AACJ

Which hotel?

Well I am leaning towards the new Homewood Suites, but wanted an overview of all of them in general, not necessarily the Homewood.

We have just a little more than a month to go for our cruise. We're contemplating two scenarios. One is to stay in a local hotel in Port Canaveral then pay to park at the port. The second is to stay at a local hotel and use the shuttle provided and leave our vehicle at the hotel.

We think we have already picked our hotel with either scenario. My concern is how safe are our vehicles if we left them at the hotel and took the shuttle? Has anyone had any problems with break-ins or vandalism? Is the area where they are parked gated? What kind of security is there? Is there surveillance?

Thanks

54 days!

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I didn’t need one. My wife and I were originally scheduled to go, just us two. Two weeks prior to the cruise, I caught the flu. I was in bed for a whole week. Well, since my wife sleeps next to me she caught it three days prior to us leaving. She said she wasn’t going, and I would have to either cancel or go with someone else. I called everyone I could, then my 13 year daughter came walking in the room and said, “What about me?”

I called Royal Caribbean and found that I was only 1 or 2 hours away from changing the name on the booking…no charges either! I asked if we needed a letter and they said no because our last names were the same.

I suppose if last names are different, there may be a need for a letter though. I would call them and ask.

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I've seen glass bottles in the past and wondered why they'd serve them. However, I usually order Foster's Lager in the 25 oz can because it's the best beer value on the cruise.

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I wonder if MSC would match ALL of my points, not just RC or Carnival, adding them up together.

Edit, should have read through their site a little better:

<<If a guest has benefit cards with multiple companies, he/she will have to choose which card to use to take part in the promotion.>>

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Depends on the maturity and how responsible the kids are. One daughter would have been fine from 12 to 14, but absolutely not appropriate from age 15 to 18. She was one of "those" kids. The other two would have been fine at any age, but not together as they would fight. So, good thing we did not have money to cruise when they were teenagers as it would have been a logistical nightmare.

 

You know your kids. If they are likely to be responsible, rule followers they will be fine as young teens or even tweens. If they are like my daughter was, sleep in the same room, tie a string from her ankle to yours, put a bell on the door and know you still might learn all the security guards first names.

I have the same situation, not worried about my 13 year old daughter, it's the 18 year old one I am. And she doesn't know the drinking age in all of our ports is 18 either. I'd like to have a beer or so with her at the last port though.....

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I have/had the same issue. My daughter's (both under 21) are in a cabin adjoining my mother in law. I set up theirs and my mother in laws reservation and could print theirs but not hers. Keep in mind, I set her up as guardian for them. I went through both daughters reservations, re-inputting all their info, then did the same for my mother in law, and it was able to print.....one time only. I called RC and they said basically what everyone else is saying, that as long as you have id's and are paid up, they will make it on board. The set sail pass just speeds up the process.

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Another thing, I will primarily be drinking either an adult beverage or tea or water from the windjammer. I don't drink sodas or fruit juices, except at breakfast, and they serve them there. I wish they had a package with no non-alcoholic drinks available. Seems they could drop the price a bit then if that was the case.

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I wasn't looking originally, but what were the ORIGINAL prices posted before the discount. And did they include gratituites? We weren't going to do a package but may if we can get it below their current "20%" discount, or at least with an OBC. Heck, may even take it as is, still at the break even point for us.

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80

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Perfume doesn't kill you; second-hand smoke will.

Hence.

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Well the solution is for HAL to make a deck of balconies "smoking" or a side ie; port or starboard on deck for example 8. If smokers truly just book a balcony cabin to be able to smoke unlike on other cruise lines they shouldn't mind where it is.

Or do smokers want it all - balcony choice, location, deck and to be able to smoke? While someone who smokes doesn't have the same choice balcony choice, location, deck and smoke free??

You see the dilemma with freedom - it's there for some of the people some of the time - never all the people all the time .........

 

 

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Additionally, I have suggested what you said above, having certain cabins (maybe on one side or closer to the back or both) be smoking only. The only response I have had from this group is that it has been tried and didn't work with another cruise line and suggest that I go back within this same thread to find out the information. Well, I have been through this thread no less than 5 times and STILL have yet to find this elusive reference.

But this also brings up the question, why NOT leave one cruise line that will allow smoking on balconies? There are no others, period! I can understand that some have frequent cruising points on HAL and they really don't want to lose them by moving to another cruise line. But they had to have acquired them with the exact same smoking policy in place.

In my prior post, I referenced how non-smokers don't want ANYONE to smoke, even if it doesn't affect them whatsoever. Where I live, in the Commonwealth of Virginia, they have passed strict laws about smoking (or not) in restaurants and/or bars. It still allows for smoking, but it has to be a completely separate section with it's own ventilation system. There is a bar we frequent, who adheres to this law. But there are many people in my community who, mind you, have NEVER even set foot in this place, want it closed because it allows smoking. Why? I mean if it has no effect on someone, why are they imposing their opinions on those of us that freely chose to do something?

While this thread does bring up some good discussion, it seems the overall consensus is that it is a "When will HAL become a non-smoking cruise line" thread. Anyone with a dissenting view is bashed.

