twangster

Any MEI travel agent can book a Royal Caribbean Blog group cruise.

Annette may do all the work on an actual GC (in case you thought Matt did anything),  but she doesn't have to manage your booking to qualify.

8 hours ago, striper405 said:

Anyone hear of any new updates. Going on Anthem Nov 17 this year hoping the pier is done by then. 

I'll be there next week, assuming tenders can operate, so I'll update my Empress blog in the live blog section if we make it. 

6 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

So the RC transfer is from FLL to Port of Miami right?  How much was it pp if you don't mind my asking?

 

The Royal ship transfer was $60 round trip, per person. 

That's from FLL.  MIA (Miami) airport was slightly cheaper for the ship transfer but I almost always find FLL cheaper for airfare so overall it was cheaper flying into FLL.  

13 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Lol...you are packing really last minute now...like Hubster lol

Half packed, still have 8 hours.  No problem mon! 

With Cuba on my mind and with a goal of sailing some of the older and smaller ships in the fleet I booked Empress.  With the current fleet it's hard to get any smaller.  I'm supposed to get a glass block based on my current Crown and Anchor points accumulation so as I thought which ship to 'block' on, getting a glass block from Empress seemed like a really cool idea so I booked this cruise with that other goal in mind.

It's a 5 night cruise:

Day 1 - Embark Miami

Day 2 - Key West

Day 3 - Havana

Day 4 - Sea Day

Day 5 - CocoCay

Day 6 - Debark Miami

It's been a few years since I've visited Key West but I need to get some work done so I'm not sure how far I'll venture off the ship. 

For Havana I've a booked a full day excursion through Royal.  I have an overnight cruise to Havana booked in September so I'm using this trip and excursion to discover and plan my next visit there for maximum cultural enrichment.

I have many Canadian friends who have visited Cuba.  They've been able to fly direct since, well forever.   They've given me some ideas so this full day excursion should check all the boxes for an initial Cuba experience and allow me to better plan my next visit.

I've missed a few calls on CocoCay this year so fingers crossed.

Flights were booked through Air2Sea and I'm taking a dreaded red eye flight with airport transfers to the ship by Royal.  I usually just take a ride-share but as a solo traveler the transfer isn't that bad from a cost perspective and it's for research so I know how well it works getting from Fort Lauderdale (FLL) airport to the Port of Miami and back.  I had to work this weekend so the all night flight is an "efficient" use of my time, or so I keep telling myself to justify it. 

Not sure when I might sail Empress again especially since she does mostly Cuba runs at the moment so I've splurged and booked a junior suite.  My first solo JS experience.  At the time I booked it was a reasonable price difference.

My red-eye departs at 1am local time and I haven't started packing yet.  It's only 5 nights so not a hard cruise to pack for. However I better step away from the keyboard and get started.

Having lived in the Arctic in my youth, I lived in their space.  I snowmobiled in their space.  I went hiking in their space.

It's easy to say "cruiselines see a chance to make a few bucks" but I guarantee you people want this kind of experience.  It's offered because there is demand.  

It's a small ship that specializes in high adventure exotic cruising.  The ship has 80 cabins.  

This sort of excursion has been running for decades.  Sooner or later something was bound to occur.  That doesn't mean that any excursion with any risk should be banned.  Seems to me its journalism trying to sensationalize anything they can to make headlines.  

Note the flying position on the stomach rather than a seat sling.  Looks different but sounds sort of the same. 

1 hour ago, ellcee said:

Well then I have some preparing to do. Questions are okay but asking "why I couldn't find someone" will make me get snarky. I work in NYC - people eat solo in restaurants all of the time. No one says a word.

Have fun with it.  

"I'm a really mean person and no one likes me"

"They went overboard at the first opportunity"

"It was a last minute deal and the cruise only cost me $60.  How much did you pay?"

"I'm doing research for a blog" - then turn the table and ask them all sorts of questions.

Seriously though, I just explain I have a flexible travel schedule and my friends and family do not, which is the truth.  

11 hours ago, Adriana said:

Hahaha!! Excellent point!! The Best of Acadia & Cadillac Mountain that I have booked does include a lobster lunch. Who knows the quality or if any good, but is an option. I suppose I always hear of Maine lobster and for Canada, it is beer, maple syrup and cheddar soup. 

