mjjden

Hi, Does anyone know what happened to the Feb. 7th -17th 2021 on the Nieu Statendam? We booked it last year and up until lately it has been there. It is included as a back to back but not as a 10 day anymore????!

We have cruised HAL, Princess, Carnival and Serenade of the Seas. We probably won't sail RCCL for a couple of reasons. The first is their Anytime Dining. The first night we went to Steakhouse. The next night we asked for a sharing table and we seated at a table of 2. My husband's chair was hit multiple times by the waiter.  We were told that because we hadn't been in the MDR the first night, there were no tables for sharing as everyone sat at the same table. We enjoy sitting with different people each night. The second reason was getting on the ship. The web cam to take our picture was on the ship. There were only 2 and it took a long time (a long, long lineup) to get on the ship. The third was the beds were uncomfortable. Generally, we didn't feel as welcome and sometimes like 2nd class citizens.

We are in our 60's, like shows and other Main Theatre Entertainment, piano bar, and BB Kings; hate trivia and the smokey casino!

In my opinion, RCCI My Time Dining, is traditional dining. We chose to go to Giavonnis the first night. The second night there weren't any tables to share! We were given a table for two on the aisle and my husband was constantly being bumped as the waiter was literally running past him. The maitre d asked us how are dinner was. The food was fine, but the table arrangement was not. He told us that guests were asked if they like their table the first night, if they did, they were there for the remainder of the cruise. He said that we would have a sharing the table the next few nights. We did, but frequently it was in the fixed dining room. We like meeting new people at dinner, and this was most disappointing.

Make sure you pick up the coupon from the Port Shopping Rep, they usually have a $50 one. Check prices first, because sometimes the coupon just puts it to the regular on line price

Hi all, has anyone ever experienced the Royal Caribbean Chocolate tour at St. Kitt's? Is it a good tour, do you get to make much chocolate, is the retail chocolate suitable for gifts? Thanks

It used to be the buttermilk chicken, breaded boneless white meat that melted in you mouth. The last cruise it was thighs and legs, not the same experience, hope they go back to the original.

Dive in anything!!!

Make to order pasta and omelettes.

Walking the Promenade deck, early in the morning and at dark.

Mojitos made with soda, any kind!

Cooking lesson with the chef!

I haven't been on the K'dam but on the other HAL ships if you are on the fourth floor forward the light does not work at night. VH I think is the category.

We were on a Med Cruise the first two weeks of September and the weather was lovely. Never needed a jacket, we weren't in the water as were busy touring. There were less than 100 children on the ship, so was very quiet as well.

We were on a land tour the last two weeks of September and again the weather was great. The only time we needed a jacket was on a boat cruise in Venice in the evening and then only a light one.

From what we were told, September is less crowded than July or August.

Rodeway Inn and suites does in Fort Lauderdale, they pick up at Miami airport if you are staying there, not sure if would do for a day pass!

We are not big beach people, but always look forward to HMC. We like the fact that no one comes to try to sell you anything, you can go for a walk and feel safe both on the beach and on the island, chairs are free, water is crystal clear, and beach sand so white and fine. It is just a relaxing day!

I bought the soda card on my last cruise. It did include soda water, but it does not come in a can but in a glass with ice. That is not a problem for me, but some prefer it in a can. If I remember correctly, you could get bottled water with it, but not from the attendant who sells it as you are leaving the ship.

I found it to be very convenient for me, I don't drink other pop and try to stay away from diet pop. You pay $25 for the card and receive $50 worth of soda. Our cruise was 11 days, so we had some money left over. A bartender gave us some cans to take off the boat with us.

We brought bottled water on the ship and my husband drank it as opposed to the ship's water. This seemed to alleviate the problem. The only alcohol he drank was beer, not any mixed drinks, mainly because it is difficult to find Caesars!

IMO if you have never been to Europe a Med. cruise would be my first choice. You get to visit many ports and then decide if you would like to go back to your favourite.

We did visited Barcelona, Monte Carlo, Marseilles, Florence, Rome, Dubrovnick, and Venice. Fell in love with Italy and returned the next year for a land tour. I would suggest a September sailing as the weather is still lovely, not as crowded as the summer, and the ship had very few kids.

Good luck making your decision.

If you check both bags, just remember to have something with a change of clothes, ie bathing suit or dinner clothes, you never know how long it will take for your suitcases to arrive. :)

I agree, St. Maarten's is more interesting. The Art around the island is really nice, bus was 20 and tour guide excellent. The artists are very different and the art is reasonable priced ($20 for a small print to ?). They will drop you off downtown and you can either walk or take the water taxi back to the ship.

If you do chose this excursion, make sure you book before you board, as it sells out very quickly. In fact they added a second bus that went a different route, and it was sold out before the cruise began. My friend was on the wait list but no one changed their mind.

Only on embarkation day, Buttermilk Chicken on the Lido, melts in your mouth!

Yes, mine is gone as well!

We like to eat around 6:00 pm, so we usually make a reservation for around that time, I think it has to be made for 5:45 pm and we are a little late getting there. On embarkation day, we find the dining room reservation spot and make our reservations for 3 evenings. Then each night, make another reservation for the third night out.

The only time we have had to wait was on a formal night. They gave us a beeper and we went to the bar, bought a drink and waited for about 5 min until we were buzzed.

Sometimes we have forgotten to make a reservation or are in port etc., we then take whatever table comes up and are seated immediately.

The reason you may not receive emails, Mariner Magazine, etc is that you have directed them not to send. If you have an on line account, "My Account" under preferences, there is a spot that you click yes or no to receive mail, emails and phone calls.

We have always used the safe and never had a problem. We put our passports (only carry a photocopy into ports, unless it is necessary), credit cards, phone, jewelry etc in the first day. If you were uneasy about the safes, I suppose you could put them in your suitcases which are put under the bed.

I am thinking the crew would be risking their job if they stole from the safes. Maybe I am too trusting, but as I said have never had a problem.

My husbands ankles swell when he drinks the ships water, so we bring our own for him, its worth the trouble to have slim ankles!

We were there on a Sat. night in late Aug, and yes, the time seemed to go too quickly BUT they had an amazing fireworks display that lasted for 40 min if I remember correctly. Well worth it.

We were on the Nordaam in Feb. and the waiters brought drinks to us, especially coffee in the morning, hardly were seated and they were there with coffee. Same at lunch with ice tea and lemonade.

We have requested the same wait staff when we find someone who is fun and provides great service. On our last Nordaam cruise, Dotty and his staff, impressed us one night, so we asked for them every other night and so left them a tip at the end.

You may bring one bottle of wine per person and unlimited water and soda, but no beer.