Spurschick

I go on to do a mock booking to check prices of a cruise we already have booked. The website says an interior cabin in $500-522 but when I choose that selection it raises the fare up to $667 pp. And that is not including taxes, fees, gratuities, etc. I just don't get it!

 

Anyone have any insight?

 

When on the first page it gives AVERAGE PRICE PER PERSON. When you select then the price will show per person cost and that the second person is half off. Total cost works out the same.

 

(Just noticed nemoms post ;)!!!!)

You were right .. . we called today and the fare would have been a god deal higher for the same category cabin we have .... so the savings of the booze pkg wouldn't have been worth it, really

 

Thanks for the info !

 

Your welcome. In most cases unless you booked in the last few days, it's unlikely to even come close price wise;)

[quote name='Cruzin-K']Slightly off topic, but those cancelation penalties are different than I thought. For example, my upcoming cruise had a final payment date 75 days before the cruise, and prior to that, everything was refundable. Did something change?[/QUOTE]

I got the impression the OP is from Australia. I took above from the Australian site. TBH I Didn't really pay attention to if/how different, but I thought I had read something from UK guests that there cancellation rules were slightly different to US as well. Hence why rather than post from US site I changed and researched from the corresponding countries site.

This is what I got from us site- you got me wondering about the differences!!! Yes very different.

Cruise Length
Days to Departure
Charges Per Person
1 - 5 Nights
60+ No charges
59-43 Deposit amount
42-29 50% of total price (taxes & fees excluded)*
28-15 75% of total price (taxes & fees excluded)*
14 or less No refund except for taxes and fees
6 Nights or longer
75+ No charges
74-57 Deposit amount
56-29 50% of total price (taxes & fees excluded)*
28-15 75% of total (taxes & fees excluded)*
14 or less No refund except for taxes and fees
CruiseTour
75+ No charges
74-57 Deposit amount
56-29 50% of total price (taxes & fees excluded)*
28-15 75% of total (taxes & fees excluded)*
14 or less No refund except for taxes and fees
Holiday Sailings**:
1-5 nights
90+ No charges
89-64 Deposit Amount
63-43 50% of total price (taxes and fees excluded)*
42-15 75% of total (taxes & fees excluded)*
14 or less No refund except for taxes and fees
6 Nights or longer
90+ No charges
89-64 Deposit Amount
63-43 50% of total price (taxes and fees excluded)*
42-22 75% of total (taxes & fees excluded)**
21 or less No refund (excluding taxes and fees)

Wife wants to know for non-formal nights in MDR are Capri pants acceptable?

I want to know if for men in MDR is it acceptable to be without coat and/or tie on non-formal nights. We will be on Jewel, but is it different on different ships?

 

Yes Capris are fine non formal, they are a form of pant and come way below knee. Smart casual for men I would recommend collar, but that can be a short sleeve shirt, polo shirt etc. no tie or jacket on non formal nights. Yes it is supposed to be the same across the fleet, but it varies!!!!

 

From RC website

 

Onboard Dress Code

Smart Casual: Ladies: Skirt or pants (no holes, rips or tears) with a blouse. Gentlemen: Pants (no holes, rips or tears) with a collared shirt.

 

Formal: Ladies: Cocktail dress or pantsuit. Gentlemen: Suit (black tie is optional)

 

Note: Swimsuits, robes, bare feet, tank tops, baseball caps and pool wear are not allowed in the main restaurants or specialty restaurants. T-shirts, shorts and flip-flops are acceptable for lunch.

Without knowing exact dates OP is sailing, air canada looks like only has direct flights on Fridays. I would therefore suggest original carrier a couple of days before departure, or connecting at a main hub as opposed to somewhere that only has one airline that goes direct. That way if there is an issue they may be able to get you there on one of the other airlines.

Yeah, I just looked - the flights are up but because this is a charter, there are very few dates to choose from. Looks like this flight only goes a few times a week.

 

OP, I would suggest another airline. Any charter flight that has difficulty like mechanical problems or delay of any kind usually means there is no other aircraft to take its place. I understand charters can be less expensive but for this wonderful Med cruise, I would not do this.

.

 

Thanks for the info. I agree, stay away from the charter if it is day of travel. For international flights Choice air are sometimes very competitive.

 

This far out the OP really doesn't need to rush to book. I would hold off until the airlines release regular schedules and prices in a couple of months and then look at the options.

