Jim S

P&O Cruise Line (part of Carnival Group) stopped charging gratuities from the middle of 2019. There is absolutely no obligation to hand out any tips but you can give something to those crew members who you think deserve it. That’s the way I like it

Received the same email today for our cancelled March 23 cruise on Jewel of the Seas. We had booked B2B cruises on Jewel for March 16 and March 23, both cancelled by RCCL mid March. Refund for March 16 cruise came through about a month ago but my travel agent held on to it waiting on the other refund coming through.  Got the call from my TA yesterday to make the full refund to my credit card. Happy days; glad this is over and my money is now safe.

Glad to hear that the doctors letter requirement has been rescinded. Looks like the cruise lines realised that it would cost them many loyal customers ...... possibly for ever. My wife and I were seriously considering cancelling the 5 cruises that we had booked for late 2020 and early 2021. We will now wait to see what happens over the next few months.

5 hours ago, Tim B. said:

@Kcusack89I was on the IOS last year in a hump balcony room and I met my neighbor who had a Junior Suite next to mine...I was in 9340 and they were in JS 9338. They were kind enough to allow us into their room to take a look at  the differences and it’s a much larger room and bathroom. The balcony room can feel squished, especially in the bathroom area and shower,  but the JS is much larger and more like a living room feeling. No jumping around the bed as there is plenty room to walk around in the room. The bathroom is also much larger. The size of a JS is about a balcony and a half room. If the cost is close I would definitely take a Junior Suite over a Balcony hands down. You get double the points and priority embarkation. And, never forget the walk-in closet.

We have been in both 9338 (JS) and 9340 (D1) on different sailings on the IOS. The JS is very much superior and worth the extra money IMO.

2 hours ago, Andrew72681 said:

It amazes how those algorithms work sometimes, sometimes it’s barely noticeable on the pricing side. For us on Odyssey next year it’s 2.5x the price. 

Yes, RCI have a different pricing structure on that class of ship. We have booked a GS on the Odyssey for the Transatlantic crossing in April 2021 and it is about 3 times the standard balcony price.

We always book a JS rather than a balcony if the price difference is not too much. Anything up to about 50% extra is acceptable to us. The extra space makes a huge difference. On special occasions, eg anniversary etc, we have gone up to a GS and that gets you a Gold Card and all the additional perks that go with it.

On 3/17/2020 at 9:52 PM, PattiHere said:

My doctor will not sign the letter, says she is too busy.   My fear is I will not be able to cruise again.   I am 73, healthy, no medications, walk 3 to 4 miles a day, five days a week.  What will healthy over 70 year olds do if they cannot get this letter signed.   Wouldn't taking the temperature be enough?

My doctor refused to sign my letter, not because I wasn’t fit to travel or had any chronic illness but because the government had issued guidance to 70’s an overs not to travel at this time. Hopefully once we get over the current Covid-19 crisis things will return to normal again. Here’s hoping anyway, otherwise it looks like I won’t be cruising again.

2 hours ago, twangster said:

CLIA made the recommendation based on the meeting with the VP.  The cruise lines followed the White House and CLIA on this one.  

Well, we also have 3 upcoming cruises with P&O (Carnival Group) and they have not asked for this declaration.

On 17 March 2020 at 1:17 PM, WAAAYTOOO said:

Honestly, I think this ridiculous paperwork requirement is going to have much longer negative impact on cruising than the CV19 will.  How short-sighted !  The only thing this did was make the bean counters feel better in the short term.  In the long term it's going to ruin cruising for the cruiselines' bread and butter.  Utter nonsense.

Yes, it is rediculous. Many fit and well 70's and over will not be able to cruise while RCCL persist with this requirement. I know that I will not be able to cruise again on RCCL until they remove this requirement and I have two more cruises booked at the moment. I may have to cancel them and I certainly won't be booking any more until the situation changes.

Seems like RCCL may have shot themselves in the foot this time.

Watch out over 70’s - even if your doctor signs that you are fit to travel on a cruise holiday, if the government guidelines are saying that 70 and overs should not travel, then if you don’t follow the guidelines it may invalidate your holiday insurance cover.

1 minute ago, Jolly Ogre said:

I had a patient this morning present this to me at his appointment.

