MVasa70

Works in port too.

Great, thank you!

I've searched and can't seem to find a clear answer. But is the VOOM service available only while at sea? Or does it work while at port too? Sorry if it's been asked and answered.

thx

Hmmm interesting. It's nowhere on their website, and in fact the link for submitting is still active and it let me submit the 2nd one today with no issues. Until I called, that is. The first referral that I submitted in late Jan/early Feb just posted today (April 18th sailing date). Thx for your responses!

 

www.RoyalCaribbean.com/BringaFriend

 

Update: they gave me the 2nd OBC even though I submitted the referral after March 8th (and despite my calling and being informed that the program was discontinued and I should have done it prior to 3/8)! I was surprised to see it applied. The link is no longer working though so it has officially ended. I guess because the link was still technically active they probably let it go through.

Hmmm interesting. It's nowhere on their website, and in fact the link for submitting is still active and it let me submit the 2nd one today with no issues. Until I called, that is. The first referral that I submitted in late Jan/early Feb just posted today (April 18th sailing date). Thx for your responses!

www.RoyalCaribbean.com/BringaFriend

Hello, did anyone receive any notification from RCCL that they were discontinuing the Bring a Friend program as of March 8th? I am sailing in two weeks with two other parties who both are first time RCCL cruisers. I submitted the "bring a friend" referral for the first one back in February, and dragged my feet in submitting the 2nd one until today. The rules were that you had to do it at least 7 days before the sail date. I was able to seemingly submit online today, but couldn't access any information on status. So I called a little while ago and was told that as of March 8th they no longer have this program, which means I am only getting credit for the one I submitted in February. I don't recall receiving any information anywhere about this! I want to try and push for the 2nd referral OBC but before I do am curious if anyone saw any alerts?? I want to kick myself for procrastinating.

Less than 15 minutes, $5 pp? There are towels and chairs provided, snag a chair ASAP (we just grabbed one for our family of 7 to put out stuff and for a meeting/sitting spot). I’ve read you can eat breakfast, we just ate on the ship. You can check in and out at the same time.

Thank you!!!

Well, this kind of derailed... the original discussion steered towards a topic that would be of interest to those of us traveling to Cuba on a cruise ship....specifically a Royal Caribbean cruise ship...and what the impact of a letter that Royal has been distributing, regarding Tours taken by its passengers, would be. It appears like a lot of us are being forced to take a tour sponsored by Royal that we have no interest in taking, but it is apparently the only way for us to leave the ship. Hopefully the discussion can get back to that topic.

 

 

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Ok, I've been doing some digging, and it seems there are TWO ways under which US Citizens typically will enter Cuba on a cruise ship. Either the "People to People" option, which is ONLY allowable as part of a group educational activity (such as a RC excursion, which complies with this). The law changed in 2017. Prior to this, people were allowed to travel under this category as individuals, as long as they were engaged in educational activities. (i.e. independent tours on their own). THIS is the option RCCL promotes because it is in their best interest to do so. People think they have to buy their excursions to satisfy this requirement. All of the FAQ's and reference to travel to Cuba in RC's materials and website are pertinent to this "people to people" option, which again, is ONLY available for traveling in organized groups.

There is a 2nd option, which, in the Royal Caribbean travel certificate form, is conveniently located among the list of "Other" travel reasons toward the bottom of the page. This option is called "Support for the Cuban People" and this one DOES allow you to book private tours, or walk around on your own in Cuba. As long as you are engaging in activities supporting the Cuban people. For example, booking a private tour with a local tour guide is a legitimate activity, as it supports Cuban private entrepreneurs. RC is vague when asked whether or not we are allowed to venture on our own because they don't want to share that we can if we check off this option. They want to steer us toward the "people to people" selection in order to sell us their group excursions, which do comply with that Cuba license category. See their form here:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/cuba/content/uploads/2017/11/Cuba.Guest_.Cert_.Final_.Nov_.14.pdf

