lattelady

Really liked Diamond lounge , great ocean view, nicer than concierge lounge

Can non-D, suite guests use the Diamond Lounge?

It's pretty slow. I've used unlimited on the Navigator for work purposes. It's slow enough to be annoying but you just have to remember that it's pretty amazing to be doing it at all (on a cruise, online...unheard of 20 years ago).

I did not see unlimited when I was on the Enchantment last May. And, I have to say, the interest was even slower than the Nav. It was so slow that I asked for some free time, which they provided.

I was wondering about this as I noticed that none of the emails from the certified vacation planners had links to RCI even though they had images of WOW sales, etc. Made me think they were commission based.

After some sporadic cruises while raising kids, the kids are gone and I have been on four cruises this year. Three of them had some sort of medical evacuation that I was aware of.

1. Feb 2014, Navigator, watched someone get taken off on a stretcher in Cozumel during our regular stop there.

2. Apr 2014, Navigator, on one of our sea days headed south to Roatan, while near Cancun, we were approached by a Mexican Naval boat. We stopped. They came alongside and a Mexican family departed. The 16 yo boy had appendicitis. We later heard that surgery went well.

3. Sept 2014, Navigator, as mentioned already, we came back to Galveston after departing to have a passenger taken off. I heard the Coast Guard was supposed to meet us and take the passenger (rumor, not sure if true) but they didn't and we came all the way in and pulled up by the Medical Center. The captain later explained why (at the Captain's Corner) but I don't recall the explanation. I also heard varying reports on the medical condition. Some said it was an elevator injury. Others said a heart attack.

So my only non-Nav cruise last year was the only one that didn't have a medical evac of some sort (that I saw!). I don't expect all future cruises to be like this and I'm thankful that RCI cares about our health and safety.

I was trying to post a photo from the cabin crawl on the 9-7-2014 sailing but am having difficulty. I've tried to use a link to dropbox but also tried to upload a png file. Haven't uploaded a photo on this site before. Any secrets?

Wondering if anyone who's recently returned from a cruise to the Caribbean can tell us what the weather was like. I see lots of rain on the forecast and reports, but not sure if those are just summer showers or really heavy rain. Specifically, if it interfered with your excursions or trip.

 

We'll be on Freedom of the Seas Western Caribbean cruise in 1 week, so trying to mentally prepare.

Week before last we sailed NOS to Roatan, Belize and Cozumel. Rain was forecast for all three places. It did POUR in Roatan for about 45 minutes. Gave us some murky water for our glass bottom boat. Other than that we just saw some storms from a distance, got some occasional evening rain and encountered one storm one night at sea. No other port rain.

I made lattes twice a day in the CL on the Navigator last week. I drink mine plain but all you would need is some vanilla syrup (as someone has already mentioned). Just bring some with you. I've seen small bottles rather than the big Starbucks type.

My sister and I had a great time on this cruise. We are now officially spoiled after having a gold seapass. Dang, who knows if we will ever get that again (we had jumped on a great special a couple of weeks before sailing)! But because of it, we had luggage tags #1. We had about as much trouble getting an elevator down as we did once we were in the terminal. We were led out of the Chops area at 8:20 to disembark and we were in our car across the street at 9:15, so that wasn't too bad. Special thanks goes to the porter who actually went with us across the street. Hopefully our tip showed our appreciation!

We definitely felt the storm the night we stayed up to pre-order the new iPhones. (Yes, we know the first step is admitting we have a problem!). I am VERY prone to motion sickness but have become a huge believer in Bonine, which has the same ingredient they give out on board. Even though we were completely aft, I didn't feel sick at all.

We met some really nice and fun people on board. Thanks to those who hosted their cabins for the crawl.

My sister and I got the most amazing deal on an upgrade last weekend. We have a Royal Family Suite for less than $2300. If we booked it today, it would be over $4400. It's crazy amazing and we are SO EXCITED!! (Navigator, Sept 7 sailing).

We were on the April 20 sailing. Had the same cabin as when I sailed on Feb 23. Same steward too. Different captain and cruise director.

We discovered the aft area of Deck 4. Very peaceful.

Interesting note. The first time on board, the mattress seemed so hard. This time it didn't bother me at all. Was it the same mattress? Don't know.

I was on the Feb 23 sailing. I'm pretty sure someone posted some JS pics in that Roll Call. We are sailing out on Sunday. I hope to remember to take some pics of the room this time!