Then try lobster in both and let us which is better!

Oh come on now, we all now @Matt has ALL the answers!

I cruise solo often.  I am also a frequent solo business traveler.  When you travel for business sooner or later you have to eat.  I'm not going to eat fast food so you reach a point as a business traveler that you get over any hang ups or issues about eating alone in something other fast food restaurants.  Sometimes this means eating at the bar within a restaurant but sometimes I just want a table.  In fact, if someone else is paying the bill, why not try a reasonable sit down restaurant?  

Cruising solo and eating dinner alone come naturally because I have traveled solo for business.  We all have to eat sometime and in the case of a cruise, we all paid for our included meals.  Since I paid for it, why not try a reasonable sit down experience?

For solo dining I choose My Time Dining.  I am always seated at a table for two by myself.  Service is typically fast and the wait staff always treat me well.  I have never noticed if any one is looking at me because quite honesty I don't care if they are, much like when I travel for business.  I wear a sports coat on formal night.   It's easy to do and it respects the dining room process.  i don't pay a lot of attention to what other people are wearing and it doesn't bother me if others don't dress up.  I wouldn't even notice if someone wore white after Labor day, I've probably done it myself.

I tend not to do specialty dining very often.  I do sometimes, but rarely.  The MDR for me is generally ideal .  I take pictures of menus for the blog (flash off) and if I remember pictures of my meals.  I often think what I might blog about or reflect on the day and before I know it my meal has arrived.  

I paid for the MDR, so I have no qualms about using something I paid for.  

Just now, Boltswin said:

Thank you for sharing the PDF, that will make decding when to purchase Voom much easier going forward. We got the 1device surf & stream for Symphony GC for $11.99 a night, but our Anthem & Freedom cruises are currently at $19.99. I’ll keep an eye out for a sale on those sailings, and if not just buy it on board on day 2.

Does day 2 start at 12:01am, or is it 24hrs after sail away? 

I was able to get Symphony transatlantic Voom S&S for $11.99 a long time ago.  Great deal!  For a while they were offering Surf only at that price and now with this weekend's sale, S&S is $13.99.  

As far as Voom goes, the start of day 2 varies in my experience.  On Anthem one time it started at 10pm on boarding day.  I happened to check and to my surprise there it was.  On another ship Voom day 2 rates didn't start until 8am on day 2. 

I don't know if the IT staff have to manually advance it or if different ships just do it differently.   

Typically the stated port time is the desired time passengers can walk off the ship.  However that isn't a "guaranteed" time.  Stuff happens. 

One time another ship had difficulty docking and we had to hang back waiting for them to get it done.  We couldn't approach until we were given the green light to proceed.  Not our Captain's fault but we were 'late' arriving because of another cruise line.   Their old ship didn't have azipods so they struggled in the moderate wind.

Most reputable excursion companies understand that ship port time isn't absolute but it would be wise to ask them this question and make sure you understand their policies.

Izumi Express is sometimes found on ships that don't have an Izumi specialty restaurant.  Harmony has an Izumi restaurant.

Based on that photo you must have great weather!

19 minutes ago, KarenP said:

Thank you so much. That’s kind of what I figured. So if the sale does not apply to my sailing, could another future sale possibly apply or will mine just not be included?

Absolutely.  Check often. 

Typically you are safe to purchase now and if a future sale does apply to your sailing, refund your purchase and buy it at the lower price.  

44 minutes ago, KJ1231 said:

Following now - was looking at 3-day cruises in February. Enchantment  out of Orlando/Canaveral on 2/22 still has Coco Cay on the itinerary. I was also looking at the Mariner sailing on 2/22 from Miami. Yesterday it was a 3-day with Coco Cay. Today it is a 2-day to Nassau and back.

Enchantment seems to win the conflict when they have had two Vision class ships both booked at Cococay.  

It's interesting they dropped a day on Mariner 2/22.  Makes me wonder if they charted her and needed an extra day for the charter.  

