CarlaB

19 hours ago, TXcruzer said:

I have disputed 3 cancelled sailings with AMEX, it’s a very simple process and I have all my money back within 72 hours of calling them. 
I gave Royal 45 days on the first but after that one I just call within a couple days of cancelling. AMEX gives a provisional credit immediately, then 48-72 hours later, after confirming a refund is due, my balance is in the negative. 

This is what I did too. Royal told me they would issue my refund within 30-45 business days. That was well over two months ago and times up. This weekend I called Discover and a very nice rep was able to dispute the charge and hopefully I'll have the few thousand back that Royal has been so dearly hanging on to for months now. 

I have been following this blog for over a year now and really enjoyed the live blogs and info from the veteran cruisers. Sadly I never made it on a Royal ship as our Anthem got canceled last year and then Oasis canceled back in May. Not Royal's fault but the way they have handled customer service leaves so much to be desired. At this point I'll be happy to have my money back and not sure if I'll ever set foot on their ships even in the future. This latest fiasco with changing ships without notice just adds to my hesitance. 

I will say it's interesting (and a bit sad) to see the shift in attitudes here from the long time cruisers, from Royal enthusiasts to now disillusioned with the whole company. I've quietly lurked these boards and witnessed a lot of disputes between the Royal enthusiasts and anyone else who would speak something negative about Royal in the past. Some veteran cruisers here ardently stood up for Royal time and time again, even in instances where I didn't think it was justified. Now it looks like everyone is finally fed up with the company and have seen for themselves the kind of selfish tactics Royal uses. 

Has anyone ever been to Coco Cay when there were more than 2 ships present and have any experience on how it was? May 27 will be our first time there and our first cruise ever after a hurricane cancelled our Anthem plans last year. And of course it's on one of the days Oasis seems to be in port with two other ships according to that cruise mapper site . Originally we were supposed to be there alone but looks like Mariner and Majesty got added. 

Of course after months of planning my last cruise only to have all of our plans fall apart literally the day before leaving, I should know better than to stress about plans that are months away. Anything can happen! 

13 hours ago, JLMoran said:

I was in a hump balcony cabin on Freedom last year, with my kids in the connecting cabin next door. While it's true that with effort you or others can lean over and peek around the partitions, we never had a problem with that from any of our neighbors. Also never had any issues with noise from either side; only real noise problem we had was from our kids' cabin, as we could hear them clearly through the connecting door if they got to arguing.

That said, on one of our two Anthem sailings, we'd sometimes hear our next-door neighbors talking if they were out on their balcony. Not loud or obnoxious, it's just quiet enough outside that you can easily hear people talking at normal volumes without trying.

But having that view of the cobalt blue water when you're in the deep ocean makes any problems you might have worthwhile. I love those moments when I'm on a ship, now.

You could hear them with the connecting door open or fully closed? We have a JS on Oasis next year and were only able to get a connecting one (we're not in the adjoining cabin) and I'm concerned about noise. Mostly from our own cabin as we have two little kids. Is there any bleed over noise when the connecting door is fully closed/locked? 

I suggest contacting RCL management too. I sent an email out this morning as well (we were supposed to be on the 11/16 Anthem but canceled). I'm on the Facebook group for this cruise and everyone seems to be receiving varying types/amounts of compensation. One woman apparently went on the full 7 day cruise, complained to management after she got back about all the intenirary changes, and (according to her) received a full cash refund plus $300 FCC and specialty dining and paid wifi for her next cruise. Which honestly I think is not right at all. She got to enjoy the full cruise, food, etc, and should've been deducted at least 50% as others have been in past cruises. Others got back like $13 pp for some port charges. It's all over the board. 

Anyways my gripe was the bad communication up until just an hour or two before we were supposed to leave as well as the fact that I only received a portion of my FCC back so far (what I think is just the 1 day credit  for missing CoCo Cay) but not the full cruise fare I was supposed to receive. I'd like to rebook Oasis this week during the Black Friday sales but don't even have my full FCC I was supposed to get back for canceling.  Let's see what happens! 

2 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

What did the final altered itinerary look like ?

