What can you tell me about CRUISES?

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Wed Apr 05, 2023 11:35 pm

I know we probably had an old thread about it, but it's been buried under 3 years of covid-related posts. And I do understand I will probably catch a horrible, fatal disease from going on a cruise, so I don't need a reminder.

The cabin is booked. The flight is booked. We are going.

Our former boarder is getting married and decided to do it on a Carnival Cruise this December. We have to take the kids out of school for a week (I heard internet access is an unreliable thing...so that can affect them doing school work). The ship has 3 stops -- Ocho Rios, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, and Cozumel, Mexico. Any suggestions on things to do (or don't) in any of those places? The only thing I know about Jamaica is ganga and Club Hedonism; the only thing I know about Grand Cayman is banking ill-gotten gains (which I sadly have none) and the only thing I know about Cozumel (and anywhere else in Mexico) is hookers and drug cartels. None of this is helpful.

I told my wife she could go alone -- and the kids are fine with that (when my wife told my son we're all going, he said no mommy, we can't afford that!) But some of her other friends are going with their husbands -- and I know exactly what they will do for the 6 days -- drink and gamble. Two things my wife is against me doing at all. But she doesn't feel comfortable going single when her friends aren't.

I figure I'll spend most of the days in the room trying to get the kids to do their school work (and not just my kids, my wife's friends will be brings some too). My brother said he went on a cruise when his kids were about the same age as mine, and they didn't care for the kids activities and just hung out by the pool all day. And that, which I've already gathered from the Carnival Cruise FB group, is a combat sport.

I might, just might, be going into this with a prejudiced shitty attitude about cruises in general, but I don't want my wife thinking we pissed away a lot of money with nothing to show for it. Me feeling that way at the end is not an issue, but I would appreciate any attempt to give me hope that I might too enjoy something about it. There are cruises that I feel I might enjoy, but those are in the Mediterranean or European Viking river cruises. Just being somewhere warm in December isn't an attraction to me.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Wed Apr 05, 2023 11:44 pm

The only time I was in Jamaica we stayed in a resort near Ocho Rios. This being my first (and so far last) all-inclusive trip, I put my wallet in the room safe and we stayed on the reservation. What I saw of Ocho Rios from a bus didn't look like tourist-friendly, but it was a long time ago.

We did take a bus to the top of a mountain and ride bicycles back down, coasting all the way of course. That was quite pleasant and is something the whole family could do, if there are still any bicycle trips near Ocho Rios. Only two people died, and they were old.

gilraen · Post by **gilraen** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 12:02 am

I don't care for tropical itineraries so I've only done one Caribbean cruise. It did include Jamaica and Cozumel.

In Jamaica, a popular tourist attraction is climbing the Dunn's River Falls. Our cruise stopped in Falmouth, so we had a longer drive to get there, Ocho Rios is closer and also a bigger cruise ship stop, so there are probably more tour options. You do NOT go off on your own, you need to be with a tour. You can look on TripAdvisor or ShoreExcursionsGroup.com for reputable local tour companies, or you can book through the cruise ship directly (more expensive but easiest if you don't want to bother with finding an outside tour guide). There are also lots of places that sell beer

In Cozumel, we did a tour to Tulum to see the Mayan ruins but you could always just go to the beach.

BTW, unless you booked a suite - the regular staterooms are very small when you squeeze 4 people into them. I wouldn't count on a lot of room for your kids to do homework, plus you'll strangle each other if you make them sit in the room all day.

Grifman · Post by **Grifman** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 12:19 am

Kind of late now to ask after you have booked!

Kurth · Post by **Kurth** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 1:39 am

If you're looking for someone to give you a pep talk on cruising, I'm your guy! We just got back from a 7 night roundtrip cruise from LA with stops in Cabo, Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Ensenada. We've previously cruised from Vancouver to Alaska and 4 different cruises in the Caribbean (Western twice, Eastern and Southern).

My favorite thing about a cruise is sitting on the deck or balcony with a drink in one hand and a book in the other, reading and watching the ocean or the scenery slide by. For me, it's about as relaxed as I ever get.

