Newbcruiser1

Virgin frozen drinks were $4.50 on the Navigator last week!

My favorites are frozen mojitos, Miami vice, coco loco's, and mudslides (although I admittedly prefer the mudslides WITH alcohol!).

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The variance between ships is interesting! Just got off the Navigator 2 days ago and shrimp cocktail and escargot (and Caesar salad) were on the everyday menu. The dessert menu also listed that a selection of ice cream and sherbet is available (I recall it always having said so - you just have to inquire as to what flavors they have).

One thing that was missing was lobster night (and Italian night, which is my favorite menu!).

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Yup they are out in full force on all of the ships!

What really got me is that the first and only time we saw our head waiter last week on the Navigator was when he was trying to sell us a galley tour with champagne and with a "special" lunch to follow in the MDR.

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Following along! Was on this sailing as well and curious to hear your perspectives! We too agree that it was an overall good cruise with some hiccups and negatives.

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Yikes! Thanks for sharing your experience! So glad everyone was okay.

My family and I were onboard the ship waiting to disembark. They made an announcement at 10am that all disembarkation numbers had been called. We headed down to the gangway and stood in line for quite a while, not moving - nobody was being allowed off the ship (this had happened several times earlier due to customs backlogs). Finally an officer came out and yelled that due to a "fire emergency" in the terminal, nobody was being allowed in at that time. He instructed us to head back inside the ship to wait. About 10 minutes later, they advised us that they were disembarking again. We went back to wait in line, and were once again held outside and informed that customs was backlogged. 30 minutes later, they let us down the gangway but we got stuck for another 30+ minutes in line upstairs in the terminal. (I think they were just trying to clear the ship because it was almost 11am by that time). Once we started moving, we reached customs quickly and were out of there in no time. It seemed to be business as usual once we started moving.

We were just glad we weren't in the terminal when it was evacuated! Sounds like a scary time!

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Just in time for Sunday! Yay! Thank you!!!

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I am about your age and started cruising solo about 7 years ago - and LOVE it! :)

As others have said, make sure you do traditional dining (I typically choose late seating - less families that way), and ask for a large table. Go to the dining room when you board to check where your table is and ensure it's a large one! If you're not happy, talk to the head waiter about getting moved! If you show up on the first night and don't like your table or tablemates, speak up and ask to be moved for the following night! :) I learned that lesson after my first solo cruise when I was seated at a table for 4 with a group of 3 friends who didn't show up again after night 1! I sat and sulked for the week hoping the servers would notice and move me - that didn't happen!

Another tip - see if anyone on your Roll Call board on here is interested in linking reservations for dining! I've had great luck doing that pre-cruise. In fact on my last cruise, we had 20 solos linked at 2 side by side tables and we had a blast! :) If you find anyone, you will each need to call Royal Caribbean to link your dining!

As someone said above, there are sometimes solo meet ups listed in the daily cruise compass but they're usually poorly attended and not actually run by a cruise line employee so it's difficult to know who (if anyone) is there for the solo event. I've often gone, sat silently people watching, didn't see anyone that looked to be solo, and left! Kind of a bust! :)

You can meet people by attending activities though like trivia and such and joining teams! :)

Good luck! Just take initiative to meet and talk to people and you will love it!

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I am sailing on the same cruise, my first solo cruise.

Rajju - interestingly, I usually travel solo but am cruising with family this time! You will love the solo experience - doing what you want, when you want is just the best! My biggest piece of advice - request a large table at set- time dinner (not my time dining!) and when you board on Sunday, go to the dining room to check out your table. If you're not happy, ask to be moved. And if after dinner on the first night you're not happy, also ask to be moved! :) I suffered through my first solo cruise at a table for 4 seated with a group of 3 who didn't show up after the first night. I sat and hoped someone would notice and feel bad and move me, but obviously they didn't! Lesson learned! Be proactive! :)

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Woohoo! Following along as I will be sailing on the Navigator next Saturday!

I am an experienced cruiser, especially on RCI, and have been on the Navigator previously.

Looking forward to hearing about your cruise - specifically the activities and food if you could comment on them! :-)

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I suggest skipping the windjammer and heading to park cafe or the solarium instead!

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I'm curious about said "modification"! I gotta admit I used the Flowrider a few times on the Independence back in the spring and the water flow seemed higher than usual! I had trouble walking close enough to the edge of the "wave" at the top and kept getting slammed to the back without even getting down onto the board - and cracked a rib in the process from the water hitting the board into my side.

