S0nny

Registered Nurse here, and I agree with @RWDW1204. I work with vets who swim in pools for rehab, and many of them have an ostomy. I would encourage you to discuss this concern with your partner's healthcare team since they can provide specific recommendations for the situation. 7 weeks is a lot of time for post surgical healing and should be more than enough, but your partner's provider should be the one to give the 'ok'. There are numerous ostomy societies out there, but the link below has some great resources I found helpful. Ostomy device companies make tons of different types of products that can be tried; I encourage y'all to buy some different types and brands to see what works best. (and test them out at home in the shower/bath before cruising to build confidence) I would personally recommend an ostomy support belt since they provide an additional securement element which should help alleviate most concern. https://www.ostomy.org/swimming-pool-discrimination/

@raahc Yes! Just like that one ?

Any chance you can book the rooms separately? It seems like you should be able to make two separate bookings, and just select the rooms you want (hopefully without the upcharge...). You should be able to link the reservations into a party right within the Cruise Planner.

We LOVED the frozen mojitos! Awesome refreshing drink without all the muddling ?

We bought some heavy duty ones on our last cruise; all my friends were envious of our well organized room! We bought a multi-pocket organizer, and used the hooks to hang it from our door. We were able to store everything from sunblock, to sunglasses, Go Pro, chapstick, and all the other odds and ends that get lost in drawers or shoved away in bags. We also used the extra hooks to hang hats, wet swimsuits, towels, travel bags etc. GET THEM! You won't regret it!

I hate that this is happening for you on your vacation. You were just trying to do a nice thing for family. I'm always made fun of by friends and family for being a meticulous over-planner... I am also a staunch negotiator. I rarely accept an answer from the first person I talk to (unless I'm happy with it). Having worked in a call center (I sold insurance at USAA), and worked front line service for Wells Fargo... I can tell you with almost 100% assurance that the first person you talk to will not (and most likely doesn't even have the authority to) provide you assistance. You are off to the right track with the management, and with the descriptor on the advertisement during the Royal UP bid... I would agree... THEY are partly responsible. I'm sure there are legal disclosures and fine print which muddies the water... but the picture and descriptor ARE misleading. I DO think that the whole $860 back is a stretch. (it never hurts to ask... but I would not push it if the answer is 'no'). To be fair... they are in a Junior Suite, and while a king size bed would be nice... the truth is... it really is just two twins pushed together (you can't really sleep in the middle and spread out unless you enjoy sleeping in a dip). I think about $200 would be my minimum I would accept. (That's about 20% of the total cost of upgrading + the difference in gratuities). Keep pushing the incorrectly labeled advertisement, throw in a little Better Business Bureau threat (It DOES seem a little like 'bait and switch'), and just reiterate your desired loyalty to RCCL, the fact you are frequent suite cruisers and would hate to have a circumstance like this be the reason you move onto a different cruiseline. Think of what minimum offer YOU would be willing to accept, and try to keep the fact you are leaving in a few days to have fun with family in mind; I'm confident if you focus on the positives here, you will come out on top. Let us know how it goes!

I was recently monitoring RRCL's website for room availability; I was trying to book a Junior Suite on Harmony of the Seas since one wasn't available at the time of booking. (About 75 days prior to sail date). I would frequently see a listing for a Central Park Balcony, or Ocean View Balcony, and rarely a Junior Suite. Sometimes, when I would attempt to select the room, it would show me the error message "Central Park Balcony Staterooms are unavailable" (or whatever the particular room was I was attempting to review). Last night, I noticed a Junior Suite finally displaying"available" (previously the "Royal Class Suites" would only show the "SOLD OUT!" banner). But again, when attempting to review the room's location and price, it would populate the error message " Junior Suite Staterooms are unavailable". I decided to call Royal Caribbean (since my TA wasn't immediately available to take my call), and I was informed by the representative that they indeed had ONE JS stateroom available for booking! I was able to book the room through my agent (who called me back almost right after I hung up with RCCL). I wanted to share this information since newbies (like myself) might not realize that the website isn't always accurate. (I reviewed the RCblog topic history and noticed there was a good discussion about RCCL's website not showing ALL rooms available for booking... Hope this helps! Have a great day y'all!

Mine was not working as well. I was going to book an excursion through them. I called ‭(866) 562-7625‬ and was able to book through the phone. Interestingly, the agent indicated that I needed to log out of my account prior to him being able to access it (and there was a disclaimer provided that if I try to login, it may mess up the process). I noticed that when I attempted to login after the call, my account and the cruise planner worked just fine. This leads me to believe that having multiple windows open may have meant I had one window that was still logged in. I would try logging out of your account (if you can), close all windows on your browser, if it still doesn’t work, restart the device. If still nothing, call the number, explain the situation. Maybe whatever gremlin lurking in my system happened to you as well. This happens to me actually a lot... and I will be following my own advice from here forward now that I know what may be the issue. ?? GOOD LUCK!!

