CruiserBruce

We didn't for Norway/Iceland/Greenland last July. In hindsight, it was ok without it.

How old is "college age"? Most of these issues are settled by being classified an adult at 18, I believe, in the US, and pretty sure its the same in Europe. So someone would need to be unconscious, essentially, before a POA would kick in. I guess you are asking strictly for what might happen on this trip?

They have been assigning times since resumption after Covid, but nobody knows the reasons for the time assignments. It has been very widely reported here that the assigned times are ignored.

"Best"? Limo with champagne being served. Taxi is probably the easiest. Going to the airport would depend on where you are staying. There is a train, takes 15 minutes. There are two hotels across the street from the airport, which what I would use with a "very early" flight.

You want to go SE 17th to Eisenhower, which takes you to Terminal 2.

No.

We have done the math for the last 3 cruises we have had HIA and for the next two that are booked. In each case we definitely achieve break even or better without too much effort. On the drink package side, we have 6-8 alcoholic beverages a day, 2 or 3 soft drinks per day, and several bottles of water. Worth way more than the daily drink package cost. Agree with the idea it's also worth something not to have to think about every purchase.

Your 11am time is "check in", not boarding. Check in can take a few minutes, and then you will likely find yourself waiting a little for boarding to begin. Boarding starts around 11:30, depending on when the rooms are ready. Yes, occasionally, the fire doors are still closed in a section or two, but that is usually for a very short time. I think its happened to us once in 15 cruises. Otherwise it is definitely a good idea to drop your bags in the cabin.

You absolutely don't need to put a picture in to get on board, or even to get your boarding pass.

"walking up to a tourist center and book same day" doesn't happen in Europe. Europe has strict guide and tour driver regulations, so it would be very rare to just find an available, licensed vendor(s) at the dock. Plus many Norwegian ports are small towns, without a lot of surplus tourist resources. Have you checked what others are doing on your cruise Roll Call, located here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/746-msc-preziosa-roll-calls/ Comparing Honduras and Norway is comparing apples and automobiles.

It's Emerald Princess. Airport transportation to the ship is based upon demand. They plan transportation based upon knowing when there will be people arriving. This can range from 30 or 40 people arriving in the next hour on various flights, which would require a bus, gathering all those people and their bags and getting them on the bus. If you are the first they collect, you might have to wait an hour...if you are the last, you may not have to wait at all. Or it could be 5 or 8 people arriving in a short time frame. They may have a van standing by, and it might take 30 minutes to round everyone up. Or you might just be a couple. As soon as you collect your luggage, they put you in a cab, and off you go. They are very good at this. Things usually go very well.

And there is no food offered on a 7.5 hour excursion? You are getting ripped off. Most excursions over 4 hours offer at least snacks. I would bet there will be snacks on the tour early, followed by lunch later. Have a big breakfast.

Butchart Gardens is in Canada, not Alaska. Try this board: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/23-canada-alaskapacific-coastal/

Because there really isn't anything to do there. The main hotel area south of the airport hardly even has restaurants. If I were to stay in that area, it would be a later arrival and an early flight/departure.

As this really doesn't have to do with Rome, and is all about Delta policies and procedures, I would ask this on the Cruise Air board, here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/77-cruise-air/ Lots more Delta experience and knowledge over there. As always in this situation, check your cruise line's air program...international flights are what those programs do best, particularly open jaw flights.

You will have cleared US Immigration and Customs in Vancouver when you board, so there shouldn't be any restriction in getting off the ship.

You don't stop in Glacier Bay...you sail around in it. There will be a ranger on board to do narration. Not sure if you can interact with the ranger...probably...but getting your passport stamped is unknown. Most ships, including HAL, have plenty of great outside viewing locations. If the weather is not favorable, the Crow's Nest on HAL ships is always good, but extremely popular. The Lido pool area would be next, but somewhat limited in viewing. If at all possible, Mother Nature permitting, be prepared to bundle up and stand outside.

Discussed frequently on the Northern Europe board, here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/116-northern-europe-amp-baltic-sea/ As mentioned, credit cards are extremely widely accepted, and definitely preferred. Last summer we got $60 USD (minimum allowed on a ATM) worth of Danish krone for 3 days in Copenhagen. Worked very hard to spend one third of it. We didn't use ANY cash on cruise stops in Norway, Greenland, Iceland and Canada. All credit cards.

Have flown a couple of times on Thanksgiving day. Some of the most pleasant airport experiences in my 40+ years of flying.

The better place to look is the Greece board, here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/463-greece-ports/ There is a very interesting hotel discussion going on there right now.

Cruise Critic doesn't have a PM feature.

They did when we stayed there on a land trip about 5 years ago.

That far out is usually not approved...BUT, I applied for a Sept 2023 cruise and a March 2024 cruise, and both were approved. I assume because the OBC has been approved through July 2024. There was a huge thread on the topic very recently.

And if you cancel, you run the risk of running into a already existing waiting list.

Some research here. Look at what @hallasm has provided. May be some vendors listed there.