ham_bone

1 hour ago, Ourusualbeach said:

You cannot choose between boardwalk and Central park, it is whatever they assign you.

 

to change to the other type or an Oceanview you would pay the current rate on the day you made the change.

 

we have stayed in both BW and CP and honestly I don’t care either way.  We don’t sit out on the balcony I just like it for fresh air and will usually book the cheapest I van find. 

 

 

yeah, I was told we can make a request but that it may not make a difference and they will assign whatever they have and any "upgrade" to an ocean balcony would cost more. 

agree, I like that fresh air and it is nice to have the sun wake us up in the morning but actual time on the balcony is minimal. glad to hear you dont see a difference between the 2.

I think BW view may appeal to our little guy a bit more tho so I will see if they can make that note.  

On 2/9/2021 at 9:10 PM, Ourusualbeach said:

On Oasis class there are two types of balcony guarantees.

 

neighbourhood balcony guarantees (XN)

Oceanview balcony guarantees (XB)

 

if you booked an XB you will get an Oceanview, if you booked an XN you will get a neighbourhood balcony either a Central Park or Boardwalk

 

booked Neighborhood guarantee last night.

No preference yet but were told we can ask when it gets closer to sailing or can pay for ocean balcony if we wanted but on our last cruise we used the balcony maybe for a total of 40 minutes in a week. We paid roughly the same $ for neighborhood balc as we would have for an interior or ocean view room (with Emerald discount rate - DIAMOND after this one tho!)   

Anyone have opinions about central park vs boardwalk balcony? 

3 hours ago, cruisegirl1 said:

We take a guarantee cabin many times. We do it when the guarantee price is significantly lower than picking a cabin. We decide what kind of category we want and go with it.   In every case, we have received a cabin in the category for which we were guaranteed. Nothing higher.  To me, the particular deck makes no difference. As an example, if I had a balcony guarantee, I don’t consider a balcony on deck ten to be any better than a balcony on deck eight. 
 

I only recommend a guarantee cabin if one does not mind where the cabin is located on the ship. If you need to be  others in your party, near an elevator etc., I certainly would NOT  go with a guarantee. 

 

Crown and anchor status has NOTHING to do with the guarantee assignment. 

 

Recently, when we have looked at pricing, the pricing for Royal Caribbean to select a cabin was often more money than if I selected a cabin.  Strange. 
 

good luck OP. 

M

 

 

Yeah the price for us to choose the cabin is over $300 more for the week.
Seems high. We have no mobility issues and kind of wanted to try a balcony that looked over the boardwalk or central park so we wouldn’t hate it if that is where we ended up. Honestly we don’t usually spend much time in the cabin anyways. 

7 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

How old is your Toddler?  If they are under 2 and can sleep in a pack n play then you can call and book a room that usually holds 2 guests which may be cheaper.  It would also allow you to book a group rate with a travel agent.

 Suppose he wont be a toddler this time around because he will have just turned 6!

Considering booking Harmony next Feb '22 and the price savings to let them choose cabin location seems worthwhile because we have to pay for the kiddo (no kids sail free offered yet). 

Wife & I are emerald members, traveling with our toddler & booking balcony (any type).  Have always selected our own cabin. 

Has anyone let them choose for you? If so, how did it go?

Would our emerald status or needing the 3rd bed help in any way?

Thanks for feedback! 

grabbed a couple bottles of “Mangria” before our last cruise because the wife loves sangria and i love booze. It was pretty good and packed more punch than typical wines. She even watered hers down a little with juice. Might grab some before i sail out on Monday. 

On 11/13/2019 at 9:05 PM, xitappers2bx said:

I have never been able to find a hotel in MCO with a shuttle to PC.  When we did this, we picked a hotel in PC with a shuttle to the port, and then rented a car, it was great and much cheaper than a shuttle (and a lot less stress).  You then also have the ability to pick up last minute things which was great, we were able to pack a lot less and just pick things up at the Walmart in PC.  We stayed at the Fairfield, and it was fantastic.  

Thanks  I am going over their options now but rental cars are kinda pricey for that day/weekend because it's a federal holiday (presidents day). My wife and I will be at Disney with our youngest before the cruise and Ubre actually appears to be the best option for us to get from Disney Hotel to the port too.   

1 hour ago, JohninDC said:

You'll pay extra for the car seat service, if it is available.  Better bet is to bring your own seat - the airline will check it for free if you do not use it on the plane.  There are travel booster seats that should work for a 4-year old - check Amazon and target.  Some are inflatable and take up very little room.

Thanks. 

Looks like he is big enough for some of the inflatable ones. Think I'll grab one of those and then just UberXL from the Disney hotel. Car Services are quoting $150 range (plus tip). 

