PodCast 4.0 Chit Chat

[Cherinva]

I just want the humidity to go away for a little longer. Doesn't matter I am headed to the freezing tundra of Michigan for the weekend.

I hear ya on the humidity....I hated to turn on the A/C over the weekend, but the house was unbearable to be in.

Safe travels to Michigan.

 

[Aburns8]

I hear ya on the humidity....I hated to turn on the A/C over the weekend, but the house was unbearable to be in.

Safe travels to Michigan.

Thanks Cheri! We had to turn ours on to. I was hoping to wait a little longer. Thank goodness it is going to be a little more tolerable soon!

 

[Cherinva]

Good Morning Everyone !!! Another lovely day at work...expecting some bad storms in this afternoon....we'll see what happens.....seems the weather guys have been wrong a lot lately....Off to listen to the Podcast shows for this week

 

[Aburns8]

Good Morning Everyone !!! Another lovely day at work...expecting some bad storms in this afternoon....we'll see what happens.....seems the weather guys have been wrong a lot lately....Off to listen to the Podcast shows for this week

Good Morning Cheri!

It is quite windy today. I am just hoping that we don't get any severe weather. I am just glad that my DH is home today since he works in Hertford and they are under a tornado watch.

 

[Cherinva]

Good Morning Everyone !!! It's FRIDAY !!!!! Only 84 more weeks and we leave for the cruise......Here's wishing you all a great weekend...mine will be full of painting my spare room and moving stuff back in.

 

[Euphscott]

Fence maintenance this weekend for me. An old fence and ridiculous windy spring are conspiring against me. It's time to plug holes and repair rotting panels that the dogs are poking their head's through. Woo hoo!!!

 

[TifffanyD]

I almost didn't write that part considering there is a bias on these boards. If my trip had stayed like the first two days were I don't think I would ever travel on DCL again. That said, things got turned around pretty quickly to make a big enough impression for me to book 2 more. The reason I think DCL could have an advantage is the fact the same server/*** server for your entire stay. I have read mixed reviews about NCL/RCCL but still like to keep an open mind. Especially since we all know that the other lines are cheaper.

I would have posted sooner, but St Louis got hit pretty hard last night by a tornado. I was driving into our station when it landed right on top of where I was driving. What is amazing is that my station is 2 1/2 miles away and it was sustained some damage. I had a couple of the guys ask me why I didn't take pictures while I was on the road. I told them that the power lines where exploding and the poles weer leaning from one side of the road to the other. I kept thinking I was going to be stuck if the lines fell which they didn't. I think the only reason my truck wasn't blown off the road is the road I was on was about 12 feet lower than the dike that was shielding it from the tornado. Its amazing seeing the damage now that one in ST Louis died. Is it cruise time yet?!h

Oh my - so glad you are ok!!! I'm glad that DCL was able to turn things around and make you a convert! My 2 issues with DCL were 1 - a room that was seriously BROKEN coupled with a cabin steward who was not great. He wasn't terrible... but he didn't get the things that were broken fixed and he taunted us with the ice request form... we filled it out, never got ice, and he moved it around and cleaned under it. huh?

The second one was an issue where we were charged for something that wasn't ours. I went to the front desk (had to stand in line twice)... and we were told to look for a receipt for it. It was a non alcoholic drink of the day and we had NEVER had any of those... so it definitely wasn't ours. But they told us we needed to prove we didn't order it... huh?? Apparently it had to go to food and beverage service to look through receipts and check for our signature and wasn't resolved until we got back home. All for a ~ $5 charge... really?

Anyways... we just got home and our cruise was awesome!! I agree you don't develop the relationship with the server and assistant server (Fastpaks... your *** server blackout and what I am assuming it was is hilarious!). Since you just dine whenever and whereever you want... you don't see the same servers. However, dinner moved at a much speedier pace (on our last cruise some of the dinners lasted 2 hours which is a bit much for us... especially since we had no tablemates). Also, our cabin steward was awesome!!! We left him a couple requests and a small (really, not large at all) tip for the extra work (also not much work) and he thanked us so much and our room was always turned over SO fast. Of course, we are just adults and clean up after ourselves so I can't imagine it's much work... but it was great. We saw him in the hall all the time and he always asked about our day and stuff. Also... other stewards we didn't know (but who we saw in the hall frequently from walking the loooong hallways) were just as nice!

One thing the NCL Epic did that was above and beyond was when you got back to the ship after a long day in port they had a little lounge area with tents for shade, cushy chairs, cold towels (lemon scented too, I think), and ice water to refresh yourself with before going onboard. WOW this was awesome!!

OK I am writing a novel... didn't mean to. If anyone is curious about anything else I will let you know - that was just the service things that really stood out. Oh yeah... Disney REALLY needs the accounts statements to be available on the telvision - it was so nice to check this regularly to make sure everything was ringing up alright!

