DataStar

Thanks for posting this. We have our first cruise on Anthem this Thursday. Like you, we're in one of the "110" corner rooms, and on Late Classic Dining.

 

Which restaurant has the Roast Beef sandwiches that we came to love on the Oasis-Class ships?

 

Alan

I don't know if they are available for your departure, but Anthem, like some other ships, has a few unique cabins. They are Ocean View cabins on decks 8-11 and are 8110 and 8510 (and the equivalent numbers on the other decks, e.g. 11510.) At just over 300 square feet, they are substantially bigger than a lot of other cabins aboard. There is a very large forward-facing window.

 

Alan

First, let me post a question -- Has anyone got information on parking for cars with handicapped parking permits/plates? Is there a special area in the garage? Elsewhere? We're on the August 25 sailing up to Halifax in Canada. Haven't been to Bayonne's port since the new garage opened.

 

Any information sincerely appreciated.

 

About the Bayonne Bridge. As a Staten Island resident, it's a fact of life I have to live with. The reason for all of the closures is a pretty amazing engineering project. They decided that the bridge roadway was too low above the water to allow the new generation of super-size cargo ships to navigate, so they decided to raise the roadway. Personally, I didn't know you could do that on a bridge which was opened in 1931, but that's what they're doing, and it's worth a look. If you're interested, you can read about it --> HERE<--. That linked page also has camera imagery to let you see where the project stands.

 

If you're coming to the port via Brooklyn, the Bayonne Bridge would be your best bet if it was open to traffic. Fortunately, you can look at -->THIS SITE<-- and it will give you the weekly opening/closing schedule.

 

Alan

Linda and I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you, Kyle. You put a lot of time and work into your postings and your photos, and they've really helped us to prep for our first Anthem trip in August.

 

I hope our paths cross on some future cruise. I suspect that we would both be filling up a bunch of memory cards.

 

So Linda and I say THANKS, KYLE!!!! You've set a high bar for anyone's future reviews or photos of the ship.

 

Regards,

 

Linda & Alan

Never too late to post those photos of the on-board art!

Hint, Hint.

Kyle, I understand how quickly life can get hectic. I was scheduled tomorrow to do a wrap-up panel at an all-day event at Stevens Institute of Technology (helping out a friend who teaches there.) Easy work. Listen to the presentations, then try to pull it all together (with 2 other panelists) at the end of the day. But 30 minutes ago, I got an email telling me that the person doing the last session (75 minutes) just cancelled, and they need me to do that session, too. So I have this afternoon to generate an hour-long presentation that will cover some of what the person who dropped-out would have covered (and I'm guessing at that) and have a PowerPoint ready. So what should have been a relatively peaceful day finalizing my testimony for a Department of Labor security presentation next week, suddenly became very pressured!

 

Glad you'll post the artwork photos.

 

Thanks for all the hard work on your postings!

 

Alan

Great pictures and great review! Thanks for the hard work.

 

Are you still planning to post your photos of the on-board art work?

 

Have a great holiday weekend.

 

Alan

The site is operated by two brothers. Note that as far as I can tell, they do not run any of the excursions that they market. Of course, except for Alaska cruisetours run by a sister company of Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, neither does Royal Caribbean. They contract with tour operators, and make money by selling them for more than they pay the operator. This is similar to booking sites like Viator, which are in effect middlemen, bringing tour operators and buyers together and charging operators a commission for their services.

 

As traveler279 says, tour operators are all concerned about their reputations and certainly want to get you back before the ship departs. The ship generally charges more for their tours, but they do guarantee to wait for you if they have to. I've been on cruises where they absolutely did that -- I saw the late tour bus pull up to the pier, the people get out, and within a couple of minutes, the gangway was pulled in and the entry port closed, and the ship quickly got under way. Another consideration is the extent to which a booking site checks out the tour operators. One would assume that Royal takes the time to do that, and to monitor feedback from guests, but for other sites, you have to see what (if anything) they say. Also, if you have to fly somewhere to catch the ship (particularly if the next port is in another country) you have to remember that you may have problems boarding a plane or getting through immigration if you don't have your passports with you.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Alan

Friends,

 

This morning I received a promotional email concerning a 72 hour sale on new bookings for Anthem.

 

One of the sections of that email -- which I assume many of you received -- read as follows:

 

 

 

We all know that the on board revenue system automatically adds a gratuity to bar bills to our Seapass accounts. But a plain reading of the email text would indicate that at Bionic, no tips are necessary. That would suggest to me that the on board system would be programmed not to add an automatic gratuity to robotic bartender orders.

 

But we also know that logic doesn't always work.

