Mariner of the Seas Singapore to Dubai 9th April 2018

[Dorothy's Friend]

Happy New Year Mariner Cruisers!

 

Finally I have been able to log into my Cruise Critic account after weeks of not being able to.

 

I have successfully applied for my India e-Visa and printed it out. The application was not too difficult but a little time consuming, the successful response took less than 24 hours.:D The final payment for the cruise was made weeks ago and a couple of RCCL excursions have been booked for Thailand and Dubai.

 

So, I think I am all set to go. In just over 3 months we will be boarding and I cannot wait to be honest.

 

Kevin:*

[Seadragon555]

Happy New Year Mariner Cruisers!

 

Finally I have been able to log into my Cruise Critic account after weeks of not being able to.

 

I have successfully applied for my India e-Visa and printed it out. The application was not too difficult but a little time consuming' date=' the successful response took less than 24 hours.:D The final payment for the cruise was made weeks ago and a couple of RCCL excursions have been booked for Thailand and Dubai.

 

So, I think I am all set to go. In just over 3 months we will be boarding and I cannot wait to be honest.

 

Kevin:*[/quote']

 

Kevin,

As you can see there hasn't been much activity on this site so you didn't miss much while being unable to access Cruise Critic. We have less than 90 days to go before boarding and I am looking forward to it! It has been very cold here in the States so have been dreaming of warmth for weeks...now to make it to 4/7/18.

 

We have booked tours in India, Muscat, Oman, and Dubai but none of them are through RCCL. We made arrangements with outside vendors. Since we are going on to Barcelona after Dubai we also have a tour of Petra and Wadi Rum in Jordan arranged. Thailand is the only one we haven't arranged yet...may just walk around Phuket instead of a formal tour.

 

Glad you got your e-Visa for India arranged. You will still have to go through the biometric process before getting off of the ship...but, then again, you may not have to do it because of being from England. I hope Rhonda and Al are still going on this trip. Have you added more friends since you last indicated how many were going?

 

John

[cirman]

Hello ! Just booked this cruise for myself and my Indian bf, Sabu. From Florida, but now living in Kerala, the Indian state south of Goa, Cochin is in Kerala, about a 4 hour train ride north of here, Kolavan Beach.

I did the reverse of this cruise last year on Celebrity and enjoyed it. This will be Sabus first cruise.

Spending 3 nights pre cruise, haven't booked hotel yet. last time stayed at Holiday Inn Express on Orchard Road. Also, will spend 2 extra nights in Dubai post cruise.

As for India, it will be HOT, it is always hot in south India, plus it is the rainy season. But at least it will be in the tourists off season so fewer people, maybe only 18 billion :) .

Have been to Cochin a few times and spent 2 months in Goa. Forget the beach in Cochin, if you want beach, hit Goa. This time of the year many beaches are closed to swimming due to strong rip tides.

If I can be of any help, ask away, Ill try, except if you want a good Indian meal, I hate Indian food.

See you on board

ron

[Oceanpearl adventure]

Good morning All! We are now flying out of Vancouver in under 2 months, so definitely looking forward to our adventure. We have the Indian visa and we've done the ship check in..... Since northern British Columbia has had an almost record year for snowfall, I can't even begin to tell you how much I'm looking forward to the escape. I'm fairly certain there will be still snow on the ground in May, lol...... We have left the Indian ports unbooked as far as excursions go as we feel there's a good chance we'll meet and talk to fellow cruisers who will give us tips, advice, suggestions, etc.

Take care everyone, and enjoy the countdown! I love the "anticipation" part of a vacation!

- Rhonda

[Dorothy's Friend]

Hello ! Just booked this cruise for myself and my Indian bf, Sabu. From Florida, but now living in Kerala, the Indian state south of Goa, Cochin is in Kerala, about a 4 hour train ride north of here, Kolavan Beach.

I did the reverse of this cruise last year on Celebrity and enjoyed it. This will be Sabus first cruise.

Spending 3 nights pre cruise, haven't booked hotel yet. last time stayed at Holiday Inn Express on Orchard Road. Also, will spend 2 extra nights in Dubai post cruise.

As for India, it will be HOT, it is always hot in south India, plus it is the rainy season. But at least it will be in the tourists off season so fewer people, maybe only 18 billion :) .

Have been to Cochin a few times and spent 2 months in Goa. Forget the beach in Cochin, if you want beach, hit Goa. This time of the year many beaches are closed to swimming due to strong rip tides.

If I can be of any help, ask away, Ill try, except if you want a good Indian meal, I hate Indian food.

See you on board

ron

 

Welcome to our little thread Ron & Sabu!

As you will have noticed, it is not the most active of threads but it has proved to be quite a friendly group. Thanks for your offer of advice and info. I love Indian and Nepalese food:p.

