Bellyflopchamp

Pick up a spec of sand and drop it in your bathtub full of water. Splash the water around. What does the spec of sand do? That's a smaller ship.

Now pick up us slightly larger spec of sand (ie. Oasis or Harmony). Drop this in your bath tub right beside that smaller spec of sand. Splash the water around. How does that slightly larger spec of sand do compared to the smaller one?

Both specs of sand will react with the waves and get pushed around, just like a large and "smaller" cruise ship side by side in the same rough seas.

 

The above comments are very much incorrect. The 8.5m swells we had on our Harmony sailing just 2 weeks ago produced the barf bags at the stairwells for two nights as a few people were getting sick.

The comments you referenced were people's first hand experience. They were not incorrect. 8.5m swells are rather large and I would assume that the captain would try to avoid that if they can. I do not know how often the seas can get that bad. Sure it can happen. But for the most part you will probably deal with 1-3m swells. And because I am anal I did look at buoy data from a buoy near Jamaica for the last 2 years in order to ground this.

I dont understand your grain of sand analogy. It would just sink to the bottom. Also the larger the vessel the less of an impact will be felt in the center of the ship. And one other thing that it doesn't take into account is the mass of the ship along with other features such as the fins that extend out under the water. If you hit rough seas you will feel it, but in the normal 1-3m seas you will barely feel anything.

It is your vacation so nobody can tell you what you should or shouldn't do. The only way you will know for sure if you will get sick or not is by actually going on a cruise. These large ships are probably the best ones as you do not feel the motion as much. You may go and find that you will be fine and it will open up a whole new vacation experience for you.

I've been on the Allure twice. The first time was the western route and we barely felt anything. It only really felt like we had a couple of drinks every now and then. Just enough to remind you that you are on a ship in the middle of the ocean. About 90% of the time we could not even tell that we were on a ship. The second time we did the eastern route and we felt it a bit more but still nothing that bad.

I will say that I have gotten sea sick on a smaller boat in the ocean before so I am prone to it. I also tend to get car sick if I am reading in the car. Not sure if you are prone to either of those or not.

If you are at all concerned with it you can bring some Dramamine with you. Start taking it a couple days before you depart and then take it the first few days until you see how you are doing. I am sure that you will be fine. We did not see anyone getting sick either time we went. The ships medical area also has motion sickness pills and I don't think there is any cost for them.

Thanks! Ive got to move our tour 1 hour ahead. Its a Helicopter tour over at the airport. Even tho its close to crown bay i will not risk it.

 

All my travel documents from rccl and the cruise planner says local time, but ive had this feeling something was wrong.

Just to let you know, depending on when you go the time might be the same. They are on Atlantic Standard Time. That will match up with Eastern Daylight Time so if it is after Daylight Saving starts they should match. I had the same issue when we went on mine. I was trying to figure out what the time would be because we were switching back to EST just before we left.

I used to be a bartender so I know the value of tipping. a $1 tip goes a long way. I seriously doubt that their supervisor would do anything if they end up serving the person that tips first. I never consider a tip a bribe.

Another thing to note is depending on how many drinks you get when you have the drink package your tip percentage will change. Someone that has 5 beers a day will most likely be tippnig the 18%. Somone that has 10 mixed drinks per day would end up tipping like 5%.

Personally I prefer to tip because it is just what I do. Last time we were on the Allure I probably tipped the two bartenders in the Rising Tide bar over $50. We were there every day, they always made our drinks right away and we got to know them. They even gave us drinks as they were closing down one of the nights.

We were there just a few months before you in in November of 2015. Great reliving our time there.

We also did a ship excursion for Nassau due to the short time in port. One other thing we did was check out the new (at least it was when we went) brew pub that they have right near where the ship docks. It is Pirate Republic. Beer was great and food was pretty good too. If we go back again with a short stop like that we would probably just bounce off the boat to head there and maybe one or two of the shops. Only thing that is really worth it. Head back tot he ship and enjoy the emptiness for a while.

Sure just put your valuables in your shoes and go around the beech. Nobody ever figures that one out.

.....Jerry Seinfeld

 

 

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I'll one up you on this one. Put your valuable in a diaper and wrap it up like it is used. Nobody will want to steal a used dirty diaper. We've used this one a few times. We live close to the beach here and we never really worry about our stuff. We dont keep a ton of stuff with us, but we always leave it and go swimming. Did the same in St. Maarten. Just tried to keep a close eye on our stuff from the water.

