GUEST71919

34 minutes ago, George C said:

Grand suites on older smaller ships are normally less expensive, internet I could not care about , not having costal kitchen is a bigger factor for us at least. Have gotten great deals for grand suites on freedom and voyager class. You get what you pay for.

 Some are, some aren’t. There is not always the strong correlation that you are suggesting,  in fact we have paid more for the Grandeur than the Allure and Oasis a few times in just the last couple of years. We don’t care about the CS but we feel ripped off Voom wise. 

Nothing like that has happened yet with us, but it sounds like an incredibly frustrating experience! We actually had asked out TA to call about the same $50 the day after we booked. He emailed and said nope, no additional $50 off - I replied that was wrong, I had the price in front of me directly from the RCL site. He called them back, ended up taking to 2 agents and finally had to get a supervisor in to acknowledge there was an addition $50 off.   

Oy 🙇🏼‍♀️

@Iamcruzin  agreed! It’s worse than Macy’s! You know it’s a bad idea when your customer base get an “it’s a sale” email and they just roll their eyes.

Should be IMHO but it isn’t. I do not understand why they have such lesser benefits for suites (no Voom and not even a discount) on all but the largest ships when there often is little or no price difference. In some cases it makes suites on all but the Oasis and Quantum classes more expensive since you have to get your own Voom package (and with mostly lesser WiFi systems). Sorry, this is the RCL thorn in my side 😟

25 minutes ago, the_dylaness said:

 

Can't speak for everyone...

I don't book insides, but it's not because I think they are "beneath" me.

I've sailed in an inside once and did not like the experience.

I'd rather cruise less often and have a balcony.

95% of my working hours are spent in windowless interior rooms with fluorescent lighting.

When I go on vacation, I want to go on the balcony in my pajamas if I feel like it.

 

Please don't generalize.

She was only saying some people feel that way (although I realize it said “most”).  Ironically, I was attacked (my term) recently for making the most innocent comment about bunk beds and cruise crew - the attack took a single word I used, twisted my intent and then people chimed in to keep on with the verbal pounding suggesting that I was disrespecting our military although I am the wife of a 30 year veteran; one post even suggested that I was lying about being a military wife and suggesting that I was someone who harmed our military. The single word was not looked at in the larger thought, but pulled out and that changes everything. It took the thread entirely from it’s original intent and was personally hurtful as none of it was a tiny bit true. 

i say all this to say that I think  this is a case that is similar in the you may be reading too much into what @brillohead said.  While “most” might have been too strong a word, her comment was specific to this topic and related to a larger point and not meant as a insult as I read it - she just pointed out that some feel that way. Heck, we sail in suites usually and I didn’t think she meant what she said as a slur against me, she was just stating what she saw as a fact (some people do feel that way, doesn’t mean you or I do). The irony here doesn’t change the fact that I believe that she met no harm and I don’t wish to see done what others have done to me 🙂

I understand how you read it and understand your feelings. But this is such an important thread for me to get information for a family member who really needs it so I just ask that it not be turned into something ugly when it doesn’t need to be 😊😊😊

35 minutes ago, CruiszBug said:

I'll throw my 2 cents in here... we travel with a special needs child who is wheelchair bound, has a trach with ventilator and oxygen. Minimum of 25 bags whenever we cruise. We have sailed in an Owner's Suite, a HA Spa Jr. Suite (Ovation), the HA Crown Loft Suite. Any of the larger rooms that did not have a HA accessible bathroom, we were able to use the HA facilities in the Vitality Spa (which were very nice). With 2 tweens in motorized wheelchairs, I would think about the space. Moving around will prove important when you are cruising together. So if not the HA CLS, then two connecting HA rooms sounds ideal.

 

And if you have a choice of decks, I would look at where you will spend the most time and try to get close to that deck. It might be challenging with two wheelchairs getting an elevator (unless you are on Oasis class Deck 17).

 

Contact Royal Caribbean Special Access Dept. They are excellent are dealing with special needs issues and can help facilitate your experience greatly! (And do find a great Travel Agent... if they specialize in special needs travel, even better!)

