kevpeirce

@twangster for customer service of the year.

Having done both I'd almost say these vacations aren't comparable. Both are great in their own way and depending what you're looking to do could decide which is better for you. A cruise is great to get out and explore different locations, however with a somewhat more structured time table. An all inclusive is a great option if you're looking to get away and do nothing but relax. There's no time table and things move at a more leisurely pace. Price wise the all inclusive will usually cost more then the cruise and the service between the two is usually very close. As far as food at an all inclusive that somewhat depends where you go, in Jamaica and Mexico we've had excellent food and in Punta Cana we could not say the same. Drinks can also be influenced by tips at an all inclusive more so than I've experienced on cruises, not that any of them were bad.

I don't recall seeing shuffle board last year. There was a worlds sexiest man competition.

Do you happen to know if cafe 270 can accommodate gluten free for the wife?

Shows I believe were up last week(45 days) and the iFly and Northstar were up around 65 days to go.

Awesome, thanks!

@coneyraven We will be there on May 6th and 7th. Am I mistaken in believing that horseshoe bay was a ferry ride to Hamilton?

Will we be able to pre book bumper cars or other activities before boarding? So far we have The Northstar, iFly, and the 3 shows booked but thats all thats available so far through the cruise planner.

@JLMoran I plan on checking what routes are available through the transit system the week before. The beaches are a must stop for us. The aquarium may be a stop. @coneyraven thanks for the picture, makes it seem pretty simple to get over there by walking and easy to go back to the ship for lunch. The scooters are probably a long shot on day 2 just cause of the costs, we could take transit and spend that money other places.

With our interior guarantee they had us on deck 11, is it safe to assume we will be on deck 13?

We are not booking any excursions in Bermuda, we plan to get the transit pass the first day and possibly rent scooters the second day. We are looking for recommendations of places to go that are cheap. We will likely spend some amount of time on a beach and the pirate ship in the harbor. I recently saw something within walking distance of the port about a snorkel beach but could not find info on that. Any other recommendations are appreciated.

Your room may be accounted for and just not yet assigned to you yet.

If he is still there in May it would probably be wise for him to avoid me, I would have no problem causing a scene. He may be a pinnacle but if his behavior is able to disrupt a large portion of the rest of the ship thats more money out of RCI pockets.

About a month ago I bid on an upgrade to either ocean view for $60 or an obstructed balcony for $200. Looking yesterday prices had gone back down on our cruise and we got a guaranteed balcony for $209. We cancelled our royal up offers and now have a balcony. This morning in our cruise documents we don't have a room assigned but it does state that we are on deck 13.

They also had gluten free bread on Harmony last year for us as well and after the first night they had it waiting on the table every night.

I was successful again, luckily I work for a slower EMS agency so its not too difficult to stay on the phone for 30 minutes during the day. Using a travel agent would just make it too easy though, sometimes being stubborn doesn't pay off.

So since booking this cruise the price has gone down twice! The first time I called and the rep seemed somewhat confused as to what the price went down to and how to change it but after a brief discussion of the break down I had on their website and what he was seeing, we got the price down from $1,661.84 to what I saw $1,611.84. Now today it is lower to $1,602.84, again the rep seemed confused as she reported the price had not gone down. I've now been on hold for 25 minutes but will hopefully have the same result and new lower price again. The first time this happened I figured the rep must have been newer or not handle this situation before, now it almost feels like an effort to keep those who wont fight for the lower price at their higher price. On a side note the northstar and ripcord are now on the cruise planner.

How do you get this free cruise through prime?

Complete change of plans...again, but as of yesterday were booked on Anthem on May 4th going to Bermuda.

Kind of had a feeling about that, do you know if theres a ratio to how often you need to spend money to get unlimited rewards? If it seems like I can build it up this quickly it might not be worth getting the obc and just wait it out for a full cruise.

For some reason today after about an hour of playing my loyalty coins are now locked out for 14 hours. Anyone else experience this? I did gain 8-10k coins today alone.

IAH is basically set since its about $300 cheaper right now and for the $100 difference I'll take the later flight home. Thanks for everyones input, looks like we will be booking tomorrow.

So as I continue to mix and mingle prices and find an itinerary to please the wife, I think I may finally have a winning combination. 7 night Western Caribbean flying from EWR to IAH for just under $600 or $500 if I apply for their credit card. My question with this is, do we have enough time to get off the ship and make a 10am flight from IAH? To wait for the 1215 flight adds $104 so still not terrible but it would be nice to be home 2 hours earlier as I more than likely will be back at work within 12 hours of being home. May also be difficult to convince her to fly from EWR since PHL is so much closer. Has anyone taken NJT to get to EWR? We would most likely have family drop us off in Hamilton which is about a 40 minute ride. Also looked up the Priceline Express deals that were here in another post and that seems like it will workout very well for us, so thanks to whoever had shared that.

@JLMoran With the solarium being enclosed and warm I don't think the initial cold weather would be too much of an issue, I'll have to see how she feels about it as well. Wandering around the different sale dates I also found a balcony for $749, if she's ok with that date I may surprise her with it.

I believe thats what we had in April, definitely had a mini heart attack thinking I'd need to pay for every drink, although without the 18% gratuity might be worth it.