Susie

Great news 

What is this? RCI send you an email to bid on the upgrade? 

41 minutes ago, Cez said:

Instead of paying 1000 CAD for flight to Miami we've decided to pay a bit more for cruise on Anthem and drive to Port Liberty.

Any suggestion on parking near the port ? Cruise port parking is $20/day but quick google search shows few cheaper options near Bayonee. Does anyone has any experience with off port parking and their shuttle services ?

 

Stay with the port parking @ $20. It is safe in the parking garage. Just a few steps you are at cruise check-in line. We arrived at the port around 10:15 am then dropped off our luggage, short drive to the port parking garage then walked a few minutes to the security line to check our carry on bags. Checked in with RC. We were onboard Anthem OTS around 11 am and sipping our first drink. 

34 minutes ago, KJ1231 said:

I'm hoping my granddaughter who will only be 3 when we cruise to Bermuda on Anthem next July (not the group cruise) starts saying, "Pe-Pop, when can we go another cruise?"

"Well, Julia.... Pe-Pop was going to open a 529 account to help you save for college but if you would rather go cruising every summer......"

And the title of the thread should be "I created a mini-me"!

I am sure that will happen to Julia. Kids love to cruise, they can get all you can eat ice cream, cookies, cakes etc ........... Talking about college plan, we thought about that if our financials stable during the next 9 years that we still have a house's mortgage we should be OK.  LOL, the problem we have right now is, we don't have time.

1 hour ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Lol. You sound like me a few months ago, I was telling @Matt there would be no way to swing Anthem GC and Symphony in one month.  Now I have Anthem, Symphony, and Navigator in July/August 2019.  Oops.  Aside from the company, it is the itinerary for the Anthem GC that really drew me in.  We have never been to Bermuda.

Me too !! We had never been to Bermuda and that is one of my bucket lists (long lists). The original plan was to go to Bermuda in April 2019 on Anthem but the water temp is still too low in Bermuda (April) so changing plan. My husband who loves to snorkel and swim if he cannot do that in Bermuda then that is a NO NO plan. I might convince him to go on the GC for the warm water in Bermuda and if the price is right. 

1 hour ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Stop thinking....YOLO Book It!!  

LOL I can go anytime and only need 2 weeks notice for my little handmade business but my husband works with a corporate company so we have to make sure he has enough time off available. From my addiction to cruising, I already YOLO 3 cruises in 2019 if I add Anthem in July that will be 4. My husband might get kick out of work to be my employee if he takes too much off. I was not sure about Mediterranean cruise on MSC Bellissima in April 2019 though because it is hard to find the flight that satisfies me. We have to fly to Milan Italy.

I agree with @JLMoran that you should not let them handle your stroller or car seat. We brought stroller one time and just wheel it in. They might need you to take the child out of the stroller when getting through security and look at your stroller but that is standard security now a day. 

22 hours ago, Matt said:

Your son sounds a lot like my daughter.  She always has two questions:

1. When is the next cruise?
2. Is the next cruise a group cruise? (She is disappointed if the answer is no)

I am thinking about the group cruise on Anthem in July but not sure my husband will have enough time to take off from work. My son no problem because in summer and he will say "yes". He loves bumper cars, Northstar and i-fly on Anthem. 

17 minutes ago, twangster said:

Harmony, Ovation and Quantum as well.  The rest of the fleet, no.  

It's a side effect of making push notifications work for the chat feature in their RoyalIQ app.  Once they overcome that loophole it won't work anymore.  If they can overcome that issue.  Forcing Apple to change isn't very easy.  That's exactly what's holding up the new app chat feature.

Do you try on Symphony?

Not sure anyone here use Google voice. It works without any Internet package (YMMV disclaimer: works on Anthem OTS  last week). Just send a text on Google voice.

3 minutes ago, princevaliantus said:

And yet, when you get the receipt to sign off on your coffee purchase, RCCL inserts "TIP" on the receipt so in essence, double-dipping AND the cruiser ends up paying the salaries of their employees instead of RCCL.

