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19 minutes ago, rickyz23 said:

Hi guys i had a quick question this will be my second cruise i go on my first one was back on march 2019 symphony of the seas i ended up loving.   Now i booked one for oct 26-nov2 with my wife kinda nervous due to hurricane weather anybody else sailed during that time what can i expect.  Also i booked my flights leaving the night before and getting to miami at 5am embarkation day i dont know if thats pushing it and should change it ?  I would appreciate any advice,

 

The book answer is to give yourself an extra day (arrive the day before and stay in a hotel), but I have traveled from US to Europe twice and arrived on the day of departure.  In either event, you will want trip insurance.   That is your protection against airline errors, bad weather, car accident en route, medical emergency, and so forth.  We always get trip insurance, but not necessarily from Royal Caribbean.  We survived plane problems, train breakdowns, missing flight crews, and still made our departures.

2 hours ago, bramms24 said:

If we get the basic vroom surf package, will be able to text our kids at home while we are on the ship, or so we need to upgrade to the vroom plus streaming package?

We used the basic Voom package, and it worked fine.  We even had regular phone service in some ports (Sprint).

5 hours ago, Pro24 said:

LINKS - where to buy these? Amazon...etc ???

 

Can I get some "links" for luggage holders  when we get our tags?  

Also any links for land yards, as a newbie I'm assuming we'll need them. Also should they be waterproof?

Lastly, and links for small waterproof bags when on excursions, assuming we'll need that too.

 

You all are the experts, I'm listening.....thks! 

157 Days to go! Yes that's Christmas my friends!

On ships like the Harmony, you don't punch the sea pass.  It is tap and go as a proximity device.  So the sea pass stays in whichever sleeve you select.    I agree with others who use phone-sized lanyards for beach days or the pool.@SPS already sent you a link for one model.

39 minutes ago, DanielleK said:

Happy Friday everyone!

So I'm in the process of planning my 7-night Western Caribbean cruise on Allure of the Seas in early December!

 I was hoping to go to Paradise Beach, but I'm concerned about the crowd levels and seat availability seeing as we're the last ship to arrive in port that day. With 6 other cruise ships in port, would it be unwise to show up at Paradise Beach and expect to have access to two lounge chairs? I looked at the other beach clubs, and although they look great, we're not big drinker (or really big eaters for that matter) so I don't think it would be worth the $$$ for us. 

I checked the planner and see RC offers excursions to Playa Mia for $55.00 Canadian (without food or drink), would this be a better option? Basically, we're looking for a beach day and we'll purchase drinks on a as desired basis.

NOTE: This will be our second time in Cozumel. The first time we took a snorkeling tour through a third party (I enjoyed it, mom didn't) and went downtown to shop. Mom really did not appreciate the aggressive tactics used by the salespeople, and we both left feeling exhausted and worn down. So this time we're in the market for a much more relaxed experience, preferably on a beautiful beach.

 

 

You might explore taking a cab to a public/private beach.  I think one of Matt's videos suggests that normal beach excursion transfers are more expensive than local transportation.  When we go there in September, we plan on shopping first and checking out the beach.

2 hours ago, MikeY137 said:

I’m curious what others think as I got to wondering today about the following:  We are on Allure now (14-21 July 2019). 

Originally we where supposed to go to St Thomas, USVIs, which I was really looking forward to visiting. We received an email a while ago about the change of port to Puerto Rico.  While on the ship, we were monitoring the protests and other RC ships that skipped PR.  We were a bit surprised to wake up this AM and find ourselves there docked at pier 3. We received a phone call around 0745 ship’s time stating that our Food Tour of Old San Juan was canceled - no further explanation given, but surely it must have had something to do with the ongoing unrest in PR.  Additionally, we talked to others on the ship today who got off and walked around the city this AM but we’re never told there was an issue until they were already out of the port, by one of the local shops.  That seems a bit negligent on RC’s part, but not the point of my question...

This leads me to wonder - why did RC make us go to PR in the 1st place?  I know very little about these big ships, but I can read a map and the difference between USVI and PR seems to be about 65 NMs. Seems like we have time to make the next port of call. We’ve been making 18-19 knts both SE & NW over the water and I think I read somewhere normal cruise for Allure is 20 knts. Even at 22 knts, the difference in time between the two islands and Nassau seems relatively small.  Additionally, why take us to port at all with the already on going protest which are projected to get bigger..?

