Lisa63

Thank you for the reminder, Cheryl. I just printed out a few door hangs for our upcoming Carnival Victory cruise.

We will usually do one or two cruises a year plus one land vacation (not counting visits to the family in NY and FL). This year, we decided to skip the land vacation and take a short cruise to eastern Canada as we wanted to return there and the cruise was more cost effective. We'll still do a few weekend trips here and there, but as far as a long land-based vacation, we really don't do more than one a year.

We're also pretty easygoing when it comes to cabin choice. So long as it can accommodate the three of us, that's all we need. On a few occasions, we had staterooms that were 140 square feet, and we did just fine. I have preferences, of course - such as a window and a cabin that does not adjoin another - but if this were not available, I wouldn't rule out the cruise completely.

Joanandjoe, when were you on the Empress? We also did the Canada/New England itinerary -- August 2001. I'll have to look up the exact date.

I'd like to have a greater choice of outside cabins. On most of the ships sailing today, the outside cabins are in terrible locations -- either far forward or aft, or on the lowest passenger deck or under a show lounge. Many also connect to the neighboring cabin, which I don't like because of potential noise. (From my child...who can be a bit loud. I don't want to disturb the neighbors.) I don't need a balcony, and I'm actually a bit fearful of them as we have a child. So -- how about some larger (200 square feet) outside cabins in a better location? Please? And, maybe a few ships in the 30K-40K range, too.

World cruise, on either QE2 or HAL's Amsterdam... or any ship, for that matter.

WOW. If this press release was issued just a few days earlier, my choice would have been much easier! I am so glad we chose Century for our July 2007 cruise. JoeyandDavid, think about joining us!

That sounds GREAT to me. I'd love to meet you all on a cruise. Sad thing is, it's still 13 months away. But imagine the beauty we can all share.

For me, it's a combination of visiting new places and learning about their history and culture, while at the same time being completely removed from my everyday life. My favorite place onboard any ship is a deck chair on an outdoor promenade facing the beautiful sea.

:grin: :grin: :grin: That's so great, Joey! I never thought of that. :grin: :grin: Anyway, the choice has been made. We will be cruising to... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . North Cape! The excellent advice about pinpointing a "must-see" location is really what did it. We'll make it over to the British Isles some day, but for now, this Norway cruise was too good to pass up. Plus, the price difference enabled us to get a much nicer cabin on this cruise (Century) than the other (Grand Princess), an important consideration when traveling as a family of three. Thank you again for all of your help. It is greatly appreciated, and certainly assisted with the prioritization. jbond, have a wonderful cruise! I can't wait to hear all about it.

You're right, jbond -- tough choices that we are fortunate to have to make. :) Now, if the Jewel of the Seas 2006 British Isles/Norwegian Fjords itinerary was going to be repeated in 2007, we'd be onboard in a minute! We've eliminated #2 -- the 7-nighter to Holland and 3 Scandanavian ports -- as we don't feel 7 nights justifies the long trip, as jbond says. I think it may come down to logistics. #1 will require that I take 10 days off from work, whereas #3 will require 12 days of vacation (due to mid-week departure date). Problem is that both are fairly unique itineraries. Wish we could do both. Stay tuned...

Welcome home, cruisetarp! Sounds like it was a wonderful cruise. :smiley:

This is terrible news. My condolences to his family.

Nicely said, Alan. I couldn't agree more about the cookie-cutter ships. I remember one day when we were in Cozumel, and our ship, SS Norway, was anchored off shore. At the docks were several other ships, all of which looked pretty much alike other than their funnel designs. What pride I felt when looking at the beautiful lady and saying, "That one's mine." I am very sad to say that the information reported above appears to be true. Our lady is apparently headed for the beaches of Alang. Those who never had the opportunity to be on board do not know what they missed. She was the most beautiful ship I've ever sailed, and those gorgeous lines were unmistakable. Au revoir, mon ami.

You are all great... thank you for putting up with me. Out of the blue, after I typed the above post, DH says, "How about the British Isles? We love Nova Scotia and Atlantic Canada, so I'm sure we'll love Scotland." Now he tells me. Anyway, here's the itinerary. We will have just been on the ship three months earlier, so that could be nice, too. Doesn't have my Norway, though, but still seems like a nice cruise. Choice #3: Grand Princess, 12 nights (+pre-cruise London) 1 London (Southampton), England 5:00 PM 2 Guernsey (St. Peter Port), England 7:00 AM 1:00 PM 3 Holyhead, Wales 7:00 AM 6:00 PM 4 Dublin, Ireland 8:00 AM 6:00 PM 5 Belfast, Northern Ireland 8:00 AM 6:00 PM 6 Glasgow (Greenock), Scotland 8:00 AM 7:00 PM 7 At Sea 8 Kirkwall (Orkney Islands), Scotland 8:00 AM 6:00 PM 9 Inverness/Loch Ness (Invergordon), Scotland 7:00 AM 6:00 PM 10 Edinburgh (South Queensferry), Scotland 7:00 AM 7:00 PM 11 At Sea 12 Paris/Normandy (Le Havre), France 7:00 AM 7:00 PM 13 London (Southampton), England 5:00 AM

Congratulations on the booking! I know this is something your grandson will cherish forever. While I can't offer any advice on traveling with grandchildren, I know what it's like to travel with a 10-year old child. As you said, it's the perfect age. He can take care of many of his needs, while still young enough to want to spend time with you. Our son enjoyed (and still enjoys, at age 12) going to the shows with us, eating in the dining room -- not just dinner, but breakfast and lunch, too -- and getting dressed up. He LOVES having is photo taken, and this makes a wonderful souvenir of the trip. I realize that all kids are different, yet I believe that a cruise is a wonderful family vacation as there is so much to do. Enjoy!