The "Support for Cuban People" category, by the way, reads as follows:

Support for the Cuban people. I am traveling to Cuba to engage with recognized human rights organizations,independent organizations designed to promote a rapid, peaceful transition to democracy, or individuals and non-governmentalorganizations that promote independent activity intended to strengthen civil society in Cuba; AND my schedule of activitiesdoes not include free time or recreation in excess of that consistent with a full-time schedule (31 C.F.R. § 515.574)

You can see the instructions here (4th bullet of page 3):

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/cuba/content/uploads/2017/11/Cuba.Guest_.Instructions.Final_.Nov_.14.Rev_.pdf

Here is a document from the US Treasury that provides more information on page 3.

https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/Programs/Documents/cuba_fact_sheet_11082017.pdf

Hope this helps!

Thanks the threads here :) I learned about the check-in/check-out tip to gain access to the Atlantis Aquaventure Day Pass. There are exactly 8 of us, so by booking two rooms for 4 people each, for a total of about $810 we are saving $300 and $432 instead of buying directly from Atlantis and RC respectively (so yay!!).

My questions are:

For those of you who have done this, how long is the taxi ride from the ship and approximately how much was the fare?

Do you get lounge chairs and towels once at the resort?

Is it ok to tell the hotel that you plan to check in and check out at the same time?

Can we take advantage of the breakfast buffet even if we can't "technically" check in until later in the day? :)

Thanks so much for the tips!!

"Guests are required to have a visa to travel to Cuba, however Royal Caribbean will facilitate this for our guests at a cost of $75 per person. This fee will be added to your onboard account on Day 1 of the cruise. Each guest will receive their Visa during embarkation in Miami and will be responsible for providing their Visa to the Cuban authorities upon arrival in Cuba. If a guest loses their Visa, they will be able to purchase a new Visa onboard at an additional cost of $75. Should guests opt to remain onboard the ship and decide not to disembark while in Cuba, the purchase of a Visa is not required."

RC says they'll provide the visa to you at embarkation for $75; they can't force you to get your own since this clearly says they'll do it.

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I read the FAQ's and am surprised that they didn't just list the 12 general licenses so you can check one. This is what my cruiseline (Oceania) did. By making you choose one of the 5 boxes, it is a bit confusing and I can see why someone might not be sure which one to choose. If you want to do a private tour or walk around on your own, it looks like Box 2 would be the one. No one will be monitoring you (or any other passenger) to see what you're doing. Just walk off the ship, go through immigration (be sure NOT to smile at the officer and take off glasses or hats) and give them your passport and visa, go to the money exchange booth, then go down the long stairs to the right and out onto the street! Before you leave home, print yourself a map of Old Havana (Habana Vieja) and go have fun!!

Thanks so much for taking the time to look at the link! I took a closer look at the form, and it looks like in Box 4 it lists all the other reasons, and "Support for the Cuban People" is one of them. Argh, they make it purposely confusing. Thanks again. Will get some more clarification and planning tomorrow.

We attended the Buena Vista Social Club show at the gorgeous Melia Cohiba hotel - right on the malecon. The show was fantastic!! It's Cuban/latin jazz music, with dancers and singers in addition to the band. I don't care for Las Vegas-type shows so we skipped the Tropicana.

Great info! Thank you! Quick question - the "Support for Cuban People" rule is as follows:

Support for the Cuban people.I am traveling to Cuba to engage with recognized human rights organizations, independent organizations designed to promote a rapid, peaceful transition to democracy, or individuals and nongovernmental organizations that promote independent activity intended to strengthen civil society in Cuba; AND myschedule of activities does not include free time or recreation in excess of that consistent with a full-time schedule (31 C.F.R. § 515.574).

How does walking around on our own or using private tour guides in Cuba satisfy this requirement?

There are 76 countries in the world that require Americans to have a travel/tourist visa in order to enter their country! A travel/tourist visa is a conditional authorization granted by a country, to a foreigner, allowing them to enter their country. It's in addition to a passport. Cuba requires ALL Americans to get a visa; not sure if citizens from other countries need to, though.

