Biff215

9 hours ago, twangster said:

I find it less crowded now compared to before Perfect Day.  

When it was a tender destination, visiting on a small ship like Grandeur or Empress it wasn't bad finding a beach lounger.  When you visited on a ship like Anthem it was nearly impossible to find a beach lounger.  The whole place felt crowded.  There wasn't many places to go so everyone was at the beach.  The hammocks were always taken.  The food venues were packed and there was no place to sit, every picnic table near the food was full.    

If running it up to 12k returns to that experience that isn't because of Perfect Day.  It's always been like that and always will be on days with high guest counts present. 

Like an Oasis class ship with seven neighborhoods, Perfect Day has several neighborhoods to distribute people around the island now.  Coco Beach club will help with that to, taking a few hundred from the rest of the island.   South Beach too.  The pool helps a lot, that is the reason why the beach loungers are readily available now.  

I didn’t visit before August of this year so I don’t have that comparison. I definitely agree that it’s set up very well like Oasis class ships. I have zero interest in the water park and only spend brief time at the pool, but I realize the importance of those areas in my overall enjoyment of the island. This is where I think Royal bettered what Disney had created at Castaway Cay.

I’m certainly still concerned about what three or four ships will do to the overall experience. You already hear complaints about the lines at the water park even on days when it’s not sold out. They may need some expansion there or ticket prices are going to have to soar over $100 to deal with demand. I also can’t imagine having to go back to tendering some ships while others walk right on.

Fortunately this is all still possible to avoid and I just hope Royal will monitor the busy days closely to see if guests still are having that “perfect day” they’re trying to deliver. 

1 hour ago, twangster said:

They built it to hold 12,000.  That was the stated design criteria.  It's not exactly exploiting it if they reach that threshold.  

That would be like building a sports stadium with 20,000 seats then just selling 15,000 seats for events.

Fair enough, but a sports stadium is a little different when you typically have a reserved seat. Coco Cay is more like a theme park. They have theoretical capacity, but it doesn’t mean the experience is going to be pleasant when guests move from one area to another unpredictably. I can’t blame Royal for pushing it to those limits, I just don’t want to be there when they do. I love the place far too much already!

For now Oasis class ships seem to almost always visit solo, with anything smaller potentially doubling (or soon tripling) up. 

I posted about this in the other thread, but we were there last weekend on Mariner with Navigator also visiting. It definitely felt more crowded than last August when we were on Harmony. Of course the two ships will typically carry at least slightly more passengers than one Oasis class ship.

We still enjoyed both days but got off early to claim a good spot on the beach. If you get off late or do the water park first, you might be searching a bit longer and further for a good spot. 

I honestly can’t imagine more than two ships there at a time. Just because the capacity is “technically” there doesn’t mean they should exploit it. I’d probably recommend taking down the “Perfect Day” letters at that point. 

We've been there twice now, on Harmony in August and Mariner last week. We noticed quite a difference with the two smaller ships (us and Navigator, about 8,000 guests max). We got off around 8:30 and got a prime spot, but by 10:30 people were walking around searching for chairs hopelessly. With the beach club construction going on, there were literally people using chairs that were set up along the scrim facing the bathrooms. Not sure they thought it was so perfect. 

Of course once everything is open later this month there will be a lot more capacity, and we can’t complain about either of our days there (I’d be reluctant to choose a cruise not visiting the island at this point). I understand they want to capitalize on this demand, I just hope they don’t ruin it in the meantime. 

1 hour ago, devbak150 said:

For ease we just use the rental car.  It is usually 6.95 and then tolls.  Which this last time were 1.05.   The most I think we have been charged is 12.95 total.  I don't think that is very expensive like others have mentioned.  It does take about a month or 6 weeks to get the charges on your credit card. 

True, I believe Alamo was charging $4 (per day?) plus the cost of tolls. That’s not too bad at all. 

Also noticed this new program available at MCO that adds no extra fees:

https://visitortollpass.com/

Think it might depend on whether or not that ship is using the app yet. Last August on Harmony, we did it all on the app as directed but they insisted on retaking them at check in. Last week on Mariner we did the same and it worked like a charm. Nice to eliminate one more hurdle before you can board but you’re only saving minutes at best. 

