Excursion Etiquette: The Maze That Never Was | Cruise Cast Ep.38

Have you ever booked a cruise excursion based on an enticing description, only to discover the reality falls disappointingly short? That's exactly what sparked our deep dive into excursion etiquette this week – a promised maze experience that turned out to be nothing more than a drive-by glimpse from a coach window.

Excursion descriptions often gloss over crucial details like how much time you'll actually spend at destinations versus traveling between them. We share our frustrations with this lack of transparency and discuss what cruise lines should disclose when selling these increasingly expensive experiences. From the four-hour coach journey for a 30-minute stop to the "highlights" that aren't highlighted at all, we explore how better communication could lead to happier cruisers.

But passenger behavior deserves equal scrutiny. We tackle the infuriating habit of fellow travelers talking over tour guides, showing up late to meeting points, and wearing wildly inappropriate footwear for activities. Remember the woman who attempted a jungle expedition in designer Fendi flip-flops? Or our own misadventures with local liqueurs before returning to the coach? These real-life examples illustrate how individual choices impact everyone's experience.

We round out the episode with breaking cruise news: Cunard implementing charges for shows on Queen Anne, Royal Caribbean celebrating its 100 millionth passenger, and the mysterious last-minute withdrawal of Diana Ross as godmother for Star of the Seas. Who should replace her? We've got some entertaining suggestions!

Whether you're a cruise veteran or planning your first voyage, these insights will help you navigate shore excursions more successfully. Share your own excursion horror stories or etiquette pet peeves with us – we'd love to hear them!

Transcript

Introduction to Excursion Etiquette

Speaker 1 0:00

Welcome to episode 38 of the Sweet Nature Cruisecast. Hi, I'm Linz. As always, I'm joined by Marky, hello, hello. And today we're talking excursion etiquette what you should do and what the cruise lines should do.

Speaker 2 0:31

But first a's mood music it sounded very familiar we have actually used that one before for transparency. We were recording this in the morning before and I forgot to get the mood music ready, so so I've remixed a couple of used tracks.

Speaker 1 0:47

And the thing is, it's early in the morning and I still look frazzled. It's very warm in the UK at the minute.

Speaker 2 0:53

Well, today it's meant to be 34 degrees, isn't it?

Speaker 1 0:56

Let's convert that 34 times 2.

Speaker 2 1:01

Let me get this right. We're starting off with one of your famous weather conversions.

Speaker 1 1:05

I'll have you know. My maths calculations are genius 34 times 2 equals 68 plus 32. 99.

Speaker 2 1:18

Not only is your maths conversion right, right, wrong, wrong. What did you just say that was?

Speaker 1 1:26

What did I say it was? What did I say it was? What did I say it was?

Speaker 2 1:29

Well, you had an even number.

Speaker 1 1:31

I do words.

Speaker 2 1:32

And you had another even number and you ended up with an odd number.

Speaker 1 1:36

You and your rules. I don't play to any rules.

Speaker 2 1:39

You do your own maths.

Speaker 1 1:41

I do my own maths.

Speaker 2 1:42

Well, today's show we're going to talk about excursion etiquette. We've got three cruise news stories, as usual. Okay, because it's very early in the morning and I didn't get ready with no cruise confession, but it will be definitely back for the next one. I've got a couple lined up oh, I thought I was saving them up for the no we're saving up your late night lindsey ones okay, I'm looking forward to them okay, um, but do you want to kick us off with Excursion Etiquette and what made us talk about this?

Speaker 1 2:08

Excursions made us talk about this. It always seems to be the same thing. So what really triggered this for me and I say triggered in the mental health today is that we booked an excursion that said that the beautiful house had a maze, and I was so excited because I love a maze. I like to be lost, Even more lost in a maze. I just I find them, Not just in your maths calculator.

Speaker 1 2:36

No, they make me think of like there's just something old, like there's something really I want to say it. There's something really sexy about mazes, because you don't know who you're going to come across.

Speaker 2 2:49

Okay.

Speaker 1 2:50

I'm thinking Bram Stoker's Dracula, I'm thinking Dangerous Liaisons, I'm thinking that type of thing. So I love a maze.