They are on their way now to Coco Cay for a one day stop on Wednesday. It was supposed to be an overnight in Bermuda but because of the rainy/cold forecast there they decided to go to Coco Cay instead. I think that was a good call and the weather in the Bahamas looks wonderful so I hope everyone who chose to stay on has an amazing time! 

So here's my issue with Royal though. The communication with this trip was pretty bad. We were sent an email about potential intenirary changes the night before departure. At no point in the email did it mention sitting in the NJ dock for 2-3 days straight. I called 3 reps who had no knowledge of the email we got from Royal. Eventually they told us to expect an email at 7 am the morning of departure with additional details. However during this time Friday night Royal updated both the app and website with the new itinerary including the 4 days in NJ and overnight in Bermuda. Which means they at least knew or anticipated this would be the revised intenirary. They should've communicated this right away so folks could make an informed decision on whether to continue or cancel.  However this information didn't come until 9:30 p.m. on Saturday morning, the day of departure. At this point many travelers had already left for the terminal and couldn't change plans. We chose to cancel and take the FCC and apparently close to 1,000 other travelers did the same. As of this morning, another 100 or so got off the ship after 2 days docked because of the new change to Coco Cay. They will be getting a full refund even though they were on for 2 days. 

I do think Royal handled the compensation well. I'll be using my FCC to hopefully book Oasis in May when she comes here to Bayonne. However the communication could definitely have been improved! Super frustrating to say the least but I'm willing to give Royal another shot especially since so many of you here have had such great experiences. 

I hope everyone has an amazing time in Coco Cay and makes the best of this situation. 

1 hour ago, AshleyDillo said:

I would like to consider myself a seasoned cruiser and unless Royal is offering a full refund if you cancel, I would still sail.  I have been on Anthem to Canada/NE and it was rainy a few of those days.  I didn't really notice as I found plenty to do on the ship that kept me warm and out of the rain

The kids will have Adventure Ocean which they may enjoy partaking in.

I always advise to take the cruise in these situations since the folks that sail tend to end up better compensated than those that cancel.  Royal won't offer more than a full refund and you can assume that's going to be a in the form of a Future Cruise Credit with restrictions and an expiration date.  If you're fine with that and could use it within the year, then go for it. 

If you do take the option to sail you sometimes end up a with partial FCC and OBC AND you still got to be on a cruise.

They're offering a full refund as an FCC. We decided to go with this option and hope to book Oasis when she's in Bayonne some time next year. Sucks to miss this after months of planning but both our jobs are flexible and our kids are not in grade school yet so we have the flexibility to book again at a later date when the seas are hopefully much calmer.  

Leaning towards cancelling at this point. So the new itinerary that is showing up on the app is leaving from Bayonne, sea day, THEN BACK to Bayonne and another sea day. 4 back to back sea days. It's like 40 degrees here now so basically we're circling in cold weather which means everyone is either crowding the indoor pools or inside for 4 days. Then an overnight in Bermuda which has highs of mid to low 70s next week and rain and thunderstorms. 

Super bummed out but at this point we are likely gonna cancel. I have two small kids and our main attraction was CoCo Cay and the ease of moving around that island and all the included activities. There won't be much for our small kids to do in Bermuda if it's raining both days. 

Historically hasn't Royal provided some kind of compensation in an event like this? They've completely changed the itineraries and now have 4 sea says in the cold North! I have called Royal twice and both times the employees don't even know what is going on. I had to forward both reps the email we got directly from Royal. They said the best they can do is refund one day for Coco Cay as a future cruise credit which one rep said would be maybe around $200-300. I thought I read here before that a cruise got rerouted to Canada up North instead and everyone who chose to go got 50% back refund AND a future cruise credit. Does that sound right? Shouldn't we be getting something similar especially given we'll have cold weather and rocky seas for the first 4 days?

Sorry for the long post and vent. We were so excited for this cruise we had planned for months and to be completely blindsided like this at the last minute is such a disappointment and so frustrating especially when Royal won't give us any definitive answer. I get Mother Nature is unpredictable but Royal won't even give me an answer. They have already updated the site and app to reflect Bermuda but the rep keeps telling me we're still going to Coco Cay and they aren't aware of the changes when we got an email DIRECTLY from Royal with the changes. 

