Newbie nees help!!

[Mrs.G]

I have been lurking around on these boards for a couple of days now...so I finally decided to join! I have a couple of questions--What excursions are the best?( cozumel, montego bay, grand cayman and labadee)...How dressed up do you need to be for the dining room? How expensive are the pictures on board? Should I tip the room steward before or at the end( this is in addition to the prepaid tips), and how much would you say? Is there anyone else that will need extra tip? I have a million questions! Anything that you think may be helpful to me, please let me know! Thanks!!!!

[Sue L]

I have been lurking around on these boards for a couple of days now...so I finally decided to join! I have a couple of questions--

 

What excursions are the best?( cozumel, montego bay, grand cayman and labadee)...Alot depends on what you like to do, Cozumel we did Tulum ( Mayan ruins), a can't miss in Grand Cayman is swimming with the stingrays. I have never been to others, so no help.

 

How dressed up do you need to be for the dining room? You don't say what cruise you are on, but if you are on a 7 day there will be 2 formal nights and you should wear what you wear to a saturday evening wedding. The remainder of the nights are more casual, dockers/polos for the men and nice capris,skirts,and pants outfits for the women.

 

How expensive are the pictures on board? I think the big ones are 20$ and the smaller I am not sure, we are big picture takers not buyers.

 

Should I tip the room steward before or at the end( this is in addition to the prepaid tips), and how much would you say? Tip at the end what you feel they deserve in addition or at the time if you ask for a out of the norm request.

 

Is there anyone else that will need extra tip? there are alot of people you could tip but keep it to those who actually do something for you

 

I have a million questions! Keep reading these boards and don't stress!!

 

Anything that you think may be helpful to me, please let me know! Thanks!!!!

[Sports Mama]

I have been lurking around on these boards for a couple of days now...so I finally decided to join! I have a couple of questions--What excursions are the best?( cozumel, montego bay, grand cayman and labadee)...How dressed up do you need to be for the dining room? How expensive are the pictures on board? Should I tip the room steward before or at the end( this is in addition to the prepaid tips), and how much would you say? Is there anyone else that will need extra tip? I have a million questions! Anything that you think may be helpful to me, please let me know! Thanks!!!!

 

Mrs. G--

Welcome to the boards !!!

 

What type of activities would you like to do? Who are you traveling with?Answering those questions would help. My family loves snorkeling and scuba diving. However, there are a lot of things to do in all of those ports. Go check out the port of calls board and you will get ALOT of information from there.

 

Cozumel--snorkeling, paradise beach, shopping is pretty good, tulum tour. There is a lot to do in this port.

 

Jamica -- haven't been, sorry can't help you. They say Dunn Rivers Falls is a must see.

 

Grand Cayman--swim with the sting rays (a must--really cool), turtle farm, you can always go to hell--I mean Hell, Grand Cayman and send post cards.:D Send all your family and friends a post card, post mark Hell, Grand Cayman. You can always tell them you went to hell and back. :D

 

Labadee--Haven't been there either.

 

Dressing--Casual I usually wear capri pants or slacks with a nice blouse or summer sweater and sandals. DH wears docker type pants with a polo shirt. Formal nights-I have worn a black knee length skirt, with a beaded top and I have also worn a simple black dress with pearls. DH wore a dark suit. My DS (age 13) wears the same thing as DH.

 

Pictures--I can't really remember, I know someone else can help here --this is the CC boards:) . I usually buy a few--when we board the first day and formal night pictures. (Great Christmas card pictures), but for the life of me it has been a while since we have cruised and I can't remember right off hand.

 

Tipping the Room Steward the first day is strictly up to you, some people will and some won't. I believe if you have special request on the first day, then I would, but we usually don't have any special request, so I don't tip until the last night. I have heard different amounts for tipping a little the first day (around $20) At the end of the cruise if I have had good service I usually tip above the recommended amount. If I have had lousy service (never had that happen) then I just tip the recommended. Tipping others extra I use the same philosophy with everyone else as I do the room steward, depending on the service. Don't foget to have a lot of small bills for tipping porters at the cruise terminals, taxis, etc.

 

I will give you the same advice the previous post did--READ THESE BOARDS!!!! If you have a question, do a search and if you do not see a thread over that topic, then start a new thread.

[cb at sea]

Consider Labadee a sea day--on land! It's RCI's private beach--I wouldn't book any "excursion" there--it's totally free to lie on the beach or participate in beach games, etc... Lunch is prepared on the beach as a BBQ by the ship. Except for alcohol, no spending is required!

[phillychick]

I find a MUST in Cozumel is Carlos n Charlies, a bar/restaurant, which can get really wild at times. But a must see. I've heard Tulem is a great tour also but we tend to do our shopping here.

 

Dunns River Falls is a blast but that's in Ochos Rio, not Montego Bay. Last time we were there was on a Carnival Cruise & we took a pirate ship sailing tour which included snorkeling. It was alot of fun.

 

& I agree, in Grand Cayman, you've got to swim with the sting rays but if you decide that's not your ticket, be sure to visit Hell.

 

Not sure about the price of pictures either. I usually just buy the one when we first board but don't buy the first night because I do believe they have specials where it cheaper if you buy 2 or 3 pictures at the same time.

 

& yes, on a 7 night cruise there are 2 formal nights & the rest are pretty casual. & if you don't want to get all "dolled" up, you can always go up to the Windjammer cafe for dinner on the formal nights too.

 

Whatever you decide to do, you'll have a blast. What ship have you decided on???

 

Barbara from Philly

[Cuizer2]

I have been lurking around on these boards for a couple of days now...so I finally decided to join! I have a couple of questions--What excursions are the best?( cozumel, montego bay, grand cayman and labadee)...How dressed up do you need to be for the dining room? How expensive are the pictures on board? Should I tip the room steward before or at the end( this is in addition to the prepaid tips), and how much would you say? Is there anyone else that will need extra tip? I have a million questions! Anything that you think may be helpful to me, please let me know! Thanks!!!!

 

RE: excursions - what are you interested in? My favorite is Stingray City in Grand Cayman. Labadee is a beach day, you don't need to do any excursions.

 

RE: dress for the dining room - On the two formal nights some people get really dressed up. However, clothing you would wear to church or a business meeting is fine. On non-formal nights all you really need is nice clean clothing that you would be comfortable in (no shorts however). Here are the guidelines from RCI ...

 

What are the dress codes onboard?

There are three distinct types of evenings onboard: casual, smart casual and formal. Suggested guidelines for these nights are:

Casual: Sport shirts and slacks for men, sundresses or pants for women

Smart Casual: Jackets and ties for men, dresses or pantsuits for women

Formal: Suits and ties or tuxedos for men, cocktail dresses for women

 

RE: photos - The formal photos, which are 8 x 10 are about $20 each. The other photos are 5 x 7 & 6 x9 and are about $10 each. You only have to buy the ones you like.

 

RE: tipping - some people believe if you tip on the first day the server will do more. Others believe the opposite. Some have tried both and had mixed results. I only tip at the end, and I have had good to great service. How much above the standard tip you give is up to you. I base it on how good the service was. Average = just the standard tip. Above average = 40% extra. Great service = 80% extra. Others are tipped if they do something for me. For example, a head waiter who I never see gets nothing. A head waiter who comes to check on me every evening = $20.