I did a cruise itinerary similar to this 3 years ago on the Rhapsody of the Seas which I really enjoyed apart from the fact it was far more port intensive. So far, I have only booked two excursions both of which are with RCCL. One in Phuket and the other in Dubai. To be honest I have not been too inspired by what RCCL have on offer at the moment. In Cochin, I will probably do my own thing and use the water taxis.

Not long now!

Kevin

[Oceanpearl adventure]

:cool: Good Morning John, Kevin, Ron and all the respective traveling companions! With just over a month away I'm sure we are all looking forward to our upcoming adventure. I know Al & I sure are! I was wondering if anyone is interested in an informal get-together? I thought maybe anyone who's interested that we meet for happy hour at the Wig & Gavel Pub (or Gavel & Wig) on our second night.....Say 6:00? If anyone has other thoughts or ideas let us all know :)

-Rhonda

[Seadragon555]

:cool: Good Morning John, Kevin, Ron and all the respective traveling companions! With just over a month away I'm sure we are all looking forward to our upcoming adventure. I know Al & I sure are! I was wondering if anyone is interested in an informal get-together? I thought maybe anyone who's interested that we meet for happy hour at the Wig & Gavel Pub (or Gavel & Wig) on our second night.....Say 6:00? If anyone has other thoughts or ideas let us all know :)

-Rhonda

 

Rhonda,

Sounds good to me but Rich and I would have to be late since we are scheduled for the early dining (Rich can't miss a meal...LOL...he would kill me if he knew I wrote that). It would definitely be a good time for all to get together since it will be the evening before Phuket and after a day of relaxation. We are in cabin 6584 (doubt that we will get upgraded like some are getting on the Str8 thread to Junior Suites and Grand Suites). :eek::eek:

 

Sounds like a good plan if everyone else is interested! :cool:

 

John (and Rich in absentia)

[Seadragon555]

Hello ! Just booked this cruise for myself and my Indian bf, Sabu. From Florida, but now living in Kerala, the Indian state south of Goa, Cochin is in Kerala, about a 4 hour train ride north of here, Kolavan Beach.

I did the reverse of this cruise last year on Celebrity and enjoyed it. This will be Sabus first cruise.

Spending 3 nights pre cruise, haven't booked hotel yet. last time stayed at Holiday Inn Express on Orchard Road. Also, will spend 2 extra nights in Dubai post cruise.

As for India, it will be HOT, it is always hot in south India, plus it is the rainy season. But at least it will be in the tourists off season so fewer people, maybe only 18 billion :) .

Have been to Cochin a few times and spent 2 months in Goa. Forget the beach in Cochin, if you want beach, hit Goa. This time of the year many beaches are closed to swimming due to strong rip tides.

If I can be of any help, ask away, Ill try, except if you want a good Indian meal, I hate Indian food.

See you on board

ron

 

Ron and Sabu,

Welcome to our little group! Sorry to be so late in writing that "welcome" but I am not on here that often. It is nice to see that there will be other family on board. You will have to put up with 2 older guys (Rich is 76 and I am headed to 71), but we still like to talk.

 

I hope Rhonda's plan for all of to meet works out. Just a little over a month to go...yea!! I want SO much to get out of the cold of Iowa in the USA and be warm for a change. Winter here has been brutal.

 

John

[Oceanpearl adventure]

Hi John... We're looking to keep things relaxed, informal and fun, so pop on by after dinner & see what's happening. We can always send a message via the stateroom phone/message service if any other fabulous plans are made......We are in room 8683.... Safe travels to Singapore :)

-Rhonda

[Dorothy's Friend]

:cool: Good Morning John, Kevin, Ron and all the respective traveling companions! With just over a month away I'm sure we are all looking forward to our upcoming adventure. I know Al & I sure are! I was wondering if anyone is interested in an informal get-together? I thought maybe anyone who's interested that we meet for happy hour at the Wig & Gavel Pub (or Gavel & Wig) on our second night.....Say 6:00? If anyone has other thoughts or ideas let us all know :)

-Rhonda

Hi Gang!

A wonderful idea to have an informal get together. I was rather hoping that the Cruise Director would be posting an LGBT informal gathering in the Cruise Compass daily planner. On the last RCCL cruise I did on the Navigator this is what happened. Of course, RCCL was a bit slow to catch on as NCL had been organising an LGBT informal gathering for at least 10 years before RCCL and sometimes there are two gatherings for our family posted in the NCL Freestyle Daily, early evening for cocktails and another later for those who like to party a little. Even if there is nothing in the Cruise Compass, we could always post a card on the 'Community Notice Board' usually situated opposite Guest Services.

 

Just 4.5 weeks until me and my group start our journey to Singapore. I cannot wait!

