WrittenOnYourHeart

Ah. They don't do it anymore I guess. 😞

Which company did you use? I get several that pop up when I google ATV tours Curacao.

Yup! And same!

It will honestly depend on what is going on around the ship. When I sailed RT from Seattle on HAL on basically the same itinerary, there was sceneery on both sides. BUT wildlife did not always cooperate and appear on "my" side - it almost felt like it was always on the other side regardless of if we were going north or south. LOL.

Having actually sailed in an IV, the only times the tops are locked is when they are cleaning (announced in advance in the planner) OR if the weather is adverse enough to warrant it, which is a time you wouldn't be (or shouldn't be) on a balcony anyway. Them being locked by the captain is presented as far more than an issue than people on here want to make it.

Yeah, Ive accidentally leaned back on the upright lid too hard and flushed while sitting there (no, I did not get suctioned to the seat), so it's possible. I'd imagine there are some that slip their hand behind and flush, leaving it up.

Not sure you could change the travel agent then either. IF you can, you'd have to get the current TA to release it, which if it's part of a group booking they may be unwilling to do.

This exactly! As a solo, I either need to do this! Otherwise I'd have to impose on the people at a table next to me to hold it, and I hate to be a pest like that.

I think you'd probably just need to cancel and then rebook either on your own or with a different TA.

I’m currently booked with the 4x4 Arawak Off Road Safari in Bonaire. Aruba I have snorkeling booked in case I cannot get a day pass to Renaissance Island and the flamingos. Curacao is TBD.

Yup. Which is why as a solo I book what I'm happy with. Not playing bidding games!

My July 2024 cruise on the Beyond is set: It's going to Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao! All new ports for me! I'm in Aqua after being spoiled on the Summit this past summer. I currently have Beyond booked for July 2020 going to Nassau, St. Maarten, and St. Thomas. Nassau is a ship day for me; I've been to St. Maaretn and love it...do an excursion with Soualiga Destinations; St. Thomas is new to me. I'm booked in a Porthole Veranda - it was only like $80 more than the solo IV, and while I don't mind the IV I couldn't turn down double the points for the Porthole Veranda. (No double points for a cabin designed for solos) I'm pondering moving that one to Beyond Feb 2026 which hits St. Thomas, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Puerto Plata. All three would be new ports to me - I was close to Puerto Plata (and I think I rode through it) when I was on fathom and we were going to our projects, but we didn't really get to see anything around there. Because this one would be later, I could bump up to Aqua... Thoughts on the ports in bold? Thanks!

How does this happen? Did you have nothing to do with booking the cruise? If you did, how do you accidentally book a cabin type you don't want?

I had signed up for it on the Summit last summer but I guess not enough of us had and it got changed to the Food and Wine pairing which I didn't really want, so I was able to cancel it.

Agreed!!

Hooray and congrats!!! I understand. I'll be watching and ready to contact them after my July cruise on the Beyond. I'm currently 87 points from Elite. I've got 1 coming from the last Power Up opportunity. And unless those opportunities go away, I should have more of those coming. It's an 8-night cruise and I'm in Aqua, so 40 points. I'm solo, so double points. Up to 80 for the cruise. I'm doing Go Green, so add 5. 85 for the cruise. So yeah...even if there's only one more 1 Power Up opportunity I'll be Elite after this cruise!

Just make sure that whoever she is assigned to room with gets her any information or things delivered to the room from the group. When groups have things delivered to the cabins, it is only to the cabins registered in the group.

Do they not have the same rules as regular balconies that the door is not supposed to be kept open?

Dosn't help of you don't have checked bags. And if you don't have a car and would prefer to not rack up taxi/Lyft/Uber charges.

Thanks. Yeah - I agree, I look out and not down.

So basically the obstruction is only in the way if you look in that direction? Straight out you're ok?

Correct in that it makes such a difference! I was on Royal Caribbean over Presidents' Week and their buffet was JAM PACKED! The Windjammer manager kept making announcements every 15-20 minutes for you to please free up your table if you had finished eating and that you could wait in any of the lounges. Well, ALL the lounges were full too. I kept muttering to myself (as I wandered around with my bags because I didn't want to be one of those people just sitting and taking up a table) that all this mess could be avoided if they'd do like their sister company Celebrity and allow bags to be dropped off in the cabin. I *almost* got The Key (their version of the pass Celebrity offers) just to have the ability to drop the bags off somewhere.

Thanks... Do you mean you'd go ahead and get the Classic and watch the sales for upgrading?

I have to agree with @gold1953 here. Thanks to boards like this and social media the days of companies going above and beyond and making exceptions are long gone. Even if the OP never came back on here and said she'd been given the points, she'd tell someone (or she'd be booking another cruise since she's said that this is the reason she's jumping ship) who would put it out there and then every time someone else has something happen where they have to late cancel they'd be screaming "But you did it for one person!! I read it on Cruise Critic (or insert other social media site)!!"

I know that you can't stack discounts - like I couldn't stack the Captain's Club Select 10% discount on the Classic package with the current sale. BUT could I purchase it at the current sale and then use the 10% on UPGRADING it to Premium?