Speaker 2 2:59

When was there a maze in Bram Stoker's Dracula? We only watched that recently, so I'm fairly convinced that.

Speaker 1 3:05

We watched it before. It wasn't that we've just discovered it.

Speaker 2 3:07

No, we re-watched it very recently After watching Nosferatu. It's amazing isn't it?

Speaker 1 3:12

There's a maze where I can only think of Sadie Frost Is that who it is? Goes wandering through and she's all sensual and she meets him in the middle. This is at the house, not, um, at the big house.

Speaker 2 3:31

I'm totally lost for words right now, because I'm in amazing mood. This is what sort of was your trigger thing that you didn't get to go?

Speaker 1 3:39

to no, it was a drive-by maze.

Speaker 2 3:41

It was a drive-by maze so when you're talking about etiquette, though, are you meaning because of, in that particular instance, how it was pitched in terms of the description? Yeah, yeah, yeah, and there was no ability to go to the maze. You don't have enough time to actually walk to it and do the maze and get back no, so don't tell me there's a maze and then not.

Speaker 1 4:03

Let me go in the maze I do that.

Speaker 2 4:05

I think we can probably talk about two different things on this. When it comes to etiquette, I think you can talk about sort of the description and the expectation, how it's sold, and I think you can talk about sort of behaviour.

Speaker 1 4:18

Yes.

Speaker 2 4:19

And I think that is what a lot of people would expect when they look at the title of this and think about etiquette. Yeah, but I do think the descriptions are very valid, because we've talked about this. I don't know if we've talked about it on a cruise cast before, but we've definitely talked about it on a live. We've definitely talked about it on other videos where they're not completely transparent, with how much time you're going to spend traveling between the ship and the destination.

Speaker 1 4:41

No, it's all.

Speaker 2 4:42

And how much time you spend there yeah you can often spend twice as long amount of time traveling on the coach to get there than you actually yeah in the place yeah and you think, well, I'm gonna get to spend a day at yeah, I don't know some san michel mount, yeah, michael's mount, yeah, um, and actually you spend four hours on a coach and half an hour there exactly.

Speaker 1 5:02

It's like a nana timeline.

Speaker 2 5:04

A nana timeline.

Speaker 1 5:05

Yeah, like.

Speaker 2 5:07

I think that needs explaining.

Speaker 1 5:08

Okay. Well, I'm thinking of your mom, I'm thinking of my nana. They want to go to a garden center. They say, oh, I've heard about this lovely garden center, it's only 25 minutes away.

Speaker 2 5:18

And is it three hours away.

Speaker 1 5:20

I wouldn't say three hours away, but it's definitely not 25 minutes away.

Speaker 2 5:25

And is it worth going when you get there.

Speaker 1 5:27

No, so it's. That's what I'm thinking.

The Drive-By Maze Disappointment

Speaker 2 5:32

Yeah, I do think there's an element. What we have to remember is the cruise lines. Or you might not have booked it via the cruise line, you might have booked it via an external one. They're ultimately trying to sell you something, yeah yeah yeah, that's what they're there today. They're selling me a maze.

Speaker 2 5:53

They're not gonna say no, this is an excursion where you're gonna spend the vast majority of time on the coach yeah, you're gonna get to just drive by the maze, yeah, and I don't necessarily think that this should spend a lot of time putting out the negatives to it, because that's not how anyone sells anything. No um, but I feel that they've got to be honest about it and, with your maze example, don't highlight, and this was on like the second yeah, I was so excited going to this sort of yeah, old castle house with a maze and you're like oh house with a maze and you're like ooh.

Speaker 2 6:24

I love a maze, and that sold you on that description, didn't it? You're like let's do that one. If it hadn't have been that, I think we would have chosen a different excursion. We would. And it's not to say the excursion was bad, no, there were some interesting bits on it, but it wasn't what we were expecting.

Speaker 1 6:40

No, and were expecting no, and therefore another thing. Another thing about the coach. Yeah, this happened on on the excursion to the maze, which made me even more miserable. Um, I, we were split up because we were sort of one of the last on, because, yeah, yeah, we, we didn't.

