chemmo

It looks like from the prices you are quoting that is the increased price so there will be no additional service charge added. In our experience when cruising from Southampton the speciality restaurants can book up fairly fast. We have seen less reductions being offered on board than when cruising in the Caribbean or the Mediterranean so a pre paid package could be a good idea. We were on Silhouette last September and loved her, back on board October. Hope you enjoy!

Your classic package also includes a wide range of lovely coffees and teas…

We board in October, hopefully someone will report before both of us!

My best guess is they are charging the 18% on cruises where they normally add a service charge on drinks paid for (Med and Caribbean) and are simply upping the meal charge on regions where there is usually a higher base drinks charge but no added service charge (Southampton and Australia/NZ). I could be wrong but that to me would be the easiest explanation…So if you cruise from NZ or Australia this year and we cruise from Southampton we would not pay a service charge but if we both fly to the Caribbean we may pay an 18% surcharge on a meal costing us $0!!!??? The mind boggles.

Many cruises ago when we were in RSs we used to ask for a slip at the end of the evening when dining in the speciality restaurants to add a tip. One waiter (very politely) did inform us that if we tipped on the slip the money went to the general pool, if we tipped in cash the speciality staff shared it. Since then we have always tipped cash…I do hope the new18% add on actually does go to the staff who earn it… To add another complication it could be different for RS/PH in different regions….In regions where the price has gone up no add on but in regions where the price has stayed the same the % slip…Definitely guaranteed to cause confusion! Hopefully we will find out on CC before our next cruise!

We find the chicken noodle soup reliably hot and tasty and we love the fries that come with the general room service turkey club sandwich! Not fine dining but a great lunchtime option to enjoy on sea days on the balcony.

Has anyone in a RS/PH with unlimited speciality dining had a slip for the 18% gratuity? We don’t mind paying, we always tip anyway, just interested in if the system has changed.

Totally agree! Over the years there have been times when we have arrived at hotels having prepaid for sea views which has been disputed on arrival, been offered a lower grade of rental car than we have pre booked, had OBC disappear on boarding…So easy when you can simply open your holiday folder and go to the section (flights, hotels, car hire, cruise…) pull out the relevant document and resolve.

Over recent years not only do we take emails and invoices we email pertinent screenshots to ourselves ‘just in case’. In our experience going to the Retreat concierge or guest services with black and white confirmation can be very helpful. It stops the ‘your word against theirs’ scenario which is stressful for both guest and staff.

What a mess…I know nothing about kidney stones nor your options for cancelling if things don’t work out… Just posting to wish your husband a speedy recovery, hoping you all manage a great cruise but if that isn’t possible at least a decent outcome from X or insurance. Sincere best wishes.

Thank you!

Please come back with your response….

How have you found the room itself? We are regular RS cruisers on S class but were a bit put off by the pictures of the RS on Edge, particularly the balcony. Have you had any difficulties booking the speciality restaurants? Did you enjoy them?

Den, It never fails to amaze me how different people look differently at things…One classic comment we have got when we have (reluctantly) been pushed on the price of cruising by none cruising acquaintances has been “How much! We could get 6 weeks in Benidorm for that!”. Pointing out we don’t want to go to Benidorm for 6 weeks seems irrelevant to their viewpoint…. Like you, if we want a cruise that is what we will book if we want a land tour that is what we will book. However, with all costs seeming to increase like many people we may book cruises slightly less often.