Specific to where you're going, I've stopped in Cozumel twice and in Jamaica and the Caymans once each. Especially with kids in tow, best advice for a low stress excursion is to book simple beach getaways through the cruise. These include ground transportation to a nearby beach and usually (but not always) include a meal and a couple drink tickets. We really enjoyed these, especially when the kids were younger. One thing to keep in mind: make sure you figure out if the beach provides chairs, umbrellas and towels, and be sure to bring some cash if it doesn't.

Other options in Cozumel include some reasonably close and historically interesting Mayan ruins. These are guided tours. The ones I've done, we've always had really well-informed and entertaining guides, but I do remember them being hot as hell and kind of buggy. And the kids were little and bored.

When the kids were a little older (middle school age and late elementary), we did a river tubing excursion in Jamaica that was awesome.

All I remember of Grand Cayman was how relatively well-off and developed it was compared to the other Caribbean stops we made. We went to a very nice beach resort there and had a blast.

I've never sailed on Carnival, and each cruise line is it's own experience, so take all this with a grain of salt. We've only done Disney up until this last cruise when we branched out and tried Norwegian, which was really nice. The Norwegian ship was more than twice as big as the Disney ships we had previously been on, and that took some getting used to. True mega-ships. But even with an insane number of people aboard (4K+ passengers and 1,700 crew), it didn't feel overcrowded in the main part of the ship. That said, if you are on a big ship, I'd suggest checking out the deck plans and getting a feel for the layout before you head out as it can help you not feel overwhelmed on the first day. Especially on your first cruise, the first day can feel far from relaxing as you're boarding the ship along with thousands of other people and then waiting for your luggage to be delivered and your room to be opened up and then participating in the mandatory safety drill with said thousands of other (now) cranky passengers. If you get on the ship that first day and are feeling like "WTF did I get myself into?" don't despair. That feeling is typical as the first few hours of embarkation day can be a slog. But give it a little time to get into the swing and relax into things. It gets way, way better!

As gilraen said, unless you booked a larger room or suite, you're not going to want to hang out in your room with your kids a lot. But every ship I've been on has plenty of lounge space where you can find some chairs and a table to set up the kids if they're going to do homework. Not sure how old your kids are and what the kids' clubs are like on Carnival, but until this last cruise, my kids really enjoyed the clubs. Great counselors and fun activities for them, and they ran programming all through the day and especially at dinner. One thing we took advantage of was to get the kids dinner early and then drop them off at the kids' club for activities while my wife and I went to dinner somewhere nicer. If that works for you and the Carnival offerings for kids look good, I'd give that a try. One thing about the kids clubs: If your kids are going to try them out, do it early. The clubs tend to focus on activities to get the kids to know each other early on in the cruise, and my kids tended to form their friend groups at the beginning. It's harder to have them drop in later on in the cruise.

Sorry this is so long, but lots of thoughts on this. I actually started planning our next cruise the day we got back from this last one (aiming for a Greek Isles cruise)! If you have any specific questions, hit me up.

Scraper · Post by **Scraper** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 9:50 am

Going on a cruise and then staying in the cabin most of the time is probably the worst idea I've ever heard of. In fact most people would equate that with torture. My advice would be to relax and try to have fun. Cruise ships offer a ton of stuff to do for both kids and adults. There will be music shows, comedy shows, events for the kids, entertainment all over the place. Plus the food and drinks. If you go with the attitude that you currently have then you're sure to sabotage it and fulfill your bias. If it truly is a vacation then why are you worried about homework for the kids? If that's the priority then why go on the vacation in the first place? It's like the business guy who goes on vacation and then works the whole time. That's not a vacation.

I agree with the beach recommendations on the excursions. Jamaica does have some nice waterfalls to visit as well depending on where you go to port.

Fardaza · Post by **Fardaza** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 10:15 am

My wife went on an excursion to an underground cave/cavern/water cistern kind of thing when we were in Cozumel. She said it was great!

I was one day out of my classroom and stayed on the ship to destress. Forget schoolwork for all but an hour or so each day is my advice.

edit: She said it's called a cenote. Pictures looked incredible!

stimpy · Post by **stimpy** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 10:31 am

That it's the downfall of the Roy empire?

