DFD

Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 7:31 pm**

Wife and I are planning a trip. We like the idea of a cruise for the simplicity of planning.

Charleston is the easiest to leave from as it is a 2 hour drive to the port. But Tampa and Baltimore are possible too. What are the optimal trips to take? Give me the insider tips on how to pick a cruise.

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Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 8:09 pm**

[user not found] wrote:First question - budget and do you get .mil deals?

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We can get the military prices. Just not sure what kind of discounts those are.

$3000 max. Ideally the less the better. But we want a good trip with the alcohol package and hopefully less children.

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Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 8:12 pm**

Barnes93cb wrote: ↑Mon Apr 17, 2017 8:09 pm
[user not found] wrote:First question - budget and do you get .mil deals?

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We can get the military prices. Just not sure what kind of discounts those are.

$3000 max. Ideally the less the better. But we want a good trip with the alcohol package and hopefully less children.

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$3000 should be plenty for the two of you. How long are you trying to go for? 5 days, 4 nights?

Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 8:25 pm**

SAWCE wrote:
Barnes93cb wrote: ↑Mon Apr 17, 2017 8:09 pm We can get the military prices. Just not sure what kind of discounts those are.

$3000 max. Ideally the less the better. But we want a good trip with the alcohol package and hopefully less children.

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$3000 should be plenty for the two of you. How long are you trying to go for? 5 days, 4 nights?

That would be the minimum. Nothing less.

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Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 8:29 pm**

We would also be willing to leave from Tampa and Baltimore.

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Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 9:22 pm**

Barnes93cb wrote: ↑Mon Apr 17, 2017 8:09 pm
[user not found] wrote:First question - budget and do you get .mil deals?

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
We can get the military prices. Just not sure what kind of discounts those are.

$3000 max. Ideally the less the better. But we want a good trip with the alcohol package and hopefully less children.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I highly recommend getting the drinks package. It made for possibly the best cruise experience I've ever had. It was on Celebrity which is a completely 5/7 line, a bit upscale but not stuffy. And there were very few kids on board when we went. They sail out of Miami, doe. AFAIK Carnival is the only line that sails out of Charleston, going to the Bahamas. I did that cruise 5 years ago and it was pretty great, too, although it's a different ship now that the one I took, but that shouldn't really matter much.

Anyway, is Miami a possibility for you?

Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 9:23 pm**

$3k should be doable for a 5-7 day 5/7 cruise, as long as you can be a bit flexible with your vacation time.

Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 10:13 pm**

We took a carnival cruise in January to the southern Caribbean out of San Juan and it was amazing. Older ship but we were only at sea one day out of 7. There were several kids on board, but there was an adults only area on the back of the boat with hot tubs that became a legit sanctuary for us.
We didn't opt for the beverage package and saved ourselves around $400. We actually used these awesome things called rum runners, and smuggled liquor onto the boat. They were totally undetectable by the xray. We did order some drinks, but for the most part we just grabbed cans of juice when we could at port and bought some carnival cups to mix our own drinks.
We got to see St Thomas, St Lucia, Barbados, St Kitts, St Martin, and of course San Juan, and did our own excursions at each island. Rented a jeep on St Thomas, 6 hr guided island tour on St Lucia, took a cab to a cool laid back beach bar in Barbados, a catamaran charter with snorkeling in St Kitts, a 3.5 hr couples jet ski rental tour in St Martin, and a car rental in San Juan. All said and done we figured the cost to be about $2300. In my opinion, cruises are great because you never have to stress about meals!

Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 10:27 pm**

Badassbabe98 wrote: ↑Mon Apr 17, 2017 10:13 pm We took a carnival cruise in January to the southern Caribbean out of San Juan and it was amazing. Older ship but we were only at sea one day out of 7. There were several kids on board, but there was an adults only area on the back of the boat with hot tubs that became a legit sanctuary for us.
We didn't opt for the beverage package and saved ourselves around $400. We actually used these awesome things called rum runners, and smuggled liquor onto the boat. They were totally undetectable by the xray. We did order some drinks, but for the most part we just grabbed cans of juice when we could at port and bought some carnival cups to mix our own drinks.
We got to see St Thomas, St Lucia, Barbados, St Kitts, St Martin, and of course San Juan, and did our own excursions at each island. Rented a jeep on St Thomas, 6 hr guided island tour on St Lucia, took a cab to a cool laid back beach bar in Barbados, a catamaran charter with snorkeling in St Kitts, a 3.5 hr couples jet ski rental tour in St Martin, and a car rental in San Juan. All said and done we figured the cost to be about $2300. In my opinion, cruises are great because you never have to stress about meals!

what ship were you on? I've been on a couple of Carnival ships with the Serenity Adult area at the back. They're 5/7 for sure. I've stopped in San Juan but I've always wanted to start a cruise from there.

Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 10:54 pm**

wap wrote: ↑Mon Apr 17, 2017 9:23 pm $3k should be doable for a 5-7 day 5/7 cruise, as long as you can be a bit flexible with your vacation time.

We were looking into the possibility of September. But anytime within the next 6ish months is desirable.

