Algebralovr

I got an email overnight from my great TA -Lisa. (First name only with no agency should be Ok to mention I hope!)

She was able to upgrade us to the 123GO! Promo for our Feb 2014 cruise, but did say that Celebrity is nuts at the moment with all of us. She mentioned that she was on hold for 20 minutes, got cut off, then was on hold for another 30 minutes before the change went through. She cautioned me that we lost the early booking $200 from Capt's Club, but this gives us more!

We took the $300 OBC since that is the most flexible. It means we don't have to decide right now what we want, and is probably better for us.

I didn't bother to ask about the Feb 9 sailing on Reflection, it is fully paid for, we have our stockholder OBC already applied, and already purchased the beverage packages when they were on sale last June.

Counting the days!

I need to renew mine, it expires in Aug of this year, which way did go about renewing it?

Since you sail in April 2013, and it expires in August 2013, I think I would plan to send in for the renewal as soon as I got home in April. As long as you are doing a closed loop cruise, the 6 month rule shouldn't apply. If you are not doing a closed loop cruise in April, I would renew NOW.

I would not bother to expedite, just regular service. I would go ahead and add the passport card since it is not too much more if done at the same time.

I would like to thank all of you for the great education regarding service dogs that I've received as a result of this thread. All the info you've posted about SD laws really came in handy when I took a call from a scammer inquiring about an apartment over the weekend.

I was very careful to only ask what her "service dog" did for her to assist her in her daily life. I also asked about what training the dog had received. The poor dear was not prepared to answer either question. Of course, that was before she dropped the HUD bomb regarding rent (I'm sorry, we are priced just above what HUD pays) and the no job bomb. Apparently she and her boyfriend are both trying to get disability and can't work.

For training, "well I don't know, she just does it. She did it for another lady and we bought her from my friend after the old lady passed away." I thought of Roz and how she was practicing escalators a couple of weeks back. Really, a dog that just does "it"? Right.

I would have ruled them out once I heard about the no job part, but I appreciate knowing a little bit about what to ask missy about her "service dog" that she decided she needed.

Sorry, but I don't see it as a priority. Bridge was my Grandmother's game, and she enjoyed it until her death. In fact I remember commenting to her when she moved into an assisted living facility that she needed to look for bridge players there, since she had been complaining about having trouble finding them in recent months (after two from her group became ill). Neither Mom (her daughter), me or my own daughter have ever bothered to learn to play.

That said, I do believe they need to provide a nice area for quiet games with a bulletin board for sign-ups, new sets of cards and board games on a regular basis, etc.

I'd personally much rather play Munchkin, Carcasonne, Settlers of Catan, Killer Bunnies, or even just a basic like Life or Monopoly. I plan to bring my own of a couple of these and hope DH and I can find someone to join us to play.

Does she have a fried she can take along for when you and DH want some private time? I would definitely recommend an inside over three in a room. If she has a friend inside with her, even better. You save quite a bit with the inside rooms, and can get two next to each other, or one inside and one balcony across from each other.

For all of you with yeast issues, you might ask the vet if the human cream myconozle (which I probably misspelled- the iPad and I are fighting) would be safe. Since it is made for tender parts :eek:, it might be better to use than the athletes foot cream and isn't expensive any longer.

Also remember than a wash with dilute vinegar might help. It does a pretty good job on yeast, since it is a mild acid.

Lots of times, Grandma's remedies do a great job for very little $ and are safe as well.

And thanks for the giggles. Like many, I lurk on your thread regularly because there are so many great stories.

We stayed in the Plantation Hyatt Place and it was fine. Near a mall with a Target, supermarket, Barnes and Noble, etc. it was the least expensive we found.

HA! Sounds like an accurate description!

 

The TA we're going to talk to is swamped right now taking care of racefans coming to town for the Bristol races in a few weeks, but after that, we're going to meet with her. After the comments made here and viewing cabin photos, I think connected rooms are the way to go.

 

We've all got some questions to ask the TA and I'm wondering if any of you veteran cruisers have any tips on what to ask for.

 

~Deb :)

Is the travel agent someone who has cruised a lot? If not, you may need to find another who knows the ships and lines.

Also, depending on when you want to go, some of the lines are offering good deals right now for the very start of the winter season, once the ships come back from Europe. Early December, before the holidays start, early January, often the first sailing of the new year just after the holidays, or

The very end of the winter season in March/April tend to be less expensive. If you find what you consider a deal, don't wait to book!