Speaker 1 6:55

There were no seats to go no, no, so we we sat separately, so I politely letting other people get on first and then realize there were no seats yeah, but you know, um, we were taking pictures of the ship and things like that, so we were not sat together, so I was sat with some lovely ladies. One was a brown owl, and across from us A brown owl yeah, a brown owl.

Speaker 2 7:15

As in like brownies and guides.

Speaker 1 7:17

Not an actual owl?

Speaker 2 7:18

Well, it might have been a term for something else that I'm not familiar with.

Speaker 1 7:23

You know all the terms.

Speaker 2 7:25

But I might not have known what that one was, but you mentioned. How did it come up that she looked after guys?

Speaker 1 7:31

Brownies. Yeah, Because she'd crafted something and it was like, oh, I know that. And she goes oh, I'm a brownie.

Speaker 2 7:41

I don't know if you have these random conversations conversation I sat next to, because I was sat right on the very back seat in the middle, because it was literally the only seat left on the couch I had people on both sides. I genuinely don't think I said a word to either of them, like going out or coming back on the coach. You find out that someone's a brown owl and can craft.

Speaker 1 8:02

It's a skill I'm just saying she, I was up with three lovely ladies. Across me was another two ladies and of course we've got the um, the guide, at the front telling us what. If we look to the left, if we look to the right, what can we see?

Speaker 1 8:17

yeah the two ladies here, one was missing their child's, their grandchild's, birthday party because they got on this cruise. So she was virtually dialing in to the birthday party or seeing videos of the birthday party. Well, we're trying to listen. Oh yeah, I remember Just all the way, like we couldn't. Yeah, I mean we couldn't.

Speaker 2 8:44

Yeah, I mean, that for me is definitely.

Speaker 1 8:47

Cruise excursion etiquette.

Speaker 2 8:50

It is specifically excursion etiquette. Yes, I think it's etiquette for when you're on a ship or when you're anywhere.

Speaker 1 8:56

Yeah.

Speaker 2 8:57

If you're going to an event where someone's speaking, don't talk Shut up. Yeah, yeah. People have gone there to see them, not to listen to you, and definitely not to listen to you talk about your kid's party or watch videos no videos of children. You've got plenty of other time to do that when you're not at that second. Yeah, or put earphones on. If you don't want to listen to it, put some earphones on headphones.

Speaker 1 9:19

I miss some very interesting facts about Flanders because of.

Speaker 2 9:24

I do find that incredibly rude when people do that, and that's happened so many times when we've been on excursions.

Speaker 1 9:30

Yeah.

Speaker 2 9:30

People just talk over, and if you are going to go on an excursion where it tells you that there's an original tour for a lot of people, that's why they booked it.

Speaker 1 9:40

Yeah, of course yeah.

Speaker 2 9:41

And we've had it when we're walking around, when you're actually at the destination, and they're tiny stuff, and then you've got a group of people who are just like talking over the top of it. And again, if you're on one of those excursions where you're wearing a little earphone and you can hear the guide, it's less problematic.

Speaker 1 9:56

But when you're on the coach.

Speaker 2 9:58

You've just no chance, and especially if you're sat further back.

Speaker 1 10:00

This has made me so angry. What time is it? Eight o'clock in the morning.

Coach Etiquette and Inconsiderate Passengers

Speaker 2 10:04

Yeah, it's a very frustrating element to it. I have got another excursion etiquette and I suspect you've got some more. I've got one more after you and you've been guilty of this one. What's that Tipping up back to the coach late when everyone else is on it and maybe having had a lot too many drinks? And I would like to point out, I went with you on this one. You were on it with my mother, so this wasn't anything I did wrong and I had to do the walk of shame.

Speaker 2 10:33

You were the very last one on, as they were about to leave you. If they give you a time to come back, no, no, no, no, no.

Speaker 1 10:41

this is where, no, this is where?

Speaker 2 10:43

no, this, no. Well, do you want to make your defence for this?

Speaker 1 10:46

I do want to make my defence for this. So we were in, I want to say Sicily, and we went to see.

Speaker 2 10:53

I think you were in Sicily.