2 hours ago, Mrs. Thomas said:

We are sailing on Symphony of the Seas. I'm so excited as it is a complete surprise. They won't be finding out until they wake up in Florida. I don't want to use this much, but there may be a day or two where it's needed for a couple of hours. Thank you for your help!

We sailed Harmony in August and our kids had a blast. So much to do on the ship that we didn’t hit many of the AO family activities during the day (though there were plenty). The kids did enjoy going from 7-10 each night after dinner while we were catching the shows and lounges. We love spending time with our kids but those few hours each night are perfect for us and them. 

Lots of kids on board so plenty of opportunities to make new friends. My daughter (11) saw an AO friend one day at the pool so they rode the water slides over and over together which was cool. Have a great cruise!

On 1/9/2020 at 10:13 PM, bossdog421 said:

I am booked for an overwater cabana on feb 1st. Paid 1499, they are up to 1649 now.

 

Last I read they will be ready jan 31st, so I will be one of the first if not the first to be on one!!! I'll post some pics.

 

I'm just getting nervous that they wont be ready now.

 

Anyone have any  recent updates or pics of the progress?

We were there Sunday on Mariner. Tough to see much from the island, but definitely seems to be a lot of work going on behind the scrims. They were actively working on the beach right in front of the Snack Shack. I couldn’t help but think to myself that it seemed impossible for it to be complete in less than three weeks. Then again, what do I know! I’m sure Royal will do all they can to make it happen, there’s too much money to lose and guests to disappoint. 

Hard to see much, but here’s a pic from the Sky Pad on Sunday evening as we were about to leave.

1 hour ago, Mrs. Thomas said:

Are the extra things offered in Adventure Ocean free as well?

Adventure Ocean is free up until 10:00 pm. After that it’s $7 per hour per child. So all the activities they offer throughout the day are included. 

My kids are 7 and 11 and we just completed their 5th cruise (4th on Royal). We love AO as well as the many activities available all over the ship.

Which ship are you sailing on?

We ended up hitting the Publix which I would also highly recommend.  Spent less than $20 on two bottles of wine and a 12 pack of water for the weekend.  Filled the rental car with gas right in front of Publix, made a quick stop at McDonald's for breakfast across the street, and we were back on our way to the port in no time.  Thanks again!

My NJ EZ-Pass worked like a charm from MCO to Port Canaveral and back.  Of course then we made a quick trip to Disney and had to pay cash tolls up and down that route!

Just an update: Izumi didn't charge my wife and I the extra $10 but the cover for our kids was $15 each ($10 at Chops and Jamie's).  Meal and package was totally worth it at the $76/person price for unlimited (3 night cruise).

Friday night on Mariner out of Port Canaveral was a pretty rough ride to Nassau.  Although the winds continued through the weekend, the seas settled down a bit and we didn't notice the motion again and both Navigator and Mariner docked in Coco Cay on Sunday.  It was definitely windy but otherwise a beautiful day for January, no complaints here!

I love my GoPro.  I bought the base model Hero about two years ago for around $150.  It has now replaced a much more expensive (and larger) Sony camcorder I always used while on vacation.  Sure the Sony had a zoom and better audio, but I also had to lug around a bag to store it in.  The GoPro fits in my pocket and takes equally good pictures and video while being much tougher and waterproof.

When I get home, I transfer everything straight to my computer (don't use the GoPro app, just a large SD card and reader).  I then dump the video straight onto a Bluray disc if I want to watch it away from my computer.  Simple, high quality, raw vacation video.  Truth is I get way more footage now that it fits in my pocket.

We returned today from Mariner and the Space Center.  I have over two hours of video from the long weekend.  Already enjoying watching the kids on the Flowrider, water slides, Sky Pad, Coco Cay, and more.  I highly recommend a GoPro as long as it has a preview screen on the back (my first one didn't).  No need to spend a fortune on the top of the line model, but I also wouldn't recommend buying a "knock off" since they don't typically have a proven track record or warranty.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

Brian

48 minutes ago, RockerDom31 said:

I may be misunderstanding the inquiry but I believe that if you choose My Time Dining, you HAVE to prepay gratuities. If you choose traditional dining, you can prepay gratuities OR be charged the daily gratuity rate once you get on the ship.

