TJA27

We had a suite on Adventure a few months ago.  We did the My Time Dining and set up our reservations for 6:30 each night, so plenty of time to go to the lounge and have a glass of wine and few snacks.  However, I will say the lounge was DEAD our entire trip and the concierge said the suites were fully booked.  We even stopped by the lounge right before 8pm to grab another drink or bottle of water, and again did not see any people.  We did see a couple people in the mornings when stopping in for coffee.

4 hours ago, Hi my name is Andy said:

So, book a cruise and THEN call casino number to redeem/claim/apply the credit? 

Could you post back what you ended up doing?  We are in a similar situation as you are except we aleady have a cruise booked for next June (that I booked a long time ago) and I'm assuming I can't put this casino credit towards that....  But, anyway, we are also already home and have about 2 weeks left before this expires.

8 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

Yes you can do the same things as always and there is no downfall. You just all have to share the same user name and password.

Thank you so much.  I've really been getting ripped off in the past I guess.   Funny thing is we all use the same user name and password anyway, so I guess the only difference next cruise will be the cost of the internet for us!

We are a family of 4.  I have always booked 4 guests and 4 devices so that we can all be online on our phones at same time if we want.  The cost is pretty high, so I started searching/reading and came upon this thread.  Are you guys saying I can book 1 guest and 4 devices and still do the same things we always have?  The cost is significantly less.  Is there a downfall to doing it this way?

Just now, TJA27 said:

 

I am back from our cruise and quoting myself as a follow-up in case anyone else is interested. 

 

We thought the Serenade lounge was very, very nice!  The seating was very comfortable and inviting.  The food they put out was very good and well presented.  The concierge was a very friendly and kind lady.  The bartender was happy to get us a wine and beer each night, hesitated to give us bottles of water from his drawer behind bar, and didn't seem overly thrilled to give hubby a can of pop too especially when he asked him not to open it.  We decided we pushed it a bit, so the next day, my husband went to a regular bar and just bought some cans of pop to keep in our room, and we just drank the water from the big bottle provided in the suite and also grabbed some glasses of water from Windjammer....problem solved no biggie!

 

We did want actual bottles of water for our 2nd excursion towards the end of our cruise, so we stopped in the lounge at 4:50pm the night before, but were told we'd have to wait until 5pm.  So we sat down and waited.  When it hit 5pm, we got our water and while leaving the lounge, the concierge apologized and said she could have gotten us the water if that's all we wanted.  Maybe my husband wasn't clear, I'm not sure.  I didn't hear the original exchange.

 

Our final impression was that they were happy to serve us with drinks while we were sitting in the lounge and drinking them.  But they were hesitant to give us pop/water to take with us for another time.  We have stayed in many concierge/club levels all around the world and have never experienced not being able to grab and go as far as drinks go.  We are fairly newbies to the cruising world concierge, so I think we just need to adjust to how it's done on ships.

 

We are on Anthem norwegian fjords next year and I finally decided on a Junior Suite, so no suite lounge for us on that cruise.  I have booked the refreshment package, will bring a bottle of wine from home, and am going to buy one of those cooler bags with 6-pack of beer for hubby.  

 

We did use the coffee machine in the lounge daily, sometimes twice a day!  It was wonderful.  Never had any issues with it.  Had some OJ a few mornings too.

 

As a side note/observation, the lounge was completely dead our entire cruise!  The concierge said the suites were full, so we were expecting a big crowd.  We ran into some suite guests in the casino and they all said it was too much of a struggle to get beverages in the suite lounge, so they just didn't bother going.  Maybe the reason it worked ok for us is because we had MTD 6:45 reservations each night, so we made it a point to grab a drink in the lounge and take it to dinner.  We did really like that perk.  And if we were done with dinner by 8pm, we stopped in lounge for DH another beer and nothing for me unless I had some decaf coffee.  We truly LOVED our OS room (1058), so we wouldn't hesitate to book it again if the price isn't too outrageous.

 

I have some pics to post of the lounge, but need to do it from my phone.  So it will probably be in a separate post from this since I can't figure out how to edit...

 

Quoting myself to add pictures of Serenade suite lounge Oct 29-Nov 3.  
 

On 10/8/2023 at 3:54 PM, TJA27 said:

A few drinks meaning maybe a bottle of water for each of us for the excursion the next morning, along with a beer for hubby.  I'll be asking concierge when we arrive anyway, but I'm such a details person that I can't stand not knowing beforehand.

 

We're cruising in a few weeks, so I'll post back on this thread how things go..... 

I am back from our cruise and quoting myself as a follow-up in case anyone else is interested. 