Speaker 1 10:54

I went to see, was it Sicily? It was somewhere in the Met.

Speaker 2 11:00

Didn't you go to the crypt or something. Didn't you go to the crypt or?

Speaker 1 11:02

something. No, we were going to go to the crypt, but we then found out you'll be able to tell me in the place. Actually, the crypt has cadavers dressed up in scenarios, so we didn't go there. We went to see the mosaics, we went out onto this peninsula and then it started to rain.

Speaker 1 11:25

Now I have a habit of, when we get off a coaching cafes, bistros, bars, that kind of thing it's a skill it is a skill I you have been very receptive of that skill I have, um, and I said to you, to your mom, oh, should we go get, should we go get a drink? So we snuck off.

Speaker 2 11:43

I've been there when you've said to me shall we go get a drink? I know where this ends, but it's not where we've no more to get back to a coach so we snuck off.

Speaker 1 11:52

we turn around and there's quite a few people following us because it's raining and we went to our little cafe and we drank and we had a lovely, lovely, lovely time and we were told that the coach would be leaving.

Speaker 2 12:04

Were you just drinking tea and coffee then?

Speaker 1 12:07

No, we were participating in the local liqueur, so we were sat there and then they told us the coach would set off at whatever time. Yeah, but the coach decided that it was going to set off early because of the rain, so they had to send someone to come and get us out of the cafe. Other people had gone Me and your mum had warmed up now and we had to walk back to the coach.

Speaker 1 12:44

And, yeah, a walk of shame, a walk of shame Back to the couch and, yeah, a walk of shame back to the sea. And then we sat down and it gets worse. It gets worse because, because, then we, we drove past this really holy place where a saint had been martyred.

Speaker 2 13:07

And were they explaining it as part of the narration, and did you two lose it because you were drunk?

Speaker 1 13:18

Yes, and no disrespect to the saying.

Speaker 2 13:25

You don't know who the saying was. You were just drunk and found it amusing, for whatever reason.

Speaker 1 13:31

It was a really horrible way to die. I found it really funny. That's funny.

Speaker 2 13:37

I'm not sure that's a better lie.

Speaker 1 13:41

Oh, humans are so funny.

Speaker 2 13:44

It says that you probably shouldn't partake in a liqueur when you've got to go back on the coach. And there's two elements to that One if the coach decides it's going to set off earlier and they have to come and get you, that's not your fault.

Speaker 1 13:56

No, it's not my fault, because you would have been back there. It's not?

Speaker 2 13:58

my fault. I have to believe you would have left on time and got back there. You may not have done, but you didn't actually set off late. But I think then, if you get back on a coach, slightly intoxicated and in the same way that people, are talking over the person doing the narration and there's people who've gone on there to hear about the martyrdom and maybe have found it very sad, and then you start chalking away at some deranged person. I think that's poor.

Speaker 1 14:33

I've got a real dark side. What can I say?

Speaker 2 14:39

Well, I do think that when you sort of if they give you a time to get back to the coach or back to your tender or however you're getting back to the ship that's not on foot, yeah, if you're on foot, then you're not delaying anyone apart from yourself no, but I feel bad.

Speaker 2 14:54

Now I feel bad, I'm sorry if your time to get back to the coaches half past three we're going to set off at half past, yes then I feel that you've got to get back to the coach is half past three. We're going to set off at half past three, yes, then I feel that you've got to be back on the coach by 25 past three. Yeah, yeah yeah, that to me is etiquette, that being early is on time. Oh yes, what is it? Being on time is late, and being late is unacceptable.

Speaker 1 15:17

Thank you.

Speaker 2 15:18

So I think you need to be back there five minutes. For people who tip up like bang on the time or late, I think it's just like poor manners, because by the time you then get seated and then they do the count and everything else yeah, you're five, ten, ten minutes behind and if that happens at every stop, yeah and you're losing time off the way we've ended up having in the past when we've been on excursions where that's happened is they have to cut short.

Speaker 2 15:44

Oh, look at this part of your later excursion yeah, they do, they do, they do or you might have to make a stop if it's sufficiently on there. So think about other people on there. If you want to have that time where you just don't take a private excursion, get a taxi to where you're going. I've got another thing.

