velmasue

The $500 limit is what I read about.  But it didn't sound like you needed to pay that in advance.  We have cruised a lot (Diamond + with RCCL) but have always used a credit card.  I think it would work best for him if the limit was lower.  He is very immature for his age and has other issues that I really don't want to discuss.  I would just like to set up something reasonable  that he could manage.  It would make the cruise more enjoyable for everyone---I don't want to micro manage all he spends but I don't want to be stuck with paying off his balance either.      

We are going on a family cruise in November and our 21 year-old grandson will be in our room.   He will be responsible for paying his onboard expenses.  I have set up his set sail pass as "cash" but I'm concerned we will get to end of cruise and he will not have sufficient cash to pay off his account.  If the account is set up with "no charging privileges" can cash be loaded to the card limiting his ability to charge?  Or, is there another way to accomplish this?

What about Staten Island since we are coming from the south?  Does anyone have experience staying in that area and visiting NYC post-cruise?

Thank you for your suggestions.  I will get with everyone this week-end and see if we can work out the details and decide what options work best for us.

3 hours ago, meadowlander said:

I would look at hotels along route 3 off NJ Turnpike exit 16W. Hotels in Secaucus, Lyndhurst, Rutherford, Clifton and you can add hotels off route 17 in Hasbrouck Heights, Carlstadt, East Rutherford, to find hotels for your budget.

 

There is a park and ride facility in North Bergen  with direct bus transit to the Port Authority in NYC but the cost will be almost as much as Rahway. There is a park and ride in Clifton from a mall which is much cheaper and no parking fee. Using the NJ Transit trip planner insert "Clifton Commons". There is a La Quinta adjacent to the mall but it appears no availability for your date. It would be easy to drive to that mall/park & ride from hotels along route 3 area.

Thank you.  I will definitely check those options.   I appreciate your input.

 I cannot stress enough how uncomfortable we are driving in the traffic around the Newark area.  We make out fine on the turnpike but the exits on exits on exits just seem to get us.  My husband and I have cruised from Bayonne several times and have stayed in Elizabeth, Newark, and the Holiday Inn Rahway.  Even though Rahway is only a couple of exits before Elizabeth and Newark we found it much easier (so less stressful) to get to.  However, my daughter and her husband just moved here from California and I think he would be a good candidate for shuttling us around some.

Are you aware of hotels that have easy access to public transportation, maybe within walking distance?  I tend to think our best plan for a hotel is using the same one for pre and post cruise.   

Thanks!

48 minutes ago, 138east said:

What are the exact ages of your 10 people in November?  Could the 10 people fit in 2 cars?  The rates at the Holiday Inn are very good, but there may be other options.  NJ transit will take you to New York Penn Station, but the further away you get, the more expensive the train is.

 

Cost factors are hotels + transportation for 10 round trip to NYC plus parking for 2-3 cars on a Sat.  What is the allocation of the 11 people across the 3 hotel rooms?  Could the person staying behind shuttle some of you to and from the train station?

The children are ages 12, 8,8 6.  All 6 adults, except 1 is on the larger/tall size.   The 10 people could fit in 2 cars but only one of us is comfortable driving in the city.   I just checked schedule/fares from Rahway for 4 adults, 1 senior, and 4 children.  Would be about $60 each way.  But a 40-50 minute ride each way,  I guess that's not too bad.  I think pre-cruise and post-cruise at same hotel is preferable--my husband refuses to go to NYC so he could stay with the luggage.  He would not be able to drive us anywhere.

Any suggestions or advice you have is so appreciated!

We are a family group of 11 (7 adults, 4 children) living about 5-6 hours south of Newark on Virginia's Eastern Shore and have a cruise booked for Nov 9.   We will probably be driving 3 vehicles but may try to limit to 2.  We are celebrating 2 retirements and my husband and I are basically "footing the bill".  We currently have reservations at Holiday Inn Rahway (approx $650 for 3 rooms)for the night before, partly because we have stayed there before and the rate includes the shuttle and free parking.  But those reservations can be cancelled.  Most of us (10, actually) want to stay the night upon our return and visit NYC.  My thought was to stay the extra night at the Holiday Inn?  But I am totally lost when it comes to transportation to/from NYC from Holiday Inn?  Thanks for any advice on transportation. 

