Vacation on Cruise...questions, tips, & suggestions

[chinita8]

sis chinita 8, pwede po bang pa PM kung ano yung travel agency nyo? I am currently abroad pero uuwi ako sa Pilipinas before out target cruise date.  Nahihirapan kasi akong mkahanap ng travel agency dito na included yan sa service nila. Also, my nakikita naman ako online pero ang problem lang is wala kaming US credit card. Thanks 

sis, i always book direct to the cruise agent/office here in manila. madami kasi akong tanong so i want a face and a name when i interface. here are the numbers and addresses of both the cruise lines that i have taken. hope it helps!

http://www.princess.com/book/agent/intl_travelagent/philippines.html

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/customersupport/travelagent/processLocate.do?selectedCountry=MLT#MLT

[bonzo_08]

Thanks a lot 

Advisable bang kumuha ng tour package nila? or carry naman mag DIY pag dating sa port?

[chinita8]

^sis, kami we have always availed na lang of the land excursions that the cruise offered, so far, happy naman kami. but if you wish to get your own private tour, pwede rin. Just DIY and research on a reliable private tour guide operating at certain ports that your ship is docking to, since there is a specific time that you have to be back on-board. I think sis portugalbear can help you with that since they have done it before. 

[pink_baby]

Sisses! Super helpful ang cruise tips niyo dito!
Will go on a cruise with my family between october and november and I'm so excited!
We'll be taking superstar Libra. Has anyone tried this cruise ship?
Nakakakuha ba ng private land excursion operators other than the ones being offered onboard?

Thanks in advance!!! Super excited! Kakain ako to the max!!! Imagine I can eat up to 6 times a day daw! hehe

[portugalbear]

if your group is 6 or less, suggest you go with the ship's cruise group.  pero if you're more than 6, then it's cheaper to DIY.   you can check sa www.cruisecritics sa mga forum on which private tour ang matino.  that's where i found the names of the ones who did our private tour.  otherwise, you can also check the internet and hopefully may review yun iba na nakapag try ng service nila.

[bonzo_08]

sis chinita8 and portugalbear, actually dalawa lang kami ni hubby 
nakapagpabook na kami sa costa pero hindi pa kami nakapag apply for schengen visa.
since kasama sa itinerary yung Tunisia, kailangan din namin kumuha ng visa for that country? kahit na hindi na kmi baba? kasi 4 hours lang naman ang stay ng ship dun.
as of now, pinipray namin na ma approve yung visa namin, sa september pa kami mag apply kasi sa december pa naman yung date ng cruise..
 ano ba ang mga dos and donts? ano ano yung dapat dalhin na mga damit? 

[portugalbear]

kung 2 lang kayo, join na kayo ng cruise ng ship. 

on the visa - which country kayo magaaply?  ang rule of thumb, kung where you're staying the longest, dun kayo magaaply.  kami Italy pinakamaraming port and pinakamaring days kaya dun kami.  as for the docs- same with what you need to present when applying for a US Visa.  You can actually call the embassy and ask what docs do they require.  No appearance ang Italian embassy.  parang Canadian visa.  Just submit the docs and pray hard na approve. 

As for Tunisai - most likely wala, but research ka sa internet or try to call the embassy to ask para sure.  Kami - Turkey yun port na di kasama sa Schengen but not required a separate visa if going on cruise.

[chinita8]

^^there was a group of Filipino family in our cruise na naging friend na rin namin, who didn't go down sa Estonia kasi they didn't get a visa for that country and it was needed. They just stayed in the ship for that day. But sis portugalbear is correct, please check with the cruise company first if needed and/or also check the embassy of that country as well. 

[wilrose1]

im planning to avail of asian cruise late next year or early 2013. ang balak ko from dubai going to hong kong or singapore. royal caribbean lang ang may cruise from dubai to asia. ok ba ang royal caribbean? magdadaan mostly sa indian ports. kailangan ko pa ba kumuha ng visa o pwede kumuha ng visa sa mga ports?

