ericrz

If you have status -- anything beyond the basic -- with a land-based casino, it's worth it to send them an email and ask what they can do. I'm only MGM Pearl and ahead of my MAS Islander cruise earlier this month (after we'd already made the reservation) I emailed and asked if they could do anything for me. I got: About $500 off our existing cruise fare (we were already in an Extended Balcony, or we could have had that upgrade instead); Free dinner for 2 at JWB Steakhouse; Free wifi for two devices; Express embarkation / debarkation / priority luggage service; $40 match play in the casino; and An upgrade to the Islander Dining Room for dinner I only spent about $300-400 in the casino during our cruise, and the rep is already offering me a 4- or 5-night Islander cruise any time in 2025. Now, it's deck 1 oceanview only (at least not an interior!) and I still have to pay port taxes, fees, and gratuities. Still, I think they're pretty hungry for casino players right now, so you should definitely give it a shot!

Adding a question to this thread -- how do dining reservations work? No assigned times in the Fins Dining Room, just show up when you show up? What about specialty dining reservations -- with no app and no way in Cruise Control to prebook, do you just go to Guest Services onboard?

Blender cup not included, according to the website. I have a Margaritaville "5 o'clock somewhere" clock beverage holder that I got at the Grand Turk M'ville a couple years ago. If I bring it, will they fill it? 😄 I've had a drinks package on my last two cruises (one Carnival, one Royal). I think I came out ahead financially, but even if it's close -- it's so nice to have the booze paid for in advance, and not get a big bill on the final morning. My mom and I are taking the Islander in September, even with the two port days, we'll do our best to get our money's worth!!

From the FAQ page (Ultimate Beverage Package | Margaritaville at Sea) -- There is a 15 maximum per day for drinks, like Carnival Covers beer/wine/cocktails up to $20, mocktails, soda, specialty coffees, 500ml bottled waters Like all other cruise lines, everyone 21+ in a cabin has to purchase the package, except in the case of a documented medical condition I just called and added it to my 5-night Islander cruise in September. With gratuity added, it is $336.25 per person for a 5-night voyage. I am not quite sure how the math works, because that seems to be only adding 12% to $59.99 x 5. But the website FAQ says an 18% gratuity. Hmm. Boat drinks, here I come!

Is the only MAS drink plan the 10 for $99 offering? Not to sound like a lush or anything, but 10 drinks is pretty low for a 5-day cruise. While I know you can obviously purchase drinks after the pre-paid package is used up, maybe MAS will add a 20 or 25 drink package for the longer voyages??

Showed up on the website today: Islander Cruise Ship Deck Plan | Margaritaville at Sea

So my mom and I went and booked the MAS Islander for a September 2024 5-night cruise to Key West and Cozumel. Happens to leave on September 1, which will be the first anniversary of Jimmy Buffett's passing. I was thinking about going to Key West that weekend, but the cruise is much more economical! I picked a balcony cabin on the phone with the rep, but she warned me that cabin numbering may not match the existing Costa Atlantica deck plans still available on the Internet. She said Islander deck plans should be finalized next week, and I can call back and change cabins if I don't like where we ended up (deck 9, forward -- trying to keep my mom relatively close to the elevators). The rep said that major structural items on the ship (pools, dining rooms, etc.) are not likely to change locations. But there definitely could be some renumbering. Fins Up!

Confirmed (via their social media rep on Instagram) that when booking online, you don't get a cabin choice. Can call them to pick a cabin. The rep also said they will have deck plans for the Islander "by the end of the week." Obviously there are still deck plans available on the internet for the Costa Atlantica; not sure how much would change in terms of stateroom numbering / locations.

Ron, I'm experiencing the same thing. Doesn't seem to be any way to choose your cabin number, or even general location (Forward/Mid/Aft) or even the deck you are on. Was trying to book the new ship (Islander) but seems to be the same on the Paradise as well. Does anyone know if this is just a glitch? Or, if you book over the phone, can you pick specific areas/cabins?

Apparently, we passed the Magic (which had departed Curacao about two hours before us) sometime on Saturday morning. A couple of my family members watched us overtake them, and apparently the two ships were reasonably close to each other!!

Hi all: My family and I were on the Symphony of the Seas last week and in Labadee on Monday, November 20. We rode the tram to Columbus Cove beach and got a nice set of lounge chairs under a couple of umbrellas. When we looked at the water, we couldn't believe the amount of trash floating in it. Plastic bags, bottles, bottle caps, papers, you name it. I have been to hundreds of beaches in my life and I've never seen anything like it. Literally, the first thing people were saying as they arrived at the beach was "look at all the trash in the water." My brother took it upon himself to start cleaning some of the garbage out of the water. He soon had several kids helping, making a game out of it, and some adults jumped in to help as well. After about 20-30 minutes of this, some RCCL staff showed up with garbage bags and rakes. The in-water volunteers would pile the trash on the shore, and the RCCL staff would rake it into piles and then bag it. Whether they were already planning to do this or if they were sort of shamed into it by seeing passengers picking up garbage, I don't know. (In any case, the staff never went into the water to retrieve any trash, leaving that to the passengers.) Has anyone else ever seen this at Columbus Cove? Maybe we were just unlucky, a recent storm pushed a bunch of trash into the bay or whatever. But it was surprising and kind of disappointing to start our beach day by picking trash out of the water!! Given that RCCL recently reported more than a billion dollars in quarterly profits, it would have been nice to see them be a little more on top of this (either with additional staff or some sort of technological solution to filter trash at the mouth of the bay).

This is so incredibly true. My sister in law is Filipina and the crew from her native country love getting a chance to talk to her!! (Side note, we also found a great Filipino restaurant in Aruba on this trip). Loving this review, @APDMOM. We were also on this cruise and your review is helping me remember things as I make notes! Not sure if I'll write a full review or just a pros/cons list, but I'm loving yours! We might have crossed paths at Chobolobo, we were there for an 11AM (10AM ship's time) tour on Thursday!