MNshortie21

On board next week! Never cruised out of Baltimore or on Enchantment, so I am enjoying your review!

I think supply and demand will become an issue at least in the beginning if this is made a requirement for cruising. If a vaccine is approved and produced that does not mean it will be available for everyone right away.

So what happens if you try to get the vaccine but are not able to or cannot afford to? Just because you can afford a cruise does not mean you could afford a $4K vaccine (hypothetical).  This means no cruise for you and lost revenue for the cruise line.

I  think requiring it could also set a precedent for other medical requirements that could open Pandora's box, not only in cruising but other social gatherings as well. Will this snowball into  having to carry a card to show any restaurant, store, entertainment venue, airline, hotel, etc...that you have been vaccinated? 

Booked Majesty out of New Orleans for Jan 2021. The price was good,  booked refundable, and did not use FCC. Will reevaluate before final payment. Give me something to look forward to and research fun things to do in New Orleans before the cruise. 

I just picked a random free bar code scanner app from my app store on my phone. Used it once then deleted it.

That's what happened to me. I saw my deck number and muster station about a month before my room was assigned. You can also try to use an bar code scanner app on your phone to scan your set sail pass and it might give you, your room number. I read it on a message board and tried it, and it was correct for me.

We did the tour after and if I had to do it over, I would do the land first. I personally was tired and had less patience by the time we were on land. tour. Did not explore as much on land tour as the beginning of vacation.  The reason we did the land after the cruise, is I could use less vacation time.

Booked an interior guarantee in April for Nov 23rd Thanksgiving cruise on Harmony. Have not been given a room number yet. Did notice on my eDocs that it says Deck 11. I don't understand why they would just give a deck number? If they have the deck you would think they know the room. Also there are no interior rooms left on my sailing, so I must be assigned somewhere.

Also how does that work if you don't get your room number until you check in? Usually you drop your luggage off before you even check in. What are you supposed to put on your luggage tag to ensure they actually make it to your room? 

Cruising of the Harmony of the Seas over Thanksgiving! So excited as I have never traveled over the Holidays!

I am trying to schedule our transportation to MCO as there are 3 times to be picked up 8:15, 9:00, & 9:45. I am curious how long it takes to get through the disembarking process? Our flight doesn't leave until 2:00, but I figured with it being over the holidays, the airport would be packed and we don't have an issue getting there early and having lunch before our flight. I have been debating between 8:15 and 9. Any thoughts? Thanks!

We did Anytime dining for the first time on the Radiance and it worked almost like traditional, if you make reservations before and chose the same time every night. Anytime was on level 4 dining room only and when we showed up for our time the first night you give them your room number and they show you to your table. (Every other night, we had a dining card left in our room that we just used.) We had the same table and same wait staff every night. Service was excellent! I'm not sure if it changes by ship or if you have slightly different dining reservations, like 6:15 one night and 6:30 another night.

5 hours ago, phillychick said:

Since you were just on... did you go into the piano bar/Schooners?  How was it?  Thanks. 

Went to Schooners often for trivia, it's quite big with attentive servers. We listen to a pianist and violin players there a few time. One of our favorite spots as it also has many windows so great views while sailing. Depending on what you like for music, I thought the Colony Club, which is next to the Schooner and the Centreum, had the best music options.

19 hours ago, Becoming said:

I ate at the Alaskan Crepe Escape in Juneau two summers ago and thought it was the best meal of my vacation.  The Capital City Crepe was large and quite tasty.  It's close to the library parking garage and has outdoor seating.  Here's the website - https://alaskancrepeescape.com/

 

Enjoy!

 

Patti 

I second this! I just ate there a few weeks ago and it was great! 

Flew into YVR from US in June. You will deplane and flow the signs to customs/baggage claim. For customs they have Kiosks where you enter your info and it prints out. You then take that print off and your passports to an agent. Keep the print off out! You walk a few feet and baggage claim in right there. Pick up your luggage and then go to exit with your luggage and another agent will take your print off as you exit baggage claim. 

We were through everything within 30 minutes. Note our plane landed at about 10PM so your time/experience maybe different. Happy travels!

We did a Jet boat through Mahays. It was like a pontoon and speedboat combined that held about 50 people. The guides were awesome and knew so much about the river, wild life, area, and history. They were also from Alaska, which I have found was hard to find in a guide. While the ride was very nice and the information was good, I was expecting something different with a jet boat, We live near the Mississippi and it reminded us of cruising on it. SO nothing bad, just had a different expectation.

We walked through the trail that had the course. It looked really fun and saw some people on the course! There were lower courses and higher courses. If it had not been raining the day we were in port, I think it would be a fun option. I don't know anything about the age levels though.

Alaska Trip Report:  June 14th - 24th

Ship:  Radiance of the Seas
Itinerary:  

• Vancouver 
• Inside Passage 
• Ketchikan 
• Icy Strait Point 
• Juneau 
• Skagway 
• Hubbard Glacier (cruising)
• Land Tour 1A Through Royal
  • Seward-Anchorage-Talkeetna-Denali

9 minutes ago, phillychick said:

 

How was the cruise?  Any pointers, suggestions .... ship or ports?   Thanks. 