Posted: **Tue Apr 18, 2017 9:21 am**

wap wrote: ↑Mon Apr 17, 2017 10:27 pm
Badassbabe98 wrote: ↑Mon Apr 17, 2017 10:13 pm We took a carnival cruise in January to the southern Caribbean out of San Juan and it was amazing. Older ship but we were only at sea one day out of 7. There were several kids on board, but there was an adults only area on the back of the boat with hot tubs that became a legit sanctuary for us.
We didn't opt for the beverage package and saved ourselves around $400. We actually used these awesome things called rum runners, and smuggled liquor onto the boat. They were totally undetectable by the xray. We did order some drinks, but for the most part we just grabbed cans of juice when we could at port and bought some carnival cups to mix our own drinks.
We got to see St Thomas, St Lucia, Barbados, St Kitts, St Martin, and of course San Juan, and did our own excursions at each island. Rented a jeep on St Thomas, 6 hr guided island tour on St Lucia, took a cab to a cool laid back beach bar in Barbados, a catamaran charter with snorkeling in St Kitts, a 3.5 hr couples jet ski rental tour in St Martin, and a car rental in San Juan. All said and done we figured the cost to be about $2300. In my opinion, cruises are great because you never have to stress about meals!
what ship were you on? I've been on a couple of Carnival ships with the Serenity Adult area at the back. They're 5/7 for sure. I've stopped in San Juan but I've always wanted to start a cruise from there.

It was the fascination. Definitely an older ship in need of some updating but everything was kept very clean and we weren't on it very much anyways lol

Posted: **Tue Apr 18, 2017 9:29 am**

Cruises can be fun, id suggest trying to go with friends.

Posted: **Wed Apr 19, 2017 1:10 am**

Big Brain Bradley wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2017 9:29 am Cruises can be fun, id suggest trying to go with friends.

We may have already changed our minds. Also most of our friends are broke and couldnt afford a cruise on this short of notice.

Its also a sort of late honeymoon. So we are still looking at other trip options.

Posted: **Wed Apr 19, 2017 2:08 am**

I went on a cruise to the Bahamas when I was about 11. We got free tickets for looking at a time share and then wasting their time and saying we weren't interested. Lol.
Every time we passed this one room when going down our hallway there was this wack ass smell. It was ALWAYS there.
Mom finally said "that's what marijuana smells like". And that's the first time those magnificent 80's D.A.R.E. lessons came into play in the real world.

Posted: **Wed Apr 19, 2017 7:51 am**

Barnes93cb wrote: ↑Wed Apr 19, 2017 1:10 am
Big Brain Bradley wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2017 9:29 am Cruises can be fun, id suggest trying to go with friends.
We may have already changed our minds. Also most of our friends are broke and couldnt afford a cruise on this short of notice.

Its also a sort of late honeymoon. So we are still looking at other trip options.

for a honeymoon on that kind of budget consider europe.

Mexico all-inclusives are great for honeymoon's too.

also think out the box, the USA is REALLY big.

Posted: **Thu Apr 20, 2017 12:45 am**

Big Brain Bradley wrote: ↑Wed Apr 19, 2017 7:51 am
Barnes93cb wrote: ↑Wed Apr 19, 2017 1:10 am

We may have already changed our minds. Also most of our friends are broke and couldnt afford a cruise on this short of notice.

Its also a sort of late honeymoon. So we are still looking at other trip options.
for a honeymoon on that kind of budget consider europe.

Mexico all-inclusives are great for honeymoon's too.

also think out the box, the USA is REALLY big.

We are leaning towards out of the US. And Mexico is an option. But with our jobs we are pretty limited on where we can go.

Posted: **Fri May 26, 2017 10:16 am**

Big Brain Bradley wrote: ↑Wed Apr 19, 2017 7:51 am
Barnes93cb wrote: ↑Wed Apr 19, 2017 1:10 am

We may have already changed our minds. Also most of our friends are broke and couldnt afford a cruise on this short of notice.

Its also a sort of late honeymoon. So we are still looking at other trip options.
for a honeymoon on that kind of budget consider europe.

Mexico all-inclusives are great for honeymoon's too.

also think out the box, the USA is REALLY big.

Two people to Europe for $3k?

The airfare alone would be over $2k. Europe trips are :waxer:

Cruises are really fun and pretty cheap. I'd skip Charleston :doe:

, the Bahamas are pretty meh. Just look at the cruise line's calendars, some weeks can be very cheap.

Posted: **Fri May 26, 2017 10:21 am**

D Griff wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 10:16 am
Big Brain Bradley wrote: ↑Wed Apr 19, 2017 7:51 am

for a honeymoon on that kind of budget consider europe.

Mexico all-inclusives are great for honeymoon's too.

also think out the box, the USA is REALLY big.
Two people to Europe for $3k? The airfare alone would be over $2k. Europe trips are

Cruises are really fun and pretty cheap. I'd skip Charleston , the Bahamas are pretty meh. Just look at the cruise line's calendars, some weeks can be very cheap.

Do you even internet :bruh:

I could go to Europe for a month for $50. You just have to shop around!