Moderator (Walt), if you feel the need to delete this post, could you at least prune the off topic portion (the last paragraph). It all, however, seems relevant to the title of the thread though.

Well the solution is for HAL to make a deck of balconies "smoking" or a side ie; port or starboard on deck for example 8. If smokers truly just book a balcony cabin to be able to smoke unlike on other cruise lines they shouldn't mind where it is.

Or do smokers want it all - balcony choice, location, deck and to be able to smoke? While someone who smokes doesn't have the same choice balcony choice, location, deck and smoke free??

You see the dilemma with freedom - it's there for some of the people some of the time - never all the people all the time .........

 

 

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It's not smokers wanting it all, it's nonsmokers not wanting ANYONE smoking, even if it doesn't affect them.

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It looks like she was looking for some SPECIFIC recommendations of what others had done. One of the 4 of the top 10 threads you mentioned is MINE. I was asking pretty much the same thing, recommendations on what people did.

You know what happened, I got answers! A lot of helpful answers. (big thanks to SteerageJoe BTW)

right now

 

4 of the top 10 threads in this (Florida) forum are about this same topic .....

 

Search works ..... YES, there IS a lot to read. And the less you read the more restricted your answer is .....

 

not meant to be harsh but your answer IS here ..... well, maybe not the ANSWER but a TON of DATA to use to make a decision.

Wow, I did not see that page you referred me to. Yeah, our family will be a mix of 2 teenagers, 2 49/50 year olds and my mother in law, 70's I think. We are driving in and either want to park at the port (after seeing that some of these hotels offer a discount voucher) or ideally, stay in a hotel with a shuttle package.

We will most likely be getting in around 6pm or 7pm or later, so really all we need is a place to get a meal and a much needed drink(s). Pool is okay, I am sure our kids would make use of it, and I may take a dip as well. Who knows. Since it will be too late, we probably would not benefit from a beach front place either.

Thanks for your suggestions so far!!

The great news is this: all the popular cruise hotels within say 10 miles of the Port enjoy good reviews according to TripAdvisor. This is despite the challenge of servicing hundreds of guests every night before cruise day. So pick one and you will be fine.

 

To find the perfect hotel is more challenging because every family is different. So are the packages offered by the hotel. Some packages offer breakfast for example while others do not. The Radisson is an example because some guests choose a package with breakfast and others decide to walk to McDonalds instead!

 

Are you driving in or not? Do you need parking?

 

If you can be more specific with your needs then we can offer suggestions. Do you want the cheapest or one with an oceanview or one with suite rooms , a kitchenette or an exciting pool for the kids or what?

 

In the meantime, please read this page about the different hotel clusters to help you select an area and a hotel within a price range. Good luck!

What is a good "snooze and cruise" hotel close to Port Canaveral? I know there are a TON of different hotels that group together to offer packages, but I want to know your experiences, ie, breakfast included or not, shuttle okay or not, cost of the package, would you book again or not (and why), etc..overall thoughts on your stay.

After all, we are only going to sleep there and possibly eat breakfast the next morning.

100 days to go!

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I don't know--I assume the one near old San Juan

I would recommend the one below. I know this is copied and pasted from earlier, but it still applies. We have also tried the coffee since then and it was not that great.

When my wife and I were there last year, we went to a restaurant called Toro Salao at 367 Calle Tetuan in the Old Town. It had outdoor seating and the weather was very pleasant. It was like we were in an outdoor cafe in Europe, it just had that good vibe. Plus the dinner and drinks were very good.

 

While we were sitting there, a group of school kids were practicing a dance routine very close by. We could see them and hear them but they weren't very loud. We also had a good chance to just sit and relax and people watch. Since we were outside, basically in the middle of the huge sidewalk, people were walking on both sides of the outdoor seating area (enclosed) and we enjoyed just watching them

 

We really wanted to go to a coffee place and try some of the Puerto Rican coffee, there was one that was highly rated but they closed 5 minutes before we got there. They weren't too far from the restaurant I mentioned above either. Since we will be back to San Juan in less than 2 months, we'll make sure to plan a visit to the coffee place.

 

Don't bother with the Bacardi tour. It seemed like a waste of time to me and took more time than it really needed, cutting into other things we wanted to do.

Best dinner restaurant near the cruise ship pier?

Which pier? Pan American or the one at the old town?

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140 days

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I called the Crown and Anchor group and they linked my minor daughters to my Platinum status, even though only one of them has cruised RCCL before. They even said once they turn 18, they will still be considered platinum and basically get a "head start" on their status.

Got a question about boarding. I and my wife are Platinum. My daughters are coming along in the same cabins (we booked two) so they are also considered Platinum. However, I also booked my elderly mother in law to come as well at the same time as ours with our TA. This is her first cruise.

My question is, can she take advantage of my Platinum status so she doesn't have to wait in the long line? Otherwise we will just have to wait with her. And if so, how do I let RCCL know this...at port or can I link her to my reservation some how?

Thanks

Anyone have an idea when RCCL opens the ability to set your dining preferences (early or late) PRIOR to the cruise?

Anyone have an idea how many days prior to the cruise that RCCL opens up the ability to choose dinner times? We are booked about 143 days out (never EVER booked this far out before) and we still do not have our official seating arranged yet.