FoxboroCruiser

Great stuff, thanks to everyone who has shared. Really helpful in our planning 😀

We are booked for a 5 Day to Bermuda on Freedom as well. The crystal caves sound interesting (will definitely research that some more) , hoping some more tips, recommendations, and ideas are shared!

Yes! We were supposed to sail to Bermuda on Adventure 2 weeks ago, but when it got canceled we booked the same cruise for June 2021 on Freedom. We thought about booking later in 2020 but we didn’t want to have to worry and wait again so thought pushing it a year out would give us peace and something to look forward to once this mess is over. If it’s still a factor in 365 days I think a cruise isn’t going to be our biggest concern.

We got the 125% FCC and after doing all the math the 4 credits came out 100% correct. Hopefully the refund ties out as well.

Our May 30th cruise was canceled by RC on April 26th. They promised the FCC by 5/22 and we received it 5 days late on 5/27. They said the refund of port fees and taxes would be about 45 days. That would have been about June 1st but here on 6/7 we haven’t received it yet. With tens of thousands of transaction to process I’m not surprised it’s late. Hoping to get it some time this month, if not I’ll start calling 😉

We absolutely LOVE your Vlogs! Your love for cruising on Royal Caribbean is obvious and Anthony is hilarious (mostly on purpose 😉). Please keep them coming!

Ok got it, thanks for the info. So we need to pick a second cruise that has a final payment date later than the first cruise ends... too bad that really limits the options a bit. Is the left over credit typically available right after a cruise ends or should we book cruise two a few weeks or even months after the first?

Good question, and interested in the various things people do at Atlantis. Nassau hasn’t looked like an intriguing port option tomus but after watching some YouTube videos of Atlantis the idea is growing on us. It looks spectacular.

We received our FCC for our May 30th Adventure to Bermuda cruise, haven’t checked the full math yet but it looks right. No refund of port fees and taxes yet but am sure it’s on the way soon. The extra 25% on the FCC May help book another cruise after it’s applied to the rebooked 2021 Freedom/Bermuda trip... my bad for not reading all of the FCC posts carefully enough but most were just frustration over waiting for the refunds/credits so I skimmed through them without gaining a better understanding of what happens when your FCC is more than the balance due on a cruise they are applied to. Michele/MEI recommends not applying the FCC until closer to final payment, but once we do apply it can we then apply any remaining FCC balance to another booking?

The Pullman beds on the Ocean View Empress cabins really suck if you don’t need them. Makes the cabin that much smaller, really inconvenient when there’s just two of you in the room. Wish the terrible TA at AAA had told us about them. We had two cabins right next to each other and both had those beds, but each room only had 2 people in them. It was right there on the ship map but she didn’t tell us , explain or suggest we pick rooms without them. Make sure you do if in a similar situation. Loved the ship.

I had those same surgeries in 2010/2011. The take down (re-connect) was less than 1/2 as invasive as the total collecting, but was still a right few weeks after. We went to Disney while I had the colostomy and it was fine. I’d easily cruise that way. Personally, I think the window from mid-July surgery to Aug 8th cruise is a bit tight. I’d stay with the Oslo my and delay the second surgery a bit. At least she know what to expect as she is. Once ups go through step 2, you enter uncharted waters (pun intended). Could it work out with your timeline. Absolutely! Depending how port intensive the cruise is would factor in the decision for me. I went to the bathroom a lot in the weeks after takedown. I avoided situations and places where finding facilities might be challenging. If she wants to relax and enjoy the ship, no problem. hope that helps. Happy to answer any question or talk more, if you prefer to do so more privately feel free to message me! Thank you for your service!

That’s our next cruise, great to see her. Thank you for sharing!

Same here, and then got Trump’d out of Cuba but the crew and that ship made it an amazing vacation for my family. Royal gave us a 50% refund when Cuba was canceled and we still sailed. That’s what made our May 30th Bermuda cruise possible. Now it’s Bermuda next year on Freedom but we know it will be worth the wait. Love Empress!

Our first too! Honeymoon May 1994. Miami to Cozumel to Grand Caman to Jamaica to CoCo Cay - amazing!

That fact made it a little less painful to move our May/June 2020 Adventure sailing to Bermuda to a June 2021 Freedom to Bermuda sailing... just a little.