Recent RCI cruise review

On 2/5/2011 7:59 PM, wrote:
On Fri, 04 Feb 2011 20:58:19 -0500, Charles
wrote:

The port maps are put out to steer passengers to cruise line approved
stores. I never use the port map. When you go on a cruise you need to
research the ports ahead of time and also get your own maps. Cruise
Critic's ports of call boards have a lot of info.

It is true that some ship's port maps don't have information on them,
but the HAL maps that we had on the Panama Canal cruise where we went
all the way down to Peru had both informative port maps and a lecturer
who gave interesting port talks (as opposed to port shopping talks). I
don't object to having the port shopping information on the map, I
just think they ought to be able to include other information also.
Why let them get away with such laziness?

Because if they told you about free (or cheap) shuttles, you might not
be inclined to pay for the ship's excursions.

Bill

On Sat, 05 Feb 2011 21:08:40 -0500, Bill
wrote:

On 2/5/2011 7:59 PM, wrote:
On Fri, 04 Feb 2011 20:58:19 -0500, Charles
wrote:

The port maps are put out to steer passengers to cruise line approved
stores. I never use the port map. When you go on a cruise you need to
research the ports ahead of time and also get your own maps. Cruise
Critic's ports of call boards have a lot of info.

It is true that some ship's port maps don't have information on them,
but the HAL maps that we had on the Panama Canal cruise where we went
all the way down to Peru had both informative port maps and a lecturer
who gave interesting port talks (as opposed to port shopping talks). I
don't object to having the port shopping information on the map, I
just think they ought to be able to include other information also.
Why let them get away with such laziness?

Because if they told you about free (or cheap) shuttles, you might not
be inclined to pay for the ship's excursions.

I was thinking more about them telling me about points of interest and
museums. One lady told me that they couldn't put a museum or
something like that on the map because it would expose them to
liability issues if people went there and it cost them a lot of money
in terms of taxi fare. That's just a lame excuse.

In article ,
wrote:

I was thinking more about them telling me about points of interest and
museums. One lady told me that they couldn't put a museum or
something like that on the map because it would expose them to
liability issues if people went there and it cost them a lot of money
in terms of taxi fare. That's just a lame excuse.

Don't listen to what "One lady" told you.

The port guide the mass market cruise lines give you is a list of
business that pay the cruise line to be listed. As Bill was alluding
too, as far as museums and points of interest they want you to take
cruise line excursions. They don't want you take take taxis or buses.
They make it difficult for you to get taxis and independent buses and
at many ports you have to walk a ways to find them.

--
Charles

On 2/6/2011 8:56 AM, Charles wrote:
In ,
wrote:

I was thinking more about them telling me about points of interest and
museums. One lady told me that they couldn't put a museum or
something like that on the map because it would expose them to
liability issues if people went there and it cost them a lot of money
in terms of taxi fare. That's just a lame excuse.

Don't listen to what "One lady" told you.

The port guide the mass market cruise lines give you is a list of
business that pay the cruise line to be listed. As Bill was alluding
too, as far as museums and points of interest they want you to take
cruise line excursions. They don't want you take take taxis or buses.
They make it difficult for you to get taxis and independent buses and
at many ports you have to walk a ways to find them.


It's so easy with the internet to look up port attractions on one's own.
There is also Cruise Critic's Port of call boards with wonderful
suggestions. If one is incapable of doing this, then one should ask
one's travel agent for advice.

I don't expect strangers to take care of *my* vacation. I do it myself.

--
Janet Wilder
Way-the-heck-south Texas
Spelling doesn't count. Cooking does.

On Sun, 06 Feb 2011 10:33:35 -0600, Janet Wilder
wrote:

On 2/6/2011 8:56 AM, Charles wrote:
In ,
wrote:

I was thinking more about them telling me about points of interest and
museums. One lady told me that they couldn't put a museum or
something like that on the map because it would expose them to
liability issues if people went there and it cost them a lot of money
in terms of taxi fare. That's just a lame excuse.

Don't listen to what "One lady" told you.

The port guide the mass market cruise lines give you is a list of
business that pay the cruise line to be listed. As Bill was alluding
too, as far as museums and points of interest they want you to take
cruise line excursions. They don't want you take take taxis or buses.
They make it difficult for you to get taxis and independent buses and
at many ports you have to walk a ways to find them.


It's so easy with the internet to look up port attractions on one's own.
There is also Cruise Critic's Port of call boards with wonderful
suggestions. If one is incapable of doing this, then one should ask
one's travel agent for advice.

Lots of people do not know about Cruise Critic. Even when there is a
large turnout for the meeting it is only a tiny fraction of the
passengers. Travel agents are primarily good for finding flights and
hotels and the like. Not for outlining places to visit in port.

I don't expect strangers to take care of *my* vacation. I do it myself.

I know that the recommended businesses and also the people that run
the excursions pay a heavy fee to the cruise lines to be listed and/or
it their business. But it is very short-sighted of the cruise lines
to not to provide additional information. The result is that people
think that there is nothing to see or do in the ports and they stay on
the ship. Thus the excursions and the shops and the port loses
customers. Maybe the beauty shop and spa get some business, but the
net result is that people spend less.

Perhaps the difference between our last HAL trip and this trip was
that we went to ports that do not have a lot of cruise ship visitors -
such as Manta, Salaverry, Callao, Santa Marta and Guayaquil.

On 2/7/2011 8:17 AM, wrote:

People who have a lot of cruises (like our table partners on the 2nd
cruise who were all Platinum) do tend to stay on the ship in port. The
newer cruisers go off the ship, but in ports that you go to many times
the experienced cruisers who have done the trip many times will all
stay on board.