My wife loves getting a massage while on vacation. We always just wait until on the cruise. The spa runs daily specials. The last one we were on my wife got like 2 hours worth of services for just over $100. That was on a port day but she had it schedule for later in the day so we still got to enjoy the day off the ship.

Please forgive me in advance, I want to stay "on topic" but you mentioned something in your post that my wife and I are not familiar with ... we are not familiar with "the secret balcony".

 

We haven't cruised in six years, prior to the Oasis class of ships were released, so we're really curious what this "secret" is all about.

 

Thanks,

 

Michael

You do not need to be concerned about this any more as they were removed. They were on decks 11, 12 and 14 at the aft of the ship. They were not very well known but were public and had a great view of the Aqua Theater. From what I hear they were really nice, but I never found them before they turned into suites.

I've never had the central park cabins but I did have an oceanview on deck 12 twice. Probably close to you (12552 is what I had most recently). I never heard noise from the pool deck. It was nice being right near the solarium, but anything in the back of the ship was a bit of a hike. I personally liked being at deck 12. we were only a few decks above central park and only a few below the pool deck. it made it very easy to get places.

As for the "secret balconies" they were removed during the dry dock last year. You might still have one on deck 7 but the ones on 11, 12 and 14 are now cabins. They were basically above the Aqua Theater Suites so at the very ed of the hallways.

Ship - Allure of the Seas

Deck - 12

Stateroom # - 12550

Stateroom Category – D5 Oceanview balcony

Starboard or Port Side - Starboard

Quiet Stateroom?(With comments on problems) – No noises heard

Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? - Yes with 12552

Balcony View - Give comments on view, noting if location of any obstructions was an issue. – Saw lots and lots of water. There were no obstructions

Balcony Size? Normal or oversized for class? - Normal sized, but was able to open the divider

Was wind a problem? - Nope

If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - N/A

Any specific problems with this cabin? - Nope

Any other comments? - Bed was by the closet

Ship - Allure of the Seas

Deck - 12

Stateroom # - 12552

Stateroom Category – D5 Oceanview balcony

Starboard or Port Side - Starboard

Quiet Stateroom? (With comments on problems) – No noises heard

Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? - Yes with 12550

Balcony View - Give comments on view, noting if location of any obstructions was an issue. – Saw lots and lots of water. There were no obstructions

Balcony Size? Normal or oversized for class? - Normal sized, but was able to open the divider

Was wind a problem? - Nope

If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - N/A

Any specific problems with this cabin? - Nope

Any other comments? - Bed was by the balcony

Looks like you are having a great time. Enjoy the Jeep tour. As for the towel animal, I would guess ant eater maybe? They are pretty goofy looking like that thing.

If you have occasion to use the Royal Tots or in room babysitting let me know how it works. We are sailing Allure in October with two and 3 1/2 year old granddaughters and would like a couple of adult nights out with their parents.

 

We sailed Oasis last year with our niece and her three year old. She had a fantastic time there was so much to keep her busy.

We used this back in November and were a little disappointed by it. They were very accommodating, however it definitely seemed like they just tried to make sure the kids did not cry. The first night we used them we went to pick her up at like 11:30 and she was still awake. They didnt even try to put her to sleep even tho we told them to try around 9 or so. We were not that specific so I say that is on us. The next night went a little better but we picked her up earlier. They did get her to sleep in her stroller. THey did call us that night saying she was crying and they couldnt get her to stop. The reason is they did not listen to us and put her in her stroller. ONce they did that she stopped crying and we did not need to pick her up which was awesome.

The last time we used it was in the afternoon on a sea day. They pretty much just plopped her in front of the TV for the 3 hours. Needless to say we were not happy with that.

We were fortunate enough to go with my mom who ended up watching our daughter almost every other night. I would suggest that you try it out. They might have gotten better by the time that you get there. We were on the first one back to the Caribbean. Also just make sure that you give specific details as to what you want done. And make sure that you go up there once you board if you have a particular night like formal nights that you want. They can fill up fast but will open additional spots later in the cruise.

