JustmeCindy

18 hours ago, DaddyTheRunner said:

I kinda got an answer from Royal Caribbean earlier this week.  They responded to my question without actually answering the question I was asking.  They simply reiterated their 12 x 17 oz (500ml) limit for non-alcoholic drinks without specifically addressing my question of bringing on two slightly larger bottles.  I guess we'll see what happens when we show up on embarkation day.

Here's a copy of their response:

 

Looks like they answered it at the very bottom where it states that bottles may be no larger than 750mls... Would have been nice to have it answered personally with more details though, rather than cut & pasted generically. That said, hopefully they let the cider slip on through

Thanks everyone! Sounds like we have nothing to worry about 

2 minutes ago, KathyC said:

We were on Adventure in May 2018 and there was nothing specific for 18-20 year olds.  That can obviously change based on the Activity Manager and Cruise Director changes.  On other ships I have seen activities, but it's more of a meet at this place and time to hang out but there is no crew member that facilitates any interaction.  It's up to them to recognize others of their age and engage in conversation.  Mine are 20 & 22 now, and when they sail with us they prefer doing the adult activities.  They hang out everywhere we do, just the younger doesn't drink.  

I feel for the kids coming from places that allow drinking at 18+.  It's really not fair that they have to stop on board.  But don't forget in every port they will be legal - so drink as much as they want off ship.  LOL 

Yes, at least there’s that!  My 20yr old googled all the ports we are stopping at and they’re all 18!  Not only that, but it turns out Antigua’s legal drinking age is 16, which is how old our youngest turned this week!  Might be funny to get him a drink, even if we don’t let him finish it

4 minutes ago, twangster said:

One less drink package to buy.  Savor it while you can.  Once they turn 21 guess who is buying drinks for one more thirsty mouth on vacation? 

I used this to my advantage on my last cruise with her months before she turned 21.  I only had to buy one drink package.  Cruising with her now just got more expensive now that she is > 21.   

Lol, so true!!  Although, when he turns 21, I might be inclined to make him pay for his his own drink package, since he’ll be a “grown man” and all

14 minutes ago, twangster said:

Suggest you review a cruise compass collected from previous guests to see if they offer anything for that age range.

https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/cruise-compass

If they do it won't be a formal program like Adventure Ocean for her age.  At this age each 20 year old is different.  Mine at that age was cool with hanging with me and going to the shows with me.  Yours may be different.  However she is an adult and the expectation is she would gravitate towards adult oriented activities onboard absent of drinking at bars.  

There isn't anything to be aware of specifically other than the common sense all adult women have to use in public.  A guy could offer her an alcoholic drink even thought that isn't allowed by policy.  At 20 some kids do drink underage at college or where ever.  While a cruise is not a dangerous place for young women there is always the possibility of a creep being on board.  Common sense rules just like it does in her hometown.

We’re bringing my 20 year old son and he’s a bit upset that he can’t enjoy a drink onboard with us... Where we live, the legal drinking age is 18, so he’s going back in time! We’ve been razzing him about it for weeks now. Lol

1 hour ago, Nick D said:

I got this email yesterday from RC about this topic

Perfect, thank you!!

Perfect, thanks! I was worried that it was the other way around, that something changed and we were no longer allowed to bring our own. 

I’m a little confused. We received our e-docs today and it states that non-alcoholic beverages are not permitted to be brought onboard, however I see on the website FAQ that they are?? We were planning on bringing a case of water, and maybe a case of pop (we have two rooms). Can anyone clear up the confusion? Thanks

20 hours ago, Atlantix2000 said:

Welcome, you've gotten answers to everything already but I'll offer a couple extra bits:

While your wine / non-alcoholic beverages technically must be in your carry on luggage, it's worth noting that airline rules don't apply.  Each piece must fit through scanners but you aren't limited to one carry on per person so it's really a matter of how much can you carry on.  (Of course, if you're flying to reach the ship, that will limit you.)  You'll also be carrying it all until your room is available around 1PM (unless you purchase the Key which includes dropping carry-ons somewhere).

