BrianB

I’ve been to the Beach Club many times but can’t recall if any guests came in using the rented scooters from the ship.

My bother in law will be using a rented scooter and I have a beach cabana.

Will he be able to take the scooter rented from Royal off the ship? Will it be able to make it over some of the non-paved roadways to get there…or is there a shuttle which can transport the scooter? I know once at the Beach Club it’s paved inside and I think it’s paved up to the beach cabanas.

If necessary, he can use his upright rollator. But only for short distances.

Thank you!

Congratulations! But, keep checking!

I check my pending cruises virtually every day. It amazes me sometimes how a price can suddenly drop out of the blue…with no advertised sale or promotion…and then pop back up the next day. Even when there are very few remaining cabins in the same category.

Strange and mysterious are the ways of the Royal Algorithm…

Sometimes it’s better to check the price for the upgrade and choosing the cabin you want versus putting in a bid. As the prices fluctuate, you may spot a deal that fits your price point even if it’s a bit over what you intended to bid.
If you really want the upgrade…the benefit of choosing a cabin and locking it in is better than waiting to see if a bid is accepted and getting assigned a random, available cabin…even if it is less expensive. 
If you want to gamble and take a chance…bid.

@Traveling Mike I second the motion for Delsey. I purchased mine in 2014. Big, black cloth bag with four very durable spinner wheels…expandable handle, and the little lifting cable that shows the red line indicating over fifty pounds. I also have a smaller carry on with an attached strap that allows me to slide it over the big bag’s extended handle and move them easily with one hand. On smooth surfaces it takes very little effort as it glides along while standing upright on the four wheels…I can even let go for a moment and it will still roll.

Sometimes when I arrive at Port Liberty in Bayonne, the line of cars waiting to get to the terminal is so long that I get out and walk quite a ways with the bags. This is mostly over bumpy, uneven roadway, but the wheels handle it without a problem. I’ve done this many times.

I like the soft side bag because I can open the expansion zipper and make it even larger. Then when empty, it’s soft enough to fit under the cabin bed.

I added my own branding…gray duct tape ‘T’s on all six sides so I can spot it from a distance. Also discourages others from accidentally taking it.

@AshleyDillo Thanks!

May 5, 2025

Is this still the way it’s done?

I booked a beach cabana and was wondering how my guests will get past the keepers of the portal at the beach club entrance. Some of them will be coming a bit later.

Do I supply their names when I arrive and just advise them to say they’re going to my cabana?

Or do I need to call ahead of time to add them?

Thank you!

On the Odyssey now….free on port days.

Not free while at sea as it is described as ‘Extended Experience’. The ride is longer and extends over the sides of the ship. The free ride only goes up and slides a bit left and right then comes back down.

Also on Odyssey now…one chair has one zip tie, the other chair has none. The ‘Do Not Lie Flat’ labels are still affixed. Last week’s chairs had no zip ties.

I guess the zip tie flurry may have been on the advice of some corporate legal eagle as a response to an injury-causing chair incident. Shows they took immediate and decisive action. Although it seems like a strange, knee jerk reaction to me.
But by not following through with re-inspecting and re-zipping chairs, wouldn’t that be even more damning if the same injury-causing incident happens again?

Tough trying to figure some of these things out…

Solo in a suite gives you three points per night.

During a Captain’s Corner we were told that sometimes when there are two ships docking and it’s a particularly windy morning…or a day with larger swells…then the larger ship with the more powerful maneuvering system will dock on the wind side first and provide a wind/swell block for the smaller, less maneuverable ship. The buddy system.

Sometimes I forget to answer them the day before boarding when it opens up on the app. Or I get the ‘Check in has checked out’ message and can’t answer them.

When I checked in at the port (Bayonne), sometimes I’ll get the one quick question in general terms, like “You’re not sick, right?”

Usually I don’t get questioned. I’m obviously not pregnant and look fine (medically speaking) so they just check me in.

I just disembarked the Odyssey yesterday Jan 16…

I applied for the Shareholder OBC about three weeks before boarding…as usual, and received the automated response acknowledging receipt. However, I didn’t get any notification that it was approved and the one hundred dollars applied. Days before embarking I resent the email request and again received the automated acknowledgment of receipt. Upon boarding, there was no Shareholder OBC on my account.