Speaker 1 16:00

Go for it okay, so this is a cruise line, one in a similar kind of thing for the timings. So you, they say you have to go to the theater, um, your group, whatever. You get your sticker and they say that your excursion is going to go at 10 30 yeah I'm saving myself up to go to the ladies at 20 past to 25 past 10.

Speaker 2 16:23

Yeah, so that you're ready to get on the coach or, however you get into your destination without needing a lubricant.

Speaker 1 16:28

I'm still going to need it at some point, yeah but you're giving yourself the best chance. I'm just, and other ladies do this as well. I'm not the only lady that does this?

Speaker 2 16:37

No, no no, no.

Speaker 1 16:39

So I'm now going. So what happened? This time it's coming up to 20 past. Between 20 past and 25 past 10, I stand up to do my usual nip to the ladies before we set off. Were we group 4 or something? I get up, stands, walks to group 4 is now. I was like I've saved myself. I've saved myself for this thing.

Speaker 2 17:04

Well, I feel that, for you, what you need to do is maybe go 15 minutes before.

Speaker 1 17:09

Yeah, but psychologically, psychologically.

Speaker 2 17:12

But you have to appreciate from the cruise line's perspective that they're, to a degree, the beck and call of the port authority. Yeah, because more often than not, I can only think of very few instances where we've got off earlier than we expected yeah, this one being one of them, but only five minutes early.

Speaker 1 17:32

Yeah, but still.

Speaker 2 17:32

But we've had it where we've been sat there an hour late. Well, I know we have, but either way, and for me, that etiquette on the cruise line for when they know it's going to be a significant time, yeah, but if they're going to be funny times, don't let me sat in the sort of theatre or wherever we sat waiting. If you know it's going to be an hour late, tell me it's going to be an hour late and to go enjoy the ship and come back at 11 o'clock.

Speaker 1 17:54

Yeah, yeah.

Speaker 2 17:56

Because when you're sat there and everyone gets frustrated, so by the time you end up getting on the coach or your tender, you're already a bit frustrated. You're all a bit annoyed. Yeah, mood for no for the day. No, have you got any other sort of etiquette examples or any bits of advice you would like to give people to avoid sort of etiquette blunders?

Speaker 1 18:18

I don't know if I'm going talking about this. I don't know if I'm the best person to come in now.

Speaker 2 18:23

I think you are the best person. You've made quite a few of these blunders, but you're aware of it and you don't do it again.

Speaker 1 18:29

I don't do it again.

Appropriate Attire for Excursions

Speaker 2 18:32

I would say another one, and you'll know exactly what I'm talking about as soon as I start saying this one no, it's not you. It's not you. Is dress appropriate for the type that you're going on. I'm just going to say one word and then I guarantee you'll tell the story. Shoe choice.

Speaker 1 18:54

Yeah.

Speaker 2 18:55

Did you immediately go to that one?

Speaker 1 18:56

I do not wear and I know they're quite a pricey and a bit of a flex.

Speaker 2 19:01

And just for context before you start telling the story. This is so memorable this was on our first or second ever cruise. It's our first cruise.

Speaker 1 19:10

So how many? 20, 2000?

Speaker 2 19:12

Over 20 years ago. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's how long ago.

Speaker 1 19:14

Oh, look, it zoomed in on me. That's how much it is.

Speaker 2 19:24

Well let's listen to what you've got to say about this. Okay, so we were going. He just wants you now Go for it.

Speaker 1 19:28

Oh no, this is quite off-putting. So we were heading into the jungle Jungle jungle, not drive-by jungle, actual jungle To see some were they Mayan ruins and a cave.

Speaker 2 19:45

We went into a back. What's?

Speaker 1 19:47

going on.

Speaker 2 19:48

That's me just altering the camera. You carry on with your story so.

Speaker 1 19:51

I was wearing heavy duty walker, slash, trainer, sneaker things with soles like lace up brown, not the most fantastic, okay walking trains, just normal walking trains. Yeah, you had something similar on Child, had something similar on we were prepared, we had hats, we had things, we were proper deep, we were proper jungled up.

