DeanB

Heading to CocoCay in about a month. Paid for the Oasis Lagoon Cabana on the cruise planner for myself and my fiancee. For those who have been in that cabana, how was your experience? Would you recommend it? Is it a bit overkill for just the 2 of us? TIA!

I am staying in MIami for a cruise next month and had to go with AirBNB. The hotel prices for the time I'm there skyrocketed (I don't see anything on when I'm there, so I don't see why). I'm staying in Little Havana which is about 10 minutes from the port and 'touristy Miami'. I'm planning on just catching Uber or Lyft the whole time.

I think the best rule of thumb is don't try and do everything but make sure to set out what's most important to you! The one thing I took from my first cruise on Explorer of the Seas was that breakfast is NOT the most important meal of the day. While the breakfast was nice, it was usually the same thing every day. For my next cruise I'm already planning on sleeping in past breakfast and enjoying the different options every day for lunch!

Hey Kim! I'm also going out of Miami in February. The hotel prices are INSANE and I have no idea why! I'm flying in 2 days before the cruise an staying in an AirBNB in Little Havana. It's a 15 or so minute ride to the port and is more inland so I won't be waking up to the view of the ocean BUT I am only paying $144 for 2 nights, so I am NOT complaining! I noticed there are a lot of rooms on AirBNB, so if you're like me, make sure to look for full houses to rent!

I'm planning to use Uber or Lyft (whatever is cheaper at the time) but I'm heading to an AirBNB about 20 minutes from the port. To be honest though, I'll be using Uber to go everywhere haha!

I'm going on Symphony and all I hope is for another $10 Royal t-shirt! The one I have is so comfy so I want another one... or 4?

My fiancee just designed the shirts for the cruise we are going on in December! We are celebrating both my parents 50th birthdays so we have matching shirts with a picture of them that we are all going to wear. It's still a surprise to everyone else coming but it should look good in the photos since there are 9 of us!

I' m pretty sure the easiest way to save time is to book another cruise that's earlier, right?

Of course! They have a set number of options that are there every night (including steak (yum)). Always talk to your waiter/waitress, they'll always be happy to bring you all the steak you'd like!

So I called Royal Caribbean and they were able to help me out with it. I found it to be about $70 cheaper which I thought was a good deal (basically enough money for another dinner on board) but what I didn't think about was the INCREDIBLE price I had on the VOOM + Drink package. I ended up saving $70 but after re-purchasing the package, I ended up losing $120. I don't think they always make you cancel everything on the cruise planner (it happened to me because I used Staff Friends & Family discount) so do also keep that in mind.

I always take Matt's advice to book what I want on the Cruise Planner and if they become cheaper, cancel and repurchase. I've done this twice for the VOOM package so far for my cruise.

If you can find somewhere to leave your bags, I'd just make a day of it. Go see Little Havana which is full of culture or Bayside Marketplace if you just want to do some shopping and eating (not sure if you'd want to after a cruise, though).

Awesome! Thanks for letting me know!

I'll be flying in from Australia to Miami next year for a cruise and need to know how to tip a porter. I understand they help take your bags for you and know you should tip them a couple of dollars per bag (I'm thinking of giving my porter $5 for the 2 bags I'll have) but do I tip the porter when he takes my bags or do we follow him and he drops my bags somewhere and then I tip him? We don't really have porters so I have no idea what I really do with the porter! Any help would be awesome! Thanks!

He gave me his crew number and I had to call Royal to book the cruise. When they told me the price I mentioned I am going on the cruise to visit my friend (I think you can only use the code for the sailing your friend is on) and he proceeded to ask me for the crew number and the crew members name and voila price dropped!