Sorry to be such a pest... These are our two choices: Choice 1: Celebrity Century, 12 nights (+2 night Amsterdam pre-cruise) 1 Amsterdam(Rotterdam),Holland Depart 5:00 PM 2 At Sea 3 Alesund, Norway Docked Arrive 8:00 AM Depart 6:00 PM 4 Arctic Circle (Cruise) Cruising 5 Alta, Norway Docked Arrive 8:00 AM Depart 6:00 PM 6 Honningsvag, Norway (N.Cape) Docked Arrive 9:00 AM Depart 6:00 PM 7 Tromso, Norway Docked Arrive 8:00 AM Depart 5:00 PM 8 At Sea 9 Molde, Norway Docked Arrive 7:00 AM Depart 6:00 PM 10 Olden, Norway Docked Arrive 8:00 AM Depart 5:00 PM 11 Bergen, Norway Docked Arrive 7:00 AM Depart 5:00 PM 12 At Sea 13 Amsterdam(Rotterdam),Holland Choice 2: Sea Princess, 7 nights (+2 night London pre-cruise) 1 London (Southampton), England 5:00 PM 2 Amsterdam 2:30 PM 11:00 PM 3 At Sea 4 Oslo, Norway 8:00 AM 3:00 PM 5 Copenhagen, Denmark 9:00 AM 11:00 PM 6 Helsingborg, Sweden 8:00 AM 2:00 PM 7 At Sea 8 London (Southampton), England 7:00 AM I'm leaning toward the first, for several reasons. There is so much to do in Amsterdam, so I'd enjoy a pre-cruise stay. Plus, a North Cape cruise has long been a dream of mine. My husband is reluctant, though, due to the length of the trip (we had hoped to also squeeze in a week in Nova Scotia), and because he wasn't too thrilled with Celebrity earlier this year when we took Infinity to the Caribbean. My husband likes the second choice as we visit more countries. He also loves London, as do I. I am not opposed to this itinerary, but the isolation of the Norway coast is more appealing to me. I work in a city every day, and it would be nice to have an escape. Thoughts? (And, sorry again to bug you all...)

An update: I just received a wonderful price on a Norwegian Fjord/North Cape cruise... itinerary is fabulous, and I've always wanted to cruise the Arctic Circle. We'd do a pre-cruise stay in Amsterdam. I think this is coming together. The advice to choose one area we'd like to see was excellent! I kept coming back to Norway, even before hearing about this great deal from my TA. Thank you again... and any feedback on Norwegian Fjord/North Cape would be great. :)

Thank you for all the advice so far. Skipper - that's great advice about the one place we'd like to visit above all. And jbond, I like the idea of visiting so many countries in one trip. I had been thinking of Norway, but I wonder if it's best to save a Norwegian Fjords/North Cape cruise for another time -- and visit Oslo only for this first cruise in the region. I'd also love to visit Helsinki.... Sounds like I'm starting to narrow things down a bit. :)

DH and I are starting to look at cruises for summer 2007. We'd very much like to cruise in Europe, but the choices are so overwhelming we don't know where to begin. (Europe is a continent, after all.) We'd prefer a round-trip cruise to help keep air costs down. We've previously visited London and would love to do another pre-cruise stay there, but are open to just about anything. We are also taking our son, who will be nearly 14 then. As he has cognitive delays, he stays with us the entire time, so a kids program isn't a priority for us, but we also don't want to be the only family onboard. Time frame is between 7 and 12 days, during either July or August. I've already talked with my TA (who is wonderful, BTW), and I am looking for some more first-hand experiences with cruising Europe.

The shampoo was fine, even on my coarse hair. But Celebrity did not provide conditioner on our Infinity cruise in February. If she uses conditioner, I suggest she bring a small bottle of her favorite brand.

Thank you for the comments. Yes, it's amazing that I actually get work done. :smiley: I believe I counted 15 life boats on the port side. I've been on ships that had about 15 life boats total!

Congratulations on the documents and the credit! This is the part where it starts to feel real. :smiley:

As of next spring, Norwegian Wind will be transferred to parent company Star Cruises. She will sail as SuperStar Aquarius out of Hong Kong. Additionally, NCL just announced that Norwegian Crown will be sold to Fred Olsen Cruise Line. The sale will occur in August 2006, but the ship will continue to sail for NCL through the 2007 Bermuda season. While this was inevitable, I am sad to see both ships go. :cry: More here: http://www.ncl.com/news/pr/pr052506.htm and [url=http://www.starcruises.com/News/2006/2006051902.html]http://www.starcruises.com/News/2006/2006051902.html

Mebert, regarding the extra jacket... do what I do and wear it on the plane. I usually stow it, inside out, in the overhead bin, atop my carry-on, and no problems yet. If you do bring the jacket, you'll just need the one as nobody's going to notice if you wear it twice. :smiley: As for daytime wear on Celebrity, the only thing I noticed is that they didn't allow shorts or T-shirts in the dining room for lunch. Otherwise, I've found that it's no different than any other lines.