alora7

I always bring a white mailer envelope that will fit in the safe. The type you would mail a book or something in. Everything goes in the envelope and then in the safe that way nothing gets overlooked or left behind. We put our passports, return travel documents, car keys, cash, phones and jewelry (when we go into port) in the envelope. It can be difficult to see the back corners of the safe. You can also use a small shoe box lid or something similar.

Room stewards will usually pull out and make up the sofa bed for you each night unless you ask them not to. During morning service they'll turn it back into a couch to open up some space. Definitely see if any toiletries can be shared between you and your mother. Shampoo, toothpaste, hairspray and things like that will help in the bathroom. The shampoo provided in the bathroom is terrible for my hair so if you're picky, bring your own. You'll have a vanity in the main part of the cabin with a blow dryer and mirrors for doing makeup so one person can be showering while another finishes getting ready. Bring some clips to clip wet clothing to the balcony furniture so you aren't crowding the drying string in the shower and making the shower unusable. I don't know about that particular ship but check the mirrors at the vanity and in the bathroom. They may open up like a medicine cabinet for more storage. Depending on the layout of the room your sofa bed may be closer to the balcony than the bed. If it is, you can use a command strip hook and string a shower curtain or sheet across the room so your parents don't wake you if they come back to the room after you are asleep. You'll want to take it down everyday but if you think they'll be waking you up everyday it may come in handy. You could try magnetic hooks but most of them won't hold the weight very well. We brought little folding valets, like small catch-all boxes, and each person had a different color. It helped to keep everyones small things separated, like jewelry, raffle tickets, keycards, notices and anything else you would normally just lay on the vanity. A small magnetic dry erase board can also come in handy. Put it on the outside of the door and leave messages for each other. It can be easy to lose track of where everyone is. The hardest thing we've found with sharing a cabin is keeping everything separated, and that's just with DH and I. Inevitably his boxers get tucked into a drawer with my clothes and we spend 15 minutes searching for them.

We bought some silicone beer saver caps on amazon for our last RCI cruise and used those to take beer back to our room. Anytime we were heading back to the room we'd grab a beer and then put the cap on so we could enjoy them in our cabin later that night. I don't see why it wouldn't work on carnival. We saw someone else using them to take beer off the ship to the beach. They were pretty inexpensive and worked well for keeping the beer fresh for a day or two.

Let us know what you find out! DH and I ran into this everywhere when we were first married. It's not just cruise ships! My mom had to check us into the hotel for our wedding night because we were only 20.

We had the premium package on Navigator last year and we could get drinks with Red Bull. DH loves Vegas Bombs.

I asked if I could get a Red Bull by itself and was told no so I ordered the pineapple Red Bull non-alcoholic drink (I forgot the official name) and asked for no pineapple. It was the same bartender and he gave me a glass of Red Bull. I asked one of our favorite bartenders about it and he said they do inventory of the canned sodas so the bartender has to have a way to ring it up that the system will allow you to get with a package. I would say that if he has trouble, try a different bar.

We bought a couple water-tight dry bags on amazon that we use in port. They were a little smaller than a sandwich bag but they held cash, seapass cards, reservation confirmations and stuff like that. It was small enough to fit into the zipper pocket of DH's swimsuit so he always had it on him. We took them cave tubing in Belize and to the beach in Cozumel and everything stayed dry. We did leave some small bills in our beach bag for easy tipping but not more than maybe 10 1 dollar bills. We never took our passport into port but the bag was large enough for it, if just barely. I don't think they more than $10 and we liked them.

I think I got charged $6 for a drink in a pineapple. I had never had one so I didn't mind the charge for one and just ordered regular frozen drinks after that and poured it into the pineapple :) I think the normal price for the pineapple drink was $16 or $18 so I may have just been paying the difference. I also only saw the pineapple drinks one day and it was towards the end, maybe day 6? They set up a spot on the pool deck around 10am.

We were on Navigator and it was random if they swiped the card or just looked at it.

We had a bartender cut us off in the pub which was really annoying as we weren't intoxicated. We had 3 beers each over 3 hours with a few sodas in between. We walked over to the R-bar and they served us no problem. There were several other people that we saw them do that to that weren't intoxicated. One lady had just come from dinner and had one beer before she was "cut off." We were all listening to the music in the pub so we'd all walk over to the r-bar, get a drink, and sit back down in the pub. Finally a guy who also said he had only had one beer and was cut off went to guest services and complained. A little bit later another bartender showed up in the pub and someone else pulled the first bartender into the back. He came back out and suddenly no one was cut off! I'm sure this was an isolated incident with this one bartender but it really put a damper on the mood of everyone.

Now there were a few people who should have been cut off on the pool deck but they continued to be served. I don't think they like to cut people off since those people will probably not tip them any extra for the rest of the cruise.

