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Your ULTIMATE cruise ship home that you are guaranteed NOT to have withdrawals !!!

You and Waaaytooo are very bad influences!

I am still hoping my January '21 sailing will head to Labadee, and on the cruise planner over water cabanas are available for under $400. If you have reserved a cabana, check the sale against your receipt.

WOW ! Waaay to go ! If it’s showing up in your online account I think you’ve done it ! That’s the best deal I’ve heard of yet !

I'm in the process of Lift and Shifting my Jan 2021 Empress sailing to 2022 Odyssey. I haven't received confirmation from Royal Caribbean, but the sailing is showing up on my Cruise Planner, so I'm assuming that's a good sign. The difference between the Owner's Site on Empress and the Owner's Suite on Odyssey is $9200. Keeping my fingers crossed!!!

I converted mine. Hubby had $144 worth of travel funds. They gave him 11,262 points. If I were to USE points to book a $144 flight, it would only cost 10,262 so by converting we gained 1200 points.

Short answer, you don't! Welcome to the suite snob club lol.

And I have YOU to thank for it, because you encouraged me to have Michelle check again. So THANK YOU!!!!

Anthem is done with her dry dock and is heading to Southhampton. At least it is heading to where it is supposed to be but I thought they had canceled her transatlantic.Hopefully she will be headed back to Port Liberty for Nov sailings. Probably wishful thinking but I have to keep a positive outlook.

I dont trust the health officials, here's a shitty YouTuber i trust!

I was looking at available sailings earlier today (got a promo for Gold C&A members), and saw that Anthem is still currently scheduled for her Nov 2020 8-night Bahamas sailings, along with her Dec 2020 & Jan/Feb/Mar 2021 11-/12-night Southern Caribbean sailings. So there's that much, for whatever it's worth. And that promo would have been nice if it included the winter Anthem sailings for December 2021 and January 2022 that are currently available; but the offer ended with Nov 2021. I'm thinking that one of those Jan / Feb / Mar 2022 winter sailings might be the next chance I get to cruise out of Bayonne with reasonable certainty, and since I have 23 C&A points at the moment doing a 12-nighter in a JS for 24 C&A points would get me to Platinum and a good chunk of the way to Emerald.

I was reading Matt's excellent article on the front page about health protocols and came across the distancing part. I mean, it's obvious that we are all going to have to adhere to that as much as possible, even on a cruise ship. However - I'd like to see security enforce that policy when they put all those racks of discounted t-shirts out on the promenade! ?

It is very common for the refunds to be refunded in parts and over a number of refund events...unfortunately.

Crossing mine for you ??. I know it sounds too good to be true but it worked for me and it will work for you. My only question is how do we go “back to the farm after we’ve seen Paree?” ??

We had out first Celebrity last year on Summit and loved it. Will be spending our "couple" cruises on Celebrity, and save Royal for group cruising, starting in 2021. We have a couple more Royal to get through first, that we booked before we sailed Celebrity. Will most likely end up cancelling a B2B on Freedom for Oct 2021 to sail Celebrity instead.

We had the premium drink package on Summit last year and got no receipts. The gratuity was figured into the cost of our drink package.

It will be interesting to see how many of the former cruise ship employees return to their previous jobs. It's good money for them, but, I think this damn Covid-19 has probably scared a good number of them away. I hope I am wrong. And. how long of a training program is it for waitstaff, room attendants, engine room workers, etc??

The Cuban government contracted a 3rd party to expand the port capabilities before the travel ban imposed by the US. Global Ports Holding had plans to increase the Havana port to six berths by 2024. https://www.globalportsholding.com/ports/17/la-habana-cruise-port Global Ports Holding has also contracted with the Bahamas to upgrade the Nassau port facilities. They are also involved with Antigua's port expansion. Given Cuba's history with both foreign and domestic land owners it wouldn't make sense for anyone to build their using their own money.

I've done this before when I was between cruises. I live in the Atlanta area, but am in Central Florida quite a bit (well, pre-COVID...). I routinely take the time to drive out to Port Canaveral if I'm able just to get a glimpse of my happy place.