@twangster You’re awesome! I just looked up local dive prices; for SSI certification it’s about $459 pp + some extras for renting vs buying accompanying literature and other incidentals. Our cruise is offering $599 for PADI OWD certification which includes two 2 tank dives plus all materials and ALL equipment (vs just BCD, tanks, and regulator like the local SSI shop). Considering we are eyeballing an Australian cruise next year, we may just knock out our certification now. I got my PADI Junior OWD certification when I was 16, but haven’t dived since ?? And diving in Mission Bay San Diego CA was possibly the WORST dive experience you can have! Hahaha I think I enjoyed the pool more than that murkey and cold dive spot... the Caribbean would be a welcomed change! I’ll let you know what we choose and how it went! Thanks again! And thanks @Kim23 for the OP. Sorry to hijack the thread, but I had the same questions and found it on the search.

Thank you so much for this! We wanted to book the Discovery Scuba excursion on our upcoming Harmony cruise in a few weeks, but I didn’t want to take away any sea days for didactic instruction. I must have gotten confused in all the reading and thought the Discovery Scuba session necessitated time in the ship’s pool for initial immersion. As reading it now, I think it’s just an introductory lesson while in the water and then doing a super shallow dive. We are looking at doing this in Costa Maya. And thanks for the info on OWD certification! I was completely backwards in thinking that doing it on a cruise would be a waste of time and money; is see differently now. I’m a new member on this blog, but I really appreciate your advice ?

I just read this too. I like CATS (we actually have season tickets to our local theater and we are watching it next week), but I’m not disappointed about the shorter run time. I feel like they are missing an opportunity to bring something new to the new and improved ship though...

That would be so cool if it did! I'm sure it would make luxury areas enjoyable. I've always admired how The Haven looks on NCL.

We ordered doubles almost the whole cruise. I don't know if they were allowed to pour them... but they did. If you really want one, throw a cash tip down with your seapass card (a buck or two would prolly do the trick).

This is SO true! lol It happened when we cruised in 2015. We arrived to the theater with almost no seating available. People were leaving in mass exodus during the entire first part! By intermission, we moved seats all the way from the mid mezzanine to the first row!

We cruised Empress last November. We got one internet package for the two of us and just alternated turns as needed. It is a judgement call, but I would be less inclined to purchase The Key given the short duration. That being said, time is money; you may save some time on priority choice departure into the port. I would weigh the cost of a Chops lunch, whether you were GOING to buy one or two internet packages (or at all), and whether you NEED priority departure for disembarkation (I don't think you will need The Key for priority departure in the ports given Empress isn't large and you won't be fighting with 5K+ people to get off. I have a suggestion NOT to do... I would skip Chichen Itza (if it's not completely necessary). It's really awesome to see, but the trip there and back takes the WHOLE port time... and you may enjoy relaxing somewhere more. I would recommend going when/if you ever vacation in Mexico (say at an all inclusive). It's a smaller, older, ship. They have a rock climbing wall and a very small pool; that's about it. The charm of Empress (for us) was in the excellent service we found on board. We were a party group so had fun everywhere, but go into the cruise not expecting much (and you won't be disappointed!) Check out the cruise compass for theme party (it was 70's last year) and dress up. It should also give you an idea for other activities they are hosting that you may be into! We had a lot of fun at the piano bar! Nobody was dancing when we showed up! By the end of the night, a very sweet, elderly, widower danced with me (you can see her in the back of the video). Her daughter came up to me after, and with tears in her eyes, declared that she hadn't seen her mom have this much fun since her dad passed away years prior. Fun is what you MAKE it... never has that been MORE true than on Empress! Hope you enjoy!

You can bid on both! (It will increase your odds if you're really interested in an upgrade) It should. I believe most of the fleet has options for sleeper sofas, but not all rooms. I would hate to imagine that they would move you into a room that cannot accommodate all those originally scheduled... In a short search I couldn't find any circumstances where that happened. I have never had success bidding so take this with a grain of salt, but I think this is largely dependent on your cruise ship, sail date, how many rooms are available in the category you're looking at, how much rooms are/were going for, etc. Personally I would never bid more than the original room would have been to book... but that's just me. If it's saying $215 is fair (you're comfortable with it, and it is less than what the room would have originally cost, then it sounds like it is a good deal for you and your family! You will get a confirmation as soon as it;s accepted. Some have posted that they received word back quickly, others not so much. You should know at least 48 hrs prior since that's in their T&C. Those minimum of 2 days should be enough (unless you're flying across the world) Hope this helps!

