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Post by garyd4sf on Apr 4, 2019 23:29:35 GMT -5
Boly knows more about cruises than anyone I know. I don't know how many he and Candee have been on, but I'll bet it might be in the 50 range -- or higher. I might take you up on the Oregon and the Olympic Peninsula idea, Gary. I love the Seattle area, but I've never once been to Oregon. I've been out on the Peninsula about as far as Port Angeles. Good , maybe Boly can talk about favorite cruises. I always like talking to traveled people about vacation tips.
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Post by Islandboagie on Apr 5, 2019 2:03:28 GMT -5
I'm not into cruises, I prefer to set my own itinerary.
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sfgdood
Long time member
stats geeks never played the game...that's why they don't get it and never will
Posts: 90
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Post by sfgdood on Apr 5, 2019 2:15:06 GMT -5
If I go on a cruise, there had better be a sports bar with 20+ big screens
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Post by klaiggeb on Apr 5, 2019 10:02:43 GMT -5
Where do you wish to go, Gary?
My wife and I cruise a fair amount.
Our favorite is up to Alaska.
2nd favorite is up the New England coast to Halifax and that area.
We leave on Monday for a cruise we've been planning for, for over 20 years.
Round trip to Hawaii. 15 days out of the Port of Los Angeles.
Roger is right; I can answer any questions you'd like to ask.
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Post by garyd4sf on Apr 5, 2019 12:56:03 GMT -5
Wow we must have the same taste … great picks
I went to Alaska once and am returning there in August. We also did the NY to Montreal trip through the Atlantic provinces in leaf peeping season (I'm from New England) and had a great time. We closely considered the Hawaii trip once, which should be great, lots of sea time. Let me know. We have done the LA to Mexico to Miami, and Lima through the Latin America countries to New York. And multiple back to back European trips.
Can you recommend any South America, Australia/ New Zealand trips or Orient or any other which would be of interest? Or ones to stay away from would also be a help.
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Post by klaiggeb on Apr 5, 2019 21:06:09 GMT -5
Never traveled there, Gary. Too far to fly to either fly home from the ship's final destination, or fly TO there to catch the ship.
If you need a Travel Agent, and I'm flat out serious. Candee and I likely have the best one on the planet.
From about 1985-1995 we went through about 6 or 7.
We found Pam and we've never changed.
Never a hard sell. Never.
She'll work with what you need and can afford, and I've discovered that if you don't like Pam, you won't like anyone.
She's that good and that thorough!
Back when "Sandy" hit the east coast, by brother and his wife had a cruise on the Oasis booked out of Ft. Lauderdale.
It was their 40th anniversary and had booked the "Loft" Suite. A spectacular suite, to say the least.
But they couldn't get out of NJ!
Royal Caribbean made a fuss about refunding their money, but Pam got back every cent for them!
I won't travel without a travel agent, and unless that agent is Pam Jacobs, I won't travel at all.
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rog
New Member
Posts: 3
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Post by rog on Apr 6, 2019 10:55:21 GMT -5
I have worked with Pam based on Boly's recommendation, and she is indeed wonderful. If you are looking for a travel agent, I recommend Pam as highly as Boly and Candee do.
Speaking of travel agents, it was because my dad's travel agent occasionally from a Dodge family client got Giants tickets right by the Giants dugout at Candlestick that Chris Speier happened by chance to sit down next to my dad at a 1970 game (after Chris's season at Amarillo had ended), and they ultimately become friends.
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Post by garyd4sf on Apr 7, 2019 5:07:00 GMT -5
Thanks, my wife and I are travelers from our previous work positions and so mostly do our own thing. Its kind of fun. Pam does sound like a great choice though.
We spent most of our tours on one cruise line, Oceania, because it has great food and wine choices, no time allotments for dinner, casual dress requirements, free internet and amenities, and is smaller in its two fleets of ships (700 and 1200 passengers max). They also offer multiple back to back cruises that can make long air flights easier to take. And those flights can be a chore. We were up 29 straight hours for one ugly day of flight from Europe (one stop, but murderous delays).
Let me know how the cruise to Hawaii (and beyond?) goes.
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Post by klaiggeb on Apr 7, 2019 9:26:38 GMT -5
Never cruised Oceania, Gary. Very pricey for our budget, but I have never heard one complaint about them.
Not one.
I'll let you know how the Hawaii thing goes.
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Post by Islandboagie on Apr 7, 2019 10:17:40 GMT -5
I like the idea of getting on a cruise to skip the airline experience, but if you're flying to get on a cruise..what's the point?
I'm not knocking the cruise experience, I guess I just look for a different experience when I'm on vacation. I prefer the beach and the ocean to swimming in kids urine in a pool. I can go to a pool anytime I want. I prefer food I want to eat, rather than a buffet of food that's picked for me. I like exploring and sightseeing, a cruise ship is only so big. Maybe when I'm your folks age I might warm up to the idea, but now the idea seems like a nightmare.
The best vacation I ever had was 3 weeks in New Zealand. It's like Hawaii, but cheaper and less tourism. You can find empty pristine beaches all over the islands and the people there are very friendly. I love Hawaii too, but the whole time I'm there I get the feeling the locals don't want me there.
During my time in New Zealand I was talking to a local couple for a few minutes. At the end the conversation they invited us over for dinner. We got there and the whole family was there, and they made us feel like we were part of the family too. They gave us a rundown of all the sights we should take advantage of and the ones we should skip. One of them had a tour bus that he drove around giving tours Monday-Saturday, it just so happened the next day was Sunday (his day off) and despite our objections, he insisted that he take us around in his tour bus to anywhere we wanted to go. It was quite the experience, during the whole I was thinking to myself how this was a total opposite of how we treat people here in the states, this was how society should be. I never heard one car horn, nobody tailgated me. If there were homeless people I didn't see them. This was the first and only time I felt like tearing up my return ticket. If it wasn't for my dog back home waiting for me to return I would probably be living there now.
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Post by garyd4sf on Apr 7, 2019 12:22:53 GMT -5
Duplicate- deleted
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Post by garyd4sf on Apr 7, 2019 12:30:48 GMT -5
Boagie…. the cruise ships today have plenty of attractions on board ..Besides the pool and jacuzzi, there is a mini golf course, workout gym, track deck, competitive games, classes (Spanish for instance, or history of the area), dancing, movies, spas, craps-blackjack-slots, wine or scotch tasting, and professional entertainment (no, not that kind!). The ship has a 24 hour buffet with distinct Breakfast-Lunch-Dinner offerings different each day. Or choose from between 5-8 other restaurants (Italian, Steak and seafood, Burgers, French, Asian, etc.) all the latter are chose-it by menu type. And you can meet people or eat at your own table. Teams, like in Trivia games , are kept through the trip. Your meeting with the New Zealanders sounds great. I met many Aussies, Brits and Scandinavians that I still connect with on the Ship. Oceania tends to lean to the 45 plus age. As to tours each stop there is some 3-10 tours to choose from (extra cost) where professional guides get you to the main attractions (usually 3-4 per tour) some including local meals (ex: Crab fest) at some. Examples include Chris Columbus tour with the mission he stayed at awaiting money go ahead, and full replicas of the ships (mighty small). Or visit to Vesuvius and its 79 AD sights(Pompeii, etc.) to Mt Etna, still boiling, etc. Or to Venice where it was so humid I was a literal Venetian fountain. After a night's sleep you are in a new port and going on tours there. My last trip was 16 ports and I took tours on 12. I am not associated with anyone but just pass on some information.
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