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RCI secrets they don't tell you

kembo

By kembo,
in Royal Caribbean International

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LetsGetWet!

LetsGetWet!

Posted
Posted (edited)
Wow. Ok I will not bring the power strip. We always used them on Carnival and Disney with no issues. I wonder if we can bring an outlet block that has three outlets in it. Just to provide extra slots? I will make a phone call about that one.

Thanks for letting me know!!

Leaving on the Freedom 3-2-14

 

 

Carnival Glory 2012

Disney Magic 2011

Carnival Triumph 2010

Carnival Victory 2009

Disney Magic 2008

Carnival Inspiration 2008

Carnival Victory 2007

Carnival Triumph 2002

My guess - and its JUST a guess, so take it for what its worth - is that the "no power strips or extension cords" is not one of the more heavily enforced prohibitions. In a quick xray inspection, its going to be kinda tough to quickly tell the difference between an illegal power strip and a legal power brick for your laptop or tablet or phone with a power cord attached to it. And THOSE cords are in almost every carry on they look at. At under $10 for a power strip, I'll probably throw one in my carry on - if its confiscated, its confiscated - no big deal, except the loss of having it!

Edited by LetsGetWet!
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lovesthebeach2

lovesthebeach2

Posted
Posted
Wow. Ok I will not bring the power strip. We always used them on Carnival and Disney with no issues. I wonder if we can bring an outlet block that has three outlets in it. Just to provide extra slots? I will make a phone call about that one.

Thanks for letting me know!!

Leaving on the Freedom 3-2-14

 

I always bring the outlet block with three outlets in it. It's the one that folds down just in case there's not enough room. I also bring a tiny extension cord. Neither of these is large but come in handy!

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spyke5

spyke5

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Posted
These tips are the ones we ALWAYS use while cruising:

 

* when we are walking past the port vendors and 'sales people' who hound you to buy this or that , we pretend we are on a very important phone call on our cellphones. We don't even make eye contact w them...I know its dishonest but neither me or my husband do well with pushy sales people. This tricked works 100% without fail. They never have disrupted us EVER!

 

Carnival Triumph 2002

 

The phone trick works well at home when answering the door and you are not expecting anybody. If it's someone soliciting and you don't want to talk just tell them sorry you're on the phone.

 

I bring white noise maker too. Its a sound soother you can get in a baby dept. Is small and travels well.

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Anthony63

Anthony63

Posted
Posted
The phone trick works well at home when answering the door and you are not expecting anybody. If it's someone soliciting and you don't want to talk just tell them sorry you're on the phone.

 

I bring white noise maker too. Its a sound soother you can get in a baby dept. Is small and travels well.

 

I just downloaded a free white noise app for my phone

 

Eat more SHRIMP

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brillohead "Live from...." Rare

brillohead

Posted
Posted

I've never had a power strip confiscated. (And if they do take it, you get it back at the end of the trip anyway.)

 

And for an extension cord, how would they tell the difference between the power cord of a curling iron or hair dryer and the cord of an extension cord?

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LetsGetWet!

LetsGetWet!

Posted
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I've never had a power strip confiscated. (And if they do take it, you get it back at the end of the trip anyway.)

 

And for an extension cord, how would they tell the difference between the power cord of a curling iron or hair dryer and the cord of an extension cord?

 

Yep, exactly the point I made earlier in the thread - they claim extension cords are prohibited, but that would be VERY difficult & time-consuming to successfully enforce. Glad to hear you've had no issues with power strips.

 

Sent from my Galaxy S4 via Tapatalk

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MandyMooToo Great Review Rare

MandyMooToo

Posted
Posted (edited)
These tips are the ones we ALWAYS use while cruising:

 

 

*we bring white noise i.e. small fan, compact air purifier, etc. To drown out sounds of hall traffic or next door guests

*a spray bottle with Resolve carpet cleaner. It will remove ANYTHING from clothing...and I mean ANYTHING! Shout stain remover or Tide sticks are nothing compared to Resolve!

*walkie talkies for the kids and I to constantly communicate onboard there's a vibrate feature so it doesn't disturb those around us

* OR you could also call the cabin from any wall phone placed everywhere on the ship. Just dial your room #. There's a voicemail feature as well if noones in there.

* We borrow a sheet from our cabin bed to take to the beach to lay on so we aren't relying on there being lounge chairs for us. It keeps your towels from getting sandy and gross

* when we are walking past the port vendors and 'sales people' who hound you to buy this or that , we pretend we are on a very important phone call on our cellphones. We don't even make eye contact w them...I know its dishonest but neither me or my husband do well with pushy sales people. This tricked works 100% without fail. They never have disrupted us EVER!

*when there are excursions offered for beach/shopping you can almost always just pay a cab to take you to the same exact location and you aren't constrained to the excursions assigned times and you're saving a ton on price!

*bring power strips for extra outlets. There's never enough.

* if you plan to swim at the beach or snorkel (on your own) grab a small box of cereal at the breakfast buffet and take it with you and bring underwater with you and you will have a thousand colorful tropical fish surround you eating the treat! They love it and its a remarkable experience!

*we bring dollar store swim rings for the ocean to use as float aides. I'm careful not to call them 'life savers' bc they are certainly not! But they are so convenient to pack (deflated, they're teenie) and they're just so helpful to just keep your arm hanging onto it so you're not constantly kicking and treading water! It made me feel a bit more secure in the deeper areas.