Also consider a few other things. Are any of you smokers? If so, look at the restrictions on the various lines. For example, Celebrity does offer a package where you can purchase unlimited drinks, but they also have the most restrictive smoking rules. They do not allow smoking inside anywhere. Only outside in designated areas, and never on Individual balconies. There is a $250 fee if caught and they reserve the right to disembark the offending passenger.

Be careful as some rental companies restrict how far you can drive or charge extra if you go out of state or adjacent state.

It is only potentially worth it if you have 4 or more to travel. Southwest had prices unde$150 per person each way for feb when I checked. Also keep in mind cost for food on the road and hotel rooms.

We did Hertz, from FLL to Miami-Downtown one way and they didn't charge us a drop off fee. I was told that they have enough people coming off the ships that they cars end up where they are needed.

Look for a coupon code through your bank, Visa, etc. I paid $30 including all the taxes and fees in February. It was a small car (Ford Fiesta I believe?) but was fine for us. It would have been a little cramped with our teenagers, but for DH and me was great. They tried to sell me an upgrade for $10 to a full sized car. Even $40 for a full sized car is less than the cost of the shuttle one way for 4 people.

The car allows us to run around a little bit - dinner the night before, a stop at the mall when I realized I had left my book at home, and the drug store for nail clippers. No way would we have been able to do all that in a shuttle.

I'm planning the same tactic for the next cruise. We took a shuttle back from POM to FLL last year. Not sure yet what we will do this next year.

Algebralovr or anyone else, Does Southwest starting selling at noon like Jet Blue or at 12h01 (after midnight) like Delta?

 

Also, does anyone know when the next block of Jet Blue will be available?

Sorry, I don't know what time. I would just check when you get up that day.

I've read where you can "pay the difference" for more expensive drinks with the PBP. If I were to get the Classic plan, could I get say a Guinness every so often & just pay the overage from the $5.00 allowance?

Sorry, if you purchase the classic and want a drink over the max for the Classic, you will have to pay full price for that drink. The pay the difference thing only works for the Premium package.

The last cruise on the Eclipse in Feb, the tea choices were so-so. They did have a dargeeling, in a bag. To get hot water, you'll need to send a waiter to the kitchen for real hot water just off boil. Most of the time, they wanted to bring water that was lukewarm from an urn that formerly held coffee. You'll have to send it back or find a waiter from India who understands tea.

Thanks for the website referral. Looks like the dog in training is not covered if it does not yet have basic manners.

Guess it all depends on whether I want to risk the potential legal fees. I think I'll use the web site as ammo, along with the ADA FAQ. Time for documentation that animal is needed or out they both go. Since the animal is not trained, it is a pet. While it may be a service animal at some point, it is not presently such. As a result, a pet fee is due to cover the additional wear and tear (cause it has already chewed woodwork).

I'm more annoyed about them sneaking it in than anything else. Well, that and giving people with well behaved animals a bad name. I understand that dogs are actually meant to be working animals - ever seen a real shephard dog at work? Amazing!

Thanks a bunch for the help!

Hello, I've tried to wade through the over 360 pages of posts here and wow! There is so much info and I'm having a hard time finding what I need. I'm hoping that some of you can direct me to where I can have the info I need.

I own rental property and some LL's and I were having a discussion about service animals. I found a faq about them but that doesn't address my question.

Recently, the question was raised about emotional support animals. Now, I understand that a fully trained service animal is allowed into a rental with no question, that I'm not allowed to charge an additional fee (although I am allowed to inspect the property for damage regularly and to bill for any damage caused by the animal, but that is true of people with children as well). I also understand that while I cannot ask the nature of the person's disability, I am allowed to ask what kind of support the animal provides.

I also understand that while there are organizations that train animals, not all individuals with service animals get their assistants from these organizations and that some people actually train their animals themselves.

This is where the questions arise. Is a puppy (and I specifically mean a young dog) that is not yet trained, and may not even be housebroken (!) considered a service animal, even an emotional support animal? If the human claims it is a service animal in training, does that person/animal have the same rights as a human/animal pair who are fully trained?

In general, I allow small pets that are generally caged and well trained dogs into my property. When I am asked about dogs, I always ask for the age of the dog, and I want them to be at least 2 years old. I ask for vet info and proof that the local license has been paid, and I ask to meet the dog. Good responsible pet owners never argue, give me the info I ask for, bring the dog along to meet me and they invite me over to their place. I love those tenants and I often keep them for years at a time.

I have an issue right now, however, where some kind of case manager is arguing that an animal is a service animal. It is an emotional support dog in this case. In fact, the dog is a puppy, not yet trained and violates all my usual rules. When I asked for something from a physician it was refused.

