3Sisters

@LukeJ Well that would have been ironic. Usually, opposites attract and since you love cruising maybe that's your favorite thing! How many cruises have you been on with your wife? My husband and I have been on about 10 together. I grew up cruising and when we met he had never cruised before! Now we cruise annually, and he does enjoy it, just not as much as I do. I'm not sure he will ever love it as much as I do.

@Rayk I haven't even looked into booking P&O Cruises! Thanks for sharing your experience. I will have to browse itinerary options with the line. What do you enjoy about P&O Cruises? Is it a more luxurious cruise line? Would you recommend this line for a family or is it more geared for adults-only? My apologies for all of the questions, but I don't know much about the line.

@Rayk Thanks for this info. It's always so convenient to pre-purchase specialty dining choices ahead of embarkation. Next time we cruise, I'm going to follow your advice and wait to see what the offers are like onboard. I have no problem booking later if I'm going to get a better rate. What specialty restaurant was your favorite onboard?

@LukeJ This NZ port is expecting lots of growth this year! https://www.cruisehive.com/new-zealand-port-expects-record-visitors-with-strong-growth/114606 Wellington would be on my list to visit based on its growing popularity.

@cruise granny sj I saw this CCL update on a popular souvenir guests have been concerned about. https://www.cruisehive.com/carnival-cruise-line-addresses-bitterness-over-sweet-souvenir/114630 This was another recent VIFP gift update. https://www.cruisehive.com/carnival-cruise-line-to-deliver-top-tier-loyalty-gifts/112257

@Woody14 Thanks for your input here! I appreciate that you have been on a couple of DCL ships and enjoyed them. I guess the DCL experience is all about the magic for the children and not so much for the adults. I'm glad that you enjoyed the older ships because I have found some of the older fleet members to be a bit better priced, depending on the itinerary of course. A short weekend getaway would probably be all we do for the price!

@Woody14 I noticed that Disney Treasure isn't cruising yet, but it does look amazing. It's just so hard for me to justify the cost of DCL, especially the steep prices of the new ships like Disney Treasure! I intentionally left out Disney Wonder because I noticed it was cruising out of CA, and I would prefer to embark out of Florida for a DCL itinerary. To make it less confusing, I will eliminate Disney Treasure from the poll. Have you cruised on any DCL ships in the past?

@LukeJ I love that idea! If I was traveling with a group, this game room booking idea would be fabulous. I love playing pool with a solid group of friends. A deposit is very smart, it could be in a monitored area like the arcade. I have to say, I would prefer a pool game over the VR stuff. It just makes me dizzy and confused. I rarely see people using it onboard anyway, and you get like 5 minutes of play. You should submit this recommendation to a few cruise lines. It's a grand idea.

@SpaceCowboy9 That's great feedback! If there is an accident on the road, expect a minimum of an hour's delay. It's always best to give yourself plenty of time and not feel rushed. It would be super detrimental to miss embarkation! My husband and I almost missed our embarkation time a few months ago due to a rental car facility closure. It was truly our mistake because we didn't check the closure time and it closed early that day, but we had to drop at another facility and incur an expensive Uber charge just to barely make it in time. Next time, we will give ourselves more time.

@SpaceCowboy9 You have a great point. Visiting family or having them visit would be difficult if you are a moving target. I would love, if I had space in my stateroom, for my loved ones to hop onboard and rotate visiting me onboard. The trouble is really catching a flight to wherever you are on the map and then having those guests be willing to fly in and out of different regions just to visit you. Those flights add up! I do have many questions about healthcare, and if my health insurance would work onboard.

@LukeJ Oh no, you are on to me! I would never divulge such a secret. The key to my heart is a cruise with my loved ones. Do I still sound like your wife?

@Mommabear Were you able to get these itinerary changes all sorted out? Despite the tragedy in Hawaii, Royal Caribbean is still slaying by outperforming its Q3 earnings!

@LukeJ Your wife and I sound way too similar. I want to be calm, cool, and collected but once my husband makes more than one wrong turn, he's gonna hear it. I like the idea of enjoying the scenery and making the detour part of the adventure, but when I'm on the 100th "Are we there yet," my patience is slim to none. That's why I love cruising so much, less whining in the car and stressing about traffic and wrong turns. A major perk of cruising is having an experienced captain and crew taking the reign on transportation. That means less nagging from me!

