LisaLisa87

1 hour ago, A&L_Ont said:

I was waiting for someone to catch the reference. Could have also passed as a Jimmy Buffet Fins reference. 

I was wondering whether anyone caught your "Cake by the Ocean" reference. I think I'm one of only a handful of people on the planet who liked that song.

Yesterday I booked a Suite GTY for 3 of us on the Wonder in January. I'm aware that we will most likely end up in a JS due to the Royal Up program. I'm just wondering whether they could put us in any JS onboard, including a J4 intended to sleep only 2 people. I didn't realize when I booked how few JS on Wonder sleep more than 2 people. I subsequently looked at the deck plans, and it appears that there are only 16 J3s on decks 6-8 (+ 2 accessible rooms on deck 14). It looks like there are 114 total JS, so by far the majority are J4s which are double occupancy. (Incidentally, that seems like an odd choice on RCI's part.) Any thoughts about whether they could put three of us in a J4?

On a different note, I hate how invoices of late indicate only "GTY" as the category. I called the C&A number to verify what was showing on their end, and they confirmed it showed Suite GTY. I asked if I could get documentation showing that and was told that they weren't able to provide that. This worked out fine with the last GTY I booked (an ocean view balcony GTY), but I hate not having any proof of what I actually booked.

Thanks for any insight regarding on the JS situation!

Thanks for posting! Your photos are gorgeous. 😍 I love a good Labadoozie. Somehow that drink just tastes better there.

1 minute ago, A&L_Ont said:

Owen’s goal is to put Sorento's out of business by the end of the week. 

Good thing they didn't start charging for the pizza there!

We had a great day when we stopped at Roatan during our Harmony cruise a few months ago. So much so that we booked a land trip for February. We had a fantastic week and were never concerned about our safety. We took the same precautions we would take anywhere while traveling (including in. the US). We mostly stayed in the tourist areas, but we did do an island tour with a local who took us pretty much everywhere. There is definitely poverty on the island, but every local we encountered seemed genuinely invested in helping to make sure that tourists felt safe and happy.

We have a 20yo daughter, and I think she'd be bored on Celebrity. She and I both really enjoy the shows and the variety of specialty restaurants on RCI. DD also loves the ice skating (free skate when it's offered) and rock climbing wall. Is there any possibility of doing a 4-night sailing? That might feel a little less chaotic, if it's an option. I don't think I'll sail on Allure again until she's been "amped," but I'd be happy to sail Oasis or Symphony (Wonder so far has been out of our price range).

1 hour ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

It's cute that you think that. 😁

I was thinking the same thing! 😂 

11 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

10 and the view is great. I think there are over 30 stories. 

 

The Intercontinental is our hotel of choice when sailing from Miami too. If you’re in their loyalty program, they give you vouchers for Starbucks at check-in. My only minor gripe is that the elevators can be very slow. We’ve stayed there several times, and once there was actually a queue set up leading into the elevator lobby to organize the line!

Have a great cruise, Andrew, Lisa, and Owen! I’m looking forward to following along. 

Thank you! It didn’t occur to me that gratuities would be higher for Aqua class. I just checked Celebrity’s site, and it looks like the $23 is only for the Retreat. We’ll probably go ahead and book with AI, even though it doesn’t seem like a great deal to me. Drink packages have gotten so expensive!

Thank you for your responses. I should have mentioned that if we switch, we will not be booking a suite. We are definitely not going to cancel outright, so it’s really just a matter of how much of our deposit will apply to the new sailing (which will be substantially less expensive than the current one).

Hello! We have a suite booked on Symphony in January 2025, three people. We’re considering switching to a sailing this fall on a different ship and dropping one guest. I’m expecting $300 in change fees since there are three guests currently on the reservation. What I’m not sure about is whether the entire deposit would be moved to the new sailing or if we would forfeit part of it. Since we booked a suite, the deposit was 10% of the cruise fare vs. $X/person.

Does anyone know? I realize I could call RCI, but I’ve had several experiences getting incorrect information that way. Thanks in advance for any insight!