We went to Mr. Sanchos and it was awesome! We did the "Romantic Day at the Beach for 2" and we loved it. I thought it was a fantastic deal. Normal AI admission is $55 pp but the romantic beach day is $200 per couple. It's $90 more but when you factor in everything extra you get, I think it's worth it. You get a covered cabana bed, table, chairs and umbrella. It also included a couples massage and it was one of the best we've ever had. The coconut shrimp is really good. The wait staff was quick and attentive. They have a menu you can order from and they also have a buffet set up that had fajita chicken and steak, queso and several other things. I didn't think it was felt crowded. Getting a taxi is super easy in Cozumel. Follow the signs out of the port and there will be a line to wait for a taxi. We only waited 5 minutes to get in a taxi. It was $16 each way but that was back in May. I heard somewhere that it has gone up to $17 but I'm not positive on that. Getting a taxi back to port is also really easy. We walked out of the resort and there were several taxis waiting. There was a guy there in charge of the taxis who asked us how many people and which pier and then walked us to a taxi. We were a little nervous about the time since the resort started emptying out and our watches only said 1 pm ship time. Turns out, the carnival ship sailed away at 3 while ours didn't leave until 5 or 6 so we had an hour or so with the place almost empty. We got back to the pier with plenty of time to do some souvenir shopping and get back onboard to watch the "running of the drunks."

You can buy silicone beer caps on amazon that you can put on an opened beer to keep it fresh.

http://www.amazon.com/Save-Brands-Savers-Silicone-Multicolor/dp/B00U9ZTAJI/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1456160188&sr=8-3&keywords=silicone+beer

We liked to have a few beers in the room so we would order Grolsch in the pub. Those bottles have resealable swing tops so we'd order one whenever we were on the way back to the room and put it in our ice bucket for later.

We lost track of time at the R bar and both had 1/2 full drinks. We joked about shooting them quick so we could get a new one to take to a show and the bartender just made us another one to take. I think once they know you're not sharing a package they are more lax on the rules.

On Navigator last year it wasn't on any of the spa menus but I was shown the room during the spa tour and was able to book it. They had it on a price list behind the desk but not on the service menus they have posted in front of the spa. It also wasn't on our cruise planner. We loved it and hope to make it a cruise ritual from now on. I booked it right after the spa tour before sail away. We thought it was well worth the money. My skin felt amazing and so did DH. I never would have talked him into having a spa treatment but he was up for the Rasul. We booked the last appointment of the day which I think was 5pm. They told us since it was the last one we could take as long as wanted. We were still only there an hour but it was more relaxing not having to watch the clock. They also told us we could bring a bottle of wine or champagne into the treatment room so I brought one of the bottles of champagne that I brought onboard. Be careful if you do that though. Everything in the room is wet and slippery, including you! I just wish I could find a place near home that did it!

To clarify a bit, we had only sailed on Princess until that cruise and they do it differently. They place a hold each night for that days spending and then at the end charge the entire amount. I expected Royal to be the same. If that had been the case we would have only had 1 $900 hold and a few smaller ones for a total of $1000.

I will never use my debit card again onboard again! I lost my credit card the night before our sailing on Navigator last year. I didn't realize it until I got to the port. I used my debit card for the onboard account and there was more than enough money in the account to cover everything. The problem was that Royal authorized my card 3 times for entire balance, which was around $1000 since we bought 2 drink packages on the first day. Then at the end they actually charged my card for the entire weeks worth the spending. Those holds were still on my account a week later. So I was short almost $3000 from the holds. I called my bank and they needed Royal to release the charges. I called royal and they said they had already done it. I finally got a 3 way call with Royal, my bank and I and at the end both parties said there was nothing they could do. We ended up living on $200 for 10 days before the holds dropped. Thankfully I had paid all my bills before we left and I got the holds dropped before the next months bills were due. I was kicking myself for not bringing a backup credit card. Now we prepay as much as we can so even if something does happen, at least the onboard balance will be low. We've even talked about pre-purchasing OBC and using that just so we're completely covered. I never want to go through that stress again!

I want to know if the suite lounge will work the same as on the larger ships. I'm trying to talk DH into a suite for our next liberty cruise and if they have the beer/wine available 11am-11pm I'm pretty sure I can! He's one that's always content with an inside cabin but I like a little more pampering! lol

We love being as far forward as we can. Less people walking past. I'm terrified of heights but our balcony didn't bother me as long as I didn't lean over the edge. Both of you will love it no matter what! Although I also am guilty of staring at the booking screen and being afraid to hit the button. Relax, it'll be a fantastic vacation. Our last cruise was for our 10th anniversary :)

