Iluvmypuggle

The pool water wasn't "cold", it was comfortable to get in, no shock value. I spent more time in the hot tubs than the pool. My sister didn't have any trouble adjusting dining once on board, we even added them to our 3 person reservation one night. They also showed up 45 minutes to an hour earlier than their later reservation and were seated right away.

Thank you!

It may be a little like preparing for a time change (Standard Time, Daylight Saving Time.) A week before the cruise, delay bedtimes, but don't oversleep and miss embarkation! :eek:

Haha!!! Good point.

I've been practicing my drinking this wkd so I can keep up on the cruise..

I wonder if they have rum Chata. Love it with coffee!

Thanks for taking the time to write this.. I laughed out loud looking at the picture with 4 French fries!

It sounds like things run, but are a little disorganized with all of the booking options for dining & activities. scheduling beforehand was a little chaotic as I was trying to get my hands on the cruise compass to anticipate show times (like The Quest) before booking dinners & the other shows.. I booked my cruise too late to book iFly in advance so hoping it's easy to get a scheduled time once we board.

Is the pool water cold?

Yes it will be $7.95 pp for the entire sailing to text or phone one another on board only. Yes again, you can still use the app to make reservations at no cost.

That is awesome! Thanks for the quick reply.

Glad you are able to take advantage of the balcony.. You can always check back to see if pricing drops.

Some free (mostly) honeymooner things to do:

• Watch a sunrise or sunset from your balcony or the top of the ship
  
• Bring Mr. & Mrs. drink coolies or Go-cups & take pictures & toast with
  
• Say Yes Day - you each get a day on your trip where spouse has to say YES to anything you suggest doing, whether it be trying a new food, mini-golf, etc.
  
• Plan balcony time - Give yourself enough time to enjoy a drink on your balcony, maybe before dinner or even morning breakfasts. It's nice to use it and really enjoy seeing the water.
  
• Write each other a letter to give to each other on your 10th anniversary
  
• Participate in the Love & Marriage show!
  

Happy honeymooning & have a great trip!

I definitely like the concept of making vacation or cruise final payments in advance. It's a good feeling to pay for it and not come home with a big bill - this will be my first time buying a beverage package.. Cheers to that, literally!

As Clarea said, download the Royal IQ app now. We used the communication plan(7.99) and it worked great. Each person has to purchase it through the app once on the ship. You then have to add each person you want to communicate with to the list of contacts. This is easy by adding their personal id code. The only other thing is that you all must keep the app "OPEN". If anyone closes the app and you try to text them you will get a message screen saying "Person Not On Line".

Hi there - I haven't done much research yet on the app yet, but now that I'm reading your post, it's time to stat.. Is it $7.99pp for the entire trip? Or is that per day? And for that price, DH & I can text each other?

If we don't spend the $7.99, we can still use it for reservations I assume?

TIA

I had thought of doing the puzzle room and reviewed some you tube videos. I'm not sure I want to have to think that much during my Anthem cruise in October. A 20% success rate sounds very interesting.

I agree with you on this - I would love to do the puzzle/escape room, but I might prefer to do it on a cold weekend on land rather than during my short Bermuda cruise.

Is it more than a 1 hour duration? I think that's what most are.

Hi ladies..

Getting a manicure makes me feel like a new woman, and all is right in my world when I walk out. I love a fresh mani and when I get lazy or don't want to spend the money, I try to remind myself how good it makes me feel. :)

Anyway, my comments below on some polish options:

• Gel Manicures - for me Shellac brand does not last and cracks easier.. So, for thin nails, I suggest OPI brand gel. The OP asked about a french vs. a color - if your gel tends to crack (think thin nails), lighter colors don't show it as much as darker colors, so french would be better if you are away longer. I usually get 3 coats of polish, or I ask for a second coat of the clear at the end - helps make it last longer for me personally. Another tip I use with lighter colors is to get a very subdued glitter over whites because glitter polish seems to never chip!
  

• 
  Vinylux Polish - this is such a great product! There's a few brands that now sell gel-type polishes but without needing the UV light to cure, and no soaking to remove. This polish goes on like regular polish, you wait for it to dry, and then it also comes off easily with nail polish remover. This is seriously a favorite of mine and my nail salon has it for an extra $5. I usually just bring my own so I can touch up if I need to, but since I'm not always a huge fan of gel manicures, this is a great option. They are around $6-8 on Amazon, and you do want to get a topcoat.. or just get the topcoat and put it over your regular polish. With the vinylux, you do not use a basecoat. Perfect option for the toes!
  

Good luck!

Partly true, for some people that don't live in hotter climates though - we do need some new things when we vacation. I donate my used stuff to recycle clothes out of my wardrobe and it's fun to shop for new clothes. The new cruise clothes I wear after the cruise, often layered with a sweater or hoody when I come back home. I like pleasing myself with cute outfits. If I think I look good in something, I'm already in a better mood and when cruising it's doubly fun!