This was how it was presented to us by our TA and NextCruise. 
 

edit:

http://www.creative.rccl.com/Sales/Royal/General_Info/Flyers/09015240_MyTimeDining_OA.pdf
 

“• Just pre-pay your gratuities to participate - this includes tips for your waiter, assistant waiter, head waiter and stateroom attendant“

I don’t know about removing them at a later time though?

Yes, I noticed this last month when we were booking a cruise on the website. It doesn’t say you can’t refuse them later, but it did require prepaying to finish the reservation. Not sure of the reasoning or whether it applies to all sailings, but it’s definitely a thing. 

6 hours ago, Biff215 said:

I bid the minimum $200 ($100 pp) to upgrade from an interior to a balcony on Mariner sailing tomorrow. Did that about two weeks ago and still haven’t heard. I’m assuming it failed (which I’m fine with for a three nighter) but it was fun to try anyway. 

Just got the email that it was unsuccessful. Off to our first cruise in an interior, I’m sure we’ll survive!

3 minutes ago, KJones said:

Personally, I would skip using the EZ Pass that comes with the rental car if only using the car from the airport to port. Yes, it's much more convenient than stopping at each booth, but if you're only using the car for a single day, I'm not sure it's worth the $15-20 fee they charge for that convenience, in addition to the tolls.
If you're renting the car for multiple days, then that fee becomes a little more bearable being spread out over more days.

I agree, I would likely never pay the fee unless there was no way to avoid it.  I have EZ-Pass at home, so when I saw that they accepted it, I considered bringing it with me.  I just remember Florida toll booths being painfully slow.  Maybe I'll bring quarters so I can use exact change?

Magnetic clips for the Cruise Compasses

We’re renting a car at MCO tomorrow morning and headed to Port Canaveral. I know there are tolls, but are any cashless? Also, I know EZ-Pass is accepted on some roads but would that get us all the way to the port?

I found this but its not clear whether there are tolls after the split. 

19 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

I would suggest the Cocoa Commons Publix.  Probably the most easily accessible on/off from 528 for the entire route and no additional tolls to hop off and on.  

The address is:  Publix Super Market at Cocoa Commons, 2301 FL-524 #150, Cocoa, FL 32926.

 

Perfect, thanks!

I won’t disagree that arriving early is safest, but price and work schedules often prevent that. Not much you can do other than to be prepared and hope for the best. 

We’re flying in tomorrow morning and renting a car. What’s the best and easiest place to stop along the way for some bottled water and wine to take on board?

Thanks in advance!

Brian

I bid the minimum $200 ($100 pp) to upgrade from an interior to a balcony on Mariner sailing tomorrow. Did that about two weeks ago and still haven’t heard. I’m assuming it failed (which I’m fine with for a three nighter) but it was fun to try anyway. 

It would definitely be crazy to have to pay more for a baby as the third person in a room. Hopefully Royal or a travel agent can help you out. 

We have learned some lessons about pricing through the years. Last summer, we almost gave up on a Harmony cruise as it was $8,000 for the four of us in a balcony (about a month out). On a whim I checked on two balcony rooms and the total was $5,500. Extra beds, space, and bathroom for $2,500 less and only two rooms apart? Sold!

So crazy, but as it was stated above, there are only so many rooms that can accommodate more than two people. From there it’s all supply, demand, and dynamic pricing. It’s why Matt always recommends booking early. Some of us just don’t have that kind of patience!

2 hours ago, spursfreak21 said:

I have no idea how this situation works, but I would guess that the error would impact the companies bottom line, not the actual staff on the ship.  Just like when a Grocery or retail store makes a mistake and has to honor an old sales price it doesn't come out of the cashier or stock worker's pay. 

Having said that, I do also recommend tipping an extra dollar or two for excellent service.   As others have mentioned if you tip a little extra on the pool deck or in the theater or lounge my experience is that the staff will be sure to be more attentive to you.   

RC is certainly taking the hit on the difference between the $18 and whatever the price should have been, but the question is whether they’ll also cover the difference in gratuities collected which is unlikely in my opinion. When someone gets BOGO 50% off for example, does the company cover the lost gratuity? Very unlikely. Now those fortunate enough to get the $18 package are not all on the same cruise, so hopefully the difference isn’t that dramatic to begin with. 

With all that said, I would also simply tip more on the drinks you get. It’s not perfect but it will help to even it out.