5 minutes ago, 39august said:

Blu not only has tasty food choices, but is much smaller and thus quieter than the main dining rooms. On Reflection you can also order items from the main dining room menu if you wish. 

21 minutes ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

 

Blu is the reason that most folks sail Aqua Class.

 

 

Thank you both for the feedback about Blu! Would we have a set time to eat there for dinner, or is it more of a "My Time Dining" kind of thing?

47 minutes ago, bikerunner said:

86 per day is not to bad for the all included package.  I have never had trouble with using the loungers in any of the Persian Gardens.  yes there are some people who make it there home for the day but I always was able to get a bed and use the rooms without issue.  Blu I prefer and completely enjoy going to. I usually book aq class rooms as I know I would use the persian and enjoy blu, especially the breakfast and choices for dinner, I always find plenty to have.  If you hit a sale you might be able to save on the drink packages as they just are all over the place, same with wifi.  The drinks below you would need to add 20% onto the final cost for grats.  Are these prices every sailing, no they are all different overall.  This is on a sailing I have coming up.  I would also reccomend, tho not allowed to mention, check out some Cruise Travel agents as they might have group rates for rooms.  I know on the upcoming cruise I got my AL package for less than what Celebrity was selling the room only for when I booked.  

Thank you so much! This is very helpful info. If I could get that price for the premium drink package I'd skip AI. I do know a TA and will check in to see if he has group rates for the two sailings we're considering.

I'm in the early stages of planning a short cruise with my sister to celebrate her 50th birthday later this year. I have mostly sailed with Royal in recent years, but I think Celebrity could be a good fit for us. I'm looking at a 4-night sailing on Reflection, either Key West/CocoCay or Key West/Bimini. She'll need to fly to FL the day before and can't get away for longer than 5 days. A few questions:

1. We would likely book an Aqua Class room as my sister is a spa person. Should we anticipated crowds in the Persian Garden? I've had day passes for the thermal suite on other lines in the past, and it was sometimes difficult to do the things I wanted to do (especially the heated tile loungers).

2. What do you think of Blu? We're both trying to eat healthier these days, but not at the expense of selection or tasty food. How long should we expect dinner to take there?

3. I've read about All Included, but I can't decide whether it's the way to go. We'll definitely want a beverage package and WiFi regardless. Currently, the cost of AI for the two itineraries we're looking at is around $86/person/day. That seems borderline in terms of savings. It's also hard to compare since I won't be able to see the a la carte cost of the drink packages until I've booked.

Thank you for any insight you can provide!

Photo of us from our last cruise together

I did a mock booking for two and the taxes and port charges were $275 total. I hated that I had to enter all our info to find that out. Seemed a little sketchy!

Thanks for sharing your experience! Our next cruise will be on Symphony and I can't wait. Sadly, I have 313 days go go. I appreciate the info shared about Hooked as well. This will be our first sailing on a ship that has Hooked, and we're debating whether to try it.

This is very sad, and I really feel for the family. What a terrible thing for them to have experienced. That said, we spent a week on Roatan last month and a couple of things struck me as I read the Newsweek article.

We spent most of a day doing an island cultural tour with a gentleman that was born and raised on the island. He took us everywhere and talked with us at length about the living conditions on the island. He pointed out the emergency and medical facilities, which were few and far between. Add to that the poor quality of some of the roads, and many people living on the island are faced with lengthy waits for emergency services. This is a third world country, and people need to set their expectations accordingly.

Additionally, it's surprising to me that people on this excursion were encouraged to dive off a dock at West Bay Beach. The water is quite shallow close to shore, and the reef runs pretty close to shore in many places -- both of which make the area extremely popular for snorkeling. We spent quite a bit of time on the stretch of West Bay Beach in question, and I don't recall seeing anyone jumping or diving off any dock.

And finally, I'm not sure why an issue is being made over the fact that Shore Excursioneer failed to tell them who was actually providing the tour. From a number of posts I've seen here and on social media, many people don't seem to realize that companies like SE, Viator, TripAdvisor, etc. are tour consolidators -- they don't actually operate the tours. I try to book directly with local tour operators, but if I were to book through a consolidator and it wasn't clear who was operating the tour, I would ask.

