The Fun Researcher

Great replies so far! I enjoy reading about your experiences. Thank you!

One question: With the premium package you still get the souvenir soda cup right?

Dan

We've never purchased a drink package other than the soda package for my wife/kids.

We're unsure if it's worth it and are looking for some feedback from those who were hesitant to purchase the premium drink package, but decided to give it a try.

Thanks!

Dan

Interestingly, I tend to feel the motion just as much on a lower deck, like 5, as I do on a higher deck like 10. It doesn't bother me either way since I'm not prone to motion sickness though.

Dan

This is the lower part of the DL on Oasis. Sorry I didn't get one looking out to the Boardwalk.

 

 

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

Ooh, that looks substantially more impressive to me. Thanks for sharing!!!

Dan

The free voucher period is the same time as the free drink period in the lounges.

 

Also, I may have inadvertantly misled you with my other answer. The free drink period in the lounges is the only time drinks (besides specialty coffees) are available in the lounges.

Thanks Bob, you are a fantastic wealth of knowledge. I mean that sincerely. Thanks for taking the time to spell all that out in detail for me.

Dan

See answers in RED above.

Thank you Bob. Very nice of you to respond to all of my questions. One more please. Is the free drink period within the lounges the same as that offered for the 3 drink coupons? (5-8pm?) or is it anytime they are are offering drinks in the lounge, which is?

Kindly,

Dan

I agree, the DL on Oasis & Allure is the grandest of all. I have been on Quantum and they have a very nice DL. The CL is lovely with a wonderful view but you must walk 37 doors/183 steps down a corridor of cabins from the elevator to get there. That's just way too inconvenient.

 

Of course, the Suite Lounge on Oasis & Allure is the best I have experienced.

I wasn't expecting anything specific for these lounges before I saw this thread. Honestly I haven't given it much thought before today. I guess the pictures must not do the lounge justice. Looks like a nice hotel waiting area to me. (Besides the beautiful outside view) :confused: I must have assumed something a little more "WOW" for those "special" cruisers who have demonstrated some commitment to RCI.

It's strange, but a lot of the other bar areas and common areas within the ships seem nicer to me.

Dan

Correct. Only during the hours the DL is serving drinks, and cannot be accumulated.

It is the limit outside of the Diamond Club, but I have never seen a limit if you go into the club. Of course, 2 drinks is plenty for me so I've never reached this limit. There are sometimes some there who obviously are taking advantage of a more lenient quantity.

 

Tom

Thanks! If you don't mind, could you help me understand the lounges, and the Diamond benefits, specifically free drinks? Pretty sure we'll be in that group in the not toooooo distant future.

• Are there separate Diamond, Diamond +, and Pinnacle lounges on each ship?
  
• Are these lounges open all day? Only to Diamond and above members?
  
• What typically is going on in these lounges during the day?
  
• Do they serve drinks only certain hours of the day?
  
• Are the drinks free in these lounge for Diamond and above cruisers? Are they only free during certain hours?
  
• Are there limits to the numbers of free drinks served in each lounge?
  
• Are the daily 3 drink coupons only for lounges and bars outside of the Diamond and above lounges, and only during the hours of 5-8 pm?
  

ahhh, so confusing. Thanks in advance for helping my ignorance. :)

Dan

Is the Diamond (and higher) perk three drinks per night?

Dan

No offense to Diamond members or higher, but that lounge looks pretty basic. Maybe my expectations are too high.

Are they all similar to this on other ships? Are others more grand?

Thanks,

Dan

Just off the Independence New Years cruise this morning. 1200 kids onboard.

Yowza!

We're taking our three kids (14,11,8) on the Navigator the first week of April this year. I'm hoping there are some other kids for them to interact with, but honestly, I don't want 1/3 of the ship being kids!

Dan

Does anyone remember when there was a shortage of escargot?

 

Some spoke out saying that by deleting escargot from the menu, Royal Caribbean would be able to pay for the new ships from the savings!;)

 

Now, escargot is back on the menu. I believe that the same thing will happen with the shrimp.:)

 

Rick

Our son (and I) would be crushed if they took escargot from the menu! He was 7 yrs old on his first cruise in 2014 and escargot was his dinner every night. He typically had two helpings, and shrimp cocktail. Combine that with bread, and he was one happy dude at dinner each night.

If escargot is missing from our cruise this upcoming April, he will be crushed.

Dan

What every one thinks is a good price is really dependent on what you are willing to spend. Overall $1780 I would say is about average, especially when I think of some prices of other cruise lines. My parents booked a 10 day on Carnival in a balcony for $1300 - so for instance I would consider that to be a really good price.

 

I am paying more for the Anthem of the Seas for a 9 day for an Oceanview, so it just really depends on what you are willing to spend and feel you can afford.

Agreed. So much goes into a price. You can't put blanket statements out there, like "$WXYZ.00 is not a good price"

You can get dirt cheap cruises if you are willing to go on older, smaller ships.

The Liberty is a large/mega class ship with new updates.

My in-laws tell me all the time about the insanely cheap prices they can get on Carnival cruises (which is what they sailed on 100% until we we went on our RCI cruise together Dec 2014). When I look at the ships with those insanely cheap prices, I would rather save my money and sail on a nice ship.