 

[TifffanyD]

Argh I just looked at those pics and they are terrible! I was on the ship when I turned on the news and saw the tornado that hit AL and all the death toll. So much devestation lately... hard to believe

 

[Cherinva]

Hello Everyone....first chance I've had to check the boards today....I actually had some work to do.....

Had really nice weather over the weekend...I finished painting my spare room, and got things moved around. Cleaned out my shed, and brought my grand mothers vanity back into the house. Little by little, things are getting organized...now, if I can just get my DD to get the rest of her stuff out...I'll be in good shape.

 

[Fastpaks]

Oh my - so glad you are ok!!! I'm glad that DCL was able to turn things around and make you a convert! My 2 issues with DCL were 1 - a room that was seriously BROKEN coupled with a cabin steward who was not great. He wasn't terrible... but he didn't get the things that were broken fixed and he taunted us with the ice request form... we filled it out, never got ice, and he moved it around and cleaned under it. huh?

The second one was an issue where we were charged for something that wasn't ours. I went to the front desk (had to stand in line twice)... and we were told to look for a receipt for it. It was a non alcoholic drink of the day and we had NEVER had any of those... so it definitely wasn't ours. But they told us we needed to prove we didn't order it... huh?? Apparently it had to go to food and beverage service to look through receipts and check for our signature and wasn't resolved until we got back home. All for a ~ $5 charge... really?

Anyways... we just got home and our cruise was awesome!! I agree you don't develop the relationship with the server and assistant server (Fastpaks... your *** server blackout and what I am assuming it was is hilarious!). Since you just dine whenever and whereever you want... you don't see the same servers. However, dinner moved at a much speedier pace (on our last cruise some of the dinners lasted 2 hours which is a bit much for us... especially since we had no tablemates). Also, our cabin steward was awesome!!! We left him a couple requests and a small (really, not large at all) tip for the extra work (also not much work) and he thanked us so much and our room was always turned over SO fast. Of course, we are just adults and clean up after ourselves so I can't imagine it's much work... but it was great. We saw him in the hall all the time and he always asked about our day and stuff. Also... other stewards we didn't know (but who we saw in the hall frequently from walking the loooong hallways) were just as nice!

One thing the NCL Epic did that was above and beyond was when you got back to the ship after a long day in port they had a little lounge area with tents for shade, cushy chairs, cold towels (lemon scented too, I think), and ice water to refresh yourself with before going onboard. WOW this was awesome!!

OK I am writing a novel... didn't mean to. If anyone is curious about anything else I will let you know - that was just the service things that really stood out. Oh yeah... Disney REALLY needs the accounts statements to be available on the telvision - it was so nice to check this regularly to make sure everything was ringing up alright!

Well I for one, appreciate the novel. LOL I know I looked at NCL after read your "report", and showed my wife that there was KSF on Nov 5. To make a long story short, for about $400 more that what I'm paying on the Dream for a 4 day inside, I could have a balcony on their ship. It was nice to dream about switching for a longer cruise, but we have about 14 ppl going spanning 5 families. I doubt we can convince everyone to switch. My wife and I are definitely considering NCL and RCCL for the future. If it was between the bigger ships, I think we would fall for RCCL Oasis class. Something about a indoor balcony is interesting to me. I don't like the "claustrophobic" feel of the insides, but we spend so little time in the rooms its hard to justify paying more for ocean balcony. If I only had a few more thousand to spend!

 

[evildiva]

Well I for one, appreciate the novel. LOL I know I looked at NCL after read your "report", and showed my wife that there was KSF on Nov 5. To make a long story short, for about $400 more that what I'm paying on the Dream for a 4 day inside, I could have a balcony on their ship. It was nice to dream about switching for a longer cruise, but we have about 14 ppl going spanning 5 families. I doubt we can convince everyone to switch. My wife and I are definitely considering NCL and RCCL for the future. If it was between the bigger ships, I think we would fall for RCCL Oasis class. Something about a indoor balcony is interesting to me. I don't like the "claustrophobic" feel of the insides, but we spend so little time in the rooms its hard to justify paying more for ocean balcony. If I only had a few more thousand to spend!

When I was flying home from PC 2.0 my mom and I ran into a couple who had just gotten off the Oasis of the Seas with an inside balcony. They said they would never take that room again. It was warmer and very loud. Just my two cents based on their experience.

 

[Cherinva]

Good Morning Everyone !!! Going to be a nice day here today....we need to enjoy it, as tomorrow brings colder temps and rain.....Have a great day all!!