 

No comment Just LOL 

I paid for past Thanksgiving on Anthem in the Balcony Cat 5D not even Suite so it might help you feel better for what you paid. I paid almost $1200 Each person. I, my hubby and a 6 yrs old son total cost almost $3500+

$2000 per person on the Suite is really great price IMO. I know you feel bad today. Just think it is what it is and don't let it ruin your trip.

You will pay a premium for holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, New year, 4th of July and whenever kid out of school (Summer month) or a few days off in the week for kids like Easter. Before I have a kid I can go any month of the year and paid less now I am on my kid schedule and no I don't leave him at home. 

1 hour ago, MikeK said:

   The specialty dining debate is as old as the dress code for formal night in the MDR.   My take on it is you are already paying for the food in the MDR.  Why would you want to pay twice for a meal?  Is the food that much better than the food you already paid for?  Not in my opinion but then again,  you know what they say about opinions!

To answer the OP $30 no but $20 might be. 

@MikeK  I was thinking the same thing about why I have to pay for the food again that why I had never dined in a special dining restaurant. However, these past few years had changed my attitude about the food on RCI cruise. I used to think so many great choices on MDR but now I can't find what to order since every night is mostly the same. To add it up, this past cruise on Anthem I went on MDR 3 nights included Thanksgiving's night only decent meal I got was from the last formal night when they serve a lobster tail and Thanksgiving's night was the worst meal since I went on the cruise. Anyway, there are other places on the cruise to dine like Solarium Bistro and Windjammer with no extra charge but I do miss my good old days great quality food in the MDR. I did find my new favorite though "Solarium Bistro" even though it not available on all class ship. I booked another cruise Symphony OTS for October 2019 and I just took advanced of Cyber Monday deal got $152/person for UDP so this will be my first time to pay for my dinner on the cruise I hope it worth it.

1 hour ago, 2Beeze said:

I am feeling so miserable! Weeks ago we booked a panoramic suite (the large 2 bedroom) on the RCL adventure of the seas for Thanksgiving week 2019. It was about $2000 each and after it was made to  a full suite category. But today I learned that someone booked in July and it was half that. Honestly, for me wasting money is one of those things that really gets to me and this feels really bad. I had no way of knowing of course, but it feels way past price fluctuations and right into being seriously ripped off. It definitely effects how I feel about RCL.  Maybe id I had not have known, but the poster made sure to be very specific. 

Maybe it’s that these people somehow got that room just before the change and so they are getting the benefit of timing, I am not sure. I am also not sure which way to go on this now since I just added my sister on to the cruise yesterday (so someone else other than hubby and I are effected).

If anyone had any ideas that would be great, I could use a few right now! FYI we booked through an online vendor on this so not sure I can call them myself. 

Lynn

I am so sorry that happen to you. I felt the same way with the Anthem cruise just went on when I found down 5 days later I should save $600 if I wait 5 days to book. Anyway, we just came back from the cruise even with bad food on Thanksgiving's day, I will still want to go again with what I paid on Anthem. We had so much fun and I think you will also. Just don't worry about other person paid.

Do you pay for $2000 for each person? if $2000 / person for the suite that is not a bad price at all or I miss understanding? 

10 minutes ago, CruisinUngs said:

Thanks for the responses! Dropped him off at 9 today and was the only kid. We went back in 20 min and got him. Still crying. He did go in without much of a fight though when we dropped him off (even though he was crying) so think he’s slowly getting it.

We have tried the bribe but he wants nothing to do with a bribe. Kid is a little too smart and weighs his options lol. We will let him know he can do his own thing though. Good to know about port days.

 

Nothing to advise, just hope it's getting better for you. My 6 years old did not want to be in AO either and had been like that since he was 3 years old on his first cruise. I just came back from Anthem. We were lucky enough that my in-laws went with us and took care of him 2 nights so we could go to the shows. However, he does like to listen to music at the music hall and dance so all of us stay late one night. 

Welcome to the blog. The link below is from @twangster  He just went to Alaska and a lot of details on his trip. Click on the Not so live blog .......... and it will take you to the blog he posted.