[glittersky]

I want to experience this too!  For our 1st anniv sana kaso the cheapest package sent to me by a travel agency was 26k per pax. Sa Penang-Phuket yan. Meron pa ba mas mura dyan? Thanks!

[michi247]

^ check mo website ng airphil, may promo sila ngayon na fly and sail http://www.airphilexpress.com/adventours/flyandsail/index.php

Double the AdvenTour! Fly to Singapore and Cruise to Malaysia!

[l_neveph]

sa mga sissies na naka try na ng carnival cruise, do you think it's worth it?kasi parang hindi
ganun ka broad ang places na pupuntahan niyo?

[mbarbi]

Mga sis were planning on taking a cruise this october sa star cruise virgo..totoo ba na hindi maalon pag sa singapore galing? Mas maalon daw sa hongkong kasi open sea?

Thanks in advance 

[kisses1417]

I want to experience this too!  For our 1st anniv sana kaso the cheapest package sent to me by a travel agency was 26k per pax. Sa Penang-Phuket yan. Meron pa ba mas mura dyan? Thanks!

HI everyone!! Ako i am selling my Starcruises Pisces voucher bought from pakyaw. Overnight cruise in HK 5200 ko sya nabili, ibenta ko na lang ng 5k flat. until Oct pa yung booking date tapos Until Dec ang sailing date!

[wickedlovely]

@chinita8

Hi sis, I found your post very informative. Question lang, if hindi ka sasama sa excursions, can you still go down the ship and explore on your own?

[chinita8]

^yes you can do that provided that you have a valid visa for that country.

Just like in my earlier post, we knew of a family who couldn't go down sa Estonia coz they didn't have the visa for that country, Estonia not a Schengen state kasi. So they had to stay in the ship while everyone who had visas were doing their excursions for the day.

During naman our cruise around Japan, we joined the excursions of almost all the places where the ship docked at except Kyoto since we wanted to explore it on our own. We just went down the ship and took a cab to where we wanted to go within Kyoto. Just remember to know the time that you have to go back to the ship coz pwede kang maiwan. 

[chinita8]

How about celebrity cruise..saan mga destination nila

you can check it here 

http://www.celebritycruises.com/

[mbarbi]

^mina, sa akin ba itong question mo? sagutin ko na rin. nakakatakot sa umpisa, lalo na pag nasa gitna na kayo ng ocean at wala ka nang matanaw na lupa.  pero super enjoy kasi sa ship kaya nakalimutan ko yung fear ko. nung 2nd cruise namin, saktong lumindol ng malakas sa china (yung sobrang daming namatay sa lindol) kaya sobrang laki ng alon. nakakatakot talaga. my then 4-year-old daughter and i got sea sick. nag-vomit kami sa sobrang hilo dahil sa lakas ng alon. thank God dahil safe naman kaming lahat. 

joy...finally baka matuloy na din kami this october sa star cruise virgo....sana naman wag masyado maalon....

talaga? nung umaalon ng malaki anong ginawa ng mga passengers?? as in sobrang laki ba ng alon? ilang minutes yung maalon or hours?

[lunast]

Hello mga sissies! My bf and I are planning to go on a cruise early next year (we live in florida). Meron ba kaung mai-susuggest na cruise line na na-try nyo na? We're planning to go somewhere in the carribean.. ty sa mga tips!

[lieben]

Hi sisses! I will travel for star cruise virgo on oct 23-28 and i would like toask sisses here if i can bring ipad? How about the internet access? My brother in law formerly work in celebrity cruise he is a marine engineer but work as chemical technician? He advise me not to stay long in the water pool since my hair is chemically treated. The water they used at the swimming pool is highly treated w/ chemical. My question is how long is the barking time in every port? How about the dress code? I have limited time to prepare because of my work load. Inputs are highly appreciated. Thanks.