In their press release they said they were doing that because it wasn't profitable, it's not about the kids health, they don't care about them, just money

That's a good bonus! But of course, the number of points needed to travel could increase once normal travel traffic returns. I've noticed the number of points needed for my more frequently flown routes has increased over the years. Southwest also has a shopping portal where you can purchase items and a variety of gift cards using your Rapid Reward points. So it's almost, sort of, a little bit like cash, so you're not stuck with just flight credits. I used all my points loading up on Starbucks and Target gift cards so it's like free shopping and coffee trips for me! ?

Sold!

As to how long it would take to each D or D+. It really will be YMMV situation as if it wasn't for this virus I would I have made Diamond in less than 2 years. I mostly cruise solo and have a set amount of vacation each year. Since I live in the Midwest, I would have to fly, which means I am not going to just do one cruise. I had a Jr. Suite booked with family for 7 days and a Jr. solo this year; that would have been 21+14. I was going to have a S2S in Jan 2021 as a solo that would give me 16. In Oct 2021 I am staying in a 2br GS which is 14 and I have another 5N solo, so that would be another 15 points. So I would have made D in Nov 2021 but having lost so many cruises, I will probably just make Platinum....if things improve I am hopping to be D in 2022.

Certainly if things go well in Europe it will help the Global restart, by the end of September/early October there should be 4 cruise lines sailing, TUI will have 3 ships, Costa are starting up sailing with Italian residents only, as mentioned AIDA are due in September and Marella (also confusingly owned by TUI) are looking at the beginning of October. I've seen no negative press from the first couple of TUI cruises, funny that, had there of been a problem the press would of been all over it

I agree that it varies. We finally hit Diamond in 2018 and took our first Royal Caribbean cruise in 2007. Not counting this year, we missed two years of at least one cruise on Royal Caribbean. One was to try NCL the other was for an extended (and expensive) Hawai'i trip. So, 11 years and several cruises we traveled in a Grand Suite (never higher yet). For the last 5 years we only sailed the 5 Night Bermuda from NJ itinerary which slowed us down but luckily we were able to splurge on a Grand Suite for the last 3 years. Side note: we LOVE Bermuda, favorite island thus far, but unless it's not the only cruise that year, I am definitely over that itinerary. So glad Royal has started offering other trips from Bayonne. (Not that we will not fly to port but we like to sail with friends where it's easier to just drive). Edit: I'd like to say my guess is it takes an average loyal to Royal customer 15 years. That's taking into account an average sailing of 7 nights in a room category below a Jr. Suite as 80 / 7 = 11.43 (rounded). Figure 1 7 night cruise a year means year 12 is the Diamond year but add a few more years to try other lines or just not cruise that year.

Thank you so much for your update! I really appreciate it and this eases my mind! :).

You can L&S to any 7 night eastern/western (whichever you have) Caribbean cruise regardless of the ship....so if you are willing to move to a different ship (and perhaps a slightly different itinerary), you should be able to make it work. Also, you don't have to wait until they cancel the cruise. If you want to go ahead and L&S this cruise now, you can. I count 5 Eastern Caribbeans and 3 Western just in the month of November 2021. Remember that you can go +/- 4 weeks in either direction of your original date (Nov. 8,) so you can also look in late October for suitable L&S cruises as well. The itinerary does not have to be exactly the same as the original....it just has to be labeled "eastern" or "western" as your original. A qualified L&S cruise is price protected, so if you find a qualifying cruise that you want to L&S to, your current price is locked in. All you would pay would be a slight difference in taxes/port fees, if there are any.

Great pictures ..... we were on it at the beginning of january and had a great time on it ....

Apparently it's some sort of a bot as it added some odd links to the end of your copied post. I've removed the copied post and then merged the two topics together so the new responses didn't get lost.

Food options are the same for all non-beach club cabanas.

Yippee ! I won’t steal Michell’s laurels. She’s THAT good. I can’t tell you how excited I am for you. Only problem is, that OS is going to ruin you. You might as well know that, up front. That is just the BEST news I’ve had in the past couple of weeks. Sooooo happy to hear it.

Hopefully this will stop the knee-jerk overreactions that have been so prevalent. What a shame and such a high cost to everyone involved. Those antigen tests have an unacceptably high false positive record. They just aren’t reliable enough to put your entire livelihood (not to mention, vacation) on. So glad Royal is taking time to let others make these mistakes, first.

