reaperman

We are still up in the air whether or not to jump on the Celebrity Equinox on Monday Apr 4. As I go over the flight details, dollar wise its better to arrive at MIA. But the flight doesn't arrive until 12:30pm. From there its a race to get to Port everglades. If we land in FLL the flight doesn't arrive until 2:30pm, still not much time. Having watched a ship sail away without us once at the port of Miami, because of a flight delay, Im a bit nervous. If we arrive in Mia at 12:30, is there enough time to make it to Port everglades before the ship sails at 4pm if everything is on time?

I know its better to come down the night before a cruise. We have done that in the past since missing the ship. But departure flight times at FLL aren't really the best either. If we decide on the cruise, this may be the best option. We never made the voyage from mia to port fll, so I don't know what to expect. But its a Monday so I assume traffic may not be the best.

Below is from a site that reviews travel insurance companies

http://www.travelinsurancereview.net/tips-and-advice/understanding-travel-insurance/primary-vs-secondary/

What is Primary vs. Secondary Medical Coverage?

Travel insurance plans offer primary travel medical coverage or secondary medical coverage, so what does that mean exactly?

"Primary medical coverage pays first regardless of any other insurance coverage you may have".

Secondary medical coverage starts paying after any other insurance coverage has paid whatever it will pay. This means that secondary medical coverage will pay the deductibles, co-pays, and additional out-of-pocket expenses up to the policy limit.

Primary medical coverage pays first regardless of any other insurance coverage you may have.

Primary coverage can make payment easier

For example, with some plans, the company will arrange for advance payment if necessary for the insured to gain admission to a hospital.

These following are primary coverage plans that will arrange for advance payment:

The Allianz Deluxe plan

The following plans from Travel Guard:

Platinum (Cruise, Tour & Travel)

Gold

This tells me I'm not over reacting, or expecting too much from Travelguard. The coverage is listed as primary on their site. According to the info above, the primary coverage should cover regardless of other insurance. I'm not trying to stack or collect payment from both blue cross and TG. Thanks to our lovely politicians the deductible on our blue cross coverage went from a $1500 deductible to $6250 yearly deductible.

From Travelguard's website: And yes, the policy was purchased within 15 days of the trip payment

$25,000 Accident Sickness Medical Expense

Pays for medical expenses incurred while on a trip

Medical Expense (Primary)

I took out travel insurance for our cruise in April. I bought Traveguard's gold policy because of its raving reviews on this site. There was a minor incident where my wife needed to see the ships Dr. during the cruise. The total bill for seeing the Dr. was approx $225. Upon arriving home and submitting the claim, Travelguard has denied the claim. Even though everything on their site I can find says they cover all medical incidents which occur during the trip up to $25,000. This was not a pre-existing condition.

What travelguard says is being we have medical insurance (blue cross) of our own, we need to submit to them first. If blue cross wont cover, they will. Here's the catch, blue cross says they will cover the claim even though it happened outside of the US. But obviously, the year's deductible on the medical plan is far from being reached. So the money paid to the ship's Dr, will go towards the years deductible, but nothing will be reimbursed.

Here's my beef. If everything Traveguard is telling me is correct, they need to re-work their website and stop misleading customers about how they cover medical claims. It even states they are the PRIMARY carrier when it comes to medical claims. Which means they pay first! Sorry, I'm frustrated about this whole mess. I know its only a couple of hundred bucks, but to me its more about purchasing something that only later turns out to be something else. I mean, medical issues are why a lot of people buy travel ins, in the first place. Anyone else run into this situation?

