Navigator of the Seas Advice?

[prosephone]

We are looking to book:

Navigator of the Seas- Out of Miami 12/2/06

Cat D1 Superior Oceanview Stateroom

With airfaire

 

Here are the questions I have:

 

1. Should I worry about flying out the same day to Miami, or should we fly out a day earlier? We would rather fly out the same day if that will not make things too crazy.

 

2. Given the information on the type of room we want to book, are there any suggestions as to what rooms to try to get or to try to avoid?

 

3. Any other suggestions, tips, or information we should know about our cruise before booking?

 

Thanks for your input!

[Firefighterhoop]

1) If you fly the same day book air with RCCL, if your flight is cancelled, they will help you find another to make your ship. IF you book your own on the same day, you are in a world of hurt if your flight is too delayed or cancelled. At least if you booked your own air but flew down the day before, you have several attempts at flights! Also much more relaxed only having to worry about going from hotel to ship the morning of the cruise, and you will actually be AWAKE on the ship instead of being burnt out from getting up early to fly!

After last december (Read my LEgend review) I will only fly in the day before!

 

2) HMM CAN't HELP U THERE!

 

3) No other real suggestions, the Navigator is an awesome ship. Look at your compass every day, and make as many of the shows, games, and events as possible. You can only get out of your cruise what you put into it!

[vmom]

definately fly out the night before. You'll be alot more relaxed for your first day on ship. I've done it both ways. There are alot of hotels with shuttles that offer packages that will pick you up at the airport, take you to the hotel and the next day take you to the port. The taxis are also very reasonable in price.

 

Book the airfare on your own for the day before and buy cruise insurance (check out www.insuremytrip.com). For what you'll save by booking airfare on your own you'll be able to pay for the hotel. I've also heard many recommendations for priceline. Also by buying insurance on your own you'll be able to cover your air travel.

 

The NOS is wonderful! Don't miss the ice show!

[prosephone]

Thanks for the tips!

[digital_curator]

I agree- fly down the night before and get a cheap hotel though priceline. There are many good ones availble downtown, close to the port (check for info on the hotel board).

[steve20832]

I'm taking a cruise in January and flying down the night before and booking a hotel room with Priceline. I'm coming from Maryland which averages about 20" of snow per year. With my luck it would start snowing the night before the cruise was to sail and my flight would be delayed. Flying down the night before makes for a fun time on the ship the first day because you didn't have to get up early or suffer from jetlag.

[FlyingPhotog]

Fly down the night before - on Southwest if you can ;)

 

Try for a cabin on the "hump" or aft. We had cabin 6166 on the port side hump and loved it.

 

Read my long review, found in my signature. :cool:

[K&RCurt]

Most definatly fly the day before.

 

 

 

We flew down the night day before our first cruise. It had just started to snow in Philadelphia by the time we took off at 10:00 AM. By the time we got to our layover in Atlanta they were starting to cancel flights along the East coast. When we got to FLL the airport was packed with people who couldn't get out and we were one of the last flights to get in from the East Coast. We went to our hotel and had a relaxing night. When we were getting on the ship, others were stuck in mobbed airporst. Over 400 people missed the ship due to not being able to fly in the day of the cruise! The price of the hotel room was well worth the peace of mind.

[daveky]

Agree with above posts, fly down the night before. Flying in December from your location in Pa, there could be snow etc which can be avoided by going down a day earlier.

We cruised last December and for this same reason flew down a day early to Miami and had a blast, went to Bay Side Market and had a great time.

 

Dave in Ky

[dfgf]

I wouldn't suggest booking air with the cruiseline. They will only go so far to get you to the ship. After a certain point, it becomes cheaper to just give you a 100% refund that to try to get you to the ship. That happened to another CC'er on our cruise last year - the flight schedules were just too difficult to try to get her to the boat. So, she ended-up with a full refund - but no cruise!

 

If you book your own airfare, you still have the possibility of 'heroics' depending on what you're willing to go through. (Renting an SUV and driving to Columbus through a foot of snow, for example, to catch a flight at an airport that is still operating.)

 

As for day-of, I've done it once. Although we made the ship, it added way too much drama - we would never do it again.

[booze brothers]

Most definatly fly the day before.

 

 

 

We flew down the night day before our first cruise. It had just started to snow in Philadelphia by the time we took off at 10:00 AM. By the time we got to our layover in Atlanta they were starting to cancel flights along the East coast. When we got to FLL the airport was packed with people who couldn't get out and we were one of the last flights to get in from the East Coast. We went to our hotel and had a relaxing night. When we were getting on the ship, others were stuck in mobbed airporst. Over 400 people missed the ship due to not being able to fly in the day of the cruise! The price of the hotel room was well worth the peace of mind.

 

We live in Bedminster, PA

[prosephone]

Wow! It really seems that everyone is stating that flying out the night before is the way to go. We flew out the day of our cruise last time and had no problems at all! Granted we flew into Orlando for a Disney cruise but I do not see how that would make much of a difference. Being that the cruise is Dec 2nd, it is not all that likely we would get a snow storm. Yes, we do live in the NE but even Erie, PA land of lake effect snow usually has a hard time getting a huge snowstorm till New Years.

 

We booked last night including flight (but we have plenty of time to change that if we want). We just wanted to be sure to secure a room in the category we wanted. We ended up booking on Deck 10 Stateroom 1588. Anyone know anything about that room?

[dfgf]

Well, since you already know that there won't be any snow on December 2nd in Erie, PA I would say you're okay with just flying down the morning of! :D

[south1246]

On all our cruises we fly the day before. I agree that is more because we try to get some rest when we get to the location and it makes for a much more fun time. Plus it becomes like an extra port stop. We have cruised out of Miami and have found that you should enjoy some of the nightlife. Go to South Beach and stay on Collins Ave. You can walk around and enjoy great restaurants and entertainment in the evening.

 

I know it sounds like I am a brochure but Sept 29 we fly out for our Oct 1 cruise on the Nav also. Staying overnight in, you guessed it, South Beach.

 

Jason

[cindybythebeach]

I flew to Miami and the next year to San Juan the morning of the cruise. Both times everything went smooth, but it was a bit stressful. This year I decided to fly to Miami a couple days early to avoid the stress of the possibility of delay and to get on the ship earlier. I just don't have the confidence in the airline industry that I had a couple years ago. To many delayed and cancelled flights lately. Also, last year I drove to the port and was able to board early and it seemed to add a whole day to the cruise because we were able to enjoy the ship the first day. When you fly in the day of you usually arrive later and are rushed to unpack, get to the muster drill, and get ready for dinner. Flying down ahead of time and boarding early means relaxing sooner.

[prosephone]

Okay so obviously I cannot check airfare rates for 12/06 but I did check what rates would be like the first Friday of this Dec. And I totally see what everyone was saying about getting totally ripped off by the cruise line by including airfare in the price. RC is charging about $500 for airfare where I can get it through priceline for $275. At that rate I can go down a day early and book a room for the same price as flying out that morning... Looks like I may be changing my reservation a bit.

 

Any other suggestions for a hotel to stay at the night before the cruise? I would prefer one that offers a shuttle to the port, and is not too pricey. Some of our friends who are comming along will be grad students on a budget...

[Minybear]

Prosephone

I just wanted to say "Hi" we just booked on this same cruise about 2 weeks ago (12/6 Navigator Of The Seas). We are booked on D2 and on Deck 9. Its nice to see other people booking way in advance like we did:).

 

With the all inclusive air what we normally do with our cruises is to book the airfare with the cruise and then (prior to you paying for the full amount) if I see a airfare that is less then what the cruiseline is offering me (which I always have to add in their transportation fee into the air amount), then I drop the air on the cruise package and do my own air. Out of all the cruises we have done we have always done this and we have never had done the cruiseline air (for some reason!!).

 

We would also like to know which hotel (I have never been to Miami) would be good for the night prior. With our cruise on 12/6 the airline has included Intercontenital (I think that is the name of the hotel) in our air package due to we have to come in the night early to not miss the cruise!!

 

Minybear

[prosephone]

Woohoo! Someone else on our cruise. It is far too long of a wait!