Thanks so much for chiming in!  I didn’t even think about the spa facilities. I was noticing when looking with him (virtually that is) that they put the accessible cabins very near elevators (makes sense, I just didn’t notice before). I had found the Special Access Dept when I first began researching this for him many month ago and passed that number along. I need to remind him of that. He asked me who we use for a TA, but the answer was “me”! I told him that he would have to compare the value of an agent who knows accessibly travel well or reducing his cost with higher OBC. I realize on CC we aren’t allowed to share that info on posts, but if someone knows of an agent who has good knowledge of this kind of special issue please let me know!

45 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

I know that some  mentioned Grandeur as Baltimore is close however there are only 12 accessible cabins (not including accessible suites) on Grandeur vs 32 on Anthem and 43 on Oasis.  

That is definitely a big difference. I wonder how the elevator access differs between the different size ships. Like we always think that we have an easier time on small-med ships even though less elevators due to less people (not scientific, just our perfection), but with mobility issues that could all seem quite different!

@Blessedwith10  That is also a great suggestion! For some reason I don’t think of the Anthem coming out of NJ (nothing personal to NJ, I think my head is stuck a few decades back 😂)

1 hour ago, brillohead said:

Just to clarify, my comment was that "people in general" (not your nephew) tend to not want to cruise in an inside (or even oceanview) room, so those accessible rooms tend to be available more often than balcony or suite accessible rooms.  

Because people "don't want" the inside rooms, the accessible insides are more likely to be released to the general public closer to the sailing date.  

I understood. After talking with him today, I think they will try to get 2 accessible rooms, interior or ocean view, and bring his mother with them to help. I noticed while helping him search online that I could not click on 2 rooms and the. select accessible rooms for some odd reason. But since he is taking my sister-in-law with them, that will be then be 5 of them and he will need to call. Thankfully he is more patient than I am.

2 hours ago, spookwife said:

One thing he needs to be aware of: Tricare will NOT cover the family on the cruise so a comprehensive insurance plan is a must.  And additional coverage for the chairs and batteries.  They are within driving distance of the NYC/Jersey ports as well.  So that will open up ports without needing to fly.  

Actually he and I have been chatting for over an hour as he looked through some cruises. I will definitely remind him about that! The changes from a couple of years back aren’t helping since all those policies we knew well got toss into the air and who knows where they all fell 😏 Thanks!

On 7/5/2019 at 10:23 PM, cruiselvr04 said:

I get something from the dollar store, usually seasonal.  My favorite are sheets of magnets in seasons or birthday. Thin, weighs nothing,  cheap and if it disappears no big  deal. And yes it does help us find our cabin down those long halls.

Wow, I didn’t realize they had any. You know, it would be easy to personalize those with sharpie type markers.

@Kmangel that sucks. Even if it’s someone’s child you would think they would make some effort to get it back (I would never have dared, even if I had wanted to, as my parents weren’t good with us stealing 🙄). Likelihood I guess would be higher in high traffic areas. Good luck the next time!

We order them from vendors on Etsy. I would have never thought I would do it, but now I do. Like for our Cruise in November w my sister in tow I have had a sign made saying Thanksgiving  Cruise 2019, smaller it says The Three Amigos Take the Caribbean and then a beach pic and the “Happy 60th Birthday DH” 😊  I assume they can get them done fairly fast and they run $10 give or take.

FYI the doors in the Haven on some of the NCL ships are sometimes do not allow for magnets (there is a faux wood paneling over it that reduces the pull), but so far all RCL cabin doors are just fine!

Thank you everyone for your input ❤️

 @Tee & Chilli @Ourusualbeach @spookwife The TA suggestion is a good one, maybe they can locate one with special knowledge of this area (I am so hands on with our cruises that I tend not to think in that direction 🤦🏼‍♀️). They don’t have a specific cruise in mind right now, I think there are so many balls to juggle in there world and they change quickly (I think at his service level there is a relatively decent allowance for time off, but scheduling it can be more difficult as @mringenoldus mentioned. 

@pcur great idea!  You would think I would’ve thought of BWI since we recently sailed out of there and found it super easy! Also, excellent point about avoiding tenders (not sure that they know anything about that!). Thank you. 😊. 