Or, would it be better to stay somewhere else that would work out better for our plans?  

As far as budget, that is already blown way beyond what we initially expected!  lol.  It would be nice to keep the pre-cruise stay/post-cruise stay/transportation/parking total below $1,500. But not even sure if that is possible.

Wow, thank you both for such a quick response!  Good to know.

We have 3 rooms booked (11 family members) for an upcoming retirement cruise on Anthem.  Our 21 year-old grandson is booked with us but I wouldn't be surprised if he cancelled at last minute (too much detail to share).  Can you still change the person after final payment without repricing room---the cost has gone up significantly.  I tried searching but I don't seem to have much luck when I search on here anymore.  And I know I need to call Royal.  Just trying to get an idea of what to expect.

Thanks for any information.

Thanks.  Sounds like it is time to reserve!

We have never bought a drink package even though we are Diamond Plus so have cruised RCCL quite a bit.  We are planning a retirement cruise for myself and son-in-law for November on the Anthem and all our immediate family are going.  Yay!

Is the current Memorial Day price on the Deluxe drink package a decent price for everyone?  It is net at $47 per day per person.

We had one a few years ago off the Centrum and loved the extra room.  Ours had a refrigerator at that time.

The higher price was for Senior. I just thought it was very odd that the website didn't simply offer the best available price. Just another glitch I suppose. No biggie, but others may want to be aware to try unchecking any "exclusive rates" that they may be eligible to receive since those rates are higher.

We were looking at taking the 9 day cruise on Grandeur leaving Feb 1, 2018 just as a quick getaway for the winter. When I went through the booking for an OV cabin the total is $1,388. Pretty good. Oops--forgot to check if we qualify for exclusive rates. When I put in our C&A number, senior status, and state, the price jumped to $1,688! WTH!!!

I know this is older, but just curious if this was resolved? We also purchased several open bookings just before the rules supposedly changed. We have open bookings purchased March 6, 2014.

We booked a 9-night cruise (or actually switched the booking from one previously booked with the open booking) in an OV last night and the OBC on the invoice is now reflecting $50. I thought it was at least $100, but when I looked closer at the confirmation letter it states $25-$200. However, I cannot find a schedule of how the OBC is determined. We had a 12-night JS booked previously and the OBC was $150 so expected it to be $100?

It seems every time I call RCCL lately they have a different answer. When I went to book this 9-night cruise I was originally told we would need to put down an additional $700 deposit. Called back a few days later and was told they needed an additional $300 deposit to book. Called last night and didn't need to make any additional deposit, but they didn't include OBC on the invoice they emailed us. Called this morning and they updated the invoice to include $50 OBC. So, I just want to be sure when I speak to them again that I at least know what the original "rules" were on these older open bookings.

Thanks if anyone has any additional information concerning the OBC just before changes were made in 2014.

Regarding the 'quiet' car: I don't believe station announcements are made; therefore, you need to pay attention after Philadelphia so you don't miss your station.

Thank you for that warning. We are still a little nervous about taking Amtrak since this will be our first time traveling by train.

The NE Regionals simply goes between either DC (sometimes originates in Richmond) & NY or DC & Boston (while also stopping in NY). The NY Regionals were designed for business travelers (hence the reason for the quiet car). The Vermonter does the same southern stops but after NY also goes through CT, MA and onto Vermont. I've taken both - no other differences. The big Amtrak difference would be the Acela. Acela are newer trains, cleaner, quieter, faster, and a little more comfortable. But IMHO not worth the added expense.

Thank you!