13 hours ago, JBC said:

I am surprised to hear about these miserable MDR experiences.  I am pretty easy going with regards to restaurant food, and I have been to many fine dining establishments all over the country, and in comparison I have never really had an issue with MDR food.  Over my handful of RC cruises I have done most of the specialties on as well, never had any issues with those either.  You are making me question Matt's reviews, because in his live blog for Symphony, he had Thanksgiving dinner in the MDR, and he didn't mention any issues.  

I guess if I ever do a Thanksgiving cruise, I will avoid the MDR entirely!    

You can look at my cruise history, I went to many cruises. Maybe not many like other people here but this Thanksgiving dinner was the worst. I had never dined on specialties restaurants. All of the cruises I took I ate in MDR and occasionally Windjammer. I am not a picky eater either and love MDR foods that why I love to cruise. However. these past few years the food quality in the MDR decline. I used to think that so hard to pick the food because it is so many good choices on MDR but now is opposite. I not sure this is a strategy to get people to buy their food or not. Anyway, this trip with Anthem we managed to find the place we love to eat " Solarium Bistro". 

FYI: I do not complain about the whole cruise experience on Anthem OTS, just gave an honest review with the MDR food on Thanksgiving's day. Actually, this trip was the most fun trip we have ever had.

53 minutes ago, jurrjurr said:

Was it only the turkey dinner that was bad?  What about the other dishes (beef, chicken, fish, etc)?  I'm not a big turkey fan to begin with.  Just wondering if the entire MDR dinner service was a complete mess on Thanksgiving.

I ordered 2 appetizers Chill soup and shrimp cocktail. The soup is runny dilute and no taste.  Entree ordered a seafood and mash. The fried fish had no taste 2 scallops and 2 shrimps were over battered and rubbery not sure about other things on the plate because I stopped eating at that point. I stopped after I ate 1 bite of each thing. Desert, I do not remember what it called. I think pear and crisp Chocolate something like that. It was no taste like creamy green jello with a chocolate piece.

My husband ordered pasta and it came with pasta noodle and the marinas sauce. It tasted ok but not enough sauce and nothing else on the plate except noodle and tiny sauce.

My FIL and MIL ordered the same appetizers and same entrees as me and they experience the same. They ordered the pumpkin pie and they said not taste like pumpkin pie. Taste peanut on their pies. 

This was on Anthem OTS. 

I actually can say that MDR food was really bad now a day.  Only on Lobsters night on Anthem OTS during Thanksgiving sailing that decent for us. We dined in Solarium Bistro 5 nights out of 8 nights. If we will sail on Anthem again and not booking UDP then we will stick with Solarium Bistro. We went to Windjammer to get the food after a horrible Thanksgiving's meal in the Dining room. 

On 11/24/2018 at 5:31 PM, JLMoran said:

@Rimmit, just wanted to see if the final 3 sea days, plus your final analysis of how the ship compares to Royal, will be coming out some time in the near future. I know you and your wife both have day jobs, and with it being the holidays that just adds to the workload; but I just realized it's been almost a month now since the last update and, well, I kind of feel like the story was left on a bit of a cliffhanger. 

The last updated from @Rimmit  I think they are in Northern Europe and Rusia adventure trip right now.  

We just went on the Anthem OTS last week and came back yesterday. It is not even 24 hours yet when we left the ship. My son, who is 6 years old asked me " Mommy when is our next cruise"? I get him ready for school and took him to the bus and he was really sad that he is not on the cruise ship. 

We had so much fun on Anthem. Bumper cars, North Star, shows and i-fly. 

Just now, KJ1231 said:

Checkout meitravel.com for current "perks". I have gotten gratuities covered on the 3 cruises I booked through MEI. Right now it looks like you get specialty dining when booking particular ships.

I would prefer gratuities better since I already booked Ultimate Dining packages from the Cyber Monday deal. 

I went to Jamaica a few times. If you not adventurous I will suggest Margaritaville in Jamaica however they not really laid back though. It is more like drinking and enjoying a pool party with music. We did Dun's river falls in Jamaica and it is great, however, it is a lot of climbing the falls.

Cozumel, we went to the beach by local taxi. It is just OK. However, shopping in Cozumel was great and beer really cheap. LOL cheaper than water and would say safer to drink beer than water.

Do you get any perk with MEI like free gratuity or OBC? I just YOLO onboard Anthem 2 days ago.