Quilter620

I think you really need to try each in order to decide what is best for you. I'm taking my first cruise in an inside cabin next month. We will see how it goes and how much I miss the balcony. 

At the beginning of March, I am cruising to Puerto Rico, St. Thomas,  Punta Canna, and Grand Bahamas. Should I pack bug spray and plan to wear it in the ports? In St. Thomas and Grand Bahamas we plan to just walk around the port. We are doing the chocolate, rum, and shopping excursion in Punta Canna and the Let's have some rum excursion I. Puerto Rico. Thanks for the advice. 

@JohnK6404 thank you so much for the menus. It really helped.

I'm sailing on the Explorer of the Seas on March 1st which is not supported by the app yet. There are several nights we are going to have to choose between eating in the MDR or attending chartered events. How can I get a list of daily menus so I can plan better. I really don't want to miss lobster night.

After spending 14 hours in airports for what would have been a 9 5 hour drive...I can definitely say driving is a better choice. You would probably fly in the day before anyway, so if you figure if you leave at 8am you would be at the hotel by 5pm. Plus you save all that money on airfare and baggage costs. 

I was thinking of going to the beach when we dock in Freeport early this March. There are no beach excursions listed in the planner. What would be the best/easiest beach to go to on our own. I have never done anything in ports except RC hosted excursions. I am very sun sensitive so shade is a must, and I need to be able to rent a umbrella at the bare minimum. Thank you for your suggestions.

What suggestions do you have for what to do in St. Thomas and Grand Bahama Island. We have excursions scheduled at the other two ports, but none of the advertised ones for these last two ports appealed to us. What did you enjoy doing.

Thanks

3 hours ago, SpeedNoodles said:

I don't see it that way at all. I think of it as "a la carte pricing".   

That is a great way to think of it. Thanks for the paradigm shift

31 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

It is my understanding that when there is a sale it is already factored in. Meaning since all rooms are based on 2 person occupancy the average cost is that price.

That would make sense. I had never looked at rooms on HoS so I was unaware what a "normal" price was. Thank you everyone for your help.

@PRebecca thank you for trying to explain...but I did not word things correctly. After discounts I expected the room to cost $2147.62 which is much less than the total shown. These were my calculations,  maybe this will help you see where I figured wrong.

1st person = 1372

2nd person 1372 -  823.20 = 548.8

Taxes and fees = 301.82

Booking discount = -75

Total = 2147.62

Could someone please explain how Royal Caribbean is figuring its math. I am looking at booking the Harmony of the Seas sailing January 23, 2022 from Port Everglades. When I choose a pick your own stateroom it shows the price as $1372 per person for a oceanview balcony. When I select any fore or aft cabin the total price shown for the two of us is $4340. Where did the extra $1596 come from? That is more than the quoted price for one person. Without discounts I expected the room to cost $3045.82. Thank you so much for your help.  

@Matt and @SpeedNoodles thank you very much for your responses. They were quite helpful. 

@KJones thanks for the tip. Luckily I don't have specific times that I am required to log on. My assignments just need to be submitted by midnight on Wednesday and Sunday.

Could someone please explaine the differences in classification between rooms of the same category.  For example, an interior 6v is lavender while 3v is blue. Why would I pick one room over the other, besides location. Is it just that the 3v rooms have a Pullman bed and the 6v doesn't? I am specifically looking at Explorer of the Seas. I think I may be overthinking the combination of colors and symbols

Thank you. 

2 hours ago, jticarruthers said:

Rooms are essentially the same as the balcony, just with a wall/window where the balcony door would be.

Same layout/furnishings and roughly size.

How can you tell on the ship's deck plan if an ocean view room has the large wall/window or just a porthole? Are the cabins named differently?  Thanks.

@Melodyjn thank you for the feedback. 

8 minutes ago, Melodyjn said:

I was on this cruise as well, my two cons are, WIFI was HORRIBLE! 2 elevators on by our cabin were out of service the entire cruise which made for more wait time as I have a hard time doing the stairs.

Other then that, we had a fabulous cruise,  love the ship, can't wait to go on her again after reamp!

Do you think the WIFI is strong enough to upload a 6 page word document? I am going on the Explorer in March, but I am still working on my PhD and have to be able to submit assignments and post on message boards. I already purchased the Surf and Stream package knowing I would need it.

The first question to ask is if you have any food restrictions. If the answer is yes...then opt for a cruise. If no, then it really comes down to the itinerary. Write down a list of must see sights and would like to see places and compare whether a land tour or cruise will allow you to see the most if your list. I highly suggest looking at Rick Steve's tours if you do not opt for a cruise.

Thank you for the responses. I was also wondering if we are able to purchase the photo package on the ship if we discover there are a lot of photos we like. Since it is a chartered cruise, I do not believe there will be any discount for prebooking (nothing else has been on sale).

My roommate and I were thinking of getting the RC photo package on our chartered cruise (STTC IV) this March. Does anyone have experience with the photo package, especially on a chartered  cruise. What kinds of photos are usually taken by the photographer? Are we correct in understanding that for the $249.99 we get all of the photos with either of us in it, and only one of us has to purchase the package. 

This is a link to pictures of a MDR wine list. I didn't notice a category for port wines, but I'm not very familiar with reds, I could have missed it.

https://galvestoncruisereviews-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/galvestoncruisereviews.com/2019/07/31/royal-caribbean-main-dining-room-menu/?amp_js_v=a2&amp_gsa=1&usqp=mq331AQCKAE%3D#aoh=15792337043970&referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com&amp_tf=From %1%24s&ampshare=https%3A%2F%2Fgalvestoncruisereviews.com%2F2019%2F07%2F31%2Froyal-caribbean-main-dining-room-menu%2F

It is getting close to 45 days before my sailing. If I would like to order from the MDR vegan menu, do I need to contact Royal Caribbean, or is the menu availableto anyone who would like it? Is non-dairy milk available in the Windjammer or MDR. I emailed Royal Caribbean several days ago with the same questions and never heard back.

@Larry Muster Thank you for the details. This is my first STTC, and I am so excited to meet everyone. 

I am going on a chartered cruise (Star Trek IV) in March, and it is the first chartered cruise I have done. Can anyone who has done a chartered cruise before tell me how it differs from a regular cruise on RC. I am just trying to be as prepared as possible. Thanks.

I am going on a chartered cruise (Star Trek IV) in March, and it is the first chartered cruise I have done. Can anyone who has done a chartered cruise before tell me how it differs from a regular cruise on RC. I am just trying to be as prepared as possible. Thanks.