CruiseCheapsk8

Cruising beginning of December from Puerto Rico to Miami, with a few stops along the way. Do we all need passports since it is not a "closed loop" cruise, or are we ok since it is US to US? Thanks!

We usually take some boxed cereal from the Windjammer at breakfast and throw it in our small backpack, with some bottled water, off the ship with us to snack on in case we get hungry.

We had this same choice a year and a half ago and decided on Adventure (we sailed back in February). We had a blast! We picked it because the itinerary was awesome (Barbados, St. Kitts, St. Maarten, Antigua, St. Lucia) and there is a lot to do on the ship.

Honestly, to us, the itineraries were pretty close, but we gave the edge to this one as we had heard St. Lucia and St. Maarten are awesome, and they definitely were!

The ship itself had a ton to do on our sea day, with water slides, flow rider, etc. We enjoyed that day, and the other days in the afternoon/evening, after returning to the ship.

Now, with all of this being said, these are all port intensive cruises, with not tons of time on the ships, other than a sea day thrown in at the beginning or end, and time in the evenings, so I would look at cost as a factor as well. If everything looks equal, I would pick (and did pick) the adventure, as there is just more to do on board and we are more used to the bigger ships (Voyager class and up).

As many have said, you can't go wrong with either one though. I hope you are able to find some great deals, including airfare, and can go!

I will try to create a link:http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2539199

This is excellent, thank you!! Thank you also to all those who have added input here for those of us headed down to Galveston this weekend to get on the Liberty! I know I greatly appreciate it, and I know many others will too!

Thank you geocruiser and SciFiGuy1960!! These are much more helpful than ones I had been told or come across before. Seeing the webcams is very, very helpful! This is exactly what my wife and my brother's wife needed to help them not stress as much! I really appreciate it!

What is when they got to Aldine they jumped on the tollway until they got south of the city and then jumped back on 45? I'm just worried about either of us going straight through Houston.

I just looked and it looks like I45 takes me straight through the heart of Houston, which all of the threads on here that I have read have said stay away from the heart of Houston, so is there a better way to get around the city and then jump back on once we are South of it?

The truth is that it changes constantly, as the flooding that is still coming from upstream rolls into the area, but I-45 is the best route from all 3 of those locations and probably will stay that way.

So I45 has been reopened and is clear all the way down to Galveston then? That is great news!

What areas should we definitely avoid. I'm more worried about my brother and his family coming from Dallas than us to be honest. I'm not sure what they will encounter on the way down.

Now that our cruise is a go for this weekend on Liberty of the Seas, I would like to know from people down in the Houston/Galveston area what are the best roads to take.

I know there are websites that I can go to that likely would be updated, but I would like to rely on what are no doubt a lot of cruise critic members from that area to provide me with their best routes, from IAH to Galveston (our route since we are flying into this airport), Hobby to Galveston (others on here are likely flying into Hobby and could use this info), and Dallas to Galveston (my brother and his family are driving from Dallas and I know others may be flying into Dallas and driving down).

I know there are other threads on here about Harvey and the flooding, etc, but a lot of those were focused on what is happening, will they cruise/won't they cruise, etc. This is a thread to help all of us that now know the cruise is now leaving, with or without us, and want to get down to Galveston safely and fin the best route in doing so.

Thank you so much for your help and may God bless all of you down in this area and others who were affected by the storm! I truly wish for the best for you and that you all will be able to get back on your feet as quickly as possible and return to normal life!

Since it is looking the the ship really is planning to sail even if the airports are not functional, we're scrambling to make sure we can get there.

 

Our normal plan for cruises is to fly in the day before to allow for flight difficulties. For this cruise, we originally booked a flight on Southwest from Chicago to Houston for Saturday, made a hotel reservation near the airport, and rented a car. We planned take the car back to the airport the day of the cruise, and take the cruise company shuttle to the dock.

 

We called the hotel and they are open for business.

 

Since things are so uncertain, we also booked flights for Sunday morning, just in case the flight on Saturday doesn't go. We'll just cancel whichever set of flights we don't use. This is what I love about Southwest, NO PENALTIES! We'll just have that credit to use at a future time, which is really easy for us, we travel a lot.

 

Checked the SW website last night and they are still selling tickets to Houston for Sat and Sun. We have received no communications from SW about cancelling any our our flights.