Nonetheless, I didn't sue RCI. Maybe it's the fact I knew I wasn't very athletic going into it... or my Canadian niceness! [emoji6]

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Definitely bring your own dryer! As others have said, they're not only weak and you have to hold the button down, but they usually overheat and shut off every 1-2 minutes and need a 5 minute cooling off period before the same thing repeating. Not worth the time, frustration, and frizzy hair! :)

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let's hope we both make it out of Canada for the cruise...hoping the bad/stormy weather we have had the past cpl weeks that has delayed and cancelled flights will be over before then!! I am flying down only the day before(usually I do 2 days before so risky this time)

 

 

 

I hope my cruise experience doesn't turn into just reading the compass about it!

Hahaha ditto!!! Flying in the day prior as well - fortunately I have done that many times and haven't had an issue yet! I'm sure we'll be fine! :) (having said that, I always purchase trip cancellation/interruption insurance just in case! It has come in handy twice with cancelled flights home - one on Porter on Dec 22nd and they couldn't re-book us until the 26th! Needless to say we purchased our own flights home and it was fully reimbursed by the insurance!).

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It is in fact 8pm - the ships seem to have some variance in their dining times now. My upcoming Navigator cruise is at 8pm, but my Freedom TA later in the fall is 9pm!

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Following! Doing the 5-night at the end of the month and would love to see the compasses!

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Yes you typically pay 200% as stated above. I travel solo most of the time and it's usually double, although sometimes there's a solo promotion and it's less than that.

Re: sharing a room - I shared with my parents when I was in my mid-20's. It was one of the larger balcony staterooms (about 220 square feet). There was enough room to maneuver around the pull-out couch when it was open, but I have to admit... I was miserable sleeping on it! It was very hard and I kept waking up with a numb arm from lying on my shoulder.

Fast forward several years and several cruises (mostly solo) - I am cruising with my parents in a few weeks and booked my own room! I could have shared with them again, but it's not worth the sacrifices in comfort for me. In fact, my aunt booked the same cruise to come along and we're even staying in separate balcony rooms! :) The cruise was relatively inexpensive, but still - not willing to sacrifice my comfort on vacation at this age anymore!

Having said that, your son might be totally fine sharing a room!

Whatever you decide, have a great time! :)

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Having done several cruises on Voyager class and Freedom class ships, I prefer the Voyager class (Navigator) as it feels less crowded. The Freedom is a stretched version of the Navigator so more guest rooms, but a lack of extra public space to accommodate those guests.

My only exception would be if you're cruising with younger children - the Freedom has a fabulous kids pool/splash area - an area where the Navigator is lacking.

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Agreed! Keep the port side for the fall westbound TA! More sun and even some sunsets (although they may be more forward in front of the ship and difficult to see).

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We were recently on NOS and they were pushing the specialty dining packages. Also saw the 10 drinks for $79.

We're the 10 drinks available for the entire cruise? Or only towards the end?

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I personally wouldn't take a deck 2 oceanview. There tends to be more noise in many areas on deck 2... intermittent mechanical noise and vibration, anchor noise, crashing waves, etc. I WOULD change to an OV on deck 3 in a heartbeat though! Very quiet and if you're able to snag the last 5 rooms at the back on each side, they have HUGE windows as it used to be part of the dining room.

If deck 3 OV isn't an option, I agree with the above comments - check out the promenade staterooms! Have done them many times and they're a great compromise for an inside without the claustrophobia! :)

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Yes they're allowed! Just beware - our checked suitcase that we had them in (with a lot of spare batteries!) ended up in the naughty room and I have a feeling it was from all of the wires! If you want to avoid any hassles, I would put them in your carry-on if you can! :)

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There was Zumba on the Anthem back in February, although they couldn't call it by name so it was something like "dance fitness class". It was free! :)

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A couple of things to be careful with in the scenario you're looking at. If your original booking was made by a TA, then the Royal Caribbean folks won't be able to cancel it onboard the ship. I've tried a couple of times and each time was told that because my TA made the booking, then my TA would have to cancel it. On the other hand if the booking is made directly with Royal Caribbean then the next cruise person will be able to cancel and book with the OBC.

 

 

 

You can rebook in Canadian dollars. As Retired Leo pointed out - the deposit will be charged directly to your credit card in Canadian dollars ($125) and not to your Onboard Account.

Wonderful! Thank you so much for the details! I always book directly with RCI so no issues with canceling onboard by the sounds of it! :)

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If you re-book on board you will be charged whatever the current price is for that cruise that you already have booked so it might have gone up in price. Also if there are no balconies left you won't be able to get one unless you cancel your existing booking while sitting right there with the rep and even then you might not be able to do it.

I'm actually not currently booked in a balcony either on the future cruise. I guess in order to get the OBC and keep my room, I would have to cancel right there and re-book and hope they can grab the same room?

Any idea if I can have the cruise re-booked in Canadian dollars onboard (since I assume the deposit will come off my onboard account?).

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TravelerThom - perhaps I don't fit into most cases! :) I'll be solo in my cabin and traveling with my parents who are both C&A members, but not diamond! :) So only 1 free internet and 1 photo for us!

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