My heart goes out to the family, but I don't see how they could possibly have grounds to sue Royal Caribbean.

21 hours ago, AllySunshine said:

We are looking at the ATV tour and it says the driver age is 12 and up. How was the trail? Bumpy? I have a 12 year old and I'm not sure about allowing him to drive one himself. 

The trail was windy, bumpy, and hilly! I would think your 12 year old might have difficulty unless he has experience riding ATVs.

Something very similar happened on embarkation day for my Oasis cruise last year. This is the same cruise where my sister flew in day of and barely made the ship. While I was waiting for her, I struck up a conversation with a couple sitting on one of the benches outside the terminal. It was their first cruise, and the woman had a foreign passport and didn't realize she would also need her green card. They were lucky because they live 2 hours away and her father was able to swing by their house and pick up the green card. My sister and I boarded the ship at about 3:45pm, and they were still waiting. I saw them on the pool deck that evening and gave them big hugs. What a stressful experience!

12 minutes ago, MNcruisingcouple said:

 

Did my response above answer your vibe question?  I do think they are targeting younger people but if you are open and flexible, you should be fine.  I feel like people who really want the traditional cruise experience may be frustrated.  Honestly, we really liked it and didn't feel "too old".

Yes, it did. Thanks so much! The only other thing making me hesitate is the nonrefundable deposit. We tend to plan pretty far in advance and sometimes need to adjust our dates if things come up. In any case, I think a VV cruise is in our future.

Thanks for posting this! We've been toying with the idea of booking VV so the comparisons are very helpful. You mentioned not being their target demographic. DH and I are both in our early 50s, so we're in the same boat. Did you find that most passengers were younger? What was the overall vibe like? I know that's kind of a vague question, but I'm still having a hard time determining whether a VV cruise would be a good fit for us. Thank you!

ETA: I notice that a PP asked about the vibe as well!

I can't compare them since I've only experienced a bungalow at CC, but DH and I loved the bungalow and the location. When we were there (a few years ago), the cost of the bungalow was considerably cheaper than any of the cabanas. We loved being right on the beach and having easy access to the water. The area was roped off from the public beach area next to it, and for the most part only people who rented the bungalows were in the water in front of them. It was a very relaxing day. A couple of pics:

13 hours ago, PhillyTravelBug said:

I just got the flyer as a travel partner with NCL.  Says bookings will open the 15th and include 11 and 12 night sailings to the eastern Caribbean and 4 and 5 day sailings to the Bahamas.

We live in St. Augustine and are very excited about this! I was hoping there would be some 7 night sailings. We’re not really interested in cruises to the Bahamas at this point, and 11 to 12 nights is tough for us since we’re both still working full-time. On the local news, they mentioned that the Gem will have to work around Carnival’s schedule. I’m looking forward to seeing the itineraries!

On 1/15/2024 at 4:53 PM, zebe912 said:

I know your focus was more on access to the water for snorkeling, but were you happy with the resort you ended up using for your day/beach pass?  Do you think you could've just rented snorkel gear and swum out to snorkel from the shore?

Yes, we definitely could have done that. In fact, that was our original plan. In our case, I don’t think doing that would have saved us much money. We spent so little time at the beach club that I didn’t really form an opinion. I will say that we’ll be visiting Roatan in a few weeks, staying on a different part of the island, and if we get day passes one day, we’ll probably go to Infinity Bay. 
 

On 12/20/2023 at 11:03 AM, TJ O'Pootertoot said:

I'm looking forward to doing a tour with Victor Bodden in a couple of weeks and was also planning on tipping the guide but - if it's not intrusive - can you say roughly how much you ended up tipping everyone? (Still trying to do the math on how much cash we need to bring 😀)

Hi @TJ O'Pootertoot. Just seeing this. If I remember correctly, we tipped as follows:

Driver: $30 (We would have tipped more if he had been a true guide.)

Tour guide at the monkey & sloth sanctuary: $10

Sloth handler: $10

ATV guide and assistant: $10 each

Boat driver/snorkeling guide: $10