Cruise Queen 44 * Diamond

My husband said that if we can get our refund, I can go ahead and book at least one of the two casino cruise certificates I have on my account.  LOL!  I will probably be giving the money right back to them.  Guilty as charged.  

I was supposed to have received a refund from RCCL yesterday for my cancelled April 5th sailing that I cancelled on March 15th, but I did not receive it. 

I think this is the HOT week for refunds and RCCL is going to have to release a ton of money over the next few days...i.e. April 15th-April 21st.  I commend them for offering these deals and the comp cruise certificates (I have two in my casino account right now), to try to protect their cash flow.  I hope it works.

8 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

Be sure and take the time to have room service from the MDR in your suite...especially breakfast.  You will have a nice dining table and chairs in your suite and also on your balcony.  You will be so spoiled !

Thank you for the tip.  I saw a video of a nearby Owner's Suite and these rooms are gorgeous.  I definitely want to have a few meals there.

Yes!  Spoiled.  That's what I want to be.  LOL!  

The best room we have ever stayed in so far is a Grand Suite.  I am so very excited to see this room and to see the Freedom of the Seas.  We have never sailed on her before.  Only issue is we have 5 ports in 7 days so there won't be quite as much time on the ship since we love to explore the ports, but I will enjoy every minute either way.  I'm having cruise withdrawals like everyone else, I'm sure. 

We were supposed to be on the Oasis of the Seas from 04/05/20 to 04/12/20 but it was canceled due to the pandemic.  I was devastated.  We had a beautiful Crown Loft Suite reserved (the nicest room we've ever booked) and I really wanted to see the revamp that was done in 2019.  The last time we were on the Oasis was in 2012.

Fortunately, we have two more cruises booked.  One, for Christmas 2020 and the other, for Spring Break 2021.  Since we were able to get a full refund for our April 2020 cruise (sadly), I figured, what the heck?  I emailed my TA yesterday and upgraded our Junior Suite to a beautiful Owner's Suite on the Freedom of the Seas for our Christmas cruise.  YAY!  I will now start my Keto diet again, ramp up the exercises, and start getting bathing suit ready for December.  It will happen....it HAS to happen.  LOL!

Here's to cruising SOON...very soon!

On 3/14/2020 at 7:24 AM, mathbees said:

Total speculation on my part, but the positive for the people whose cruises were cancelled is they feel like they are getting a better deal (125% FCC), but then the increased prices on the more popular cruises means the value of that FCC isn't worth as much on those cruises.  The FCCs may also mean those cruises are likely to fill, driving up the cost for people without FCCs. This maybe this will drive some of them to book into the emptier cruises where they can get better value on that FCC and spread out the load.

Regardless, I give RCL a lot of kudos for how they are handling this.  I have a June B2B on Mariner and I was hoping for a decent priced upgrade, but now I expect the cruise will be full.  I'd actually be OK if the cruise is full, because it means people are still willing to cruise and that the restrictive policies (like the denied boarding for diabetics and such) will have been lifted.  It is also the path back to full profitability for RCL and hopefully won't delay some of their expansion plans.  

Just a thought.

I couldn't figure out how to get a comparable cruise with the 125% FCC since the prices have increased.  I just decided to take the refund instead.   

The rooms are waaayyy bigger in an Owner's Suite.  I would definitely take it if it's not much more. 

I called Royal Visa a couple of weeks ago, before all this mess started, and asked them if they could add my points back to my account.  They told me that they don't add the points back to your account but any unused OBC's would be refunded by mail. 

Once you redeem the points, I guess the credit card company treats the benefit like cash.  I have a $100 OBC from our cruise that was cancelled so I suspect, I will get a check in the mail within the next 30-60 days.

Great topic for people to respond to.

When do you all think the cruise lines will be back up and running, "business as usual"?  Once the suspension ends, it will probably take some time for the itineraries to be rescheduled and the destinations to clean up from this mess before they welcome tourist back into their countries. 

I suspect this is going to hurt the industry for at least 3-6 months. 

I'm doing my best to get "real" people's opinions and not pay any attention to the circus my husband is watching on tv.  LOL!  

Thank you AshleyDillo. 

Since RCCL cancelled on us, I think I MIGHT be able to get the insurance credit transferred.  I don't know, doesn't hurt to ask. 

Does anyone know how the following works with regard to FCC and Travel Insurance purchased with RCCL?

Our NFD was $750 and our travel insurance was $597. 

If I take the refund, we will get this money back as well? 

If I take the FCC, will I get credit for these two amounts?

Edited:  I see the NRD will be returned in a voucher.  But I can't find anything about the insurance.  Does anyone know?

I just checked the RCCL Facebook page and it reads that they will automatically issue the FCC. 

Good job Royal Caribbean!  I'm beyond pleased with how they handled this entire messy situation.  We will be able to make Diamond Plus a little quicker now. 

Okay!  I'll take the 125% FCC.  Now, it's time to SHOP!!  Suddenly, I'm not so depressed. 

30 minutes ago, SteveinSC said:

Perspective is the word of the day. My cruise was a luxury. A break from life and the daily grind. It's a bummer I have to reschedule, and have to cancel my PTO request.....but ......I have an awesome family, I have my health, and....now.....I get to pick out, and plan another cruise to replace the one we just lost!  So....as upset we are at losing a vacation, and the hassle of canceling hotels and excursions and such....just ask yourself......