 

I've not yet sailed on Anthem but if you have, can you let me know whether you were charged an automatic gratuity at the Bionic Bar?

 

And regards to all.

 

Alan

You could try calling the contractor, Image Photo Services in Miami at +1 305 476 3666. Their parent company office is on Grand Cayman, but in the past, I've gotten great service from their Miami team.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Alan

Sue, thanks for your posting. I found the thread and it was most helpful. Clearly, there are some who have problems, but my reading showed that customer service at the vendor is generally good. Of course, there are some who (like with art auctions) are almost insulted that the photo (or art auctions) exist on-board. You can go to the auction because you actually like the art, understand what you are (and aren't) getting, and want to buy it. Or you might just like the free (cheap) champagne. Or you're bored and it's something to do. Or you can ignore it.

 

Given the price per photo, the package sounds like a good deal, particulally for a longer cruise. So if I understood, the tips for avoiding problems are...

 

1. Take a copy of your package order with you, with the order number so the on-board photo manager can verify the prepaid status if necessary.

 

2. Go to the photo gallery daily and grab all of your photos. Check them against the photos on the Kiosk to see if anything is missing, recognizing that the facial recognition program is very good, but not perfect.

 

3, Give the hard copy photos to the photo desk to hold in your folder, and let them know if anything is missing. Checking the kiosk avoids last minute issues.

 

4. Collect the hard copy photos and the software/unlock disk on the last night of the cruise.

 

Have I got that right?

 

Regards,

 

Alan

We're on Infinity next month for 14 nights. We can get the photo package that includes all prints and a DVD of all photos taken (whether they were printed or not) of either/both of us for US$225 from the vendor who runs the concession on Celebrity/RCI/Disney.

 

Given the cost of photos, this seems like a good deal. What's your experience?

 

Advice welcomed.

 

Thanks, and best wishes for the new year.

 

Alan

The fact that you can leave the terminal, walk 3 minutes, be in your car, drive it over to pick up your luggage and be out of there without trying to find a transfer van to another parking venue translates into value for me! It's worth it for the convenience and peace of mind in my experience. Your mileage may vary, but like the others have said, given what you're paying for the cruise, isn't having your car waiting for you right there at the terminal worth the price?

Check the park and cruise packages at the Staten Island Hilton Garden Inn and the Hampton Inn and Suites. They will shuttle you from the hotel to the cruise port in Bayonne an back at no cost, but you have to have reservations for the shuttle as well as the hotel. Call the hotels for information. The hotels are across a parking lot from each other. Lorenzo's restaurant at the Hilton Garden Inn is outstanding.

As a Staten Island resident, I just wanted to add that both properties are owned by the husband and wife who founded the Everything Yogurt chain. They are terrific people who are very active in the Staten Island community and are very generous to community groups. We all use these hotels for our guests, and I just wanted to add that the restaurant at the Hilton Garden Inn -- Lorenzo's is outstanding.

 

There is quite a lot to see on Staten Island. You can visit the website at http://www.visitstatenisland.com/attractions/ for details. Or if it's during baseball season, consider taking in a game of our own Baby Bombers, the Staten Island Yankees in their beautiful stadium overlooking the harbor and lower manhattan. It's right next to the Staten Island ferry.

The Hilton Garden Inn on Staten Island has a park & cruise program. They also offer the option of being picked up at Newark Airport and shuttled the next day to the Bayonne cruise port. It's a really nice property, and I can absolutely recommend having a great dinner at their Lorenzo's restaurant. I think the phone number is 718-477-2400. You have to make reservations for the shuttles, although there is no charge.

 

Hope this information is helpful.

 

Alan

I was also at the reveal meeting and I just wanted to point out that four of the five theme venues each have 400 seats, so with a couple of seatings each, there's capacity. The menus are posted on the website.

For those that want to make reservations while aboard, I was told that this could be done through the interactive TVs in the cabins, or by calling and asking the operator. I was told that when you select a restaurant and time, the system will tell you if any of the shows are at the time you'll be dining, so you can make a decision with that in mind. The expectation was that the interactive dining selector for Quantum would be operational in mid May.

Not trying to influence what anyone thinks or feels about the dining concept, but I wanted to add this information to everyone's equation.

You are absolutely right when you say that most data breaches involve massive losses of data at merchants -- the recent Harbor Freight Tools breach is a good example -- but it's simply wrong to suggest that the chip of a chip and pin system can be read from your pocket. It's not a wireless technology, unlike RFID, or NFC (Near Field Communication). I know of no recognized expert who believes that you can read the embedded chip from your wallet any more than they can read the mag strip at a distance. I suspect that if it could be read through your wallet, there would have been a couple of sessions on it at the Black Hat Conference that recently ended. There was a great session on hacking car electronics, particularly for cars that have internet connectivity.

