The Scurvy Pirate

I will add, it depends on what you are looking for.  We were at hideaway last week with two ships docked and it was definitely crowded and the umbrellas do obstruct what could be a really nice view. We got it for about $28/pp.  I found it to be a lot louder than expected and had an adult spring break feel (older people trying to re-live their youthful days).  We were sitting between the pool (DJ) and one of the bars (live singer/band), so it could have just been where I was sitting.  Never made it over to the pool, but the protected cove was nice.  The food was o'k, but as others said it was limited, athough the funnel cake and brownie were both really good .  We have also done nothing (free), where we found lounge chairs in the shade near a bar, which was relatively quiet and suited us just fine (can't beat free!).  We have also done the Beach Club (around $90/pp).  We both thought that if we could get the beach club at that price, it was definitely worth the $60/pp+ more than hideaway.  The lunch menu was much better and it was comparatively quiet with way fewer people (probably not even 1/2 full with Oasis and Freedom class docked).  A completely different ambiance than at hideaway.  Again, it just depends on what you are looking for.  As our children are grown, we have never been around any of the water slides, etc.

My only suggestion would be to purchase the at the lower price and then cancel the old one.  I have seen people who cancelled the old one (at a decent price) and then went to buy at the lower price and then got the dreaded "no longer available" and it was now even higher than the original purchase.  Not surprisingly, when they called RCI there was nothing RCI could do because the system was only showing the newest "higher" price.  Of course, with the constant sales (hoping the diamond/diamond+ 35% off deluxe comes back) you could probably just wait a couple of days and the sale will be back.

On 4/3/2024 at 8:59 PM, cruiseguy1016 said:

 

That changed a couple years ago. The shareholder benefit is now combinable with any other discounts.

I was denied when I had a "free" club royale cruise that you sometimes get from time to time ...

I've gotten them 60, 45 and 30 days out.  If you go to the royal-up page and type in the name and reservation number it will either show it as open for bidding, or to come back 30 days prior to your cruise date.

Has anyone ever called to get the deluxe and refreshment package and then tried to cancel the refreshment through the planner once it appeared in your order history?

We ate there on our early February 2024 cruise on Radiance.  We walked in for our 7:45 reservation and were one of only 3 couples in the restaurant.  We were the last to leave around  9:00.  Food was really good, but too much.  Only ate about half of what was served.  Would do it again.

I put this magnet on our door so we know which room is ours.  The room attendant is always leery on that first visit...

Just remember, at the beach club, if you are sitting on the beach in a lounger, there is attached to the lounger a little green flag you can put up and someone will quickly come check on you and take a drink order, which is great if you have the deluxe beverage package.  I have a cruise coming up in April where two months ago the MSRP for CCBC was $249.  A couple of weeks ago it dropped to $139 with a sale price of $110.99.  We hadn't been to Hideaway yet so are going to try that this trip (on sale for $30.99).

Having watched enough shoot 'em up movies and read reports of kidnapping in many areas of the caribbean, I could understand why the jet skis might be cancelled, as people are out in the middle of the open water (not behind a fenced in area) and a some gang members in a faster boat try to corral the jet ski riders as hostages.  Of course, that could happen any day, but with the heightened activities in Haiti, I could see not taking the chance.

11 hours ago, why2klisa said:

What’s the trick? 

Load the sea pass card in your apple wallet.  It will show the cabin number as the last set of numbers under the bar code.

I did ask about possibly paying for the upgrade and they said I could but that I would lose the GTY credits.  Since it is such a short cruise (4 nights) I thought the credits made more sense to me than paying for a JS upgrade.  Basically, they are paying me to go on the cruise.....

1 hour ago, RFerrington said:

I guess I've never even heard of a casino comp offer for a GTY room.  It must be something new.

First time I had it offered as well.  The flyer offered an ocean view balcony where I could pick my room.  When I called about four months ago to book they said they would give me several hundreds of dollars as casino credit if I booked a guaranty.  Seemed like a no brainer.  Hopefully, there won't be that much noise from the hot tub as it seems to be semi-enclosed with windows... 

With Club Royale I received a “free” cruise on the Allure.  As part of the offer, they gave me additional casino credits if I booked a guaranteed ocean view balcony.  The cruise is about 30 days out and the room has not been formally assigned.  I can see the room number with the apple wallet trick. I have a connecting room on deck 14 right under the hot tub on deck 15.  I am not sure I want to be under the hot tub with possible related noise while sitting on the balcony.  Will they let me switch rooms before it is formally assigned? If I switch rooms (and move to an non-connected ocean view balcony), will they remove the casino credit?