Look no further. I just got off a ten night cruise on the Sun today and have also been on the Dawn in 2011. Hands down, the DAWN. I wont say I had a bad cruise because I didnt, but to me there is no comparison between the ships. First of all the Dawn is larger which I will get to in a minute. The balcony rooms were almost identical, the difference is the doors going to the balcony. The dawn has sliding glass doors, the sun has a regular hinged door. The sliding door seems a bit wider on the dawn giving a larger view. The water in the stateroom on the Sun, to me, was not fit to drink. It had a very powerful bleach or chlorine taste, enough to burn my tongue while brushing my teeth etc. Which I found to be a inconvenience since I drink alot of water daily. Any other cruise ship I have been on had good tasting water from the faucet. Also a urine odor from the vent in the bathroom was present throughout the cruise. It may have been from a problem a few surrounding cabins (10th floor) had mid cruise. Where a sewage odor was very strong and got the attention of maintenance who pulled up carpet and kept portable blowers going for a few days. But this odor wasnt exclusive to the 10 floor, other areas of the ship also had sewage smells.

Now back to the size between the two ships. The main buffet area on the Dawn is huge, in fact it takes up both port and starboard sides of the ship. At least it did when I sailed it in 2011. The buffet on the Sun is way too small!! Its only a fraction of the size of the buffet on the Dawn. With a very limited choice of places to eat on the Sun, at times the only place to eat is the main buffet. Now try squeezing 2000 people in a place that might seat 200. Yes there is seating out back where the "great outdoor cafe" is. But thats not always convenient to walk back inside, wait in a long line again for another helping. The outdoor cafe is nice and being able to sit outside and eat is wonderful, but it still doesnt make up for the overly small main buffet. The food quality on the Sun was the worst of any cruise I have taken. Other cruisers who love NCL had all had the same opinion. The food in main dining rooms was pretty good. But some combinations I couldnt understand. Like putting apple chunks in turkey dressing??? The buffet food on the Sun was medium at best, not a lot of selection and pretty plain. I remember way more options on the Dawn. What surprised me was there is no 24hr food on the Sun, and no midnight buffet, a first for me. The sun claims to have "comfort food" from 10pm to 5am, in one of the bars. I went to check it out one night. I found a popcorn popper with popcorn in little bags, I guess I learned what comfort food is. The Dawn had a midnight buffet, and I loved the "Blue Lagoon" restaurant, real 24 hr food. Other ships have 24 hr pizza, deli's, etc. The sun has a nightly snack in the outdoor cafe from 9-11:30pm, pretty much the same menu day and night, hamburgers, hotdogs, salads, and fruit. On occasion they will mix in tacos and chicken wings at 9-11:30pm eating. At dinner on the sun you are limited to two choices, the main dining room or main buffet. If you dont like either the only other option is eating at one of the pay restaurants. Which I cant comment on.

I remember the chocolate buffet on the Dawn as a very impressive spread. Taking up one whole buffet area. The Sun has no such thing. The do market their chocolate night as a "extravaganza". Its not even close. There are a limited number of chocolate dessert choices in each dining room at supper time. But nothing like a real chocolate buffet that is displayed to impress as well as consume. The nightly desserts on the Sun, especially the bars and cake, all had a rubber texture and no taste. They looked delicious, but no taste. There were many who had the same opinion. One lady compared them to diet desserts without sugar, a good comparison. Definitely store bought and froze, not home maid. As far as the staff goes, both ships did a great job.

Again, I wont say I had a bad cruise, I didnt. I'm not necessarily fond of the fact cruise lines are going more towards paid food venues. These specialty restaurants take up too much space on a smaller ship like the Sun. If the Sun eliminated one of these, there would be room to add a place like the blue lagoon or a deli of some kind. But as long as there is enough demand to pay extra for a meal, something else will suffer.

Lastly, as if were not pestered enough on shore by the locals to buy whatever. It seems were getting the same treatment on the ship with a chance to "win a free cruise" or win this or win that. Or $50 dollar, no wait now its $20 double bingo. And naturally, the prize money always seems to be on-board credit, seldom, if ever cash.

I've been all over the carribean for nearly 20 years now. I dont ever recall being bit by a mosquito, never. Yet it never amazes me how many threads apply to mosquito's. Maybe, Im blessed growing up in a mosquito haven like Minnesota. Where you cant even spend 5 mimutes outside on a nice summer evening without being attacked by hundreds of these menaces. That I never noticed one or two while on vacation.

