Funeegal

Thank you both! Very helpful! You put my mind at ease!

Hi - I am taking a chance in booking Wonderland for my family of 4. We have an adventurous teen and less adventurous older teen. The older teen is autistic. Even if there isn't a specific kids menu, would they be able to bring out "normal" food if we want? I don't care about the cost of the meal, but I do want my kid to be able to eat something. I know we can go to the Wind Jamiere after Wonderland or get pizza if we need.

Thanks. The points showed back up on his account. All things are ok.

Hi - Can someone clarify the rule for minor children and C&A status? A minor child has the same status as their parent in the C&A Society until they turn 18 and then they have to earn their own points? My newly turned 18 year old was at Emerald level (2 points away from Diamond). For this next cruise, they appear to have zero points. Do minors have to start all over at 18? I thought this rule meant my child would keep all points earned to date, but now has to earn points on their own going forward. For some reason, as I type this, I think I may have answered my own question, but want to confirm. My kiddo starts from zero again.

I hope this is allowed since it references a travel agency. Hi! I am happy to help! Autism of the Seas is technically a travel agency. www.autismontheseas.com On their website, they have a list of staffed cruises. It is on these cruises that have their volunteer staff to assist your child and your family. You can book directly with the cruise line and then go to the AOTS website and transfer your booking to them (within 30 days). The price of the cruise is the same you would pay if you booked anywhere else PLUS a small per person in your immediate family fee that ranges depending on the ship, number of days, price of an interior cabin, etc. That per person fee ranges from about $150-250. If other friends or family books the same cruise with you AND they also book with AOTS, but do not need the volunteer services, there is no additional fee. I am happy to assist with any questions you have! Please message me and I will reply with more details. We are off to a B2B Alaska trip with AOTS in July! You can also use AOTS to help you on unstaffed cruises. They help to arrange accommodations with RCL and their special needs department.

Once you have the OBC applied to your sailing, it is like any other OBC. If you cancel, the OBC appears almost immediately and you can use it for something else.

As a mom of two teens, I appreciate the information you are providing on Optix. Thanks and enjoy your amazing adventures! Love the wildlife pics! My son can't wait to see Sea Otters!

Thanks! We are round trip on Ovation (Seattle) and do not plan on spending a day in Seattle in between cruises so a laundromat is out. We do get discounted ship laundry. I mean really....who owns enough underwear for 17 days? We do not wear our undies in front, in back, inside out, and go front and back again (4 days) as Fred does in Big Hero 6.

If you are booked with RCL, it depends on what time those excursions are offered and if there is availability once you are on board. If the excursion is only offered at a specific time you cannot change that specific time. If the excursion you want is sold out, you are out of luck. Sometimes, depending on who you get a the ShoreEx desk, they will charge you the current price for the excursion and credit you the price you paid originally so you end up paying the difference. Other times, they have just switched it without an additional cost. Example - Excursion is offered twice on the port day. Once at 8AM and another time at 1PM. You can only go at 8AM or 1PM and not 2PM. If an excursion is offered only at 8AM, you can't go at 1PM.

Love your blog! We also collect magnets! Keep up the great writing. I look forward to it daily!

Hi - My family of 4 is going on a B2B Alaska sailing in early July. We've been on several 7 and 9 day cruises (Caribbean and Europe), but this is our first time in Alaska. I've read all of the "what to pack" blogs, vlogs, message boards, etc. I am all about layers. I realize we will probably need to do laundry on the ship. I just don't want to do a week's worth of laundry for 4 on the ship! How much extra, if any, do you need or do you pack when going on a B2B sailing? Our standard attire is going to be jeans/joggers, tshirt, sweatshirt, rain jacket/poncho. We will being some shorts just in case. I am more concerned about the daytime attire and how much I need.

We cruise because we get assistance with our special needs kids/teens. We travel with Autism on the Seas (AOTS) and they provide volunteers to provide assistance with our kids so we can enjoy and have a vacation. It can be difficult traveling with special needs guests and parents need a break, too! Cruising gives us a chance to travel safely and be able to relax. RCL staff is fantastic with our kiddos and it provides the kids with opportunities to see the world and experience things they may not have a chance to do. If you ever see a bunch or orange shirts that say STAFF on the back, pop on over and say hi! That is what we call TeamOrange and they are the amazing volunteers that help families. AOTS doesn't just help those who have autism or are autistic. They deal with all specials needs individuals needing assistance from age 3 to adult.

