TessFromFlorida

Excellent advice given on this thread already! I also subscribe to Going and read TPG posts almost daily. I track prices through Google flights and set up alerts. I have alerts direct to London for example if cruising out of Southampton, but also Dublin, Paris, and other cities where I may find deals. You can search Google Flights out of specific airports but leave the destination field blank then zoom in over European cities to look for trends in pricing. I set up alerts out of my home airport Tampa, as well as Orlando, NYC, and Boston, where I know I can find cheap RT flights from Tampa. In addition, I sign up for credit cards that offer a substantial number of points as a sign on bonus and use those. When I find they no longer hold value, I cancel and sign up for another card or upgrade for another bucket of points. Sapphire Reserve is a good all around card to hold on to, IMO. Delta and American Airlines also have a good sign on bonus. I prefer Delta because I get decent deals on Virgin Atlantic flights when booking with points. Sometimes you can trade/purchase Avios (British Airways) at amazing deals (40%off), which get me from city to city in Europe at what I consider a steal (London to Zurich RT for less than $100 worth of Avios during peak travel dates in July. Includes a checked bag and the ability to select my seat- booked just this weekend). I always purchase my tickets about 9 months out. I find they only go up the closer you get to the departure date. Last summer we sailed out of Civitavecchia and it was intense, but not the worst by far when I'm chasing that deal... TPA>DTW>LHR>ZUR>FCO then on return FCO>CPH>LHR>ATL>TPA but it cost me $602 total out of pocket for Comfort + on Delta and its equivalent on VA, SAS, and Swiss for 3 seats (adult fare for all) with 1 checked bag each. Half of the money spent was for the "luxury" of food, snacks, and a seat close to the front of the plane. Found the flights using Google, securing through Chase Rewards and using points + cash. Was it nuts, yes, but worth it because I could upgrade our cabin w the savings. 2022 cost me far less, but I'm embarrassed to even share that wild flight schedule Free airport lounge access through Priority Pass, a perk of some low fee credit cards, is AWESOME if you do book a trip w 2 or more layovers.

I am experiencing the same issue. I access the cruise planner via royalcaribbean.com

Thank you! Great tips for our visit to Olden I believe that stop will be our favorite as well. We loved Pompeii, despite the 100 degree weather! We had an action-packed excursion that day and hit Pompeii last, which was hot, but the crowds were bearable.

I have you to thank for planting the seed Keep up the great work!

Fantastic points! I had no idea about the possible legislation, so yes- that is definitely a pro Norway. We are not beach people, so your comments re Mallorca gives me pause. Thank you so very much for the detailed response, tips, and the pictures- this is fantastic

Yes- the age of the kids matter! 15M/17F. I was disappointed that there were few activities for teens on Odyssey, but it was so port-intensive and there was of course a language barrier, so it didn't matter much. You also bring up a great point... Odyssey and Ovation are sister ships and Anthem makes three for us. Eventually I will need to check Anthem off my list, but one of the pros with Spain/Italy is sailing on Oasis. Devil on my shoulder- I live in Florida, so there will be other opportunities

Due to a family obligation, my children (15M/17F) and I will be in the UK next July, so, of course, I started cruise shopping in an effort to double dip and fit our vacation into this trip. I need to work within a two-week window and have narrowed my choices down to two itineraries, and they couldn't be more different. Option 1: Oasis out of Barcelona, with port stops in Palma de Mallorca (undecided), La Spezia (sightseeing tour of Florence), Civitavecchia (Rome food tour), and Naples (explore Capri). Option 2: Anthem out of Southampton, with port stops in Bergen (Bryggen Harbour and cable car), Olden (Briksdal Glacier/troll car), Flam (zipline, bike ride, and railway), and Bruges (explore a bit and canal boat tour). For some additional context, this past summer, we had a fantastic time on Odyssey out of Civitavecchia - our first trip to the Mediterranean. Our excursions included Rome, Positano, Sorrento, Pompeii, Ephesus, Santorini, and Mykonos with a morning in Delos. I see pros and cons of the Mediterranean and the Norway cruise. What gives me pause about option 1 is the heat. This summer, we sailed in late June and just missed a pretty bad heatwave. From what I have read, Spain can be brutal in the summer. We would also be visiting Rome and Naples two years in a row, though doing different activities. What gives me pause about option 2 is that we sailed on Ovation last summer (2022) to Alaska out of Seattle and really enjoyed it. I am concerned that Norway may offer a very similar experience. However, it does look amazing (I can thank Matt for the Norway bug)! I've been to Bruges before, but my kids haven't, and our only experience in Norway was a brief layover in Oslo this summer, so that doesn't really count. Both trips cost pretty much the same for a mid-ship balcony, with Norway coming out a few hundred dollars more. I put refundable deposits on both to hold the rooms while I make up my mind. I would love any and all feedback! Since I will be paying this off for the next year or so, I want to be sure I am carefully considering my options. I am of course Googling, reading blogs, and watching YouTube videos like crazy, but most of what I have learned about cruising I have learned here.