I went to Guest Services and showed him my emails and the acknowledgments. He advised me to email a follow up message to Shareholder Benefits.

I did this and they responded that the benefit was approved and would be applied. I went back to Guest Services and they had me forward that response to their email. About an hour later, I received a call from Guest Services advising me that they had applied the one hundred dollars to my account.

I check with my room attendant to make sure he/she will be assigned to my cabin on the next leg. If so, I tip at the end. I also tell him to let me know if he is to be moved, or if he is leaving the ship mid-cruise so I can tip him at the time. But, virtually all of my cruises are b2bs and this never happened…yet. This is, of course, if I am in the same cabin and not switching.

Back to back procedure….I always check in for the next leg. Either on the app or the website. I always try to get an early time. Just in case something happens and the first leg is canceled either by me or the cruise line.

I know many b2b-ers who don’t. On turnaround day, the staff check them in and take another photo while we are waiting in the assigned venue onboard for a near zero count.

At Port Liberty in NJ, we are escorted off the ship after virtually all other passengers have left. We scan our cards as we leave, go into the terminal and through the facial recognition screens in the customs hall. Then, it depends on what’s happening onboard…sometimes there’s a Coast Guard or Public Health inspection, or they’re doing an extended deep clean…we will be seated in the terminal to wait. We are the first ones back onboard, using our new card given to us back in the venue.

If there is no delay onboard, we are just brought right back onboard after we go through the customs scanners.

Onboard the Odyssey. NextCruise rep says they are changing the promotion to savings only…they are just waiting for the official memo.

So instead of a choice between receiving OBC during the cruise or applying the amount directly to the booking price, the benefit will only be applicable to the price. Tomato, tomahto.

I usually book solo in double occupancy balconies. Deposit is still one hundred dollars. Then the $100 I would have received as an OBC during the cruise (seven night) will be deducted from the total cruise fare, decreasing my final payment.

This change is in addition to the reported maximum benefit amount being lowered.

@LTR Sorry. Invitation only. They’re very picky.

These medical evacuations happen quite often. For the sake of the person needing shoreside medical attention, it’s always better when the ship can quickly divert and get to a point where they can meet a medivac helicopter. Sometimes that’s not possible due to the ship’s location and/or weather issues or even the condition of the patient…so the ship diverts to the nearest port for the drop off.

It's always concerning when I hear the ‘Alpha, Alpha, Alpha!’ announcement. My first thought is always with the person needing medical care and hope that it’s something easily and successfully corrected.

But, to be honest, I always start to worry about getting diverted and delayed…or skipping a port. I know it sounds selfish but the worry is still there. I have experienced these necessary disruptions many times during my cruising and realize that Royal will always consider the patient first.

Kudos to Royal for doing whatever has to be done for the safety of a single passenger needing medical attention. They will divert and delay, regardless of fuel consumption and the significant costs incurred. They will dole out OBC for an entire ship full of passengers for the inconvenience if the itinerary is affected. They will issue FCC or OBC for an entire ship full of passengers on the next cruise if the ship is delayed. They will help with flight adjustments and the costs associated with those changes.

I feel comfortable knowing should I or a loved one need emergency shoreside medical care…Royal will not hesitate to do whatever needs to be done. Without delay.

Prayers for the quick and successful recovery of the patient.

Do you know who chartered the cruise?

That would be a major consideration for me. If it’s something that I would find mildly acceptable such as the Victoria’s Secret Modeling Party…I would probably bite the bullet and tolerate the inconvenience. 

But if it’s something like the International Society of Annoying and Whiny Selfish Butt Faces, I would likely cancel.

But, that’s just me.

I always send the email pre-cruise and make sure I get a response. Typically it says the request was received and has been forwarded to the ship.

As soon as I board, I go right to the host desk and check my dining assignment. Usually, it’s exactly as I requested.

However, I have learned that even if I booked early dining…and sent the email…if I subsequently pre-purchase a dining package, it seems to automatically change my dining to MyTime. I’m guessing they don’t want to reserve a table for someone who won’t be there three nights during a seven night cruise. I tried to pre-purchase just one or two specialty restaurants and it still bumped me. So, lesson learned…now I don’t do specialty dining purchases.