@Snit13 I didn’t remember that, so that will be another option and a huge one! Their first cruise was on Carnival I think, likely bc he was stationed in TX with so many CarnIval ports. But he is somewhat close to a number of good ports offering a huge range of frequent cruises - Bermuda, general Caribbean, and NE/Canada.

@cb at sea I will look more into those HC cabin category, thank you. And our very young grandchildren are in Fredericksburg (DH retired out of DC and our kids graduated from HS there and have stay in the area). Can’t say I miss that traffic, but there is so much available there!

@5xGrandma I haven’t asked him if he is aware of those discounts and I certainly should! Since DH is a military retiree, I know that there are some great travel benefits, like 60% off at Disney and the option to stay at the Hale Koa on the beach of Waikiki (for use of military and DOD). Good point!

@ReneeFLL  I can see how those might be just as likely to have someone change their mind or be unable to cruise. So maybe just after final payment would be due....👍🏼  So maybe very early or very late.

@brillohead he is such a kind and level-headed man, I feel like he would not think of inside rooms as beneath him. He comes from hearty stock, his mother is a native Hawaiian who served in the Navy for 15 years 👍🏼 While I guess they might want a balcony view for the kids, I know he would also be glad for the extra room he can gain in an interior accessible cabin (as you say, some of those are huge, I saw one recently when I visited the cabin of a CC friend who must use a motorized chair at all times) . If any of those are connecting, that would be yet another option - hopefully those doors would be wide enough? Thank you for your help 🙂

@mringenoldus you hit so many of these great points, thanks!  I cannot imagine what their waits would be on elevators - yikes... with 2 big chairs 😖 They are more patient than I am so that is a good thing! And they are cute! But right now they are that limbo land of tweendom which can be less cute 😉 They are so bright! But then their parents are very intelligent and loving people, I know the girls will grow into decent humans like their parents.

Again, thank you all very much for trying to help. I will pass all this good information along!

19 minutes ago, nelblu said:

In Halifax, you could also take a leisurely walk as the pier is some 1+ miles long with condos, restaurants, bars and diverse notes of attractions.  At the end you could also visit the Casino, where you could gamble a few shekels.  Staff in the Casino were uber friendly.

We will actually be there summer 2020, I had no idea that there is a casino there. Great info!

🙉🙈🙊.   😂

We have a nephew who has 2 disabled children; they enjoyed their first cruise in 2015 and would like to cruise again and so he turned to me for help. But I am at a loss to help him with his unique cruising needs and so need to reach out to the many kind and helpful people in CC that I know exist for more information. 

This nephew is a Warrant Officer in the US Army and recently from moved from TX to DC (I feel for him, my DH end his military career there in 2004 and so I know it’s not an easy place to live even without special needs children).  He and he wife have 2 daughters who are about 10 and 12 now and who were born with Centronuclear myopathy (a condition that causes muscle weakness and wasting in the muscles used for movement). Both are confined to motorized wheelchairs.

Clearly an accessible room is necessary and one that will work for tweens in 2 motorized wheelchairs (that must be able to enter the cabin). He said that when he looks for a cruise, he usually finds the accessible rooms taken.  I realize that his situation is rare as this disorder is rare, but I hope that someone can offer hints that I can pass on. 

Do the disability departments of cruise lines help in such instances? His life is quite full, the girls need total care, and so there is no time for him to sit at a computer frequently to haunt cruse line websites. So, are there other options for him to locate available cabins in a timely manner? They do well in general in traveling with them, Make-a-Wish generously paid for them to visit Greece and Harry Potter World. But cruising is proving more complicated. If you can provide any information, please do. Thank you!

32 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

 

Well, it sort of did happen, by Royal's definition.  At one point, VOOM meant the faster (O3b) service they have on the newest ships.  They actually did retrofit Freedom and Majesty and maybe another.  Then the price to Royal tripled, and so Royal gave up the retrofit and just redefined VOOM to be whatever all the ships had at that point in time.

I believe the one on the Grandeur is Tin Can, 2.0.

4 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

 

That may have been someone's plan a few years ago, but it never happened.