This was well stated. Summer clothes get worn out quicker, IMO. We sweat in them, spray sunscreen near them, wash them a ton and I don't buy them year round living in NJ.

Plus, when you feel good in your outfit, you enjoy your day so much more! At least in my experience so I love shopping for my trips!

Hi there. I don't suggest special cruising clothes, but I do suggest the outfits you would bring on most vacations.

If I were going on ATVs, I'd probably wear athletic/yoga capris and a tunic tank or long shirt. Jazz it up with a cute headband or baseball cap. And some long lasting lip color for pictures.. :)

For beach or Pool days, I love t-shirt material dresses - soft & light in the heat.

For dinners, at 26, think of the outfits you would wear to dinner or drinks for a girls night out. A cute dress, capris and fun tops would be appropriate. I second all of the maxi dress suggestions! I think jeans are fine for most cruise lines these days, so a pair of trouser jeans would be great for your every day life and for a cruise. Bring some fun jewelry to dress things up. This is the place to wear that statement necklace.

Also, try some skinny jeans - they are great to cuffs as capris if you are having any trouble finding capris in the store with the change of seasons & fall clothes coming out. Old navy's skinny jeans are very generously cut - I border plus size & have to size up in skinny jeans but I do think all women can wear them. Maybe pair with a kimono top.

I freeze everywhere on the ship, so I always bring long sleeve Blazers or sweaters for dinner.

Mod cloth dot com has some great plus size clothing, as does forever 21's website.

Good luck!

Good question.. I think the few weeks leading up to a trip are hardest. When I book something far out, I am so happy & the fun of planning begins. Now that I'm 2 weeks out, I am done planning and I have summer fever like at the end of a school year. Lol. No, I'm a teacher but remember that feeling from school?!

Thanks to the OP for all of the details.. Can't wait to hear more!

Also, so glad to see some positive feedback from the OP and many others! I've been telling myself not to have high expectations for my 9/3 sailing, but I also know that vacation is what you make of it.. Leaving 2 weeks from tomorrow.. The countdown is on!

Hey there.. i looked into booking the jet skis for my Sept cruise and opted to pass because of the price. From everything I've read, Somerset Bridge Watersports seems to be the company to go with. I have no experience with them yet, but I did book a boston whaler boat through them for one of my days in Bermuda - it was half the price.

Have a great trip!

That's where we stayed! Great resort. Our 'budget' last minute trip turned into a Preferred Club Oceanfront swimout so that 'budget' part didn't quite work as planned :eek: I do feel like we would have to spend a lot more on a cruise to get the same experience as we had there. Maybe even would have to go to one of the premium lines (which I feel would be a little too stuffy for us). Secrets has the understated service down to an art. You never feel suffocated or that it's over the top but they are a step ahead of you 99% of the time.

Yes, there's nothing 'budget' about Secrets Akumal or an Oceanfront Preferred. lol. But totally worth it! And I think you hit the nail on the head when you said 'we would have to spend a lot more on a cruise to get the same experience'. My mom is a big NCL cruiser and they treat her well due to her status and repeat business, but if I go on the same vacation as her, I have a very different experience as we are not VIPs. lol I'm really looking forward to our RCCL cruise but on 9/3, but I anticipate no one catering to us. lol. I guess it's good to have those expectations, right?! I don't mean this negatively toward any cruise line either, but generally in my experience, it seems that the suite guests are treated much better on cruises.

For that kind of deal, especially around the holidays...go for the AI. We just paid far more than that to stay at a Secrets for 5 days in June.

Secrets is pricey sometimes, but I'm a huge fan. I'm going to Akumal in November (my second trip to the same resort) and I can't wait. I am sure other AI's deliver a great product, but haven't ventured into too many other brands.

I was really into cruising from the time I was a teenager until late 20s. In my later 20s, I decided to try all-inclusives and I'm definitely hooked. I can still appreciate cruises, but the AI value and benefits outweighs a cruise for me overall.

If we are talking about value, I think the AI is a better value, even if the OP spent more than the $3K. That's a great price, but I do think the higher end AI's cost more than that.

Here are my thoughts on some of the differences, and obviously these are the ones important to me.

CRUISE

• Awesome entertainment/shows
  
• Great nightlife with bands, the club, etc.
  
• A lot of activity options
  
• Everything in one spot
  
• Perks of visiting the ports
  
• Sailing with 1 group of people all week - I think this is fun!
  
• *To get all of these perks, I feel like there is a sacrifice involved, including the headache (actually migraine when it comes to RCCL) of trying to schedule your dinners around shows, dealing with cruise planner not working, and activities & dinner times being unavailable.
  