I’m just curious if anyone else thinks we were routed to PR for other reasons yet told it was due to propulsion issues on the ship? I have no doubt there is an issue as I’ve read about the potential need for early dry-dock - but is that issue really the reason for an itinerary change that seems so small of a distance over such a period of time...

Maybe I’ve had one too many sea days and I’m all wet...  

In addition to the detailed analysis by @twangster , there was a "boycott" of St Thomas which was recently announced for various reasons.  Not sure if your itinerary was caught up in that, and I'm not saying it was, but there's been some press...  All this means it made sense to go to San Juan. 

4 hours ago, AshleyDillo said:

Can't answer if they got push notifications working..but the chat was free on Harmony in March when you connected to the ship's wifi.  You didn't have to purchase a Zoom package.  Without the push notifications it's only as reliable as remembering to check the app to see if you have a message.  

Harmony doesn't use the RoyalIQ app, it uses the other one.

I can confirm the same experience on Harmony in May.  We used the App feature with their wifi.

4 hours ago, maeffron said:

We are cruising on the Harmony on August 4th. Myself, husband and 12 & 13 year old. I have several questions I'm having a hard time finding answers to.... please help if you can

1. Communication? We can't afford the VOOM package for all four of us but we have to communicate with the kids. Most are saying the texting doesn't work well on the new app. We have android so can't try the "free" iphone hack. If the app doesn't give you a notification of a message how is that even helpful? Isn't the best part of cruising NOT checking your phone every five minutes

2. Photo Package? We've had good and bad experiences with ship photographers. I don't want to buy the package for digital prints before we go in case we don' t have many good ones. However, the price is totally worth it compared to hiring a photographer here at home. Can we purchase at the end of the cruise and if so, is it less expensive?

3. "Teen" activities? I'm hearing many people mention the teen activities end up being all together and not separated between 12-14 and 15-17. My newly 12 year old is not ready for, nor has any interest in hanging out around 17 year olds. Anyone have experience with that? This is our first trip without the kids in the "Kids" club. 

4. App schedule? Your experience with the app... So far our dinner and show reservations are accurate on the app. Many have mentioned the on board activities in the cruise compass do not align with the app. What was your experience? And, once on board and we "add them to our calendar" will they show up on our personal calendar similar to our dining reservation?

5. Clothes? Any tips on getting very active teens to dress nicely? They only wear t-shirts and athletic shorts without argument. I can get my son to wear "golf" shirts but still with athletic shorts

6. Themes? Are there theme nights we really need to prepare for?

Any other tips greatly appreciated. We aren't new to this but new to teens and a giant boat!!!

Regarding #5, I recommend you set a good example, pack appropriate clothes for formal night, but not fight every battle if the kids don't fully comply.  Positive reinforcement for good behavior and all that.....I remember arguing with my Eagle scout son when he wanted to go to the Troop meeting in a t-shirt, and I regret making an issue about their "dress code" (always wear a scout shirt).

There are casual nights like Caribbean night for Caribbean cruises.  The "white party" is very late (11 PM on the Harmony) and I've never attended.  There can be theme dances like 70's, 80's, or 50's, but not that many people dress up.  You can and you will probably get your photo taken...

There are other threads that discuss photo packages.   If you are willing to wait in line, you can get some very nice family portraits.  If you aren't sure about buying a package online, you can wait until you get to the ship.

Regarding on board communication with our teen son, we simply agreed to meet for dinner; otherwise, he was on his own, especially with the teen group.  As he got older (16-17), he stayed out until curfew.  You may need an occasional discussion about a reasonable hour to return, but I don't see a 12 or 13-year old pushing the limits too far.  Bon voyage!

5 hours ago, mom2mybugs said:

I had heard the rate wasnt as good there!  So hard to know. Thank you!  I get so nervous about the stupid debit card...our bank was horrible with my son being in Germany.  Even with the travel alert, they froze him numerous times and even though I was in the account, I couldn't do anything because they debit card was in his name!!!  I think we will mostly use our no fee Visa whenever we can but I wanted to be prepared. 

