Chadster

2 hours ago, Nate Y said:

You weren't able to use them both on the same cruise were you?  They told me when I used the 10% wildcard I couldn't combine it with other offers.

Nope, not the same cruise -- sorry for the confusion. I just meant you can redeem for both...getting one doesn't preclude you from getting the other.

I'm calling tomorrow to put the 10% on one upcoming cruise, and the OBC on another.

One interesting thing I've noticed with the WOW Sale as a single cruiser: I haven't been quoted the normal 200% price ("the singles penalty"). As a result, the OBC amounts are lower, but then again,  so are the fares! Alas, I don't have any C&A offers yet -- I'm still trying to get my first points!

By way of update/closure to say thanks again: I went ahead and cancelled before final payment was due; my TA is in the process of getting the FCCs I used and some OBC taken care of, which will be applied to the new cruise, a May sailing in a studio balcony cabin on Ovation to Alaska for less than my previous cruise! It's even a day longer, so that means more points. 

Thanks for all the feedback, everybody. This cruise is going to fit much better into my schedule, and the timeframe leaves extra room to get all the FCCs sorted and applied instead of worrying about final payment date approaching while still waiting for them.

Watch out, though, future group cruisers -- I'm keeping my eyes open to be amongst your numbers one day! 

I've also been able to use the 10% and a $100 OBC reward. I took a break from MyVEGAS for a while, but now I'm back and continuing to play, and have a nice amount of reward points socked away for if and when new RC rewards come sailing along. 

On 7/22/2021 at 3:20 PM, Kayleigh said:

When we called to book the cruise we asked about cabin upgrades. If we kept the inside cabin, we would have only paid about $98 (tax and port fees). We decided to upgrade to a balcony cabin and only paid $469!

That's awesome to hear that an upgrade paid off so well!

56 minutes ago, Reigert2008 said:

As someone who completed both their undergrad and graduates degrees while working full time and participating in a 24x7 on-call rotation, my suggestion is to NOT travel during the semester.  What little travel we did, was all between coursework and it as part of the sacrifices we made with our priorities, so your priorities could be different. 

They are not, and you're right. I mainly just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something in my thought process with the FCCs and everything else...but it's looking like cancelling (sorry, Group Cruisers! ) is going to be the right call.

Especially since after reading a suggestion above, I was doing some "backup cruise" checking, and let's just say I stumbled into what could be one heck of a deal for spring to celebrate before diving into dissertation work.

I was just really conflicted because I wanted to hang out with an awesome group, but I know there'll be future opportunities! Will touch base with my travel guru at MEI and get things sorted!

Thanks to this group for being an awesome sounding board.

26 minutes ago, BrianB said:

It sounds like you’re not sure what the professor will consider as a likely time line. Maybe ask him/her what is recommended regarding the booked cruise dates. Maybe you will get a more concrete answer. 

I actually had to email my professor about something else, so I actually did throw in a question regarding the timeline of the new course, and now I wait. I didn't tell them that I was asking because of a vacation. 

Also, if I were to cancel right before final payment, I know the deposit would be returned as an FCC (it was an NRD). But I applied other FCCs I received toward the balance as well. Would those come back as a combined FCC since credits were their initial form, or would it be refunded to my card?

I need to call and talk to my travel agent, I know, but it's past her business hours, and I feel like I've pestered her enough recently, so I was holding off on an email/message until tomorrow!  Was just wanting some feedback from you knowledgeable folk so I could be a little more prepared in my decision-making.

So I've got a bit of a dilemma and could use some collective wisdom, given the fact that Cruise With Confidence and the "cancel up to 48 hours before your cruise" policy is in play now. I just got my class schedule for October-November including the syllabus with due dates, and the week of Thanksgiving, I've got a giant milestone in my degree that needs to be completed that week. Major, as in not getting a check-plus-plus will push my potential graduation back a quarter. So, the week of Thanksgiving, it's likely I'll have final strongly-suggested (read: "mandatory") revisions in my hand from my professor -- and probably not much before that. Those revisions and final submission will be due the day the cruise returns to Orlando.

All this to ask: Since "Cruise With Confidence" is a thing currently, would you suggest I go ahead and make final payment this week and then cancel right before the cruise if it becomes necessary? Is there a downside to cancelling after final payment with CWC in effect?

I'm sitting here with my stomach in absolute knots. Needless to say, this particular timeline is the one I definitely didn't want to see... 

I received some news today that made me take new stock of this notion of unfair treatment by the CDC. I was originally going to be in Orlando just before Thanksgiving this year for a in-person residency for school. I was going to board Harmony afterward for Thanksgiving at sea.

Today, that residency was shifted to completely online. My school has evaluated the situation in Florida and how they think things will look in 3 months and decided going fully virtual is the right way to go. At the same time, two professional meetings I was slated to attend -- one in Seattle in 2021 and one in California later this year -- have both been moved online. Yes, I know that means all those activities will still continue while cruising will not.