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 10:50 am

Fun fact - cruises were first devised by Nurgle, chaos god of plagues.

noxiousdog · Post by **noxiousdog** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 10:51 am

Grand Cayman is great for snorkeling. There's a place called Sunset House that you can go and have a pretty good experience right off the beach. They have a bar and changing rooms too. That's almost always our go-to place. Give them a call or email to get the particulars. Can scuba right off the dock too though it's a weird experience since it's so shallow. One tank lasts an hour.

Cozumel is really fun. With kids, I'd go to either chankanaab or Mr Sancho's. The former is a state park with swimming, dolphin shows, and (very small) Mayan ruins. Mr Sancho's is an all inclusive beach day. I've not seen it too rowdy until later in the day. In both cases, don't book through the ship. Just get a taxi. They are super common and it's highly regulated.

Jamaica (especially ocho Rios) is my least favorite port and I'd be very nervous with kids. While all ports have people begging for your business, Jamaica has been the most aggressive, bordering on threatening. My recommendation is stay on the ship and enjoy empty pools and water slides.

dbt1949 · Post by **dbt1949** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 11:55 am

I hear the U-Boats are active in that area. Good luck!!

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 12:14 pm

Cruise was the best vacation I ever did. We used to be exclusively theme park based vacations and it made me realize I was doing it all wrong. So much less stressful and a lot of fun. There's always something to do, but we were like never in the actual room. They are tiny and they are for sleeping. Go hang out in a lounge and drink if you don't want to do anything. We're going again in June and I can't freaking wait. I don't even care if I get off the boat as just chilling and not worrying about anything for 5-7 days is amazing.

coopasonic · Post by **coopasonic** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 1:43 pm

Huge waste of time and money, only taken to please the spouse. Of course I am an introverted person that does not enjoy any aspect of tourism except specific activities that my wife has no interest in (surfing, windsurfing, etc), but she can hang out on the beach while I engage in those activities nearby. A cruise just makes it more expensive.

I guess a cruise was a good way to see lots of different parts of Hawaii in a week without worrying about travel and accommodations. Now that I have done it once, I know to just go to Kauai next time.

Have fun!

WYBaugh · Post by **WYBaugh** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 2:06 pm

People I know that cruise really don't like Carnival. Seems to be the Ryanair of cruise ships.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 2:13 pm

It's the family/party cruise line, but I know a lot of people that take them all the time and love it. We're sticking with RC for now as it's still reasonably priced and a little less crazy pants. Disney is so expensive that I would never consider it. Our cruise is right before most schools close so it was crazy cheap. I got lucky the departure date is the last day of school. I think she can miss the last day of school.

noxiousdog · Post by **noxiousdog** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 2:28 pm

WYBaugh wrote:People I know that cruise really don't like Carnival. Seems to be the Ryanair of cruise ships.

Carnival is definitely for party people. I think it's by far the most fun. RCL was like being at a giant shopping mall and Norwegian was an old folks home.

There is 100% a racial bias against carnival. It has way more minority passengers than the other cruise lines and take that into account when you hear people's opinions. Try and pin them down on what they like about the other cruise lines and it's quite often code for too many brown people.

Scraper · Post by **Scraper** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 2:33 pm

noxiousdog wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 2:28 pm
WYBaugh wrote:People I know that cruise really don't like Carnival. Seems to be the Ryanair of cruise ships.
Carnival is definitely for party people. I think it's by far the most fun. RCL was like being at a giant shopping mall and Norwegian was an old folks home.

There is 100% a racial bias against carnival. It has way more minority passengers than the other cruise lines and take that into account when you hear people's opinions. Try and pin them down on what they like about the other cruise lines and it's quite often code for too many brown people.

Norwegian depends on what type of cruise it is. They do a lot of theme cruises, and those mostly definitely are not old people cruises, they are party cruises.

dfs · Post by **dfs** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 3:07 pm

Jeff V wrote: ↑Wed Apr 05, 2023 11:35 pm I figure I'll spend most of the days in the room trying to get the kids to do their school work

While the notion of a carnival Caribbean cruise gives me hives, this part of your post is just a horrible idea. The notion that a week off of school work is somehow going to imperil your elementary age children's future is just silly. The GOOD thing about any cruise is that there will be so much going on that you should be able to find something that you and your kids actually enjoy doing. Spend time with them enjoying the boat and the excursions.

