2009 CruiseCrazies ® Group Cruise

zebra · September 17, 2008

As we seem to discuss all our cruises here I have a question:

Judson - I see you have also cruised on the Mariner.... what are your feelings about that ship? Just interested.. or maybe nosy :biggrin:

sailingrose · September 17, 2008

Judson sounds like you loved Alaska! Definately need more time on land or several cruises in my case to fully appreciate most of what it has to offer. Glad it wasn't too cold for you.

rogue · September 17, 2008

We did the Land and cruise on Princess a few years ago, and loved it. The more time you can spend in Alaska, the more you appreciate it.

PATJUD · September 18, 2008

As we seem to discuss all our cruises here I have a question:
Judson - I see you have also cruised on the Mariner.... what are your feelings about that ship? Just interested.. or maybe nosy

Jackie,

I LOVED the "Mariner of the Seas." That has remained my most favorite ship of the ones that we have cruised on. However - it was early in our cruising career - LOL!!! The only ship that we had been on prior to the "Mariner" was the "Inspiration." :rolleyes2: Our cruise on the "Mariner" took place between two of the hurricanes that Florida suffered through in 2004. "Mariner" had to stay in the Caribbean on that cruise for 3 extra days as the hurricane hit at the time we were to return and Port Canaveral was messed up again as it had been in the hurricane of a couple weeks before. When Florida was clear, Royal Caribbean had to bring us back into Miami and bus us back to Port Canaveral as we had driven and our car was at the cruise terminal parking lot. This was the BIGGEST cruise ship that I had ever seen - they said it was as long as the Empire State Building was tall - JEEEEEEEEEEEEEESH!!! :ohmy: I haven't cruised on a ship that large since then. Even with that many people on board, I never felt crowded. I loved the shopping area - the largest I've seen on any cruise ship. I loved that HUGE multi level area down the center of the ship. The staterooms were also large without having to book a larger more expensive stateroom. And as I remember it - I thought the food was also good. So - I liked the "Mariner of the Seas."

Now - 6 weeks on a cruise ship - that would take some serious thinking. Up to now - We've never done more than a week - not counting the extra days on the Mariner. Our CruiseCrazies cruise will be the longest that I've ever booked. As I stated before, the group that we've been cruising with seems to need to return to work within a week. Can you imagine that??? What were they thinking??? :biggrin: I don't have to do that.

Judson

zebra · September 18, 2008

Judson, that's exactly how we felt about the Mariner - three extra days would have been great for us, even though we were sandwiched between a tropical storm and a hurricane we were able to make it back to port on time... drat! Never seen such a gorgeous ship and the theory of large ships/lots of passengers being overrun with people... goes right out the window - this ship sure proved that theory wrong.

I would definitely suggest the Alaska cruisetours. We did it - one week on the train and one week on the ship.... actually it's the ONLY way to see a bit of Alaska in our books! The Alaskan cruise alone doesn't give one a true sense of Alaska, the one week on land is awesome! I would also agree that Princess is the way to go in Alaska. e.g. You have a naturalist onboard and seek out the wildlife. We came upon a pod of Orca's and the ship TURNED AROUND and followed/played with them for more than an hour. It was the highlight of our trip. When we saw whales or any other sealife, the Captain would cut the engines and the Naturalist would tell you exactly where to look and all about the animals..... we loved it. Also at the tidewater glaciers, he would get as close as possible, stop for a long while and then turn the ship around and stop again for all those with balconies on the other side. Excellent cruise. Princess is the original cruise line in Alaska, their train is beautiful and all their lodges are awesome. Really worth planning a cruisetour with them.

cruisetarp · September 20, 2008

Judson - did you ever get any response from John's office. Someone from there should have been able to help you switch cabins. I'd definately mention it to John when he gets back on Monday.

Some time ago we discussed having each one of us do the research on one port and then share the information here. Did we ever get all the ports covered? I know I am looking at Antiqua and trying to find things to do. I know it is early, but it's fun to do.

Have a good weekend everyone.

JoeyandDavid · September 20, 2008

Judson - did you ever get any response from John's office. Someone from there should have been able to help you switch cabins. I'd definately mention it to John when he gets back on Monday.
Some time ago we discussed having each one of us do the research on one port and then share the information here. Did we ever get all the ports covered? I know I am looking at Antiqua and trying to find things to do. I know it is early, but it's fun to do.

Have a good weekend everyone.

I don't think anything "formal " was set up....it may be prudent to research all the islands that holds an interest to /for you then compare notes when our "expert" gives the report!!

PATJUD · September 20, 2008

Judson - did you ever get any response from John's office. Someone from there should have been able to help you switch cabins. I'd definately mention it to John when he gets back on Monday.
Some time ago we discussed having each one of us do the research on one port and then share the information here. Did we ever get all the ports covered? I know I am looking at Antiqua and trying to find things to do. I know it is early, but it's fun to do.

Have a good weekend everyone.

No - I did not ever get a response from John's office. I called several more times and got an answer machine. I did not leave my name and number again. I did that on my first call and sent an email expressing my wishes for a conversation.

I'll just wait for John to return and talk to him.

I hope everyone has a great weekend.

Judson

sailingrose · September 21, 2008

John will be back by Monday so hang in there Judson! I had to make a final payment through the main company via fax this week since it was due today.............

PATJUD · September 21, 2008

John will be back by Monday so hang in there Judson! I had to make a final payment through the main company via fax this week since it was due today.............

Yep - I have my "Monday To Do List" right here in front of me. A call to John is right up there on top. I want to discuss an upgrade on the November 9th CruiseCrazies cruise.

Judson