dream ship
Skip Elliott Bowman
>
> Wouldn't change the
> staff a bit, have alwasy had excellent serviec, but might let them get
> paid better.
Bless you! I was just about to say "Mo' money for the crew!"
I suppose when you've no rent, utilities, food, or insurance bills, $500
a month can be considered a living wage...
Skip "El Fumador"
to reply, remove the Ys
Piphy
a while back in the newsgroup there was a post called something like "you asked
for it". i believe it was about how the lines are building the bigger ships
because that's what the majority of cruisers seemed to want. it started me
thinking about what i would include on a ship if it was as easy as just asking
for it. so for the past week or so i've been building a dream ship in my
thoughts. with so many experienced cruisers here on rtc i couldn't help but
wonder about the amazing things you all would put on your dream ship.
some of the things i would ask for would be... lots of little cozy romantic
nooks with candle light. eleborate window treatments and lots of fabric (can
you tell i'm a romantic or what?!). every cabin would have a balcony. there
would be tons of deck space both in and out of the sunlight. the pools would be
open all night. there would be an internet cafe and a music room. a few single
cabins. the option of having lobster everynight prepared anyway you liked it.
drinks and gratuities would be included in your fare so the only money you
would need to bring would be for gambling or to give a little extra something
to those who went above and beyond in service.
i could go on and on about the things on my dream ship. but actually i'd rather
hear what would be on yours. i know that there are reasons why some of the
things we'd want on a ship could never happen. some things just wouldn't make
sense profit or convenience wise, but lets forget about that for now.. if you
could book your next cruise on the ship of your dreams what would you want that
ship to be like.... would there be a pool hall? or three different
restaurants.. one formal, one casual and one informal, so you could pick the
nights you wanted to get dressed up... or would there be pet friendly cabins so
man's best friend could come along for the ride?
thanks in advance to any one who replies to this, i'm really looking forward to
hearing what would be on the dream ships of the people from rtc. and i hope
that you all don't think this a silly post. if you do, just remember i'm pretty
new at this posting thing and forgive me ok? :o)
piphy (cruise addict in training & and ex rtc lurker)
DrTeegan
;o)
Teegan
H. S. Hatch Jr.
A ship where all the passengers were female with one exception,
ME!!!!!!!<BIG SMILE>
HAPPY RAILS TO YOU
CRICK
Becca
ship would cruise out of Houston. The bathrooms would be big enough
that the bath mat wouldn't hang outside the bathroom door. The bed
would be a double or queen, with one common sheet and blanket, not the
twin sets that most ships use. Dinner would be served in the dining
room at 7:30, with only one formal night, they would have the standard
entertainment, plus midnight comedy shows every night. If your dining
room was on Deck 5, you could get there from Deck 5, and not have to go
through a rat maze of up-down-around-over-back maneuvers to get there.
Now I know why people carry those GPS devices, they are trying to locate
the dining room.
Becca <-----prefers crisp toast and soft towels,
not the other way around...
Gayle A Kortright
Welcome!! For a cruise addict in training and ex-lurker I'd say you did a
pretty darned good job with your post. I like the dream ship you've come
up with. Keep posting! And your post was NOT silly!
Gayle
fis...@mindspring.com
nights, as I never dress up at home. I would have bigger towels (or
just thicker would be OK), more complimentary drinks and juices on
deck (the machine with the OJ is always empty). Wouldn't change the
staff a bit, have alwasy had excellent serviec, but might let them get
at least 10 days!
Chris
Becca
chocolates on the pillows, I could have asked for chocolates the *size*
of pillows.
Becca <-----"Waiter, I'll have another BBC, and bring my friend Crick
here another Viagra Spritzer... and make that a double!"
Ermalee
photo will appear on Dave's passenger list next week. So maybe you
ought to hold off on the spritzers until we check that out. <vvbg>
Ermalee <----in the meantime, crank me up one of Becca's famous BBC's
Maeve
drte...@aol.com (DrTeegan) wrote:
> LOL! You know...sounds an awful lot like Seabourn! One of my
favorites!