Seriously don't play homework police. Not good for you and not good for your kids.

WYBaugh · Post by **WYBaugh** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 3:23 pm

noxiousdog wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 2:28 pm
WYBaugh wrote:People I know that cruise really don't like Carnival. Seems to be the Ryanair of cruise ships.
Carnival is definitely for party people. I think it's by far the most fun. RCL was like being at a giant shopping mall and Norwegian was an old folks home.

There is 100% a racial bias against carnival. It has way more minority passengers than the other cruise lines and take that into account when you hear people's opinions. Try and pin them down on what they like about the other cruise lines and it's quite often code for too many brown people.

From the folks at work, it's the younger, partying crowds. No mention of race has come into their opinions and wouldn't.

Unagi · Post by **Unagi** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 3:26 pm

Make up some fun people-watching scavenger hunt you can go on with your kids during the cruise. Like; find a couple dressed exactly alike, a family that all wears glasses, the person that looks the most like dad, etc.

Or just start getting them to hang out with virgin pina coladas and play cards.

gilraen · Post by **gilraen** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 4:24 pm

WYBaugh wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 2:06 pm People I know that cruise really don't like Carnival. Seems to be the Ryanair of cruise ships.

My perception of Carnival is somewhat skewed because the only Carnival cruise I ever took was in the Mediterranean. So more families with kids than you normally would have on, say, a Celebrity or Princess Mediterranean cruise, because Carnival is cheaper, but still a LOT fewer kids than a Caribbean cruise. The food wasn't as good as some other cruise lines but overall not too bad. Definitely not a "party" atmosphere, plenty of older passengers. And there were so many port days that kids were too exhausted to be running around and causing a ruckus - they were either tucked away in the kids' club or falling asleep at the buffet table next to their parents

Brian · Post by **Brian** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 4:45 pm

We've been on three cruises (Carnival, Celebrity, Carnival) but two of those cruises were adults only, clothing optional cruises so our experience is very skewed.

We enjoy cruising but definitely enjoy it more on the adults only cruises but our first cruise was a regular Caribbean cruise so it had lots of families on board. Normally other peoples kids annoy me (grumpy old man, I guess) but the ship provided enough activities that we barely noticed and they were mostly kept out from underfoot.

I was somewhat hesitant to return to sea after spending so much time deployed in the Navy but quickly found that not having any responsibilities underway was quite relaxing.

The excursions, while pricey, are a good way to get away from the ship while in port and many of them are quite fun/interesting. The cenotes mentioned before would make a good trip and we always try to find at least one opportunity to go snorkeling. Some ports we like to skip excursions and go find our own fun but that's always after researching each stop on the cruise for any security concerns.

We have a cruise coming up in Sept-Aug (yes, another adults only, clothing optional) that is a seven day Greek Islands cruise. Out of the many places we visited while I was in the Navy, Greece was always at the top of my very short list of places I would like to revisit and we are looking forward to it. We plan to do a mix of paid excursions and some of our own explorations on this trip.
Definitely will be visiting the Acropolis and plan on visiting the Temple of Artemis when we stop in Ephesus.
Oddly, only one actual island (Mykonos) on our Greek Islands cruise.

Anyway, make the most of it, relax, have fun. Skip the drinks package unless you are a borderline alcoholic.

em2nought · Post by **em2nought** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 5:06 pm

Two months go by slowly on a submarine.

TheMix · Post by **TheMix** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 5:06 pm

WYBaugh wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 3:23 pm
noxiousdog wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 2:28 pm
WYBaugh wrote:People I know that cruise really don't like Carnival. Seems to be the Ryanair of cruise ships.
Carnival is definitely for party people. I think it's by far the most fun. RCL was like being at a giant shopping mall and Norwegian was an old folks home.