 

Kevin

[Dorothy's Friend]

Three weeks today and I will start my journey to Singapore. I had a bit of a surprise this morning when I received an email from RCCL which amongst other things informed me that I needed a visa to enter Oman. It was an even bigger surprise to the lead name on our reservation as he had not received the email from RCCL:eek:.

 

I am sure I had checked an age ago that we did not need a visa in advance for Oman and that it was granted on arrival. Never mind, I have now made the application online and I am waiting for it to be granted. Fingers crossed!

 

See you all soon!

[Seadragon555]

Three weeks today and I will start my journey to Singapore. I had a bit of a surprise this morning when I received an email from RCCL which amongst other things informed me that I needed a visa to enter Oman. It was an even bigger surprise to the lead name on our reservation as he had not received the email from RCCL:eek:.

 

I am sure I had checked an age ago that we did not need a visa in advance for Oman and that it was granted on arrival. Never mind' date=' I have now made the application online and I am waiting for it to be granted. Fingers crossed!

 

See you all soon![/color']

 

Kevin,

This has been quite a discussion on the Str8 threads for this cruise. Two of the people contacted RCL pertaining to the email and were told that the ship will take care of the visas for both Oman and Dubai; however, both of those people were from the USA. RCL indicated to these people that the visa in Oman would be granted on arrival and that for Dubai that USA citizens do not need a visa as long as they have a valid passport. One person contacted the Omani Consulate and they were told that cruise passengers would be granted a temporary visa, but for those arriving by plane or land must have a visa in hand.

 

There is still tons of confusion over it but personally I am just blowing it off until we get there. If worse comes to worse we can just stay on the ship and enjoy the pools, bar, and food! :rolleyes::rolleyes:

 

John

[Dorothy's Friend]

Kevin,

This has been quite a discussion on the Str8 threads for this cruise. Two of the people contacted RCL pertaining to the email and were told that the ship will take care of the visas for both Oman and Dubai; however, both of those people were from the USA. RCL indicated to these people that the visa in Oman would be granted on arrival and that for Dubai that USA citizens do not need a visa as long as they have a valid passport. One person contacted the Omani Consulate and they were told that cruise passengers would be granted a temporary visa, but for those arriving by plane or land must have a visa in hand.

 

There is still tons of confusion over it but personally I am just blowing it off until we get there. If worse comes to worse we can just stay on the ship and enjoy the pools, bar, and food! :rolleyes::rolleyes:

 

John

 

Hi John!

I am so pleased that you posted that information regarding Oman and the visa requirement. Basically, what you have said is what I understood from past research.

:mad:I am fuming angry with Royal Caribbean at the moment for sending out mixed and false information. I submitted my application for the eVisa yesterday only to receive an email this morning from ROP (Royal Omani Police) saying that my application had been returned due to 'unclear document' with instructions of how to correct the error. When I follow the instructions there is no information of what is 'unclear' or what I need to do to put the error right. I have sent an email to ROP requesting clarification but no reply so far. Having read your post I then sent an online message to RCCL asking for a definitive answer as to whether a visa is required or not, no answer of course. I then contacted our agent to see if they could contact RCCL which they did with the answer that 'no eVisa is required and a visa will be granted on arrival'.

My travelling companions are also not very happy despite their visas having been granted, they have spent money that they need not have spent.

I really do not know why I continue to cruise with RCCL because I have had nothing but problems with them over the years and their customer care is terrible.

Once again, thanks John for your post. It turned out to be far more useful than going to RCCL.

Kevin

[Seadragon555]

Hi John!

 

I am so pleased that you posted that information regarding Oman and the visa requirement. Basically' date=' what you have said is what I understood from past research.

[/b']

 

:mad:I am fuming angry with Royal Caribbean at the moment for sending out mixed and false information. I submitted my application for the eVisa yesterday only to receive an email this morning from ROP (Royal Omani Police) saying that my application had been returned due to 'unclear document' with instructions of how to correct the error. When I follow the instructions there is no information of what is 'unclear' or what I need to do to put the error right. I have sent an email to ROP requesting clarification but no reply so far. Having read your post I then sent an online message to RCCL asking for a definitive answer as to whether a visa is required or not, no answer of course. I then contacted our agent to see if they could contact RCCL which they did with the answer that 'no eVisa is required and a visa will be granted on arrival'.

 

My travelling companions are also not very happy despite their visas having been granted, they have spent money that they need not have spent.

 

I really do not know why I continue to cruise with RCCL because I have had nothing but problems with them over the years and their customer care is terrible.

 

Once again, thanks John for your post. It turned out to be far more useful than going to RCCL.

 

Kevin

 

Kevin,

Even after reading all of the info on the Str8 thread I ended up doing the same as you in contacting my travel agent who, in turn, contacted RCCL and verified the same thing that your agent stated. I am sorry that your traveling companions spent $$$ for visas that are not necessary...the money could have been spent on the ship and RCCL would have gotten more of everyone's $$$ (like RCCL needs it).

