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steverk

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Everything posted by steverk

  1. Most modern smart phones support calling and texting over wifi. However, my last phone did not so YMMV. Also, it depends somewhat on your connection. I sail out of Galveston a lot. Wifi calling doesn't work while we are in the Gulf of Mexico, but works great once we enter the Caribbean. I have no idea why, but it happens every time.
  2. That's what I remember. If you book a gty balcony, you don't get any further choices. So, yes, it can be anything.
  3. Yes, you can. No issues until you have device number 5 connect.
  4. I usually do 1 person 4 devices as that's usually the cheapest option for 4 people. The number of devices isn't really the issue. It's the number of devices on line at a time. As mentioned earlier, device number 5 will boot someone off, which is inconvenient, but not really a problem.
  5. I used a Royal Caribbean transfer from Port Miami to MIA in October 2022. We were using terminal G instead of Royal's newest terminal, which I think is A. Regardless, it wasn't a pleasant experience. We received luggage tags and the instructions seemed to indicate we should put our luggage outside the night before rather than self assist as I usually do. This was my first mistake. When we arrived in the terminal, it was a zoo and took almost an hour to get our luggage. Once we had our luggage in hand, the area with the busses was even more insane. We asked which bus, and the agent just pointed at a line of busses. We asked a bus driver if he was going to MIA, and his response was "I don't know." We found someone else and was told to get in a line and board a specific bus. However the line really wasn't a line and was redirected several times. After an hour in the "line", we finally boarded the bus with the driver that didn't know where he was going. Once on the bus, everything was fine. It was a 48 passenger road bus with a wheelchair lift. There was room for luggage in the belly boxes below. In comparison, I took the shuttle in Los Angeles and everything worked like clockwork. We were at the airport an hour after leaving the ship. Also for comparison, I sailed through terminal G in January 2024. I did self assist and an Uber to the airport. Everything worked like clockwork and we were at the airport without hassle. If you do this option, I suggest ordering an Uber as soon as you clear customs. Surge pricing got us for an extra $10.
  6. I haven't seen anyone express concern that Royal will close Labadee permanently, and I don't have that fear. This isn't the first time that Labadee has ceased operations due to unrest in Haiti. Unfortunately, it probably won't be the last.
  7. I recently visited Puerto Plata Dominican Republic. I really enjoyed it and would consider it an upgrade from Labadee
  8. But you can, or least I did a year ago, book a refundable deposit cruise at NextCruise. However, the OBC is reduced. Sometimes they also bump up the deposit from $100 per person to $250. Sometimes they don't. Royal is wonderfully inconsistent on so many things! The other thing about refundable deposits is that the price of the cruise increases. You need to watch that carefully as it may not be worth it to book refundable, especially at NextCruise.
  9. You don't mention what you are looking for. If you just want a hotel for the night and nothing more, then staying in Webster or League City is probably the best balance between price, ease of access to Galveston and safety. If you're looking for a place that will add to your vacation, I'd suggest the Boardwalk hotel in Kemah, the Courtyard by Marriott NASA Clear Lake or Moody Gardens in Galveston.
  10. Always remember, the times on cruisemapper.com are departure times. I.e. the time the ship will be actually leaving. All aboard is usually 30 minutes prior to that. They can be even earlier for tender ports. You want to be on board laughing at the pier runners well before all aboard time.
  11. I've sailed Voyager many times. In fact, I'll be on her again at the end of April. No worries at all. About 6 months ago, she was hit by a rogue wave. Water splashed out of the pool and made mess, but no real damage. Nothing to worry about.
  12. Depending on the price, you might consider renting an aqua theater suite.
  13. It's not a stupid decision at all. It's essentially the same as booking a hotel room at a non-refundable rate. The wisdom, or lack thereof, is all in the math and your preferences. If you're ok with getting assigned a less than perfect cabin, you're fairly certain you'll really want to go and the price is cheaper, then it's probably right for you. That said, more than once, I've called my travel agent and asked about any group rates she might have, and she had them for the same price or less than the gty. In these cases the group rate is a better deal. I pick my cabin and have a refundable deposit.
  14. It depends on your policy. Many policies will cover a situation like this but you need to call the insurance company and ask.
  15. Can you purchase a policy through royal Caribbean?
  16. My wife loves this one https://www.amazon.com/Foldaway-Rechargeable-Portable-Lightweight-Compact/dp/B098CRFFNN/ref=asc_df_B098CRFFNN/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=532971543020&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16478889909755490309&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1026777&hvtargid=pla-1453736493837&psc=1&mcid=5e0a792da05a332ab1c353f08a05996a&gclid=CjwKCAiAloavBhBOEiwAbtAJO6I2RcbPf3cQVS3lFluyxka73vnm5TcMaOGJwPnoMXuZG8BrgpdFIhoCjAYQAvD_BwE
  17. Good morning and let me give you an early welcome to Houston. The 1:15 estimate to the port is reasonable assuming you are doing this on a weekend morning with no constructiondelays. During the week, 2 hours would be a better estimate. If there's a construction delay, then all bets are off. Checking Google maps is probably your best bet. Enterprise rent a car on Galveston is 4.5 miles, so the distance isn't too bad. I've never hailed a cab or uber on Galveston, so I can't really give you any advice on how long that will take. After the cruise, I would expect it to be pretty easy to get a ride though.
  18. To the OP. my normal advice would be to self assist. However, you've indicated that's not an option So, I'd get the earliest t6you possibly can. Go to guest services and confirm that's what you have. Then just hope everything is running smoothly and ahead of schedule. In most cases, you should be called by 8am and out of the terminal by 8:30. However, there's tons that can go wrong, so there's no guarantee. Best of luck to you!
  19. I was pleasantly surprised by the pricing on Navigator sailings for winter 2026.
  20. A 3 night weekend cruise makes a lot of sense for someone who can drive to the port and enjoy a weekend away. They will pay a premium for it and probably spend more on board. The downside for the cruise line is it has to be paired with a 4 night cruise during the week. This makes far less sense for someone who has a job and wants to maximize their vacation time. Cruise lines must have concluded that the advantages of the short weekend cruise are worth the trouble of dealing with the hard to fill week long cruise. For me personally, I'm not flying to a port for anything less than 6 or 7 nights. However, I will drive an hour for one if the price and timing are right.
  21. If you really feel the attendant is failing to do his/her job, then you probably need to bring it up to the head of housekeeping. I'm sure the issue will be addressed. Be advised though, you'll probably get very crisp, very impersonal service for the rest of the cruise.
  22. I can confirm what @LoveToCruise says. I've booked it 4 times. Each time it was a great experience. To get the lower price, book it at full price in advance to reserve your time. Then ride it enough times to show that you and your party don't really need a lesson. Then talk to the activity manager and they will refund the difference between your purchase price and the lower price. (discount is a refundable OBC).
  23. All you can do is keep checking. Somebody will cancel and you'll have a brief opportunity to book it. Good luck!
  24. I took it to La Guardia. We were late getting docked and the terminal was hopelessly backed up. We had to wait for at least an hour longer than planned, so we were late getting started. Therefore my start time of 10am should not be taken as normal. It's also possible that they removed some planned stops to get us to our flights on time. We had great driver. He took us in to Manhattan. We were allowed about 45 minutes to explore the world trade center area on our own. We drove around Manhattan where the driver pointed out significant landmarks like the bull on Wall Street and some historic buildings. Then we went on to La Guardia. Was it a great tour? No. But it was a decent way to pass some time and see a little of New York. When you consider the cost of cab fare to La Guardia from Bayonne, I thought this was a bargain.
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