Speaker 2 20:23

We were ready for the jungle. It was our first ever cruise excursion. We were ready for it, but we'd done excursions before.

Speaker 1 20:28

So we knew, and going into the jungle, we knew it'd be jungly.

Speaker 2 20:32

And also we were doing, it was the four by four excursion.

Speaker 1 20:36

Oh, yes, yeah, we had to drive.

Speaker 2 20:39

You drove your own Land Rover. Yeah, fantastic. Yeah, you were driving it through mud and water.

Speaker 1 20:44

Yeah, so you knew that there was going to be mud and water and there'd be pedals. They told you, and there'd be pedals. And we ended up in, I think, a very fancy aristocrat's compound, didn't we? A beautiful rose garden and the best loos I've ever been to. All the reflections were a great excursion. It was a very good excursion. Anyway. A lady was wearing and they are very pricey Fendi flip-flops and traipsing about and losing her shoes. I mean, I ended up shoeless on a night out.

Speaker 2 21:25

Yeah, but not in the jungle.

Speaker 1 21:26

But not in the jungle. That's to come, that's a future excursion. That's a future Lindsay problem. Yeah, it's.

Speaker 2 21:37

You've got to wear appropriate attire. Wear appropriate attire. We've seen many. That's an extreme excursion.

Speaker 1 21:44

Sunter Ocean An extreme example rather. It was an extreme excursion.

Speaker 2 21:48

They tell you there's going to be a lot of walking and steps, yeah, and people wearing really inappropriate footwear for whether it's big old heels or flip-flops ladies in heels it's you look at what you're going to do and then that way you're not in pain when you're on the excursion.

Speaker 2 22:04

No, or not able to walk and keep up with the group and holding everyone back yep. And also, if you do struggle to walk or go upstairs and things like that, they do always tell you on the description. So it's not from the cruise, it'll say moderate or extreme exertion Yep, lots of steps. Are you going to walk about three miles? Okay, make sure that you're capable of doing the excursion. You might really want to do it, but if you can't, you're just going to make it a bad day for everyone else. No, but you are right, etiquette is about ensuring manners and being respectful of other people.

Speaker 2 22:44

And if you're going to make everyone else wait half an hour because you're not capable of doing that particular excursion, whatever it is, for whatever reason, there's usually an option for everyone. Even if it's on the day. If you wake up in the morning and you've twisted your ankle the night before which does happen Absolutely or you've been on like a floor rider and banged your knee or something, then go to the excursion department and explain and most likely they'll let you change it free of charge to a different excursion because they know.

Speaker 2 23:21

Because they know yeah, okay, okay, should we have some cruise news?

Speaker 1 23:26

I think we better have, because I've got myself so wound up on that.

Speaker 2 23:29

Does it feel a little bit like therapy? You know kind of yeah, yeah and they're not cheap now excursions we were looking, can you imagine how much that 4x4 one would have been, because we started off on a speedboat.

Speaker 1 23:41

Yeah.

Speaker 2 23:42

We went to this, as you say, very fancy house in the middle of the jungle.

Speaker 1 23:48

Where you had chicken.

Speaker 2 23:49

It was chicken.

Speaker 1 23:50

It wasn't chicken.

Speaker 2 23:52

It was a big chicken it wasn't chicken, it was Testa.

Speaker 1 23:55

I think it squeaked. Whatever, I haven't had Testa.

Speaker 2 23:57

It squeaked, it probably squeaked Chicken squeak, that one did.

Speaker 1 24:04

They're the biggest thighs I've ever seen on a chicken. I'm not. They were like from a doug mcclure movie.

Speaker 2 24:12

Then you got your own car, yeah, and then we had an excursion back, and there's no way at the time, because I would have remembered that it would have cost us more than a hundred dollars a person I think it might have been 150 a person but cheaper for alex with us at that point yeah, yeah for the child. So nowadays, how much would that one have been? $400?, $500?

Speaker 1 24:37

I mean we need to cost Atlantis, because we used to go there for fun.

Speaker 2 24:41

Well, last time I costed Atlantis at the Bahamas it was the best part of $200 each, and you didn't get lunch First time we went there. I think it was about $100, but you got lunch including everything.