 

And, just to be on the safe side, we booked tickets to San Antonio. Hopefully we can drive to Houston and drop off the car and board the ship.

 

So much uncertainty! Argghh!!

We'll be right there with you! We fly in on Saturday night. The airports are supposed to open tomorrow so I think flights in should be fine at that point.

As long as there is a manageable way to get from IAH to Galveston on roads that aren't flooded, we should be able to make it alongside you!

Good luck and safe travels! And we are still wishing all of the people affected by this storm the best and are keeping them in our prayers!

My sister has a neighbor that drove in to Houston this morning no problems. She lives in Tiki Island (Galveston)

 

My son went into the office in Sugar Land this morning to get his assignment he is headed to Corpus Christi to assess one of our projects.

 

Both airports have road access to them. They are holding off on flights because of all the rescue helicopters are in the air.

 

 

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Do you know or could you find out what route that neighbor of your sisters took to get from Galveston to Houston? Was I-45 open?

My family and I are on the Sept. 3rd cruise and meeting my brother and his family down there and all indications are this is a go, so now I'm just trying to logistically figure out the best route to get down there. We fly into IAH and are staying at a hotel right by the airport, one of the Marriott properties (which I called yesterday and they confirmed they are open and never closed and are ready for us) and then I called the car rental company and they said they will open at noon coinciding with the airport, which they thought was tomorrow (Thursday).

Our Delta flight is still on, as best I can tell right now, assuming the airport opens on time, and according to what I'm seeing on the weather stations the storm is moving on and the next few days will be sunny, hopefully making the flooding go down.

Anyway, if you can share with me the route that they took, or if anyone could share the best route from IAH to the cruise terminal, that should be open on Saturday, I would really appreciate it.

Thanks and we continue to pray for everyone down in Houston and the affected areas that things will improve quickly and that they might receive the help that they desperately need!

I'm scheduled to be on the Liberty Sept 3. But since like many people, I need to fly in from somewhere else, and if I can't fly to Houston, and take the Royal Caribbean shuttle or other land based transportation to the ship, having the ship in port won't mean a hill of beans to me.

 

I would think the safest option, and my vote, is for a Miami departure on Sept 3, but probably not going to happen. RC will try to get back to Galveston.

 

The Port of Galveston posted to their Facebook this morning that the sea conditions are still hideous and not expected to change for the next 24-36 hours. Not in those words, but basic message.

 

Nothing I can do but wait.

We are on the same sailing and are flying in as well. You've nailed it, it is just a waiting game now.

I do hope that Royal makes the right (whatever that ends up being) and TIMELY call for the Sep 3rd sailing. We are supposed to be on the LOS Sep 10th cruise, and I wonder how this is all going to play out. My heart goes out to those dealing with all of this right now.

I wholeheartedly agree with this. My family and I are supposed to be joining my brother's family down in Galveston getting on board Sept. 3rd and I hope that RCCL learned from this past weekend and does the right thing EARLY if it looks like we won't be able to sail. I would much prefer to get my money back then take my three little girls and wife down to a dangerous area, if that is what it ends up being by the end of the week.

I hope all of you that were scheduled for the Aug. 27th sailing get your money back and the future cruise credit and that everyone affected by this devastating storm down in Texas will be taken care of and that the rain will stop and flooding subside soon so that people can start to recover and receive the help that they need!

Thanks for the updates. Safe travels back!

I will be watching this closely to see what happens. My wife and I and our three little ones are scheduled to on Liberty of the Seas on the Sept. 3rd sailing. We fly in the day before. I hope this somehow weakens or goes more southwest, or something.

Good luck to everyone on board and everyone scheduled to get on board next week. I hope it all works out!

I just found out that we can get $20 off a 7 day parking here if we prefer to walk and not use the shuttle... since it's so close we'll drop our bags with the porters, park and walk back! $48.61 with tax for 7 days on the Breeze!

Did you book online ahead of time? I'm not seeing how to get that discount.

• What would you say is the optimal length for a first time? We live in Chicago and would either drive out to Jersey, or fly to Florida. The cost of the flights would be more that driving, but you're going to have a ton more options to choose from if you look to fly. You could go out of Florida, but there are also family friendly ships that go out of Galveston, Texas (Liberty of the Seas) and ones out of Puerto Rico as well. You may save the cost of flights by finding better deals with some of these options, just a thought.
  
