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Old November 7th, 2006, 08:38 AM posted to rec.travel.cruises
Brian K[_1_]
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Posts: 712
Default More questions [long]

On 11/6/2006 11:09 PM plucked Senior Frog's
Magic Twanger and said:
Thank You sooooooooooooooooo much !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We decided - 7-night Caribbean-Western - from Miami with Royal
Caribbean )) We decided to take just oceanview cabin, it was huge
diffrent between balcony cabin (at this date), we think it's better to
stay in Miami longer.
Ehhh... It took 3 weeks, but we booked our first cruise, finally....
Now we have more questions than before, I'm exetremly happy I found
Your group and You are so helpful... THANKS!!!

BTW, We are from Poland, we have polish passports and we will be back
before 31st of December, so i think we don't have "passport" problem.
We have valid american visas.

Our plan:
1.Labadee : ??? we don't have any plans for this place, we thought
about excursion from RCI but we couldn't find any intresting beside
SeaTrek Parasail, do You have any idea what to do there??? Have You
ever tried parasail in Labadee?

2.Ocho Rios: We thought to rent a car and go to Montego Bay, but we
worry is it enough time? We would like to see Dunn's Falls also, do You
know how far is it from the port? Where is the best place for shopping?

We read about Ocho Rios and we afraid it's typical industrial place and
there is nothing to do. Any sugestions?

3.George Town: snorkeling, can You recomend any place? We didn't want
to take our equipment, where we can rent something? We heard there is a
place where we can see stingrays during snorkeling, do you know
anything about it?
What do You think about visiting turtle farm? Is it anything
interesting in Hell?
What else do You recomend?

4.Cozumel: is it enough time (9 hours) to get to Tulum? how is with
ferrys? How did You spend Your day in Cozumel? I really would like to
see ruins in Tulum, but we afraid it is too complicated?

5. If You know anything about our ports of call (Labadee, Haiti; Ocho
Rios, Jamaica; George Town, Grand Cayman; Cozumel, Mexico) we would
love to "hear" everything, all kinds of information would be very
helpful

6. How does it work with arrival and departure times?
For example: departure time is at 4:00 PM what time we have to be in
the port? at 4pm we have to be on the deck or we have to be earlier?

7. What kind of transportation did You use? taxi, rent car, bus?

8. Is it only one meal included? Do we have to decide what time we want
to eat? Should we do any reservation before? What about room service?
Can we just order our meal to the room or we have to eat at the dining
room? I read somewhere room service is included, What does it mean?
food is included or service charges?

I'm sure most of the questions are silly but it's our first cruise and
we would like to know everything and prepare our honeymoon as good as
we can

If You know anything what we should know and we didn't ask, we will be
greteful.
We appreciate Your time ( spent by computer ) and all of Your advices.

Thank You
Eve


Once you have your booking number with most cruise lines you can go to
the cruise line's web site and view excursion information as well as
port information specific to your cruise.

An excursion to Tulum is doable. They usually split the time between
Tulum and Xcaret which includes snorkeling in a huge cenote. It's kind
of like being in a very big aquarium (no sharks). You just let the
current take you through an underground river to the ocean where guides
help you out.

If the weather and ocean conditions are good enough for the captain ok
tendering to shore in Cozumel the ferry will be running. Just for a
margin of safety go with the ship's excursion to Tulum. You could take
the ferry on your own it's inexpensive, and then negotiate a tour once
you arrive in Playa del Carmen; you might get a better deal. But since
that tour operator is not connected to RCL, they may not be as aware of
your time constraints. On a good day, the Cozumel / Playa del Carmen
ferry takes between 30 minutes to 45 minutes to make the crossing one
way. Even on the best of days, that patch of ocean has a certain amount
of chop. Expect the ferry to pitch and roll a little.

Chakanaab Park was totally trashed by Wilma. Hopefully by now it's been
rebuilt. It's reachable by cab. It's a beach park that offers a snack
bar, beach chairs by rental, for additional fee snorkel or scuba
excursions can be had.

When you arrive in port there will be all sorts of tour operators
hawking everything under the sun. Just like jewelry and tourist
souvenirs, you negotiate the price for your tour. You pay cash, US$ is
accepted. If you are good at haggling you might choose to go this
route. Just be sure that your tour operator is clear about what you are
getting for your money. Some will offer a free day pass at one of the
All Inclusive Resorts. All you pay is transport to the resort. What
isn't always made clear is that you have to listen to 90 minutes of hard
sales pitch for purchase of a time share. Those who cave and make the
purchase on the spot, get the VIP free days pass. If you resist the
sale they will try to back out of the free day pass. They may even
leave you up to your own efforts to get back to port. In most cases if
you are persistent they will give you a pass to one of the lesser
properties that they hold. That in itself is not bad, it's just that
the A I they give you the pass for isn't their newest holding.

Alternatively, you can take the ferry to Playa del Carmen, do some
shopping on Fifth Avenue. Then take a cab up to one of two beach clubs
in the north end of town.

In Grand Cayman you tender ashore. At the port you won't find as
frenetic a bunch of tour operators as in Cozumel. There's a bus that
goes out to Seven Mile Beach. It's inexpensive. The only downside is
that they wait until the bus is full to go out and return. If you opt
to do this, just be sure you get back to the bus or be ready for it 2.5
hours before you plan to be back in Georgetown.

Stingray City is a sand bar where the stingrays gather. The water is
chest deep on most people. You need a mask and snorkel so you can watch
the stingrays. One of the parts of this experience is feeding the
stingrays bits of squid. Stingrays have no teeth so the sensation is
not unlike an aquatic vacuum cleaner. If you feel squeamish about
feeding a stingray -- you don't have to do it. Before you leave home,
pick up one of those disposable underwater box cameras or two. You'll
want to take pictures there and perhaps other places you snorkel. Hell,
Grand Cayman. The attraction there is to send a postcard home from
Hell. Big whoop. Some tour operators combine a stop in Hell with a
trip to the Tortoise Sanctuary and Farm. As an eco tour the Turtle
thing is quite interesting with some "hands on" opportunities. I'd
rather do Stingray City or go to Seven Mile Beach.

Georgetown used to be known for great prices on tanzanite jewelry. No
so anymore. I've seen better prices on Overstock.com or QVC.

Ocho Rios is a good section of Jamaica, there are some good beaches
there. But you'll probably want to do the excursion at Dun's River
Falls, or tour Rose Hill Plantation.

--
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Brian M. Kochera
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