Cruise Thoughts, Advice, and Opinions, Please.

[UKstages]

4 minutes ago, Daruma said:

 

🤷‍♂️

 

 

with regard to the shared image... the social media advice that a solo traveler should reserve a table for four...that's flawed advice, although it has an element of truth to it. it is simply not true that a table for four is the same size as a table for two. anybody with eyeballs or a measuring tape can quickly see that. in any case, we're talking about a solo traveler, and not two people... so the logic is fuzzy. you'd be reserving a table for three more people and that is selfish and may mean that other larger parties won't be able to reserve.

 

the principle of finding another solo traveler to dine with, should you want to, can be applied to your reserved table for two... ask one solo traveler to dine with you. i do this all the time when i'm traveling solo and using latitudes coupons for "free" meals. it doesn't always work... sometimes you can't find anybody whose company you'd enjoy and often everybody has other plans, whether it be other dining reservations or a show reservation. sometimes you're hard pressed to find one additional solo diner... this person seems to think he'll be able to find three!

 

by the way, sometimes, as a solo diner, you'll be seated at a table for four, with three empty seats. that's different.. that's the restaurant's choice - in the moment - based on available inventory. they know how best to manage their inventory. that's very different than reserving two or three extra seats in advance.

[sanger727]

I appreciate your desire to stick to your workout routine. I work out daily at home and intend to work out daily on a cruise, but it never quite happens. 

 

On shore excursion days it ends up not being practical to workout around the port times. I have trouble sticking to my normal meal/snack routines and end up eating a weird times. There tend to be activities in the afternoon/evening hours that I like to do.

 

I would just encourage you to be flexible about your workouts dropping a bit on the cruise. If you are very fit, you will see literally no difference in your fitness level when you return home if you miss most of your workouts for a week. I can't help you feeling like a "fatty" in your head; but the reality is it doesn't matter. Any significant weight gain you see will be water weight and come off when you get back into your routine. 

[Daruma]

2 minutes ago, sanger727 said:

I appreciate your desire to stick to your workout routine. I work out daily at home and intend to work out daily on a cruise, but it never quite happens. 

 

On shore excursion days it ends up not being practical to workout around the port times. I have trouble sticking to my normal meal/snack routines and end up eating a weird times. There tend to be activities in the afternoon/evening hours that I like to do.

 

I would just encourage you to be flexible about your workouts dropping a bit on the cruise. If you are very fit, you will see literally no difference in your fitness level when you return home if you miss most of your workouts for a week. I can't help you feeling like a "fatty" in your head; but the reality is it doesn't matter. Any significant weight gain you see will be water weight and come off when you get back into your routine. 

 

Thank you... honestly? I figure I'll miss my weight lifting/cardio workouts often due to exactly what you're saying. However, given how early I wake up and do my heavy bag work out, (I'm usually done between 7am/7:30am), I don't think port days/excursions will interfere with that workout.

 

🤷‍♂️ We'll see how it goes I guess... I mentioned doing a 2 week fast prior to the cruise for exactly that reason, and I plan to fast for the following week... so I keep telling myself that missing a few workouts won't turn me into Fat Albert, lol.

 

 

[Daruma]

15 minutes ago, sanger727 said:

Any significant weight gain you see will be water weight and come off when you get back into your routine. 

 

Yes, given that I'm sure that my Sodium intake will increase significantly, I'll probably hold water like a fish tank, lol. Hence the week long fast afterwards... to drop the excess water.

[cruiseny4life]

43 minutes ago, Daruma said:

 

First let me apologize for saying "fatty," as I meant no offense to anyone but myself.

 

Second... when I said "meat 'n taters" I was referring to my very plebian, (according to my father), pallette... I'm perfectly fine with "ok" food... I just want lots of it, lol.

 

If it's better than "ok" ... BONUS !! 😂

Oh my gosh, don't apologize!!! I call myself a fatty all the time on these boards. I am! And it sure ain't an insult to me - it's the truth. Truly, no offense at all. I knew exactly how you used it, which is to say, just as I used it. 

 

Glad to hear about the palette! Since food seemed so core to your experience, I just wanted to level-set expectations so that you didn't have too high of them. 

 

47 minutes ago, UKstages said:

what i think is missing from any discussion of "hit or miss" restaurant recommendations is the context... much like they say on those investment commercials... past performance is no indication of future results.