You can go to guest services and get room keys so everyone has access to both rooms.  (Only the original cards can be used for expenses but I'm guessing you're paying the bills for both rooms so it doesn't really matter.)  Then, you can also sleep in whichever room you like.

Passport debates are quite common.  Most agree having them makes travel much easier than birth certificate plus other ID.  However, there's no agreement over what to do with them for excursions.  Some posters will argue they should stay in your cabin safe because if you miss the boat, the ship staff will retrieve them and leave them with the port authority when the ship leaves.  Others will argue you should keep your passports with you at all times when you are off the ship just in case of emergencies.  One thing is certain...You cannot fly without a passport so if you do get left on an island and the ship staff didn't find your passports, you are stuck until you can get to an embassy and get new passports made.

Some excellent information, thank you so much!! 

19 hours ago, KathyC said:

@JustmeCindy my kids always brought their school ids with them for photo id.  

I completely forgot about his school ID, thank you!

2 minutes ago, mworkman said:

@JustmeCindy which sailing in dec? We're on Serenade 9-20 dec. it will be our 4th time on her. She was our first cruise with RCCL and we're partial to her.

Oh nice!  Our cruise is Dec.30-Jan.10. Looking forward to ringing in the New Year! 

Just now, CGTLH said:

Also on the subject of mini fridge, they are labeled more as coolers vs refrigerator. Some will definitely keep things cold while others struggle to keep things below room temperature.

Be sure to contact the Special Needs group if it happens to be a medical necessity.

Ah, okay.  Just wanted to keep some bottled water cool, so even a cooler would do fine. Thanks

Wow, thank you everyone!  All of my questions answered, and so quickly - You are all so awesome! 

Just now, Clear Laker said:

This might work to your advantage if one of the adults wants the drink package.  As you are not required to buy packages for all in the cabin for minors.  So say hubby wants package and you don't … He can purchase it and the son doesn't have to buy anything.

Oooh... I hadn’t thought of that! Thanks for the tip!

1 minute ago, melski94 said:

1.  You can purchase it onboard for the remaining days of the cruise.  You can't buy it for certain days only (like if you wanted it for only sea days).  

2.  It doesn't have to be packed but since you can't get into your rooms until 1pm then you are lugging it around the ship however you brought it on.

3.  Yes mini fridges

4.  Yes

5.  If possible I'll rent a locker at the resort.  If I'm snorkeling on a boat tour, I don't worry about it.  

6.  No.  If you wanted them close together, you should have picked your own room.  I'm surprised that you were allowed to book your sons in a GTY room by themselves.

7.  Minors don't need a photo id.  However, I'm team passport and bring our passports with us on longer excursions.

 

Thanks for the quick response and all the answers! I really appreciate it.  We are new to this, when we booked the cruise they didn’t offer us anything but GTY and we didn’t know we could pick our own rooms.  They didn’t give our sons their own room... Technically, hubby and one son in one room, me and my other son in a second room.  I’ll be calling back to see if we can switch to picking our own rooms. Wish they would have told us it was an option when we first booked.

You are all so helpful, I was hoping to have a few random questions answered... I searched the forum for answers, but I couldn’t seem to find them.  We’re going on our first cruise in December on Serenade of the Seas.  (Well, first since I was teenager, and now I’m bringing my own teenage and 20yr old sons!) Sorry for all the questions, hopefully it’s okay. Thanks for any help

1. Drink packages. Can we buy them on a daily basis while onboard, just for one day here and there?  (Rather than buying it all at once for the entire duration of the trip)
2. Bringing drinks onboard. I read that you can bring 12 non-alcoholic standard size beverages onboard per stateroom. Does this have to be inside our carry-on luggage? Or can we simply carry it on, not packed?
3. Are there mini fridges in your room? (We are in a couple of ocean view staterooms)
4. When the ship is in port are you free to come and go (on & off) the ship as you please? 
5. Excursions. How are your ID, cash/credit cards, etc., kept safe when you’re, say, snorkeling?
6. We have two GTY ocean view staterooms... Is there anyway to make sure they are close together? (Or better yet, connected? Wishful thinking, I’m sure!)
7. Excursion packages all say to make sure you bring your Sea Pass and photo ID... What about minors? My 15yr old doesn’t have photo identification except his passport, and we don’t want to be taking that on excursions. Will he be okay with just his Sea Pass? (and his parents vouching for him? Lol)