* we tie large, bright, gaudy ribbons around our luggage handles so they're easily spotted in the disembarking area (luggage claim). Nothing more frustrating to see a million suitcases the same color as yours. The ribbons will help you spot yours from the rest!

* we also take twisty ties to the zippers of our luggage to keep it from being opened easily. Those bags get tossed around like crazy and it could open easily if not properly secured

* when you come back aboard from a port. The clans of ppl waiting to get on those elevators are the biggest clumps of ppl ever! Try walking up one floor and using the elevators from there or better yet, walk up on floor or so and walk forward or opposite to use elevators not on another track. A lot less stressful I promise!

* I bring a ziplock back with Clorox disinfecting wipes to wipe our hands and utensils after we've been through the buffet lines. Even though you sanitize before getting the food, its an extra sanitizing step to keep from gettin that 'virus' since all those ppl are coughing and touching the serving utensils that you will in turn pick up and use after they do. The wipes are perfectly safe for use on hands and its a good germ killer!

* I unpack all our clothes and hang just about everything. You can ask for extra hangers if you don't have enough. Then we 'nest' our bags all inside of each other and put away until the end to make extra room.

 

There's more that we do but this is all I can think if at the moment. Will add them if I think of them

Happy cruising from the Ballou Family!!!

*

 

 

 

 

Carnival Glory 2012

Disney Magic 2011

Carnival Triumph 2010

Carnival Victory 2009

Disney Magic 2008

Carnival Inspiration 2008

Carnival Victory 2007

Carnival Triumph 2002

 

Excellent tips, thanks for posting! I always think I'm sooo smart when I am preparing for a trip until I read a post like this one and see I'm missing things ;)

Edited by MandyMooToo
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clemsongal

clemsongal

Posted
Posted

The tropical fish love cheese! We always pack the kind you spray on crackers and they love it! OR, you can get some the night before from your waiter!

 

You're right about the cereal...use discernment. :)

 

 

 

Carnival Glory 2012

Disney Magic 2011

Carnival Triumph 2010

Carnival Victory 2009

Disney Magic 2008

Carnival Inspiration 2008

Carnival Victory 2007

Carnival Triumph 2002

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Kimnjimnkids

Kimnjimnkids

Posted
Posted
You all are scaring me! I eat that cereal on the ship in the mornings as well as taking some on excursions for snacks.

 

 

Haha! Me too!! I love the FruitLoops! And we always take a couple boxes for a quick snack on shore as well!. It's such a great idea isn't it?! I get low blood sugar if I'm hungry and/or hot so a small box of cereal usually does the trick!

 

I had a question for all of you who have cruising experience with RCI...they allow passengers to bring 2bottles of wine onboard...do you think I would be permitted to bring two medium plastic jugs of grape juice (welchs)? I know its weird but my thought was 'it's pretty much non-alcoholic wine' Does anyone think I will have any issue with that?

 

 

 

Carnival Glory 2012

Disney Magic 2011

Carnival Triumph 2010

Carnival Victory 2009

Disney Magic 2008

Carnival Inspiration 2008

Carnival Victory 2007

Carnival Triumph 2002

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Anthony63

Anthony63

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Posted

I had a question for all of you who have cruising experience with RCI...they allow passengers to bring 2bottles of wine onboard...do you think I would be permitted to bring two medium plastic jugs of grape juice (welchs)? I know its weird but my thought was 'it's pretty much non-alcoholic wine' Does anyone think I will have any issue with that?

 

Depends on who is passing you thru how they slept the night before the weather time of year and what your zodiac sign is. Worse case is they will keep it and never give it back or they could let you take it onboard or anything in between.

 

There is not really a yes or no answer. Just a maybe.

 

Eat more SHRIMP

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Kimnjimnkids

Kimnjimnkids

Posted
Posted

@anthony63

Lol! Well, maybe the 'stars will align for me'!! That made me laugh! And you're right...there's no def answer. We will be getting on the Freedom in a week at Port Canaveral (3/2). Worst outcome is they will keep my Welchs! I'm gonna try it and see what happens.

 

 

Carnival Glory 2012

Disney Magic 2011

Carnival Triumph 2010

Carnival Victory 2009

Disney Magic 2008

Carnival Inspiration 2008

Carnival Victory 2007

Carnival Triumph 2002

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WetToes

WetToes

Posted
Posted (edited)
Get $2 Bills from the bank and use them to tip - The crew will remember you!

 

They may remember you, but I'm not so sure it'll be in a good way.

It's been stated on here ... many times. The crew doesn't like the $2.00 bill.

Some think it's not real, and others have a hard time getting rid of them.

One's. Give them one's.

Edited by WetToes
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MrsPete

MrsPete

Posted
Posted (edited)
The "Real Secret" is to explore the entire ship, deck by deck, to see what

Yes, yes! This is what we do! We are not particularly frequent cruisers, and even if we've sailed this ship before, the small details need a refresher. As soon as we board, before the crowds arrive (we always board ASAP), we like to go to the tip-top of the highest deck and "walk the ship" from top to bottom. We note the locations of bars, bathrooms and other items that interest us, and we love-love-love it!

Edited by MrsPete
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