I called my TA tonight but the RC people were gone for the day for an answer. I have to call back tomorrow. My fare is only about $16 lower than today's price (I did a mock booking) but I am hoping for the OBC of about $84 pp ($100 minus the increase in fare of $16). Thant's on my November cruise. I'll let you know tomorrow. I will also call my travel agent on Monday about my May cruise. I expect the answer to be "no" since it is after the final payment but it doesn't hurt to ask.

 

Hmm :confused: RC is open 24/7 your TA just needs to select new booking option when they call in. If you select existing reservation it will say they are shut after a certain time. New reservations will always check on repricing.

Ok so we have 2 superior balcony cabins booked and I just noticed that the price has dropped 107 per cabin but the promo I booked under gave us 200 obc and this promo only gives us 100. So my question is which one would you choose? Keep the 200 obc or get the 107 off your balance and get the 100 obc?

 

For what works out as $7 difference it is all down to the hassle of changing it and whether or not you will spend the $200 OBC or whether $100 will be sufficient. If you plan to book excursions, play bingo, buy lots of drinks then keep the $200 obc. If you are not likely to spend it then switch.

 

Given the small difference it is down to personal preference more spending money or more money in the bank now.

We booked a 12 night mediterranean cruise may of 2016 and I was wondering how long it takes from the time you land to get to the cruise ship. The reason why I ask is that we can get a direct flight from Montreal to Barcelona pretty cheap with Air Transat but the plane lands at noon and the ship sails at 5pm. I know that we have to be at the cruise terminal at 3:30pm at the latest. So, is 3 hours enough time to get through customs and get to the terminal? I know we are cutting it close and that if the plane is late we could be in trouble. But, it is a direct flight and all the other flights have long layovers.

 

Firstly I am surprised you can book flights for May 2016 yet. Most airlines only book around 300 days in advance.

 

This far out the flight times can easily be changed. We have had flights change by an hour before jut from reschedules, that doesn't even include delays. We don't even fly domestically the day of travel in case of issues, let alone transatlantic.

 

I would highly recommend the direct flight a day or even two in advance. You will not only miss out on a wonderful city, but will also have the jet lag to get over. If your itinerary is port intensive you will likely be worn out before you you even get to begin enjoying yourselves.

I am very sad to say that the two people I was travelling with have been killed in a double fatality accident. The 3 of us were booked on cruises in May. We had 2 adjoining cabins on two B2b 7 day cruises out of Copehangen.

 

I have contacted the agent who is talking to Royal Caribbean Australia about compassionate ground refunds for the bookings.

 

The travel insurance will not cover the loss as it was an American Express complimentary travel insurance and becasue they paid the deposit and final payment and on 2 different Amex cards the cover is not valid

 

They leave behind 2 sons and obviously a refund is desperatly needed. I am curious if anybody has been in such a tragic situation ans whether you can offer advice. The agent suggested that they may refund on compassion but wonder of anybody knows of a precedent?

 

Thankyou

 

Firstly I wish to extend my sincerest condolences to yourself and the family of your friends. I hope that RC treat this sensitively and you are able to get the full refunds. There is no precedent, but I have heard of exceptions being made in the past dependent on the circumstances.

 

All I can offer is some advice regarding cancellation policy.

 

I notice you were due to sail May.

Here is their official cancellation policy.

 

Days prior to Cruise Departure Cancellation Charges

 

151 or more days deposit is refundable

 

150 - 71 days - loss of deposit

 

70 - 46 days - 25% of fare *

 

45 - 31 days - 50% of fare *

 

30 - 15 days - 75% of fare *

 

14 days or less - 100% of fare

 

 

Cancelling now by my calculations would put it roughly in the 46 - 70 day range. (Maybe the 70day + for the second leg of the cruise) Therefore, in the event they only offer refund as per terms, the original method of payment would be reimbursed all prepaid gratuities, shore excursions and port taxes as well as refund 75% of the cabin fare, which would obviously be a significant financial start for the boys at this time whilst any negotiations over the remainder take place.

 

Whilst I am not a financial expert, I would ask your agent to get confirmation of when RC process refund payment. ( I wasn't sure if you were referring to RC agent or TA) The reason I say this is Amex may well have frozen the cards if they aware of the deaths. If this results in the refund on the cards paying off any outstanding balances on the cards and leaving any extra it may get tied up for a while whilst the executors deal with the estate. (Eg if balance on credit card is owe $100 but refund $200 how can the extra $100 overpayment get claimed from Amex in a timely manner)I hope that makes sense. I would also recommend getting everything in writing.

