WannaCruise

9 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

We got sucked in by the new amp features. We grabbed a Panoramic Suite on that one. Hopefully I don't end up cancelling that one....

Yeah...really excited for those slides.  Our kids will love them. And those rooms look really nice!

Thanks for the reply.  Yeah...that's probably the big thing is having them go from their own bed to sharing (or cot solution as you mentioned).  We actually have a bunch of cruises book and we have different room configurations for all (e.g. 1 boardwalk balcony, 2 promenades, 2 interior virtual, 1 balcony, 1 promenade).  They really all come down to price.

Good point about refundable.  We actually have them booked the two rooms as refundable so no issue there, but we can move to non-refundable now as our flight is booked.  That's generally our trigger for when we are ok to switch over.

PS - I see you have Navigator booked for August 2019 too  (and most of your booked ships we have as well, or have been on)

Its Navigator so no CK.  Our kids get along (and also fight like siblings do) but they are boy and girl. Difference now is $800 so probably still a lot (we locked in at good price) but guess main pro is double points (and we'd get balcony).

Family of 4 (kids 14 and 10).  Would you keep connecting Promenade rooms?  Or upgrade to a Junior Suite?  And how much would you pay to upgrade?  It's for a 4 day cruise.

On 12/17/2018 at 11:48 PM, SpeedNoodles said:

Escargot - pretty much every night, LOL.

Same here.  And save some rolls for dipping

Garlic shrimp is also very good.

8 hours ago, ilovetotravel1977 said:

Yup, looking for four people.

 

But, I even cleared cookies and tried looking for two people and the same thing was happening.  They were just mock bookings for pricing, but still. What if I really wanted to book a cruise at that time?  I'm a visual person, so I like to see where on the ship my cabin would be before making a decision.

Yeah...pretty sure its an website error with their program and not cookies.  Strange though as it did work for me if selecting two people....just not 3 or 4 (and we have two cruises that 4 of us are in one room so wanted to do price check).  Really frustrating.  I do daily price checks on cruises and couldn't see if there was a drop.

But...good news...try now!  I think they fixed it.  Never was so excited for the potential to see how much money we would be giving Royal!

Are you trying to search for 3 or 4 people?  It seems to work for 2 people but am getting same error as OP when searching for our family of 4 people.  Really frustrating as can't check for price drops.  I hope they fix it soon.

2 hours ago, L454S said:

Yes, you will retain the OBC from onboard booking even if there is a price drop. 

Thanks.  This is good to hear (our credit for booking onboard was very little but good out of principal)

2 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

When you reprice a cruise you are basically rebooking.  You will lose whatever booking promotion (those coming from Royal Caribbean) you got with the original booking BUT you will be eligible for any booking promotions association with the new pricing. So yes, you will lose your RCCL-generated booking promotions (OBC, etc.) but if there are any promos going on when you rebook, you would be eligible for them. 

So that's what I thought....BUT...asked because when I spoke to a Royal agent today, she said we get to keep the OBC that came as part of the 'on board' booking (vs obc that came as a promotion as part of the cost).  Shows you they don't always know what they are talking about.

Question...can anyone confirm...if there is a price drop for the cruise you booked on board, do we get to keep the OBC that came from booking next cruise when in board?  Or do we lose that with any re-price?

13 hours ago, Cindy Leslie said:

Sounds good! I love being close to restaurants and shops! Checked prices and right now the Holiday Inn Express is around $120 more for the total stay. Will have to weight the pros and cons! P.S. what kind of strong smell?!! 

Yes all in walking distance.  The smell was just paint or something from construction, so if you're not going until July, then that comment doesn't matter. For us, we found the price was much better than Hyatt or others that get mentioned by cruisers and still similar area.