We will be on the NOS next week. I wonder if we can do a Next Cruise (or whatever it is called now) on the LOS in 2015 if the dates aren't set.

And I'm going to pretend I didn't see the JS for $500 pp mentioned above! It hurts!! :)

I had elevated liver enzymes with gallstones, too. Turned out to be a "life-threatening" blocked bile duct. The doctor said he was surprised I'd been walking around with it. It was very painful but a mom's got to do what a mom's got to do. I just bring that up to say that while you may have been tempted to fight through the pain, it is a good thing it was caught. I hope it turns out to be a non-event, but as others have said, you wouldn't want a true emergency to occur on the ship. And all this will make for a good story later!

Hope it is all working out for you.

Thanks, y'all. I know my post was confusing. When I was on board last month, I did an open booking (which is what I converted to the sailing next month). I learned they will automatically associate it with the current TA unless you fill out a form telling them not to. That was my pondering... I will fill out a form to not associate it with my current TA and then after I'm back home I will transfer it to another TA. Sounds like it won't be an issue.

I currently have a TA that I don't intend to use anymore. So when I'm on board I think I have to fill out a form to book the Next Cruise without that TA. Hopefully it doesn't limit me to not choose another. I'll find out in three weeks!

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I am wondering about combining perks too. We will be on board next month so am looking to do a Next Cruise. I'm wondering if I can then transfer it to either AA for miles or USAA for reward points and retain the OBC from the Next Cruise. I think I'll contact AA and find out.

It's been 25 years so it might be better but the patch gave me double vision. I removed it and did fine until the last night of our cruise when we were in rough seas. Not pretty and it scared me off from cruising for quite a while.

Next time out I used sea bands and Dramamine.

Last month I used sea bands and the medication they gave out on the ship. I can't recall the name but it did have "vert" in the name and is used to treat vertigo. It worked well and didn't make me drowsy.

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Thanks for the suggestions above. Someone mentioned USAA and as we are members I used their referral discount. The quote was definitely cheaper than the others I found so I went with them. USAA has never steered us wrong.

I've found it worth the peace of mind, from both a cancellation and a medical perspective. Having said that, we seldom bought trip insurance when we were younger.

Speaking of, I'm putting together a trip in May that includes a short cruise, Universal Studios/Harry Potter, and a conference. Does anyone know of a good insurance site to piece that together insurance purposes? I've already paid for the airfare, the cruise and the Universal Studios hotel package (includes tickets) and did not take any individual insurance as I believe it will be cheaper to cover the entire trip.

I'm not sure who you are directing the question to, but I had to run my company's payroll one night while on board. That is why I got unlimited and the company paid for it.

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I brought wrinkle release that I'd poured into a small disposable spray bottle.

Is there an unlimited internet package on Freedom of the Seas? Which ships have the unlimited internet offering?

 

 

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I used unlimited internet on the Navigator a few weeks ago. I actually (and I probably shouldn't tell this story) let my computer run all night downloading an episode of Walking Dead because we didn't want to wait a week. Just what we needed, mixing a beautiful cruise with zombies. Ha.

I, too, am sorry for your loss. My mother-in-law began cruising alone after her husband died. She typically took roughly 3 month long cruises every year. She made dear friends on these trips and they often met up on other cruises. She loved cruising alone.

I applaud you for going out of your comfort zone. Of course, with all the cruising you did with your husband, you may want to be prepared for the memories that may surface. May the moments of sadness be met with peace and hope. And while you may be lonely at times, don't let that give you the thought that the trip is a mistake! Expectations matter. So if you expect that there will be some moments of loneliness, uncertainty, and sadness, when they occur it will be a little more accepted and easier to move past. At least, that's how I've dealt with some things before.

Warning to anyone who gets Grand Suite 1552 - the bed is extremely hard and uncomfortable. I like a firm bed but this bed was horrible. The couch was more comfortable to me than the bed. We just sailed the March 9-16 cruise.

 

 

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Our beds were hard too! In fact, we'd come from wonderfully soft beds at the Moody Gardens in Galveston. When I sat down on my bed in JS 9614, I laughed at the difference. It was so hard! I noticed it that night but didn't really notice it after that.

Maybe I am remembering wrong...do the cabins have blowdryers in them? or should I bring one from home.

Our JS cabin on NOS did have a blow dryer which we used at the desk.