BethV114

The one thing I haven't seen mentioned, is you get two loungers on your balcony, in addition to the two chairs and table. The Liberty just got all new outdoor furniture, too. So the two chairs now have adjustable backs and the table is a normal height eating table, as opposed to the short ones.

If this is true, then I might be more willing to spend the extra money to upgrade. It's really all going to come down to whether any JSs for 3 become available and what the price ends up being.

Check for price drops starting at 60 days out. I just upgraded to a JS for free and got a OBC refund.

I’ll definitely do that. Thanks for the tip!

There has been no change in what the JS offers since your last RCI cruise. What the others have commented on were in place then as now.

Ok, so probably not worth it. We do just fine with the three of us in a balcony cabin. I think I’ll use the $$ for beverage packages instead. We’ve gotten spoiled having those on Celebrity included with our fare!

I have sailed on Royal several times, but the last was about seven years ago. We didn't love our experience on the Allure, and ended up heading over to Celebrity. We decided to combine a trip to see family in Texas with a spring break cruise for our eight year old daughter in April, so will be giving Royal another go with the Liberty from Galveston. My husband is hoping that we can snag a junior suite. Currently, none are available for a party of three, however, I do plan to keep checking daily. But before I commit to spending extra $$ beyond what our balcony cabin costs, I just wanted to see whether the benefits of sailing in a JS have improved at all. When we last sailed Royal, there really weren't any benefits beyond the larger cabin and double C&A points. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Not sure where you are reading that you have to pre-book the WJ, that is simply not true. You don't have to pre-book anything if you don't want to, but you won't always get into the shows using the standby line. You can reserve The Gift, We Will Rock You and Spectra's Cabaret. Spectra's might be a bit much for an 8 year old. WWRY has some off color jokes, but they will likely go right over the head of an 8 year old.

 

You need to reserve iFly and Northstar.

I read a review that said you had to pre-book/make reservations at Windjammer. I thought that was extremely odd, and am glad you clarified for me!

Do you pre-book shows online before sailing or once you are on the ship? The same for iFly and Northstar?

We are looking at (hoping for) the possibility of a last minute cruise on Anthem next month and have not been on any of the Quantum class ships. We have not been on a Royal ship in nearly 8 years, with Allure being our last trip, so I apologize in advance if this comes across as a dumb question. However, from my reading of reviews on this site, it appears that there are many things you must pre-book, and can't simply walk into, from the Windjammer buffet to the evening shows. Can you more experienced cruisers enlighten me as to what we must and/or should book in advance of sailing (or upon boarding), if we do end up going? We likely won't do specialty dining in order to cut down on cost, and we enjoy the dining room for dinner, but we tend to gravitate toward the buffet for lunch and will do either for breakfast. Our daughter is 8, so would likely want to do the "fun" stuff, and we do enjoy seeing shows in the evening.

Thank you!

last december i went on BA with 8 year olds. 1st day sailaway obviously no one cares about the cold snowy weather because of the excitement. but day 2 was 50 and rainy and we had nothing to do inside. kids dont do the kids clubs. i felt so squeezed in on such a large ship. like nowhere to go. then we had day 6 and 7 have not so great weather either. we made the best of it and it was a decent price so i guess we got what we paid for but i wouldnt take the same kids on this ship in the cold anymore. the BA is built around outside activities. we did enjoy late nite hot tubbing though.

 

id go on anthem which is more built for cold weather with the indoor activities.

Our daughter is also not a fan of the kids clubs, so your response is extremely helpful. I definitely think Anthem would be the way to go if we can make this happen. Thank you!

Sailed on both the Anthem and Breakaway

I always recommend Anthem for cold months and Breakaway for summer months especially for kids. The Anthem was designed for the colder climates with indoor spaces. You will be losing on using the outdoor space on the Breakaway on Day 1, Day 2 and Day 7 coming back.

On the Anthem, There are 2 indoor areas for the pools. One is for the adults only solarium and the other is for everyone. So it wont be as crowded as someone mentioned. There is also a area called the Seaplex which has a indoor basketball court, xbox rooms, bumper cars, roller skating, etc. The surfing flow rider machine and rockwall will be the outside activities that the weather may affect on the Anthem.

Thank you for the thoughtful comparison. If we are able to go (hoping to figure that out today), it sounds like Anthem would be a better choice for the colder weather!

Just an FYI...I took a look at the Anthem for November 18th (Thanksgiving week) and there are no triple cabins available for booking. So it appears that lifeboat capacity has been reached for over double cabin occupancy at this time.

 

Unless you have someone to bring along so you would book two (2) double cabins, I don't think Anthem is going to work for you for Thanksgiving. There are plenty of double cabins available, and frankly, the rate is quite good considering it's a holiday week, so maybe think about bringing along someone.

 

Sorry...

If we go, and that's still a big if, our mother-in-law would be joining us. In fact, that is the only way we would be going, is if she agrees to join us as our guest. So we would likely be able to book 2 rooms. I won't comment here on how crazy I find it that my husband has suggested a cruise for the holiday, but only if his mom agrees to join us. :confused:

My husband literally just told me to start looking at Thanksgiving cruises from New York (we live an hour outside of the city). I doubt it will actually happen, but figure I should actually look as he requested. We will be sailing with our 8 year old daughter. We have done Royal, Celebrity and MSC. We had a bad experience with Royal on the Allure for our daughter's first cruise at 15 months, and have stayed mostly with Celebrity since then, but it looks like Anthem has a cruise that would fit our needs, so we may be ready to come back. My main question is whether the indoor pool on Anthem is opened up to children on those days when it is too cold to swim outside. Additionally, are the outdoor pools and slides heated to a comfortable temperature? Finally, and quite simply, is there enough to do to keep our daughter entertained on those days at sea, considering that it won't be as warm as we are used to with a typical Caribbean cruise?