>
> ;o)
> Teegan
>
>
>That's great to hear...I'm going on the Seabourn Legend June 25...29
days from today!!......so if it's anything like this.....I know I'll
love it:-)
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Share what you know. Learn what you don't.
Stephen Buch
cruise there are two things you mentioned that I really miss. First and foremost
is our toy poodle. My wife would agree with this one. We have no problem leaving
our yellow lab at home, but we really miss the little guy!
The second would probably make my wife have second thoughts about going on the
cruise - access to the inernet.
John Wilson
No smoking, of anything, anywhere, anytime.
A chance to visit the bridge (often available, but not always), the
radio shack, and the engine room (never been there on a cruise ship).
OK, I'm an engineer and a former Navy engineering officer. I admit this
may be eccentric. But I've been out on the Jeremiah O'Brien (San
Francisco's Liberty Ship), and always end up spending a lot of time in
the engine room watching the old-time triple-expansion up-and-down
engine working. I'd like to see a modern diesel plant. By the way, if
you've seen Titanic, you've seen the O'Brien's engine room. They put in
little bitty light bulbs and handrails for the movie, to make the engine
look BIG, (it's only three decks tall as is) and did a lot of computer
enhancement, but it's basically the O'Brien's engine. And the chance to
steer on Windjammer's Fantome, (RIP, sob) was a real kick. The mate
started his usual talk about how to steer a compass course, and by the
time he was halfway through it, I had the ship staying within about 3-4
degrees of the course. He stopped in mid-lecture and said "Have you
sailed before?"
A radar display for passengers, maybe as a channel on the ship's TV.
A good wine cellar at all price levels, and wine stewards who have real
expertise and love of wine, not just people from some non-wine-drinking
culture who have had a couple courses on how to serve wine but can't
quite understand what it's all about. (Where is the Sagafjord now that
we need her?)
The best food possible.
Good hot saunas and steam baths, his, hers, and theirs. And post some
instructions about sauna etiquette. (don't leave the door open so it
cools off, keep quiet, etc.)
A way to get a massage without "aromatherapy" stinkum that causes me
skin allergy problems (are you listening, Steiner?).
The option of a sea-water shower (like the Queen Mary et al that had
four spigots on every bath, hot fresh, cold fresh, hot salt, cold
salt.) At least with my skin problems, this is a Good Thing.
Room service that replicates the dining room menu during meal hours.
Again, Sagafjord did this, and it was a great alternative on a formal
night when we both had had the green barfies during the day and weren't
up to getting dressed up.
A hull design that pays more attention to a smooth ride than to cheap
construction. The newer the ship, the more thuds and jolts as the big
flat hull surfaces smack into the waves instead of cutting through them.
A rational initial embarkation process, where you don't have to wait in
line for hours and where you can get a straight story about where you
need to go next and what happens there. Why is it that ships that are
exquisitely organized on board cannot seem to pull this off? Getting
from the taxi or bus to the stateroom is always a nightmare.
Arrangements for direct booking at reasonable prices, so you can bypass
the mostly-incompetent commission parasites.
Interesting itineraries to neat places, all on cruises long enough to
get settled in and properly unwind (10-12 days minimum).
No tipping.
A helicopter pad, to make medivacs and similar emergencies more
straightforward. It could be part of the sports deck and available for
other uses most of the time. If I'd just had a major illness or injury,
I'd be terrified to have to be winched up to a hovering helicopter like
one individual was on our last cruise.
Good external appearance with classic lines, more like the Disney ships
than the newest of Princess etc., that look like a resort hotel on a
barge.
Some classical concerts. Doesn't have to be a full symphony orchestra;
how about a lounge featuring live chamber music? A Brandenburg
Concerto, a glass of good wine, and the ocean rolling by; what more
could a person want between a hard day goofing off and a fine dinner?
That's enough for now. I'll probably think of more later.
