Hypo

You will never find your stateroom number on any sea pass card on any line that you sail for security reasons.

The stateroom number is on there, it is slightly disguised in that they omit the deck number.

For example, cabin 8660 on deck 8, will have the numbers 660 somewhere on the card face.

They are trying to prevent miscreants from throwing them overboard during the night.

We have always gotten our luggage within 10 minutes of arriving at our cabin.

Just lay down for a pre dinner nap and your luggage will arrive, guaranteed.:p

Are you saying the GOES cost $125?

I believe that is correct. Check into TSA's Pre-Check; it is $85.00/pp for 5 years

Thank you for the review and the photos! We are also in a grand suite and this is the first time someone posts a picture of the closet. It's bigger than I thought it would be. Did you order breakfast and lunch from the Concierge Lounge? Eating main dining room breakfast in the CL is strange. I was under the impression that we could order from a separate menu that offered omelettes and not just a buffet. Can't wait to read the rest especially the Blaze story. We had an interesting experience as well when we last sailed on the Allure.

 

Concierge lounge does not serve food from the MDR. There is a separate breakfast and lunch menus solely for the CL. The food is prepared in the galley that is behind the second level of the CL. This is the same galley that is used for the Chef's Table preparations.

 

They had very good omelets, with grilled tomato and hash browns. Also could get a standard eggs, bacon hash brown breakfast. Also bagel and lox with all of the trimmings. For lunch mini burger "sliders"m chicken sandwich and some other stuff. I never went ther for lunch since I preferred the Park cafe Kummelweck sandwiches.

 

If you are in a GS suite or above, you can order from the MDR menus for any meal whenever the MDR is open. Those orders are delivered by room service to your cabin for eating in your cabin or on your balcony.

Removing the sounds is another cost cutting move.

Suite guests (GS or better) have access to the Concierge Lounge, but not the Diamond Lounge.

When we were on Oasis a year ago, suite guests that were also Diamond or above had access to the Diamond lounge and the Concierge Lounge.

I went to both depending on which was closest at the time to get a cup of cappuccino.

The Concierge Lounge serves sit down breakfast from a limited menu which had the best omelet that we ever have had on a crluise ship. They also have a lunch menu with burgers fried fish and other assorted items, in addition to the cold foods buffet and pastries that are also served in the Diamond lounge.

Park Cafe. Kummelweck sandwich (rare roast beef)

I would rather have a free cruise, and then pay for the internet usage that i need. (obviously I would use little or no internet access).

On Oasis a couple of years ago, our newly-21 yr old son found out what Long Island Ice Teas are!:rolleyes:

When he stumbled back to the cabin at 4 AM and couldn't get in because he had lost his key, I had to go to Guest Services to get a new one.

While going to and from, I observed the ships security personnel doing a sweep of every location. They looked under benches, behind bushes and under and behind all large furniture. When they found a few sleeping drunks, they escorted them back to their cabins.

BTW, DS has sworn off Long Island Ice Teas; the mere though makes him physically ill.:D

Those shipping containers do not actually have any generators installed. They have been put on all of the ships to provide emergency storage for all of the canned SPAM that they will feed you when they next lose power on a ship.:D

I don't think the issue is so much being denied boarding the ship (they want your money) as it is what Immigration wants when you try to re-enter the USA.

They already have your money! (most of it, anyway)

Read your Contract, if you are denied boarding because of id issues there is no refund.

Another vote for deck 8. Be aware that on deck 7, you cannot cross from one elevator bank to the other side at the aft elevators. There is no passageway from the port to starboard side (at the rear elevators). They had to do this to allow for the entryway to Boardwalk on deck 6

We shoot for 10:30 till 11:00 to arrive at the pier.

We have a wonderful TA. She will match any price and extras that we find anywhere else. You can get numerous things with a TA and if you get a good one they are great to have. We have always gotten OBC with ours and other things. She is always available when I have a question or if there is a price drop. We have had her for several years and just love her.

 

If you don't mind telling me, where do you live? We live in Hope.

Russellville

What does your TA get out of this arrangement?

She still gets a commission in accordance with their contract with RCCL. Her agency just gives back about 10% of the comissionable fare as OBC.