 

 

I don't see how the cruiseline can deny getting a visa for you if they're getting them for everyone else. The only issue could be if you were born in Cuba....ask your travel agent for info on that if it applies. Otherwise, have your agent contact the cruiseline and see why they're trying to bully you. Getting the visa has NOTHING to do with booking excursions!!

Makes sense! So frustrating. Thank you for the advice. Calling tomorrow!

BTW, this is the form RC requires us to fill out. Seems that I would want to check the "Support for the Cuban People" box in section 4. Does that seem right?

chrome-extension://ecnphlgnajanjnkcmbpancdjoidceilk/content/web/viewer.html?source=extension_pdfhandler&file=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.royalcaribbean.com%2Fcuba%2Fcontent%2Fuploads%2F2017%2F11%2FCuba.Guest_.Cert_.Final_.Nov_.14.pdf

located here:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/cuba/faq

Sounds like bullying to me. I don't see how they can deny providing you a visa (if they're buying them for all other passengers) just because you won't purchase their excursions. This is not how it was done for those of us who have recently been to Cuba and have posted our experiences.

 

My cruiseline charged me $75 for the visa, but they actually purchased it and gave it to me at embarkation. It had NOTHING to do with excursions - it's a requirement of the Cuban government for any foreigners to enter their country. People who fly to Cuba have to get one too. You will then choose your type of visit on the affidavit (supporting Cuban people) and sign it. This is an American government requirement. You do NOT have to purchase ship tours.....they're just trying to sell them by scaring people.

 

**The only caveat is if you were born in Cuba....there are special procedures for them because the Cuban government considers them still Cuban citizens even if they hold an American passport. Ask your travel agent for clarification if this is the case.**

Thank you! I'm starting to think you are correct here! I will call them again tomorrow to clarify. I was just on the Havanacar.net site and would love to consider one of these tours, as well as one of the evening shows somewhere. I think I want nothing to do with any of the RC excursions at this point. Argh. I am ok, as I was born in the US, but one of my travel partners is Cuban-born and is awaiting her Cuban visa. We'll have to check on her ability to walk around on her own. Thanks again!

A friend of mine is sailing to Cuba on RC in May. She said the info they are giving out is making people think you have to book with them, but when she called she found out otherwise. Her group has the Old Car tours booked.

Yes, me too! I am very confused, because I'm going on a RC cruise to Cuba in April. I called them today and was told that we have to book an excursion both days that we are in Havana if we want to get off the ship. Alternatively, we could get the visa through the embassy if we want to venture out on our own. I have family in Cuba (distant relatives), so am willing to do an excursion on one day, and the next, visit with them. But they made me think this was practically impossible.

Hmmm, Royal Caribbean told me today that I have to book the excursion with them in order to get off the ship. If I wanted to walk around on my own, I'd have to get the visa on my own via the embassy (as opposed to the visa from the ship). Is this true? It's all so confusing.

Book if the price is right...if it goes down, call them and take advantage. If it goes up...you're gold!

Thanks, I think I will!

There is no way to know what future sales and pricing will do. If many people take advantage of this sale, then prices will go up for the balance of the available cabins.

 

Most cruise lines will give you fare reductions up to final payment. So if the fare goes down again, you can usually take advantage of the drop.

Oh this is good to know! Thanks so much for your advice!

Hi! I am considering a cruise in April for my sons and myself and am very excited about the prospect and started exploring today since we're home due to snowstorm.

Right now RC is having a sale that ends this month, and OBC credit offers that end on 1/17. I was planning on waiting for my tax returns to book (generally in mid Feb), but it seems like it may be in my best interest to book now if I can. I can put it on my cc ad pay it when I get my returns, but I hate to do that.

Does anyone know if after this sale I might expect similar sales? We are traveling from Boston so need to factor in airfare.

thx for any advice!