Thanks in advance for the help. I know my questions are likely repetitive, but I just don't have much time to research on my own at this point!

My husband just texted me to tell me to look at Thanksgiving cruises from New York (we live about an hour outside of NYC). Yes, I know the prices won't be great. But a quick look shows me one of the options is the Breakaway. We have never sailed NCL before (have done Royal, Celebrity and MSC). We would be traveling with our 8 year old daughter and want to make sure she would be entertained on the colder days. I gather that there is no indoor pool (outside of the Haven). Are the pools at least heated to a comfortable temperature? What about the water slides? Will our daughter have enough to do, or should we look at Anthem of the Seas, which has an indoor pool?

Thanks in advance for the help. I know I could do more research on my own, but I just don't have the time and this just got dropped in my lap!

Apparently you only need 1200 points to qualify & I was already getting close to 2,000.

Out of curiosity, do you recall approximately how much you had gambled when you found out you were near the 2,000 point mark. We don't gamble much, but my husband has mentioned playing a few hands and I always like to make a few donations to the slot machines. It probably wouldn't amount to 1,200 points, but who knows?

For those who have sailed Divina recently, can someone explain how the pool towel situation works. We are only really familiar with Celebrity. On their ships, you are provided beach towels in your cabin in the evenings to take ashore with you the next day. Pool towels are freely available at the pools, and you can trade your wet ones in for dry at any time. Is the system similar on Divina, or are you assigned a single pool towel for each day?

Thank you!

Looks like a lovely beach. A few quick questions.

About how long of a walk is it from the pier?

Do you recall how much it costs to rent chairs/umbrellas?

Are there any restrooms/facilities there?

Can you purchase food/drinks there?

We are in port from 12pm-6pm and looking for a budget and kid friendly option. The kids really just want to spend the afternoon at a beach, but I know they (and the adults) will get thirsty and likely hungry, as well!

Thank you!

Sorry ............. I meant to refer you to the price differences: $16 pppd + 15% between classic and premium. That is what it would cost for you to upgrade should the offer be available onboard.

Thank you for clarifying, Bea. For $16 a day, I think I'm going to go for it. So much stress at home these days, I deserve it! ;p

See the post immediately prior to yours.

Thank you, but that information looks to be for European cruises, and I have gotten the impression from these boards that MSC tends to do certain things differently with regard to Divina in the Caribbean.

Has anyone who has recently sailed the Divina had luck upgrading their beverage package and, if so, what is the cost? We are sailing in April and have booked Aurea cabins, so the classic package is included. If possible, I'd like to upgrade to the premium package using some of our OBC once on board. I certainly won't let it ruin our cruise if we can't, but I also wouldn't mind be able to get champagne and the nicer wines by the glass, either! ;p

Hi all. We are sailing MSC Diving in April and have been to all of the ports on our itinerary with the exception of Nassau. It appears we'll be there for about a half day, starting at noon. We chose MSC due to pricing and are also trying to keep our excursions on a budget friendly level. Does anyone have any recommendations on budget friendly things to do with kids (age 6-13) while we are in Nassau? I was thinking perhaps we should have an early lunch or late breakfast on board, then just walk off the ship and head over to Junkanoo beach since the kids all LOVE the beach, but am looking for some honest feedback from other travelers who have recently visited Nassau.

Thank you!

Perfect. Thank you so much for the quick responses!

We are new to Divina and sailing in April. Is the Garden Pool the indoor pool? Are children allowed in the aft pool? I know that many like a quiet area away from children, but since I am sailing in a group with four kids, I'd like to try to verify in advance where they will be allowed to swim.

Thank you!

It looks like flights might be least expensive in and out of FLL, so similar information in the event that we choose to stay in the Fort Lauderdale area would be highly appreciated, as well.

Thank you!

Kid-friendly - A pool area the kids can enjoy spending the afternoon by. When we stayed pre/post cruise in San Juan last year, the hotel had a great water slide and access to the beach. The kids loved it.

Price - We're all on a budget. I want to say around $200 per night, but I know the dates we are traveling around will make that difficult. Something moderate such as Courtyard, Springhill, Residence Inn, etc. versus trendy boutique hotels or a Ritz Carlton.

I hope the added info helps. Thanks for the suggestions thus far!

We are sailing MSC Divina from Miami 4/8. We plan to fly in at least Friday, 4/7 on a morning flight, with a slight possibility of a later day flight on Thursday, 4/6 depending on flight pricing. We disembark on Saturday, 4/15 and will likely stay overnight, flying home on Sunday, 4/16. We find that flying in the day ahead and flying out the day after the cruise gives the kids in our group (ages 7-13) a bit of extra time to decompress.

All of that being said - we are looking for a moderately priced, clean and safe hotel in Miami that has a good pool area the kids can enjoy. Ideally, the hotel would have shuttle from the airport and to the cruise ship terminal (fee is okay). Located within walking distance to restaurants for dinner would be a plus.

Thank you!

We are cruising MSC Divina in early April, and have a stop starting around noon in Nassau. We have never been, and I was initially just thinking we would get off and walk over to Junkanoo beach for a few hours. However, some of the reviews I've read have given me pause. I'm now wondering whether it would be better to get a day pass at Melia or Hilton.

We are a group of four adults and four kids (ages 6 to 13). Which would be our best bet? How much do the passes cost and what is included with them? We are all on budgets this year, and are trying to keep our excursion spending down to a reasonable level.

Thank you!

Would love to hear from anyone recently on the Divina about whether upgrades are available and what the pricing is. I'm hoping that by the time we sail next year, MSC will finally catch up with other lines and allow us to upgrade the package included with our Aurea booking!