We brought a sesame street one we got from Amazon I think. We used it once. She was also scared of the shower at home, but loved the one on the ship. I think it was because it was a giant tube. She would walk and hide in there all the time. The one we had fit fine, but it was pretty small and if your toddler is tall and almost 3 they might need one larger than the one we brought.

See below for my response. You can also post this in the family cruising board. There might be more experienced people on that as it isnt specific to Royal Caribbean.

Hi all!

My husband and I are taking our two year old (almost 3) on an airplane for the first time to catch a cruise ship. We are flying in a day early on a Southwest flight. I appreciate any parents with little ones sharing their flight experiences with me, especially if you flew Southwest Airlines. :)

 

1. Can I check her umbrella stroller at the gate? How does this work?You can check any stroller at the gate. You just give it to the attendants there. You can go to the desk prior to boarding to get the tag for it. When you arrive at your destination they will have it sitting right outside the door of the plane for you.

 

2. We are taking her car seat for taxi rides and such; should we actually use it on the airplane or check it before we board? We did not get our daughter her own seat so she was supposed to be on our lap. We got lucky both ways and the third seat was not occupied. If your toddler has their own seat you can look up different types of buckle systems. I did see some that were not car seats but I dont recall the size requirements or even the names. If you bring your car seat you will need to ensure that it is FAA approved.

 

3. Can I take snacks through security for her to eat on the plane? (I don't mind buying unopened snacks if need be, but want to know if I can just put her favorites in a ziploc baggie in the carry-on bag). YOu should be able to bring stuff through for her, especially dry snaks. You might be able to get away with yogurts or juice if you need to. The airline website should have some info on it.

 

4. Can we board first (priority boarding)? My parents are coming along too. Can they also board with us since we are all traveling together? We flew Jet Blue and had assigned seats. With Southwest you get a priority based on when you check in online. I would recommend checking in exactly 24 hours before your flight, but I do believe that those traveling with toddlers board first. Not sure how they do it with your parents if they can go with you or not, but they might be able to. You might want to call Southwest about their boarding policies if nobody here has done it with toddlers before. Also you can post this on the cruising with families board.

 

5. Any recommendations or tricks for popping her ears during the flight? She was still taking a bottle so we used that and did not have much of an issue. If you give yours a snack that would probably work as well. maybe something like goldfish where they are small and have a few of them.

 

Thanks, in advance, for your reply!

To expand on this question if weare a party of 6+ can some in our group get beverage packages and get drinks for others in the group? Don't hate me for asking!:p. How strict are they about that. Half of my group does not drink liquor

You just opened a can of worms. Both my wife and I had the package and my mom got her own drinks. We did give my mom one of our soda cups as we don't drink much soda and at dinners they gave my mom free soda and I think a free drink as we were tipping pretty well along with the package.

With that said having others use your package is technically stealing. And don't be surprised if some people freak out on you. And as Bob stated they do only give one drink per sea pass card. Sometimes they also required to see the second person when we went up. It will not be easy getting drinks for others with your package

There are a few additional benefits of the drink package that are pretty big for me. One is it helps with the budget for the cruise. You know exactly how much you are going to spend. Yes $600 is a hefty fee to pay up front, but if you have a few drinks a day along with bottled water or sodas that adds up quick as well and you will constantly be checking your onboard account.

The second is just being able to order whatever we want and not worrying about if we will like it or not. Or going for the after dinner drink that we would normally pass up. We always find that we are more experimental with what we order and we have gotten some really good drinks because of that.

If the upfront cost is worrysome to you and you have on board credit you can wait until you get on the ship and use the credit for it. You also have the option to buy it the second or third day so you can see about how much you are spending and see if it might be worth it later on in the cruise.

Personally, I have found it to be worth it. Sure some days we didnt hit the magic break even number, but other days we far exceeded it, especially on sea days.

The Allure is a great ship. There is plenty to do. I never really felt like it was that crowded with the exception of after shows, and even that wasnt too bad. I do not know anythign about the Reflection, but I know that the Allure would be a good first cruise as it was ours.

Your 5 YO and 3 YO will most likely get bracelets. When we sailed with our 20 month old she did not receive one as she was "always" with us. We did drop her off at the nursery a few times and they have all your info and you get a phone. I think if they are old enough for the kids club they will most likely get one, unless you dont want them to for some reason.

