sjmbruce

Alright I think I have my last question: During booking, when I choose airfare, ground transportation is automatically added at a price of over $300. If we plan to arrive a few days before the cruise and leave a couple days after disembarking, we wouldn't be using their shuttle. Can that be refunded (even OBC would be fine) or is that a cost we'd just eat? Or given the distance from port to city (like Le Havre to Paris) maybe it would make sense to take their transportation to the airport and just leave from there in a cab.

Ugh, yes. Not only do I love to plan our travels, but my nervousness also makes me like having some control over the planning phase. My extended family took a cruise earlier this year and my Dad wanted all of us to use his travel agent. I was not a fan.

So it sounds like NCL basically books you on the flights, then you call the airline to request seat assignments? Also, who would I contact to have flights scheduled a few days before and after the cruise? I'd make that request at least 75 days prior to sailing, but how soon before thst could I call? Thank you for sharing your knowledge!

DH and I are looking at a cruise deal that includes BOGO flights. I have always booked our flights, so I'm a little nervous. 1. We're in the US, the cruise is in Europe. Will they fly us in the day before the cruise? Or will they cut it close on the same day? 2. Can we request to fly in a day or two early and fly out a day or two after we disembark? 3. Will our seats be next to each other? 4. How reasonable are they regarding layovers? A super long or incredibly short layover would not be fun.

DH and I are looking at a cruise deal that includes BOGO flights. I have always booked our flights, so I'm a little nervous. 1. We're in the US, the cruise is in Europe. Will they fly us in the day before the cruise? Or will they cut it close on the same day? 2. Can we request to fly in a day or two early and fly out a day or two after we disembark? 3. Will our seats be next to each other? 4. How reasonable are they regarding layovers? A super long or incredibly short layover would not be fun.

What can I use Royal Caribbean gift cards for?

For the first time ever I am sailing in Europe (embark in Venice, disembark in Barcelona). Are the menus in the MDR or the food at the buffet different than US based sailings? I guess I am just wondering if there are any regional dishes or if it will be similar to any other itinerary offerings.

DH and I receieved our assignment for our October 2023 sailing. I'm not excited about the cabin location, but it doesn't look like the Enchantment has a comparable cabin to our old assignment on the Brillance. Also, the ports are the same but the times have changed. For example, Rome was 11a-10p, now its 9a-8p.

We were disappointed with the Chill Island beach as well - there was an overabundance of slimy seaweed. But we had already booked/paid for a day bed set up (which was incredibly nice) so we chose to stay around there for the day.

I talked to Royal today via Facebook messenger (just easier when I'm at work). They said that our reservation was "redeployed" and I should have received an email with information. I have not received any communication with Royal. I asked them to send me the email and I haven't heard anything back in hours. I'm not too worried about the ship and our cabin. We only have one sea day and will be off the ship as much as possible. We're booked in an inside cabin and my only preference is to be in a spot where cabins are also above and below us. We are really looking forward to the ports and booked with a great price, so I'm still hoping that this all works out. I'm still a little irritated that we have to make a decision by August 18th and still have zero information from Royal.

Could you please let me know why you'd advise taking the refund?

Brilliance of the Seas, October 2023

Thank you. I booked directly through their website but unfortunately I never received any information about the swap from Royal. So thankful for this website and fellow cruisers!

I found it, thank you for all of your help tonight.

Thank you, that information makes me feel a little less heart broken. I'll hold back the tears until tomorrow.

I wish this was the case for us, ours is out of Italy.

Customer service is closed and I'm in a minor panic. I logged onto Royal's website to take a look at an upcoming cruise I booked. It says I "have one canceled cruise" and "we're sorry but your voyage has been canceled". When I do a mock booking, new bookings are still being sold. Any ideas or do I need to just sweat this out until tomorrow morning? Edited to add that our cruise begins in Italy and ends in Barcelona.

Thanks for the advice! I'm going to try to book two different one way transfers and see if anyone on my roll call wants to share the ride/costs.

I’m trying to maximize our time in Rome and hope that spending some money will help achieve that goal. Is there a private car company that will provide round trip service from the port to/from Rome? I’d like to get picked up at the port and dropped off at the Colosseum (or the Pantheon, depending on tour times) and then end the day by getting a ride back to the port from near St. Peter’s Basilica.

With our limited time I suspected traveling to another town wouldn't be worth it. Thanks for reminding me to have a bottle of wine!

Thank you both for the advice and information! Our cruise is in October and Cannes is the last stop. I think maybe we'll take the petit train and try to make a small picnic to eat on the beach.

Cannes

Our ship is tendered from 7:30-2:00. I figure we'll only have four or five hours, at best, to explore the port. What should we do?

So I'm thinking that we should probably leave Venice by 11am.

How late can we check in on day one? Will there be transfers available day one? So far my plan is to fly into Venice and spend a couple days there, stay in Venice as long as we can on day one, then go to Ravenna that evening to check in. Day two we'll stay in Ravenna and explore there.