 

I truly hope that all refunds are dealt with in a timely matter. I hope this info helps.

 

Please let us know how you get on.

Just wondering if anyone knows if/when the Independence will go into dry dock to receive the same upgrades as the Freedom of the Seas (new deck 12 rooms, etc)?

 

Thank you

 

Last dry dock was 2013 I believe. Nothing more currently scheduled that I inow of.

 

Here is dry dock schedule it is a little old but gives you idea on additions and dates

 

http://www.creative.rccl.com/Sales/Royal/General_Info/Flyers/12028421_Revit_QuickReference_Guide.pdf

We have Indy booked for this June ... paid in full months ago.

 

I heard the RC commercial on the radio the other day offering the BOGO 50% deal and they mentioned it was also available for the drinks package.

 

I haven't called yet, but for the heck of it, I went into my reservation and tried booking us both on the Premium Drinks pkg and it came up the regular rate x2 ... no discount. And for a 7 day cruise, it was pretty :eek: !!

 

Any word if I am eligible for this 50% off the 2nd person's pkg ... or is this just for new bookings?

 

I am not too savvy @ deal-getting but I'd love to get this one if I possibly can ... so thanks for the help in clearing this up , folks!

 

New bookings only, unless you want to reprice the whole cruise.

Have stayed in more than once with DD. I try to stay away from the bottom level promenade rooms as they are directly above cafe, pub and shops and thought they may be noisier than above/below cabins. Other than some noise from shows I have never found the noise an issue. Just remember to keep the net pulled;) allows light from outside with some privacy. Black out curtains are great.

CL also had oj and Apple juice during breakfast.

If' date=' you live in the U.S., buying insurance for medical coverage, probably isn't necessary, since you'd be covered under your existing policy. You might consider just buying the cruiselines insurance in order to have some coverage, in case you have to cancel or for a reason other than medical. We used to travel all over the U.S. in our motor home and never thought about buying extra travel insurance.

 

We always buy travel insurance when traveling internationally.[/quote']

 

I respectfully don't agree with your comments re medical. Firstly, If you need to see the doctor on board they will not be in network with insurance. DD has seen doctor onboard. With medication I think bill was around $150 and that was a few years ago. We got the money back through the Travel insurance easy enough, but had to file through our insurance company (major US health insurance provider) first and get a letter to state they would not cover as not in network.

 

 

Secondly, if you need to be airlifted off for medical reason US medical insurance bill would be extortionate. There is the possibility that if you are evacuated, you may even end up in Canada depending on where the ship is when you are evacuated.

 

Thirdly, all Alaskan cruises dock somewhere in Canada, which again won't be covered if you are disembarked by the ship in port to recieve medical treatment.

 

We were in Alaska when a young boy was taken ill. There were no ports easily accessible and they sent a medical helicopter that hovered over the ship to airlift him off, as we were in a passage at the time. It was a medical emergency. Anything can happen, even to fit and healthy people at any moment with little to no warning. It is not like being on land and being able to call an ambulance , that your medical insurance will probably still only partially cover. The costs involved are hugely different. I would never recommend taking the risk. Better to be safe than sorry.

I have some questions about the suite perks...

 

VIP Lounge Chairs - Are these next to the pool? If they're up on some deck away from the pool area then they're useless to us. Also, are any of them shaded?

 

Seating in Specialty Restaurants for Breakfast and Lunch - is this a special menu/made to order food? On Princess suite guests have breakfast in Sabbatini's, which is a customized, made-to-order menu with outstanding service. Is this what is offered on RCL, or is it just seating area?

 

Are there any perks for free internet or laundry for suite guests?

 

If you are Diamond and in a suite, do you get access to both the Diamond Lounge and the Concierge Lounge? What's the difference between the two, other than who is allowed inside?

 

If you read the link I posted above, it states which ships have reserved seating by pool and which ones have reserved sun deck. Location varies by ship. several ships I have been on the seating is on the staggered part going from pool deck up to the deck above behind the pool at the sky bar end. Whether it is shaded really depends on time of day, etc as they are not covered but some seats, especially lower, can get shade from the track if that makes sense especially earlier in the day.

 

All your questions regarding food and other perks such as laundry (pressing service first formal night) are pretty much listed in the flyer I listed above.

Here is link to airport info.

 

Food looks inside terminal after check in.

 

http://www.aena.es/csee/Satellite/Aeropuerto-Barcelona/en/LTDA_FA/1237546364541/1237552960085/Deli&Cia.html?other=1237552954215

My family and I are cruising on Vision out of Barcelona in May. Our flight departs at 1.35pm so we would check in around 11.30. The airport is less than half an hour away from the port.