There is 100% a racial bias against carnival. It has way more minority passengers than the other cruise lines and take that into account when you hear people's opinions. Try and pin them down on what they like about the other cruise lines and it's quite often code for too many brown people.
From the folks at work, it's the younger, partying crowds. No mention of race has come into their opinions and wouldn't.

This is my reasoning. That and kids. Carnival tends to have more families (or so I've been told). Which is great. I don't have an issue with that. But I don't have kids. I enjoy an older crowd.

Kurth · Post by **Kurth** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 6:41 pm

One other note on excursions: There are definite pros and cons to booking with the cruise line itself. The negative is you are limited in what you can do, and often, the best excursions tend to fill up pretty quickly. The real positive is that the excursions organized through the cruise line will be safe and will help make sure you don't get left behind. If you are on an excursion organized by the cruise line and something goes wrong (bus breaks down, terrible traffic, etc.), the ship isn't going to leave without you. If you are on an excursion not organized by the cruise line and you run into issues, you're pretty much on your own. People get left behind in ports all the time, and you don't want to be one of those people!

Also, while excursions can be great, I totally agree with some of the advice above about the beauty of staying on the boat in port. All your food and drink is already paid for on the boat, and you pretty much will have the ship more or less to yourself as everyone heads out in port. It can be especially great for the kids if there are water slides or activities they have been wanting to get to but have been frustrated by long lines.

On our cruise last week, we only got off the boat at Cabo and Ensenada, so 2/4 stops. Overall, I'd say our best times on cruises have more often than not been on the ship, not in the ports.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 7:11 pm

If I were inclined to cruise, and I doubt the wife will ever agree, I would do an Insight Cruise package. They seem to prefer Holland Line America, Celebrity, and a little bit of Azamara thrown in.

Brian · Post by **Brian** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 7:17 pm

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 7:11 pm If I were inclined to cruise, and I doubt the wife will ever agree, I would do an Insight Cruise package. They seem to prefer Holland Line America, Celebrity, and a little bit of Azamara thrown in.

Our upcoming Greek cruise is on the Azamara Quest.

Tour videos suggest that the shower will be quite cramped for a person of my...Rubenesque...physique.

Skinypupy · Post by **Skinypupy** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 8:42 pm

I’ve done 5 cruises, but they’ve all just been big floating metal festivals so they don’t really count. I can’t even remember where we did port because we only got off the boat for an hour to walk around, then went back and caught some sleep because we’d been at concerts until 5am. I do know that the only time I spent in my room was to sleep and when I was so hungover I couldn’t move.

We have booked the whole family on a 7-day Western Caribbean cruise in June with Royal Caribbean. My wife and sis-in-law were in charge of most of the planning, I just paid for it. They were all about the destinations, which are a couple places in Mexico, Belize, and somewhere else. We apparently have excursions booked for most of them. All of which is good because we realized after the fact that we’re on the smallest ship in the RC fleet. It doesn’t have any of the cool stuff like water slides, rock walls, mini-golf, etc. I worry that the 7 kids between 9-17 (3 mine, 4 brothers) are going to be bored as hell on the boat.

I’m excited, but holy shit it’s expensive. We’re only doing it because we got some money from mom when she passed. I’d never be able to afford it otherwise.

em2nought · Post by **em2nought** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 10:00 pm

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 8:42 pm I worry that the 7 kids between 9-17 (3 mine, 4 brothers) are going to be bored as hell on the boat.

Maybe you could book a spot on the cruise for Jeff V and he could hold classroom for your kids the entire cruise. Might be a new line of business for him since he's having awful luck on roads.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 10:10 pm

The rich and adventurous version of me who only exists in my mind is tempted to try a cruise to see if I'd hate it as much as I think I would. Being trapped on a boat for a long time with crowds of other humans sounds like my nightmare. I would be inclined to hide in my cabin, watching TV and complaining on the internet, until i could get off at the ports of call. As with all vacations, I would be counting the days until I can go home.