ALL INCLUSIVE

• Amazing pools and room to float
  
• Lounge chairs near the pool even if I don't wake up at 7am
  
• Sit down restaurants that don't require reservations
  
• More flexibility in your daily 'schedule' overall
  
• Service is way above the cruise ships - I know the restaurant servers are great on cruises, but at the AI hotels, they get your lounge chairs ready, deliver lunch to your lounge chair, open umbrellas for you, etc.
  
• Option to book adults only
  
• *What is missing for me at the AI resorts is the nightlife we would like; I know they bring in comedians, bands, etc. but I don't see them really get the party started like the cruise ships do..
  

DH & I are going on 5 night Bermuda cruise in Sept to party for a few days, and then we go to Mexico in November to an AI to relax and float for a week. We feel like they are 2 very different types of vacations and before you make a decision to cancel one for another, you need to decide what you want to spend your time doing.

OP, please keep us posted on what you decide!

Good to know about the bourbon tasting & fees. We purchased the premium bev pkg but might be fun to order small glasses 1 at a time.. :)

What's on the pub menu? Is pricing a la carte or 1 fee?

That really stinks that so many things are broken. I need you to complain loudly and get all this stuff fixed! We are sailing in just over a month and DH needs his diet root beer!:eek::D

39 days til the Anthem for me! Agree with you on hoping these things get fixed. LOL.

You are right. None of the packages include CANS of soda. It has happened on a few occasions that a bartender might slip a can to a package holder but it is not standard policy. So since you pre-purchased your package, a Souvenir Soda glass will be already in your room. It contains an RFID chip that will activate the Freestyle Soda machine (Provided your ship has them and it is not out of order). You'll also be able to get Soda at any of the bars but selection is much more limited than from the Freestyle machines. You'll get the Cup even if your ship does not have the Freestyle machines. You do not need the cup to get Soda or drinks from the bars but you will if you want to use the Freestyle machines.

 

dp

Thank you for all of the details - so my understanding is that I can get soda from any fountains, but not from a can.. That kind of sounds silly, but I'll remember it so that we know where to get what we need. I believe the Anthem does have the soda machines, which I'm excited about! I love all the fun flavors. Thanks!

I purchased the Premium Beverage package for my upcoming cruise. I thought I read it does NOT include cans of soda. Does that mean it DOES include soda from the free-standing machine? If we didn't have to pay for soda too, that would be amazing because my husband drinks his Diet Cokes like coffee in the morning.

Thx in advance.

Not many drinks are more than the limit..unless you are a booze snob.and want only the very, very TOP SHELF stuff. Mixed drinks...you can use the cheaper stuff...it's mixed..you can't taste it! If you can or will only drink the really expensive stuff, then you will pay for it. Personally, I can't tell the difference if it's mixed with anything else. A buzz its a buzz...they're all good buzzes!

Hi cb.. I haven't been on CC in a while so it was nice to come back and see your name on the boards! I'm definitely not a snob unless we are talking about. Vodka, but the brand list on the website looked great. I can see only the lesser beers were included so I'm thinking my husband will go for the mixed drinks. I was just surprised to hear that drinks cut off at $12 or something but that restriction doesn't seem like a big deal now.

Like you said, a buzz is a buzz.. Lol cheers!

Thanks!

On liberty the R-Bar's menu had a big $14 cocktail section. I stayed away from there.

Great tip - thanks! Now I know to check the prices before ordering.

Yes, my first cruise was with Royal Caribbean on Allure of the seas and we had the best time, so we booked Oasis of the seas for September of this year! :)

I'm also looking at doing an Alaskan cruise with Royal Caribbean for next year. How about you, are you a frequent cruiser or first time?

Wow that's great.. I hear Oasis is amazing and it's fun to try new ships. I hope you have a wonderful time and enjoy everything the Oasis has to offer. I hope to try it one day.

I used to spend a lot of time on the Fashion & Beauty boards and they have lot of great info for packing for Alaska - apparently it requires lots of layers. That will be a fun trip to plan with all of the different excursions and things to see.

My parents were big cruisers, so when I became old enough to go with my boyfriend (now husband), we cruised a bunch of times on NCL & Carnival, but we haven't done RCCL together. And then more recently, I fell in love with all-inclusives.. I pretty much love vacations. ha! For me, they both have different perks. I love the cruise ship entertainment, but I also really enjoy floating at the all-inclusive pools.

Talk to you soon!

Take time to SLOW DOWN. Take in the ambience that is a Royal Caribbean cruise ship.

 

My favorite is a quiet walk on deck under the stars right before calling it a night....or greeting the dawn if the party lasted a bit longer :p

That's definitely a challenge to "Slow Down" coming from a fast paced world. I liked that this was a 5 nighter because we have 4 days after the trip to relax before going back to work.

Totally agree with you walking under the stars!