Now that is very disappointing. Like you we usually cruise in higher suites so The Porch is our lunch venue on many days, especially sea days when we want an informal lunch but want to avoid a busy buffet. Really silly when they should with present health issues be trying to reduce number pressure on the buffet in particular. I could understand it more if they reduced the cost to encourage more to visit…

When we cruised with our teenage son the only thing we found we really needed extra money for was the excursions. If I am not mistaken all over 12s pay full price. This tends to be on local tours as well as X ones. With five of you it may be worth while looking at ‘private’ tours too. You may be able to arrange a vehicle, driver and personalised itinerary for the same cost as five of you sharing a coach with others. Encourage your boys to interact with the bar staff, showing their card which will indicate their drinks package and then asking if they can have ‘something like a strawberry milkshake’…most staff will be more than willing to sort them out with something to their liking! As cruisestitch says there are things they could/may want to spend their money on. Perhaps you could set each of them a $ budget they are allowed to spend on board either in the arcade, on videos, in the shops or on gelato? Easy to monitor on TV daily. I assume your oldest is under 18 and you are cruising in the Caribbean? If over 18 I am fairly sure he can access the casino. If he is over 18 you may want to have a discussion with him before boarding. We also had a bizarre situation when our son was between 18 and 21 that he could drink alcohol when we cruised in the Far East and Europe but then had to revert back to soda when we took a Caribbean cruise… Sincere best wishes for a fantastic family cruise!

Agree, much as we love cruising there are other holiday options too. We never have, and never will, see cruising as our only vacation option. Our holiday costs really vary. We are off in a couple of weeks spending £30 per night (for both of us) to put our tourer on a hill with wonderful sea views over the Irish Sea…add on costs a couple of take out meals plus a supermarket shop at the same cost as at home. Then there are villa stays in the Mediterranean. One of my favourite types of holiday, private pool, local restaurants. Choose your time of year and no way near as expensive as a cruise. You can often take several family members with you for very little more than their flight costs. We wouldn’t enjoy a cruise as much as we do if we didn’t vary our holiday diet. It definitely is our most expensive holiday type but it is our decadence…We love the daily changing views, we love visiting new ports and much loved favourites….So nice having a great choice of restaurants without walking, driving or taxiing… There are cruises at present I feel are not worth the price, particularly the newer ships in the Mediterranean at higher suite level so quite simply we will not be booking them. There is a point for all of us where prices are acceptable and the point at which we decide we could have an alternative experience for our £££. We presently have two cruises booked on the same ship, same room, one night difference in length and a massive difference in price. Our Caribbean cruise being substantially cheaper than our Southampton one. In the next few weeks we will start looking for a vacation for October (ish) 2023. No idea what we will go for. Historically we would have booked a second cruise but you never know, we might just take our tourer back up that Welsh mountain….

Sincere best wishes for a fantastic cruise, it sounds like you need it! We tend to be more organised the longer and more complex the vacation. I have never had a cruise ‘snuck up on me’ but I do remember us booking a trip to the Balearic Islands one October….As for us it was a relatively local flight, a crash out so no fancy clothes I literally packed on the Friday night after a loooong day at work before flying out first thing Saturday. On unpacking I had forgotten to pack my knickers and have never lived it down! So check your passport, credit card, toothbrush and knickers!

Just a warning, the menus are quite ‘playfully’ written. It is often difficult from the menu to work out exactly what you are ordering. The first few times we dined there we were constantly asking the waiters to describe the dishes. There have been many Luminae picture reviews, well worth a search.

So pleased you have a good outcome.

When we have a gap between leaving the ship and flying but not enough time to do anything useful we will often look at pay to enter airport lounges (if we aren’t travelling business) or a better food option venue at the airport. Perhaps someone can advise on options… Nice to make the best of the last bit of your vacation rather than sitting miserably on hard chairs…

You should have replied your contacts included Mr Haggis and Mr Glenfiddich…

I always loved your husband’s posts. He advised many of us over the years, always managing that useful mix of facts and opinions enlivened by humour and genuine good will… Thoughts and prayers are with you…

You could ask what time sushi on five opens…often 2pm on port days (I think!). Not exactly a traditional brunch menu but we have enjoyed a few times.

I think the fact the time is usually 4 - 6pm many guests don’t notice the family time taking place…most guests are in their suites or a bar recovering from excursions and then getting ready for dinner…