 

Alan

Sure it's official. I hereby designate it as such.

Absolutely!

Positively!

 

We've participated in Slot Pulls on several of our trips and always enjoyed them.

 

For those who havent, the rules vary somewhat, but here's the general idea.

 

• The Slot Pull is generally announced on the message board for the departure, to see who wants to participate.
  
• Everyone who is participating kicks in a fixed amount -- maybe $9.00 -- which is collected at the Meet & Mingle, with an entry ticket given in return.
  
• The organizer, who discusses this with the slots manager in the casino, sets a time for the pull (most often right after the M&M on a sea day.) Sometimes the manager provides some keychains or tee shirts as gifts for the group. (We usually give those to the people who generate the most winnings for the group!)
  
• One machine -- a dollar slot with a $3 maximum coin-in -- is selected. That way, we can qualify for the maximum payouts and maximum jackpots!
  
• The organizer puts in cash equalling everyone's total contribution. Let's say that 20 people join in at $9 each. The organizer puts $180 into the machine (usually large bills to save time.)
  
• The entrants are then called to the machine, and each pushes the "BET MAX" button three times. The rest of the group provides encouragement (and various comments on the results.)
  
• After everyone has played, the group decides whether to split the money (which can be big if a jackpot is hit) or play on (usually one BET MAX per person) until you either hit it big, or hit zero on the money meter.
  
• The organizer pays out the money -- if any -- and any prizes provided by the Casino. (hence the tickets -- if you win, everyone suddenly remembers that they participated)
  

In this thread, I'd like you to post whether you had a slot pull, what the rules you used were, and most importantly, whether your group were winners who walked away with a profit.

 

And good luck to all.

 

Alan

Which roughly translates to

 

 

Alan

When you check in shoreside for your Royal Caribbean cruise, you will receive what the company calls a "SeaPass Card", which is a combination room key, onboard credit card and which is needed to board and depart the ship. Once you have the card, during the boarding process, it will be put into a machine, at which time your photograph is taken and associated with the card. Every time you leave and return to the ship, the card is scanned, and the security officer can see the original photo, thus assuring that the person presenting the card is the person to whom it was issued.

 

If you want to wear the card on a lanyard, just stop at the Guest Services desk and they can punch a hole in it in a location that will not interfere with either the bar codes (used by the security system when you enter and leave the ship) or the magnetic strip, used to unlock your cabin door, and when using it as an onboard charge card. It's also used as a loyalty card in the onblard casino slot machines (with prizes provided based on your level of play.)

 

The card does not have your complete room number on it for security reasons. It does indicate your dining assignment (dining room, time and table.) It also contains your Folio Number, which you need in some circumstances (arranging onboard to prepay gratuities, for example) and appears to have space for a number that will be associated with a future system that will let you see the photos taken of you by the ship's photographers on display screens and to order those you want. This system is not currently in general use, and this FAQ item should be edited when such a system is operational.

 

Try to avoid keeping the card in any magnetic field. If you discover that it stops working, it's not a problem. Head to the Guest Services desk 24 hours a day, and they can create a new one for you.

 

There are four kinds of SeaPass cards. There is a special design for children. Most passengers receive a standard card, which is currently blue in color. Guests in Junior Suites receive a silver colored card, while guests in suite accomodations (Grand Suites and above) receive gold colored cards.

 

Finally, remember that when you are leaving the ship at the end of your cruise vacation, you will need it to leave the vessel. So don't pack it away. You can keep it as a souvenir.

Every Royal Caribbean ship provides for friday night lay-led services. Typically, at the services, which are announced in the Cruise Compass (daily program of activities) Royal Caribbean provides prayer books, yarmulkes, electric candles, as well as challah bread and kosher wine.

 

On Channukah and, I believe, passover, there may be a rabbi aboard to conduct services. Last Chanukah aboard Legend of the Seas, for example, there were daily Chanukah services conducted by a rabbi. Aside from the challah and wine, the ship provided potato pancakes, applesauce and sour cream.

 

Note that there is a sign-up book for Friday night services (often at the Guest Relations desk) that while optional is, I was told, used to give the Hotel Department an idea of attendance, so that they can have enough bread and wine for the expected number.

Questions:

 

1. If you book a cruise using the "free cruise" points, do you get C&A pointcruise credits for the trip?
   
2. If you do the same, and then pay for an upgrade, do you get C&A cruise credits for the trip?