I'm not inherently a dishonest person... but I always just move the towels if I don't see anyone on them after about 15 minutes (I only do it when there are no personal items). The ONE TIME someone came back, we had been sitting in the seat for over an hour, so I simply told them there were no towels present when we showed up. I reminded them of the policy and told them their towels must have been removed by staff. Maybe not the most honest thing... but neither is not adhering to the very obvious rules...

Since we always arrive the night before, we always stop by a convenience store to buy shampoo and other toiletries. I’m not particular about that sort of thing (I barely qualify since my hair is thinning so much ??)... but maybe years of not caring about product is what caused it! Hahaha

We cruised on Oasis in 2015. CATS only played the first 2 nights (that’s not normal right...? We heard something happened and they canceled the rest of the shows). We were lucky enough to have seen the show, but admittedly, I wasn’t a huge fan of the show. (The performers were ridiculously talented... I just didn’t care so much for the show). They brought in an ABBA cover band (I think was called ABBA Caddabra)... that show was unforgettable. It STILL is our favorite show we have seen anywhere. They had the entire Opal Theater singing, and dancing... it was unbelievable.

With AMEX platinum (as of now) you get 2x the rewards point for booking through the AMEX travel website, or with an authorized TA. We also "will be getting" a bottle of champagne and secured $200 OBC through their current promotion. The AMEX TA also had a "free" 4 night stay at an all inclusive Mexican resort to be used anytime next year. (not sure if it's really free or if I'll have to say "no" 8,000 times to a timeshare sales pitch... but my will is strong... and my drive for free food, booze, and accommodations is strong!!) Total Point Value: ($4500 x2 points rewards) = 9,000 points = $90 OBC = $200 Champagne = $30 AMEX Monthly Uber Credit = $15 Airline Credit = $200 (you have to be sneaky to get this credit... it's only meant for incidentals but can be worked around to use for your airfare purchase) TSA Precheck (included with card) = $85 x2 people/3yrs = $56 Delta Lounge Access x2 people = $56 Total Value = $647 - $550 annual fee = POSITIVE $97! + possible timeshare sales-pitch vacay worth....time will tell? lol

You rock! Thank you so much... I was curious, but didn't want to come across as rude since some may find the question offensive. Thanks It will help should we look at upgrading in the future!

Thank you SO much for sharing! This is the first cruise we are going on with the Royal Up program, so I have some trepidation about it. I don’t know what minimum bids are vs. what is normally accepted (like... if I bid minimum, is there any chance?). I’m always curious about what that experience is like for other cruisers.

If you want internet, and you are going to purchase; I would recommend booking now. I have only seen the price go up once onboard. If you purchase now, you can always call and ask for a correction if the pre-booking price goes down.

I was curious and tried to find statistical data about prevalence of bed bugs, but it’s apparently not monitored by the CDC or other regulatory or monitoring agencies. As a healthcare practitioner, my recommendation is an “ounce of prevention, is worth a pound of cure”. I would definitely recommend being overly cautious and check for signs. But I wouldn’t let it discourage you from something you may enjoy! Even 5 star hotels are at risk... When in doubt; seek them out! If none are found; let the fun abound!

As someone who was VEHEMENTLY opposed to annual fee charge cards or credit cards... I did A LOT of research on rewards cards. It’s 1) all about how many points you can earn and 2) the value of return on those points. (Conventional wisdom indicates that a 100:1 point return, as is the case with the RCCL card, is NOT a good return). When you start researching options, you may find a RCCL Credit Card does not provide that flexibility you may seek. (Sometimes you may want to splurge on first class airfare, or find a great point conversion for other cruise lines <gasp>) Some of the “best” cards out there come with many amazing benefits (Amex Platinum and Chase Saphire Reserve come to mind), but these cards have a high annual fee. There are middle of the road cards with lower annual fees (and some with none, but high interest), but they offer more points for things like gas and groceries. Bottom line, if you want to get the card for the quick $100 OBC, it may be an easy and affordable option (provided you can purchase and pay off the minimum purchase to get the credit). If you want a card that can be used for your family to accrue great rewards with lots of options and benefits, there may be WAY better options! Check our the guy below who breaks down major rewards cards and definitely weigh most online advice with the notion these guys run for profit websites based off what people sign up for from their sites. https://thepointsguy.com/