toddnmargo

On 1/25/2024 at 6:58 PM, c-leg5 said:

 

Pez Quadro can be busy and exoensive.  It attracts a lot of entertainment staff from the ships at a discount so be forewarned.

 

If you want somewhere quieter we prefer Malecon 21 which has different price packages. 
 

The beach clubs are all shoulder to shoulder along the Malecon. There is no difference in access to anything especially stalls and roaming vendors, third party operators for massage, bikes, snorkeling etc. North and south ends tend to be slightly quieter.

 

Unless it is your first time and you want the experience of out of town, I would stay at the port or the malecon with those hours, from past experience of those port hours.

 

 

We are considering Malecon 21 and Hayhu Beach.  Are taxis the best option for getting there and back to the ship? Thanks for your help!

Maya Chan is sold out/unavailable the day we will be in port in April.  This is our first time to CM and are traveling with friends new to cruising.  We are all 50+ and not looking for a party atmosphere. Where would you suggest for a quiet, relaxing beach day?  We are on the RC Voyager and will be in port from 12 to 7, so that timeframe makes things a little complicated too.  

We are considering staying in the port area since the other two ships in port that day will be departing before us.  Nacional Beach Club is another option we are considering.  Thoughts? Thanks for your help and advice! 

On 4/28/2020 at 8:55 PM, rhiannon35 said:

I’m in the same boat. Got all back but my deposit this past Sat. for 3/14 canceled cruise. Both payments were on same cc. 
And, yes, of course we are entitled to our deposit back. I am going to have to call tomorrow. Our cruise was canceled the night before we were to embark. We were already in Miami. Our flights were paid for and I then had to pay for hotel for the week. I’d like my money back to cover these costs. 

Update: Deposit was credited to the other card this morning. 

We were supposed to be the March 30th Brilliance cruise.  We submitted our request for a refund the day after Royal canceled.  Our beverage packages were refunded right away.  Today we received our refund with the exception of our deposit. My apologies if this has already been asked, but should we also expect our deposit too? We paid with two different cards, so it could be a bank issue with processing time.  I assumed we would since Royal canceled and not us.  Thanks for your help!  

2 hours ago, C Dog said:

Still waiting on our cruise fare refund of $9835.90 for April 4th cruise on Brilliance.   Royal cancelled on March 13th; submitted refund request same day.  It's been well over the 30 days they stated.

We were supposed to be on the March 30th Brilliance cruise and just saw the final payment portion of our refund show up today.  We requested the refund the day after Royal canceled the cruise.  

We were on the March 30th Brilliance sailing.  Trying to weigh our options to decide if we want the FCC or refund.  I know we will be refunded everything that was prepaid (gratuities, drink package, etc.).  Does anyone know if the travel insurance will also be refunded?  

7 hours ago, lhook said:

So we are sailing Monday on the Brilliance.  I got a good rate on an inside, and I bid the minimum on the balcony a while back but haven't gotten an upgrade.  It looks like there are at least 15 cabins still available to purchase in balconies today.  We are diamond plus...do you think we have any chance for an upgrade once onboard if they are still empty?

 

Thanks so much,

Leslie

We are on Brilliance at the end of March and had an inside room as well. We made the minimum Royal Up bid ($100 pp) for a balcony  but hadn’t heard anything. After reading a few posts here I decided to call RC. We were able to move up to a balcony for $175 total. It was a little cheaper and no waiting. It was only $36 to move to an ocean view (minimum Royal Up was $40 pp). 

Just wondering how many have had bids accepted. Were they for the minimum or higher? How quickly were you notified? We placed 2 bids this morning for our Brilliance cruise next month. 

16 minutes ago, steve20832 said:

 

SuperShuttle went out of business as of December 31. There aren't many choices for bus service unless you go through the cruise line. If you don't want Uber or Lyft, you can hire a limo or private car service but it's going to be twice the price of Uber/Lyft. Honestly, if you want upscale service, you can order a Lyft LUX or Uber Premier for less than a private company and have someone pick you up in 10-15 minutes. I know that probably isn't what you want to hear but transportation services here in Tampa is limited

Actually, this is very helpful!  Thanks!  We used Super Shuttle in LA last year for a Princess cruise and were very pleased.  I didn't realize they were now out of business at several locations.  It sounds like I may need to consider Lyft (we can link with our Delta SkyMiles), since there really aren't the shared shuttle options I was looking for.  

3 hours ago, steve20832 said:

Uber or Lyft is the fastest and cheapest. What is the reason you don’t want to use them?  If you had a bad experience with them in the past, I suggest Uber Comfort or Uber Select. Uber has stricter rules for those drivers and cars over X drivers

It’s just a personal preference. We have used shared shuttles at several other ports and have always had a great experience, but this is our first time sailing out of Tampa and are unfamiliar with options there. I wondered if there was a go-to company that others recommend. Uber and Lyft are the usual responses these days, so I mentioned our preference so people would know what we are looking for. Thanks! 

1 hour ago, Cruise a holic said:

If you can swing it, do not get a guarantee inside cabin.  You might have a horrible location with lots of noise if under or above a public space.  

 

Best to consider a good location.  Probably not much more.  I know you aren't fussy- but if you have a bad location it can ruin your vacation.

It was actually a significant savings, at least to us ($400). We are from Michigan, so we will want to soak up as much sun and warmth over spring break as possible. 😊🌞We won’t spend much time at all in the stateroom. 

5 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Have you checked in and looked for a cabin assignment within the bar code of the SetSail pass?

I haven’t yet- thought it might be a bit too early to know. I may try it. Thanks!

We went with the guaranteed inside option to save quite a bit of money, and we are perfectly content with whichever room we are assigned.  However, just wondering if anyone has done the same and was bumped up in stateroom category?  We are on the March 30th sailing on Brilliance, so we are assuming it will be pretty full.  We are both platinum as well- not sure if that makes a difference or not.  

Looking for recommendations for transportation from the airport to the port.  We prefer not to use Uber or Lyft.  Our flight is scheduled to arrive the morning of our cruise around 8 am.  Thanks for your help!

Thank you all so much! Glad to hear there are still plenty of options without purchasing a package! Looking forward to our cruise!

Looking for some insider tips.... We have been to Cococay several times, but this spring will be our first visit since the renovations and “perfect day” experience began. Is there still plenty of space to find a quiet chair to enjoy the sun and a day on the island, or should we consider purchasing one of the RC excursions? Thank you for your help!