73,
JohnW
Ermalee
would be welcome additions to cruising but I would tend to disagree
with the one that said:
"Arrangements for direct booking at reasonable prices, so you can bypass
the mostly-incompetent commission parasites."
I think there's a lot of work involved in the booking process; well
maybe not a *lot*, but it involves details that I don't want to be
bothered with. And I can always fire an incompetent travel agent if
I ever got involved with one. Actually in about a dozen cruises, I
can only think of one TA that I wouldn't use again. She went on
vacation and forgot to make our final payment on time. Luckily it
worked out ok though, but we felt that was her job, and we shouldn't
have had to remind her. Still, I'll take a good TA anytime as opposed
to "do it yourself" booking. And there are many TA's out there who
are real pros. Happily, I have booked with three from this very news
group.
Ermalee <----would love to book more! And I do agree with the
"reasonable price" part. :-)
Becca
afternoons, but the only crowd they drew, was me and a couple of Asian
passengers.
Becca <-----supports the Arts and my "incompetent parasite" friends...
John Wilson wrote:
>
> Arrangements for direct booking at reasonable prices, so you can bypass
> the mostly-incompetent commission parasites.
>
Bert Scott
John,
I have been putting "CLIA ACC" in my signature to try to indicate, without
advertising, that I was a TA, but not everyone knows what that means. I
have been trying to come up with a better solution. I will consider your
suggestion. <g>
Bert Scott, CLIA ACC
John Wilson <wilso...@home.com> wrote in message
news:374E5197...@home.com...
> Arrangements for direct booking at reasonable prices, so you can bypass
> the mostly-incompetent commission parasites.
>
> Interesting itineraries to neat places, all on cruises long enough to
> get settled in and properly unwind (10-12 days minimum).
>
> No tipping.
>
> A helicopter pad, to make medivacs and similar emergencies more
> straightforward. It could be part of the sports deck and available for
> other uses most of the time. If I'd just had a major illness or injury,
> I'd be terrified to have to be winched up to a hovering helicopter like
> one individual was on our last cruise.
>
> Good external appearance with classic lines, more like the Disney ships
> than the newest of Princess etc., that look like a resort hotel on a
> barge.
>
Gayle A Kortright
chocolate here??
Gayle
Benjamin Smith
>some of the things i would ask for would be... lots of little cozy
romantic
>nooks with candle light. eleborate window treatments and lots of fabric
>(can
>you tell i'm a romantic or what?!).
These elements would be in my dream ship also.
Essentially I like a 45,000 to approx. 66,000 ton (GRT) cruise ship. I want
it to feel like a ship and not too much like a floating resort even though
it may have amenities of a resort. So, it would contain elements of
Celebrity, HAL, Crystal, Renaissance, P&O's Oriana and it would be an anti
RCI, Carnival or newer Princess ships which strike me more as resorts at
sea. It would have less height than most of today's current new ships and
aft tiered decks.
I'd like to see the ship be more specialized than appealing to varied
tastes, more *uncompromised*. Elements of Celebrity I like are that they
have specific signatures but design each new ship with its own particular
range of feel, ambiance, mood in many public areas within an overall decor
theme. I also like Celebrity's aft foyer in two latest ships. What I would
not use from Celebrity are the television screens - don't like them at all
in a ship. Elements from HAL are the cozy, different hued/colored/textured
compartmentalized areas in large public rooms, integration of art into the
ship's decor, leather wrapped railings, wrap around teak promenade with
loungers. I like Crystal's observation lounge and staterooms, Renaissance
Grand Stairway and some aspects of its interior style and the general
traditional oceanliner feel of the Oriana and its inside promenade and I
feel this ship has a wonderful atrium topped with Tiffany glass.