We thought the Serenade lounge was very, very nice!  The seating was very comfortable and inviting.  The food they put out was very good and well presented.  The concierge was a very friendly and kind lady.  The bartender was happy to get us a wine and beer each night, hesitated to give us bottles of water from his drawer behind bar, and didn't seem overly thrilled to give hubby a can of pop too especially when he asked him not to open it.  We decided we pushed it a bit, so the next day, my husband went to a regular bar and just bought some cans of pop to keep in our room, and we just drank the water from the big bottle provided in the suite and also grabbed some glasses of water from Windjammer....problem solved no biggie!

We did want actual bottles of water for our 2nd excursion towards the end of our cruise, so we stopped in the lounge at 4:50pm the night before, but were told we'd have to wait until 5pm.  So we sat down and waited.  When it hit 5pm, we got our water and while leaving the lounge, the concierge apologized and said she could have gotten us the water if that's all we wanted.  Maybe my husband wasn't clear, I'm not sure.  I didn't hear the original exchange.

Our final impression was that they were happy to serve us with drinks while we were sitting in the lounge and drinking them.  But they were hesitant to give us pop/water to take with us for another time.  We have stayed in many concierge/club levels all around the world and have never experienced not being able to grab and go as far as drinks go.  We are fairly newbies to the cruising world concierge, so I think we just need to adjust to how it's done on ships.

We are on Anthem norwegian fjords next year and I finally decided on a Junior Suite, so no suite lounge for us on that cruise.  I have booked the refreshment package, will bring a bottle of wine from home, and am going to buy one of those cooler bags with 6-pack of beer for hubby.  

We did use the coffee machine in the lounge daily, sometimes twice a day!  It was wonderful.  Never had any issues with it.  Had some OJ a few mornings too.

As a side note/observation, the lounge was completely dead our entire cruise!  The concierge said the suites were full, so we were expecting a big crowd.  We ran into some suite guests in the casino and they all said it was too much of a struggle to get beverages in the suite lounge, so they just didn't bother going.  Maybe the reason it worked ok for us is because we had MTD 6:45 reservations each night, so we made it a point to grab a drink in the lounge and take it to dinner.  We did really like that perk.  And if we were done with dinner by 8pm, we stopped in lounge for DH another beer and nothing for me unless I had some decaf coffee.  We truly LOVED our OS room (1058), so we wouldn't hesitate to book it again if the price isn't too outrageous.

I have some pics to post of the lounge, but need to do it from my phone.  So it will probably be in a separate post from this since I can't figure out how to edit...

On 10/15/2023 at 7:21 PM, misterbuds said:

I'm going to answer this for other cruisers.  C1 is available as of 10/8/23.  You can't book it online.  The sign out front reads "Cruise parking $25 per day".  There is an attendant and you pay right there.  Credit card only.  There were plenty of spots.  This is the cheapest and ideal parking for sailing out of Boston.  You don't have to deal with shuttle service to the fargo lot like I did.

Excellent, thank you so much for following up.  I was reading a different thread (and I initially posted on that thread before seeing this one).  Can you tell me if this is the C1 lot you are referring to:

Flynn Marine Park Garage

12 Drydock Ave

Thank you!

2 hours ago, TJA27 said:

 

Thanks for this info.  We'd like to be right next to the terminal - can you elaborate on exactly how you booked this lot (online through what link, etc.).  The part about your calling a phone number to be let in and out of the lot sort of lost me a bit (sorry...!).  We've only parked at the Bayonne port (last year) and we parked at the garage right next to it.  We paid when we pulled into the lot and then inserted our "receipt/card" into the slot when we exited the garage after our cruise.

 

Thank you!

I couldn't figure out how to edit my post, so I'm quoting it.  I found another thread with a link that I clicked, which took me to another link.  So I just want to be sure this is the address of the lot right next to the terminal:

Flynn Marine Park Garage

12 Drydock Ave.

On 10/7/2023 at 8:36 PM, PigsCanFly said:

We just used, for 14 days in September, the Parking lot at 1 Black Falcon right next door to the terminal.  Paid $210. in advance and had to call the phone number at arrival to be let into the lot and again at departure to let us out.  It was very smooth and an easy walk from/to car and terminal.

Thanks for this info.  We'd like to be right next to the terminal - can you elaborate on exactly how you booked this lot (online through what link, etc.).  The part about your calling a phone number to be let in and out of the lot sort of lost me a bit (sorry...!).  We've only parked at the Bayonne port (last year) and we parked at the garage right next to it.  We paid when we pulled into the lot and then inserted our "receipt/card" into the slot when we exited the garage after our cruise.

Thank you!

17 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

Enjoy!  Royals sister, celebrity ships are also great

Taking note of that!!  We used to cruise Disney Cruise Line when kids were younger.  Then we discovered Royal and haven't looked back.

9 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

Having sailed at least 25 times on Royal, I must say the old ships like the adventure of the seas, lack the amenities of the newer ships.  The oasis class and newer ships have wonderful suite lounges and decks.  A big difference.  I will not sail on any old Royal ship again.