Ha! Wow. Someone should tell them on info channel as they repeatedly tout that it had already occurred. 🙄

On the Allure, I would choose the MDR (for the food overall  and  the service). 

While the basic service was fine on the Allure, it was horrible recently on our Grandeur sailing. We were getting no text messages at all. When DH went to the Internet desk to inquire, the woman staffing it actually said to him that you can’t get texts with the basic package but had to get the streaming version. hmmmm what?! Since when? I can only assume that on some ships you have little choice but to get the streaming version to use it to any degree. Supposedly Grandeur had been upgraded to the level of the Oasis class ships, but if so it was by the same team working on the coding of beverage package prices for 2020. 😂🤣🤪 So I think the answer about whether you need streaming is yes and no, depending on the ship.

We love the Haven suites. It is hard to compare it to rccl suites, but you are correct that the Haven suites fall between sky and Royal on RCL (but in our opinion that is a very good thing). In our experience sky class on RCL isn’t quite as strongly customer based as it needs to be on the ships below Oasis and Quantum classes. That is, you get shanked on benefits (like you are left to pay full price for the internet and drinks!). We enjoy the RCL suites, we just often feel cheated a bit. But then, Royal class on RCL is just way over the top in our opinion. It is far too much like we are paying to live like royalty; some people may like the over the top kiss-up stuff but we personally don’t (no need for anyone to attack, I said it was my opinion, everyone gets one 😉)

Haven has butlers, but the butler service is really more about personalized service rather than feeling as if they are in true service to you (again, perfect for us). They don’t show up without you needing them. Also, again on our experience, the Haven restaurants are far better than the two CK’s we have dined in (the service and quality of the food was just no where close to what we would expect). With Haven you get free drinks and free internet. And best of all. In the owner’s suite and 2br2ba you have this crazy big master bath with huge windows at both shower and garden tub. LOVE!

21 hours ago, neverbeenhere said:

While normally I would be glad to send you  a stack, I don’t know your address and I’m lucky that it here on cruisecritic you shouldn’t be giving that out.! 😮😀🤪🤡

I am so happy that you are looking out for by best interest 🤦🏼‍♀️🤣

34 minutes ago, crystalspin said:

We do not sail in suites (where some lines provide), so I got dr'spin a pair of small but good binoculars at REI. Small because we try not to check a bag.

That is a good gift and something a person might hesitate to buy for themselves thinking they may can do without it. That is one of the best kind of gifts, the ones where you can give something the person really wants or needs but wouldn’t buy for himself or herself.

I feel for you, those tenders are maddening. We have somehow managed to have few, but recently realized we are stuck with one for the New England/Canada cruise (unexpectedly bc on the same route 8 years ago this same port was not a tendered one).

I think that I would just as soon swim in 🧜🏼‍♀️

1 hour ago, cruiseliz44 said:

Hi!

New to boards (and cruising as this will be my 4th cruise).   My  husband and I are going on the Anthem of the Seas on 10/10/19 for a 9 day cruise to New England/Canada.   Can anyone help with the best suggestions for excursions and/or things to do while on the Anthem of the Seas?   Thanks!

 

There is a specific part of the board for ports and there should be a lot of information there about the New England/Canada stops. Have fun!

21 hours ago, island lady said:

I got tired of the game when I used to always make reservations.  For some reason they insist on seating you at the same table with the same wait team.  If that table is not ready yet, they make you wait for it even though there are other unoccupied tables ready and set up.  If I want same wait staff and table...I will do traditional.  

 

My Time Dining....supposed to be on my time.  Wish they would run it like they do for breakfast and lunch...first come first serve..whatever table is available like land based restaurants as well.  Just IMHO.  

They do make it  difficult. I suppose they were trying to pattern it after NCL’s anytime dining (that in our experience works without issues and you truly doesn’t need a reservation). But when you still must reserve a spot to not stand in a long line, and before boarding they often often only 5:30 and 7 pm and later, then it is not stress reducing but stress inducing!

I know more about the delayed version where there is a $200 deposit and 60 days to make a final decision without consequence. In that case, by my understanding, you definitely could. Although we haven’t booked while onboard, I would think that the policy would be very similar (where hopefully you wouldn’t lose the $100 and could make the change). Good luck!