Hi - I last sailed in March and we are going to Alaska this summer. Are check-in times still being enforced at ports? I hope so, but wanted to check.

I recently purchased the Key for a 3-night sailing on Freedom after reading all of the reviews and seeing how so many said it wasn't worth it. I was planning on purchasing internet anyway. There were two of us in the cabin. I got the key at a discount, paying $21.99 per day. Internet was $20.99 per day for 1 and $25.99 per day for 2 people. We figured the key cost us an extra $27 pp more ($132 for the Key for 2 people vs. $78 for internet). That was worth the Chops lunch, delivery of carry-on, priority boarding and embarkation. In our case, I felt the Key was 100% worth it! It was great to have priority check1in at 11AM (it didn't matter the check-in time you got because the Key folks all boarded starting at 11AM). It was nice to go to the MDR for lunch and not fight the Windjammer with all of the people. Having luggage delivered directly to your room was an added bonus and it was in our room when the rooms were available at 1PM. Choice departure time and breakfast in the MDR was very nice since again, we didn't have to deal with the crowded Windjammer. We walked off the ship at 9:30AM since we had late flights. I would 100% do it again IF I was on a 3-night sailing AND it was only for 2 people AND it was on-sale. I do not think it is worth it for a 7-night sailing because the perks just aren't good enough to warrant the price.

Thanks, @twangster! That is exactly the information I needed. I found a pair of Bushnell's that look similar to the ones in your picture. I think I will pull the trigger and buy. I appreciate your reponse!

I apologize if this is in the wrong place on the message boards. We are going on RCL Ovation of the Seas for a B2B Alaska sailing (three years in the making)! We do not currently own a pair of binoculars. We do currently own iPhone 13's which have an amazing camera and can zoom very well. We don't really have an ongoing need for binoculars, but would purchase for this cruise if it was worth it and not break the bank for good quality ones. My question - Are binoculars needed? Would the iPhone zoom work well enough? Would binocular apps work well enough? I appreciate the advice and input.

Go to Shore Excursions with your tickets and have them switch them once onboard.

First thing I thought of when I saw this....sex is like pizza (or dessert)...when it's good, it's really really good! And when it's bad, it's still pretty good! LOL!

I like @Neesa's idea. I hope Sasha can enjoy the rest of the cruise. Maybe a spa day with you would help?

The refund goes back to the original form of payment so if you paid with OBC, you would receive the OBC back onto the cruise planner.

I am a planner. I have two cruises booked; one in June 2023 and the other in September 2023. Nothing is available to be booked on the cruise planner. Does anyone know when RCL will open up for booking drink packages, excursions, etc? I subscribe to the book early and check for price drops theory.

Hi! We are traveling with Autism on the Seas! I have two on the spectrum ages 19 and 15 by then.

You are from the south. LOL! I spend some time in the south....you order a Coke and then the server asks you....what kind.... Although sweet tea is still the most popular.

Soda in Chicago.

Hi! We cruised in Europe in the summer of 2019. Barcelona, Mallorca, Marseilles, Rome, Florence/Pisa, and Sorrento. 1. I would say the dining room for dinner is about the same minus the Caribbean shirts. Many men wore golf/polo shirts and suits (with and without ties) for formal night. Daytime was about the same. Keep in mind, if you go sightseeing at church's, men's knees and women's shoulders must be covered so there were less tank tops or women would wear a shawl over their shoulders and men were in linen or lightweight pants. Women wore capris. 2. There were far more Americans on board than Europeans! I would say the ratio was quite similar to what you see on any ship. The increase in Europeans was barely noticeable. 3. We did a combination of both. Be careful....some of the ports can be quite far away from the city center (like Rome and Florence). Any reputable company will work and we didn't have a problem getting back to port. Prices can be much cheaper using private excursions. 4. Depending on what you want out of the cruise, I found the European cruise to be go go go and see see see instead of relaxing like a Caribbean cruise. Of course, we wanted to see as much as we could so we did it to ourselves. These cruises give you a brief taste of each port city so you will want to go back and explore more! PS - I will add by saying we took this cruise to show our kids Europe. My husband and I spent 12 days in Italy for our honeymoon many years ago and loved it so this type of adventure was perfect for our teenage kids. PS again - We are going on a Greek Isles cruise next year and can't wait!