Mariner has two known charters right now:

   Sun 10, Mariner Of The Seas,  5 Night On The Blue Cruise, Miami / Miami

   Sun 24, Mariner Of The Seas, 5 Night Monsters Of Rock Cruise,  Miami / Miami

Given the charter on 2/24 I'm guessing it got an extra day by changing the 2/22 sailing down to 2 nights. 

http://monstersofrockcruise.com/

It's going to Labadee and Ocho Rios which isn't a common port for Royal to use in Jamaica.   

Just now, KarenP said:

It says things are on sale but the prices all appear to be the same for my sailing. Does the sale price not appear until you put it in your cart?

The sale doesn't apply to all sailings.  You will see if before placing it in your cart.

Voom on-board versus cruise planner at $13.99 for various C&A levels:

Voom Comparison 1399.pdf

For D/D+ the day 2 strategy remains cheapest for 7 nights or less.  

Day 2 strategy involves buying it on board but waiting until day 2 to do so since prices drop for the full voyage plans on board as each day passes.

For Emerald and Platinum on 7 night or longer you are better to buy it ahead of time @ $13.99

For Gold on 5 night or longer you are better to buy it ahead of time @ $13.99

I'll be keenly watching Voom prices in 2019. 

Now that I'm D+ it's usually cheaper to buy it on board.  When the cruise planner price is $13.99 or lower for sailings of 11 nights or longer I'm better to buy it ahead of time.  

Here is the cruise planner price trend with the current 'sale':

July 2019 $15.99

August 2018 $13.99

September 2018 $13.99

October 2018 $13.99

November 2018 $14.99

December 2018  $14.99

January 2019 $14.99

February 2019 $19.99

April 2019 $19.99

May 2019 $17.99 

June 2019 $17.99

July 2019 $19.99 (July 4th GC)

September 2019 $17.99

November 2019 $17.99

December 2019 $19.99 (Holiday GC)

I have three mid-September cruises.  My 'eDocs' are ready for 9/12 including luggage tags - 47 days. 

For my other cruises at 52 and 56 days, no eDocs yet, no luggage tags.  Luggage tags are usually found within your eDoc near the end.  This isn't the same as a SetSail pass.

A quick way to look for eDocs is in your dashboard once logged in.  Click the "View more details" link and the section will expand.  If you're eDocs are ready a link will appear for them.   Otherwise it will state "You have no cruise documents available at this time".

If it's an all day rain sort of day I may just have a few beers in town but stay close to the ship. 

If the weather is good I'll explore some of the park, try to get some photos of the train in the woods, etc.

Just now, Baked Alaska said:

Just checked my planner again. Not offered. What are you doing in Skagway? We're leaning towards either the canoe to Davidson Glacier or the Sawtooth Hike. Was interested in the 9 hour glacier hike, but not the 9 hours of it. 

My current plan is to walk through town and eventually to the Gold Rush Cemetery and Reid Falls. 

Depending on weather there are other trails in the area.  It's a National Park.

https://www.nps.gov/klgo/planyourvisit/hiking.htm

I'm not booking an excursion this time.  

1 minute ago, Baked Alaska said:

@twangster OH bummer! I'm sorry that happened. Was it tendering from ROTS to the glacier?

Is that excursion listed as Day 2 on the cruise planner? I have no excursions offered for that day. 

Correct.  Day 2 excursion that would have to tender given the location.  That is what made it unique for this itinerary.  

I got the email today.  My Hubbard Glacier Wilderness Explorer excursion has been cancelled 

12 hours ago, JLMoran said:

I second the recommendation to try a "propah lobstah" if you get the chance. It's funny, the further north you go on the Atlantic coast, the tastier the lobster gets. Newport, RI lobster is good. Boston or Cape Cod, MA lobsters are better. But nothing beats a fresh lobster roll made just about anywhere in Maine. I spent four years there for college and never had better or tastier lobster.

Using this logic, try the lobster in Canada, eh?

I have Quantum booked in November 2019 sailing from Singapore.  Looking at my paperwork it says:

     Your deposit has been posted to your reservation..Final Payment is due by 11 SEP 2019, 5:00 PM EST

My booking is refundable, but I'm in the US.

Perhaps different rules for bookings made in your home country?

If booked direct, call the Crown and Anchor team who can also do bookings and/or review them.  Ask them when final payment is due.