But the fact remains per public health officials, there continues to be a threat and a spread, and organizations and corporations are doing their best in this situation. Would you rather they expose themselves to liability just so you can get your vacation? I get that people are upset. I was in a position I felt the need to lift and shift my cruises til next year. I got all my money back at this point. All I want is for Royal Caribbean to offer me a safe-as-can-be, fun vacation, however long that takes. Til then, my life continues to evolve around all of this going on...and as much as I look forward to cruising, it's definitely on the back burner right now. I'm just thankful I'll be able to do everything -- both personally and professionally -- with a greater measure of safety.

On 6/6/2020 at 6:36 PM, Chadster said:

Nov. 22-29, 2020 Harmony (CocoCay Thanksgiving)

Dec. 18-26, 2020 Grandeur (Baltimore-Bahamas)

Jan. 26-Feb. 6, 2021 Anthem (Cape Liberty-Southern Caribbean)

 

Sept. 25-30, 2021 Freedom (Cape Liberty-Bermuda)

 

Sept. 30-Oct. 9, 2021 Freedom (Cape Liberty-New England/Canada)

 

I've decided to take a much more measured approach to future cruises. Therefore, please remove the above cruises.

Instead, please add:

Nov. 21-28, 2021 Harmony (Blog Group Cruise!) I got the date wrong in my original post...

Dec. 23-31, 2021 Enchantment (Christmas at sea!)

I've lifted and shifted both of these to next year.

Right now, I'm recouping all my money from RCCL for cruises between now and Thanksgiving 2021 and making plans after things become more clear. I was being too knee-jerk/YOLO.

Sorry for being a pain.

I know this is a slightly old thread, but I thought I'd add in some dates; I got my FCCs for my 7/15 self-cancelation as well as my 10/11 and 6/4 RCCL-cancelled cruises on July 1 and 2. I've ultimately decided to forgo the 125%, so I put in the requests to have them converted to 100% refunds today (7/5).

This also counts for cruises.

One of those memes that make me think of the RCB crowd, especially #TeamDX (myself included!)

I've gone on a cruise-planning spree! These will not only get me to Diamond, but I'll also get to take part in at least one Group Cruise next year! And...my first B2B!

Jan. 26-Feb. 6, 2021 Anthem (Cape Liberty-Southern Caribbean)

Sept. 25-30, 2021 Freedom (Cape Liberty-Bermuda)

Sept. 30-Oct. 9, 2021 Freedom (Cape Liberty-New England/Canada)

Nov. 22-29, 2021 Harmony (Group Cruise) (Orlando-Perfect Day)

I hope they'll give you a credit or something!

And ugh...okay, so my goal for 2021 is now New England/Canada; I think Alaska's waiting until 2022. Don't think I'll be rocketing from Pre-Gold to Diamond within the next 18 months after all.

Please remove my 10/11/20 sailing aboard Brilliance (the Group Cruise).

Currently nothing to replace it with until I do some digging.

1 hour ago, Matt said:

Mentioning me usually gets worse pricing! 

Only if we're sailing toward Florida. If we sail in any direction to be further away from you... 

I've noticed I get the Maryland resident discounts on cruises out of Baltimore (not really a surprise there) and out of Cape Liberty. My Thanksgiving cruise out of Orlando doesn't have a MD resident discount.

Another UDP question as I ponder whether to tie up more money with RCCL while I'm awaiting some refunds for previous cruise planner cancellations and taxes/fees/gratuities, and I'm not really sure I wanna tie up more money right now...

Does the UDP ever "sell out"? Though I know none of us know what when-we-resume-sailing is going to look like, should I just bite the bullet and go ahead and secure the UDP now? Price, I'm not too worried about -- I've got OBC and a refund coming -- it's more about quantity available.

2 hours ago, Jill said:

I use Sharla and she puts up with my endless emails! Seriously she’s been great. She’s got our group of 4 couples for Odyssey Italy/Greece next year and she’s been very attentive through all this cancellation mess with FCC’s, OBC’s etc. 

When I first went with MEI, I just filled out the form and was assigned Sharla; she's definitely been fantastic! I was trying to move my Thanksgiving cruise from Anthem to Harmony this year due to a change in my availability and location for that week, and she spent 80 minutes on hold just for me...and got it done without any fuss!

I honestly don't think you can go wrong with any of MEI's folks, based on all the stories I've read. And as for them being full-service, I think they're a go-to for RCCL/Celebrity/Disney simply because of their extensive experience with those cruise lines, leading to a bit more specialization. While I haven't tried to book a cruise with one of the other "Big 3" cruise lines through MEI, I certainly see no reason why they wouldn't be able to help you!

Yes, yes, and yes.

In most places where masks are required in restaurants for dining in, the rules state "except when eating or drinking." I would assume the same would go for bars. Social distancing would be tricky, but Royal's smart -- they can figure it out.

I'm sorry, but if I'm walking to and from somewhere on the ship and I encounter a large group, I'd prefer to have a mask. Maybe it's because I'm just used to wearing one now without much of a second thought.

No, this doesn't make me weak. No, this doesn't make me "not a real man" (whatever the frick a "real man" is... ) and no, it doesn't mean I'm living in fear.

What it does mean? I'm sailing and following any and all rules RCCL puts in place -- you know, like I always do when I'm sailing, or just generally being a member of society.

My friends and family now have more understanding about how I'm really working when I work/study from home and that it's not all about watching Netflix all day (I can do that WHILE working, thank you very much! ).