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1 hour ago, smokeybandit said:

I thought the credit card OBC was one of the few that would get refunded if it doesn't get used.

I don't think it is refundable.  However,  you can transfer it to a slot machine in the casino and then cash out.

One thing to keep in mind is that Oasis class ships are inward focused.  That means you don't see much of the ocean unless you have an ocean view room.  For that reason I always book ocean view balconies on Oasis class ships. I'm more flexible on other ships though.

2 hours ago, Ryan79 said:

@mom2mybugs San Juan is one of the VERY few ports that is known to strictly enforce check-in times. Just a nugget of wisdom that I wanted to pass along since many of us are in the habit of just showing up whenever! 

Wow. That hasn't been my experience.  I've sailed out of there twice and I have never seen them check the time 

Call your travel agent. Ask if they have a group rate for this cruise.  If they do, book it now at the group rate! If not, I'd still  book it.

18 minutes ago, Floski said:

I've been trying to talk myself into another late Feb cruise next year, but I just can't justify the ridiculous prices.

Then, when you add in all the other stuff you have to pay for (don't think the local hotels aren't aware), it's jut too high.

And we just turned Diamond on our Wonder cruise last month.  I may never see those benefits.

 

Maybe it's time for us to take that trip back to Germany that we've wanted.  

I never try to justify the cost. That sounds harsh, but there really isn't any way to justify it the same way you might justify a car repair for example. 

I look at the cost and decide if I can afford it and if I want to go.

Unfortunately,  all travel us now outrageous. Therefore,  choosing a different type of vacation never reaches the savings I anticipate.

I think they were already released. 

There probably isn't anything going to Greenland.  That was a very rare itinerary. 

I used it in 2019. No complaints. A bit hard to find and it was a bus ride to the terminal,  but the car was still there when I got back.

4 hours ago, Atricks said:

Clearance will likely take a least a month (maybe a few weeks if they really pile on).  The entire bridge and the cargo ship need to be cleared out.  (cargo ship would need to get unloaded first) 

As for the bridge itself, the closest analog in the Tampa Bay Sunshine Skyway collapse in between Bradenton and St. Pete in 1980 and that didn't reopen until 1987.  It'll probably be years before they rebuild a bridge there.  One key difference is Skyway had two spans so they just converted the undamaged one into a 2 lane road until the new one was built.  Key bridge is gone in both directions.  (They potentially may have an opportunity to make it taller to allow the bigger ships.. Bay bridge near Annapolis may still limit that though since it has about the same clearance )

Hopefully, the state of Maryland recognized that the bridge was obsolete and due for replacement and had started engin6the replacement. Not likely,  but one can hope.

Not as of an hour ago

21 minutes ago, sleepy425 said:

Many of these people have a family back home, who still need a place to stay and to eat.  So I would say a decent portion are still paying for a place to live in their home country.  Our server on Adventure was single, but was in the process of building a house because, as he told us, in order to get married he had to prove to a woman's family (there was no specific woman yet because he had no home yet) he had a place for her to live.

Also remember that unless the crew member wants to impose on family or friends,  he  or she must keep an apartment on shore even though it isn't used very much.

That's terrible! My prayers are with the victims and families today.  

4 hours ago, Fastfaller said:

Ugh, nevermind I figured it out. I went through room selection and realized it's a central park balcony not ocean

I'm glad you figured it out. 

I have occasionally seen the situation that you described and it was a legit Oceanview balcony.  I suspect the balconies weren't selling on that particular sailing,  but the window cabins were.

It's my understanding that he will retain whatever status you or your son, whichever is higher, until his own points get him to the next level. 

I've been on Radiance, Jewel and Serenade.  There's almost no difference between them.  Radiance has the Samba grill, which is a plus.  People have commented about the pit stop bar on Jewel. Since I don't drink, I never even thought about this!

One downside on Jewel. Room 4014 is generally my favorite cabin on the Radiance class. It's very convenient, quiet and one of the cheapest cabins on the ship.  However, Jewel has a loose deck plate in the hall just outside the door.  When anyone steps on it, it makes a loud sound like a big bass drum.

I'm pretty sure the dock is limited to 2 ships max

Look at it this way.  Carnival is generally considered a mega ship line. They have 26 ships in their fleet.  Only 3 are larger than Freedom. The other 23 ate much smaller. 

4 hours ago, Gilley said:

I didn’t know that you could make phone calls.  This might sound dumb but do you make a call like normal just by placing the phone is in airplane mode or is there some other settings you have to do.  I had internet package last cruise but never made a single call because I thought I would be charged.  I surfed the net and played games.

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 minutes ago, NoobCruise said:

Thanks WAAYTOOO but I don't think I was ever given an option for ocean or neighborhood. We are pricing Icon cruises next year and if I am remembering correctly once I selected the category of balcony it gave me two options pick your room (which i guess would be type of balcony as well) and a guarenteed balcony with no further options.

That's what I remember.  If you book a gty balcony,  you don't get any further choices. So, yes, it can be anything. 

20 minutes ago, Fastfaller said:

So to be clear, can I have 4 devices going at the same time or no?

Yes, you can. No issues until you have device number 5 connect.

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. 

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.

1 hour ago, bobroo said:

Are folks here optimistic that Labadee reopens and continues business as usual?

I'm thinking much darker thoughts that probability of Royal completely losing the property is... Oh! about 50-50 right now.

 

But I will say that Michael Bayley cancelling all port stops puts the company at a potential negotiating advantage in the future. RC deserves a huge high five for making this decision. There are some really tough decisions the company still needs to make regarding Labadee but I think Royal management deserves a great big RCB group hug for doing what they have so far. Good job team! 

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.

1 hour ago, Dad2Cue said:

I'm not counting on stopping at Labadee on our 5 day cruise on Indy starting April 22nd.  If they replace Labadee with a sea day, we will cruise for 5 days with a stop in Nassau on the last day. I don't mind sea days but not to go to Nassau.

I recently visited Puerto Plata Dominican Republic. I really enjoyed it and would consider it an upgrade from Labadee 

On 1/18/2024 at 10:53 AM, AshleyDillo said:

No. You can not use the book later certificates on refundable fares.

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.

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.