When we were on Odyssey this summer, we were unable to sign up for laser tag until we were on the ship. Perhaps this will be your experience with the escape room.

Has anyone noticed there are now two links with date ranges when checking out Anthem deck plans? Sept. 23 - Apr. 24 and Apr. 24 - Mar. 25. I compared both but nothing stood out to me and I couldn't find any announcements after a quick Google search.

I am on the same cruise and also have the Key. I do not know if this applies to every cabin or just others who were in the MDR that afternoon, but I did receive an in cabin notification about a lost bag asking everyone to check their room. I do hope it shows up soon! I agree with the others here, at a minimum I would ask to be reimbursed for the Key for all passengers in your party.

@WAAAYTOOO Thank you! Yes, for three people, not too bad. As someone who was an extreme budget traveler for many years, there was some sticker shock, but the reviews are very good.

My wallet regrets ever finding this blog/forum After following this thread, I definitely had a severe case of FOMO and booked a spacious ocean view February 2025 sailing for the same per night cost of an upcoming Allure ocean view balcony 4-day

I get it! I have been planning this trip for a year! We leave next week and I am still finalizing some pre and post cruise reservations. I will share here what we have booked and include prices because I wish I had this info when I started planning out this adventure. I will preface this by saying that I did purchase a few good Black Friday deals for things like 40% off the soda package for my kids ($132 for both for the week), and a splurge lunch at Izumi Hibachi for 20% off ($102). I did book and rebook a few things when prices went down by a few dollars, such as bottled water for the room and a small ($25) arcade credit for my kids ($40). I booked the Key (Black Friday sale) for $650 for the week for the three of us. It includes internet, a scaled down Chops lunch, priority tender in Santorini, priority boarding, VIP seating for shows (with reservations for some depending on the venue), early debarkation, and private time for some onboard activities. This is definitely a nice to have, not a must have, and there is a lot of conversation on the boards weighing in on the benefits of the Key. We had it for our trip to Alaska last summer and I found great value in it, but many disagree Because it was only a few dollars more than internet alone, I went for it. As far as excursions go, I booked the following (all prices are for 3 people): Santorini, Greece- 3-hour, small group island tour through Viator - $160 (you can take a bus to Oia for just a few dollars, I just like the idea of someone pointing things out along the way) Kusadasi, Turkey- Ultimate Ephesus through Royal Caribbean - $228 Mykonos, Greece- Ancient Delos and Mosaics Workshop through Royal Caribbean - $378 (less costly options out there through Royal, Viator, and Get your Guide without the mosaic workshop) Naples, Italy- Best of Positano, Sorrento and Pompeii small group through Royal Caribbean - $695 ( I still get a tear in my eye when I look at the price ) We arrive in Rome the Thursday before we set sail for two reasons - 1) We were burned last summer with flight cancelations, so I had to factor in padding for my own sanity 2) It's Rome, so a win, win situation! We decided to go with an Airbnb so we have a small kitchen, space to spread out, and a washing machine. While in Rome, I have the following tours booked: A cooking class booked through Airbnb Experiences - free- I had a gift card, but retails for $140 St. Peter's dome tour through Get Your Guide - $83 Under the moonlight evening walking tour of Rome through Get your Guide - $39 A guided tour of the Pantheon (retails $22 per person) A self-paced audio tour of the Colosseum, forum and Palatine Hill A self-paced audio tour of the Vatican museums and the Sistine Chapel I would not choose the last two audio tours again and do not recommended them knowing what I know now. I purchased the Go City 3 choice explorer pass for $195, but the more I looked on Viator, the more I regretted my decision. I may in the moment sign up for a guide, if it is an option. This has become a bit of a book... but.... As soon as I could grab reservations (30 days out from our sail date), I booked the Solarium Bistro for two nights (free) and RipCord iFly reservations for the kids ($58). I may cancel the iFly if I can snag spots on embarkation day. I find the blog posts and message boards on here super valuable and it helped tremendously with planning. I also am addicted to all things Rick Steves and have gained a lot of valuable insights from watching his old PBS programs and reading his guidebooks and blog posts. Happy planning!!!