Oh believe me, I'm trying to get on the newer ships and experience the suite lounges!  My family has crazy schedules right now, so I can't be picky on the ships.  I do have Anthem for next summer and that will be the biggest ship for us so far...

47 minutes ago, steveru621 said:

 

A few? I would not count on it.

 

There is no self-serve on any Radiance class ship.

A few drinks meaning maybe a bottle of water for each of us for the excursion the next morning, along with a beer for hubby.  I'll be asking concierge when we arrive anyway, but I'm such a details person that I can't stand not knowing beforehand.

We're cruising in a few weeks, so I'll post back on this thread how things go..... 

OP here.  We are fine with the Serenade suite lounge drinks only being offered from 5-8pm, by the way, as long as we can take a few drinks out of the lounge to save for later.  Sounds like we can, so thanks everyone!

By the way, since Serenade has the bar inside the lounge, does it by chance have a small cooler/fridge or ice bucket with beer/pop/water inside that guests can just grab?  Or do you have to get every single drink from the bartender.  I could just wait and find this out for myself, but I can't help wanting to know as many details as possible before we go....   Thx!

OP here.  We decided to cancel our deluxe beverage package because we think we'll be content with the suite lounge.  I understand we can take our drinks to dinner, but can hubby take an extra beer to save for later?  Or is this frowned upon.  Probably my last question....thanks!

@Biker19 great info, thank you.  I'll keep an eye out for current feedback from @orville99 and anyone else who has recently been in the Serenade suite lounge.

Last year we had an OS on Adventure and thought the lounge was just ok.  It took forever to get drinks, so we rarely utilized that perk.  About the only thing we utilized was the coffee machine.  Fast forward to this year.  We have another OS booked except now on Serenade and from my research on these boards, I believe the Serenade suite lounge has a bar right inside lounge, right?  So can we order mixed drinks and the bar inside lounge will make them?  How about frozen drinks such as strawberry daiquiri?  Or does the bar just mainly stock beer and wine.  How about non-alcoholic drinks such as a milkshake?

Also - I assume coffee machine will be similar to the one in Adventure and have options for latte, etc.

Any reviews or thoughts from anyone who has recently been specifically in the suite lounge on Serenade?  Thanks, all!

46 minutes ago, Jerseygirl1416 said:

I’ve never been on Serenade but was just on Liberty and there was nowhere that had that menu and I actually went to every venue and bar to try to find at least a premade protein drink and couldn’t find one. 

Very helpful, thank you. 

3 hours ago, Jerseygirl1416 said:

It looks amazing on paper but in reality it’s mostly just cartons of liquid they use for the base like they use for pina coladas and the like. They’re not blending up fruit and vegetables. And at least on Oasis they’re almost always out of protein powder.

Thanks for the heads-up, but still curious being that Serenade doesn't have a Vitality Cafe, do you know if a different place on Serenade has a similar menu?  I have been searching the boards, and also googling, and can't seem to find a straight/current answer.  Thanks!

That vitality menu looks amazing!  How about the ships that don't have a vitality cafe?  We are on Serenade soon and I can't find any info/menus if we can't get protein shakes/smoothies/milkshakes. 

49 minutes ago, dleahy4444 said:

Congratulations! What a wonderful upgrade! I’m wondering: did the suites category show a lot of availability on the website when you placed your bid? I’m sailing on the Wonder in a little over two weeks. I’m in a JS and bid on a GS, OS and CLS. I’m not very hopeful because the website doesn’t show any GS or OS available and only shows one CLS and a 2 bedroom AS. There are 3 JS available also, so it’s not like they might be an anxious to move me because they need mine. 

Yes, a lot of availability showed for especially the GS category (17 were showing) and also the OS category had 9 showing.  Only had one 2bd GS showing and one RS showing (I think that's all there is on that ship).  I actually thought I might get a GS because so many were showing and it's so much less cost-wise than the OS.  I'm thinking they awarded Royal-Ups about a week before I got mine because suddenly one day every single GS was gone.  But all 9 OS were still there.  After mine was awarded, I checked online and there were/still are 2 OS left showing available.

Good luck to you!!  It was my first time bidding and we're relatively new to cruising and have only stayed in regular balcony rooms.

On June 1, three of my bids went to "expired" and one stayed at "pending" and I couldn't modify or cancel.  On June 2, I got the notification that we were upgraded.

Cruise is June 14 on Adventure of the Seas.

Bid $400 per person/$800 total.  Slightly above the minimum....I went over minimum by about 2-3 notches.

Went from spacious ocean view balcony (corner aft) to Owner's Suite.  Downgrade in our balcony (I think) but upgrade everything else!  Our first suite, so excited to experience.