Thanks everyone! Any help is much appreciated.  I just want to make sure we are all set, and I’m trying to keep my anxiety levels at bay

On 10/25/2019 at 6:17 AM, ellcee said:

My first RC cruise I was having a ton of food issues and I let the wait staff know and they were super helpful. (weirdly enough those issues went away, who even knows what that means, I couldn't eat a piece of bread without getting sick and now I can). The waiter brought me the menu the night before to pick what I'd want.

Family members cruised over the summer and the son has severe allergies to multiple foods. I told her what I knew, she contacted RC when she booked and made it clear to the waitstaff. She was VERY concerned. They had no problems and everyone came home safe and happy.

That’s awesome. I’ll be sure to let the wait staff know about my issues then... I was just going to try to pick around what’s available (like I do in regular restaurants) but I guess I’ll be a bit self indulgent and let them help me  Thanks for the advice. (Goodness, I hope my issue resolves itself like you! I miss enjoying food!)

2 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

Would it be appropriate to contact special_needs@rccl.com

I’ll contact them for my son, for sure.  I’m a bit more complicated, and I don’t even know what I’ll be able to eat by the time December hits - seems as though my diet is becoming more limited by the day... Hoping for some answers before we leave, but not counting on it. I’ve completely stumped my specialists! Anyway, at least I’ll be swimsuit ready??  

1 hour ago, Grenadyr said:

I contacted special needs due to a allergy I have.  Here is the response they sent me...

 

 

Thanks so much for posting this! I’ll be emailing them soon, but it’s nice to get sneak peeks here so I know what to expect  

1 hour ago, KWofPerth said:

I have a peanut allergy, and have not had an issue onboard. That said, I didn't specifically advise any staff, as I know what foods carry a high risk and just avoid them.  If I'm ever in doubt, that's when I ask.

As for the "May contain traces of peanuts" , I just ignore that, as it's a legal a$$-covering phrase. Even packets of peanuts have been known to have it printed on the packet

Oh, I wish we could ignore the “may contain”! Unfortunately, he reacted pretty badly to something that had a warning on it, so we don’t take any chances. Glad to hear that you’ve been fine on the ship, thanks for the feedback!

Thanks for the warm welcome!  We will be informing the head waiter, and anyone else who serves him, for sure  It’s nice to know that we’ll be well taken care of. We were in Cuba for two weeks about 10 years ago, and it was nerve wracking!  The language barrier was a big part of the problem, but I think the lack of understanding about how serious food allergies are was our biggest obstacle. We initially chose a cruise because of my own dietary restrictions (which I’m still trying to work through - but for now - no meat for me , and only a handful of things that I know won’t make me awfully sick), but I’m more concerned with my son because his can be deadly.  Thanks so much for the reassurance!!  We are SO excited!

Hi everyone, I’m hoping someone can help me out with a few questions regarding my son’s peanut allergy.  We will be on the Serenade of the Seas for an 11 night southern Caribbean cruise this December and he does have his allergy on file with RC.

I will definitely ask onboard, but as a starting point - Does anyone know if the desserts served are safe for those with a peanut allergy? (He is only allergy to peanuts, all other nuts are fine). 

And how about the ice cream? Soft serve and otherwise. Does anyone know if it’s peanut-free without the dreaded “may contain peanuts” warning that usually comes from whatever factory it’s processed in?

Any other help or guidance with their menu would be much appreciated  My son is grown now (20yrs old), always carries his Epipens, and won’t cry if he can’t have the desserts... But I still love the excitement in his eyes when he finds out certain things are safe