I think you may be on to something here. Especially when discussing ship to ship and from one chef to another. I am more than willing to bet that there is a Cagney's in the fleet I would enjoy. Given my one previous experience, I just don't want to deal with it. Partially this is due to the privilege I have in booking Haven. Any given day I can order a filet, NY strip, or prime rib. There's no real reason to head to Cagney's for me. For those not staying in the Haven, I understand the appeal of Cagney's and do believe you can have a "hit" by dining at Cagney's. My experience was 1.5 years ago on Getaway. I'm sure Getaway's Cagney's experience has changed at least three to four times since I dined there. Great call out regarding the context! 

 

Also, thanks for educating me. I learned a new word today: ersatz. I like it and you'll probably find me using it in the future!  

[Daruma]

4 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

Glad to hear about the palette! Since food seemed so core to your experience, I just wanted to level-set expectations so that you didn't have too high of them. 

 

 

First, thank you, that's very gracious of you not to take offense, because truly none was meant towards anyone... again... except myself, lol.

 

Growing up my father appreciated my "plebian" pallette because I was fine with going out to relatively cheap places like Chili's or TGI Fridays... never caring about more expensive restaurants, with arguably better fare... I  don't think I'd know the difference anyway,  lol.

[www3traveler]

If you have a dietary issue (need low sodium), go on the website down toward the bottom and fill out the form found in the "Accessible Cruising".  Your dietary issue(s) will be encoded into your room key card.  As you present your card at restaurants your information will pop on their computer and printed out for your waiter.

[Daruma]

14 minutes ago, www3traveler said:

If you have a dietary issue (need low sodium), go on the website down toward the bottom and fill out the form found in the "Accessible Cruising".  Your dietary issue(s) will be encoded into your room key card.  As you present your card at restaurants your information will pop on their computer and printed out for your waiter.

 

Thank you, but no I don't have any dietary issues... just from things I've read, and some YouTube videos, I'm guessing that my Sodium levels will increase dramatically... so I'm sure I'll bloat up.

 

I normally eat once every 48 hours, (I simply enjoy eating this way and how I feel... plus given my love for food, and my prior ... uh... girth... it helps me stay disciplined), so just by eating multiple times daily will increase my Sodium, and thus my bloat, significantly. 

[ronheg]

I work out everyday when I cruise.  It’s difficult to get in a workout longer than an hour.  The gym doesn’t open until 6 am and by 7 am it is packed.  People are waiting for the ellipticals and treadmills.   Another problem is the bags.  I’ve only seen them on 2 ships.  Don’t count on them being there.  When you go on a shore excursion, they pre assemble you in a staging area at least 30 minutes before the excursion start time.  Most times excursions  that begin at 9 am will stage at 8:30 or 8:15.  It’s almost impossible to work out beginning at 6 then shower at 7 and eat a big breakfast and be done by 8 to get back to the cabin and get ready for the excursion.  Your best bet is to do most workouts around 4 or 5 pm.  The gym is still busy, but not too bad.  Working out twice a day is really only possible on sea days.

[Daruma]

1 hour ago, ronheg said:

I work out everyday when I cruise.  It’s difficult to get in a workout longer than an hour.  The gym doesn’t open until 6 am and by 7 am it is packed.  People are waiting for the ellipticals and treadmills.   Another problem is the bags.  I’ve only seen them on 2 ships.  Don’t count on them being there.  When you go on a shore excursion, they pre assemble you in a staging area at least 30 minutes before the excursion start time.  Most times excursions  that begin at 9 am will stage at 8:30 or 8:15.  It’s almost impossible to work out beginning at 6 then shower at 7 and eat a big breakfast and be done by 8 to get back to the cabin and get ready for the excursion.  Your best bet is to do most workouts around 4 or 5 pm.  The gym is still busy, but not too bad.  Working out twice a day is really only possible on sea days.

 

REALLY? Packed by 7am... on vacation? I'd have thought I'd be one of very few who get up that early to workout on vacation... especially given my thoughts on folks probably having been drinking all day and all night, lol.

 

That honestly surprises me. I'll probably get there around 6:30am or thereabouts, and I'm stunned, (at myself), that the thought of there not being a heavy bag never occurred to me 🥴

 

I'm sure that you're right regarding working out, and when, (on port days especially) ... <shrug> as I said, I was taught long ago that no plan survives contact with the enemy, lol.