 

Personally, I like Celebrity which is owned by RCCL. They have great ships and all of my experience on them have been great. Never ran into anything like we have experienced in booking this cruise. Oh, well, just a few more days (I don't want to think in terms of weeks) and everything will be forgotten and hopefully a wonderful adventure will begin.

 

Hope everyone has a great weekend! It is freezing here with freezing rain that should be changing to snow soon...sigh...won't it ever end? Rhonda and Al, you are probably cold, too. Just keep thinking 80+ degrees in Singapore!

 

John

[Seadragon555]

Two weeks from this coming Thursday we will be leaving for Singapore. We are staying at the Parkroyal on Beach Road in case anyone else is staying there. The Marina Sands would have been nice but not for $642 a night...personally I will be so tired after flying 20-some hours that any bed will feel wonderful.

 

Hope everyone is doing well and getting excited about the trip. Take care and we will see you on the ship!

 

John (and Rich in absentia)

[Oceanpearl adventure]

Al & I are at the Crowne Plaza, but we don't get in until around midnight the night before we leave.... We are hoping to sneak a little sight seeing in before we leave, but I think we should be open to a plan B as the time line is pretty narrow We'll roll with whatever presents itself in the am..... We are both really forward to our adventure & meeting new friends!! Safe travels to all & hope we will be able to raise a glass together soon!

- Rhonda

[Seadragon555]

Originally posted by sevengifts

I called RC yesterday re room amenities, and,

of

course got conflicting info versus what is stated online. Bottom line was that in our category (ocean balcony), we only get one combined shampoo and body soap dispenser.We will purchase good shampoo and soap in Singapore.

 

 

She scared me to death by telling me there were no in-room safes. Her supervisor clarified and corrected

the

information.

The

in- room safes are small (as in most other cruise lines) so RC makes available larger ones at

the

Purser's office for bigger items (fancy cameras etc,).

 

 

She also asked me what medications we were taking with us and was jotting them down gleefully. When I asked her

the

reason for this she told me that Singapore authorities required them to do this. WRONG,

the

requirement applies only to those containing opium or other narcotics, which none

of

ours has.

Frustrating, but I'm getting use to

the

fact that they do not do a real good at training their agents. And I'm not letting those small details get me down. We will enjoy this trip no matter what. :):)

I want to thank you for posting your experience with RCL. It lead me to wonder about my own medications so I did some research and was surprised that one of mine is listed in the Appendix A of the HSA Singapore website! BTW, it is not just medications containing opium or other narcotics...there is a 7 page (printed) listing of a variety of medications both prescription and over-the-counter. I was really surprised that one of mine showed on the list. I would highly suggest that you cross-check any medications...even non-prescription...against the list.

 

It gets further complicated in what you have to provide in advance to HSA before arriving in Singapore if one or more medications/products appears on the list as they (HSA) have to receive the information at least 10 working days in advance of your arrival.

 

Here is a link to the website: http://www.hsa.gov.sg/content/hsa/en...Singapore.html

 

I am not trying to scare folks at the last minute. I just thought others might want to know if any of their medications or over-the-counter products are included in the Appendix A listing (within the link above will be another link to Appendix A).

 

Also, if others that have been to Singapore before can relay any experiences they may have had pertaining to unknowingly bringing something that was on Appendix A that would be helpful. Thanks!

 

John

P.S. In case you were not aware of this I copied and pasted the info from the Str8 thread over to this thread. It took me 2 days to receive the "license" (term used to allow me to bring the medication into Singapore) via email after submitting all of the documentation.

[Dorothy's Friend]

In just three days I will start my journey to Singapore to join the Mariner of the Seas. First I will travel to London Gatwick for a one night stay, then fly with Emirates via Dubai to Singapore for a two night stay at the Copthorne Waterfront Hotel. All my documentation is in order :confused:.

 

So, hopefully I will get to meet the rest of our thread at the RCCL organised gathering or at our own gathering or in the sauna or steamroom ........ Anyway, I look forward to meeting you all.:')

 

Not long now!

 

Kevin

[Seadragon555]

In just three days I will start my journey to Singapore to join the Mariner of the Seas. First I will travel to London Gatwick for a one night stay' date=' then fly with Emirates via Dubai to Singapore for a two night stay at the Copthorne Waterfront Hotel. All my documentation is in order :confused:.

 

So, hopefully I will get to meet the rest of our thread at the RCCL organised gathering or at our own gathering or in the sauna or steamroom ........ Anyway, I look forward to meeting you all.:')

 

Not long now!

 

Kevin[/color']

 

Kevin,

We leave on 4/5/18 and arrive on 4/7/18 in Singapore. I hope you have good flights and, like you, I am looking forward to meeting everyone as well.

 

John (and Rich in absentia)