travelbug4

We are just starting to look at Alaska cruises for 2018. I've heard that it can be cool/cold in August and I'm wondering if they allow kids to use the Solarium pool on the Alaska runs? My husband and I just went on the Enchantment of the Sea and really enjoyed the "child free" solarium area. But I was just curious if it is different on the Alaska cruises where the weather is cold. We will be traveling with our children (14/12) who love to swim and are looking for a ship that has a covered pool.

I know that the Holland America pools are all covered and for everyone to use, which is fabulous for an Alaska cruise. I was just trying to figure out if there were any other options with covered pools.

Thanks for your help.

We were just on the Enchantment of the Sea. Two story dining room. First floor (deck 4) was for assigned seating (the two set times). The second floor balcony (deck 5) was for my time dining.

The left entrance door upstairs (deck 5) was for those who had made reservations ahead of time (we made ours before our cruise).

The right entrance door upstairs (deck 5) was for those who did not have a reservation. They put their name on a list and were given a "beeper" for when a table would be ready.

We stay at Marriott's Residence Inn Port Canaveral.

I'm also a big fan of the smaller Disney ships.

We've never done concierge on the bigger ships but we did stay in the 2-bedroom Walt Disney Suite on the Wonder. Like you, it was my husband, two small children and my parents. There is so much space in that suite that we were never on top of each other.

A fabulous perk....they brought Palo to the cabin one night and served it in courses in our dining room. Also nice with a 4 and 2 year old as they can have the flexibility to play in the living room and come back to the table as they like.

This was many years ago before the Wonder had a concierge lounge so I'm not sure how that works now.

It worked out well for our family of 4 and my parents. There is a ton of space and for us it worked to have a large living room area to relax in if we wanted. The cabin had two bedrooms. One has a queen and a very large bathroom (huge jacuzzi tub). The other has a queen (or twins) and two trundle beds that come down from the ceiling, also with a very large bathroom. There is also this library(ish) room that has a double murphy bed that can be closed off to make another private bedroom in the evening. And a living room, dining room and I think a half bath?

Just stepped off the Enchantment this morning after a wonderful 3 night cruise. We got to the terminal around 10:30 after a very early morning flight. Never waited in line and literally walked onto the ship at 10:45. It was incredible!

Windjammer opened at 11:30 and Park Cafe opened at 11:45.

Following....

We will be getting on our first RCCL cruise so I'm curious about the "tender tickets" you mentioned. We've never tendered before on a ship (other than the Wind Surf where you didn't need them).

Do we need to get tickets somewhere on the ship?

Thank you! That sounds easy enough with the porters....and you're right, I do have an image of the luggage tag (just says I can't use it as a tag). I'll show them that to get real ones...and will tip well :)

Thanks again. We're so excited.

Hello.

This is our first RCCL cruise and we booked a cruise less than 14 days out.

We've printed the Set Sail online check-in but it says we can not print luggage tags because we booked too close to the sailing.

How does that work at the pier? Should I create something with our cabin number on it for check-in or will they print them at check-in?

Just trying to learn the ins and outs for smooth boarding on RCCL (and to not hold others up in line!)

Thanks so much! :)

Good thoughts! Thank you!

Hello!

My husband and I just booked a quick weekend getaway on our first Royal Caribbean cruise. We've sailed many times before on Disney, Holland and Windstar but are excited to try out RCCL. Any RCCL tips would be great! (can you carry water bottles onboard like Disney?)

I've been looking at options in Nassau and I'm wondering if anyone has tried the Pearl Island beach day with lunch? I've seen mixed reviews but it looks beautiful....and a lot less expensive if you book directly through the island rather than a RCCL excursion. Just worried with the return ferry time of 4pm if you actually make it back to the ship before the 5pm departure?

Or is it safer to book the British Colonial within walking distance of ship?

Thanks so much.

Thank you!

Hello.

We are considering cruising on the Pearl in Alaska next summer. Does anyone know if it has a waterslide for kids? (14 and 12). I've seen it in one picture but then everywhere else I search there is no slide.

We have always sailed Disney but the prices are so much better on NCL. Has anyone tried both? Are they comparable?

Thanks so much!

Does anyone know who will be Captain when we are aboard the Surf January 4th?

Peter Harris is the Captain on the Surf until March.

Thanks for all of the info! About 10 more days until cabin assignment.

I'm confused. We are booked on the May 28th Maasdam and have open seating. I assumed that meant we could go to the dining room whenever we wanted and get a table (like walking into a restaurant without a reservation and putting your name in). Does it mean that we have to eat at 5:15 or 9:00 and that's it? Just want to make sure I've figured this out before we board. We are so excited for this trip! Also, does anyone know when they assign cabins? We booked an inside guarantee and we are so excited to find out where we will end up!