YOLO

8 minutes ago, RockerDom31 said:

Ah I think I may have mixed a few details up

We are currently using a TA who my wife and I have been using since our honeymoon and she has always been good to us (this is who we are meeting with next week).

Recently, I got an email from NEA Member Benefits with the whole discount deal if we book an RC cruise with them. But I am hesitant to do that if means losing the services of our current TA. I was just seeing if there was a way to get the best of both worlds 

Sorry for the confusion!

OK, now I understand.  Sounds like starting with your TA to see if she can apply those NEA Travel Dollars for you would be best  Then, if not, then you will need to make a difficult decision.  Gook Luck.  Let us know how it turns out...

1 minute ago, RockerDom31 said:

Thanks! I have been perusing these forums, reading the blogs, and watching the videos for over a year now - I just finally got the courage to put up a post!

That's sort of my story.  I have been listening to Matt's podcast for several years.  I never wrote in or joined this forum.  Until about a month ago.  There's lots of helpful people here!

31 minutes ago, Matt said:

You have to have a certain amount of posts, although I cant locate where that setting is now.

@Matt  That sounds like a logical setup.  Maybe when users hit Pinnacle would make sense.  Let us know if you ever find that setting...

16 minutes ago, RockerDom31 said:

Any advice or suggestions are greatly appreciated! This website and forum is literally the best source of information for all things Royal. You guys are the best!

@RockerDom31  Welcome to the RCB forums!  Sorry, I should have noticed you are new.  Yes, if you have a question I am sure there are people here who can answer.

Yes like @AnnetteJackson said, it does look like you are booked through a TA.  If you went through the NEA site, doesn't that assure you that you will be able to use your Travel Dollars with the TA they assign?  Maybe that would be the first question you plan to ask.  is there a number you can call before you meet the TA?

1 minute ago, Matt said:

If that is the case, then you'd have to have travel agent A release reservation back to the person (one form to fill out and agency has to agree) and then transfer to travel agent B (another form to fill out).

This sounds like something you would really need to be highly motivated to do to tackle that sort of change.

On 12/29/2018 at 9:27 PM, Fuzzywuzzy said:

I want to be a Commodore. It's nautical and it's a cool word.

Hey, you would be just like Lionel Richie - wasn't he a Commodore too?

11 minutes ago, RockerDom31 said:

Has anyone tried transferring a reservation not directly booked through Royal Caribbean? I have a sense that it might not be possible but maybe there might be some people on the forum who are also NEA members or have some type of discount through their job?

@RockerDom31  To be clear, you are trying to transfer a booking from one travel agent to another travel agent?  If so, I am not sure how to do that.

@BTE  Our friends just got off two Princess cruises in Alaska.  Their regret was not bringing binoculars.  Even though they own a pair, they ended up buying another...

"With the addition of the Majesty in 2020, Port NOLA anticipates about 1.45 million passenger moves and 341 ship calls."

Wow, it looks like the port is healthy and expanding.  I'll probably won't get a chance to look there until 2022 though.  But I have never been and it is on my list...

10 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

Welcome Paul and Hillary !

Ditto!  Welcome Paul & Hillary to the RCB forums.

How long of a commute is it for you to New Orleans?  I've never cruised out of (or even visited) New Orleans before, but last year we were looking at options to do so.  In the end we never found anything enticing enough to book.  Our idea was to go a few days beforehand and spend some time around the city.

I never thought about using the UDP for lunches and late night snacks.  That would definitely make it more appealing.  Do all of the specialty restaurants serve lunch too?  And could I really eat at two specialty restaurants in one night with the UDP without a problem?

@Ellie  Welcome to the RCB forums!

@Pen & @Matt  Thanks for the great video and pictures!  I can't wait to go...

44 minutes ago, LetsTryThisPlace said:

Does Royal no longer offer Murder Mystery or just not on our next sailing? We did it on our last Freedom cruise and really had a good time (plus the liquor helped as it just kept coming lol) so I was wanting to do it again but do not see it in my cruise planner.

This sounds like a fun idea, but I have never come across it on any of my sailings.  Where is it held?

2 minutes ago, Planeprincess said:

Royal's website issues alone are enough to send me running.

Ditto!