May possibly be traveling to England, Scotland and Ireland next year ... Should I wait to get currency there next time? Jane

When we flew to London, I had no problem using the ATM at the airport (Heathrow).  My bank doesn't charge me foreign ATM fees, and my bank's currency rate isn't as good as the ATMs in Europe.  I guess it depends upon the bank.  I've always used ATMs for business travel in Europe, mostly in Germany.  I just hate paying my bank a $5 or $10 fee to order currency....but it is small potatoes in the long run.  Australia/NZ ATMs were easy to access cash, too.

37 minutes ago, Allen2 said:

We are on three spring B2B cruises in the South Pacific - a South Pacific Cruise, a Transpacific Cruise, and Hawaii to Vancouver.  Am having trouble finding answers to a couple of visa questions, including no help at all from RCL.  We know that Australia and New Zealand (starting in October) both require electronic visas (ETAs), but are having trouble finding out about New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Loyalty Islands, and several French Polynesia stops.  Do the other ports require visas, or does a ship's blanket visa cover us? Or no visa required for US citizens?  Also, any comments about tours on the small islands would be GREATLY appreciated!  And, has anyone purchased non-RCL tours, such as those offered by Cruise Excursions and others?  If so, what kind of results and comments?  Thanks in advance for any help!

Here is French Poly... no need for visa for US and Canada

5. Specific Information for U.S. and Canadian citizens

For U.S. and Canadian Citizens: Passport must be valid for a minimum of three months from the arrival date to French Polynesia. No visa is required for stays of up to 90 days. A foreigner with a residence card for the U.S. is not exempt from the above requirements and should consult the French Consulate’s official visa provider for information. American citizens may also be required to carry short-stay visas in the following cases: holders of diplomatic and official passports on assignment, students enrolled in courses in French Polynesia, journalists on assignment, crew members, as well as those who will have paid activities in French Polynesia (including scientists and artists).

https://www.newcaledonia.travel/en/passport-visa-customs

Again, short stays are OK when you have a valid passport and proof of medical insurance, etc.

Stays of 3 months or less than 3 months

• Passport that is valid for at least 3 months after the return date
• The supporting documents about:
  • Your livelihood in New Caledonia (example: bank card for international use, cash, etc.)
  • Your guarantees of return (ticket for returning to your country of origin or residence)
  • Your travel insurance certificate or health insurance (covering any expenses which might arise in connection with repatriation for medical reasons, urgent health attention and/or emergency hospital treatment) Minimum coverage : 30 000€
  • The purpose of your stay

I use travel agents who probably know this stuff off the top of their head....

11 hours ago, Allen2 said:

We are on three spring B2B cruises in the South Pacific - a South Pacific Cruise, a Transpacific Cruise, and Hawaii to Vancouver.  Am having trouble finding answers to a couple of visa questions, including no help at all from RCL.  We know that Australia and New Zealand (starting in October) both require electronic visas (ETAs), but are having trouble finding out about New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Loyalty Islands, and several French Polynesia stops.  Do the other ports require visas, or does a ship's blanket visa cover us? Or no visa required for US citizens?  Also, any comments about tours on the small islands would be GREATLY appreciated!  And, has anyone purchased non-RCL tours, such as those offered by Cruise Excursions and others?  If so, what kind of results and comments?  Thanks in advance for any help!

Update:  Here is Wikipedia link about Vanuatu.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Vanuatu

According to the article, US passport holders, among others, are exempt from a visa.  I would check an official government source, though. 

When we took our 2018 NZ/Australia cruise, our travel agent, who booked our flights, took care of the visas on line.  There was a plane change in Papeete, but we didn't leave the airport to sight-see, so I am unsure about the rest of your visa concerns.  As for excursions, our TA recommended Viator, which worked out fine for us in Australia.