33 minutes ago, JohninDC said:

His best bet is to stay near the MCO airport for the night and then to catch a shared shuttle - about $20+ per person - the next morning to the port.  From the MCO airport to the port is about a 45-55 minute drive - any hotel offering a "free" shuttle for that distance is just building the cost of transport into the room package.

 

Cortrans, Cocoa Beach Shuttle and Go Port Canaveral are the most often suggested shared shuttle options.

Thanks. Sounds like that's gonna be the plan. He can always Uber to somewhere nearby if he wants something to do. 

My son is flying into Orlando (MCO) at 6pm, the evening before we cruise out of port canaveral.

Trying to avoid a rental car and a huge Uber bill if possible.

Can anyone recommend a hotel in Orlando with transportation to the port? 

Or maybe a decent hotel at the port with free shuttle to the port? 

We are doing the exact same thing with a 4 year old in February. 

Best option seems to be to Uber (as long as they are still offering the car seat service for us).

Unless someone can recommend a good car service to book ahead...

We have been on a few cruises during football season and have always been able to catch the games we wanted to see. The last time was on the Freedom and they had all the games on in the "On Air Club". We ended up making Nacho plates up in the windjammer, grabbing Beers, Pizza & sandwiches in the Promenade Cafe and bringing it all down and creating our own little sports bar! It was a good time and they ended up sending bar servers down to keep the drinks flowing. If the game you are trying to see is one of the national games, it could be on in most bars or lounges or maybe even the pool deck.  

Have a great time! 

PATRIOTS & TB12 for 7 LFG!!!

On 5/19/2019 at 12:55 PM, SRQbeachgirl said:

 

So...if--and it's a big if--we decide to look into Uber or Lyft, how exactly does it work? Yes, I'm a complete ride-share novice. I looked up Uber's website and it looks like we would want the Uber XL, but do we have to wait until we get off the ship to order a ride, then hope there will be a ride available? Or can we book in advance in order to have certainty that our ride will be there?

We UBER on vacation or in cities quite a bit and have had great luck with it. Have even used them for transportation on disney property a bunch. I have never used it with a car seat or for more than a short ride tho and that is what has us a little concerned. If it were just adults or no car seats were required, I wouldnt hesitate to try them if you havent. The service is typically much better than a cab.  

On 5/17/2019 at 5:34 PM, JohninDC said:

Most of those shuttle leave from MCO and nearby hotels, not WDW. Shuttle fares are usually $20-25 per person. Check Cocoa Beach Shuttle and Cortrans. You could take Disney bus back to the airport to catch the shuttle.

 

$80+ for Uber sounds like a better option, or look at a one way car rental.  All of the rental agencies offer free shuttles to the port after you return the car.

I have used cortrans before and really liked them, but they only show MCO to the port on their site.

I think we are going to be using them to get back to the airport after the cruise anyways. Maybe I'll call and ask them what they think. 

Uber is sounding like the better option but we have some hesitations with the car seat situation. 

41 minutes ago, cb at sea said:

If you google "Orlando to Port Canaveral shuttles" you will get MANY options!  Figure on paying around $15-20 pp.  It's about an hour drive, give or take, so $81 for the entire family isn't so bad!

WOW! Never heard of this Google thing before!!! ITS AMAZING!!!

Thanks for the help.

Was curious if people here had solid recommendations based on personal experience. 

I'm sure it's been answered before but I cant find a thread. 

Looking for recommendations to get from a Disney hotel to Port Canaveral for 2 adults and a 4 year old (will need booster/car seat). 

Uber offers a car seat service and estimates it at $81 for the ride but I would prefer a sure thing if its not ridiculous $. 

Are there any Shuttle service recommended?  

Thanks! 

When our 1st 2 boys (also 3 years apart) were that age, they had tons to do on the Mariner and that was before they added the slides and flowrider to the ship.  They will find plenty of things to stay occupied with and Royal did a great job with having activities for all age groups posted in the adventure ocean area and in the compass'.  The 11 year old will be in a more "regulated/structured" group and the 14 yr old will have a lot more freedom to come & go from lounge-style areas that the older kids used more as a spot to meet up with people. They/we offered our younger son to be with his brother in the older group areas but they actually each did their own thing for most of the day.

The 1st cruise we had to "force" our older son (very shy at the time) to at least try the adventure ocean program for a day and he ended up really liking it to the point he begged us to let him go to all the extra hours there as well. It was really a great thing for them to be able to be individuals, and then for us all to be together. 

After their 1st, cruising is all they ever asked to do for vacations...     

Have a great trip!