 

Ideally I would like to go from ship to the airport given the timings.

Does anyone know what the latest time we can get off the ship and would we need to do self disembarkation to get off at this time.

 

If we end up having to get to the airport earlier than our check in, does anyone know if Terminal 2 has somewhere we can grab a bite to eat while we wait for check in to open.

 

Even if you get off at 9 am, by the time you queue up to get off, collect luggage get through customs etc and find a taxi I doubt you would be at airport before 10am.

 

By then the check in will be open for sure. I would check in and then eat once inside., and not have the stress of rushing in case I get held up somewhere along the way:)

It looks like some sort of promo...not a "real" excursion!

 

Why would they do a promo for something they don't offer? Great marketing plan. Let's go get some people, and put them in watercraft that we don't offer:rolleyes:

Don't know if you booked direct with RC or not, but have you called to see prices through choice air?

 

I think you can get quote on RC webpage as well.

 

When we flew to San Juan Choice air was a little cheaper than what we could book it direct for. If there are four of you it will soon add up. Ps choice air get good one way rates and you can book two one ways with them.

yes. I completely agree. this first night is open season. I don't think anyone would argue that point... In many cases if you have a 5:30 dinner I have seen people not even get their luggage until after that time.

 

Exactly. I don't know if you have read all the posts but some are telling the op she should be embarrassed that her DH wore shorts the first night and what part of the dress code didn't they understand:rolleyes: unfortunately some people don't get that first night is a little different;) and that op isn't complaining about the rules, just noting they will be adhered to!!!!

I completely agree with you. but "at this moment" RCCL has deemed that shorts are not appropriate. Maybe as cruising becomes more and more relaxed they will change that. Or maybe with dynamic dining it will change. We should not forget that it was not that long ago that all dining rooms on all cruise ships were coat and tie every night.

 

I know and appreciate that. But some of the posts complaining a man wore shorts first night. What if they didn't have their luggage.? What if their pants were creased from travelling? Give the guy a break first night;)

So I guess you have a Flintstones Guide to Clothes too? Or whatever the other poster was going on about

 

Flintstones? I was agreeing with you why should you care what others are wearing. If men are wearing shorts, I was just pointing out that when they are seated it's not like you are staring at their legs through dinner;) so how long these shorts /pants are doesn't matter to me.

 

Clean and tidy any day of the week. Boarding day is about being relaxed and comfortable.

 

 

 

 

On a side note

 

What I don't get is why on casual nights (not formal but casual which first night is) why people get so irritated by men in shorts. I have seen plenty of women who wear skirts so short they have to keep pulling them down. It's not like the men are wearing shorts that short:eek:

 

Men wear pants to work all day. That, to me is smart casual to smart depending on type of pants, it is not even close to casual. .A Suit is formal. It's not like men have as many choices as women ie skirts, shorts, capris, pants, dresses etc. I would have zero problem with men in restaurant with appropriate length shorts. Who is it hurting?

 

I am a woman and I don't go on a cruise to feel like I have to wear business attire to please everyone. Why should men? (P.S. Not saying if a man wants to dress up he can't)

Why do people care what other people wear?

 

As long as you're clean I don't care what you wear. Dress codes are rather silly. Clothes are clothes. Why is anyone feeling disrespected?

 

 

Like

 

 

When they sit down, it's not like you are looking under tables to see what is on their legs anyway:D

I post this with personal experience. Just be patient, sit tight and watch it unfold. And I'll throw in, don't worry and enjoy the ship as best you can.

 

I was on the Navigator in March of last year. We could not sail due to an oil spill and by Monday during dinner, the Capt announced the sailing was cancelled and everyone would be getting a 100% refund, in addition, a 25% discount on a future cruise. Further he stated that everyone could stay on the ship if they so desired to enjoy all the ship could offer. Although there was no Casino.

 

By Wed morning, 1/3 of the ship's passengers had left. And then the Coast Guard released the ship to sail so the Capt announced the ship was sailing to Cozumel, basically, 3 sea days and 1 port day and the 100% refund was still in play, plus the 25% off a future cruise.

 

Keep in mind this was not even a Royal issue/problem but rather the Coast Guard shut down the port. I think you're in good hands. Sit tight.

 

 

Perhaps I am misunderstanding your post, but you do realize they did set sail yesterday, just that they were late!!!!