KathyC

Depends on what plan you are buying and what the terms of that plan is. I know it's not a clear answer, sorry. You have to read the fine print as to what and when is covered. Some plans have pre-existing medical conditions not covered based on when you book the trip in relation to the insurance, and vice versa. I can tell you with the plan I bought, I was past final payment for my May cruise, and the other two cruises I have during this plan year were booked ages ago. We did look at every one of our credit cards and none offer more than flight delay or baggage insurance, so we felt this was the way to go. Since your cruise is so far away, relax, read through your options, and find what fits best for you. If you are using a travel agent, they can be very helpful. One of the benefits of using a travel agent is you have free one-on-one support to walk you through this.

My first cruise was in 1992, on my honeymoon. Brand new, biggest ship at the time, Majesty of the Seas. Comparing cruising then to cruising now....not even something I can do. Other than someone making my bed & leaving a towel animal and waking up in a different place than I went to sleep - the rest is so different. From the food to the entertainment to the class separation to the loyalty levels & perks & cruise points to...I could go on and on. We fell in love with cruising all those years ago, have patiently accepted the changes that happened as I've accepted changes that happen everywhere (20 somethings still don't believe me when I tell them I had to go to bridal shows on the weekends and read newspapers to plan my wedding as there was no internet LOL). The older I get the more I realize that you gotta go with the flow. Tvs were black & white when I was born, and now I can watch tv on my phone. If I don't like the change, I don't spend my money there and look elsewhere. That's the freedom of choice I have. That being said, don't even get me started on what they did to my university...grrrrrr

We took out an annual family plan with Allianz. We've never taken out insurance before, but as we are getting old figured it was time. Much cheaper for us to take the annual plan than buying individual policies each cruise. As of today's bookings, the one year plan will cover three cruises, plus any other traveling we do (like a college boy going on a spring break trip.) We did not choose the most expensive plan, which lets us cancel for any reason at any time just cause we feel like it, as there is no way that will happen. We chose a plan that made sense for us and how we travel. There are three different annual plans to choose from. @Matt may have some insight on filing a claim using the insurance.

My Time Dining uses Deck 3 entrance, and Traditional uses decks 4 & 5. Your sea pass card will tell you which one to go to. In the meantime, here is a recent tour of the ship, in case you're interested in seeing the dining rooms:

You do have to print Set Sail passes and luggage tags by a certain number of days before your sailing. I thought it was 3-4 days though...this seems a little too far out. Have you tried going in the back door to the site, instead of using the new way in?

Kindof-but-not-really off topic question. What ever happened to the elevator testing RCCL was doing? With the iPads, that you put in what floor you were going to and it assigned you an elevator?

Have a great time!! Will be following along. We're on Serenade in October for a 12 night repo. Will be our longest sailing ever, with 10 nights currently holding the record.

We sail Grandeur in April 2019 and can't wait! We haven't been on a ship that small in a very long time, and are looking forward to it. We'll be in our first aft-facing room.

We're on Adventure in May - have a great time!!

We sailed on Quantum when she was still based out of NJ and we went over the side on Northstar. It did NOT take 30 minutes, and they did NOT charge. 30 minutes? That's crazy. Less than 15 start to finish.

My cousin is in Cancun right now. He was not thrilled when I told him about the warnings and was seriously thinking about canceling his trip.

Cheapest I've seen for my May sailing on Adventure is $209.

Welcome to Jersey!

Thanks! I gets me in, lets me into the Cruise Planner, but then when I exit I'm sent to the new site. But I was able to get into my online check in and print out the last set sail pass for my May cruise. So I'm good now for May. I don't need anything else until right before sailing...like luggage tags.

Josh scoped from Maho Beach earlier, he's on an island tour today.

So do you all find these deals, just by looking at the RCCL website? I feel like I never see anything so good.

@KLAconQueso something Josh said in his live blog reminded me of a question about Adventure. Now that they have Izumi, did you notice if is there still a Jade section in the Windjammer?

We're on May 18th too! Did you see that there is a big boat race our day in Port Canaveral? Whole area is going to be busy. Not sure what you've got planned for the day, but our plans have now drastically changed. We were going to meet up with periscoper friends at Grills for lunch, then take an Uber or shuttle to Cocoa Beach for leisurely walks along the beach. I'm hoping we can at least get off for lunch, as the races are at noon and 2, hoping everyone vacates the port area to go to Cocoa Beach to watch. But Race Village is located in the port (Fishlips) so not sure how many stay around. Then I guess back on the ship. :( https://thunderoncocoabeach.com/

I sailed on Quantum (sister ship to Anthem) with my two teens in one room and the two of us in the connecting room. They were 15 & 17 at the time and Royal had no problem with it. But I think you have to do it over the phone as the website won't allow it. Our travel agent handled the whole thing. We were all four of us on one room, and Royal asked the TA if we'd be willing (at no additional cost) to switch to two connecting balconies. They just put the kids into the other room. We didn't need extra keys as the connecting door was always open, but yes you can get an extra key - it will actually say "extra key" on the bottom of the seapass and won't be valid for charging.

Found this little gem today, while researching a sailing later this year. We'll be visiting five ports; two we've visited 20+ years ago on a different cruise line, two are brand new, and one we've visited a few times but not recently. http://royalportfolio.com/ It's intended to be a port shopping website, but it shares so much information I found it to be very helpful. You can download the maps they give you on board, which is pretty cool. We're not big port shoppers, but seeing exactly where the ship will dock in relation to the shopping and walkable areas is nice. There is a summary of the island, and an area on excursions. You not only can see each Caribbean port - but ready for this Alaska group cruise people - three ALASKA ports too! Maybe one day they'll add European ports? But I found it pretty cool, so I wanted to share. There is also a free app version you can download.

Good Times Catamaran isn't listed as a Royal excursion, where did you book it? We're visiting Barbados for the first time in November.

I wonder why they are there? Hmmm...

My husband loves the avocado margarita.

The stools should be on the opposite side of the tables, this way you can look out at the sea while sitting there.

Brock doesn't send me an e-mail with each sale...going to have to talk to him! LOL