TNShadyLady

I should have come back and updated this. We did the Rose Hall excursion without too much trouble. We were transported there in an air-conditioned van with a very friendly driver and a female guide who pointed out a few places of interest on the way.

The house itself is not handicap-accessible, but for the most part there are handrails or walls or something to lend a bit of support. The house guide was super accommodating as soon as she saw my cane, allowing me to sit whenever possible.

The inside stairs were not too difficult if you take your time. Luckily the guide gave her spiels in the different areas and we were able to explore a bit at our own pace, without rushing. So I took my time and made it fine.

However, it was HOT! Jamaica in early July is hot enough, as you can imagine, and they had all the windows of Rose Hall open to the cool breezes, but it wasn't enough. Everyone was drenched by the time it was over.

Nevertheless, for the price it was a decent little excursion. Didn't see any ghosts. 🙂  But being a history buff, just being able to walk through a house that has stood there for nearly 200 years was something of a treat in itself.

Next time, I think we might hire a driver and do the Cinnamon Hill tour. It's only a few miles from Rose Hall and has a long history too, having once belonged to the family of Elizabeth Barret Browning and most recently Johnny and June Carter Cash. It supposedly has been left exactly as it was when Johnny and June lived there.

How was the Rose Hill excursion? We'll be in MoBay next week and thinking about doing Rose Hill. I'm 66 and walk with a cane. I've heard there are a LOT of steps and stairs at Rose Hill. Will I have a problem, in your opinion? Thanks for any advice. Rose Hill is about the only excursion we're interested in.

17 minutes ago, maryred said:

This depends on the offer. As long as your boarding pass has "PRIORITY" on it you can ignore the Arrival Appointment.

It does. And that's what I thought, but just wanted to be sure. Thanks.

We're doing a premier 7-day next week. Really hate to hear how they've cut back. Not much impressed with Premiers anyway, and sounds like now even less so. Ah well, less time in the casino means less money I'll lose. 😉  

If you have Priority boarding (casino offer) do you still have to abide by the "arrival time" printed on your boarding pass? We are traveling in a group and all have the casino priority boarding, but different arrival times to the port. Can we still all go inside by virtue of the priority, or must we wait until our official arrival time?

So if you're playing in the casino and have the DOU card (free drinks) who's picking up the tab? Casino services, I guess. But is gratuity included? I always tip cash anyway but no one has ever been able to answer this question for me.

I've never bought Cheers but I always get DOU in the casino, and I always tip $1 cash for every drink. I've often wondered if the casino is comping my drinks, are they also picking up the gratuity to pay those servers? I had heard about the pooling, but by tipping with cash I know it goes into the right pocket.

On the other hand, I just came off an elite cruise where several of us had free drinks anywhere on board and I swear I might have been the ONLY one tipping extra cash.

Yep, same way. But remember those cautions about moving money to your bank at a slot machine, then cashing out? It's for real. I was drawing down large-ish amounts, then immediately tranfering it all to my casino bank, then just pulling out a little  at a time from the bank to play on the machine. The computer didn't recognize that I played all that money away. It only saw the large transfer right to my bank (which I could in theory have cashed out at that point). So I had to go to the casino desk to "unlock" my S&S card and listen to the mini-lecture about pulling money from my S&S card through the slot machine, yada yada... Lesson learned. Every time after that when I'd draw down large-ish amounts, I'd play off about ten spins or so before transferring it to my casino bank. No more problems.

Is URCompted only using Royal Caribbean now? I only seem to be getting discounted offers with them now.

Not sure, but this was my first Crystal offer. I also have a RCCL offer, and have had NCL offers in the past. You can try uploading images of any new comps you've received lately. That could create more offers for you.

Well, it looks like I procrastinated too long on the Crystal offer. :( But I'm still curious about how other cruise lines operate their casinos. Do any of the others use the same system as Carnival?

Got an offer through URComped and I haven't booked yet but am considering it. I've only cruised Carnival up til now so looking to branch out, but finding that practices vary from line to line.

How do the slots in the Crystal casinos work? Is it similar to Carnival? With Carnival, I use my Sail & Sign card in the slots to track my play and draw down money from my onboard account for use in the casino.

I like to put my casino play on my credit card attached to my onboard account because (1) it helps me keep track of what I've spent, and (2) when it is billed at the end of the cruise, it is billed just as an onboard purchase, not a cash advance, so I avoid cash advance fees. Oh and (3) I carry some money with me when I travel, of course, but I don't like carrying a large amount of cash, so being able to put everything on my shipboard card is convenient - and safer.