I like a large library and cultural center, an inside promenade, lots of
greenery and varied displays of flowers. I like a grand area, perhaps the
restaurant, or grand hall, NOT the multi-deck atrium. I like art all over
the ship and in some areas I think there should be no music. I'd like to
see more strict adherence to shipboard lifestyle (whatever that chosen
lifestyle is) enforced by the ship line and not people doing their own
thing as they see fit but still allowing a good amount of diversity within
the theme. My ship would offer many different buffets but not in their own
dining room. Too many dining rooms aboard ship feels
mall-like/hotel-like/resort-like to me. So, the choices could be in the
lido, deck areas, and buffet-style in lounges. I'd have a very elegant mid
ship located dining room with mostly formal and informal nights, even
casual nights would stress adherence to nice clothing (no jeans, sneakers,
shorts during evenings strictly enforced). I like aft and forward facing
observation areas with different types of moods and one area to be mostly
without music or activity during the day.
In terms of entertainment, especially of a ship regarded as "premium", I'd
love to see entertainment that represents different cultures, especially
covering some of the cultures represented in the itinerary but not
necessarily the obvious ones. I'd love to see on a ship with a
Carribean/European/South East Asia etc. itinerary a concert that covers
many styles of music, art and literature, perhaps fashion and a display of
crafts and the process of creation of these crafts from the various
countries, lectures of the different regions and peoples from people of the
countries, and finally, perhaps, food and drink sampling as a reception
after the entertainment to replace some of the standard ship "Broadway
type" or "Vegas revue" type of shows, jugglers, comedians, and other
staples or what is really now contrivances of cruising that I'd love to see
less of.
In terms of relaxation I'd love to see no Steiners and really a spa
treatment that does not put stress on pax by seeming like unnecessary
trendy health products being pushed upon them. More exploration of
meditation, aromatherapy, deep breathing techiques, etc. would be
introduced and demonstrated to people without the feeling that it is being
sold to people.
Deck areas could have time limits for loungers and a no reserve deck policy
and I like ships with quiet aft separate pools. Access to the bow, weather
permitting.
Ben Smith
be...@ix.netcom.com
John Wilson
involves a good deal of detail work, and we've found it necessary to
supervise, in detail, every step to make sure things happen the way they
should. The newsgroup is full of stories of what happens to people who
don't; cruises not actually booked and other major errors. By doing
this, we've found out about discounts and rebates from cruise companies
that were intended for passengers, but that the TAs were going to keep
and just not tell us about until we raised hell. We've also found out
about things like upgrades that the TA was just not paying attention
to. By booking our own air travel, we've saved a pile of money compared
with what the TAs were going to do. On our last cruise we let the TA
book flights, and ended up changing planes on a route served by numerous
discount nonstops. The bottom line is, it would be easier without them
in the way hiding information, misunderstanding, forgetting, and losing
things, and generally being the sand in the gears.
73,
JohnW
Louis Epstein
: fis...@mindspring.com wrote:
: >
: > Wouldn't change the
: > staff a bit, have alwasy had excellent serviec, but might let them get
: > paid better.
: Bless you! I was just about to say "Mo' money for the crew!"
:
: I suppose when you've no rent, utilities, food, or insurance bills, $500
: a month can be considered a living wage...
:
: Skip "El Fumador"
: to reply, remove the Ys
Do remember what the added money for all the hundreds of crew will do to
ticket prices.
Bert Scott
> ticket prices.
Louis,
I think on EVERYBODY'S unwritten list of wishes is that it all be FREE. We
all just assumed that none of these "wishes" would cost extra. <g>
Bert
Louis Epstein <l...@put.com> wrote in message
news:FCI0t...@news2.new-york.net...
Joseph E Chase
Fascination, but since the leader was a dancer, what she knew was
limited)
How about a library which is available as a library (Fascination always
uses it to sell Valuable Original Oil Paintings at Exceptional Prices)
How about no Bingo?
How about (shock, horror) NO CASINO!!?- I don't gamble, and the noise
makes a big part of the ship unpleasant for everyone else.
Tom & Linda
Celebrity ships really don't have any except for the suites - which are
out of our price range. And the Ocean/Sea/Dawn Princess ships only have
about 10 each. They go really quick. Come on guys [Princess and
Celebrity] we want more verandah quad cabins. All the quads don't have
to be down on the cheaper decks.
