Dawn T.

@Lovetocruise2002, I thought I would add my experience on pricing for the Mariner. I booked near the end of April (2-1/2 months ago) for January 2020. We are doing a B2B with a 3-night/4-night. Original price difference between a balcony cabin and a junior suite was $800. I wanted to book the balcony, but my husband insisted on the junior suite. So I booked the junior suite. I checked my prices yesterday. The balcony cabin for both cruises has increased $700 total. So, now the balcony price is almost what I paid for my junior suite. The junior suite price has increased about $600. These days, I always find that I get a much better deal by booking as early as I do. I was surprised to see that much of an increase in only 2-1/2 months though.

Hi @InfoNrs629! We have cruised with our 2 kids on Disney many times. Freedom was our first cruise on Royal with the kids. They were 12 and 16 at the time. We have sailed on Freedom twice since then without the kids. It is a GREAT ship! You and the kids will have no trouble finding things to do. The shows and ship amenities are wonderful! A junior suite is a great choice for 3 people. The extra space in the cabin, walk-in closet and full tub in the bathroom are great. I have actually sailed in a grand suite on the Freedom as well, and we loved it. I guess I would have to decide if the extra cost is worth the amenities that come with a full suite. If the cost isn't necessarily a consideration, then I would probably go with a full suite. Whatever you decide, you should have a wonderful trip!

This is a great idea, no matter which ship you choose! On our first Royal cruise with our kids, who were 12 and 16 at the time, we sailed on the Freedom in July 2010. Rob and I had an ocean view balcony, and we put the kids in an inside room across the hall. It was $100 cheaper than having all of us in the balcony. It is wonderful to have the extra space, two closets and two bathrooms with 4 people. We have also taken the kids on two Oasis cruises. On the first one in June 2012, we had the last ocean view balcony aft and the kids had the boardwalk balcony across the hall. That was about $800 more (I think) than having all of us in the OV balcony. It was so nice having the extra space before, I decided it was worth it. Plus I got to experience the boardwalk balcony myself. On the second Oasis trip, our youngest son graduated high school and took 2 friends, so that one was a little different. We had an ocean view balcony, a Central Park balcony and a boardwalk balcony. I don't think you even need actual connecting rooms to do this. The kids just have to be "near" you. Our kids were directly across the hall on the two trips with just the 4 of us. My suggestion is that you consider this when pricing your trip. You might even be able to get a better deal with 2 cabins if you book a balcony and an inside (but not necessarily on the Harmony). ?

Hi, Sarah! I will try to help a little. Cruising is an awesome way to vacation. It is affordable, they take you places, and you can do as much or as little as you want! You can be casual diners and still eat in the main dining room. You can also eat in the WIndjammer (the buffet) at your leisure. I have never eaten dinner in the Windjammer, but have ventured up there during dinner hours. It is never busy. I would think the VOOM would be good on all ships you are considering, especially on Harmony, as it is newer. IMO the added value of the Oasis class is worth it. I have sailed on Oasis and Allure, but my first trip on Harmony is this September. I don't think you can make a bad choice between these three. Harmony has the most bells and whistles because it is the newest. I guess it would come down to price, itinerary and proximity to the departure port if I were choosing. If you choose Oasis class, be sure to book your shows in advance. No matter what you choose, I'm sure you will have a fabulous time!

Well said! I completely agree.

Hi @craig403. Not sure this will help, but we had cabin 9576 on Serenade, and there was no issue with noise from the centrum. It may be that this cabin is far enough away from it. We also had cabin 1560 on deck 10 on Brilliance twice, and no noise issue either trip.

Go to your web browser and type in: logoff.com (no w's).

We are sailing on Harmony in September. My sailing has some good drops with this sale. I am not getting this, but the Nellie's Beach over the water cabana went from $579 to $463. I did snag a Beach Lounger for Two for $38. The recent price has been $45, and I noticed earlier this week it was $48. I logged in just now and saw the sale for $38, so I grabbed it. The internet dropped a little too. I did notice some other excursion drops too, but I only looked at Labadee. ?

I agree with @twangster. I would choose Brilliance too. I have sailed both Brilliance and Vision. Brilliance is a little bigger and the cinema, in my opinion, is a nice option. Love those glass elevators with ocean views.

My husband and I are cruising on the Harmony of the Seas for the first time this September. We upgraded from a balcony cabin to a junior suite. I have been reading about the Coastal Kitchen here, and we think it a good idea to take advantage of this junior suite perk. I read that we can’t make reservations in advance and that we need to make them once we get onboard. My question is where do we go to make the reservations? I want to make reservations for the whole week as soon as we arrive.

