leaveitallbehind

You can order any drink you want in the CR with the vouchers (or any bar for that matter). They don't limit the selection other than to cap the value at $15 each. And we have never had that enforced. The vouchers are automatically reloaded every day on your SeaPass card, and any unused ones can be cashed in at the end of the day for any unopened canned or bottled beverage and taken back to your stateroom for another day. (Beer, Truly, soda, water, etc.) They also can be combined in their use in that you can use yours for your spouse and visa versa - 10 drinks combined each day.

There are a number of ports of call that we've visited many times but have favorite restaurants, or beaches, or other points of interest that we return to when in port. But there are others where we prefer to remain on board. Its always a mix and never have we remained on board the entire cruise. Ocean crossings and other repositioning cruises by their nature provide a lot of that opportunity for us.

The vouchers are good at any bar on the ship, so you don't need to go to the Crown Lounge (ex-Diamond Club) to use them. That way your friend can join you when you use them.

Agree that the booking likely would have been made prior to last October when gratuities were still included with Always.

Got it.

We have done both Always and Standard, but I don't remember the package values with Standard, but agree that you are probably correct as you mentioned. The times we did not do Always was for the same reasons you mention. Although we do partake in the adult beverages, the complimentary ones available during the happy hour normally suffice, with any others a la carte a better value than Always. We only do Always if there is a fare value that makes it worth it Agree with the stacked value idea. We normally have CC check our discount v the sale price and choose the one that works best.

Been a while since we were on Independence and never on a shorter than 7-night, so I was unsure if on those sailings they had the afternoon ice show. And I do recall Allure having one. But again it was a 7-night sailing.

Did they not offer an afternoon show? I know on longer sailings they typically would have one or two. But that may have changed.

In our case we had the basic WiFi package as part of our Always package, so the true initial cost of that is buried in the total fare. So the upgrade based on that is less costly as described. Your results may be correct. But as package prices can vary by ship, itinerary, and sailing date, I think it may be difficult to definitively track the initial purchase price followed by the upgrade price when purchased separately and not part of an Aways fare. But ditto your comments regarding math.....

The single 2 device plan is more expensive than two 1 device plans. Per the example provided by the OP the upgrade would be $24.99 for the 2 device plan v $6.99 x 2 = $13.98 for two single device plans. That makes the two single device plan upgrades the far better value. Our experience with this bears that out as well. Just did that the two single plan upgrades on our recent Eclipse cruise as the better value, as well as with our upcoming November Reflection cruise.

That is correct. Single for each allows each to have one device at the same time, and can switch one at a time to another device. The two plan allows for two devices at a time on the one plan. But the two single plans typically are less costly than the one two device plan.

They are two separate packages. One allows for only one device on at a time, but you can switch off to other devices. The other allows for two devices to be on at one time, while also allowing switching to other devices. IMO the two device package is not worth the price as we just switch to other devices as needed with the one device plan. It also has always been cheaper for us each to get a single device plan than one two device plan. As you just suggested, do the math.

That's the catch with any repricing. But when we have decided to do it the last offered NRD pricing was still attractive enough v the refundable base fare pricing we booked at. Enjoy your cruise.

Well all I can say is you are able to as we've done it. The cruise line actually prefers NRD even at the lower rate as prior to them being offered, all deposits were refundable. The average stateroom was booked and cancelled under those deposits an average of 8 times before a final booking was committed. NRD fares were introduced to curb that. And BTW, suite bookings have higher deposits and are only NRD for that very reason. If you want the flexibility of changing you pay the premium fare with a refundable deposit. But that flexibility also still allows for the NRD conversion. Perhaps not many people realize that or decide to take advantage of it as the NRD fare and program still needs to be in place and attractive enough at the time of conversion. And BTW, if your TA suggests that it cannot be done it may be because they are trying to preserve the higher commission from the higher refundable deposit fare. Just saying....

That was my response. I don't believe that is published anywhere on the website (maybe on the booking terms fine print), but if you have a refundable deposit booking and want to convert it to NRD, you can do so prior to final payment by contacting whomever you booked through and they can process it. It basically falls under the provision of changing, modifying, or canceling a refundable based fare with no penalty. One caveat is if your category is sold out at the time you may not be able to do it as there would not be an active NRD fare in place to convert to then. To be sure, call and ask. We have done this several times. You convert to the NRD program in place at the time. As to your insurance scenario, you definitely will need to check with the insurance provider as to the terms & conditions and any restrictions regarding cancelation and then compare the insurance costs relative to the difference in refundable v NRD fares and cancelation penalties to see if that option holds value.

Likely that TA has that as part of a block or group booking that would not be visible to the general public through the cruise line website. They may have access to it even though the cruise line has not released similar staterooms out of their inventory. It's also possible that the category is sold out other than any remaining block staterooms with the TA. If unsold by a certain date they would be released back to the cruise line which can them open them back up for general bookings on their website.

I agree with that as pointed out earlier. My clarification should have inferred differing last names, which may be a separate issue.

That would make sense as it would seem logical that there would have to be an active fare base available to confirm the adjustment.

Sorry if I wasn't clear. I realize that and wasn't suggesting you thought they were the same venues I was only identifying what is located in the Viking Crown Lounge. The VKL is just the name of the venue that houses those separate lounges and bar on that ship.

On Independence, The Viking Crown Lounge is the name of the deck 14 lounge area, in which the Crown Lounge (ex. Diamond Club), Suite Lounge, and Olive or Twist bar are located. In our experience, that area has been named that since our first cruise on Sovereign 32 years ago, and was the same for all RCCL ships that have that venue. The Crown Lounge and Suite Lounge are located in different areas on different ships, however.

To clarify, for non-suite US based bookings, the deposit amount required for a non-refundable deposit fare and a refundable deposit fare are the same. There is no difference in the deposit amount required with each. What is different is the fare base, which is higher on refundable deposit bookings. With a refundable deposit booking you can change, modify, or cancel the booking as needed without penalty. With a NRD booking you can change the booking for a fee, but if you cancel it altogether you will lose your deposit. You can also convert a refundable deposit to NRD if desired prior to final payment without penalty. You cannot convert a NRD to refundable, however.

Just to add, typically when there are price reductions post final payment the disclaimer indicates that they are for new bookings only. This is to avoid any repricing confusion. Obviously with US bookings, favorable price changes can be captured prior to final payment and conversely, you are protected from price increases. (Refundable deposit bookings can do so anytime without penalty, NRD bookings can do so with a fee. You can also move a refundable deposit booking to a NRD booking at no penalty to capture any available savings just prior to final payment).

You mention you are from Norway. To further clarify what @jwlane indicates, at least for US bookings, you cannot combine sales and CC discounts on the same purchase. It is one or the other and in our experience that has always been the case. Perhaps non-US bookings are different.

Then I guess we missed each others points because I wasn't saying it wasn't a good backup plan if one wants to do so, I was just saying it isn't a requirement. But as you say, cheers.

You bringing friends of your kids along is a completely different story. Not only should you have a notarized letter of permission to travel with you but a consent to act on the child's behalf with any medical emergency. We have done that in the past as well and that was what was required of us. But that has nothing do to the the OP's question.