Virgin Crusier with a couple of questions

[dual]

Good day all.

 

I have booked my very 1st cruise on Liberty of the Seas leaving Miami on 22nd November.

 

I have been reading as much as possible as I like to be in the knowledge and I have a couple of questions I hoping some of the experienced cruisers can help me with.

 

Travel Irons - Now I understand Irons are not allowed to be bought on board. I have a baby travel iron which I have always carried along on holiday - is putting this in my suitcase a real "no". Will my luggage be opened and it removed? I know there is an ironing service available on Board - but is bringing your own so frowned upon??

 

Alcohol - Do people buy this on land and "sneak" it on board for consumption? If they do - how do they "sneak" it on. I really dont relish the thought of being restled to the ground by the staff - could be rather embarrassing. Is it best to just not bother? I fail to believe no one has successfully got some on Board.

 

Tipping - Do i just give tips as and when its appropriate or is there an official process for doing so? Its a 7 day cruise.

 

Im sure I'll think of other questions...but a bit at a time eh!!

 

Appreciate any advice offered.

 

Many thanks in advance.

[CruiseLover15]

Good day all.

 

I have booked my very 1st cruise on Liberty of the Seas leaving Miami on 22nd November. You picked a great ship for your first cruise.

 

I have been reading as much as possible as I like to be in the knowledge and I have a couple of questions I hoping some of the experienced cruisers can help me with.

 

Travel Irons - Now I understand Irons are not allowed to be bought on board. I have a baby travel iron which I have always carried along on holiday - is putting this in my suitcase a real "no". Will my luggage be opened and it removed? I know there is an ironing service available on Board - but is bringing your own so frowned upon?? All irons are frowned upon.

 

Alcohol - Do people buy this on land and "sneak" it on board for consumption? If they do - how do they "sneak" it on. I really dont relish the thought of being restled to the ground by the staff - could be rather embarrassing. Is it best to just not bother? I fail to believe no one has successfully got some on Board. A lot of people sneak alcohol on board. Many use things called Rum Runners which are like clear bladders

 

Tipping - Do i just give tips as and when its appropriate or is there an official process for doing so? Its a 7 day cruise. There is a formal process for tipping on the last night of the cruise. Many times people will tip extra to bartenders even though a tip is already added to the drink bill

 

Im sure I'll think of other questions...but a bit at a time eh!!

 

Appreciate any advice offered.

 

Many thanks in advance.

 

Hope this helps. Enjoy your cruise.

[kaylorcc]

Good day all.

 

I have booked my very 1st cruise on Liberty of the Seas leaving Miami on 22nd November.

 

I have been reading as much as possible as I like to be in the knowledge and I have a couple of questions I hoping some of the experienced cruisers can help me with.

 

Travel Irons - Now I understand Irons are not allowed to be bought on board. I have a baby travel iron which I have always carried along on holiday - is putting this in my suitcase a real "no". Will my luggage be opened and it removed? I know there is an ironing service available on Board - but is bringing your own so frowned upon??

 

Alcohol - Do people buy this on land and "sneak" it on board for consumption? If they do - how do they "sneak" it on. I really dont relish the thought of being restled to the ground by the staff - could be rather embarrassing. Is it best to just not bother? I fail to believe no one has successfully got some on Board.

 

Tipping - Do i just give tips as and when its appropriate or is there an official process for doing so? Its a 7 day cruise.

 

Im sure I'll think of other questions...but a bit at a time eh!!

 

Appreciate any advice offered.

 

Many thanks in advance.

 

 

Travel irons - These are banned from being brought aboard by cruisers, the stated reason being that they are a fire hazard. I know plenty of people who have brought them onboard on multiple cruises anyway, kept them in plain view of their cabin steward, and never had anybody say a word to them about it. Like alcohol, if they are confiscated, they should be returned to you at the end of the cruise.