Or I might get swept up in the spirit of the thing and enjoy socializing despite myself. Sometimes I surprise me. Although none of the diversions mentioned so far appeal to me, I am very fond of eating and drinking. But I can gorge and sleep at home for a lot less effort. Maybe I'll trademark the Stay At-Home Cruise.

dbt1949 · Post by **dbt1949** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 11:19 pm

Likewise ditto.

noxiousdog · Post by **noxiousdog** » Fri Apr 07, 2023 9:44 am

WYBaugh wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 3:23 pm From the folks at work, it's the younger, partying crowds. No mention of race has come into their opinions and wouldn't.

Of course nobody is going to be that obvious. What, exactly, do they not like about Carnival?

noxiousdog · Post by **noxiousdog** » Fri Apr 07, 2023 9:48 am

TheMix wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 5:06 pm This is my reasoning. That and kids. Carnival tends to have more families (or so I've been told). Which is great. I don't have an issue with that. But I don't have kids. I enjoy an older crowd.

It doesn't have any more kids than RCL or Disney, and in the off-season it's not -that- different in family makeup than any of the other cruise lines.

Also, other than a pool or the buffet it's not that noticeable.

TheMix · Post by **TheMix** » Fri Apr 07, 2023 10:33 am

noxiousdog wrote: ↑Fri Apr 07, 2023 9:48 am
TheMix wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 5:06 pm This is my reasoning. That and kids. Carnival tends to have more families (or so I've been told). Which is great. I don't have an issue with that. But I don't have kids. I enjoy an older crowd.
It doesn't have any more kids than RCL or Disney, and in the off-season it's not -that- different in family makeup than any of the other cruise lines.

Also, other than a pool or the buffet it's not that noticeable.

Well, to be fair, we don't go on RCL or Disney cruises either.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Fri Apr 07, 2023 10:49 am

I don't remember the kids being an issue at all on RCL. If you really hate kids there's the pool area where kids aren't allowed. Not sure if Carnival does that too. I'm sure Disney would have the most kids for obvious reasons.

noxiousdog · Post by **noxiousdog** » Fri Apr 07, 2023 7:10 pm

Octavious wrote:I don't remember the kids being an issue at all on RCL. If you really hate kids there's the pool area where kids aren't allowed. Not sure if Carnival does that too. I'm sure Disney would have the most kids for obvious reasons.

It does.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Sat Apr 08, 2023 12:38 am

Grifman wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 12:19 am Kind of late now to ask after you have booked!

We wouldn't be going if our friend wasn't getting married. FWIW, this is the 4th wedding we're invited to this year -- 3 are "destination" weddings in that they are outside our metro area. We're already taking a pass on the niece getting married in St. Louis (she didn't invite her cousins...aka our kids), or the nephew getting married in Tennessee (on a Tuesday, during school time). Not sure where the other nephew is getting married, but him and his girl are from the area so it will be local, and he loves his cousins.

I told my wife if she ever wants to experience a cruise as long as I'm alive, this is her chance. I'm hard pressed to otherwise justify it.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Sat Apr 08, 2023 12:40 am

Kraken wrote: ↑Wed Apr 05, 2023 11:44 pm Only two people died, and they were old.

Good thing this isn't a problem...oh, wait.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Sat Apr 08, 2023 12:47 am

Kurth wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 1:39 am

Sorry this is so long, but lots of thoughts on this. I actually started planning our next cruise the day we got back from this last one (aiming for a Greek Isles cruise)! If you have any specific questions, hit me up.

Thank you for this! Greek Isles would actually be a cruise that interests me. Smithsonian has some historical cruises in the Mediterranean that I've found intriguing.

I had really hoped my wife would be ok with going herself, but with her friends bringing their families, it's a non-starter. I asked the kids prior if they would support the idea of mommy going alone, and it made sense to both of them. When my wife told them we are going, my son said in his stern voice, "no mommy, we can't afford this right now." I do love my kids connection with reality.

The Mayan ruins at Cozumel is a definite plus for me. Wife is looking for beach time, but I think she would give in to this if it's the only thing I request.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Sat Apr 08, 2023 12:52 am

Brian wrote: ↑Thu Apr 06, 2023 4:45 pm Skip the drinks package unless you are a borderline alcoholic.

You know me too well. This is probably why my wife would nix such a thing.