So, in summary, it appears that the safer course is if you have prepaid them you need to cancel before you get on the ship.  It is unclear whether it is refunded as an OBC or to the original payment type (i.e. credit card) (possibly dependent on how far out you cancel them?).  If you have not prepaid them, and they are charged daily to your on-board account, then you can go to guest services to have the gratuity removed/cancelled.  To the extent they were already paid, they would be refunded as an OBC.

Just now, firefly333 said:

If you scroll back on this thread, last weeks release was postponed to this week....waiting... 

impatiently waiting.... thank you!

Any word on the 2025 long caribbean deployment?  The brochure seemed to indicate it should have been posted last week, but I am still not seeing anything.  Was thinking Freedom may be a part of that, but RCI is still showing no sailings after April 2025 for Freedom.

What's funny/scary is someone took the time to read the comment, and then double check a cruise date through a cruise search to then come back and post to try to prove another person wrong about their own booking that had already been booked...🙄

For giggles, looked out to October 2025 for Icon.  You can get the Royal Loft Suite for the low, low price of $41,118 .... per person.... for a seven night cruise.  Can't imagine paying $82K plus for two people for a seven night cruise.  Although with the kids sale free its the same $82K...

It's normally 20% off; BOGO50 (25% off) and sometimes 30% off (only started seeing that recently).  I don't know that I have seen 35% off before, so if you see that discount grab it.  Also, pay attention to the "list" or "on board" price as usually in March/April each year they bump it up $5 or more.  I had one last year that got bumped $5 in April 2023 and $5 more in Sept 2023.  So, 30% off at todays price may be less thant 30% off this summer's price.  As someone mentioned before, if you like the price, buy it.  If it goes down, you can always cancel and repurchase.  Before you canel make sure to double check the final amount of the new purchase.  Have seen many times on here where someone canceled their 20% off to buy a BOGO50 and only then found out that the final price was actually higher (because the on board price had changed and they hadn't noticed).  18% gratuities added at check out.

1 hour ago, HicksRA said:

I normally carry a gun everywhere I go. I know they say I can’t bring one onboard, but I’ve never shot anyone, so do you think it’d be O K???  
I am special and feel that I’m above the law. 

I see the sarcasm font is working.  But, a true experience.  My mother in law bought a big duffle (with lots of pockets/space) from an old army/navy store in her town.  She cleaned it, washed it, etc. and then packed for her cruise.  Once on board she was called to security, escorted off the ship and detained/questioned for over an hour.  Apparently, there was one empty .556 cartridge stuck/tucked in a spot/pocket she clearly didn't check and it set off the metal detector.  She was eventually let back on the ship literally minutes before the doors were closed.  She can laugh at it now, but in the moment it was tramatic.

We all know they are testing it out to see if it is something they can charge as an add-on later.  "Pay $X for Express Boarding" to start your adventure earlier. Carnival has the "Faster to Fun" which they now charge $99/room....

2 hours ago, joepeka said:

Just two things, in addition to the great info posted above:

 

1. When you're doing check-in ~45 days from sailing, you will be selecting a terminal arrival time, not a boarding time.

The app to do the on-line check in opens at around 12:05 a.m.  So, if it says check-in starts March 3, 2024, you can log in just after midnight to select your arrival time (not boarding time).  Within the app you can select your arrival time and then come back later that morning/day (or any day later) to input the passport info (which is super easy as you just scan the barcode with your camera on your phone) and credit card/on board expense payment method.etc.  It took about 4 minutes to do me and my wife's stuff.  Super easy.

2 hours ago, ColdCruise said:

Perks are nice to get, but it does smack of “let them eat cake” when significant portions of a ship’s amenities are denied to the majority of paying passengers. Similar things happening on NCL (no vibe access/passes being cancelled from pre-paid pax, no observation lounge access for entire cruises, etc all to benefit specific groups).

I don't know what you mean...

If you try to plug in a true 110 device (like a small desk fan) in to the simple EU adapter, it will fry your 110 device as the adapter keeps its at 220.  I use the below converter without any issues (of course now showing not available on Amazon).  No surge protection so all is good.  Also, don't try to plug your blow dryer into the converter unless its rated for high watts.  Found that out the hard way....

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09M42B2V8/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I about choked when I saw it was $30/day for my Octboer 15, 2023 cruise out of Miami.  Now, its gone up another $5.00/day.  Crazy.  It is at the point where you have to start considering port parking when choosing a cruise.  Rather than driving in the day of and parking, it may get to the point where it will be cheaper to stay one night in a hotel with extended stay parking and a free shuttle to/from the port....

I used mine towards a free casino cruise that I booked after the OBC expired (wasn't paying attention and missed it by a few days).  Basically, they applied the $200 towards the amount due, so it paid all but $6.45 in the taxes/port charges.