It was great overall! I just posted a quick review last night. Hope it helps!

Just got back from Radiance & Alaska! Two formal nights 2nd and 6th night. We dressed up, but I would say most people were casual. It's really up to you. Have fun!

My family and I just returned from a great cruise on the Radiance of the Seas! Our group consisted of 2 adults in mid 50’s, 2 teenagers, and 1 adult in early 30’s. Overall the trip was fantastic, had a few hiccups but I would do it again! 

This is my first cruise review and I want to include the things that I look for in a cruise review or have a hard time finding answers to online. Sorry I do not have any menus or compasses. 

Canada Place Cruise Port

We arrived via taxi at the cruise port at 10am. We dropped our luggage off with the porter within 10 ft of being dropped off by a taxi. Then shown through the port where to check in and get our seapass. There was a small line, about a 5-10 minute wait. After receiving our seapass, we walked through security and then to customs, again a small wait, which took about 10-15 mins. We were then seated to wait for boarding the ship by 10:30 ish. There were maybe 200 people in line before us. 

Unfortunately, they did not start boarding people until Noonish. We heard from others, a few people from the previous cruise got off the ship sick and as a precaution, had to do extra cleaning. We boarded the ship, headed to the windjammer and ate before the crowds got there, then checked out the ship.

Rooms

We had two interior rooms: 2013 & 2027. Had no issue with noise, even though we were on the second floor. You tend to run into more crew and “ship items” but I’m guessing it’s because we share the floor with them. On the 2nd floor you can only access guest rooms with the aft elevators and stairs, which was kinda annoying. Room had enough space for three and didn’t feel cramped. Enough drawers and shelves for clothes. We brought a 3 USB outlet plug for all our electronics and didn’t have an issue. The room shows it’s age, but it was always clean and our attendant was great! 

Ship

Radiance of the Seas is definitely showing her age. There is rust here and there, things that should be painted, and some of the windows either need to be cleaned or they are stained. It’s clean and overall well maintained, but if you are expecting something like the newer ships, you’d be disappointed. Personally, I had no issues, knowing it’s an older ship.

Dining

We did not eat at any speciality restaurants. 

Breakfast we tried the main dining room once. NEVER AGAIN! The service was horrible and the food was cold and it took forever! Not worth it! The rest of the time we had breakfast at the windjammer. It was the same food everyday, but it was good. Lunch was also at the windjammer, with a little bit more variety by the day, but typical buffet food. 

Dinner was My Time Dining and was great! I made reservations for the same time everyday before the cruise. We had the same waiters and table, so it was just like traditional dining. Our waiters Harish and Jun, were excellent! The food was pretty good. My favorites were the french onion soup, eggplant parmesan, and molten lava cake. Also all the bread and pastries were amazing!!

Entertainment

The magician and Eagles tribute band were great. The comedian and Royal’s two original shows were okay. The singing and dancing in the original shows were great, but to me the shows themselves didn’t make sense. The band Beta 4 is amazing!! A must listen to and they play in multiple locations on the ship.We enjoyed going to the different trivia events during the day. The activites crew was great!

Weather

Alaska weather was all over the place. It misted/rained most of the day in Ketchikan, Icy Strait Point, and Juneau with the temps in the low to mid 50s. In Skagway, it was mostly cloudy and very windy. Hubbard Glacier was the best weather day with bright sun and temps were probably upper 40’s by the glacier with a little wind. I wore a t-shirt, sweater, and jeans and I was comfortable as I went in and outside to view the glacier. 

On our Land tour, the weather was much warmer. Anchorage was low 70s and sunny. Talkeetna was in the 80s and sunny. Denali was in the low 70s and partly cloudy, did have a little bit of rain here and there in Denali, but never lasted long. 

Ports/Land Tour

Ketchikan: Lumberjack show and Totem Trolley Tour- The show was fun to watch, the trolley guide was knowledgeable and the totem park was nice, but time was short with only a 20 min visit. Got off a Creek street and walked around. There was alot of construction going on, so it was hard to navigate the streets.

Icy Strait Point: No Excursions. We walked along the rocky shores and through a short walking trail in the woods. Also stopped by the museum and shops. TIP: The tide is very low in the mornings so it allows you to view much of the shore. Highly suggest walking the rocky shore in the morning. By late afternoon, the tide was high and you really couldn’t walk the shore.

Juneau: Whale watching and Wildlife Quest Tour. Saw some whales, sea lions, eagles. It was an okay tour. The guides were knowledgeable, but I was expecting more. Walked around town, ate lunch at the Alaskan Crepe Escape, which was awesome. It was pouring rain for most of the afternoon, so we did not get to ride the tram like we wanted.