13 minutes ago, Allen2 said:

We are on three spring B2B cruises in the South Pacific - a South Pacific Cruise, a Transpacific Cruise, and Hawaii to Vancouver.  Am having trouble finding answers to a couple of visa questions, including no help at all from RCL.  We know that Australia and New Zealand (starting in October) both require electronic visas (ETAs), but are having trouble finding out about New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Loyalty Islands, and several French Polynesia stops.  Do the other ports require visas, or does a ship's blanket visa cover us? Or no visa required for US citizens?  Also, any comments about tours on the small islands would be GREATLY appreciated!  And, has anyone purchased non-RCL tours, such as those offered by Cruise Excursions and others?  If so, what kind of results and comments?  Thanks in advance for any help!

On other cruises in the Caribbean or Europe, the visa question has never come up.  But there have been countries where a passport check was required on the ship (Turkey, I believe).

9 hours ago, Lakew92 said:

I have been seeing some posts about charges during the cruise. Could someone explain what those could be? 

 

We pre paid gratuities and purchased the drink packages and a shore excursion, what kind of charges could we be expecting in addition on the cruise? 

 

Is is this why they want us to link a credit card during check in? I just marked us down for cash because I don’t think we should accrue any additional charges. Unless I am missing something... first timer here.   

To elaborate on @Sh2738 's comments, we have found that we might purchase a sea pass holder or souvenir pen, order an espresso drink or diet coke, or discovered we lost a pair of sunglasses and taken advantage of a ship store sale. Then there is premium ice cream or a cheap T-shirt you buy when everything else is dirty.   A cash  account is fine but requires a visit to Guest Services, which is usually busy Day 1.

1 hour ago, MaritimeR&R said:

I walked into the Diamond Lounge on Adventure of the Seas (June 28 to July 6) to visit with friends who did not have access to the Suite Lounge. I was very surprised when I ordered a diet coke to be asked for my sea pass card. I questioned why they were swiping cards in the Lounge and was told it was for "inventory purposes for the Loyalty Department" and that it had been going on for some time.  No such swiping for Pinnacles in the Suite Lounge, so I guess Loyalty doesn't feel there are enough of us to impact their inventory.

I did see a woman who was with friends asked to leave when she could not produce her sea pass card and didn't want the Concierge to look up her room.

 

I use @YOLO 's strategy and was never asked to produce a sea pass except when the door was already propped open, like formal night.  There was such a large crowd that they checked IDs on the Harmony outside.  It could be Adventure of the Seas was trying something new....

5 minutes ago, twangster said:

If traveling with another Diamond member you both a free day.  Many couples will share these two free days.

Yes, this is our method now so we have the $$ for excursions or gifts.

On 7/16/2019 at 2:33 PM, mom2mybugs said:

The woman at the bank totally messed up my Euro order and now I have several 100 Euro bills.  I was wondering if guest services can exchange them for 20s?  I'm worried that places won't take the big bills.  Jane

Food for thought on the next trip.  Get your Euros in Europe out of a bank ATM, with a generally better rate.  I try to take just 100E for the trip over so I have something at the airport/train station, requesting smaller bills as you originally intended.  Otherwise, the bank mark-up in the US can be considerable for a large quantity of Euros.  If you plan on using the ATMs, remember to notify your bank so they don't freeze your card. Enjoy!

11 minutes ago, Brenna said:

I’ve been thinking about the ways to best expand my vacation time in Sept/Oct despite my husband not being able too 

Currently we’re booked on a 7 night cruise on Harmony out of Orlando (departs 9/29) 

Would it be too much to take a short 4 or 5 night cruise before or after just by myself? 

My options would be:

1) 5 night Bermuda cruise (Athem) 

On Anthem 9/21-9/26 (home port, no need to fly/hotel, only about 30 minutes away) by myself 

Fly to Orlando with my husband 9/27 (evening) 

Cruise Harmony 9/29-10/6, fly home and back to work 10/7 

2) 4 Night Bahamas Cruise (Mariner) 

Fly to Orlando with my husband 9/27

Cruise Harmony 9/29-10/6, send husband home to NJ 

Cruise Mariner 10/7-10/11, fly home 10/11, back to work 10/14 

I have never taken a trip like this by myself, have no idea what solo cruising is like 

any thoughts for me? Am I crazy to think I can fit this in and not be Cruise-d out? How likely would it be to be able to do this? Should I be worried about storms messing with getting from NJ to Florida and vice versa? 

 

Otherwise hope everyone is having a good week! 

