KJ1231

Already in Junior Suite - doesn't that count for double points? No double points if you upgrade from non-suite to suite via Royal UP?

We have never stayed in a suite before and just got another email to bid on upgrade on a 3-night cruise to Nassau and CocoCay from Port Canaveral on Enchantment OTS in about 5 weeks. We currently have a Junior Suite and can bid on an upgrade to Grand (min. bid $150 pp) or Owner's (min. bid $200 pp). Since it's only a 3-day and we're in Nassau (never been there) for 12 hours one day and CC for 9 hours I don't know how much time we'll actually spend in the suite. Are the benefits worth it? We also have The Key if that makes a difference.

We splurged and went to Chops on New Year's Eve. Our waiter encouraged us to order the filet AND the lobster to make our own "surf & turf". All 4 of us ordered both and it was brought out with additional sides than what we ordered. My son couldn't decide on a dessert so the waiter brought a couple extras for us to share. It was the first and only time we've eaten at Chops so not sure if this is the norm, or just because it was NYE. And it was the last seating on NYE. I would ask the waiter!

$539 on Anthem in July (10% off the usual $599)... $159 for Discover Scuba. Thinking the extra $380 might be worth it. With the $89 for local discover scuba it's $628. Do you still do scuba excursions? Just not RC?

My son and I were supposed to do a "Discover Scuba" excursion in Grand Cayman and missed it when our ship canceled that stop due to our late start from Tampa due to fog. I am taking the whole family to Bermuda on Anthem and July. For Christmas my daughter got my son-in-law and I the "discover scuba" excursion. I also saw that they are offering the PADI certification course. I am wondering how much time is required over the course of the cruise to complete it. I'm thinking there is at least a little "classroom" time and pool dives on the sea day headed to Bermuda and then dives in Bermuda. Are the dives done in one day or over both days? The reason I ask is there is a local dive shop that has the PADI Discover Scuba classes for $89. I was thinking about doing that to see if I like it and then possibly doing the PADI certification on Anthem.

My 20yo son and I did XPLOR @ Playa Del Carmen. It was pricey. But because our ship skipped Grand Cayman due to fog in Tampa we decided to splurge. 13 zip lines and rafting and swimming in the cenotes was pretty cool. I had never done a zip line before this trip and really enjoyed it. The ferry from Cozumel to Play Del Carmen requires good seal legs

We'll be in Nassau on 3/9 and doing this "tour": https://www.trubahamianfoodtours.com/

My wife and daughter did the dolphin encounter in Cozumel and were very disappointed.

March - Enchantment to Nassau/CoCo April - Isle of Palms, SC for a week. My son is a sophomore at USC so he can make the short trip for Easter weekend. May - long weekend at Niagara Falls July - Anthem to Bermuda (not GC) DW now wants to go back to Alaska in 2020! And for some reason has to include Icy Strait Point? But not on Radiance :-(

Does this include Junior Suites? We have a JS in March on Enchantment

I was thinking about my 5-nighter a couple weeks ago. I played blackjack one night for 3 hours betting $15-$30 per hand. I played 3-card poker one afternoon for a 2 hours and again that night for a about 4 hours betting at least $25 per hand. I sent an email to Casino Royale and they told me for that cruise I earned 688 points. I had just 38 points from our first-ever cruise. We have a 3-nighter coming up in March and looks like I need almost 1,700 points to make PRIME. Would prefer not to play slots and wondering how many hours at $25 per hand I would have to play to earn 1,700 points? Are the certificates for one person or two?

We did the 5-night over New Years on Brilliance. Was cool on New Year's Eve but we agreed that we'd rather do 2 non-holiday cruises (or one longer cruise) than pay the extra for the Holiday. Now that my last child is graduating from high school we can do early January cruises which are less expensive.

On our cruise on Brilliance earlier this month I would stop at the same penny machine before I left the casino at night and put $20 in. First 2 nights I won $163 and $178. I actually came off the ship with more cash than when I walked on (~$500) but wasn't sure how many points I accumulated.... I'll find out when I'm on Enchantment in March.

