DebJ14

Royal Caribbean originally gave us an FCC with a book by April 2021 and sail by Dec. 2021. We figured it was money down the drain because hubby could not be vaccinated for medical reasons and the requirement was there in 2021. Out of the blue we got an email from Royal in 2022 stating that our FCC no longer had an expiration nor a sail by date, but that it would say 2049 because that is only how far out the computer would go. However, we were assured it had no expiration date. Thankfully, our TA had a record of it because I had long since deleted it and thrown out the hard copies. Of course being over 70 we will be probably be dead and buried before 2049 so we used it in February 2023.

The whole problem stems from the fact that neither of you called Carnival to cancel prior to the sailing. She was a no show and telling Guest Services does not count. First you cancel with Carnival, then you call the insurance company to start the claims process. Had you called Carnival to cancel out your friend, they would have charged you the single supplement while they had you on the phone. Then, you would have received her cancellation notice, including penalty amounts. You would have received a new confirmation showing that you paid the single supplement. Then, you would have each filed separate insurance claims. If she was too ill to travel, she would need documentation from a physician to complete that claim based on canceling for medical reasons. You, would have to file a claim to get the single supplement refunded.

I agree it is totally unacceptable. I have celiac disease and I am highly allergic to dairy, beef and yeast. Sadly, I have been glutened on 2 Carnival ships and on one Royal Caribbean ship. When it happens, I get the privilege of spending the night in the bathroom and feel awful for days after. In every case, I have missed ports and the cruise lines have refused to refund shore excursions. In once case I had a devil of a time convincing the medical center that I did not have noro because getting glutened causes the same symptoms. In the past they have always tried to be very accommodating. On my last RCI cruise in Feb. 2023 the word I heard all the time was NO. No GF pasta, no changes to any entree to make it gluten free, even when pre-ordering, no desserts that did not also contain dairy, and weirdly no Caesar salad, even without croutons.The only GF salad dressing was oil and vinegar. I know the poor waiter felt bad when he had to deliver the NO, NO, NO. Removing the GF designation from the menus makes the job much harder for the waiters as they have to continually ask the chef. I have until April 4 to pay a non refundable deposit (suite booking) or cancel in favor of another cruise line that I can count on to deliver meals that I can eat. Frankly, I was shocked after having had 9 great gluten free cruises on Royal to see things change so drastically.

That attitude changed with the new menus. We were on the Adventure at the end of February 2023. I notified special needs and got the old letter, none of which was applicable. The new menus do not indicate what is gluten free. The poor waiter had to check on everything. With classic items only appearing in rotation, the night the strip steak was on the menu, it was the only available GF item. I am allergic to beef, so I had to have just a baked potato and the broccoli and carrots. So many of the new menu items are more like casserole mixtures, loaded with gluten. If dairy and gluten free, as I am, there was not one dessert available on the ship the entire cruise. It was all either ice cream or a pudding of some sort or cheesecake. I was told in Chops that even the sorbet was not Gluten free and the Caesar dressing was off limits as well, according to Chops, the MDR and Windjammer staff. Lesson learned. Bring some packaged GF dessert items and salad dressing packets. Also, they offered Kellogs in the am and none of their cereals were GF. I am allergic to eggs, so I had bacon and coffee. They used to be very accommodating, but no longer. I hear Carnival has gone the other way and is even more attuned to food allergies than ever with interactive menu boards. Right now we are deciding between a Carnival and an RCI cruise for our anniversary next year. It is either lots of food choices and an iffy cruise on Carnival or a great suite experience on RCI, but with limited food.

Our TA notified us today that a booking we have for May 2024 went down $308.00. She sent us the revised confirmation.

Great news that they are still doing a good job accommodating GF. We haven't sailed Carnival since 2019 and they always did a great job. Sadly, finding GF and dairy free food on Royal Caribbean was a nightmare. Many nights there was no entree that was not GF since they rolled out the new menu and removed the old standby chicken breasts and salmon from the menu. One night everything I asked for was not available GF, so I ended up with a baked potato, 2 pieces of carrot and 2 sprigs of broccoli. Lost 7 pounds on a 5 night cruise. There was not one dessert on the ship that I could have the entire time!

We just got off a Royal Caribbean cruise. The starlink service was great. Super fast, didn't go down the entire time. Hopefully, it will be on the Carnival Jubilee when she debuts later this year. I would willing pay more for starlink.

I received a $250 e gift certificate Christmas 2019. The 2020 cruiseI was planning to use it on was cancelled due to Covid. I found the original email, clicked on the link to redeem and chose onboard credit. It looked like everything went through just fine, but never showed up in the app, nor any confirmations. My TA noticed that there was a random $250 payment in the history and it was not applied to anything. I explained I thought it was the e certificate. I emailed her all the info such as certificte # pin, date of redemption etc. She contacted RCI and they said it would have to be escalated and it would take 7 business days to get it straightened out. Well, within 2 hours my TA received conrfirmation of an onboard amenity in the form of a $250 onboard credit and it now shows on my booking. She emailed me the confirmation to take with me, just in case there are any issues.

Best answer yet! Our doctor advised against it. Hubby already has enough problems with blood clots without the clot shots.

Just be glad they are not Carnival prices. We just booked a 5 night in a GS on the Adventure for Feb. The price for a GS on the Carnival Breeze 5 night the same week was $900 more than Royal Carib. Heck, a regular balcony on Carnival was $25.00 more than our GS on Royal.