My dream ship is also not larger than about 70,000 tons.
And it has a shore excursion staff that has experts on the islands, so
you can ask them questions like where the good snorkeling beaches are,
and not just experts on the paid shore excursions. After paying more
than $4000-$5000, they should be able to recommend other things, than
just: "here are our excursions - take it or leave it". [specifically
directed at the NCL dive desk gang on the NCL Wind, who were guilty of
not helping much, in fact, they didn't help AT ALL]
--Tom
Tom & Linda
income, and that helps keep the base cost of cruises down. Even if you
don't go to the casino yourself, you benefit by having others go there
and lose money. Shareholders have to be paid dividends, so enough money
has to be taken in. If they don't get it from the extra activities,
they will have to charge more for the base cruise.
--Tom
fis...@mindspring.com
<TKAN...@worldnet.att.net> wrote:
>Remember that Bingo, Casinos and Oil Painting Auctions help generate
>income, and that helps keep the base cost of cruises down.
I could ignore the auctions if they weren't always on the ship's
intercom giving 5-minute announcements about the VOPatEP's. Bout
drove me round the bend last trip, the man would simply keep going on
and on.......
Chris
Tom & Linda
Or make sure you write on your survey card that the announcements drove
you crazy. Maybe eventually they will get the point if everyone
complains about too many announcements.
--Tom
Tom & Linda
and 1 formal night instead. Casual nights are the easiest. And formal
nights are kind of "special occasions", but semi-formal night is a
pain. It's not special, and still you have to wear a jacket and tie.
Boo!
--Tom
Louis Epstein
: > Do remember what the added money for all the hundreds of crew will do to
: > ticket prices.
:
: Louis,
:
: I think on EVERYBODY'S unwritten list of wishes is that it all be FREE. We
: all just assumed that none of these "wishes" would cost extra. <g>
:
: Bert
Hmmm...I'm afraid that offering free service is NOT one of the things
planned in my concept ship (http://www.put.com/~gigantic/ for what I
have written so far,more to come).Things free WITH A TICKET,yes.
: Louis Epstein <l...@put.com> wrote in message
:
:
Peter Bugda
I want a small ship..maybe 300-400 passengers, with a one-to-one crew to
passenger ratio...and, who will the passengers be? All my close friends
and relatives who have been nice to me all these years; and, all the
friends I have made on this newsgroup....who have been VERY nice to
me..( so watch it ! )...and, we would travel the world together FOREVER.
I believe I can expect a lot of E-mails in the next few days. Now, where
did I put those lottery tickets?
Peter in Fl.
que sera sera
fis...@mindspring.com
>Hmmm...I'm afraid that offering free service is NOT one of the things
>planned in my concept ship (http://www.put.com/~gigantic/ for what I
>have written so far,more to come).Things free WITH A TICKET,yes.
>
>
See, you're not dreaming big enough. Everybody ELSE needs a ticket -
on my dream ship, whenever I want to go, I just call my trusty
certified cruise specialist <g> and tell them the dates. Everything
else is taken care of. No point in dreaming if I have to actually pay
for it!!
Chris <-----Dark chocolate!
Diane
Joseph E Chase wrote:
>
> I'll go with that engine room tour (I did get the bridge tour on
> Fascination, but since the leader was a dancer, what she knew was
> limited)
>
HAL does engine room tours, as long as you request it in writing from
the chief engineer when you board.
> How about a library which is available as a library (Fascination always
> uses it to sell Valuable Original Oil Paintings at Exceptional Prices)
>
HAL also has one of the best libraries we ever saw on 7 cruises on 5
lines. Newspapers to read, I think they must fly them to the islands
(or something) because they had one to two day old newspapers (on those
pole things - what are they?) to read in the library. There were
postcards there and stationery as well as writing desks. There was a
very large reference section to help in the trivia quizzes as well as
with dozens of travel books. Lots of fairly recent hardbacks to borrow,
and a rotating paperback section. Bring your own and leave them. Take
what you wish to read. Best library I've encountered.