Technically, that is against the rules. Realistically, as long as it's not a thing you do several times, I don't think anyone would care. DH and I both had packages but on the first day he ordered a drink and he didn't like it so he handed it to me in front of the bartender and the bartender didn't say anything or ask if I had the package. I guess if they said something you could just hand the drink back to them and tell them to throw it out. I found that they really don't check too closely unless they think you are deliberately "sharing" a package. I went to get myself a drink on my package and then purchase a drink for a friend who didn't have a package and the bartender just swiped my card twice, smiled, and didn't charge me for the drink I was going to pay for. I did tip him well, but I never expected or tried to get a "free" drink from them again. I did hear them talking to a couple who were trying to share a package and gave them a warning that if they did it again they would cancel the package with no refund. They were being pretty obvious about it though. The husband would go to the bar get a drink, give it to his wife, go back to the bar and order another one from the second bartender. I don't know what happened after that but hopefully they listened.

St. Maarten has a place right off the ship that will stamp your passport. It's a small white building that says immigration I think. That was back in 2014 so it may have changed by now. I want to say it was off to the right of the big "welcome to St. Maarten" sign with all the flowers growing around it. I don't know about the other places but I'm sure if you ask in the port they can send you to the right place.

That's pretty close. We cruised out of galveston last year and had the first self-assist walk-off and we got past customs a little after 8am. It also depends on the time of year. Galveston is known for fog in the winter and that has delayed them getting into port. A coworker had that happen last year on the navigator. They weren't able to get off until around noon and they were also in the first self-assist walk-off group.

Try calling the bank and having them extend your "overdraft" protection. I lost my credit card the evening before our cruise in Houston and my husband left his card with a friend who was watching our cat strangely enough. I ended up having to use my debit card for the onboard account. I had plenty of money in the bank but Royal had put 5 different $1000 holds on my account. I was able to call the bank and explained to them what was happening and they were able to verify it so they extended my overdraft protection to allow the final charge to go through. Since the other 5 holds weren't actually charges I didn't get charged any overdaft fees. We were hoping that I put my credit card in the pocket of my shorts which was in my luggage I had already given to the porters. I was so anal about making sure everything was in order before we left and in the hurry to get to the port I didn't double check I had my card before we left the hotel room. I tried just giving them the number on my card at check-in but they wanted the physical card and said they couldn't key in the numbers.

We found St. Maarten to have the best cigarette prices. 3 cartons of camels for $50 last year. It was at the big duty free store right off the ship. I don't remember what the prices were onboard but I did go look and it was more that $50 for 3!

The package goes into effect as soon as you buy it. If you want to wait until Day 2 you can buy it on the morning of Day 2 at any bar.

We thought our cabin on Navigator would have one from the photos but when we got in the room there was no curtain. There was a track in the ceiling where one had been though. We asked our attendant and she said they were removing them when they got worn or broken and they were not being replaced. She said lots of people close them at night and then get up to use the restroom and end up tripping on them and pulling them down off the track. One lady on our cruise brought a shower curtain and those removable command hooks to make a curtain. I don't think I would go that far but it would have been nice when I had breakfast delivered and DH was still asleep in his boxers. I always had to go cover him up when room service came by.

I believe the days run until 4 or 5 am. We asked about that onboard since we were delayed boarding and I didn't want to pay for the drink package for just a few hours of that day. They told me I had to wait until the next morning. I think a "day" runs until the bars close down which on our cruise was around 3 am. Since you can use your package at 1 am on disembarkation morning and didn't pay for that calendar day, it makes sense that they run until the bars close.

That would be Maho beach. I haven't gone there but I know there are taxis close to the ship you can have take you there. I don't know what the cost would be but when we went there were plenty of taxis waiting and people would just walk up and tell them where they wanted to go. The drivers were much less pushy than in St. Thomas.

I don't think you can pre-book the free entertainment on Navigator. At least you couldn't last May when it was still in Galveston.

Ice show tickets weren't done by muster station in May, they had a few times for ticket distribution and you could only get 2 tickets per person. Those tickets are also just "general admission" not assigned seating so you can't guarantee that everyone will be sitting together. They were very vigilante about not letting people "save" seats for the ice show. My husband even got asked if he was saving my seat when I went to get a drink at the bar 20 feet away before the show started.

If anyone in your group is in a suite you may ask the concierge/butler, whatever they are calling them, about getting seats together for the normal shows. I don't know if they'll do it, but it can't hurt to ask.

Not every excursion is available for every sailing. Our last cruise on Navigator we had a port schedule change and the excursion I had booked was no longer available because of the new time we were leaving port. I know some of the operators have a day or two that they take off every week. I have seen new excursions added up to 60 days out but I don't recall seeing any added after that. If your sail date is pretty far out you may have lots of new excursions added as you get closer. We are having to wait and see on an excursion in St. Maarten next year. We want to do the Tall Ship cruise (I can't remember the name) but this is the first season for the operator and they are waiting to see final numbers for this season before they commit to next season.