 

[TifffanyD]

Well I for one, appreciate the novel. LOL I know I looked at NCL after read your "report", and showed my wife that there was KSF on Nov 5. To make a long story short, for about $400 more that what I'm paying on the Dream for a 4 day inside, I could have a balcony on their ship. It was nice to dream about switching for a longer cruise, but we have about 14 ppl going spanning 5 families. I doubt we can convince everyone to switch. My wife and I are definitely considering NCL and RCCL for the future. If it was between the bigger ships, I think we would fall for RCCL Oasis class. Something about a indoor balcony is interesting to me. I don't like the "claustrophobic" feel of the insides, but we spend so little time in the rooms its hard to justify paying more for ocean balcony. If I only had a few more thousand to spend!

I saw those indoor balconies looking out over central park - interesting concept! Are they much cheaper than the ocean balconies? I was under the impression they were not. Ooooh but I am curious to try the Cove balconies sometime on Carnival.... the really really low ones where you can even feel some sea spray!

I want to try RCCL for our next new-to-us ship. We have DCL booked for awhile but I really want to try either Oasis or Allure (leaning towards Allure for Chicago). However, I also plan on doing NCL's Hawaii cruise coupled with Aulani at some point... so that may actually come first. I've heard the ship in Hawaii is not that great but it's the only ship that does a roundtrip Hawaii cruise and you get to see as much (if not more) than the 14 day one from CA that goes to HI.

 

[Euphscott]

I have a Cove Balcony booked for the Carnival Magic in June of next year. I am really looking forward to that ship. It's a new kind of Carnival and I think they have learned some wonderful lessons.

 

[mainegal]

I have a Cove Balcony booked for the Carnival Magic in June of next year. I am really looking forward to that ship. It's a new kind of Carnival and I think they have learned some wonderful lessons.

My sister will be on the Carnival Magic out of Barcelona this summer.
Can't wait to hear all about it.
I hope she will like the Disney Dream after being on the Carnival Magic.

 

[Fastpaks]

When I was flying home from PC 2.0 my mom and I ran into a couple who had just gotten off the Oasis of the Seas with an inside balcony. They said they would never take that room again. It was warmer and very loud. Just my two cents based on their experience.

Thanks for the info. I'm not sure though that would be a deterrant. I think you could find rooms hot in anyship. I can see where it would be noisy but that wouldn't really effect me. My family tend to be night owls on vacation. I did go back and look at some of the stateroom reviews on CC and notice that clubs where underneath some of the rooms I would have considered.

I saw those indoor balconies looking out over central park - interesting concept! Are they much cheaper than the ocean balconies? I was under the impression they were not. Ooooh but I am curious to try the Cove balconies sometime on Carnival.... the really really low ones where you can even feel some sea spray!

I want to try RCCL for our next new-to-us ship. We have DCL booked for awhile but I really want to try either Oasis or Allure (leaning towards Allure for Chicago). However, I also plan on doing NCL's Hawaii cruise coupled with Aulani at some point... so that may actually come first. I've heard the ship in Hawaii is not that great but it's the only ship that does a roundtrip Hawaii cruise and you get to see as much (if not more) than the 14 day one from CA that goes to HI.

I have a Disser friend that is going on the Allure in a few months. I'm totally looking forward to her review. I think she told me that they got a balcony and a inside across the hall. The inside rooms are a little cheaper but not by a whole lot. ~$100. The way I look at it. We are rarely ever in our room, but sometimes it would be interesting to look down at night and during the day to see people walking around. If I want to see the ocean, I just go to the top deck.

 

[mdvlprof]

My sister will be on the Carnival Magic out of Barcelona this summer.
Can't wait to hear all about it.
I hope she will like the Disney Dream after being on the Carnival Magic.

DCL is different from Carnival [which I've been on a few times]. Much better IMHO . She should love DCL. But any cruise is better than work.

 

[Cherinva]

Good Morning Everyone !!! It's a cold rainy day here....at least I'm at work....although I'd much rather be at home on the couch in front of the TV...have a great day all.

 

[Euphscott]

I'd love to be sailing on a European cruise on the Carnival Magic, but we had to settle for Texas!

Carnival really has a terrific product. Their food is far superior to Disney in every way in my opinion. The only real drawback we've discovered where Disney clearly wins is the entertainment. Carnival is way more Vegas style glitz, where we prefer the Boradway style plot oriented shows.

 

[mainegal]

I'd love to be sailing on a European cruise on the Carnival Magic, but we had to settle for Texas!

Carnival really has a terrific product. Their food is far superior to Disney in every way in my opinion. The only real drawback we've discovered where Disney clearly wins is the entertainment. Carnival is way more Vegas style glitz, where we prefer the Boradway style plot oriented shows.

So, there is a chance my sister will like the Carnival Magic better than DCL. Food is better. And she might prefer Vegas shows. Hope not. I know she enjoyed going to plays in NYC when she went to Rutgers.

I have only been on one DCL cruise, the four night PCC 2.0. There were a few moments when I wondered what entertainment would be if it was not musical plays aimed at families with children. Guess I will have to keep cruising and try different cruise lines.