 

Maybe if I walk into the gym coughing, hacking, and gagging I can clear some people out 😂🤣🤮

 

 

Edited December 21, 2023 by Daruma

[carohs]

Sidebar. Since you booked premium drinks and extra specialty, did you look into FAS+? It's something like $42pd for solo and includes unlimited Wi-Fi (not that the Wi-Fi is usable much). 

 

Of the specialty dining, we've tried Moderno and tempayaki. In Moderno they came around with each meat exactly once, so if they miss one or want more of anything you would need to let your server know. 

[Daruma]

11 minutes ago, carohs said:

Sidebar. Since you booked premium drinks and extra specialty, did you look into FAS+? It's something like $42pd for solo and includes unlimited Wi-Fi (not that the Wi-Fi is usable much). 

 

Of the specialty dining, we've tried Moderno and tempayaki. In Moderno they came around with each meat exactly once, so if they miss one or want more of anything you would need to let your server know. 

 

No, but thank you for mentioning it. Being an NCL neophyte I just saw the Premium package upgrade offer on my account, and working out to only $34/day I took it... I didn't know about anything called FAS+ until reading your comment 😂

 

The 150 FAS internet minutes is all I'll need... I rarely, if ever, use the internet at all while on vacation. I can probably sell some to a fellow passenger, lol.

 

Seeing the number of people wanting more, arguably better, internet while on vacation has utterly astounded me to be honest. No, that's not because I'm not tech savvy... I started my career in software a bit over 20 years ago, and I'm currently the CIO at my company... I know tech... frankly that's why I try to get away from it, lol.

[carohs]

1 hour ago, Daruma said:

neophyte

That's a good word, thanks. Didn't realize there's was an educated way of saying "newb." I can see my 10 yo using it too. 

[Daruma]

8 minutes ago, carohs said:

That's a good word, thanks. Didn't realize there's was an educated way of saying "newb." I can see my 10 yo using it too. 

 

I usually spell it NoOb or nOoB 😂

[yakcruiser]

If you guys could take a vacation in the spring or fall you should look into a Vancouver to Hawaii repositioning cruise. You could have a few days of beachy ports on one end and a few days of woodsy ports on the other end with 4 or 5 sea days in between.

[Daruma]

13 minutes ago, yakcruiser said:

If you guys could take a vacation in the spring or fall you should look into a Vancouver to Hawaii repositioning cruise. You could have a few days of beachy ports on one end and a few days of woodsy ports on the other end with 4 or 5 sea days in between.

 

Interesting idea, thank you.

 

For sure something to consider, much appreciated. 

 

With my son graduating from college in May 2024, and no more Littles in the nest... the world... er... calendar is our oyster 😆

[wil e coyote]

2 hours ago, Daruma said:

Seeing the number of people wanting more, arguably better, internet while on vacation has utterly astounded me to be honest. No, that's not because I'm not tech savvy... I started my career in software a bit over 20 years ago, and I'm currently the CIO at my company... I know tech... frankly that's why I try to get away from it, lol.

This. Definitely this. I do understand that some people have unavoidable needs to be in contact while on a cruise, and without internet they might not feel comfortable going. But I go on vacation to get away from all that. My goal on a cruise is to never actually use my 150 minutes of "free" internet, except when it is time to check in for the flight home.

 

Enjoy!

[chefchick]

On 12/20/2023 at 11:09 AM, Daruma said:

Ok, here's another question... when I make my Speciality Dining reservations, wanting to dine solo... do I make my reservation for one? I'm assuming so, but on an NCL Solo Cruiser FB page someone asked essentially the same question, and was told to make it for 4, because it's the same size table used for 2, and this way he could invite dining companions should he wish.

 

I don't want dining companions, definitely just dining by myself... so do I just ask for reservation for 1, and if asked when I show, say "no" to sharing my table?

 

Thanks. 

I often cruise solo and generally prefer to dine alone.  Make your reservations for one.  I have never been asked on NCL if I would prefer to share a table.  I have been asked by others sitting near me in the venue if I would like to join them (I’m sure they were just being nice) but I politely decline.  I really enjoy dining alone…enjoying my meal at MY pace (do I want to see a show and eat quickly, or do I want to savor every bite and take hours…it’s my vacation so I decide) 😎