1 minute ago, SpeedNoodles said:

I've always received my Royal Up email the night before embarkation.  Check your spam folder as well.  Itinerary changes are just part of cruising - they aren't going to sail you through a storm (and you don't want them to!).

Is that just for the standard rejection email or is there still a possibility it could be accepted this late? I mean seems like some people are cancelling so maybe some rooms opened up. 

Just now, Cez said:

@CarlaB @TheaFromCDA

See you on the ship

I'm loading my carry on with plenty of ginger and crossing fingers that we can make to Bahamas. Bermuda forecast sucks

 

Right! Like I maybe wouldn't have minded Bermuda but it looks like it's gonna rain. So having to miss Coco Cay and being in rainy Bermuda isn't looking like the best option.  So conflicted on what to do.

We're on this tmrw too. Super nervous because this is our first cruise ever and now there is so much uncertainty regarding the intenirary. If we do either option A or B, does that mean there would be only 2 port days instead of 3? Seems like way too few port days for a 7 night cruise. Idk whether to cancel or not. We booked this for the CoCo Cay stop so missing it would be such a disappointment. What would some of the seasoned cruisers do in this case? Should we go for it anyway? 

I also still haven't heard back on Royal Up and we're less than 24 hours away at this point. Is this normal? I thought we should have heard back by now with either an acceptance or rejection email.

Super bummed because this is not a good way to start off a first cruise. 

2 hours ago, lkg276 said:

You will have to walk approx 200 feet to catch the bus, that route loops around at RON-JONS great place to shop and the beach is a block away.

 

That sounds perfect! Thank you! 

Also, is it possible to hail a taxi or Uber instead right at the cruise port and would they be ok to take two kids? We will not be bringing car seats with us and I'm not sure if we can request vehicles equipped with them easily. 

Hi everyone! We'll be on the Anthem this month with a stop in Port Canaveral. This is our first cruise and first time at this port. With two littles under 5, we decided to forgo the Space Center in favor of Cocoa Beach. My question is - how easy is it to take the SCAT bus from Port Canaveral to Cocoa Beach on a weekday? Has anyone done this before and have any information, such as is it a walkable distance to get on the bus from the ship port if we have a stroller and 2 kids? 

Royal offers a shuttle to Cocoa Beach as an excursion, but at around $75 for a shared bus, it seems so expensive. The SCAT bus says it's only $1.50 per adult, a way better deal on a cool trolley too. Anyway, would really appreciate if anyone has done this method of transport and has any helpful tips or insight! 

16 hours ago, Grenadyr said:

We cruise on Nov 10th, we got our offer and I made a bid on Sept 11th, it was accepted on October 2nd.  Fwiw our minimum bid was $250 to go from a large oceanview balcony to a Jr Suite.  I bid $275 and had no expectation I would get it.  Good luck!

Was this $275 per person or total? We're sailing the Anthem on 11/16 for 7 nights and I bid $275 per person to go from a Balcony to JS and now I'm thinking I may have bid too much. Still says "pending" on the Royal Up login page. 

5 hours ago, Matt said:

Since your son is 2, he will be in the nursery. When you drop him off, they will give you a phone or pager.

Thanks Matt! That's reassuring! 

Hi Everyone! We set sail on our first cruise in two weeks on Anthem. I plan on using their kids club at least for a few nights so my husband and I can get a few dinners in alone (finally). However, it will be my first time leaving my almost 2 yo son in a kids club like this so I wanted to know if there was a way to communicate with the club staff. Can they text or call you if needed? I'm just paranoid my son might get separation anxiety and freak out (hasn't really happened yet) and wanted to know if the staff would be able to get in touch with me if needed. Is there any way to communicate with them while we're at dinner or a show? 

My 4 yo goes to preschool already so I know she'll do fine and love it but its the baby I'm concerned about. 

Thanks @WAAAYTOOO for the quick reply! I'd love to upgrade but looks like there's nothing left to upgrade to  .Here's hoping my Royal Up bid gets accepted!  

