First Cruise in 2 days!! Questions

[Hislamb12]

We are sailing on Majesty of the Seas on Monday. we fly into Miami on Sunday.

 

So we got a call about arrival time to be 1 PM. Is that not an option? I mean I have read on here to show up early for boarding. Or do we wait until our 1 PM boarding time?

 

Also, as far as tipping, I was thinking and told by our travel agency that tips were included in our fees for the cruise. HOwever, a friend told me to be sure to tip the luggage guys, and others etc..? Please help me understand tipping better for this cruise.

 

Last has to do that I read somewhere about being allowed a bottle of wine or champagne to bring. But when I read on RCI website I don't see anywhere they will allow any alcohol brought on board. Did this recently change or is it just due to certain cruise line policies?

 

We will be staying at Courtyard Cadillac on Miami Beach for our returning day, over night so we can relax in Miami one day. Any suggestions on where to visit around there?

 

Thank you!

April

[cruiserking]

You can definitely arrive earlier to board the ship. They try to stagger the cruise lines. We usually get to the pier around 10 am.

 

You should always bring extra money for tips. Plan on tipping your luggage porters at the cruise pier at least $5 per bag. It's also a good idea to tip any room service stewards that deliver meals to your cabin.

 

Regardless of whether tips are included I always tip additionally to our restaurant waiter, assistant waiter, bar waiter and room steward.

 

You are allowed to bring on a max of two bottles of wine.

 

Have a great cruise.

 

Jonathan

[Hislamb12]

ok thank you,

Can you point to me where I can verify the two bottles of wine info? I can't seem to find anything on their website and would hate to buy it and then trash it if they have changed policies.

[Aduntu]

This has been standard policy for sometime. See the link below.

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/beforeyouboard/whatToKnow/topTenFAQs/detail.do?pagename=top_10_faqs&pnav=4&snav=2&faqId=260&faqSubjectName=Top+FAQ's

[Mr. Bungle]

We are sailing on Majesty of the Seas on Monday. we fly into Miami on Sunday.

 

So we got a call about arrival time to be 1 PM. Is that not an option? I mean I have read on here to show up early for boarding. Or do we wait until our 1 PM boarding time? Get there earlier. That way if there is any issue with your paperwork, passport, reservation, you have time to correct it before the ship sails.

 

Also, as far as tipping, I was thinking and told by our travel agency that tips were included in our fees for the cruise. HOwever, a friend told me to be sure to tip the luggage guys, and others etc..? Please help me understand tipping better for this cruise. Bring singles to tip the porters for your luggage and the bartenders that go a step above to make your trip more enjoyable.

 

Last has to do that I read somewhere about being allowed a bottle of wine or champagne to bring. But when I read on RCI website I don't see anywhere they will allow any alcohol brought on board. Did this recently change or is it just due to certain cruise line policies? Echoing what others have commented. You are allowed 2 bottles (750ml) PER CABIN. Some have ways of bringing on more, but this is the rule.

 

We will be staying at Courtyard Cadillac on Miami Beach for our returning day, over night so we can relax in Miami one day. Any suggestions on where to visit around there?

 

Thank you!

April

 

As a laughable comment, since this is your first cruise, do the following.

 

Lay out all of your clothes you intend on packing onto your bed. Now, put half of them away.

 

Next, put out all of the cash you intend on spending on the cruise. Now, double that...

 

Rule #1 for cruising... Half the clothes, twice the cash. :D;):D;)

[knittinggirl]

You'll have a great time!

 

We cruised on Majesty a few years ago, and loved it. Late in our cruise, we discovered a sandwich shop on the deck above Windjammer. Loved it, nice quiet place to have lunch because most hadn't discovered it. If it's open, I'd suggest eating there for Embarkation day. Windjammer can be overwhelming.

 

On to tipping. We have gratuities or (hotel service charge). If you've prepaid, it should be a separate line item on your receipt. We often try to prepay our gratuities. These go to the waiter, assistant waiter, steward and head waiter. If you haven't prepaid them, you'll see a daily charge on your seapass account for each person. It's best to go ahead and leave these in place.

 

Now on to the cash tips. We bring about $100 in ones for a 7 day cruise. On top of this, we also do a little research to figure out taxi fares, think high because it's often more than we think it will be, and I put these in individual envelopes. That way, we know we can make it back home w/ our taxis and not worry about credit card fraud. Once you arrive on the ship, all cash except for what you plan to use immediately goes in your safe.

 

We take that $100 in ones, for tipping the porters, at the airport, cruise port, hotel, etc. We also use the ones for room service. They get a larger tip if they bring it to us early, or w/in the first 15 minutes and less if it's later, but we always give them a tip. Tipping the first room service visit it critical, because after that, they'll be jumping on your order for the tip! We also tip the bar people, mostly for our Diamond Drinks, but it may be a good idea to slip them something for the Welcome Aboard Reception too, you may get seconds that way. It's best not to write in extra tip, but to slip them a dollar. We heard from one of our waiters that they don't get much of write in tips, because a lot of crew takes their cut first. We'd written in a dollar tip somewhere, and he crossed it out. The next night and so on, we slipped him the cash. Usually our Cafe Mocha has barely a hint of chocolate, but those Cafe Mochas w/ that cash tip were swimming in chocolate syrup! Personally, I'd like the person that did the work get the tip! It goes against our rules to give extra tip when someone had already given themselves a tip. But we break our rules on cruises. Those automatic tips are added by the company, and if you want the server to get the money, we have to slip them extra. Those dollars mean more to them than they do to us.

 

Sometimes we tip the steward extra, but they have to really impress us, since they also get income from the gratuities pool

 

A very good example of what happens when you don't tip happened on Celebrity Infinity. I was at the coffee station and had forgotten to bring my dollar but planned to bring it next time, the barister?? kept waiting on people around me and ignoring me. Unfortunately for her, we never went back. That was an 11 day cruise, so she could have gotten some money off us!

 

We also tip for shore excursions. We do mostly Royal Caribbean excursions we've prepaid for, but again tipping. I look up the tip suggestions at Princess.com, and use them as a guide. Princess.com is also the place to check out shore excursions. Most shore excursions are similar, but Princess has a really good outline that explains length of bus ride, size of vehicle, number of stairs, number of yards to walk, etc. I just look for the shore excursion that closely matches the one I'm considering. Cost and duration are usually very close.

 

Shore excursions are a little hard to figure sometimes. We've had a few excursions w/ multiple guides for different parts of the tour. So, now we take a stack of dollars just in case.

 

Get to the ship and relax. Sometimes it takes a while for the luggage you dropped at the pier to catch up with you. Make sure you put at least two ship luggage tags on each bag. I think you should bring your wine in your carry-on so you don't have to visit the naughty room.

 

Ask the Courtyard if they have a shuttle to/from the cruise port.

Edited January 9, 2016 by knittinggirl

[davekathy]

We are sailing on Majesty of the Seas on Monday. we fly into Miami on Sunday.

 

So we got a call about arrival time to be 1 PM. Is that not an option? I mean I have read on here to show up early for boarding. Or do we wait until our 1 PM boarding time?

 

Also, as far as tipping, I was thinking and told by our travel agency that tips were included in our fees for the cruise. HOwever, a friend told me to be sure to tip the luggage guys, and others etc..? Please help me understand tipping better for this cruise.

 

Last has to do that I read somewhere about being allowed a bottle of wine or champagne to bring. But when I read on RCI website I don't see anywhere they will allow any alcohol brought on board. Did this recently change or is it just due to certain cruise line policies?

 

We will be staying at Courtyard Cadillac on Miami Beach for our returning day, over night so we can relax in Miami one day. Any suggestions on where to visit around there?

 

Thank you!

April

 

Enjoy your Cruise. Bon Voyage.

[AZEmom]

Another perspective...

 

We don't bring a lot of cash for tipping. A few dollars for the porter as previously mentioned (depending on amount of luggage).

 

Have found that room service takes forever now a days, except for breakfast which comes at a scheduled time. If you plan to do this, then tipping is also recommended.

 

You will not need ANY other cash on the ships (except casino). When you order drinks, 18% gratuity is already included, and you are able to add any additional tips you wish to make on your sea pass card. Everything on the ship is done on this card, not cash transactions, including shops, souvenirs, activities, etc.

 

I also recommend getting to the port no later than 11 am to enjoy the most of the day on the ship as you can. I also wear my swim suit under my clothes and bring dry clothes to change into so we can enjoy the pools and hot tubs. You may not get your luggage until later in the evening.

 

Have a great time, cruising is addicting!

[Merion_Mom]

You'll have a great time!

 

We cruised on Majesty a few years ago, and loved it. Late in our cruise, we discovered a sandwich shop on the deck above Windjammer. Loved it, nice quiet place to have lunch because most hadn't discovered it. If it's open, I'd suggest eating there for Embarkation day. Windjammer can be overwhelming..

 

Yes, the Compass Deli on Deck 12 is one of our favorite spots, too. :) AWESOME crepes!