We were on the HOTS in February, our first mega ship and our first Boardwalk Balcony which was near the aft (11719). We were a bit surprised (and somewhat relieved!), how much we loved it! We usually book balcony or JS cabins, but thought we would try the BB and since we were on a B2B we were a bit nervous. Although the balcony was small, we thoroughly enjoyed sitting on the balcony and could enjoy the view of the ocean, the activity below, or watch the zipliners. We actually sat out more than we usually do (and we have had the large aft balconies!) The room steward even brought me a stool to use. But, we are not sun worshipers and prefer the shade so maybe that helps. The walk was probably good for us!

We didn't find it too noisy. We kept our curtains open during the day and didn't feel that our privacy was compromised. However, we did close the curtains once it started getting dark. And for good reason.

We've both commented that it was one of our favorite cruises (and we have been on close to 30). Of course, with the great shows, excellent food (another surprise), so many places to hang out, and all the activities offered you just can't ask for more.

To each his own, but we can't wait to go on a Mega ship again and will book another BB:):):)

One more question for the experts. Which train would be better to take to Newark, the Vermonter or the Northeast Regional? Is one more comfortable than the other? I see the Northeast Regional has a "Quiet" car and the Vermonter does not. Are there other differences as well?

Thanks for your help.

Thanks to all who responded. We will weigh our options and decide what will work for us. It's a big help to get advice and additional information from other travelers.

:eek:

You've got some good advice on Amtrak, which I do think will work for you. We travel Washington to New York fairly often, so a few other thoughts for you.

 

If you're looking at fares on the Northeast Regional, the really inexpensive (under $50/person each way) fares are limited and non-refundable. We do this all the time, so that doesn't scare me, but do know that. Some of the trips are longer than others; look at total travel time when picking a train. I think all NE Regionals stop at Newark Penn, but they don't all stop at EWR. Those that skip EWR probably also have fewer stops on the way, so are a little faster. From BWI I'd expect a stop at Baltimore Penn, Wilmington, Philly, and Newark. The Acela is theoretically faster, but it's going to make those same four stops, for a lot more money.

 

One thing to keep in mind at BWI is there are no luggage carts or baggage assistance (Red Caps). Not a problem if you can manage your bags, but there is baggage service at Baltimore Penn. If you're not used to riding Amtrak, a $5 or so tip will ensure you're standing in the right spot for the train, and the right car if that matters. Amtrak does have Quiet Cars, usually the second from one of the ends. You might get lucky at either Baltimore or BWI, but the car can fill up in DC.

 

Just out of curiosity, where in VA are you? You can take some Amtrak trains from Richmond, for instance, and you could fly back to BWI if that still makes the most sense and Amtrak back to Richmond. Just another thought.

Thanks for the additional information. I didn't even realize there were 2 train stations in Baltimore! I will definitely look into leaving out of Baltimore Penn. We have cruised out of Baltimore and flown out of Baltimore, but really know very little about getting around in the city. We normally stay at the same Best Western and prefer to fly from BWI because Southwest has more direct flights to the destinations we visit than Norfolk or Richmond have.

We are from the Eastern Shore of Va, south of Chincoteague (some folks have heard of "Misty") in the small town of Onancock.

The OP is on a repo cruise from Cape Liberty ending elsewhere and is flying back to Baltimore where their car will be parked. They live 3 hours from Baltimore so they probably live about 6 hours from Cape Liberty.

That is correct. You can definitely read between the lines!

Thank you for your input.

I do appreciate getting a better idea about luggage on the train and the advice to be prepared to exit once it stops at our destination. My husband is fairly nervous about taking Amtrak so I'm trying to find out all the information I can. There are more stops into Newark Penn station so that will probably be our best option.

We normally try to go to the departure port a day early, just to avoid the stress, and have stayed at Country Inns and Suites a few times when we drove up. I was hoping we could avoid that extra overnight stay and "dragging" our suitcases around for an extra day! We have booked Best Western for Oct 22 in Baltimore and they will keep our vehicle for the entire 2 weeks. We could change the reservation to the 21st and stay in Newark on the 22nd? I'm kinda on the fence with that. Thanks for the recommendation of the hotel and transportation upon arrival.