So I've looked around all over the place and cannot find out whether Crystal uses a similar system or not. Will I need to just use cash in the casino, or can I charge everything to my onboard card? And for that matter, is there an onboard card used to get in and out of cabins, make purchases, etc.? These may seem like obvious questions for experienced Crystal cruisers, but for newbies, it's hard to find answers to questions that everyone seems to take for granted.

It totally depends on how much luggage you have and whether it's easily portable or hard to manage. My old luggage had wheels but they were stationary. My new luggage has 360 degree wheels, making it so much easier to manage. Self-debark passengers are among the first to get off, but it's still a LOT of people trying to debark at the same time PLUS all that luggage. I've done both. Depends on how fast I need to get off (flight times, etc.) but I do like not having to finish packing until the last minute and not having an extra tote bag to worry about (those pesky overnight things plus fresh clothes).

See my answer on your roll call.

Yes, thank you so much! Posted in both places just to be sure I got a response. :)

Rather than start a new thread, this looks like a good place to ask... We're booked on the Dream Feb 11th. Never been to NOLA at Mardi Gras. How difficult will it be to get to the port? I've looked at parade routes for Feb 11th and there are three beginning at 11am and all right in that area. Will port access still be available? We'll be coming down I-10 and I have no idea where to get off to get to the port. Someone suggested just going over the bridge, then turn around and come back and get off right at the port, but is there an exit there or not? I can't find one on the map. This is made doubly worrisome since we'll be in two vehicles, one following the other. I don't want it to be a case of the blind leading the blind. :) Any advice? Should we just get to the terminal as early as possible and hope for the best?

^^ thanks so much for the additional info! I like to travel light, meaning ONE piece of rolling luggage, so I need to remember to bring an extra tote bag for all the goodies. :)

I don't recall a sports bar prior to the upgrade. I DO recall sports being shown at the bar in the casino though. So maybe use that as an option if all else fails

Hmm... I could have sworn there was a sports bar near the casino on our last Dream cruise. But we've sailed on two other different ships since then so my memory could be faulty. :p Thanks, hopefully we can catch a game at the casino bar.

We'll be on the Dream Feb 11th. Thanks for your review. Haven't been on the Dream since the upgrade, and from looking at the deck plan, I don't see a sports bar at all. We're big fans of our NCAA basketball team and were hoping to catch a couple of games. No sports bar on the Dream???

Can someone explain to me what a premier cruise is?:confused::confused::confused::confused:

It's a cruise invitation issued when you've played quite a bit in the casino on your last cruise. I think there's a points level you have to hit to get a premier invitation, but I'm not sure what that level is. Also the offers may vary based on level of casino play. You may be offered a free interior cabin or you may be offered a heavily discounted cabin. Some offers come with casino cash as well, and some don't. It's really just like a land-based casino: the more you play, the better the perks.

Premier offers come in the mail and by email if you've signed up for that. The invitations are for a select number of cruises, which will be shown when you check out the offer. They are usually for certain cruises up to about 5 or 6 months out, so you can usually find something not at the last minute. They do go quickly, however. There are only so many invitations sent out for each premier cruise, and once those are taken, they're gone. You will be cruising along with other normal regular cruisers, but only the premier participants are eligible for the premier perks onboard, which include special casino drawings, tournaments, etc.

^^All of that above is just based on what I've learned through research. I'll be taking my first premier cruise in February, so if anyone can add anything, please do! :D

Yep, they don't forget their tippers. :)

This all sounds great, thanks! I spend a lot of time in the casino every time I cruise, so upping the casino experience will be a bonus. :) Also nice to know that my companion (my sister, actually) will be included in the festivities. She also plays but not quite as heavily as I do.

Very helpful. Thanks!

bump..... tell us about your premier cruise!

Thanks for the replies. I had purchased this from AARP for 10% off. As it turns out, my account was set to autopay, and already charged my card. Carnival said no problem, we can change payments.

Whoa Nelly! I didn't know this. Just today I received four $100 gift cards purchased through AARP. My February cruise is already paid in full on credit card. I was going to hold the gift cards for S&S, but now I'm thinking I should just call and use them toward the price of the cruise and credit $400 back to the credit card. Also less risk of misplacing them between now and February.

So what is the difference for a premier and ultra? Going on first premier in January?

I'd be interested to know as well. Gong on my first premier in February, hoping to get an ultra invite.

Thanks, wow.

 

 

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Yeah, it's actual money. I was surprised the first time I got some. I expected some kind of OBC comp or something, but they handed me cash money. Of course I gambled it away. :cool: