New here and have a few questions...

[Loralie]

We are planning to book a cruise for 2007 for myself, dh and 2 boys who will be 11 and 9 at the time of the cruise. We live in New York and want to leave from NJ so we do not have to fly. I noticed on the website that they have 9 day caribbean on the Explorer for dates in 2006 but have not seen prices for 2007. We have only been on a cruise once before- Monarch of the Seas 12 years ago for our honeymoon. Here are my questions.

 

When do the 2007 rates come out?

 

How are the kids programs on the Explorer?

 

Since we have cruised with Royal Caribbean before would be be able to get any discounts?

 

When is the best time of year to take a cruise leaving from NJ? I am O.K. taking the boys out of school - I was thinking about May, it this a good time of year?

 

What will the boys do during the shows at night? Are the kids clubs still open at that time. From what I have been reading the shows are not really for kids.

 

I was reading on the website about the tips. Are the suggested prices for the tips really per day per passenger? I did a quick add up and figured that for my family of 4 it would be over 500.00 just in tips for a 9 day cruise and that is just the suggested people on the list. Is this right? That seems kind of high to me but will do it if it is right.

 

Sorry for too many questions. I am really itching to go on a cruise and would love to go earlier and am getting excited about it now. It gives me something to look forward to.

 

Thanks in Advance,

 

Loralie

[syndyj]

I can't answer all your questions, but to calculate your tips, you can use this site:

 

http://cruisetip.tpkeller.com/

 

A 9 day cruise, 2 adults and 2 kids tips work out to $351.00 total for all of you.

[Loralie]

Thanks about the tips...I see now what I did wrong. That is a much better price.

 

O.K...tips solved, what about the rest. :D ;)

 

Thanks again,

 

Loralie

[goneclear]

Seeing you sailed RCCL once before you can join the crown and Anchor society. You will get a free gift and a discount booklet in your stateroom,

[elleluv]

We saw 2006 cruise itinieraries in April (or so) of 2005, so I'd guess you'll see 2007 around that same time frame in 2006.

[KelJ]

If you haven't already, call RCI and join Crown and Anchor since you have cruised Royal Caribbean in the past. They will have your information in their computer. By joining, you will get a subscription to the Crown and Anchor magazine, which always has discount coupons to use when booking a cruise. You start off as a gold member. If you book a junior suite or higher, you get double credit. You can read about Crown and Anchor on RCI's website. And if you join, you will receive a coupon book in your stateroom since you've cruised with them before. Have fun planning!:)

[rajacks]

Hi, thought I would add my two cents about the kids' program! We were on the Explorer the summer of 2004. My son was 5 at the time, and he LOVED Adventure Ocean. Yes, they are open in the evenings - from 7:00 to 10:00 at no charge, and then from 10:00 to 1:00 a.m. at $5.00 per hour per child. You do not have to go back at 10:00, they will just keep the kids at the above rate if you have not picked them up. By the end of our cruise, there were times when we were rushing through dinner because DS wanted to get to 'the kids' place'! lol

 

FYI - we were also on the Sovereign just this past summer. DS loved the AO there, too. We are going to be on the Rhapsody at Christmas, and he can't wait to go again! (He is 7 now.)

 

Hope this helps!:)

[stillfrantic]

We thought the evening shows were very much for families. There were some late night things that were adult only, but they were clearly labeled. There were magic shows, comedians....all kid friendly.

[GranysT]

Hi Loreli, My favorite month to cruise to the Caribbean is April. We have done most of our cruises that month,and have always had nice weather,and fairly smooth sailing. However,that is spring break for a lot of schools,which means the ships usually have a lot of kids on board. Since you have children,you may want to cruise then,so they can make lots of friends. If you're looking for less kids on board,then May would probably be a better month to choose.I'm sure there will still be kids on board,just not as many. Happy sails,whatever you decide.

[spoonful]

I just did the 9 day a couple of weeks ago and it would be better, weather wise, to leave in may so that you have more warm days. It was best for me to cruise in october because it was MUCH cheaper due to hurricane season and kids in school. It was great to skip the flying, especially since i cruise during huricanne season. My cruise was during Wilma and if i had booked something out of Miami for the same time, i wouldn't have had a cruise at all. The ship will be dominated my people from the Northeast. Some people thought it made for a rougher crowd but i would not agree with this at all.

 

The tips are suggestions and you can tip less if you think the service is poor but i am sure you will find that won't be the case.

 

The kids on my cruise were virtually invisible because they were all in the kids program. The cruise line tries very hard to seperate adult and family events. They try and make sure that kids aren't at adult daytime events unless supervised and not at all at late night events. There were some kids (the same ones all the time) that just seemed to roam the ship unattended and we at all the late night adult events. That concerned me becuase these were kids under 10 and anything could have happened to them without their parents knowing. All the people i knew on the ship with kids abosultely loved the kids program for two reasons. The kids loved it. It gave them time for themselves to enjoy their vacations.