wordell1

Its really a personal choice. My wife and I are not big drinkers and you would need to drink 5-6 drinks per day to break even on a drink package. I may drink that on a sea day, but almost certainly not when I am I port. We ordered drinks as we wanted last cruise just to see what it came to and it was roughly half the cost of the package. We are also generally satisfied in the main dining room but like the occasional specialty restaurant. The MDR is like eating at a nice catered wedding - its not a fine dining, cook to order meal but it is very good although maybe limited in choices. If you are foodies or big drinkers, the UDP and drink pkg makes a lot of sense - If you are not, I would try the al a carte approach on your first cruise. You will probably spend less overall.

You are correct. I would make reservations for the 1st night and Lobster night. There are pretty big lines on those nights for walk up.

I highly suggest having your teen attend the meet and greet on the first night of the cruise (usually 8 pm) My 13 year old spent all of his time with other teens on our recent cruise. We basically didn't see him on sea days except at dinner. He made a lot of friends and even ran into some of them on our shore excursions. We paid for the internet package and used WhatsApp to text with him

I take copies and my drivers license. If you do not back it back to the ship, my understanding is that they will remove your passports from the room safe and leave them with the port agent. There are some potential negative consequences to losing your passport while ashore. I actually take pictures of my whole families passports on my phone and email a copy to someone who is not going on the cruise in case my phone is lost or stolen.

I was charged the $15 corkage fee in the MDR on Liberty a few years ago one of the two bottles we brought to dinner. I had no problem with paying since I knew the rule. Its still a bargain vs buying a bottle onboard and I get to pick the wine I like. I would bring my glass from the room, but I often drink a second glass.

Most of the colleges have Spring Break the week before. The ones that don't are primarily northern schools. I think you will be fine.

The trend on land has been towards more casual dress in all aspects of life. Even in the business world, more and more companies are going business casual vs suits. Younger people are redefining what "dressed up" means for a date or night out. RC is a business and wants (needs) to attract young people. I have mixed feelings as I like the "dress up" part of cruise dining, at least on some nights. I don't really feel that what anyone else wears affects me, although I think a minimum standard should apply to avoid "people of Walmart" on RC. I'd like to see them eliminate formal night and go to a dressy night and set a minimum standard for the main dining room - no shorts, collared shirt etc. If people want to dress up more, that's OK too. I'd also like to see them have some casual nights where shorts are OK.

You should at least tip the amount you will be auto billed or pre pay. Anything else would be optional. The differences in tipping culture are rooted in how service staff are paid in the US vs Europe. The cruise staff are not paid well and rely on tips to make their living so it is only right to follow the tipping culture on a cruise - especially since it is added to your bill anyway.

Probably true, but I was hoping for something different. My understanding is that Allure does not tender so that would rule out GC (and Belize) as it stands now.

Any word on other itinerary?

We were able to request that our 11 year old be moved up to the teen group - he was also a 6th grader. He had a good time and made a few friends. He did not have a good time in the Kids club group which was 9-11. I'm pretty sure you can allow them to sign themselves out either way. The MDR food is the equivalent of eating very good banquet food - the specialty restaurants are equivalent to good - but not great restaurants. You may consider Paradise Beach over Nachi Cocom in Cozumel - Its my son's favorite place. Lots of inflatables in the water.

Can you give some examples of what you ask the concierge to do for you? Do you request dinner reservations etc when you get the email?

Miami is in the FAR south of Florida. Watch the weather before you go but you should expect summer weather in Miami. It is very rare for a cold front to get that far down into Florida.