@Cool cruiser  Hi Sharon - welcome to the RCB forums!

I don't drink the specialty coffees or teas, but my wife Ceil does.  $31 for 15 specialty coffees does sound like a good deal to me!

@ken_lesko @Planeprincess @tmellison  Welcome to the RCB forums!

Good luck deciding on a TA.  My last two bookings were direct with RCCL.  Next time I will check out MEI...

16 minutes ago, F1guynz said:

If it turns out you can live more than once can you transfer your crown and Anchor points to your next life also?

Do you mean something like "A Human's Purpose" - the counterpart to "A Dog's Purpose"?  I like it.  I have several "lifetime" memberships and it would be great to get those back too...

@PRebecca  Welcome to the RCB forums!  YOLO!

@WAAAYTOOO  It sounds like Caige was your dog of a lifetime.  What a great name too.  How awesome and what a great remembrance.

We had a golden named Romeo which happened to be my grandfather's name.  My mom thought that was so funny.  Romeo actually taught Kuka (an Alaskan Malamute!!!) how to catch, fetch, and retrieve a tennis ball when she was young.  Kuka didn't have the persistence that Romeo had for retrieving, but she would give him a good run.

@ellcee  Sweet!  Who is this cutie?

4 hours ago, Skid said:

And Captains Bounty is stated as pet friendly, so no issue there. I agree with @ellcee and everyone else--your dog is magnificent! Also love your area. Have family in MA. When he was young I used to take them to Fenway (my favorite park when I used to care about baseball) to see the Red Sox. I was never a Yankee fan, but driving to Fenway with, at that time, NY plates on the car was never fun! Couldn't convince people that I was on their side. Had to get a Sox cap to wear in the car,

Yes, Captain's Bounty is awesome.  When inside Kuka ran right to the deck were there is a wall overlooking the beach.  She jumped up and her face lit up with a big smile!  This pic sort of captures that.  I am a Sox fan and my dad was a Yankees fan.  In fact my nickname is Mickey - and that did not come from a Red Sox player's name.  I am sure you can guess from whom it was derived.  I know what you mean about Fenway.  It is just sooo historic.  As they say, they don't make 'em like that anymore...

2 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

She has such an expressive face. She looks so sweet.  I lost my Goldie almost 10 years ago and I still miss her every day.

Funny you should say that.  We fell in love with the very fist picture (below) we saw of her.  She seemed shy and sweet.  Exactly the personality she had throughout her entire life.  What breed of dog was Goldie?  It's great you remember her (?) after that much time.

12 minutes ago, LetsTryThisPlace said:

Gorgeous dog, I love the Malamutes and Siberians (we used to have a Siberian when we lived in Canada) 

I have another question though. The legal requirements by the landing countries. What happens when there is some restriction, for example here in Cayman Islands we have VERY strict laws especially for rabies as we are a rabies free zone. How would some countries handle this if they knew about it?

This is a very good point.  I would think all certified service dogs that travel must have an international health certificate.  See this link:

https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/pet-travel/pet-travel-info-and-guidance-document/steps-to-obtain-intl-health-certificate

@ellcee  Thanks!  She truly was a once in a lifetime dog for us.  Unfortunately, we lost her a couple of years ago.

Here's Kuka on the morning of Jan 21, 2016 - her eighth birthday.  Such a sweet girl.  We still miss her.

On 7/22/2019 at 10:41 PM, Skid said:

Or worse if you're in flip flops. This warrants yet another request to @Matt for an "eeew" reaction.

Skid, let me...  EEEeeeeeewww!

I been on quite a few cruises and haven't really seen some of the problems written about here.  I love dogs (and cats).  I have two Malamutes and a Siberian.  I would NEVER want to bring them on a cruise.  What are people thinking?  I guess that is the problem - they aren't.  In the case of non-service dogs, it seems like a rather selfish act to me at the expense of the poor pup.  Sorry, but there should be absolutely NO reason for any animal (other than a trained service animal) to be in ANY dining room.  Also, if the dog isn't working as a guide or in another physical support capacity then the dog should not even be on the ship!

With that said, I have taken Kuka (my profile pic) to Captain's Bounty in Rockport MA - right on the beach.  It was a memorable vacation for us and her.