Does anyone know if you can get OBC if the price drops past final payment? I have a TA so do I need to call them to see if Royal would give any extra OBC? My Nov. 16 Anthem sailing dropped a good $600 on balcony rooms with the current sale but we're already paid in full. Wondering if they would give any extra OBC in this case. 

4 minutes ago, CGTLH said:

Depending on dates you might still be outside the true final payment window. Most TAs have their clients pay prior to the actual date. Rough guess if your sailing is after November 17 you might be in luck.

If so, get in touch with your TA asap.

No unfortunately just passed the final payment for Royal, not the TA's final payment. So looks like I might be out of luck. I might try to call Royal to see if there's an upgrade opportunity and a room that's not listed on their site but, being Sunday, I'm sure the hold will be crazy. 

16 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Usually once you are past final payment, you cannot re-price.  However, if your balcony dropped, then other categories might have dropped too.  You could use that difference to upgrade.  

I don't see anything to upgrade to online though . all suites are sold-out according to their site. Would I have any luck calling them maybe or would it be a waste of time? I thought they could give you additional OBC in this case. 

Hi again everyone! Question that maybe the veteran cruisers have an answer for - today we passed the final payment date on our Nov. Anthem sailing and so I can't call my TA to reprice anymore. However today I noticed the price dropped about another $200 on balcony rooms in our category. Is there anyway to get some of this back as an OBC? Should I contact my TA or call Royal directly?

Thanks in advance for your help! 

1 hour ago, JLMoran said:

Since you said you mostly eat seafood and vegetarian, Wonderland might actually be a great option for you. Their menu on Anthem is heavily slanted towards seafood along with some vegetable options, and only one chicken and one beef entree, plus one egg-based appetizer.

As @twangster noted, it never hurts to ask. But I don’t know that my past situation is the best example to draw on. Our situation was a bit on the extreme side, and we were indeed lucky to have a waiter who I think was fairly new and very eager to leave a really good impression.

One other option to consider if you don’t want Wonderland is to splurge for Chef’s Table. Also more heavily seafood-focused, though it seems the menu lately is adding filet as a regular course instead of as a choice alongside fish.

All great options if the hubby and I were alone but we’re bringing our two little ones and I know they likely won’t appreciate any of the offerings at Wonderland/Chefs table . I’ll see if I can sneak on over to Wonderland alone one night and just order the World for myself off the menu. 

1 hour ago, CGTLH said:

One option might be a dessert only visit to Wonderland. I recall hearing they'll do "the world" alone for $10.

Other thing is it would be best to ask at Jamie's prior to the reservation/seating if they could accommodate. That way they could have things prepared/on hand to an extent. 

Ooh I didn’t know you could get dishes a la carte  at Wonderland. I assumed you had to have the entire sit down meal there. I’ll definitely inquire about this on board. I’ll happily pay the $10 just to try it. Thanks!! 

Hi everyone - we’re sailing on Anthem in Nov. and we only plan on dining at Jamie’s for our specialty dining pick ( @Lovetocruise2002 live blog pictures have me drooling). We only eat seafood/vegetarian mainly so Chops and Wonderland would be a bust and Jamie’s was the only specialty dining that interested me and the fam anyway. The only thing that I would really love to try from Wonderland is “the world” because I’ve seen so many posters here rave about that and post amazing pictures.  

So my question is - can you request a dish from another specialty restaurant while having dinner at a different specialty restaurant. For instance, if we were having dinner at Jamie’s, would I be able to request a dessert from Wonderland?

I don’t want to make the staff run around if the restaurants aren’t close together and it’s too much of a bother but I’ve read here how waiters brought appetizers/entrees, etc from a different specialty restaurant without being asked. (I believe it was @JLMoran who mentioned in a live blog that a waiter brought dishes over from Chops for his wife. Sounds like you had amazing service and a great waiter on Anthem! Maybe you would be the best person to answer this.) 

Following because I'm curious as well and plan on bringing two noise machines since we will all be in one room with my 18 mo and 4 yo. Need all the white noise I can get. I also plan on requesting a fan as well for additional noise . But as Twangster pointed out, there might not be enough outlets for all these extras and apparently some people have had their power strips confiscated before boarding.