This is a good deal if you have a day to spend in Miami the day before or after a cruise. Much cheaper than a taxi by far.

Careful, all of those cruise ships sailing by each day are going to make you wish you were on one.

You have to keep in mind, NCL doesnt have any say-so as to the latest you can board the ship, US Customs does. When they knock off for the day, thats it, nobody boards that hasnt been cleared.

I found this out the hard way when our flight got delayed. Its not easy watching your cruise ship sail off as you watch from a stone-throw away. Do yourself a favor and book a earlier flight or stretch your vacation a day longer and go down a day earlier.

I know on our last NCL cruise, there was shampoo and conditioner dispensers in the shower. I'd assume that hasnt changed but I couldnt find any info on ncl's website. Being a guy, I'm not fussy about which brand shampoo I use. I just hate to pack more stuff than needed. Anyone sail the Sun lately that can verify? I'm staying on a 10 floor balcony if that matters.

On one hand I see many travelers saying travel insurance is a waste of $$$, and how they can afford a incident or the price of a trip cancellation.

On the other hand I see many threads regarding cruise prices and how everyone is trying to get the lowest fare possible for a upcoming cruise. All of a sudden, a $100 price drop means a immediate call to the cruise line for a better deal. If you can afford the initial price paid for the cruise, and even eat that price if something arises causing cancellation. Then why bother calling looking for a better rate after a price drop?

If you want to buy insurance for the peace of mind of covering a $2k cost - go ahead - but understand that's what you're paying for. From a strict financial risk/benefit perspective, buying cancelation insurance to cover against one $2k loss in 16 years of traveling is a bad bet.

 

Medical and medevac coverage is different - those costs can reach into the tens of thousands.

A bad bet? I thought just the opposite. Remember, medical insurance is also included in travel insurance so I was not only covered by trip interruption, but medical also had I needed it. I had spent $160 dollars total for that policy that covered my wife and myself with 2k, in expenses. Which I could have afforded out of pocket, but naturally, I would not have wanted to.

I ordered up another policy for our upcoming ten night cruise in two weeks which cost a mere $155. Hell, the wife spends more than that on new cloths before every trip we go on. With round trip air covered by frequent flyer miles, and booking the cruise after a decent price drop, I feel the policy has been included in the package free. I hope we dont use the policy, and I'd wish this for anyone who travels. We all know things happen, even to us young and healthy folks.

In the 16 years we have been married and traveling frequently we have never bought insurance since we never had any issues. Then 2 years ago we took a 10 day ncl cruise booked thru our always used TA. I decided to buy insurance for the first time that trip. Boy was I glad we did. We were at the airport, on the plane, on the run-way, next in line to take off. The pilot announces a engine warning light came on and it would be 10 minutes for maintenance to re-set the light (yea right). Long story short, headed back to the terminal, got off the plane and had to wait for the airline to find another plane to take us to Miami. By the time we boarded the second plane, we should have already been landing. Finally got to Miami, to the cruise port 45 minutes before the scheduled departure. Only to find out that we were not allowed to board the ship. Its a terrible feeling watching "your" cruise ship sail away without you on it. We ended up spending the night in Miami. Then took a flight to the Dominican Rep the following day to catch up with the ship the day after that. Which is another story in itself. Thankfully, travel insurance covered the cost of our little adventure which was approx $2100. I will never travel without it again. But I can see how people feel these days about being pestered to purchase protection for just about everything. From appliances, to our cars and homes, and yes, even vacations.

Remember fellow cruisers, support your local boarding kennel. As a kennel owners, we love to cruise also. I tell most customers the dogs do better than the nervous owners when it comes to leaving the pet. After five minutes the dogs forget all about the owners, but the owners leaving their pet behind stays in their mind all week long.