 I’m one of those who really like the MDR menus so no loss there! Usually I’ll do a specialty restaurant while onboard. I have a dining discount and I don’t lose my MDR early dining.

I always try to book onboard. The prices are exactly the same as they are online before I go to their desk. The benefit for me is the $100 deposit as most of my cruises are solo. Plus the $100 OBC for the majority of my cruises as they are typically seven nights. Add the Shareholder Benefit and I usually sail with a $200 OBC. If you transfer the booking to a TA, you may get even more OBC…and the TA can monitor the booking for price drops and handle any issues that may pop up.
Also, I do b2bs so it’s easier to have them find me the same cabin on each leg…rather than me going back and forth between dates. 
Lastly, as indicated above, it’s only a hundred dollar deposit…so if something comes up on one of the weeks I booked, it’s not that big of a deal to cancel. What I usually do is (if it’s pre-final payment) is lift and shift. There’s still a hundred dollar change fee but it transfers my hundred dollar deposit.

Even cruises booked through NextCruise are eligible for re-pricing prior to final payment. There is no additional deposit or fee required and repricing is easy.

NextCruise is a convenient way to feed my cruise addiction!

My one and only Alaska cruise was in 2017.
We stayed at the Seattle Marriott Waterfront…practically across the street from pier 66. On cruise day, we just walked with our roller bags to the pier.

**view from hotel window…

 @Karthik  I primarily cruise from Port Liberty in NJ over the winter so the vast majority of cruises are seven nights including CocoCay.
Rarely have I had a day at CocoCay that was not perfect. Ocean temps can be cooler, but the pools are better. 
There’s always the possibility of a cooler, cloudy, rainy day…but most days are sunny and warm. 
As your cruise date gets closer, you can check the weather apps such as The Weather Channel by searching ‘Great Harbor Cay, Berry Islands, Bahamas’.

Good luck and I hope you have a great cruise!

Yes. I have two that don’t show on my list in the app. I just booked multiple at NextCruise a few days ago. All have been confirmed and I have the printouts. All are on the app except two. When I enter the reservation numbers to add them, it acknowledges the information as valid and says it’s added…but so far they’re not.

No problem. They’ll show up eventually.

@Pattycruise Every time I receive a balance due email…the email also shows I have a zero balance.

But, if I go to the menu on the upper left of the website and click Manage My Cruise…then click Make Payment…that’s where it shows the payment due. I also use the dropdown menu on the payment page to check my other upcoming cruises.

I have multiple cruises pending.

Over the last two days I received four small refunds to my Amex from Royal. All are between $38 and $48 and none of them match up to any Cruise Planner purchases I made and then cancelled. I did cancel quite a few Hideaway Beach purchases when I grabbed the Beach Club with the very reasonable Black Friday offers…but these had already been refunded…or so I thought.

I’ve been checking each cruise where I had paid in full and so far the payment page on each show zero balance.

So I’m hoping these refunds are coming from cruises that have yet been paid in full.

I read @Matt posted the story on FB and hopefully somebody in corporate notices and can start asking questions of the IT personnel…they can also ask “Que pasa?” regarding the language changing on the web site.

My recommendation;

Even though your cruise is paid in full…and whatever purchases you made in the Cruise Planner are paid in full…AND you see on the pending cruises page that you do not have a balance due. Even if you get an email advising you have a balance due and yet the email itself shows the cruise has a zero balance…

ESPECIALLY if you have made Cruise Planner purchases and cancellations and re-pricings.

Go to Manage My Cruise and then the payment page. That will bring up your payment history and any balance due. That’s where it shows up for me. Even though I know it’s a glitch…I still pay it. A few days later I get a refund. It’s worth it to me to have the peace of mind that there will be no last minute cancellation for non-payment. You can choose any other pending reservation numbers from the drop down menu.

The last time this happened… I eventually sent an email to the Contact Us link at the bottom of the website page, or across the top. Shortly after, I received an email confirming that my cruise was paid in full and to ignore any future payment due notices. I printed that out and brought it to the terminal just in case, but it wasn’t needed.