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Jewelry at Port Talks

canadian-nurse
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canadian-nurse

canadian-nurse

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Hello! I have just looked through several Cruise Compasses, and they all mention things like "free Oasis charm," "free tanzanite earrings," "free 1 carat midnight sapphire" etc. I'm wondering if these are all too good to be true, and if there is a catch to them. Is it a huge mob? Is it worth waking up early for?

 

Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks so much for taking the time to respond!!! :)

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Clarea

Clarea

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Hello! I have just looked through several Cruise Compasses, and they all mention things like "free Oasis charm," "free tanzanite earrings," "free 1 carat midnight sapphire" etc. I'm wondering if these are all too good to be true, and if there is a catch to them. Is it a huge mob? Is it worth waking up early for?

 

Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks so much for taking the time to respond!!! :)

Not worth it to us. Just gimmicks.

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micmacmissy

micmacmissy

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To me, this is the worst part of cruising.

-The "port talks" that are really just ads for stores that the cruise line partners with.

-The fake giveaways

-The awful "sidewalk sales" selling cheap watches and t-shirts.

 

Ugh, ugh, ugh...

 

OP, The stuff they give out (and read the fine print, it's probably a raffle out of all the people there, not everyone is leaving with something...) is garbage.

 

The worst of the worst? The woman trying to shove shopping fliers in your hand as you exit the ship at each port. Maddening!

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Clarea

Clarea

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To me, this is the worst part of cruising.

-The "port talks" that are really just ads for stores that the cruise line partners with.

-The fake giveaways

-The awful "sidewalk sales" selling cheap watches and t-shirts.

 

Ugh, ugh, ugh......

You forgot to mention the informercials they call "seminars" in the fitness area, where you have to pay hundreds of dollars for products that will fix all your ills.

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Hotel CA

Hotel CA

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There are extraordinary deals to be had a certain ports of call-- St Thomas and St marten come to mind-- but you do need to do your homework so you know what you might pay for similar item at home so you can recognize when it IS a good deal.

 

To echo previous statements--the seedier side of cruising comes out in these shore talks and sales gimmicks. But if you know what you want and what you might pay on the low end at home, you can find great deals from reputable dealers in the Caribbean.

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steamboats Great Review Rare

steamboats

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My DD and I made fun out of the port talks on the Majesty and went to all of them. Of course we had to go to the shops onshore an pick up all the crap :D. I have a nice collection of cruise "jewelry" now as I won´t take any real jewelry with me anyway on a cruise. You can see what we´ve got here (scroll down). First photo shows the Effy pendant (comes in various colors, I have more now - you can buy the matching studs for 10 USD in port). The second photo shows the Tanzanite pendant you can win (BTW we won it twice on that 4 night cruise). Third one shows the pearls (yes I bought the studs) available in Key West (only, I think). Last one shows the DI bracelet with the collected charms (100% plastic).:D

 

steamboats

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BillOh Holiday Sharing Rare

BillOh

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You forgot to mention the informercials they call "seminars" in the fitness area, where you have to pay hundreds of dollars for products that will fix all your ills.

 

Amen,

 

I was really put off by what was billed as a back pain workshop when I was on Jewel in 2012 (2 years before my back surgery) It was a shame they taught the same scam demonstration technique to Royal crew members that they do on land for $300 insoles.

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cruzeluver

cruzeluver

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Thousands upon thousands of those "free tanzanite earrings" have been given away over the years, so what do you suppose the quality of them might be? We got a pair a few years ago just so we could seem them up close. Set in base metal, inclusions so vivid as to make the stones very cloudy and virtually none of the violet hue found in good tanzanite.

 

The free charms are also just cheap, base metal and thousands have been given away.

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Bookish Angel

Bookish Angel

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Also, if you care about such things, do some research about the environmental and worker rights problems in some gemstone mining.

 

As for resale values stated in those port talks, caveat emptor. My friend and I attended one talk, where the word "amazing" was used 34 times, and heard some sketchy sales pitches. We know because we both sold fine jewelry for years and know our facts.

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nanwel

nanwel

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My jeweler said the value of the diamonds in those bracelets is around $2 and they are not gold. (you get a "free" bracelet in the first port and a new charm in the next 2 - 3 etc).

I did the ship walking tour yrs ago - got the bracelets and a new charm in every port - gave them to my granddaughter to play with - personally would not be caught wearing that crap - I take my real stuff with me - nobody is going to steal stuff off your body - if you are doing a beach day - leave it on the ship.

If I do not have a tour, I find a city/port map - usually someone hands that to you as you get ashore - if not look for a tour booth and get a map and go for a walk. If you want to go to the shops do so, if you buy, they often will give you a cruise ship discount - ask for one.

I do not like wasting nice weather to sit in a show that always starts late, and only a hand full of people get free stuff tossed into the audience.

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Clarea

Clarea

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Personally I love those port shopping seminars. Seeing 500 - 1000 new cruisers line up for the talks means everything else on board is less crowded for me.:D

A smart man who makes lemonade out of lemons.:)

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