 

Alcohol - People sneak alcohol onboard fairly routinely, judging by the number of threads about it. Your cruise contract states that you can be refused embarkation because of it; as far as I've heard, there are no recorded cases of this ever happening. If alcohol is discovered in your bags (and, yes, they do search them.. not all of them, and not always thoroughly) they will typically remove the alcohol from your bags, and bring you down to a "naughty room" where they tell you that it was against the rules, will be returned at the end of the cruise, and here's your luggage. Some people just get a card in their bags saying that it's been confiscated. On occasion, the alcohol is not returned at the end of the cruise, which is RCI's prerogative. As to whether or not it is necessary, I will say on a personal note that my husband likes his booze, and we've never felt the need to smuggle. Alcohol prices are fairly expensive, roughly equivalent to the price of drinks at a decent bar in a larger city. There was a thread recently about this subject, and if you do a search, you should be able to find a list of the drinks and prices for one of the ships (I would imagine prices are fairly standardized across the ships). Smuggling tips are liberally given on Cruise Critic, and you can find a number of threads on the subject by using the search function.

 

Tipping - There is a "recommended amount" by RCI that is considered standard, almost like a service charge. The amount is still, however, optional. These can be prepaid at the beginning of the cruise, put on your Seapass at the end of the cruise, or paid in cash at the end of the cruise. I have never paid less than the minimum amount (in total), and in general, the service received more than justifies the minimum amount. If you find that you feel differently at the end of the cruise, tipping less is your decision to make. Suggested amounts can be found at this link: http://www.royalcaribbean.com/customersupport/faq/details.do;jsessionid=0000TK8_lvSHv0ESBSdLTqQDwr7:12h3g0fq2?pagename=frequently_asked_questions&pnav=5&pnav=2&faqSubjectName=Life+Onboard&faqId=263&faqSubjectId=334&faqType=faq

Additionally, a 15% gratuity is automatically added to all alcohol purchases. If you choose to dine at one of the specialty restaurants or Johnny Rockets, the cover charge includes a tip.

 

Enjoy your cruise! :)

[ma3]

Iron - You hit on all the no no's. Your luggage will be scanned. I always bring the Downey wrinkle release and/or a steamer. No Iron no matter how small.

 

Booze - I prefer not to even try to smuggle alchol. I do not want to go to the naughty room to pick up my luggage. That is not the way I want to start my cruise.

 

Tips - You will receive envelopes towards the end of your cruise to put your tip money in or you can opt to prepay. We always bring extra $1.00's for tipping our favorite bartender. Some of them try to remember you and what you drink so we like to reward them for their service. Also you will need cash to tip room service and we also like to tip in Johnny Rockets.

 

I am sure you will be getting plenty advice from the board. Enjoy your cruise with RCI

[Winegirl58]

First of all, welcome to CC! These boards are a wealth of information.

 

Second, you are going to get some rude answers to your questions. I see it happen every day and I just shake my head. :confused: Instead of someone just answering you question, they will berate you. Just ignore those people!

 

I am sailing on the Liberty for the first time also. I do know that travel irons are dangerous and are frowned upon, on ALL cruise lines.

 

I have only sailed on Princess (besides my RC cruise way back in 1990) and they allow bottles of alcohol to be brought on the ship in your suitcase. That does not mean we did not spend our share in the bars, believe me we did. But RC does not allow it. People seem to use the Rum Runners and love them. Up to you if you think it is worth it or not.

 

I usually pre pay my tips at the beginning of the cruise. $10 a day for both husband and I, and then I tip the steward personally at the BEGINNING of our cruise. I do the same in the Dining Room. I really think it helps with service!

 

Have a wonderful cruise, and again, welcome and enjoy the wealth of information you will learn.

[printingchick]

Having cruised on both RCL and Carnival, I can tell you that RCL seems to be more serious about the rule forbidding you to bring your own liquor on board. Carnival, in my experience, mostly looked the other way.

 

I've brought booze onto Carnival. In San Juan, boarding takes you right through a duty-free liquor store, where they tell you to put our purchase in your carry on and don't say anything. We were not questioned. I figured the cruise line probably had some sort of deal with the liquor store. Who knows? But I've read that RCL takes this rule seriously and have never even attempted to smuggle.

 

On my last seven-night cruise on Freedom of the Seas, my on-board bill came to about $250, and that included some photo purchases. I probably averaged about $20-$25/day on drinks, which is 2-3 fruity drinks by the pool and a glass of wine with dinner.

 

Not unreasonable in my opinion.