Teeter2U

I've been on many cruises but have never purchased or redeemed a gift card. My 82 year old mother is cruising at the end of the month with several other family members and I was thinking about gifting her a Royal Caribbean gift card to use for her virgin drinks. I'm assuming it's a virtual card if I purchase from the website? Can that be printed off for her to redeem at guest services? Can you purchase a hard card from someplace that sells gift cards? As you can tell, I'm clueless about this. She does not have an iPhone, only the old person type cell phone and only knows how to call or text people so she will need something in hand to take to guest services so they can apply to her account. At least that's how I'm guessing it will go. Any help is appreciated!

We stayed on deck 3 ocean view last year on Ovation and I loved it! We normally book balcony cabins but this was a casino cruise so opted not to pay for an upgrade. We heard no noise at all and I’d stay there again and again!

We never eat dinner in the Windjammer until August when we were on Ovation and we decided to try it one night when the MDR menu was less than desirable. We were hooked on the stir fry station! We did go back to the MDR for the second formal night but service was terrible that night so we were done! I thought the layout and the food was much better on Ovation than the Windjammer on Oasis class or Liberty.

We cruised 3 times this year and the only extras we purchased was on our first cruise got the refreshment package for me & ate dinner one night at Playmakers (not available on Allure I don't think.) Second cruise on Liberty for 3 nights bought no add ons. Third cruise was 7 nights, just bought the $31 coffee card. We don't pay or use wifi on the ship...it's our chance to unplug and unwind. And I've found that you don't need to pay for anything extra to enjoy Coco Cay. We have paid for Chops and other restaurants before but really no reason to pay extra for food, especially on a 4 night trip.

We went last August for the first time and loved it! We are from SC so not used to cold weather either. Make sure you take a raincoat/jacket in case your port days are rainy. We also had waterproof hiking shoes (not boots). We did not book any excursions, but instead walked around the port towns. We did rent a car in Juneau and did the Mendenhall Glacier. The ship itself won't be cold unless you are cruising thru glaciers and are outside on deck watching. We enjoyed it so much we are going back again this August and this time we are booking a couple of excursions.

We recently stayed on deck 3 ocean view but It was Liberty of the seas. We had NO noise issues in the cabin, even with the On Air club right on Deck 3 and casino on deck 4.

Our first 3 night cruise, offer from the casino. Left from Port Everglades on Friday, 4/14. Boarding time was 12 noon. This was the fastest boarding of any cruise we have ever done. No line for security or check in. We were on the ship before 11:30 after arriving at the parking lot around 11:15. First time we have had a cabin on Deck 3, ocean view and we liked it! Ship decor is somewhat dated but our cabin was very clean. Lots of kids on the ship due to spring break but other than 2 teenagers messing around near the elevators by Windjammer we saw no kids running wild or acting out. When we booked this cruise we were told only early dining was available so that's what we expected. At some point I guess we were moved to My Time Dining, which we didn't know until we saw our sea pass cards. We stopped by the dining room on Deck 3 and questioned it. Very helpful guy told us to come back around 5:45 after everyone with early dining was seated and he would see what they could do. He was able to get us early dining, a 2-top table next to the window and said it was our permanent table. Our waiters were fabulous! Maybe the best waiters we have ever had. Hubby had no issues getting 2 entrees and both being brought out together. He did that on 2 different nights. We also saw people being brought multiple appetizers at the same time, especially at a larger table where they were sharing. I don't really care for the Italian night menu but got the chicken part...the chicken part was good but it definitely needed more red sauce for the pasta. otherwise I enjoyed all my dinners. Hubby likes more flavorful and spicy food so he was underwhelmed by most things he ordered. They weren't bad, just needed more spice/flavor. I liked the Windjammer more on this class of ship as compared to the Oasis class, it has a better flow. The food seemed better for breakfast & lunch too. Ice skating show was entertaining, although one guy must have fallen 2 or 3 times. I loved Saturday Night Fever, dancing was fabulous! Did not go to the comedy show. Carried our own bags on and off, so we walked up 1 flight of stairs to Deck 4, walked right off the ship at 7 a.m. and were in the car at 7:15 driving out of the parking lot. Not a bad way to spend a weekend!

My experience last year....we cruised from Vancouver on 8/27 and after our 7 nights cruise did a 3 night land tour. We ended up renting a car in Fairbanks and drove out away from town and were able to see the northern lights. I was on a FB group from our cruise ship and several cruisers reported in that group that they had seen the northern lights from the ship around 1 to 2 a.m. That would have been over Labor Day weekend after the ship left Whittier going southbound.

We were on Oasis from 1/5 - 1/15 and certainly did not think the food was awful! But we try to avoid buffets whether on land or sea. We did eat breakfast a few times in Windjammer and it was fine/ok but we never had any issue finding a table. MDR food and service was very good and we ate there 9 of the 10 nights. We had lunch in Park Cafe or the Mexican place most days which were both good. We were looking for a cheap get away and this cruise fit the bill 100%! Where else could you travel for 10 nights, including food and entertainment for under $2,000?

We were also on this cruise and we had a great time! First time on Oasis after 4 cruises on Alure and Harmony. I will say this cruise felt more crowded than any of the others but other than trying to get lounge chairs at a pool the first day or so, the crowds never bothered us. We also had flight delays trying to get to Miami and our luggage did not arrive with us, so we had to go back to the Miami airport at 9 p.m. the night before our cruise to make sure we had our clothes. We ate in main dining every night except one night in Playmakers. We had great service and I enjoyed every meal we had there. We loved the Aqua show, ice skating show and almost all the entertainment. Did not care for the singer in the pub but otherwise enjoyed the music. Did not care for the cruise director at all! The Quest was back but was not as much fun as before....again, probably the fault of the cruise director.