Isn't it still undetermined if we will get credits/money back from RCCL at this point? 

I would also be booking again too if I knew for sure I will get my $9K back.  If I'm going to lose the money, I will definitely walk away from RCCL forever.  I'm reading all the fine print right now and the cruise contract basically states that RCCL can cancel and are not obligated to give you anything back.

I did buy travel insurance so hoping I can at least get the 75% "Cancel for no Reason" if RCCL doesn't at least offer FCC. 

We were April 5th.  I'm so bummed.  I'm hoping we can still get a FCC at least.  I do have travel insurance but it's worthless I think.

24 minutes ago, shaydav19 said:

Cruising Anthem on 03/15/2020, not canceling unless RCCL does!

My husband and I said the exact same thing.  We sail on the Oasis on April 5th.  Hopefully.....

24 days #stillgoing

Yeah, I was trying to log in from my work laptop and I think I've logged in so much to monitor things for the past few days, my employer's firewall blocked me or something.  LOL!

I had no problems logging in from my personal laptop.

Thanks everyone!

I agree.  I wouldn't cancel either unless there is some kind of underlying health issue with either of you 

There is so much to do on a cruise and you're on a big ship so you will be not be bored.

I have been monitoring the blog and many people have posted after they've returned from their vacations, that no one is speaking of the "C" word on board.  Most people are just washing their hands a little longer and taking other precautions.

We are sailing on April 5th so unless Royal Caribbean cancels on us, we will be there.

Happy Honeymoon!

Anyone else experiencing issues with the Royal Caribbean website?  Trying to check on my reservation and keep getting this message.

We are scheduled to go on the Oasis on April 5th from Miami.  My husband and I decided last night that we are going REGARDLESS.

Reasons:

1. We booked this cruise last April 2019 and reserved a beautiful Crown Loft Suite.  The price a year ago was much more affordable for us than it would be now.  Even if we used the FCC, we would still not be able to book a comparable cruise for the price we received back in 2019.  If we want the same amenities on a later sailing, it would end up costing us more.

2. This is our son's Spring Break and he is 17 years old.  How much more time we will get to spend with him before he's off doing his own life things and not wanting to spend his entire Spring Break cruising the Caribbean with mom and dad?  So here we have the "I don't care if we are quarantined for two weeks"....as long as I am with my family, it's all good.  I tend to make the best out of crappy situations so I know we would probably have a pretty good time.  LOL!

3. We are fortunate to not be flying to Miami.  Instead, we are driving from North Carolina.

4. We don't do buffets.  EVER.  (My rule)

5. We are all under the age of 50 and healthy so I think if we were exposed to the virus, it would not be life threatening.  Of course, we would respect the quarantine if we were exposed.  I would never put innocent, healthy people at risk.

I hope you are able to make your decision with what is right for you and your family.  The last time we were on the Oasis was in 2012 so I am very excited to see the new make over.

28 minutes ago, timbo said:

Are you on the Oasis of the seas or another ship.  I will be on the Oasis

Cool!  Maybe we will see you on board!

2 hours ago, teddy said:

It's interesting to hear all the anti-cruise rhetoric from the media and people who listen to them.  

I came back from my last cruise on Feb 1.  I felt fine all day traveling, but when we were on the bus a couple hours from home, I started feeling miserable.  By the time we arrived at the local station, I had to be helped out to my truck, and my son had to drive us home.  On Feb 2, I tested positive for Influenza...then I tried to go back to work too soon and got pneumonia, but that's another story.

All of the doctors I interacted with were of the same thought...cruising isn't as big a deal as flying.  My own doctor told me that she sees many people who get sick after flying or being in contact with someone who recently flew.  

If we were lucky enough to be able to cruise in the next few months, the only thing I'd consider doing differently is driving to the port instead of flying.  I would cruise in a heartbeat if we could get the time off with such short notice.

I could not agree more.  We are cruising April 5th from Miami.  We are driving from NC to Miami, not because of the virus scare but because I can't stand flying.  No control over when you leave, when you can stop, how much you can pack, etc.  Ugh!  Not to mention the germs floating around in all that recycled air.  No thanks!  

Just now, timbo said:

Are you on the Oasis of the seas or another ship

I am booked on the Oasis.

1 minute ago, timbo said:

Thank you all.  Hey, Cruise Queen 44, I will be on the Oasis, on the 5th of April.    Is this cruise the one you are on.. I personally think everything will be ok especially with so many people cancelling, we will much more room, less wait times and probably deals on drinks packkages, and massages maybe.

Hi Cruise queen ,, i will be on that cruise with you outside anything getting worse,,, I dont think it is as bad as the media reports.  I deal with tons of Doctors and nurses and they agree.  Many people who die from any virus are mainly elderly or health compromised people.  In addition to this I personally think with so many people cancelling there will be so many fewer people on board which will equate to easier maneuverability and waits in lines, and maybe even deals on drink packages , massages and such.  We shall see

Are you on the Oasis? 

We are booked in a CL Suite and last week there were absolutely no suites to be had.  Last night I checked again and there are now 3 CL suites available.  Looks like some people canceled and I got concerned.