Getting a double wide down the passageway to the cabins would be impossible when the housekeeping carts are out so they need to be prepared to load kids once in the elevator lobby.

A double wide would be tight in that case. If they have the tandem it shouldn't be too bad. We had a cabin that was only like 1 or 2 away from the elevator/stairs so we never ran into an issue.

As for any must haves, if you absolutely need it at home, it is a must have. This would include blankies, pacifiers, bottles, stuffed animals, books, etc. they do have a toy exchange that you can use so you might not need to bring a ton of those.

We also brought a couple of sippy cups. We did not bother with bringing utensils or plates tho. Also one thing we wish we had was a little bit of dish soap. We were able to have our room steward get us a small container of it, but that is needed to clean out bottles and cups.

Also make sure you bring lots of sunblock if you plan on having the little one at the pool. Just a warning the kiddie splash pool for non potty trained kids is small and right near all the really fun stuff that they cannot use. There is no signage saying where they are limited to, but they will tell you that they cannot be in the other splash area if they are wearing a diaper.

When we sailed on her back in November we saw at least one double wide. Bring whatever stroller you have that works the best for you. Storing it might be a little difficult as the cabins can be small, but if you have a balcony you can just leave it out there. That is what we did.

As many have said it should not be an issue. We were on the Allure a few moths ago and we just walked down to Cafe Promenade and grabbed from the coffee station or we ordered some extras when we got room service. The way we warmed it was to put it into a ziplock bag and run the hot water over it for a minute. Usually brings the temp up really quick when it is in the baggie.

You can get the cartons of milk at most of the restaurants and from room service. I would not worry about storing it in your fridge for a day or two. We had some in there for a couple of days and they were fine.

I was recently on the Allure at Nassau and St. Thomas. We did St. Martin instead of St. Kitts. We did a ships excursion to Blue Lagoon for the dolphin encounter there. the price wasnt that bad, i think like $150 per person and our 20 month old daughter was free. My mom, wife and daughter did it while I watched. They all seemed to have a blast and I would highly recommend it. Unfortunately they will only let you book it through the ship as they have a contract with them.

In St. Thomas we did a private sail which was absolutely awesome. I believe that it was around $450 plus tip for a full private sail. Since we had our daughter we could not join on with strangers. That was for a half day sail, but we ran a little late and got to see the sun set on the way back to the dock which was awesome. We used Independence which is a 44 foot sail boat and I can not recommend them highly enough. If it is within your budget (and it might be cheaper as she can pair you with other couples and it will be $95 pp give or take) you should look into that.

As far as Nassau, Bahamas I would recoomend Blue Lagoon Dolphin encounter. Lots of fun and a beautiful boat ride to get to it. And right off the pier where you dock the ship. Check out their website.

We did this and it was great. They do also offer an observer package if only one or two of you want to actually interact with the dolphins. Do not book the Atlantis one as that is much more expensive.

In Nassau I would definitely recommend doing an excursion through the ship, or not venturing off too far. The port stop is very short. There was a good post from someone who was left watching the ship sail away without him.

If you like craft beer they also have a new brew pub that opened up that was really good. It is called Pirate Republic and is right next to the pier. It is on the main street (1st one once you leave the pier) by where the horse buggies are. We went there after the dolphin encounter. Beer was great and so was the BBQ.

We did a private sail on the Independence in St. Thomas (http://www.sailingvirginislands.net/) which was great, but since you are only 2 days away now it might be too late to book it.

We did the ships tour to Orient Beach in St. Martin as it was a good price, included a few drinks and lunch. They would probably still be open as there were a lot of spots for that one. The beach was nice, and we actually did not see anyone from the nudist beach walk over so your 16 year old might be a little disappointed. You could also check out Maho beach. It is where the planes land right over your head.

I would like to think that they would escort him in. We have gotten our daughter some looser pants like sweatpants and the sort. She took to pulling her pants down quick. But if you only use at night it will probably be ok to diaper.

It will probably be up to the staff. If I remember correctly there is a bathroom right there that they could take him in. Our daughter was not potty trained at all so she was in diapers. I would plan on having him go right before you drop him off and then talk to the staff when you go there and give them specific instructions to bring him back to the potty at X time. Also give them extra clothes in case there is an accident.