We book directly with RCCL using online booking. Once we get our booking number we transfer it to our favorite TA for some generous OBC. Our TA is located in New Mexico.

mgoecke AT live.com

We get a scooter from Care Vacations for DW to use during our cruises.

Care Vacations will deliver it to the ship and it will be waiting in your cabin. Alternatively, do as we do. We have it delivered to our pre cruise hotel and DW has use of it there. When time to go to the ship, the valet's just put it in the back of the van with the luggage and off we go to the cruise. The nice thing about this arrangement, is that we do not have to wait prior to boarding the ship to find some assistance to push her up the boarding ramps like we would have to do if we were using a wheelchair.

Whichever means you use to get on the ship, be extremely careful on the boarding ramps. The turns can be tricky and you can turn over. Be particularly careful of the last, small ramp before you actually go onto the ship. It is steeper than the rest of the gangway ramps, and if you try to just drive a scooter up you can tip over backwards. DW did this on our last cruise, fortunately she was not hurt. Just stop at the top of the gangway, before the small ramp, and ask whomever is attending for some assistance.

When the cruise is over, you just leave the scooter in the cabin and Care Vacations will pick it up from the ship. On Allure and Oasis it was done in a slightly different manner. We were directed to take the scooter to just outside the On Air Club, where DW transferred to a regular wheelchair that an RCCL employee will push into the terminal. The scooter was left at the On Air Club for Care Vacations to pick up. Be sure to bring the battery charger and cords with the scooter, and leave the key in it.

Once inside the terminal they will seat you in a waiting area and leave you there. Another shoreside employee will come with a wheelchair to assist you in getting your luggage, going through Customs, and out to the curbside transportation.

Are you volunteering to be the first one?:D

I know that for one cruise out of Galveston, a few years ago, they were confiscating everything in a bottle. (Including DW's half finished bottle of water).

They were stacking it on a big cart and definitely did not return any of it to the passengers at the end of the cruise.

We did the Chef's dinner once on Oasis and enjoyed it. That said we won't do it again. It took over three hours. There will be four or five courses, an appetizer, vegetable type dish, usually an amuse bouche, The main entree usually beef or veal, and dessert. There will also be wine paired with each course. The sommelier will explain each wine before pouring, the chef will explain each of the courses and what his or her inspiration was for the dish.

They will definitely make arrangements to accommodate any food preferences or allergy's that are brought to their attention.

Since you have the drink package, and are vegetarian, I would think your money could be better spent elsewhere. I would note that the wines that are served are not usually available on the other dining venue's wine lists.

Mark

We too, leave the wood door open to the frig cubicle. By doing so you aid in the removal of the compressor heat from the cabinet. Unfortunately, this trick won't work on Allure and Oasis (maybe other ships too). On Allure and Oasis the wood door is attached with a strap to the frig door. Whenever you open the wood door it also opens the frig door. I suggested that they remove the plastic strap, but of course they never listen to us simple passengers.

With any cabin that is that far forward and lower decks, be prepared for some noise if you have any tender ports in your itinerary.

When they drop the anchor, you will think that the ship has been attacked by a full spread of torpedos. It is really loud when the chain and anchor goes down.

We use CareVacations to rent a scooter for DW. I think they will fit thru the regular balcony cabin door. But, I know for sure that they easily fit thru the door on a Grand Suite. We always arrive in the port city a day or two early. You can have the scooter delivered to your hotel, and then take it to the ship with you. (Or, as others have said, they will put it in your cabin on the ship. If it is in the cabin, you can go get it before they open the cabins up for general passenger access). Since we are usually using the van from the hotel to the ship, the valet's just pick it up and put it in the back of the van. At the end of the cruise, we leave it on the ship and they will have crew members available with wheel chairs to assist you in getting into the building and out to your transportation.

Mark

Thanks guys for the quick replies.

I just booked Oasis for 11/08/2014 and received a Senior Discount.

On the cost breakdown for the booking it shows that my discount was $250.00 more than the discount for DW.

Do I still need to call them to get the balcony discount or is this how it is being applied now? It seems that it would simplify their process if they just applied all applicable discounts that a customer is entitled to.

Mark