Sharla

On 4/20/2024 at 9:08 AM, WAAAYTOOO said:

We have been on 80+ cruises with Royal Caribbean and we have never ever gone to a L&M game OR a Quest.  Just not something we enjoy.

They are fun once. After that it's the same thing every time. 

1 hour ago, Vlad said:

Did you get it resolved how? 

What happened to me is that the system decided to withdraw money from the cruise balance for the cruise planner purchases/excursions , weeks after all were paid by credit card. 

My TA after working with Royal said that invoice can't be fixed. They fixed my balance but had to change it to sort of manual mode. Now my TA must make my final payment directly to Royal when time is due. They will issue a letter stating that my cruise is paid off and amount. I've seen intermediate letter from the groups department, noting of this system error and my balance due, the correct amount. 

 

I always make payments directly to Royal, so I'm not sure about your TA on that one. For a couple of mine they fixed it after a few weeks. For another one they just zeroed out the balance so the client got like $500 off. I can't remember the them all. 

We have an excellent escalations team with Royal, so if something goes wrong we have the right people to fix things.

3 hours ago, Baked Alaska said:

Props to @Sharla! This outstanding TA saved one of our cruises! We experienced the same issue as @Lovetocruise2002 and @TessFromFlorida, plus it was during the Royal Comeback (post-COVID cruising) if I'm not mistaken. 

I think it was- I still don't get it but you know, Royal math and all. 

This has happened to a few clients- there's no rhyme or reason to it that I can figure out. Fortunately we have been able to figure it out every time but it's so weird that it happens- the Cruise Planner money and the Cruise Fare money are completely separate accounts. 

He can be next door to you and accrue his own C&A points. Doesn't matter that he is not 21 as long as he is directly across from you or next door to you. 

On 4/6/2024 at 2:49 PM, RCIfan1912 said:

I said rebooking is not an option. A reprice isn't technically a "rebook" is it? I'm just saying it'd be nice to get the OBC offered now kinda like when they honor a price drop. I'm not rebooking that's for sure. 

It's always repriced at prevailing rate, so that's the same as rebooking in terms of price. I don't disagree with you for your sentiment, but that's not how Royal sees it. The promos are meant to drive up new bookings. 

You can reprice for the OBC, but it would be at prevailing rate, aka way more than the $150.

3 hours ago, RCIfan1912 said:

Now they should just merge the Celebrity and Royal programs. Earn points on either for one program with the same benefits. That's just my opinion though. 

I believe that is the plan.

17 hours ago, TXCoastPatriot said:

Interesting.  I recently got a email from Sharla saying she was moving on to do something different.  Apparently, I was kindly being dropped.

Not at all! I am taking a step back- I was planning on leaving entirely but have since changed my mind somewhat. I'm still here, I just haven't had a chance to tell some folks I am sticking around. 

Minors (anyone under 21) can be next door (connecting or not) or directly across the hall from the adults in their party. You must call in to do this arrangement, cannot be booked online. But yes when onboard you can get extra keys made. 

You go through deodorant that quickly?!  If you run out of deodorant/toothpaste I'm sure you can shop in a port. You can use the shampoo on the ship if necessary.
Other than that I say to bring clothes spanning a lot of temps, cooler at night/morning, etc. 

1 minute ago, Vlad said:

No, sorry, this is definitely not TA !!! 

As I've explained in details, changes were automatically done, purchases cancelled and rebooked at the old prices. This is nothing to do with TA and such can only be done by Royal itself. 

And I have other cruises booked with TA, but this was only done for my Icon cruise. Not other ships. 

Absolutely nothing in my TA system has changed. It's possible your TA doesn't use the same system and they have a different booking engine. But Royal's official system has not changed. 

Book now and reprice after you get more status. I don't think it will be lower, so book now just in case. 

I have seen no discounts even for Pinnacle guests on many many sailings. 

10 minutes ago, Vlad said:

I was advised by TA, that Icon would be moving to some kind new reservation system.

This is not true. It's possible whatever TA you use has a new system, but Royal Caribbean does not. 

Welcome to cruising! I am sure you will find many people like you on the ships. Like others have said you are welcome to go to the LGBT+ meets (and/or singles meets if you want to meet people).

From a booking perspective- you need to make sure that you are booked under the name/gender that is on your legal identification. If you have already changed your name and gender on passport/ID then no need to worry, but just make sure it matches the documents, even if that means you look different from your photos.
If you need to bring refrigerated medication then you can fill out a form to get a medical fridge in your room. 

Have a great cruise!

For most clients I don't send a Royal Caribbean official invoice- it's so confusing to people who don't know what it is! I just send the travel agency invoice because it's clear and concise. 

Even if the gift cards work perfectly- they will be a pain to use. You (or ideally, your travel agent) will have to input these numbers to make any payment. So if you save up a whole bunch of gift cards then they will have to be input individually. A huge PITA to be honest. 
People do this for Disney all the time and while I am accommodating I will request that the guest combine them on the Disney gift card site to make it easier for me and the cast member. 

Here's what I'd rather you do for Royal Caribbean- FlexPay! This will allow you to pay weekly or monthly a certain amount and it's all set up automatically. It would be the equivalent of putting money away weekly once your cruise is booked. 

It can still be repriced, your TA just has to call and ask. 

Plenty of people that can walk need accessible rooms. This is not something you should worry about. No one will really even know from the outside that it is an accessible room unless they are really looking at your door and/or peering into your room.

"Accessible" does not just mean "wheelchair" and there are definitely plenty of reasons people need those rooms.

IMO you're using it correctly. You did not book that room just for a bigger room. That is selfish. That's not what you did. Happy sailing, guilt free!

All cruise lines do run the manifest though the sex offender database. I don't know if they do it themselves or if the government somehow does it. But the manifest is not run until a day or two before departure.

Other countries may also run it, like Canada has the no DUI rule and things like that. 

I enjoy running on the track when we're at sea and I go like 10 miles in 3 minutes. Eat my dust! 

If you're not in a suite you will get shampoo/conditioner combo. I recommend bringing your own conditioner.

1 hour ago, AshleyDillo said:

The key is it has to be a refundable booking to be eligible for the group rates. 

It doesn't have to be refundable- but it will remain non-refundable even if pulled into a group. And you have to make full deposit, nothing reduced like next cruise will give you.

I see @twangster answered this too but I was already typing so...

Right- if you ask your travel agent they can see it on their end.

I can't find your specific cruise without more to go on but I can see if it's docked or tendered on the travel agent site. Your agent should be able to send you that info. 

Here is an example:

Mon 22Jul2024    Athens (Piraeus), Greece    -    5:00 PM    Boarding
Tue 23Jul2024    Mykonos, Greece    7:00 AM    8:00 PM    Tendered
Wed 24Jul2024    Chania, Crete    7:00 AM    5:00 PM    Docked
Thu 25Jul2024    Argostoli, Greece    9:00 AM    7:00 PM    Docked
Fri 26Jul2024    Cruising    -    -    Cruising
Sat 27Jul2024    Kotor, Montenegro    7:00 AM    5:00 PM    Tendered
Sun 28Jul2024    Split, Croatia    7:00 AM    5:00 PM    Docked
Mon 29Jul2024    Ravenna, Italy    5:00 AM    -    Departure