Starry Eyes

It is unlikely that most D+ cruise 6-8 times per year minimum. Likely there are many D+ who cruise 1-4 times per year and gradually built up points over many years of cruising. CruiseCritic posts are not representative and naturally draw more posts from the high frequency cruisers.

I think the availability of the cabin you are bidding on and the amount of money you bid for that cabin matter a great deal. I think the general category you reserved also matters, though I suspect your invoice price makes little or no difference.

No, your two cruises have separate reservation numbers. You would have to bid separately for each cruise. You could win one cruise and lose the other. The offers one cruise may be different prices than the other. If you are interested you do not necessarily have to have an email to bid for the other cruise too Try to sign in with the other reservation number. Here is the link https://www.royalcaribbean.com/booked/cruise-room-upgrade

If you’d like to see it in writing from them, you could google “does (fill in the blank) participate in cruise bidding programs” It bugs some of their customers when they learn this, so we see posting about it on this board regularly. Next time you book, you’ll know in advance.

I think not. While none of us know the details of the RoyalUp algorithm, we have seen newbies, Pinnacles and everyone in between report both wins and losses.

There are phone numbers for their insurance desk on this contact list. I hope it helps. https://creative.rccl.com/Sales/Royal/General_Info/Flyers/13033980_Sales_Contact_List.pdf

Based on this FAQ, I thought the ETT also helped other guests. Perhaps not. Q What happens if I miss my boarding due to travel delays? Guests who miss their cruise due to travel delays can contact the Emergency Travel Team (ETT) to discuss their options going forward. In specific situations, when the guest has the proper documentation, it is possible to join the cruise at the next port of call, but all options must be discussed with ETT.

I found this. I’ve never needed to use it, so no personal experience Emergency Travel Team 24*7 (365 days a year) (800) 256-6649 (305) 539-4107 select option “2” EmergencyTeam@rccl.com

That must be another recent, step toward normalcy😃. There were no beverages or snacks in T5 Suite/Pin area when we boarded Nov 19. If OP get T6, though…?

Check the linked schedule carefully as I don’t know your exact dates. Indy has been at T1. Mariner has been at T5 but will transition to T1. Be sure you check where your Mariner cruise will return. No, we did not use the transfer. We returned the transfer tags and optioned regular tags. Our plan mirrored yours (with a stop on turnaround day in Cape Canaveral). Wonder’s return was delayed a day due to a medical emergency, so we drove to the hotel provided by Royal, then back to returned to board Wonder the next day. I hope that does not happen to you. Do you want to hit the road early after your second cruise? If so, you probably want to move the car to the correct garage. If not, leaving it in T1 garage might save some $. One prepays for parking in garage 1, so you will only pay for your Indy cruise; not the extra days you are on Mariner.

Don’t count on the coffee and snacks. The amenities depend upon the Terminal. I saw a mention of Jewel of the Seas sailing Jan 6 in your threads. Is that correct? If so, we disembark that day so I know your is scheduled to be an unusual day as there will be three Royal Caribbean ships boarding in PC. Therefore Jewel is scheduled at Terminal 6 (usually a Carnival terminal). Nobody can tell you what amenities they might give Royal’s suite guests in this usual circumstance. I believe you will return to terminal 5. The two terminals appear close together. Here is the schedule so you can see for yourself https://www.portcanaveral.com/getattachment/Cruise/Cruise-Lines-Schedules/CPA-Website-Schedule-Nov22-Mar23.pdf.aspx?lang=en-US

Last month we sailed Jewel (T5) followed by Wonder (T1) at Port Canaveral. During our Jewel cruise we received a voice mail message that they recognized that we were sailing Wonder and would provide special tags and a transfer. It was basically the last tag number. It was nice, though I wish they asked if we wanted the service rather than assume we did. We drove to port, parked the car in the T5 garage, and wanted to make the transfer ourselves instead so we could make a stop in Cape Canaveral and park the car in garage 1. The port map you saw sounds questionable if it has Jewel at T1. I do’t know if this schedule goes far enough for your cruise, but maybe it will help https://www.portcanaveral.com/getattachment/Cruise/Cruise-Lines-Schedules/CPA-Website-Schedule-Nov22-Mar23.pdf.aspx?lang=en-US

If all four people are sharing one cabin, I’d say having all four fit well together is very important. I think you wise to replace only with great care or sail with three. Have a wonderful cruise.