Cunard Charging for Shows

Speaker 1 24:54

Again, I was thinking about 150 dollars and you got lunch, because I had the conch burger, we did I, but you don't get lunch now. Anyway, we digress, we do do your news cruise news story.

Speaker 2 25:00

Okay, so the first one, cunard is going to start charging for shows really well, sort of okay, queen anne, yes, has got its uh, bright light society yes, it does.

Speaker 1 25:15

Everybody speculated this thought. Everyone said this was going to be everyone really enjoys that.

Speaker 2 25:21

They do a couple of different performances within there I think it was paul and carol.

Speaker 1 25:25

I think paul and carol were on there and said that they're going to be charging for this yeah, it seemed inevitable at some point.

Speaker 2 25:31

Yeah, because when you look at, for instance, p&o, part of the same group, yeah, it has its limelight. Yeah, similar kind of thing You're going for like a dinner show.

Speaker 1 25:39

Yeah, it seemed inevitable that it was going to charge. It's going to do it yeah.

Speaker 2 25:44

It's charging, yeah, okay, but what they're doing is doing two different versions of it for the three different shows. Okay, so the entry one for any show so there's no freebies going forward on this is $20 per person Okay, but you get a glass of champagne, right, and a souvenir program, okay, and it covers a service charge Nice, which is good, but if you've taken the drinks package, you always get annoyed. It's a service charge, nice, which is good, but if you've taken the drinks package, you always get annoyed.

Speaker 1 26:12

It's a little bit. Yeah, they should start doing like a two-tier thing, but okay, okay.

Speaker 2 26:16

The second. So that's for two of the shows. The third one is a higher fee.

Speaker 1 26:21

Right.

Speaker 2 26:21

Which is $46 per person. So then for you and I going we'll put $100 for a show Again yeah, but that gives you three cocktails, that apparently are designed to complement the music and the dance performance. Right, okay, which to me is making that a little bit more like Virgin do with their dinner shows, like Another Rose, yeah, but with Another Rose I think we got. Well, it's unlimited alcohol that you get joined.

Speaker 1 26:48

You know what? If they're strong enough, they enhance it anyway.

Speaker 2 26:52

Yeah.

Speaker 1 26:52

Including Saints.

Speaker 2 26:54

Apart from us going well, we've expected this and people have talked about that. It's probably going to happen for a while. Yeah, what's your thoughts on that?

Speaker 1 27:01

Would oh, I'm just not surprised. I'm just not surprised in the slightest, that's what we'll do, Queen Anne. Yeah, I just yeah. No, I'm not surprised. I put it again if you're on the drinks package, it'll be annoying.

Speaker 2 27:10

Yeah, okay, so inevitable it was coming, but it's there.

Speaker 1 27:15

Yeah.

Speaker 2 27:16

Cruise story number two.

Speaker 1 27:17

Okay, we're going to have to be quick on these cruise stories because I've got a meeting at nine. You've got to go to work.

Speaker 2 27:22

I've got to go to work. That's inconvenient, isn't it? So?

Speaker 1 27:32

we, so we've just got two.

Royal Caribbean News and Updates

Speaker 2 27:33

They're both about Royal Caribbean. Okay, so Royal Caribbean hit a milestone this past few days with its 100 millionth passengers.

Speaker 1 27:36

Oh, wow, okay.

Speaker 2 27:39

So the milestone by someone getting on Icon of the Seas Okay, Coincidentally it happened on their biggest ship.

Speaker 1 27:48

You know what? I can't comment on this because I'm not the right person to comment on such a story.

Speaker 2 27:55

No, but I'm sure it was entirely random and genuinely the 100th millionth person. But when they came on the people didn't know in advance. They had confetti go off. They got special upgrades, they got $1,000 on board.

Speaker 1 28:09

I'm sure there was no due diligence.

Speaker 2 28:10

no, I'm getting all I'm getting all they got a free cruise on utopia of the sea nice, I'm sure they I'm sure it was the first cruise ever.

Speaker 1 28:19

They had no cruise loyalty, they just happened to get on there were florida residents, but it's an impressive milestone.