> How about no Bingo?
Can't help you there. But since my hubby once won $847 on Carnival
Destiny I don't really mind it beining there. I just avoid the lounge
that has it.
>
> How about (shock, horror) NO CASINO!!?- I don't gamble, and the noise
> makes a big part of the ship unpleasant for everyone else.
There's always Disney <vbg>
Or try HAL, the casinos are dead after 11 PM as the "OLD" people are in
bed by then :-)
Diane, still looking for cruise ships that ban that art sale garbage.
And don't cost an arm and a leg to get it. If I had enough for Seabourn
or Sea Goddess, I'd do it. Does Windstar have those stupid auctions?
SuesZ
>
Where did this "Celebrity has no announcements" myth come from? The Horizon
had announcements all day long, in several languages to boot.
Sue
Mini BAC
now has 380 names on it (that I know of). So we might not all fit on your
"dream ship".
Barbara < keeper of the Cabin Numbers and States lists
In article <15402-375...@newsd-132.iap.bryant.webtv.net>,
PeterPa...@webtv.net (Peter Bugda) writes:
Barbara <---keeper of the GGC2000 Cabin # list and the States list.
Please keep those cards and letters coming in with updated info.
Bert Scott
That's ok -- I'll go as one of the crew! I'm sure I could handle a crew job
on a ship with a 1:1 passenger to crew ratio!
Bert
Mini BAC <min...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:19990530024133...@ngol01.aol.com...
Tom & Linda
was cleared to allow passengers to go into the ports, but that was about
it. No bingo, art auction, wine tasting, current activity up on pool
deck, or any other kind of announcements that we find most annoying.
Two years ago on the Century it was the same thing.
Of course on the last day there were those announcements for so-and-so
from cabin xxxx to pay their bills..., but that was about it.
Sounds like Horizon needs to quiet things down a little...
--Tom
Tom & Linda
shares part of his commission with me. The cruise lines prices don't
reflect that. How do I know? I always call the cruise lines myself, to
check on dates, itineraries, quad cabin availability, various ships,
etc. I do much of my own research. After 9 cruises, I know what things
I might want to do, and check out all the options. It takes me less
time with 1 phone call, the for my agent and I to play telephone tag,
while I have him ask 100 questions. But when the line gives me a price,
my agent always comes in lower by a few hundred dollars (or more if he
has a group).
Oh yeah, my dream ship also stays in the Caribbean in the summer, while
sister ships go on to Bermuda, Europe and Alaska. And it sails 4 or 5
alternating itineraries, so there is something new to try each summer.
--Tom (thankful for his parasite)
randy shandle
bitches about the coffee, nothing improves !!!
Mini BAC wrote in message <19990530024133...@ngol01.aol.com>...
Doug McDonald
>
> hello everyone!
>
> a while back in the newsgroup there was a post called something like "you asked
> for it". i believe it was about how the lines are building the bigger ships
> because that's what the majority of cruisers seemed to want. it started me
> thinking about what i would include on a ship if it was as easy as just asking
> for it. so for the past week or so i've been building a dream ship in my
> thoughts. with so many experienced cruisers here on rtc i couldn't help but
> wonder about the amazing things you all would put on your dream ship.
>
Coca Cola machines every 100 feet serving real Coca Cola in bottles
(like
sold in every country except the US) and Diet Coke, all free. I suppose
that
alternate 100 feet you could have Pepsi machines.
Doug McDonald
Marsha L
Ah, I remember Cokes in bottles! Closest thing you can get to that now is to
serve it in the glasses that you keep in the freezer. Gets it REALLY cold.
Marsha, who keeps two of them at the ready, all the time
Doug McDonald <mcdo...@scs.uiuc.edu> wrote in message
news:3753152B...@scs.uiuc.edu...