Hi @Boltswin. I just posted these Freedom hump balcony pics last week on a different thread. This is from cabin 9334 in April 2018. As you can see, the balcony is definitely larger than a standard balcony. It is awesome!

Love the Brilliance. We have done the 4-night to Cozumel for the past three years in January. We have it booked again for 2019. Awesome ship. I also recommend the valet parking in Tampa. It is only an extra $5 per day. It is totally worth it. When you return, you give them your ticket at the valet stand and they bring your car right up to the curb in probably 5 minutes or so. Love the movie theater onboard too.

We have been on 20 RCCL cruises and have been on Eastern, Western and Southern Caribbean. We are lucky to live in Central Florida and to date we have only cruised from Florida ports. I like to pick different ships and different ports, but we have also repeated ships and ports. I typically book 18 months to 2 years out to get the best prices and the cabin that I want. We are starting to finally branch out of the Caribbean next year. In 2019, we are doing a cruise from Sydney, Australia in March, and the Canada/New England cruise in October. We are talking about Europe for 2021. Onboard we are lazy cruisers. I am there to relax. We will see shows on the bigger ships, but typically not the smaller ones. No trivia, bingo or things like that. The ship is always one of the destinations for me.

We stayed in cabin 9334 last month, which is next door. I hope the picture attachments work. I've never done it before... The Freedom is awesome. It was our third cruise on that ship.

Love this thread! Our first cruise was 3-night on the Disney Wonder, October 2002. Our kids were 5 and 8 at the time, and we loved it! Our first Royal cruise, also with the kids, was on the Freedom, July 2010. The kids have been on Oasis with us twice since then, each for high school graduation. We don't bring the kids with us any longer. ?

I would say bad traffic all around, but I also agree with @tonyfsu21. If you leave a little later that Monday, you might miss some of the congestion and rush hour. My husband also suggested US-1 as an alternate, a more scenic route, that would take a little longer. The problem is really the unpredictability of traffic in general. You just never know what you will get.

Hi @Lovetocruise2002! First, I like your new "title". ? We live in Central Florida. We have cruised out of Miami and Fort Lauderdale multiple times. Traffic on I-95 between FLL and Miami on both Monday morning and Friday morning, during rush hour, will no doubt be nightmarish. I-95 can become a parking lot at any given time. It sounds like you really want to stay in FLL, but maybe fly into MIA and stay in South Beach instead. South Beach is a beautiful area, plenty of restaurants, and very close to port. I can't recommend a hotel because we've never stayed there. I can recommend Joe's Stone Crab. https://www.joesstonecrab.com/. They don't take reservations. Go when they open. It was awesome. Have a wonderful cruise! I can't wait to read your blog on it. I have Mariner booked out of Port Canaveral for a B2B in January 2020.

We have only booked one guarantee cabin. It was a balcony guarantee, and we were given our cabin assignment probably several weeks before the cruise. The cabin did not change. I would be surprised if they would ever change the assignment once it is done. I believe all the connecting doorways are only one door, at least that is all I have ever seen.

I agree with @JLMoran that choosing a traditional dining time might be better than MTD. We had 8 people in 4 cabins on Oasis a few years ago. All the reservations were linked. We had a table for 8 at the first dinner seating.

My balcony.

A lanyard is a great way to carry your SeaPass card. Not sure about your other question, but I'm sure someone here will know.

The Cruise Compass for the following day is provided every evening from the cabin steward. At the top of this page, there is a link for "Cruise Compass". If you check there, you might be able to find a recent cruise compass for the ship you are sailing.

Fantastic blog so far! Love all the pictures! I can't believe you will finally be on the Freedom tomorrow! So excited to hear your impressions. Have fun!

So excited to follow along on your trip! Freedom was also our first Royal cruise. Our boys were 12 and 16 at the time. We were in a balcony, and the boys had an inside room across the hall. It was awesome having 2 closets and 2 bathrooms! Congrats on all your upcoming milestones! Have a great trip!

My husband and I always request a table for 2 when booking. I book really early (usually 1-1/2 to 2 years out). We always went to the main dining room upon embarkation to confirm that we had a table for 2. Sometimes we got one and sometimes we didn't. They have always been able to move us to one, even if it takes a little persuasion. Some ships do have more two tops than other ships. You can also send an email to [email protected] about 2-3 weeks before sailing to ask for confirmation of your table for 2. I do this now for all our cruises. It makes it easier than waiting until you board. Provide them with your ship, sail date and reservation number in the email. I would also include that you are Diamond Plus.