Posted: **Fri May 26, 2017 11:02 am**

troyguitar wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 10:21 am
D Griff wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 10:16 am

Two people to Europe for $3k? The airfare alone would be over $2k. Europe trips are

Cruises are really fun and pretty cheap. I'd skip Charleston , the Bahamas are pretty meh. Just look at the cruise line's calendars, some weeks can be very cheap.
Do you even internet

I could go to Europe for a month for $50. You just have to shop around!

maybe just Iceland, sure.

Posted: **Fri May 26, 2017 12:49 pm**

troyguitar wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 10:21 am
D Griff wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 10:16 am

Two people to Europe for $3k? The airfare alone would be over $2k. Europe trips are

Cruises are really fun and pretty cheap. I'd skip Charleston , the Bahamas are pretty meh. Just look at the cruise line's calendars, some weeks can be very cheap.
Do you even internet

I could go to Europe for a month for $50. You just have to shop around!

The time of year you go has a yuuge impact on what you pay, but you're off by a factor of 10. That plus whatever deals you can find on the net. Last December we did a week in Italy (7 nights) for $3500 all in. The package we bought was about $2400 and we spent another G there on meals, public transportation, museum entrances, souvenirs, etc. It can be done, but you have to not mind going in the shoulder or off season.
I recognize the ":rollface: post, doe

Posted: **Fri May 26, 2017 12:50 pm**

MexicanYarisTK wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 11:02 am
troyguitar wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 10:21 am

Do you even internet

I could go to Europe for a month for $50. You just have to shop around!
maybe just Iceland, sure.

You can find great deals to Iceland too! They're usually for shorter stays, :doe:

, like 3-5 days.

Posted: **Fri May 26, 2017 1:00 pm**

wap wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 12:49 pm
troyguitar wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 10:21 am

Do you even internet

I could go to Europe for a month for $50. You just have to shop around!
The time of year you go has a yuuge impact on what you pay, but you're off by a factor of 10. That plus whatever deals you can find on the net. Last December we did a week in Italy (7 nights) for $3500 all in. The package we bought was about $2400 and we spent another G there on meals, public transportation, museum entrances, souvenirs, etc. It can be done, but you have to not mind going in the shoulder or off season.
I recognize the ":rollface: post, doe

Posted: **Fri May 26, 2017 1:36 pm**

troyguitar wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 1:00 pm
wap wrote: ↑Fri May 26, 2017 12:49 pm

The time of year you go has a yuuge impact on what you pay, but you're off by a factor of 10. That plus whatever deals you can find on the net. Last December we did a week in Italy (7 nights) for $3500 all in. The package we bought was about $2400 and we spent another G there on meals, public transportation, museum entrances, souvenirs, etc. It can be done, but you have to not mind going in the shoulder or off season.
I recognize the post, doe

Why would I lie about what I spent for a vacation? :wtf:

The company is called Gate 1 and they have :dill:

all the time. We lucked out with a great one at a non-optimal time of year. It was $24xx.xx for the airfare, hotels, train transportation between Venice, Florence, and Rome, 7 nights in :notbad:

hotels in each city including breakfast, a walking tour in each city, and entrance to the Vatican museum. We paid for our own public transportation in each city, dinners, other museum entrances, souvenirs, etc, which all came to another $1k or so. What's not to believe?

Posted: **Fri May 26, 2017 1:41 pm**

I haven't clicked on these but there's a shit ton of deals on their website now for around $1G/person:

https://www.gate1travel.com/europe/italy

Independent Vacations
Package Name Description Season Category Land Only Air & Land
6 Day Rome Vacation
4 Rome Apr - Oct '17 Independent $829*
6 Day Rome Value Vacation
4 Rome Nov '17 - Mar '18 Independent $539*
8 Day Florence & Rome by Rail
3 Florence, 3 Rome Apr - Oct '17 Independent $379 $1139*
8 Day London, Paris & Rome
2 London, 2 Paris, 2 Rome Mar - Oct '17 Independent $1189*
8 Day Paris & Rome
3 Paris, 3 Rome Mar - Oct '17 Independent $1029*
8 Day Rome & Barcelona
3 Rome, 3 Barcelona Apr - Oct '17 Independent $1349*
8 Day Rome Vacation
6 Rome Apr - Oct '17 Independent $799*
8 Day Rome Value Vacation
6 Rome Nov '17 - Mar '18 Independent $639*
8 Day Rome, Florence & Venice by Rail
2 Rome, 2 Florence, 2 Venice Apr - Oct '17 Independent $429 $989*
8 Day Venice & Rome by Rail
3 Venice, 3 Rome Apr - Oct '17 Independent $439 $1059*
8 Day Venice, Florence & Rome by Rail
2 Venice, 2 Florence, 2 Rome Apr - Oct '17 Independent $399 $1019*

Posted: **Fri May 26, 2017 1:45 pm**

I don't know why anyone lies on the internet, but most people do. That :dill:

is

unbelievable :doe:

Not Rome, but I've looked at Paris CDG and I cannot find flights alone for under $2400 (for 2 people) in December - they're $4000+ in Summer. No :alpo:

I guess?

Also: You spend $100 per person per dinner with work bros... You spend less than that with your wife? :wtf:

DFD

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