RFerrington

1 hour ago, CruisematicVA said:

Does anybody know if we keep the pre-purchased reservations we made before buying the UDP and transfer those to our UDP once onboard (and get refunds)?

Never say never, but I am fairly sure that once you cancel the pre-purchased, individual reservation(s) (and get a refund) you will lose that reservation spot.  Since the "new" pre-boarding UDP reservation system (whatever that turns out to be) hasn't yet been implemented then, as far as I know, there is no way to get a specific venue/time reservation for any UDP meal. I think you will be at the mercy of the board-and-reserve mode until they change the way the UDP is handled.

No way would I go to the MDR or WJ after paying extra $$ for the UDP.  That’s why we quit getting the UDP…it’s just too much food !

I get a chuckle out of the Star Class reserved seating outside.  A couple of dirty benches in the corner !  Better than standing, I guess. I’m talking about outside, not inside the terminal…

38 minutes ago, A&L_Ont said:

Shane is our Genie. 🧞 

Oh wow.  You and Sabrina have the same Genie.  That’s very cool.

2 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

 

Safe travels home. 

Thanks !  Already home and unpacked.

Congratulations, John.  That’s quite an accomplishment.

We are pulling into the harbor now so it looks like you will have a ship to board !

Explanation about my confusion with the time change.  Even though the “spring forward” is today, the ship changed our time a day early so that there wasn’t wild confusion on turnaround day.  Very smart.  So we “sprang” a bit early.  😵‍💫😵‍💫

Didn’t the time change last night ?

I must be the only person who doesn’t know what HK is…

7 minutes ago, leaveitallbehind said:

How recent were the changes made that you reference?

I’d have to get home to see the dates (on OA now) but it’s definitely been within the last 6 months.  I think you only lose the full deposit if you cancel outright.

3 minutes ago, cruiseboy89130 said:

Suites can not move to a different sailing for the $100 pp

Then I was super lucky as one of the bookings I moved was Sky Class and the other was Star Class !

The only part of this that I’m confident about is that you would pay the higher deposit amount (10%) on the replacement cruise, assuming it will also be a suite.  Regarding the penalty for moving your cruise, the answer seems to be very inconsistent.  I’ve moved 2 cruises recently, and they were both handled completely differently.  Go figure.

On one of the cruises I moved, the entire deposit was moved to the new booking and the $200 penalty was added to the balance due of the new booking.  IOW, no money out of my pocket.  Since I had already paid a significant amount towards final payment of the “old” cruise, I actually received a refund as my replacement booking was less than the amount I had already paid towards the old booking.  This included the $200 penalty.  That new booking is now PIF. In a way I guess I did “pay” that change fee, as my refund was $200 less than it would have been. Tomato,, tomatto.

On the second transferred booking, the agent completely forgot about the $200 penalty, so the entire “old” deposit moved over to the new booking and nothing additional got charged.  Of course, final payment is a different amount than was the original booking, because the cruise fare is different,  but none of that difference was due to a transfer penalty.  I got very lucky with that one !

I have read of others who had to pay the [in your case, $300] penalty at the time of the transfer so there are lots of different outcomes from this maneuver.

I don’t think the fact that you’re rebooking with only 2 people will make any difference except for the obvious - difference in fares between the “old” and “new” bookings.  It will just be what it will be.

I’ve noticed prices dropping on the cabanas at Labadee, too.  You can get an Over-the-Water cabana on some cruises now for less than $700.  That’s still waaay more than I would pay, but those cabanas had been upwards of $1400 a few months ago.

5 minutes ago, A&L_Ont said:

Chair hogs exist in the lounge. This lady is sitting at the counter but has her bag on the chair. I don’t know how many people have come around the corner thinking it was vacant only to find her bag.  She’s probably preparing for a cruise or AI. 
 

 

😡

1 hour ago, bobmacliberty said:

I'm always looking forward to your reviews.  Should be great as always.

 

Warning if you're flying Delta first class (which I think you often do)...don't count too much on the  lunch.  Lunch on our last 2 Delta FC flights were cold box lunches.  The first flight we were in row 3 of 5 FC rows and they were already out of turkey sandwiches.  Second flight we were in row 5 of 5.  Turkey sandwiches were again gone and I got the last chicken meal.  Micheline got stuck with the cheese plate (I offered her my chicken 😉).  They no longer have extras to ensure that you get what you want.  I complained to both flight attendants and both commented about cutbacks hitting in several places.  Delta First class ain't what it used to be.

OMG that is really pathetic.  Flyin' ain't what it used to be !  So glad we don't have to fly to cruise anymore !

On board now.  Sorry we will be missing you and @Lovetocruise2002.  We sailed the exact same itin this week.  Beautiful weather…hopefully you will get the same.  Have a wonderful time !

The main theatrical presentation (can’t remember what SY has.  Hairspray ?), the Aqua Theater Show and the ice show will all have sections of the theater(s) reserved for Suites, Pinnacles, Masters and maybe Key (never had Key so not sure where they sit).  The main theater reserved area is on the upper deck, center.  The ice show and the ATS are upper level, center.  There should be staff monitoring the aisles to direct applicable guests to the reserved seating and as @Biker19 mentioned, 10-15 minutes before showtime, the ropes are removed and GenPop can move in so you don’t want to wait too long if you want to sit in the reserved seating area.

We disembarked at Labadee today.  Business as usual.  

22 minutes ago, Joesantos said:

I think I read that Starbucks is included.

 I’m gonna try next time 

but loaded on your individual card so my wife doesn’t drink and I use hers separately.

Drinks from the Starbuck's branded kiosk are not included.  Starbucks brand coffee that is served in Royal Caribbean venues is.

1 hour ago, DEBCAT65 said:

Does anybody know the type of European converter you would need to use those outlets?

It is easy to find the adapters that convert 220 to 110....just be sure that whatever device you plug into the adapter can handle the resulting current.  Most mobile phones have built-in converters and tolerate the current but most hair dryers (for example) do not....so just know what you're plugging into the adapter.

1 hour ago, BND said:

Have you heard "Perfect Day" played yet?

LOL.  Not even when we were at PDCC !  (Thank God)

12 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

Well, Oasis has docked; I hope they don’t lose the ship!

Yep.  We’re here.  Not sure whether people are disembarking yet (I haven’t heard an announcement) but no reason to believe they won’t be disembarking as usual.   Beautiful out, today.  I won’t be getting off (but I never get off). Dan will probably go snorkeling.

6 minutes ago, Tazzybear14 said:

Wait...What? I am finally Diamond status and I thought the 4 drinks were per person per cruise...are they per person per day?  That would be fabuouloso!

Yes !  Per person, per day.

2 minutes ago, Donsyb said:

Did they say anything about the situation in Haiti?

No.

I’m having a similar problem with EX.  We are on EX in April and always book a specialty lunch on embarkation day.  For some reason, EX isn’t showing any day 1 lunch options for specialty.  Haven’t run into this before.  Pretty frustrating.