I saw some deals yesterday taking the Empress out of Miami....

Not normally.  There has been discussion on other topics about "significant others" who share a common address being able to assume your status after one cruise.  We had a recent case where my son's girlfriend was denied access on formal night.   But, when you go to the club in off-hours, there is generally no one there to check, so you could enable your friend to get a coffee....  As Diamond, you know about the drink vouchers during happy hour, which is the stated work-around for friends not having access.  I've heard the policy is also because there just isn't enough room for all of the Diamond members, let alone their friends.  So they want us to use the other bars and lounges throughout the ship.

If you re-marry, no problem after the first cruise.

Those who have read Jack Reacher novels know the trick about putting clothes under the mattress at night so they are flat in the morning....never tried it though; I stick to hanging something in the bathroom when I shower (the day before), and the next day it is largely wrinkle free.

7 minutes ago, MattmanL67 said:

LOL-no pool towels!  We did have it tied to two staterooms but the charges appeared AFTER we cleared up all our billing the day prior to disembarkation. When we called Royal Caribbean they stated that is was a “hold” charge like a hotel would do for incidental and not to worry, the charges would go away in 3-5 days.  They could not have been more dismissive about the whole thing which was a shame as we had really enjoyed the cruise.  Now we’re second guessing cruising with RC again.

If it helps, I paid for two staterooms in May and didn't have a problem.  This might be a one-off.

14 hours ago, Neat said:

I know it's a coffee card but does anyone know if you can purchase chai latte & hot chocolate with this card?

My wife had a chai latte on one ship (I bought it with the punch card), but we didn't see it offered in Cafe Promenade on the Harmony -- it was plainly omitted from the posted menu.  That said, we didn't ask the barista.  My point is that it might depend upon the ship.

2 hours ago, TetonPost said:

Thanks, somehow I missed that. You're right, that is an expensive way to go, but nice to know it's an option!

The good news is that when you reach Diamond, there is some free Internet use plus discount on the packages....

2 hours ago, fonemanbob said:

Has anyone done this cruise and if so what are your thoughts.  Any and all information will be appreciated.    Thank you 

Yes, in 2015, the version that goes to Agadir.  It was 12 N then.   Now Morocco was a bust for many on the ship because of poor sanitation, excessive poverty, and long, hot bus rides.  But that is why we travel - to see how others live.  My teen son did get to sit near the dancing cobras after a "tea ceremony", so that was a thrill for him.  Our real highlights were Funchal (the pushcart down the hill), the beaches, and a lovely family-run vineyard/orchard (finca) (I believe Gran Canaria).  The ports in Spain were OK, but we found our tour guides a little too talkative.

The food is definitely UK-oriented, which is OK but different.  More meat pies and meat dishes, more curry, ham instead of bacon, etc.  The shows were OK but we didn't get all of the references to British celebrities.  We found eating with a few British couples was very helpful.   

What we would do differently: (1) take a direct flight on British Air, (2) do a pre-cruise excursion that covered the transfer to the port, and (3) carry off our luggage. 
Royal lost my wife's suitcase with all of our souvenirs and her good clothes.  We had trip insurance, but it was a hassle.

Overall, I recommend a visit to the Canaries - each island is distinctly different, and in Lanzarote, you can imagine you are on Mars or the Moon.

Thanks all.  Could just be her device.  She is rebooting...

2 minutes ago, spursfreak21 said:

Hey Everyone! So I just finished a 5 night cruise on Enchantment of the seas. We had a great time!   One topic I wanted to bring up to get some of y’alls input on.  So yesterday (our last sea day) my wife and I were in the solarium. There were a group of young teens (prob 16-18) that had come in and were splashing a bit in the pool. An older gentleman started yelling at them to leave because they were causing a ruckus. That we (adults) go to the solarium to get away from the kids in the regular pool. I get that the kids were being a bit annoying, but that’s on RCCL for setting the minimum age for the solarium at 16 and not something higher. Anyone have this happen before? Thoughts?

I have seen it before when parents don't supervise younger kids.  I haven't seen it with older teens.  Unless it is late at night, security usually doesn't hassle the teens.  The Harmony doesn't have a pool in the Solarium, and I noticed it was quieter (hot tub instead).