Platinum members need to have 5 "points" prior to the one they are on
under the old system. Extra points are awarded by doing cruises over 12
days or by booking suites. Someone could have done as few as 3 cruises
to become Platinum. (2 3 day cruises in a suite and one 3 day cruise not
in a suite.) To me, that's not a frequent cruiser. Get your facts
straight, please.

The new system announced at the end of January now counts nights at sea
and is a little more fair, but still counts double for suites.
--
Janet Wilder
Way-the-heck-south Texas
Spelling doesn't count. Cooking does.

On Mon, 07 Feb 2011 12:27:33 -0600, Janet Wilder
wrote:

On 2/7/2011 8:17 AM, wrote:

People who have a lot of cruises (like our table partners on the 2nd
cruise who were all Platinum) do tend to stay on the ship in port. The
newer cruisers go off the ship, but in ports that you go to many times
the experienced cruisers who have done the trip many times will all
stay on board.

I was mistaken about the levels - the people at our table were all
Diamond. We started out Gold and got to Platinum by the end of the
second cruise.

Platinum members need to have 5 "points" prior to the one they are on
under the old system. Extra points are awarded by doing cruises over 12
days or by booking suites. Someone could have done as few as 3 cruises
to become Platinum. (2 3 day cruises in a suite and one 3 day cruise not
in a suite.) To me, that's not a frequent cruiser. Get your facts
straight, please.

The new system announced at the end of January now counts nights at sea
and is a little more fair, but still counts double for suites.

One lady at the table did a cruise on Enchantment in November, she was
on this one in January and she had another one in April. These are
all 9 or 12 day cruises. She had an inside room. She didn't do
b2b, but she had a lot of cruises (she told us but I don't remember
how many). She loved RCI and I don't think she had many cruises on
other lines. She went shopping in St. Thomas to get a white ceramic
watch. Other than that I don't think she got off at all. She was
working on getting to Diamond Plus

On our first RCI cruise on Grandeur of the Seas there was a man at our
table (who also happened to have been in my HS graduating class) and
he had done over 15 cruises on that ship plus other RCI cruises. I
don't know whether he was Diamond or not as he didn't mention it, but
I would think that he might be.

There aren't AFAIK any 2 or 3 day cruises out of Baltimore.

On Tue, 08 Feb 2011 11:47:01 -0500, wrote:

On Mon, 07 Feb 2011 12:27:33 -0600, Janet Wilder
wrote:

On 2/7/2011 8:17 AM, wrote:

People who have a lot of cruises (like our table partners on the 2nd
cruise who were all Platinum) do tend to stay on the ship in port. The
newer cruisers go off the ship, but in ports that you go to many times
the experienced cruisers who have done the trip many times will all
stay on board.

I was mistaken about the levels - the people at our table were all
Diamond. We started out Gold and got to Platinum by the end of the
second cruise.

On NCL I am silver and on HAL I am three star FWIW

In article ,
wrote:

People who have a lot of cruises (like our table partners on the 2nd
cruise who were all Platinum) do tend to stay on the ship in port. The
newer cruisers go off the ship, but in ports that you go to many times
the experienced cruisers who have done the trip many times will all
stay on board.

I don't think your generalization is correct. I have been on 37 cruises
and I only stayed on the ship one time during a port call and that was
because it was raining very hard, torrential, and never let up. I have
found there is always something to do in port even the most boring
ports like Nassau. Some do skip a port or two, those tend to be the
older senior citizens or those with mobility issues. Has nothing to do
with being experienced cruisers. The majority, experienced or not, do
something in port and the cruise line wants revenue from whatever you
do, whether selling you a shore excursion or you shopping in one of
their "approved stores". If you buy something those stores will ask you
what ship you are on.

--
Charles

On Tue, 08 Feb 2011 21:07:38 -0500, Charles
wrote:

In article ,
wrote:

People who have a lot of cruises (like our table partners on the 2nd
cruise who were all Platinum) do tend to stay on the ship in port. The
newer cruisers go off the ship, but in ports that you go to many times
the experienced cruisers who have done the trip many times will all
stay on board.

I don't think your generalization is correct. I have been on 37 cruises
and I only stayed on the ship one time during a port call and that was
because it was raining very hard, torrential, and never let up. I have
found there is always something to do in port even the most boring
ports like Nassau. Some do skip a port or two, those tend to be the
older senior citizens or those with mobility issues. Has nothing to do
with being experienced cruisers. The majority, experienced or not, do
something in port and the cruise line wants revenue from whatever you
do, whether selling you a shore excursion or you shopping in one of
their "approved stores". If you buy something those stores will ask you
what ship you are on.

I shopped in an approved store and they did not ask me what ship I was
on.

Speaking of mobility issues, someone told me that when he asked what
excursions he could do, that the excursion desk told him that there
were none that could be done by someone like his wife who had mobility
issues. With advice like that, how could someone be blamed for
staying aboard?

I always try to look at the excursions offered to see which I think I
can do or would want to try to do if I could. And using that as a
basis (plus information from other places or previous experience),
before I set foot on the ship, I have an idea of what I want to do in
each port in order of priority. Sometimes I jettison the plans
because (as in St. Maartin) I couldn't talk Bob into renting a car
there.

Sometimes I find that the excursion labels aren't completely accurate.
Snorkeling is usually at least medium, but it is easy for me to
snorkel unless I have to walk down the beach a half mile first.
Sometimes I have to talk to them and ask exactly what one has to
actually do. Then I have to figure out whether if I try it and can't
do it what the consequences will be for the others on that excursion.
I don't want to ruin it for everyone else just because I've
over-estimated what I can do.