AndiD

I have 4 cruises booked for 2021, my earliest being in June. I am hoping things will settle down by then and all will go as planned. I would not be opposed to sailing as soon as ships as ready and I am not opposed to any of the measures that I have read about as far as wearing masks, testing, distancing, etc. I am not opposed to going on structured shore excursions. I think all of these measures are necessary to resume sailing successfully and I am worried that if the cruise lines cannot sail soon, they will not be able to stay "afloat" - (pun intended/not intended - take it as you wish!)

Hi Jiggy, We have done that sailing twice - both times with Royal Caribbean, on the Radiance. This cruise sailed from Vancouver and ended in Honolulu, so it was only 11-days for the cruise itself. We have also done roundtrip from LA on Princess, which was 15 days. We did love the roundtrip, but the one-way gave us many more days in Hawaii....the itinerary itself was more port-intensive, and we tacked on a few days in Honolulu afterward. We loved sailing out of Vancouver toward Hawaii; the weather was perfect in both September and October and after the first day or so, it was warm enough to be on the pool deck - in our bathing suits! Now that Celebrity and Holland are both sailing from Vancouver you have more choices - so go with the itinerary and dates that work best for you. We love the Koningsdam and now that I know it is going....I will definitely look at that itinerary! BTW - We are two seniors in a balcony - you will love the sea days on your balcony on this cruise!! Be sure to tell us what you choose and when you go - we will cheer you on!

I would love that, Miranda - the more the merrier!!

Would love any and all to join us on this 16-day cruise around S. America and down to cruise the waters of Antarctica! This has been on my bucket list for a long time and so we are pulling the trigger - yahoo!

To us, life on board is never boring! We have done as much as 6 sea days in a row and loved every minute of them. But we are also the kind to get into a routine....sleep in a little, get breakfast and head for a comfy deck chair or lounge and read the day away! There is something so relaxing about reading with the sound of the ocean accompanying you....and then you look up to take in that gorgeous view! Occasionally we will break it up with a wine tasting or port lecture....and we definitely enjoy lunch. Later in the afternoon we retreat to our cabin...me to the balcony, hubby takes a nap; and then it's time to "clean up" for dinner! We definitely also make good use of port days, though. We love to get out into the "country", away from the shopping district, and see what the location has to offer. And yes, that usually means hiring a guide or taking a planned excursion, but we have always found them to be well worth it. And then we enjoy heading back to the port area and sitting outside with a local beer or snack and just watching the "buzz" of the day. I guess we just love cruising in general - port days, sea days, the ship, the ocean....the whole darn thing!

I checked this one out on Viking's website. Love the itinerary but man, these Mississippi cruises are pricey! Has anyone done a Mississippi river boat? Would love to know what you thought about the experience received for the cost...

We don't spend a ton of time in the casinos but do like to play a few slots. And one of these days I will work up the courage to play Blackjack or one of the table games!!

This looks like a beautiful ship - it just might get me to try Carnival....which I said I would never do....hmmm!

Well - actually I was wondering if it can be used toward the deposit on a new cruise? But that actually answered the second question - so thank you!

Jan - since our November FCC was from a deposit, can we use it for another deposit? Do we HAVE to use it for another deposit?

We are hoping to book the January 4, 2022 sailing of this cruise once we get the future cruise deposit credit from our cancelled November cruise. To be honest, I would rather do a full expedition ship cruise to Antarctica, but Dear Hubby doesn't even want to go to Antarctica, so this is our compromise. Who can complain - it's a Princess ship! 😄

I was very glad to see that MSC stuck to their protocols. How much could we have trusted all of their precautions if they had let that family back on board? If people do not agree with the guidelines that they know about ahead of time, and are not willing to follow them, then they just should not book a cruise yet - simple as that.

I am very sad about this. I had a subscription to this magazine long before I could afford to cruise and I have kept it up ever since. In fact, I had an active subscription when they went under; we are supposed to be picked up by another travel magazine but haven't heard what yet. I hope it isn't Porthole Cruising, because I also subscribe to that, ha! I have my issues back to 2014 - I would purge them about every 5 years...

I only wear flipflops at the spa when I get my pedicure. 😅 And I don't wear slides. My toes do love to be free however, so I have a few styles and brands of sandals with back straps that are great for lots of walking. I would love to try some other styles, but the slightest difference in heel size or "pitch" devastates my knees and back I scamper to my tried and trues.

Sounds like a good one, Jan! We are still mulling over a South America/Antarctica for January 4, 2022...otherwise this one is tempting! I figure I have until our FCC gets credited from our Sky cruise to decide!