Last time we went to Atlantis, we took a taxi from the port and paid for what we wanted to do rather than buying a package from the cruise line. The adults just did the aquarium and walked around the resort while the kids did the aquarium & water park package. The downfall was that the adults were not allowed in the pool areas. Still a beautiful resort and I think we are going back there on our next cruise too. 

Add 18% per day on to these daily charges. ie: Premium package is 57.82 a day, Ultimate package is 64.90 a day.

 

http://media.royalcaribbean.com/content/shared_assets/pdf/menus/beverage_packages.pdf

yup! I like to have a few drinks (especially on vacation) and I figured

a couple Captain & Cokes or beers during the day,

a wine at dinner,

a cocktail for the show & maybe more after (depending on what we were doing) was going to add up to more than the $57.82/day for me. I didnt buy the package for the 1st day because I brought wine aboard but the $347 package is the least I have spent on a 7 day bar tab...

ive done the ultimate st john tour twice, you get off the ship right when you get there, then to the boat, what I hate is that i have gotten sea sick on those little boats twice as the water has always been rough between the islands.

first time i went we skipped the plantation and did all day beach, second time we went to see the plantation glad we did as the view is great.

enjoy.

the seas were :rougher than normal" for our ride over but the boat we were on for this excursion was pretty big. I did see a smaller boat go out with another group before us & I wonder if that was the "ultimate tour". the 2 tours on with us were the "self explore" & the "Coastal Cruise of National Park Beaches" so maybe thats why they use the bigger boat?

For those who have taken the excursions boat over to St John, how soon after the ship's arrival at St Thomas does it depart? Is it within the first hour? Then what time does it depart St John relative to the ship's departure?

 

I've always done St John on my own to maximize our time there, but if the exursions boat offered a comparable timetable, we'd consider it just to avoid the trouble and expense of taxis to and from Red Hook at St Thomas.

we left for the island at 9:30. woulda been sooner but had to wait for some stragglers. spent the day there and were back to the ship are about 45mins before we left. Ship itineraries are different so I imagine they would do the same. we were happy knowing that our excursion group wasnt going to get left behind

Did you stop at The Tap in Mongoose Junction? One of the owner's is a Rhode Islander. Great assortment of beer brewed in their own brewery.

i did NOT, but we walked thru mongoose junction. had nachos & drinks at Margarita Phils right next door tho. I will make it a point to stop in next time. It was so nice in stJ we are talking about going there for a week

just got back from freedomOTS the other day.

NO beer bag specials

NO more shooters after dinner

NO way I could've gone a-la-cart as the prices are as absurd.

Went with the $49/day premium package & it was worth it for me. I think it will attract more people to cruising. I have friends that wont cruise because of the bar tabs and only do all-inclusive resorts.

So, we did the basic RCCL package for $39pp and ended up on the same ferry to StJ as the guided tour that goes around the island, but we were dropped off at the 1st stop. The ride over was rough (he said rougher than normal) but it was only about 30 mins and there was air conditioned seating for anyone who wanted it. my wife gets sea sick easily and she was fine. The guide was great and pointed out some celeb homes & famous spots and also gave tons of information about the islands. He really seemed to enjoy what he was doing. When we arrived at StJ he asked what we all wanted to do and before he headed off for his tour, he got us all situated with taxis (clean, professional, open air group transportation) to where we wanted to go. We headed to trunk bay (10-15mins of nice scenery) and its the most beautiful beach I have ever been to. set up camp in a shaded area then me & the boys headed off snorkeling the trail & it was great. After snorkeing we hit the bar/snack shack and my teenage boys (17&19) bought their 1st beers and smirked at their mother as she gave them hell for it while they each enjoyed a cold one. Snorkel gear was rented for $5ea with a $20ea deposit but keep an eye on her when you return because she tried to stiff us saying we only gave 2 sets of flippers back after she had taken one pair off the counter. In fairness, she was definitely stoned and ended up giving back our deposit. Taxied back to pier & enjoyed some nachos and a couple more beers at some nearby bars, then explored the area and did some shopping before the meetup time for the ferry back. Ride back was smoother and more relaxed. I really cant recommend it enough and feel blessed my wife & I were able to share such a great day with our boys as we realize these opportunities are fading fast.

was just there last week and had a GREAT time!

Spent a few hours and chilled. Theres bars, casinos and shops at each end of the beach.

Can bring your own snorkeling gear and theres a good spot to snorkel on the left side of the beach (looking to sea).

Taxi was $9pp each way & I strongly recommend only taking the authorized state taxi service and NOT using the "gypsies" that approach you to take you back to the ship. The official guys are in lot next to sunset bar and were very professional & clean.

The ride back was quick (15-20) because we were the only ship in port but they say to give an hour in case of delays.