Speaker 2 28:31

Yeah, yeah, yeah, 100 million people is a lot, okay, um the third story is this the last story? This is the final story, thank, you um, involves, uh, now the world's biggest cruise ship, which is now not icon of the seas anymore.

Speaker 2 28:45

Oh, it's star star of the seas. Okay, it's Star. Star of the Seas. Okay, it's arrived into Port Canaveral, nice, getting ready for its sort of first season out there, and it's going to sort of host a load of special events before it does its public debut in a few weeks' time, okay, okay, as you're aware, diana Ross is the godmother for that ship. She's coming out Because we had a discussion about this before, about it being the star of the season.

Speaker 2 29:15

That's why they picked a star. However, breaking news, what? And had? We have recorded this last night, when we originally planned on doing it, but I was late getting home, we wouldn't have had this. What is this? Diana Ross has pulled out, so she's not coming out. She's not coming out. She's now not the new godmother. They've announced it. There's not any reasoning behind why, only that she said that she doesn't want to do that.

Speaker 1 29:43

Okay.

Speaker 2 29:45

And so just weeks before his maiden, oh, that's not a good sign, is it? It's no godmother. So Royal Caribbean have said we're going to get a new godmother. Well, they need to. Yeah, we had the conversations of do they still need godmothers? Clearly they're going to want to. So here's the question for you. We talked about it being Star, some icon. He's an icon class shit, is it me?

Speaker 1 30:10

it's lindsay it's late night, lindsay yeah, it's not you.

Speaker 2 30:16

It's late night, lindsay, from when she's just got on an excursion, having had a load of liqueurs in a random cafe in sicily um, no, I'm not aware it's you. They haven't published. No, I don't think it's me. Who do you think it should be? Who? Who would be? Who's a star, who would be sort of a star, and obviously.

Speaker 1 30:32

Adele.

Speaker 2 30:33

They're generally always female because it's their grandmother. You'd have a new star I'm having.

Speaker 1 30:39

Adele.

Speaker 2 30:39

You'd have sort of a modern one as opposed to.

Speaker 1 30:45

I just want to see Adele effing and jeffing throwing the champagne. It'd be hilarious, Do?

Speaker 2 30:51

you know what I'd like to see who, and I think you're going to agree with me. Go on, dame Shirley Bassey oh Shirley. Bassey Dame Shirley Bassey would be good as well, if you think about why they went with. Diana, she's that.

Speaker 1 31:05

Yeah, no, I just think Adele would be hilarious.

Speaker 2 31:07

I think Shirley Basett would be awesome. Yeah, but Adele and she'd sing, and she'd sing great at their thing as well so would. Adele, she wouldn't need anyone to come on and auto her mic pack no, neither would Adele.

Speaker 1 31:19

I just think Adele would be like, because as soon as she's told that she's not allowed to swear, is that who you think is going?

Speaker 2 31:25

no, I'm just saying who I will need to be I think, redheads unite so that genuinely we haven't got any information on this, because it's not that I've read a story yeah, no, no uh, who people are saying. I do think it'll be someone along the lines of iconic iconic. Yeah, yeah, um person like that, yeah, um, but it would be interesting if they went with somebody younger, someone younger and sort of you know, uh, maybe like a taylor swift or sabrina carpenter maybe yeah, yeah maybe I mean yeah, yeah, that's it I'm.

Speaker 2 32:01

I'm thinking younger to attract to sort of yeah, but I wonder why d pulled out of it.

Speaker 1 32:09

I don't know, I don't have her in my phone.

Speaker 2 32:14

And on that absolute bombshell, we'll draw this one to a close.

Speaker 1 32:18

Well, cheers, I have to go to work now. I have to go to work now. I've got a meeting.

Speaker 2 32:23

In the ridiculously warm weather.

Speaker 1 32:25

I've got a few meetings today and I've got mine next week.

Speaker 2 32:45

And I'll play us out with a little bit of music and I'll go get my shoes on. Did you forget to say something?

Speaker 1 33:01

Yes, I forgot to say. Thank you for listening and have a lovely day, bye-bye, bye.