Skagway: White Pass Railroad tour. My favorite tour of the whole trip. Train goes up the mountain and the views are amazing. Highly recommend! 

Seward/Anchorage:

Talkeetna: Mahay’s Jet boat Tour. The guides had great information about the land, water, animals, plants, and life in the area. I nice relaxing tour. Our hotel also had a fantastic view of Mt. Denali.

Denali: Natural History Tour. This bus trip took us about 30 miles into Denali national park. Didn’t see many animals and could not see Mt Denali. It was about 4 hrs, which was long enough for us. Two of our stops were cut short due to rain.

Husky Homestead Tour. This was my second favorite tour of the whole trip. We learned all about Husky’s and their life and training for the Iditarod. Jeff King, four time Iditarod winner who owns it, also spoke with us. They let us pet and hold the puppies as well. All the speakers were knowledgeable and it was an overall wonderful experience. Highly recommend!

Tips/FYI

1. Bring a light rain coat with hood, don’t bring an umbrella. The coat doesn’t need to be big and bulky, just light weight and water resistant. You can wear a sweater under it and feel warm enough. Also great for windy days in port or on ship. Layers, Layers, Layers!

2. Starquest lounge on the 13th floor is the best place for indoor views and a great uncrowded place to view the glacier. Only found this place the last two days on the ship and I love it! Looking for a quieter place to view the majestic mountains indoors during the cruise? This is the place. There is also outdoor space, which is why I think it’s the perfect place for viewing the glaciers!

3. Magnetic hooks for your state room. These were so helpful to hold up the daily compass, hats, coats, sweaters, lanyards. First time using them based on a suggestion on this board and it was very helpful.

4. Want to see Mt. Denali? Go to Talkeetna, not Denali National Park. While Denali park is beautiful, we never saw the mountain and were actually quite far from it on our tour. (other tours do get a little closer). We stayed at Talkeetna Alaskan Lodge and had wonderful, close views (30 miles away). We also were really lucky and had a clear night and morning, and are now part of the 30% club that got to view full Mt. Denali, without haze or clouds in the way

Thank you for the info! We are not staying close to the pier. I think we will plan to arrive around 10.

Any tips for embarkation day at the Vancouver port? What is a good time to arrive? Is it a different check in process from the US ports?

14 hours ago, brillohead said:

You cannot do the no-reservation MTD unless you have been assigned MTD as your seating.  

If you are assigned Late Traditional or Early Traditional, that is when you must eat in the MDR -- you can only do MTD (with or without a reservation) if you have been assigned MTD.

If you really want MTD, then ask your TA to cancel your current wait-list for Early Traditional and instead wait-list you for MTD.  If you really want Early Traditional, then keep your current wait-list for Early Traditional.  

To put it in other words, there are only three dining options for the MDR:

• Early Traditional
• Late Traditional
• My Time Dining

If you have My Time Dining, you have the option of making a reservation, or of walking up without a reservation.  But you can't just walk up to the MTD line if you don't have MTD assigned to you.

Note too that some ships don't open MTD at the same time that Early Traditional starts.  Some of them only offer MTD from 6:30-9:00, so the earliest you can eat with MTD would be 6:30, with or without a reservation.  (This is not the case with all ships -- some ships open MTD at the same time as Early Traditional seating.)

 

Thanks for the clarification, I misunderstood some of the earlier posts. I'll keep the early waitlist over MTD. I have never had MTD, my first experience with it will be in June and we have that booked.  

I'm curious which one is more likely to get you off the wait list, MTD or Early traditional. Probably neither since it's a Thanksgiving cruise. It's not a huge deal, just have never had late dining and didn't know MTD could be closed, most people probably chose that over Late, when Early seating was booked. Just have to adjust.

Our TA booked us from late traditional and wait listed for early traditional. I think we might just cancel traditional dining and do the no reservation MTD. I think if we go right when it opens there should not be much of a wait. There is only 2 of us so it should not be difficult to get a table.

In the process of booking a cruise on Harmony for November 24th. TA said our only dining option is traditional 8:00pm. Royal said MTD is closed. It is still over 7 months until the cruise. How can MTD be closed? Is this normal, do I have any other options? Our main concern is missing the night shows as dinner can take up to 2 hrs. Please help! We love the eating in the main dining room!

I'm looking at booking the Oasis on the cruise right after dry dock. Should I be concerned it might not be ready and they cancel the cruise? I already saw that once this year. While I know they give you options to reschedule, my concern would be paying for flights, as right now the flights are looking more expensive then the cruise per person.😣

We cruise on the Radiance in June 2019 and are doing the RCCL post cruise Wildlife Express Cruisetour 1A. Has anyone been on this cruise tour and can provide more information? On some of the RCCL post cruise tours I see that there is "free time" built into the land tours and it says you can book different excursions during this time. Any idea when we get more information on the land tours so we are able to plan some excursion during the "free time"? Or is this done when we begin the post cruise tour with our guide? We just don't want things to book up and not have any options. Thanks!