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wyldkarma

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  • Posts

    49
  • Joined

About Me

  • Location
    Austin, TX
  • Interests
    Travel, gardening,
  • Favorite Cruise Line(s)
    Royal Caribbean
  • Favorite Cruise Destination Or Port of Call
    Transatlantic

wyldkarma's Achievements

Cool Cruiser

Cool Cruiser (2/15)

  1. We did the Jewel from Amsterdam to Iceland, Ireland 14 days two weeks ago. Jewel is of course smaller and had a juggler, a comedian, and 3 guys playing piano, the Royal Dancers could not perform as they said the sea was too choppy. We only saw 1 show the whole cruise, it was pretty boring. So, if entertainment is a top priority, this is NOT the ship.
  2. As a Diamond plus, we get 5 daily drinks automatically. But, I am taking my brother on his 1st cruise. If he buys a drink package will I need to buy another package for me? I can't even drink the 5 free ones I already drink, and I don't drink coffee or sodas at all. Wondering if my 5 drink package counts as a drink package or exempts me from having to buy another full drink package?
  3. We debarked our August cruise 3 days early. Our 2 week Iceland & Ireland cruise on the Jewel of the Seas out of Amsterdam had a last minute itinerary change and cancelled our stop in Cork, and instead added an extra day back in Amsterdam due to low water levels at the locks. We went to the Diamond Lounge and asked our Diamond liaison about getting off early in Belfast. No problem, she made a quick call to verify, we got a release notice and had to meet with immigration the day before we got off the ship so they could stamp our passports. There was no fee, no extra charges, they gave us a form to present to security as we rolled our luggage off the ship. They did collect our SeaPass card as we left the ship. Upon departure we spent an extra day in Belfast, took a train to Dublin, spent a couple days there then flew out of Dublin back to the States and didn't have to mess with Amsterdam again. We lost one sea day and two extra days in Amsterdam but gained extra days in Ireland. No need to fake being sick just ask nicely and explain why you wish to get off. If your passport and Covid shots are up to date, and immigration says it's okay, there is no real reason you can't get off. RCL says you "Cannot ask prior to sailing to get off early." But, once the ship sails you can ask to debark early. There was some fine print about being charged $65 per person for immigration fees but they never charged us any fees.
  4. Per RCL FAQ sections it says: "Royal Caribbean no longer allows cruise passengers to pre-plan early debark or late embarkation for any of our ships". Note the word pre-plan!. "Stuff happens", and some folks have to leave early. We have an upcoming trip and have been trying to get more info also about getting off a day or 2 early in case of emergency. Last word we got from RCL was check with the main desk once onboard and make your request in person. My step dad is 90 and in poor health, we may need to debark if his health worsens and we need to return home early. RCL says there may be a $65 fee per person to leave the ship early. It would sure be nice to hear from someone on this forum that has actually experienced debarking early within the last year. Lots of folks just like to just throw in their thoughts or opinions with no basis in actual experience.
  5. On European / non- USA ports does Royal still allow for guests to debark early at a different port. Or, have they stopped allowing it? If so, why would they care if a guest departed the ship a day or two early on a two week cruise when the last days were just sea days? We tried calling RCL customer service a couple times but did not get a straight answer. One said they charge a $65 fee to debark early, the other said they didn't allow it anymore. One said it was okay to leave early at a non-US port but not at a US port. ??? Several years ago this was not an issue, if you wanted off you just let them know, we did it twice with no issues, now it seems no one knows for sure. 🤔
  6. We are on RCL Iceland & Ireland next week, all paid and planned. Just found out my stepdad will have to go to hospice shortly. In the off chance he passes while we are cruising can we just get off the ship at any port and fly home to the USA early? Royal says there may or may not be a $65 fee to exit early from a different port like Cork or Liverpool? Curious the RCL folks don't know exactly or cant tell me more. Anyone have this experience recently. What reasons may someone debark early, is this only for emergencies? What if someone just wanted to get off the ship early and not go to the final port would they still charge a fee?
  7. Thanks, we would have to push to the next day if we cannot get the 11:15 flight. That means another hotel stay. We may have to just consider the extra day in Amsterdam, extra hotel fee, and extra fees for out pups in the kennel back home. Drats.
  8. We are sailing on the Jewel out of Amsterdam in August 2022. The ship returns at 6:30am on a Friday. Is it reasonable to catch a 11:15am flight home. 30 minutes to the AMS airport but we never went through customs and boarding at Amsterdam and have no time reference for getting luggage booked and through security and pass control to catch our 11:15 United flight. Ship docks at 6:30, hopefully clears customs and we can get off ship by 7:30, 30 minutes taxi to airport so around 8 or 8:30am. Time to get through all customs pass control to the gate for United is unknown. Anyone done it recently? Thanks.
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