JohnG

It sailed full on it's first cruise since it came back.

I've been snorkeling for years at Eden Rock. Free shower and I can see the same things the scuba divers see. I've seen turtles there often. And it is free, and I don't need transportation to get there. It is easy walking distance from the tender landing.

Interesting that the picture in the original article is a Crystal ship and the article is promoting Princess. ???

I have usually gained a few pounds on a 7 day cruise or land vacation, but I agree that it is temporary weight gain, as it comes off within a few days after returning home to my own cooking. At home, more fish and chicken and less beef or other meats. Dessert only on Sundays at home. And I use low or no fat dairy products at home and control the salt. But I go on a cruise to enjoy the food, things I wouldn't make at home. And my preference in cruise lines tends to be driven by what I think of their food.

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You can see the itineraries and schedules right now at http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/search/vacationSearchResult.do?ship=QN Call me with any questions. I also have the detailed deckplans. My contact info at the CruiseCrazies Member Cruises homepage: http://cruisecrazies.membercruises.com/travel/HomePage.html

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I have found space in a hotel near the pier at reasonalble rates and it isn't that much of a walk to Jackson Square. The lowest rates are across the river in Gretna, but you have to take the ferry back and forth unless you want to park at the pier. I love sailing from here. We usually go down the day before to enjoy the food and entertainment. Coffee with beignets with powdered sugar at Café du Monde for breakfast at the foot of Jackson Square.

For same reasons, the Quantum of the Seas, which will be homeported at Cape Liberty, New Jersey, will also be doing Bahamas, Southern, and Eastern Caribbean sailings through the winter of 2014/15.

They had purchased lobsters from local fisherman "in season" and still had 12 kilos (about 26 lbs) of them left in the ship's freezer after the end of the season. That is why the permit was pulled for 45 days. Celebrity has had to cancel 2 sailings so far, but is appealing the action.

Norwegian Getaway, to be homeported in Miami, will also have studio cabins like Breakaway. And Royal Caribbean Quantum of the Seas will also have them. Those can be booked for 1 or 2 people. It will have a full size bed. The first person pays a 1st/2nd person rate, and the 2nd person, if there is one, pays the 3rd/4th person rate. Would be great for a single parent and child. Rooms will also have a live video window of what is going on outside.

The ship doesn't do the Bermuda itinerary at that time of year. It does a Florida Bahama itineraries. In fact on Jan 5 and 19 it is doing a 12 night Southern Caribbean itinerary. Then the rest of Feb it begins 7 night Florida and Bahamas itineraries. The season in Bermuda is April to Oct. After leaving York at any time of year, until you get below North Carolina, it can have more motion. But this is a very big ship. The itinerary to Bermuda shouldn't be rough unless there has been a northeaster in the winter or a hurricane between May and November.

Also strange, because whoever had secured it with a tow would have salvage rights to ownership of the vessel, as I understand it. They could have then sold it for scrap.

I have no idea how it said "cutlery" in my last post, as I typed drills, not "cutlery" drills! And it was too late to edit by the time I saw it.

In the briefings about emergencies, like the TV briefings that few people actually watch, but not during the cutlery drills, they recommend that you grab your medications, too, when the alarm sounds.

Actually, the Coast Guard contacted the Sensation to ask them to be prepared to assist if an evacuation had become necessary, because they were the closest ship capable of assisting.

Something is wrong here. The headline and the last line of the text contradict each other. The headline says: Royal Caribbean International to be largest brand by 2021But the last line says: Overall, Carnival brands will have 44.3 percent of the worldwide capacity by 2021, compared to 45.5 percent today, and Royal Caribbean, 24.9 percent, up from 23.5 percent today.

I was on a webinar yesterday with Vicki Freed and she said that they will be announcing the itineraries today. The likely aren't starting booking for Crown and Anchor on Monday because it is a holiday and they have lots of staff off for the holiday. The advance Crown and Anchor booking starts May 28 according to Vicki.

Princess has from time to time switched some of its ships back and forth between Princess and P&O. The Sun, Dawn, class for example. I suspect this new ship will be very similar to Royal Princess, tailored for the British market. The lines moving ships to Australia and Far East/China markets do the same thing, tailoring the onboard experience to the market, including food and beverages.

It is a split decision for us, too. My wife likes lots of sea days, and I prefer port days. But I agree with Amy that too many/port intensive itineraries don't allow time to relax. Now, with ships like Norwegian Epic and Breakaway, and RCCL's Oasis and Allure of the Seas, you need more sea time just to take advantage of all they have to offer. Maybe that is why I like the smaller ships like Azamara and Oceania because the spend longer time in ports, including overnights, and it is easy to get to know the ship and what it has to offer.

Swath, As an OLD journalism major, let me point out that script type fonts are more difficult for the average person to read, and red is more difficult for people with color-blindness to read. Just a suggestion, because the content of your posts is first class.

I was in a category O1 Family Midships Ocenview cabin. It is advertised as capable of sleeping up to 5, and it does not have drawers under the sofa bed. They definitely are short of drawer space. It has a great bathroom with a double wide sink and a tub with shower and sliding glass shower doors. I'm afraid a family in there would be living out of suitcases. These cabins are considerably larger than standard ocean view cabins.

Because I am a Sandals Certfied Specialist and an AMResorts Master Agent, I have been investing in some all-inclusive resort vacations so that I can answer that question that comes from client: Have you been there. In the last two years I have toured every Palace and AMResort in Cancun and the Riviera Maya. Two years ago for our anniversary we stayed at an adults all-inclusive in Montego Bay. This Feb for my wife's birthday we stayed at one in Ocho Rios. At the end of Apr we stayed at a family one in Cancun with my daughter. Every time we are on a cruise that stops in a port where I can get an agent day pass to an adults all-inclusive I do so to gain more insight. I have found that two of us can travel for about 5 days, including airfare, to an all-inclusive resort for what we can get a seven day cruise for. My wife does prefer cruising, and our 25th anniversary is already booked for the Southern Caribbean onthe Summit, and we will do her birthday next year on the Reflection because I haven't yet been on the Celebrity's newest. I agree that just doing land without a tour package can be quite expensive. As you saw in my review of the Norwegian Breakaway comments, food in New York is very expensive. If your shipboard bar bill is high, you might want to consider an all-inclusive, but there is only one in the U.S. currently. I guess my biggest drawback about all-inclusives is that if the weather turns bad, you are there through it. A ship will be somewhere else tomorrow.