The other point of this email: Some people would consider an upgrade more trouble than it is worth after checking in at the pier (or the night before or whenever their personal cut off for more trouble than it is worth). This email reminds them to cancel their bids when they personally reach that point. Other people want the upgrade, even if they have already unpacked. They can let their bids stand, though the odds of a late acceptance seem quite low.

Your cabin will have a thermostat, though it seems easier to make some cabins comfortable than other cabins. And some people experience the ship temperature differently than others. On our last cruise young, athletic newbie cruisers from the Midwest told us (Florida retirees) that the ship was too cold all week; a rather funny reversal. They regretted not bringing warmer clothes as they felt the ship was over air conditioned; you may want to consider that possibility as you pack

If another guest on your reservation has a different last name, you might try the other name. There are a few travel agents (including a big box agency starting with C…I won’t name them due to CC rules)that do not participate in RoyalUp (or any other cruise bidding program). If you booked with such an agent, you cannot participate. There are reports of guests who do not receive bid offers for unknown reasons on some sailings though the same guest does on other sailings. That has not happened to me, knock on wood.

Her schedule was altered for the holiday. No ships are scheduled in PC tomorrow https://www.portcanaveral.com/getattachment/Cruise/Cruise-Lines-Schedules/CPA-Website-Schedule-Nov22-Mar23.pdf.aspx?lang=en-US

OP said PC this am. Posting this on Royal Caribbean boards, suggests it might be the only Royal Caribbean ship disembarking at Port Canaveral today, Independence OTS (4N cruise). There were multiple ships from other lines in PC today.

We have been impressed with quality of food at our Cheers with Officer lunches on recent cruises on both Jewel and Wonder.

Now that we cannot see our options and make selection online, I suspect awareness of the welcome beverages (for D and above) and the D+/PC amenities has decreased…in addition to the inconvenience

I remember the single serving wine bottles; that was our choice then. I remember when they were discontinued. (Of course, Boucher are way better than little wine bottles) I double checked the list. Diamonds are not able select beer as a welcome beverage. Diamonds can select water, soda or juice. D+/PC have those options plus beer.

I thought water or soda were D welcome amenities while beer was added to that list for D+.

People are bound to sail other lines at some point for a variety of reasons. Curiosity, to join friends, a theme cruise, a change of pace for the frequent cruiser, an itinerary Royal doesn’t offer (or not at the right time, a bargain price, etc. So many cruise lines, so many reasons. It is not cost effective to design a loyalty program that will effectively sway most people from trying other lines. They are instead offering great ships that will attract new and returning cruisers. Look at the other ships; book Royal Caribbean if it is the best choice for you. Though you have not bothered to compare it, Royal Caribbean’s loyalty program is excellent compared to others. You simply don’t get much at the low levels of cruise loyalty programs. As all the cruiseline do that, they may be correct (or, your argument might be self-serving)

Maybe they should try CCL. We tried them once years ago. It did not suit us; it felt like we were on somebody’s else’s cruiseline. HAL felt way too old when we tried them, but we have aged. I’m still not sure we want to go back to HAL. OTOH, we have been happy on NCL, Celebrity and Princess. We’d happily sail with them again. Sometimes you need to sail a different line to know what suits.

No offense but the newbies are drawn to Royal Caribbean by the awesome ships. They design the ships to attract young families and it works really, really well. If a newbie family is only doing one big vacation a year, that family has many options to weigh and, frankly, should not be swayed by the relatively small benefits any cruiseline loyalty program might offer. Go pick the best once a year vacation for your family and make the best memories you can that week. If that vacation happens to be Royal Caribbean enough times, the points will gradually build up. Some infrequent cruisers book junior suites or full suites, thus moving up the loyalty program at twice the speed. Those of us who D, D+, or Pinnacle are not “locked in” to Royal Caribbean, LOL. We just love to cruise. Many of us have been cruising for many years and/or are retired. Plenty of us cruise other lines, too. There’s no risk of a shop with 6000 “one and done” passengers. On the mega ships I’ve been on lately over 50% of the passengers are returning guests. Of course some people only cruise once; cruising is not for everyone. Of course some people will switch (or switch back) to a different cruiseline.