I strongly suggest you Lift and Shift to next year.. The chances of your cruise happening at all is so small.. I was in the same situation as you. I had a family cruise booked on Allure for Dec 27 and then I lifted and shifted it to next year on Odyssey of the sea Dec 26.. I got a fab deal because I got to move to a brand new ship still during the holidays and they locked in the lower price so I can now go on Odyssey for the price of Allure

We L&S our April 2021 cruise to April 2022. We stayed with the same ship and itinerary, our rate actually went down significantly.

I prefer the "Unofficial Breakfast Sandwich of NJ" -- smoked salmon (ideally belly lox), cream cheese, tomato, red onion, and capers. Personal preference is on a poppy seed bagel, but just about any standard (proper) bagel variety works with that.

The last few rounds of cancellations have offered L&S, if that's what you're asking. No, that's the appeal of L&S. You keep this year's rate, but get to move it to next year. That price protection is very popular.

Yes, I moved my March 2021 on Rhapsody in an owners suite to the same basic itinerary in an owners suite on Harmony March 2022. Harmony is over $5000 more than Rhapsody but I only had to pay $100 difference in port fees. Sweet deal!!

Do the lift and shift. You do not have to pay the difference that's the whole point of lift and shift it locks in the lower price.. I lifted and shifted our family New Years Cruise.. We were supposed to be on Allure of the Sea Dec 27 and I was able to lift and shift to Odyssey Dec 26 2021 for not 1 penny more. I got a fab deal as Odyssey was worth $1000 a person more!

If I remember correctly, the dock simply isn't long enough to support a Vision Class ship. Apparently it's sketchy even with Majesty.

Not my field of expertise either... So... I ask... No such thing as a dumb question if we don't know the answer... I just really want the itinerary... Coco/ Coz/ Roatan/ Costa...The kids would get their first "real cruise on a floating city"" and my Fiance would get her 7 nights of pampering and hopefully a lobster night... ?

I asked this same question once in the Cruise Critic boards and was told that the Vision Class ships cannot dock in Cuba. They gave a technical reason which now I’m forgetting.

Canceled my Oasis February 2021 cruise. Decided to book a Celebrity Alaska 2022 when they release the schedule. This will be our first Celebrity Cruise.

I don't recall there being a time frame for arrival. They do ask you to indicate what ship you're sailing, but I think that's it. Stores might not be open when you arrive, so if you intend to look around, consider taking your time before getting off the ship Also, many beach clubs - including Nachi - are closed on Sundays. If this is the case with your cruise, your options will be limited.

Now that is really missing a part of the cruise I never even pay attention to but I understand what you are saying.

The forward deck area is a great place to sail into the sunset but after dark it's also a great place to stargaze. On this occasion that included Milky Way gazing. I caught some lightning on the horizon from a distant storm in this next photo. Forget sailing into the sunset. Tonight we sail away into the Milky Way.

Since it's August as I write this I've decided to start this cruise in Alaska. I'll be flying to Anchorage and taking the train to Seward. Fortunately the flights are near empty and I scored an upgrade to Presidential Class. The Cruise Denying Consulate (CDC) initially denied the plan I submitted but after the 443rd revision they not only approved my plan but they were so impressed with my protocols they offered to fly me to Anchorage and they came to the airport to see me off: Apparently the plane was available briefly between jaunts to the golf course so I jumped at the chance to fly this beauty.

Ah, that explains why there's second breakfast and elevenses...

I understand you had a bad experience with a TA, but I can assure you that is not the typical experience. Moreover, your idea of "surrending all control" is a bit over dramatic characterization of what occurs. If you don't care for travel agents, that's totally fine. But please stop spreading painting all TAs with a broad brush. There are so many hard working agents these days, and pretty much all of them are struggling.

2 1/2 hours on the phone this morning (plus the 3 1/2 last night from disconnected calls), and I hope I finally have a resolution for my other two cancelled cruises. The resolution department said that the FCCs weren't created, though they should have been, so I should receive both of them within a week. Needless to say, if I don't receive them in 10-14 days, I'm going to be calling back and enlisting my TA's help as well. I'm cautiously optimistic.