I have yet to cruise with DCL, but I'm curious to hear which ships are worth the price. I would prefer to get the full-on Disney experience, but if I can spend a little less on an older ship, I would happily to do that. Disney Treasure sounds amazing, but the prices are so expensive! https://www.cruisehive.com/disney-cruise-line-unveils-early-2025-voyages/114225

Post Tropical Cyclone Tammy is unfortunately still impacting cruises! Did these changes impact anyone's itinerary? https://www.cruisehive.com/cruise-ships-flee-bermuda-and-adjust-itineraries/114184

@Seaawgs Yet another Celebrity Cruises loyalty per has been added! https://www.cruisehive.com/celebrity-cruises-adds-new-loyalty-perk-for-top-tier-guests/114201 @Loyal Cruiser This new perk may be worth the extra money spent to earn your loyalty status, especially if you enjoy cruising with Celebrity Cruises. A new cocktail hour does sound pretty nice!

@LukeJ The Bahamas increased taxes after its renovations and it's been quite a success! https://www.cruisehive.com/massive-increase-in-cruise-visitors-across-the-bahamas/110494 https://www.cruisehive.com/bahamas-cruise-port-exceeds-passenger-visits-heads-for-record/113228 These taxes were much higher than what is projected for the U.S. Virgin Islands. I'm excited for this expansion!

@euroguy Those are two great airlines! I love that Southwest allows for two suitcases. That's a huge perk, especially when traveling for a week or more. Those are both reliable airlines so if anything happens you can hop on another flight without a hassle. There is nothing wrong with overplanning as long as you don't get upset when something deviates unexpectedly. It's always harder when you have every hour of the day mapped out and plans change unexpectedly. When that happens, I try to just roll with the punches, making the most out of it. I wouldn't want a little mishap to ruin my vacation! Flights from the U.S. to Barcelona really vary! They are all about $1,000 to $1,500 or more. You have to try that Barcelona cruise! That's such an awesome itinerary! You would only need a one-way from Barcelona. Is that with CCL? Would you be able to work from the ship?

I completely agree with you! I also prefer playing sports instead of watching them. What is your favorite sport to play? I love to run (I'm not sure if anyone considers that a sport), but when I cruise, I try to run at least once while onboard. Many cruise ships have tennis courts nowadays. I would love to play tennis onboard a ship, but I haven't done it yet. I always get distracted by the pool!

@euroguy How were the flight prices for that time of year? The big costs of flying end up boiling down to coordinating the proper time of day to travel and the day of the week. If you fly on peak days, the cost oftentimes doubles! I agree that there are limited options from the West Coast. At least the itinerary options are pretty nice! I happen to love Long Beach.

Let's not forget about Hurricane Tammy! Although it doesn't seem to be too strong, Hurricane Tammy will be impacting some upcoming cruise itineraries. Two NCL ships have already been impacted. https://www.cruisehive.com/tropical-storm-cancels-port-visits-for-two-norwegian-cruise-ships/113513

I also prefer taking care of all personal items before my vacation. It's better to go somewhere you trust. If you choose to go to a new hair salon, you run the risk of things like this happening. The salons onboard are pretty pricey too! Unless the salon onboard is super top-notch, it's not worth the price.

I couldn't believe it! Details of the first-ever floating cruise terminal have been unveiled. A part of the Meyer Group, Meyer Floating Solutions has revealed the eco-friendly designs of a floating cruise terminal. Now these are some modern-day designs! Where do you think this design could be a good fit?

@euroguy I would consider living on a ship as a part-time resident, but I can't imagine it full-time. @RoyalBee I think the HOA or membership prices have to be through the roof. I would imagine the extra fees are worth it considering all of the places you get to go and explore, but you are really paying for the experience. I would be interested to hear how it all works from an on-ship resident. @RoadTravelled If the price was right I could be a seasonal resident, but the quarters are quite small. It would be living like a minimalist most of the time. It does sound freeing to not have so much junk and a garage filled with toys.

@Cruising farmer I can't recommend visiting New Zealand enough! I have seen some wonderful itineraries that depart from Sydney and visit many ports of call in New Zealand. If you enjoy HAL, I recommend looking into some of the itineraries mentioned in this article. https://www.cruisehive.com/holland-america-unwraps-longer-voyages-for-three-ships/102391 How long would you be able to get away for a Down Under itinerary?