Dan

When I checked last night, it looked like I could get a deluxe balcony for just over $1900 for two people for the 7 night cruise late Jan 2017. That included prepaid gratuities and then there is $300 OBC on top of that yet. So yeah, I agree that the price is pretty attractive.

Dan

We've only done four cruises, but it was our 8 night Eastern on the Indy in 2014. Great itinerary, great ship!

We liked it so much that we're kinda repeating the cruise this April (same itinerary but opposite order), but on the Navigator.

Dan

In our four cruises, I have been to the WJ once for dinner. (Some of our adult group got our drink on a little too much in St. Maartin and we didn't make it to dinner in the MDR :) )

Honestly, I was surprised to find some of the entrees from the MDR menu that evening. I was super happy about it, because one of them (lamb chops) is something I look forward to each cruise and I was bummed that I thought I would miss them.

Anyway, while the food was pretty decent, we are in the crowd that likes the ambiance and all that is included in the service of the MDR. Eating off the plastic plates and drinking from plastic cups, and having to get up for each helping of food in the WJ just leaves a lot to be desired for dinner IMO.

It is convenient from a flexibility perspective though. Show up, eat, leave... on your schedule.

Dan

Thanks for posting OP, but this seems to be just a reminder to renew your passports. Kinda business as usual. A good reminder though.

Dan

i see you can afford the upscale line--rci--target of the seas--how lucky for you !

...and make sure you pronounce it Targé :)

Dan

Hi all. Didn't mean to derail the thread. You all have good points. :)

Merry Christmas!!

Dan

(pssssssst)...........the computer really "sails the ship"..........much like a train engineer and airplane pilot most of the skill is in stopping and starting their respective vehicle.......

pssssssst... tell that to the Captain of the Costa Concordia.

I don't mean that to be snarky. ...and I hate to relate that tragedy to this thread. However, in reality, it's the reason I posted my first response in this thread. The Captain truly has the decision making responsibilities for the lives of those on board. The Concordia tragedy appears to have happened due to the vanity of the Captain. I am in no way overlaying that tragedy to the awesome words being said about Captain Marek. I'm sure he deserves the praise he gets.

I just seem to have a different view of what a Captain's responsibilities are I guess.

Dan

Dan, welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

You can put your flame suit away. Everyone has favorites, whether it be captains, hotel directors, cruise directors, and the list goes on.

 

What is so interesting about this thread, is the fact that the captain of the ship really sets the mood for the rest of the ship to follow. And, there are some very outgoing captains, and the whole ship seems to respond, very positive.

 

Captain Marek, Sullivan, Liz, and a few others are very good examples of captains that seem to go out of their way to be friendly, yet just enough aloofness to let everyone know who is in charge.

 

Rick

Well said. I can say, I do appreciate hearing from the captain when we arrive to ports, upon departure, etc... They do a good job of putting us at ease and relaying important info.

Having had good, and not so good, cruise directors I just feel that they have far more impact on our cruise enjoyment than the captain. I don't mean to derail this thread. I just view the role of the captain a little different than others I guess. :)

Dan

Placing my flame suite on...

Personally, I appreciate a good cruise director far more than a visible outgoing captain. Am I the only one who wants the Captain navigating the ship? I don't care if he doesn't say a word as long as we get to our destinations (and back) safely.

I leave the shmoozing and all that to the rest of the crew.

Dan

Just wanted to say that I appreciate everyone's replies. I booked Allure in October, but I'm not leaning toward Freedom and will most likely make the switch.

They are such different ships that they both deserved to be tried at least once.

Dan

Thank you for the replies! It's looking like a tie at this point. I love the idea of being in a GS and having those perks, but the Wow factor of the Allure is very tempting!

There is definitely a WOW factor to the Oasis class. However, we found that it faded quickly, and we missed a lot from the Freedom class.

We missed:

The feeling and sights of sailing on the ocean. On the Oasis class, it kind of felt like you step foot onto an impressive hotel and show up at ports throughout the week. It was difficult to find ready access to good views of the ocean.

A nice fitness center. The Oasis class felt like an afterthought. No good views of the seas while running (versus outstanding views on the Freedom). Also, the fitness center smelled of cigarette smoke our entire cruise on Oasis class.

The ability to "get away". On Oasis class, even late at night (we're in our early 40's and like to party, dance, and relax late into the night) we couldn't get away from crowds when we wanted to. It seemed like everywhere you went there were lots of people even late at night. This was especially evident in the promenade. On Freedom class, it quiets down late. On Oasis, there were many young kids (10 and under) and families after midnight running around the promenade.

On Oasis class, it felt more like "go, go, go" to try and do and see all that the ship had to offer. Not as relaxing. The Freedom class already has more than enough for an 8 night cruise.

Bartenders felt more disconnected on the Oasis class, but where "o.k".

Food was equivalent between the two.

Edited to add... Our kids were DD13, DD10, and DS7 on our cruise this past Dec 2014, and they all loved what the Independence (sister ship to the Freedom) had to offer. They loved the kids areas. The Freedom class has the Dream works characters as well, so if your 14 year old may like that, it's another plus.

Dan

Having been on Oasis class and Freedom class, we prefer the Freedom class for a number of reasons.

We also prefer Eastern versus Western, and 8 nights is better than 7.

That is just our opinion though.

Dan