Maybe they get paid by the transaction....

Never cruised until after I turned 57 and only when suggested by my in-laws. We did Alaska in June and subsequently booked Caribbean a couple weeks ago, Bahamas in March and Bermuda in July. A couple moths ago my spouse said "No more!". After a visit with my father in Florida after the Caribbean cruise we showed my father pictures of our Alaska. He was stationed at Ft. Richardson in Anchorage in 1959-60. After seeing the pictures it was my wife who told me to look into 2020 return to Alaska!

There are ATMs on the ship. However the one in the casino was down and I believe the only other one on board and that was working was down near Guest Services. The fees are on the high side. I bring plenty of cash and it goes directly into the safe in the cabin and then taken out as needed. While moving from place to place (plane, cab/lyft/uber/ embarkation/disembarkation) the cash goes in a pouch on my lanyard with passport and goes inside my shirt. This one is similar to the one I have. Once onboard you can use it for seapass, cruise compass, little cash, etc., especially when leaving the ship in port.

2.5 days on Amtrak from St. Paul to Miami

Sorry, but have to disagree..... I did Radiance southbound in June and we used the balcony a lot! I'm a birdwatcher and was out there looking for sea birds (whales, sea lions, dolphins were seen as well!). The view from our port side balcony as we sailed south from Hubbard was incredible. Waterfalls, additional glaciers, snow capped mountain peaks above the clouds, etc. I have no idea what was on the starboard side. From advice here we asked for additional blankets when we met our cabin steward and used them to sit on the balcony. In Juneau the "air show" was awesome after we got back from excursions. We sat and relaxed on the balcony as seaplanes took off and landed next to the ship. I guess you could always sit in the Windjammer or other enclosed spots if you don't think you can handle the chill. We preferred the balcony and would pay the extra again... BUT - if the choice is balcony or excursions, then excursions wins. If you can afford to do both - DO IT!

There are a bunch of videos on YouTube for Coco Cay. They have wheel chairs with big wheels that roll in the sand. I assume you can use them to get to the bungalows and cabanas. Cabanas and bungalows are there and you can reserve them in the cruise planner. I have a cabana reserved for 3/10/19

There are no reservations. You line up and order and then go find a seat. They bring your food to you. When we first looked the line was a little longer. We walked around a bit and came back and hardly any line at all.

I'm not seasoned as we only done 1 Alaska cruise. We ate at Tracy's and the crab and soup were delicious. I also love root beer and they had great root beer on tap!

Will check it out. HAL has a 14-night r/t from Vancouver with Inside Passage, Ketchikan, Tracy Arm (cruising), Haines, Icy Strait, Inian Islands, Sea Day, Anchorage, Homer, Valdez, Hubbard, Juneau, Misty Fiords, Inside Passage.

Headed to Nassau in about 6 weeks. My son-in-laws father asked me (and my wife) to pick up some (4 bottles) Ricardo Coconut Rum for him. I don't dink so have never looked into bringing alcohol back. Quick look at the CBP website and we can each bring back 2 liters? Then we have a flight from Sanford, FL to Philly. Any issues with putting bottles in our checked luggage? Safe to assume I can get it duty free at the shop above?

So after telling me a few weeks ago, "No more cruises!" my DL now says she wants to go back to Alaska in 2020. BUT, she doesn't want to Radiance again AND wants to see more ports, i.e. some other ports besides or in addition to Skagway and Ketchican. She does want to go back to Juneau and Icy Strait Pointe. I know many of you are like me and create spreadsheets for everything! I'm wondering if anyone has created one comparing Alaska cruises with ports and costs, including other lines besides RCCL? If not, I'll start working on one and share if people are interested. We would deviate from RCCL based solely on itinerary.....

I've not done the "friends" things yet. I'm Ken Johnston on FB. If you send me a way to add you on FB I'll add and send chips....