof watch, so no excuses for not knowing the time. They were cheapies ($12 each) - Timex Men's T5H091 1440 Sports Digital Watch, Timex. They worked for the length of the cruise and at least a year after we got back before we had to change the batteries.

4- They HAD TO check in every hour, on the hour. We gave them a 10 minute window - so for the noon check-in they had to check in anytime between 11:55 and 12:05. They were instructed to go somewhere away from other guests but still together, in a public place - just not close enough to be irritating to someone else. In this check-in they would tell us where they were heading to next.

5- Additionally, they had to check-in if they were leaving that area before the next hourly check-in, so we would have a bit of an idea where they were.

The "calls" were always very brief and to the point, no chit-chatting, just making sure the teenage girls were safe and sound.

We got very good signal for the most part - we were even able to call friends who were on a tender boat when we were in port at Grand Cayman. We did notice the signal would break up just a tiny bit if the "talkers" were on extreme opposite ends of the ship, but this really didn't happen much. In this case, the teenagers knew they needed to get closer to the center of the ship to check in. Checking in was NOT optional - in fact, if they didnt check-in the consequences were staying with the adults for the rest of the trip! :eek: A fate worse than death for teenagers! :D

The walkie talkies we got had clips so they were easily kept right on our shorts or clipped onto a backpack. Also - we never had to worry about batteries because they were chargeable - we just put them on the charging cradle each night.

They were bright yellow and oversized so easy to find, and had lots of programmable channels. The official name is the Motorola MH230TPR Rechargeable Two Way Radio 3 Pack, FRS/GMRS. They came in sets of 3 and we bought them for $80.63. I think now they even sell them in a 2-pack for around $45, which is a better deal. Here is an amazon link:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0058W1I38/ref=oh_details_o03_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Hope this info helps you! And sorry if I got too long-winded - I get very excited when I can have meaningful input because so many people here have helped me :) Have a great cruise!

Thanks for all the great advice. Thought I'd post what we ended up with in case anyone else is searching for this.

We've booked Comfort Suites on Minola Drive. it looks clean, updated and got pretty good reviews on TripAdvisor. Also, there is a bar in the hotel which is always a big plus! :D

Does anybody know how safe this area is? I will definitely plan on parking beneath a light or somewhere more visible.

For anybody wondering... The total cost plus tax came to $110. We're staying there Thursday night, checking out Friday, and there is free parking for the night we stay. We can leave our car there for $12/night and plan on doing that till Monday morning, essentially adding $36 to our cost. They have a free shuttle TO the Port of Miami, and we can then arrange with the shuttle company to pick us up at the end of our cruise. The hotel staff said they cannot arrange the pick up, but that the price is about $10 per person.

In total, for the stay + parking + shuttle we end up at around $166. This hotel has a free hot breakfast and free wi-fi too. I should note that I did get a AAA discount on the night we stayed. I feel like we got an okay deal.

Thanks everyone for the good advice!

I will try all of these....Thanks!

Anybody know of a hotel we can sleep, park and cruise in Miami? I've called several and they seem to only provide transport TO the port - and you have to find your own way back to the hotel at the end of your cruise. Tried searching but didn't see anything, so sorry if this has been answered.:) Seems like the last thing I'm going to want to worry about at the end of a cruise is trying to flag down a cab/find a way back to the car. Thanks for any help!

Great! Thank You!

Hi Everyone!

Long time since I've been here to CC - hope everyone has been enjoying their cruising life!

I'm looking at booking a porthole cabin on the Ecstacy - and have a strange question I can't seem to find the answer to anywhere else.

When I was on the Legend in 2012 - we had to use a tender boat at one of our ports. So instead of exiting the Legend as normal, we were re-directed out a "tender exit". (Gosh, I hope I'm using the proper lingo here!)

This alternative exit was basically on a lower floor - either the main or riviera deck, where hundreds of us waited in a long line down a hallway lined with cabins. I'm sure it was LOUD and DISRUPTIVE for cruisers staying in those cabins.

I want to avoid EVER EVER EVER having the possibility I am a passenger in one of those cabins! Anybody know where this "alternative exit" is on the Ecstacy?

Ugh, sorry for my probably very poor explaining of what I'm asking, and thanks in advance for any help you can give me! :cool: