flannbarr

8 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

Since you are before final payment date and you are not changing ship or sailing date, there should be no penalty from having non-refundable fares.  However, they may reprice the original reservation to current prices.  Double check before you make the change.

That was my hope. The price for a 3rd and 4th in the suite is about the same as in their own balcony cabin.

We are booked in a Sky Loft suite on the Anthem of the Seas on 3/30/19. Final payment is 12/30/18. There are 3 of us booked in the suite. 

We we are looking at adding a 4th person to the cruise. Instead of adding a 4th person to our suite and having them share a sleeper sofa, we are considering getting another cabin for the 2 of them.

Can I transfer the 3rd person from the suite to a new cabin without penalty while also adding a 2nd person in the cabin?

Last April, we were in ATS 10330 on the Harmony and loved it. The space was amazing. 2 mornings we awoke to a balcony with a lot of ash on it from the engines. The room steward cleaned it up after I notified him. We loved the many perks including the priority seating, priority embarkation and especially disembarkation and specialty dining especially Coastal Kitchen. Our genie wasn’t anything special but she was still nice to have. 

The balcony was massive as was the suite. 

For our cruise, suite 8330 was a lot more $ than 10330. 

I ended up booking the Sky Loft Suite, #8722. I know we will love it. We hope to eat in Coastal Kitchen for most meals and meet our friends for other activities.

Looks like my wife wants 2 bathrooms and really enjoys Coastal Kitchen among other sky perks so we are leaning to the Sky Loft Suite.

23 minutes ago, Tee & Chilli said:

Is a junior suite an option for some Coastal Kitchen dinners?

There are no junior suites currently available. We would like a separate bedroom and living room.

We are sailing the Anthem of the Seas on 3/30/19 after many sailings on Oasis class ships. Sailing with me are my wife and 16 year old son. We thought a friend of my son was joining us but no longer. So now we have 3 people sailing. We also have friends sailing with their kids who are in adjoining balcony cabins on deck 12.

Last cruise was on Harmony and we sailed Star Class in a 2 BR AquaTheatre Suite which was amazing but totally unnecessary but still fun.

We have sailed 3 in one cabin previously like many of you. This time, we are thinking we want either 2 cabins or a suite with a separate bedroom and living room. This results in the following options available to us:

• 2 Adjoining Balcony Cabins-1 double, 1 single. We would have 4 beds and 2 bathrooms total in the 2 rooms. Total cost $3,916
• 1 Owner's Suite w/Sky Class. We would have 2 beds, 1 sleeper sofa and 1.5 baths. Total cost $6,772
• 1 Sky Loft Suite w/Sky Class. We would have 2 beds, 1 sleeper sofa and 2 baths. Total cost $8,842

We loved Coastal Kitchen on the Harmony which we would get with Sky Class. We would use it on some days but maybe not all dinners so we could eat dinner with our friends in the main dining room. So I am not sure we would really take advantage of some of the Sky Class perks although the Suite Sun Deck is nice. So maybe not worth the extra $$$ for the suite?  We can afford any of these options but why blow the $$$ again, right? 

Your comments are greatly appreciated.

Would the refund of airfare be covered under trip insurance?

Strange that Delta doesn’t show up in the Hopper results.

6 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

August. Set up hopper app. Airfare from DTW to EWR is very fluid. Have you looked on the delta site to see how many seats are still available per flight? That's a good indicator.

6 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

August. Set up hopper app. Airfare from DTW to EWR is very fluid. Have you looked on the delta site to see how many seats are still available per flight? That's a good indicator.

I have never used the hopper app. I’ll set it up. Looks like a good amount of seats available.

21 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

I also fly from Detroit and am booked on the Anthem March 30th. I've sailed this same week on Anthem before for the primary reasons you have mentioned ~ cost of airfare. This is a week that many public schools in the tri-county area are on spring break. Airfare is ridiculous to florida. My tickets into EWR were $168 round trip (delta comfort).

 

The first day and last full day of the cruise were too cool for being outside (the solarium was even chilly for me), but I sat on my balcony wrapped in a blanket and enjoyed the fresh sea air.  Day 2--5 were sunny and warm.

 

The anthem is a very unique ship. The things I like about her probably won't effect your decision much since you are sailing with teens. I thought music hall was an excellent venue and the Bon Jovi tribute ban was a huge plus for me. They only played in there two nights and in 270 one night, but it was a super fun bar scene.  270 is an exceptional use of space both during the day and evening. Your kids may really enjoy Spectra. The solarium is one of the best 'free' solarium I've sailed. Gift gets bad reviews but I liked it and "We will Rock You' might be even more popular now with the movie release of Freddy Mercury.

 

Anthem does offer sea plex which may be a big draw for your teens. I didn't spend much time there, but it was fun to walk through and watch roller skating or bumper cars. I never did see the flying trapeze or puzzle room (those are my quests for March).  IFLY should be a huge draw for teens. Super fun., but I'm not sure it would be a single reason to choose Athem. Northstar is a one and done for me, but it's a fine  way to spend 10 minutes.

 

All in all I like the Anthem very much. Haven't been on oasis class yet to compare, but I have been on about 30 cruises and I think Anthem compares well to most others. Teens tend to make their own fun so they should not be bored. All things considered, I think it's a safe bet for your family.

Thanks for your comments. When did you book your air? It’s nowhere close to that cheap any longer?

23 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Did you look at Oasis and flying into Orlando?

We did look at Orlando and also very expensive.

17 hours ago, timf2001 said:

It's the return flights that drive up the price of airfare from south Florida.  Anything timed convenient to when cruise ships disembark is at a premium since there are so many ships.  You can get decent fares booking 6+ months out or staying the night and taking a flight early the next morning before the next wave of ships arrive.

We looked at that and have done it in the past. No change.

I refuse to fly Spirit. No way no how. We looked at Fort Myers and Orlando and airfare is just as bad.

We are likely booking the Anthem.

4 hours ago, twangster said:

Thanks for your comments.

 

Personally love Anthem and have sailed all Oasis class.  It's different without a doubt, but that's part of what I love.  

 

iFly, SportsPlex, NorthStar, 270°, MusicHall all very unique and not found on OA class.  The indoor solarium is one of the nicest.

 

March weather can be okay or cold in the NorthEast..  First day or two might be long pants days.  Anthem is designed for cold weather cruising so it works but if you desire to have warm sun beating down on you on the day you board, you may be disappointed in March on Anthem.  

Hello fellow cruisers. As seen in my signature, we are about annual cruisers usually on Royal Caribbean. We typically sail on Oasis class ships. We have sailed Oasis once, Allure twice and Harmony once including Star Class last year which was very nice.

We are tentatively booked on Symphony of the Seas on March 30, 2019 out of Miami. Sailing with me are my wife, 16 year old son and 16 year old exchange student from Barcelona. Airfare from Detroit to Miami, Fort Lauderdale or West Palm Beach is insanely expensive and it is making me look at other cruises.

One alternative is Harmony of the Seas on March 29th for 9 nights which is cheaper by about $500 per person compared to 7 nights on Symphony. Airfare is maybe slightly cheaper but still crazy high.

Another alternative is the renovated Independence of the Seas for 5 nights. Really cheap. Similar airfare.

I am now looking at the Anthem of the Seas from New Jersey on March 30, 2019. Prices are great. Airfare is half of flying to Florida. I don't like the itinerary of Port Canaveral and the Bahamas but I don't care too much for the Caribbean islands either since we have been to most already and we would likely not get off the ship at some of the ports.

So that leaves us with the Anthem and if we will like it compared to the Oasis class ships that we love. We have loved the entertainment, water shows, slides for kids, ice shows, etc.

I worry a little about east coast weather. Also weather sailing down the Atlantic.

For those that have faced a similar dilemma and/or have sailed the Anthem and an Oasis class ship and would share their experiences, I would be so grateful.

Thank you in advance.

We have a 16 year old high school exchange student from Spain living with us through June 2019. He is on an F1 VISA.

We would like to take a cruise in late March 2019 to the Caribbean. Do we have significant issues that have to be dealt with to allow him to cruise and re-enter the US after the cruise?

As seen in my signature, I have sailed 14 times and sail about every 1-2 years. I have Emerald status with Royal Caribbean and we have really liked the Oasis class of ships. There is so much to do for all ages. Sailing with me are my wife and 16 year old son.

We have never sailed on NCL. I am considering the NCL Bliss 12/23/18-12/30/18 primarily because the RCCL ships that I like are very expensive X-Mas week and the Bliss is much more reasonable.

The Bliss looks wonderful based on what I have read.

If you have sailed Oasis class of ships and the Bliss (or similar ship), I would appreciate your comments and comparisons.

Thank you in advance.

This may seem like a silly question, but will a Genie reserve pool chairs for you?

Not during my experience

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I was recently in Harmony 2 BR ATS 10330. This is a no brainer. The suite is huge including the massive balcony. Star Class perks are an awesome bonus.

The space and storage is massive. Yes it’s a smaller second bedroom but not a big deal IMO. Living room is great.

Enjoy!

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We sailed Star Class on Harmony in March 2018 and our genie did not use the questionnaire for anything. Slightly disappointing based on what I read leading up to the cruise.

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Got a call today from Royal offering some choices for "upgrading" from an Owners Suite to several options that would put us in Star Class. Note that Upgrade does not mean free, you pay an upcharge for this upsell! When looking at videos of Owners Loft, Grand Loft and even 2 bedroom aqua theaters to us the balconies just aren't that great. They are smaller than Owners Suite Balconies, are odd shapes, look over basketball court, or are in locations that are just really noisy. We would love to try Star Class but its the balconies (smaller, odd shapes, etc) that cause us to hesitate to do an "upgrade". The money required for the upgrade isn't an issue its all about the balconies for us. Are we making a mistake?

The AquaTheatre suite is massive and the balcony is too. No significant noise issues. Would do it again for the right price.

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I just did Star Class 3 weeks ago on Harmony. I did the same analysis as you did and you typically won’t be able to justify Star Class just based on cost unless you got a great deal on your suite. For us, it was so much more about the suite and balcony in our ATS 2 compared to the Star Class and genie perks.

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What ship is this for?

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Also add in free ships tours - had a Bridge Tour, Galley Tour and a Behind the Scenes Tour (theater). On our last cruise my son ordered room service at least 3x/day. We also had a stocked chest full of beer, water & soda. Also loved the daily cocktail service cart.

Behind the Scenes tour is not part of Star Class any longer. Galley and Bridge tours are included.

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