It can vary by port as the ship does need to clear customs before allowing people to leave.  7 to 7:30 is normal but it can definitely be delayed.

This is very common in Roatan.  Cash is preferred at restaurants also.

A lot more bids were won when Covid was high and occupancies were much lower.  The truth is that there will most likely not be any available rooms to upgrade to.  I would place a bid for what you think it is worth, and then forget about it - you probably will end up in the cabin you booked.  If you do win, it will be a nice surprise at the last minute.

4 hours ago, GADGT5 said:

Hi Folks. 

My wife booked a 9 night cruise with her friend.. and now I am available and can book a room (me and the kids) in a seperate room. 

Q: would we just get the 9 points, or do we get 9 points each as its a seperate room and booking? (ie 18 points?) 

You would each get 9 points in your scenario.  You would also get 9 points each if you were in the same room.  Each person in the room will get the points.

Yes, they can definitely do that.

I use taxi's.  I usually arrange with the driver to pick me up a set time - i have never had a problem with them being there.

Unfortunately no, coffee makers are only in suites.  

They are similar in what they offer but Nachi Cocum is much quieter.  Paradise beach has more people, but also more to do.  Both have a very nice pool.

The biggest difference is the blow up water stuff at Paradise Beach that can be fun for the kids.  

We like both and typically pick PB when my teenager cruises with us, and Nachi Cocum when it is just my wife and I.

I would recommend the two outside areas that are accessible from the solarium.  There are glass panels, but you can use the spaces in between for photos.

On 1/3/2024 at 4:13 PM, foxrunner said:

Although the fee is minimal and rarely enforced, it is very inconsistent. Which puts the staff in a bind and that is unfair. They allow you to bring on two bottles per stateroom and therefore shouldn't charge you corkage or should always charge you the fee. These are the nickel and dime tactics that degrade the overall experience. On a land based vacation we tolerate these tactics as it is part of the adventure. With cruising starting to cost as much as land vacations this becomes irksome. The thing I love about cruising is going away and that is cost certainty. Yes I've only been on 5 RCC cruises but have had a corkage fee once. The thread question was how to avoid the fee. This is a site dedicated to cruise hacks and I wish Royal didn't make us play these games. 

Royal clearly states the policy on their website.  Note that it is actually all public areas that are subject to the fee.  As @WAAAYTOOOstated above, it is not really about the waiter opening the bottle.

If you want cost certainty, just expect to be charged and be pleasantly surprised when you are not.  Even with the charge, you will be saving alot vs purchasing a bottle on the ship.  

I don't think Royal is in any way obligated to allow us to bring wine aboard in the first place, so I see don't see any of this as nickel and diming.  

Corkage fees are VERY rarely applied in any of the restaurants onboard.  I typically bring 2 bottles of wine and bring the full corked bottle to dinner and the waiter handles it the same as if I had ordered it.  I understand that I could be charged, and would not be upset if I were - but it has only happened once, and that was very shortly after they added the fee.

You take the bus from the cruise terminal to town.  The walk from the bus drop-off to the Sitka Historic Park is a nice walk along the harbor.  There are quite a few trails within the park.  If you want to add some distance, walk over to the Raptor center from the park, or start there and then do the park.

Celebrity ships used to have a thalassotherapy pool in the spa which was basically a large hot tub with reclined seating in them.  

I'm actually trying Nachi for the first time in January.

We have been going to Paradise beach forever, but they have basically eliminated the pay as you go option and we were disappointed with the changes to the food menu (much smaller portions) the last time we were there.  

We tried Mr Sancho's but did not like the food or service.

I wonder if the popularity of the beach clubs is causing all of them to cut way back on costs since people are coming anyway.  

I'm not sure that any ships still have internet lounges

The reason frequent cruisers typically use a full service TA is that there are many things that can go wrong with your bookings - the most notable being cancellations.  Having a TA makes that experience much less of a hassle.  

I used to book my own cruises until the Covid cancellations forced me to spend a huge amount of time on the phone dealing with cancellations and FCC's.

Dealing with a cancelled 2024 Panama Canal cruise required a simple email to my TA.  I use MEI.

TA's cost nothing and you can still book on your own and then transfer the booking if you prefer.

I take a taxi to OB and ask the driver to meet us at a pre appointed time.  This has always worked out.  

Capri is a long excursion.  If you are looking for something shorter you can walk (or taxi) from the ship and just walk around downtown Naples. The pizza is the best in the world and kids love pizza.

If you are talking about Roatan, you can use Ronys Tours and book a private excursion.  You will pay around $100 for the car or van/driver and then pay individually for anything you want to do.  We do this in Roatan and my wife does not zip line and does not pay for it.

HOME - Roatan Tours, Cruiseship Activities, Excursions, Zipline Canopy Tours with Ronys Independent Tours, Roatan (ronystours.com)

For the record, my wife and I have shopped many times in the secured port in Costa Maya - It's actually one of the nicer ports.  I'm not sure if OP is referring to this area, or the downtown area of Mahahual.  The secured area is one of the largest of any port and has lots of shopping.  The vendors in my experience are active (standing in the door asking you to come into thier shop), but not aggressive.  In town can be more aggressive and there are vendors on the beach itself.  In either case, a simple "no thank you" is enough.

While there are deals to be had in some ports, generally you are probably not getting a deal on most items.  If you want to buy something, use google to check prices - it doesn't take a minute.

On 10/16/2023 at 2:30 PM, Matt said:

Can you be more specific exactly what they mean? 

It's not heard of pre- or post-pandemic for DL access to be restricted when there are too many top tier members onboard. Not that it bothers me at all, since I'd much rather go to almost any other bar for my drinks.

It was on Cruisehive. 

It's more the principle to me. Why tell us that the name change to Crown Lounge doesn't mean any changes to the lounge and then make changes a few weeks later? 

Obviously they had to change the name if they planned to restrict Diamond members from the Diamond lounge. Why lie about the reason? It shows a lack of respect for some of their long term customers.

Wonder has the worst Diamond Lounge in the fleet anyway so I'd be shocked if it were actually full.

I would still keep trying, but the bottom line is that they are not going to displace someone else to move him back to deck 14.  You are after final payment so I doubt there will be any cancelations at this point.

On the scale of things that can go wrong, I wouldn't worry about you being on different decks.  I don't think it will affect very much.

Also to be noted is that Europe actually uses less cash than the US.  You can use a CC almost anywhere.

There is a very small Mayan ruin on the Island of Cozumel.  You can definitely do that one and shop/explore downtown.

There are also tours that will take you to Tulum which is on the Mexican mainland and requires a ferry to get to. The ruins are much larger there. Those are all day tours.

1 hour ago, buckeyefan58 said:

We are sailing on Harmony out of Galveston the week before Easter next year. We are debating staying at either the Holiday Inn Express Galveston Beach or the Holiday Inn Express in Clear Lake the night before the cruise. Does Galveston get big spring break crowds of partiers? We would prefer to stay in Galveston for ease the morning of embarkation, but have two younger children and don't want to be in the middle of a huge party the night before our cruise. 

Galveston is not really a party destination. Spring Break in Texas would be the 2nd week in March so you would miss it anyway.