• What ship or ships would have the most for kids to enjoy themselves? My personal opinion would be the Voyager class ships and up. The Freedom class in particular has the DreamWorks characters (except for Independence) which your kids would love, along with some great kids areas at the pool (splashaway bay, or whatever it is called on these ships), and the same with the Oasis class ships, although they will likely be a bit more expensive, but lots to do on them!
  
• What stateroom would you recommend? We were looking at a suite because of the tub and the extra space. Do the balcony doors have locks on them? You certainly can't go wrong with a suite! Our kids that age have had fun even just having oceanview rooms where they can sit by the window and peer out. I just posted a bit ago, but if I were you, I would be trying to take advantage of the kids sail free promotion and save a lot of money that way!
  
• What has your experience been with the Adventure Ocean and the Nursery? We're sort of paranoid with leaving our kids with complete strangers. These people are highly trained and skilled. We don't have a problem leaving our kids, but that's just us. Each person is different.
  
• Other Suggestions/Advice?
  

My suggestion would be to take a hard look at Royal Caribbean's current Kids Sail Free promotion. It is for sailings into next April. If you get an inside stateroom, you could go on a cruise for very, very cheap, I've seen as cheap as $1,500 or less for four in an inside cabin (this does not include gratuities).

My family is doing an oceanview family stateroom, that is about 300 square feet (we have three kids so need a little more space, but they are 5, 3, and 1) here in a few weeks on Liberty and are only paying $2,200. Getting a kids sail free deal can make all the difference in the world! This room would normally be over $4,000 for our family.

I'll respond to your other questions in a little bit, but just wanted to get this out for you to consider.

We'll be with our three young children on Liberty in a few weeks and are signed up for the character breakfast. I'm not sure when it became available, but we did book it probably 2-2.5 months back. For the five of us it was only $20. If I remember right, they only charged for the adults. Anyway, I've looked up youtube videos online and it looks pretty fun, and for so cheap, why not? Good luck and I will try to remember to update this when we get back and let you know how it was!

Hi all, last year, we booked a fantastic cruise on Oasis and got a great price as it was kids sail free so we only paid port fees for our 8 year old. This year, I see spring break times are blacked out for the kids sail free. Does anyone know if, historically, this changes? We'd love to go again.

 

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Yea, it's pretty hard to know. Sometimes I will book a family cabin when I think we'll want to go, and with a good deal, pay the deposit, and then wait to see if a Kids Sail Free comes around. If it does before final payment, I reprice it. If not, you can always cancel it. But that allows you to have the room should the sale come around, rather than the sale come around for dates you want and their not being a room available.

Another option, and this may not work for you/everyone, but whether it's kids sail free or just you and your hubby going, trying to go during the school year is generally much cheaper. We don't do it tons, but when we go on cruises with our kids, we usually pull them out of school. Now, with that being said, our kids are younger still and I don't feel like they will miss out on much. To each their own, but this might be something to consider.

Your kids will not be disappointed! We were on Adventure in February and loved it. We really enjoy the Voyager class of ship! There is plenty to do, no matter the ages- Kids pool/splash area, rock climbing wall, sport court, flow rider surf simulator, mini golf course, ice skating, water slides, adventure ocean for younger kids, teens club for older kids, table tennis, and so, so much more! You can't go wrong with Adventure of the Seas, in my opinion!

I believe I have seen posts on here in the past stating that the cups are programmed for two weeks, but don't quote me on that. Like Bob mentioned, I would cancel the second week and just see what happens. Good luck!

We know from earlier this year that Royal Caribbean has ordered to ICON class ships to be delivered in 2022 and 2024. I know it's pure speculation at this point, but just thought it would be fun to hear what people think the layout will be like, what types of innovative new things RC will put on board, etc. Thoughts?

Tip: If you are driving down Harborside Drive, stay in the right lane and go past the left turn to the cruise (22nd street) by 2 or 3 blocks (around 20th or 19th street), make a U-turn and turn right on 22nd street into the cruise terminal drive (around 20th or 19th street).

Excellent tip! Thank you for sharing.

This thread that was posted has the terms and conditions of the kids sail free promotion, along with a link to search for sail dates. It includes refundable pricing too. Go and find a great deal for your family while you can!

Woops.. Wrong thread. This is awkward... :o