Im always a bit leary of leaving items on the beach while vacationing. In the past, I have always stuffed my money,cc,cruise card inside of two, ziplock baggies and put them in my swimsuit pocket. But everything still gets soaked. I actually have one of those waterproof containers with a strap for personal items but have never used it. Because its hardly waterproof and I really dont trust the latch from opening up in the water. I've looked for a better one without luck. I'd like one that has a latch with two loops that come together so I can put something between the loops (like a small lock or clip) to keep it from opening in the water. Am I being too paranoid, or is there a decent case out there somewhere thats worth buying. I really dont bring alot of $$ along, but I'd hate to loose a CC on vacation or cruise card. Thanks

I would call your situation a inconvenience, not a nightmare. You were most likely delayed about 45 minutes total. You have to figure the wait in line at most cruise ports is 1/2 hour plus, and 10-15 minutes parking. If you ever decide to fly anywhere, be prepared, the real nightmare lurks!

Why not? You bust your tail all year long working, wishing you were sitting back and being spoiled for a change. Life's short, enjoy, meet great people, and take in the beautiful scenery.

I will check out the market place, thanks. Any food recommendations? I'm thinking cuban is a good idea, but my mom really loves seafood too.

At Bayside, you will find so many options of food you will have a hard time deciding what to eat! Most food places are upstairs.

How much was the room and what zone was it?

Perhaps my deal was a bit different. But here goes. Its in the downtown district, where you want to be if you want to be close to the port of Miami. Go on Priceline, and click on "Express Deals". Put in your information and you will be given a list of hotels and PRICES in various locations around town. There is a search function where you can click on the part of town you wish to stay, airport, downtown, etc. Again, choose downtown if you want to be near the cruise port. That will limit your choices to 6 hotels. From there, make a your selection by *'s and price. This isn't the traditional way to get a room from priceline. But I had a $100 credit thru priceline that could only be used this way. I forgot which hotel the ***1/2 star listing is but its on the other side of a freeway and seems a ways from the downtown area. I'd give you the price, but last time I did on this site, the post was deleted by the mods.

Hi. Just reading some threads on Priceline, so I'm intregued but curious: Is there any way I can figure out which hotel I'll get before buying? I understand that purchases are final, so I want to take the extra steps to ensure we're happy with what we get.

I recently booked a 4* on priceline for Apr 6, 14 and ended up at the JW Marriott.

CAS, PCC, UDP ????? Worse than the army.

I know NCL and maybe other cruise lines offer to take your luggage to the airport for you for a small fee. This worked out well for us on our last cruise from Miami. We were in the same situation you were in with a later flight out. Our luggage was picked up at our room the evening before, and we didnt see it again until we got off our flight back home. In the meantime we bummed around town and did a everglade tour.

thanks for the pics. I will be there in 3 weeks and I was also getting concerned about the recent poor reviews.

Relax, we stayed there last year before a cruise and loved it. The location is ideal, we spent almost no time in the hotel other than sleeping. There is so much to do in that area you wont be disappointed. We will be there in about 3 weeks also for another cruise. As much as I wish we were staying at the Holiday Inn again, were not. We went the priceline route and ended up at the JW Marriot instead. Had I not had a priceline credit, we would have stayed at the Holiday Inn again.

How do you know the hotel will be in the downtown area?? A voucher for a "Miami area hotel" could be anywhere.

Because the site gives a menu and map showing different areas of the city with listings for each geographical area. Example: airport, south beach, downtown, etc. The downtown area is closest to the terminal.

Ok, I booked a cruise with priceline that departs Miami on Monday, Apr 7th. With the booking I got a $100 voucher towards a one night stay in a Miami area hotel. We are coming into Miami the day before the cruise departs and are looking at staying somewhere in the downtown area. A couple of years ago we stayed at the holiday inn, near the Bayside mall, and liked the area. Its also close to the cruise area. The choices of downtown hotels on the priceline website is limited to six different hotels. Naturally, no names are give, just six prices which range from just over $100 to almost $400 per night, $102, $112,$116, $159. $229, $379. Now for the magic question, does anyone have any idea if any of these listings are close to the Bayside mall area without spending the $379? Thanks