Can anyone point me toward some documentation?

I appreciate that dogs can be a great support for some of you, but this guy is giving SDs a bad name.

Roz, you seem very knowledgeable and passionate about SA and I'm hoping you or someone else can provide me some links.

Sorry this is off topic about cruising, but it looked like there were a lot of non-cruise posts in this thread. :)

I posted a number of photos that we took from our balcony a couple of months ago. We stayed in 6208, one of the larger balconies on the slant. We learned to look over the obstructions.

You can't look down and see water. If you look out, you see the life boat. You can learn to look past the life boat. We got over the obstruction and enjoyed the cruise.

I was in 6208 on Eclipse and posted some photos in a thread if you do a search for me.

If you are flying into FLL and sailing out of POM, another option is to rent a car at FLL. Hertz has a location close to the POM and they offer a shuttle from their location to POM. I only paid $30 last month (Feb 2012) for a rental car for the 1 day rental, and it was great as it gave us the freedom to go out a little way for the hotel and stop and get what we had forgotten without paying extra for a taxi. If you have a VISA card, look on the VISA site for a coupon.

There is a gas station about 2 blocks from the Hertz location.

I have a newbie question.

 

I am going to be cruising on the NCL Epic November 10-17th of this year (woo!) and I have been looking at rates for flights leaving from Charlotte, NC to Miami, FL. I have read that it's risky to fly the day of, so I have been looking for flights in the late afternoon/early evening of November 9th (as of right now, I am planning to work until 5 PM, but I may see if I can get that Friday off or at least leave early).

 

When I first booked my cruise, I found a flight that worked well (leaving Charlotte at 7:55 pm nonstop to Miami, arriving at 9:55 pm) for around $350. Was advised by various people who have flown before that prices go down closer to the date of the flight and that I should wait until later in the year to book my flight. I have been keeping an eye on the rates, though, and that same flight is now showing a higher price. Eep.

 

Do I have cause to be concerned? Or were friends correct in saying that prices will go down closer to departure day?

 

Any help is appreciated. Thanks. :)

You don't state which airline you prefer to fly on, but I have found that recently the prices go UP not down the closer to the date you want to fly. I recommend that you check the prices daily for the next few days, then purchase as soon as you can. I generally fly SW, for example, and I usually purchase the week the schedule is released. Generally, prices are least expensive on Tuesday, but not always. Flexibility is the key, as Friday evening flights tend to be most expensive.

According to the Southwest page: "On May 21, 2012, we will open our schedule for sale through January 4, 2013."

So, now to keep watching, since I need Feb 2013.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1579443 shows some of the view from a 2D, 6208. Scroll down to #12 for the photos.

We had an oversized balcony and thought it was great!

I was in 6208 on the Eclipse and we had a view of the lifeboat, but we just ignored it and looked over it at the Horizon.

For 6209 and that side of the ship, be careful as that is right above the smoking area - at least on Eclipse.

It sounds like your question has basically been resolved. One option not mentioned here is to appeal to your home state to have the no-passport order lifted since he is meeting his current contract with them to pay the monthly and the arrears. It might take too long, so I am glad he is able to travel on His BC and DL, but might be worth pursuing as well. If the no-passport order is lifted in time, an expedited passport might be in order to be on the safe side.

Well, we paid for prepaid gratuities for our cruise on the Oasis on 11/26, last week, but our travel agent screwed us out of everything. We paid for $50 dinner credit, $150 on board credit, 1 spa visit and prepaid gratuities.

 

We received the spa visit paper in the mail. My wife contacted them a number of times before the cruise to make sure everything was taken care of and they said it would all be available. We got on board to find our $150 credit was only $100, no prepaid gratuities and no $50 dinner credit. My wife ended up having to call from the cruise ship to try and get this straightened out. After a couple calls, we got the dinner comp and extra $50 credit taken care of, but they screwed us out of the prepaid gratuities. We have it all in emails with exactly what we paid for, but they refuse to take care of the gratuities. We paid the extra money upfront to take care of them to, since we didn't want to worry about them at the end.

 

This was our first cruise, which we loved. We are hooked, but the travel agency part of this has been a nightmare. We double paid the gratuities. Do other people have these same issues?

if you actually paid the pre-paid grats, I recommend that you take this up with the credit card you used to pay them. If they were part of the ad you used, and you have it in writing that you had grats pre-paid, you should follow up with TA, credit card, and if necessary the BBB.