[Minybear]

Woohoo! Someone else on our cruise. It is far too long of a wait!

 

I hate this waiting games :( we do. 1 year and 4 months (approx I dont know how many days. I dont want to there!!)to our Eastern Caribbean cruise.

 

I am really glad someone is also like us and books early :). Glad to meet you.

 

Minybear

[vmom]

There were 5 of us and we stayed at the Embassay Suites in Miami. It's a little more expensive than a regular room at a different hotel, but we were able to fit all 5 of us in one "room" (2 room suite). There is a bedroom with 2 queen beds and a seperate room with a pull out couch that was very comfortable. We also got a free HOT breakfast with great make to order omletts. They have a free shuttle from the airport to the hotel and then another free shuttle in the morning from the hotel to the port. I think the rates were cheaper online than through their 800 number. I signed up for their "cruise special package" I ffigured that although the hotel cost more than a non-suite hotel, we saved money on not having to pay for transfers to the port and not having to buy a decent breakfast...especially for 5 of us.

 

It might be cheaper getting a hotel from Priceline if you don't mind all being in the same room. Alot of the hotels have shuttles, just try to bid on a 4 star one. I guess you'll just have to do the math.

[prosephone]

Minybear: Believe it or not our cruise is filling up rather quickly! We were looking at the rooms still available and depending on the category it is slim pickins. We just found out that the other couple who was going to come with us decided to back out and save for Italy instead :(. Ah well their loss! We are going to see if we can't sucker a few other people we know into booking.

[Alexis]

My choice of cabin would be either 9620 or 9320. Two great locations on the hump of the ship. You would have lots of privacy and great views from either of them.

I will have 8320 on the Navigator next year for our b2b.

[lmmn]

We are looking to book:

Navigator of the Seas- Out of Miami 12/2/06

Cat D1 Superior Oceanview Stateroom

With airfaire

 

Here are the questions I have:

 

1. Should I worry about flying out the same day to Miami, or should we fly out a day earlier? We would rather fly out the same day if that will not make things too crazy.

 

2. Given the information on the type of room we want to book, are there any suggestions as to what rooms to try to get or to try to avoid?

 

3. Any other suggestions, tips, or information we should know about our cruise before booking?

 

Thanks for your input!

 

1. As others have stated, it is a really good idea to fly in the day before. Book your own airfare. You can be in control of airline, flight times, and most likely you will probably pay less. I would not recommend using their shuttles. Take a taxi. No hassle...no waiting for others. Another reason to fly in the day before would be that you can get to the ship by 11:00 AM and enjoy most of that first day on the ship. As far as hotel, you can get a very nice hotel for $50 or under through Priceline.

 

2. There are a number of things to consider when booking a cabin. First, you need to decide if you want inside, outside, etc. Think about whether you need to be near an elevator. Try to get a cabin with cabins above and below....they are generally more quiet. Another consideration would be if you want to be close to dining room, casino or other areas of interest. The only cabins I would avoid would be cabins close to a lot of noise.

 

Good luck!!

[Minybear]

Minybear: Believe it or not our cruise is filling up rather quickly! We were looking at the rooms still available and depending on the category it is slim pickins. We just found out that the other couple who was going to come with us decided to back out and save for Italy instead :(. Ah well their loss! We are going to see if we can't sucker a few other people we know into booking.

 

I am glad we booked early then. The only thing with the D2 catagory the room next door to us is still available. Looks like they are selling other catagorys but not our catagory. Anyway I am glad its filling up.

[mwebb]

Book air on own and fly in the day before it is so worth it in peace of mind.-I've had good luck with Priceline, but when it wasn't hitting in the price I wanted I also got the 2 br suite at the wyndham summerfield Blue Lagoon (sleeps 6 w/ kitchen & free airport shuttle for 169- vs paying for 2 rooms Part of my Family booked the air with RCCL NOS APR 2, 2005. There departing flight was late coming in due to huge snow storm out west. It may be fine where you are, but that doesnt guarnatee you will leave on time. Their flight had over 100 RCCL cruisers. Since it was spring break RCCL was not promising them to catch up to the ship- Plus who wants to miss a few days of vacation stressing to play catch up if you've missed the ship