We just ordered custom t-shirts for our kids.  There is a large picture of Symphony on it.  Then we put the ship name and date.  We'll be giving our kids the shirts soon.  Can't wait to see their faces 

8 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

The Holiday Inn Express has recently caught my eye as an economically friendly option.  It is right next to the Embassy on 17th St. and recently renovated.  Their prices are decent.  Maybe have a look there.  You will be closer to the port at that location.  And lots of restaurants within walking distance, including my personal favourite, La Bamba!

We just stayed here.  There is a bit of construction in the day (and strong smell in lobby) but it didn't bother us. The price was pretty good, room comfortable and short walk to Harbor Shops and restaurants as well across the street.  We would have no issue staying again.

We got some savings on excursions and the refreshment package was a good price.

8 hours ago, Sweety said:

I always book while I am on a cruise. The deposit is better also. 

We booked next cruise while on board but very little difference.  OBC was a whopping $26 and deposit was the same as if booking online.  What they don't mention is the benefits are only for non-refundable bookings.

Loving your review.  Seems like a great cruise so far!  And now I'm hungry from all your pictures...lol.

Great family time where something for everyone.

Variety of food

Beautiful relaxing views of the water. Can't even out into words "that" feeling.

Ton of activities from swimming to different amenities (eg slides, lasertag, mini golf, rock wall).  Also fun organized actities in cruise compass.

Amazing different shows each night

Variety of food options.  Also live having sir down every night with great friendly service.

Different places to visit.

Fun ship to explore.

Do excursions go on sale?  If so, is it easy to cancel an existing booking and get the lower Black Friday price ?

On 10/25/2018 at 7:13 PM, Susie said:

That kind of strange. It is leaving from the same port at the same time and same itinerary but a different time. 

Funny.  We have this booked for next March and pretty sure times are similar.

Where would they put a Sky Pad if they added one?  The aft already holds 2 Flowrider.  Our kids loved it on Mariner but isn't it good to keep certain features in certain ships?  Otherwise they will all be similar.

I can see them adding the slides.  Lots of different opinions on Abyss vs not +for Boardwalk view)

Following.  So nice you are going on Bermuda cruise after all these years. Love hearing how you were able to go onboard to visit before they sailed and the streamers like on tv.  

Have a great cruise.

On 7/3/2018 at 4:27 PM, rjac said:

There are plenty of palapas at Nachi on the beach and around the pool. When I booked on line I specifically asked for one by the ocean shore line and reiterated that when we checked in at their"front desk". Of course, we got there about 10-ish and it was not a problem. 

We just booked Nachi for the first time for our Dec cruise.  It is just DH and I are are looking for a relaxing quiet day.  We also like the fact that they limit the number of people.  Very excited.

Are there lots of palapas by the beach (first line)?  We didn't know that you could request it and this is ideal.  Not sure we can request it after we did the booking.

Excellent review and comparison by OP.

We booked Chops for 4 on Mariner which included my 9 year old.  Only thing isz make sure you mention any kids 12 and under.  Had we not said anything they wouldn't have adjusted.  But we did say and they tgen said ok and charged her $10 with remaining refund back as OBC.

Thank you.  I've heard of Mr Sanchos...and was also looking at Paradise beach for kids.  So many options.

We're not into snorkeling but I know that's very populate.

Playa Mia sounds like a good one then.  Good to know that its easy to do on our own.  Sometimes we feel more comfortable going with Royal excursion...but i guess if we leave plenty of time then it's no issue.  I cans see what you mean about waiting for everyone on a tour.

Anyone heard of the laser tag?  Sounds fun too.

So many choices....

Our March cruise on Symphony has some neat options for kids so thinking of one of the following.  

Anyone have feedback on any?  Our kids are 13 (good swimmer) and 9 (so so swimmer)

1. Beach Break at Play Mia Water Park
2. Dolphin Encounter (2 listed but seem similar)
3. Mayan Laser Tag with  Chankanaab Park

We are also stopping at Roatan and Costa Maya in case one of these has a recommended dolphin encounter over the other