Allen2

Not to be a "Mr. Negative" - but it might be worthwhile to check all arrivals for the day you desire to leave early. We ported in Ft. Lauderdale, got off early, and faced a mob and delay due to multiple arrivals from many cruise lines. There were just not enough taxis or shuttles to meet the demand.

Yes, you can re-price, as explained above - and your travel agent should be willing to do for you (or find out for you). As stated before, sign up for: cruiseline.com/cruise/price-alerts. You then receive an e-mail every time your specific cruise, date, and category goes up or down. Easier than RCL website work.

Just checked the prices on RCL sale announced today (thanks, Matt). Over next four cruises, no changes or savings! Disappointing, but saved $700 +/- with prior sale.

You might also look at cruisedeckplans.com. Their charts might answer your questions.

One important thought: if you have any shipboard credit (from travel agent, RCL offer, stock ownership program, etc) this can be used toward tips.

To put the issue in perspective, we recently had a four-hour wait for a call-back from an airline that arbitrarily changed flight to a day later. Just think how much we would appreciate any company that could return to a decent level of service! Maybe Royal Caribbean will listen to us (Matt: can you help)?

Or any combination thereof

Agree with all prior responders. Just take your time, no stress, and have lunch at the airport before departure.

Matt - Thank you for the Wonder blogs! Great insight.

We do both ways on same day, cross-referencing on both (always - after a bad past experience).

AIG worth looking at, especially if you are price-sensitive.

St. Kitts: do not miss the "Caribbean Scenic Rail & Sail" - a train ride with live music and a catamaran. IMO one of the better tours in the Caribbean.

Doing laundry in sink or shower works - but the issue is drying clothes. There is a short clothesline in the shower; take a few clothespins to hang clothing. If you shower in the morning, wash clothes then, and hang until next morning. Vice versa for night showers - although days with two showers change the picture somewhat. Most clothing will be dry. As Traveling Mike stated, the hair dryer is always available for stubbornly-damp clothing. You can also consider bringing a short length of light weight clothesline. We traveled an around-the world cruise doing this. If still a fringe benefit, limited free bags of laundry are available, depending on status. Several other cruise lines offer laundermats on some ships.

Both good and bad luck in the past. If an obstructed view bothers you, might consider paying more because an obstructed view is what you might get. Otherwise, $300 less buys several nice tours!

Part of the answer regarding late dining: port time departure and return time from tours. Late departure/late tours sometimes conflict with early dining!

Royal's current sale is a true "mixed bag". That being said, it is worth looking at - we have four cruises booked with Royal, and only one showed no price changes. The other three had (a) some prices lower, (b) some prices higher, or mostly (c) some prices both higher and lower. Probably worth the effort to look and re-price when it is to your advantage.

And scheduled buses ran to/from Heathrow

Should not share what we do to our bags, since nobody (us) wants a bunch of look-alike bags. BUT, do something distinctive with tape, ribbons, wrap, name tags. If you are flying prior or after, make sure that whatever you do cannot get caught in airport conveyor belts.

Best to operate on a "GRAB AND GO" basis - if you see something you like, grab it. Better price later, go cancel and rebook. Most of us have saved thousands of dollars, over time, through this little bit of extra effort. Personally, checked yesterday and every sale price was higher than originally paid!

CVS in our area: go in your automobile, wait in your car, masked/gloved attendant hands you the swab. No interaction with potentially sick persons. Results electronically between 15 minutes to an hour. Electronic form printable and accepted by cruise line (or use on your phone at terminal). Appointment required.

Am sure you should get many detailed answers to your question, but the most important is whether or not the port uses tenders. Early tenders usually are reserved for ship's tours.

Above all - remember to tip the individual who checks your luggage curbside! In addition to the right thing to do, there are too many stories of bags not showing up on the ship or being misdirected due to 'lost' luggage tags(usually after the porter has been "stiffed").

WAAYTOO: Question: Did Royal offer any credit for lost luggage? How much effort on your part? How long did reimbursement take? Thanks.

As Speed Noodles said, CVS and Walgreen's are free. CVS (at least in our market) opens up scheduling, on line, for testing 14 days ahead. Your should be able to schedule a test just prior to your cruise, and electronic results usually arrive in 15 minutes - sometimes a little longer. Your can print and/or use electronic version. In our market, you stay in your car for the testing. Very easy.

Sometimes many choices are available, sometimes not - and it often does not seem to matter (within reason) how far out the booking goes.