I took the letter to my doctor today and he refused to sign it. He had no problem in confirming that I was not suffering from any of the listed chronic illnesses but he said he could not attest to me being fit to travel on a cruise ship since the UK government had issued guidance to all over 70’s advising not to travel on a cruise ship. Looks like I will not be allowed to travel on our March 23 cruise.

I received an email this morning from RCCL stating that from Monday March 16th all persons aged 70 or older need to obtain doctors certification that they are fit to cruise before being allowed onboard. They issued the following template letter to take to my doctor for, would you believe, my cruise on Jewel of the Seas on Monday March 16th, which was cancelled a couple of days ago.

By the way, it takes 2-3 weeks to get such a letter from my doctor and they charge £30 for this.

6 minutes ago, Felpi said:

That doesn't sound good. And we were so looking forward to 23/03/20.

We really believe that it will work out anyway

We are currently rescheduling our flights to Dubai for the March 23 cruise but I am not very confident that it will go ahead. We will be keeping our fingers crossed anyway. Let’s hope you are right. 

Jewel of the Seas March 16th cruise: Official notice of cancellation received this morning from RCCL.

We have also received information from our Canadian friends who are currently onboard Jewel of the Seas that the Guest Services staff onboard are saying that it is very likely that the March 23rd cruise may also been cancelled. However, no official word has yet been received from RCCL to confirm this.

15 minutes ago, accio7 said:

I shared this video with @Matt a few minutes ago on Twitter, but here's a perspective video from YouTube cruise vloggers onboard Jewel. 

So sorry to hear about your friends' situation, @Jim S, and best wishes on your March 23rd cruise. 

@accio7 thanks for posting the link to the video. It explains very well what is going on.

3 minutes ago, Felpi said:

We leave for Dubai on March 22. I am confident that everything will be settled by then and we can leave on March 23 with Jewel

I hope you’re right as we are on the 23rd March cruise as well. Let’s wait and see. 

5 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

This is an unfortunate example of the worst that can happen.  So unfortunate.  Good luck @Jim S with your plans.

Thanks WAAAYTOOO. We are due to fly out to Dubai on Friday and have still heard nothing from RCCL, nor has my TA.

Thanks for the update Matt. I don’t know what other gulf ports they can go to as they all seem to closed to cruise ships.

Latest update. Ship still in Dubai. Passengers not allowed to leave until the results of the two ill passengers tests come back. The Captain announced an hour ago that he will make a further announcement between 6 and 7 local time in Dubai.

2 hours ago, Felpi said:

I hope this is just a wild guess on your part that the cruise of 23.03. is cancelled

It is not a wild guess. Just posting what I am hearing from friends who are onboard at the moment.

On 9/11/2019 at 8:33 PM, AmaliaLopez said:

Anyone done a Western Mediterranean cruise or sailed on the Jewel of the Seas. We are doing our April 2020 and was just trying to get any information I could.

I suggest that you read my post earlier today - Jewel of the Seas stuck in Dubai - Not looking good for future sailings.

Received an email early this morning from our Canadian friends who are currently on the Jewel of the Seas. The ship sailed yesterday from Dubai heading for Abu Dhabi and Sir Bani Yas Island but both ports were closed and the ship returned to Dubai overnight. We were due to join our friends on Monday for two B2B cruises on 16th and 23rd March but it is looking like both of these cruises could be cancelled.

Two passengers onboard are also ill and waiting to be tested for COVID-19 by the Dubai Port Authorities before a decision will be made on future sailings.

We have heard nothing from RCCL so far but will post updates on the forum as and when we receive any more information.

3 minutes ago, Cile said:

I know . And it is saying we can use concierge club access . So why is so many discussion about that then? 

It’s a long a story. You need to read through previous posts to find the answer.

26 minutes ago, Cile said:

I am D+ and what will be difference ? 

Here’s the full list from the RCCL website

11 minutes ago, Cile said:

I am D+ and what will be difference ? 

Two days internet instead of one, a bag of wash and fold laundry for 7+ nights cruises. This is for each member, that’s two if you and your wife/partner go together. One photo each but I think that is the same as D. There might be some other things as well, eg welcome gifts etc.