Same here- I see a lot of value in having the Key, but to each their own. It was only a few dollars more than internet alone and we will have priority tender in Santorini. I booked an excursion through Viator (1/3 the price of Royal for the same tour), so time is of the essence. We also have a fairly early flight out of FCO, so getting off the ship very early is a must.

We are sailing on this same itinerary. Typically, I would book all excursions through Viator or Get Your Guide, but decided to pay a bit extra and schedule all but one through Royal while on the cruise for the peace of mind. I cannot speak from experience quite yet, but did extensive research before booking. These are the excursions I chose for my family (one adult, 2 teens in high school): - Mykanos- Delos with a mosaic workshop (1/2 day). Visiting Psarou Beach after the tour. - Naples- Small group tour of Positano, Sorrento, and Pompeii (full day). - Santorini- Booked a small group tour of the island through Get Your Guide (1/2 day), will explore Fira the latter part of the day and eat in town. We did have a Sunset cruise booked through Viator that included dinner but decided to relax the itinerary a bit so we are not rushed. - Kusadasi- Ultimate Ephesus tour (3/4 day) followed by the markets outside of Port. We are spending two days in Rome prior to embarkation. We have an evening walking tour of Rome planned for the day we arrive (Viator), an Italian cooking class (Airbnb experiences) that afternoon. The following day, an early morning dome tour at St. Peters (Get Your Guide), Colosseum tour, and a Vatican Museum/Sistine Chapel tour booked direct through Rome's tourism site. We are preparing for extreme heat and have purchased UV blocking umbrellas, dorky neck fans, and really comfortable, broken in shoes. We will fill one of our water bottles with ice too to keep water cold throughout the day. Coming from Florida, we are somewhat prepared for the heat.... I think..... I hope. Happy planning and congratulations

Because ships are cruising at/over capacity, the odds are lower now than in the past. Do you see any suites available when you do a mock booking for your sailing on the official Royal site? Good luck though, you never know

I am also flying out of FCO around 11a after our Odyssey cruise in July. We are carrying our own bags (light packers) and have a cab reserved to pick us up and take us to the airport as soon as we can get off the ship. We have the Key, so Im hopeful we can get off early between this and carrying our bags. You may want to check out this option to pre-book a spot in the security line - https://fco.whyline.com/new?organization=6390a231a148bb00406abda2&place=6390ad0d38c5d50cffdca047

I would 100% book an early excursion.

IMO, if you are looking for higher quality, Carnival will disappoint.

You got it! I also saved 9%- I had 10% on the brain for whatever reason. It is a great find and completely legit.

The cardcash.com website sells gift cards and gift certificates that can save you a decent amount of money. I was very (VERY) nervous about spending so much money on gift cards/certificates after learning about it from someone here on a Royal Caribbean Blog message board, so I purchased a $50 gift certificate for $45.50 to "test the waters" and went through the process outlined in the directions to apply it to my balance. It took 9-10 days for the credit to hit. After that, I went all in and purchased $4,000 worth of gift certificates (two $2k certificates for $1,820 each). Again, it took about 10 days to hit, but it worked. I saved $365 in total. I was sure to go through this process about 3 weeks before final payment was due in case there was an issue. I want to add that I had already used $1,600 worth of gift cards from a Total Rewards program at work towards payment for my cruise (a program in which coworkers gift you points that you can use to purchase a variety of items on a shopping portal- I chose RC gift certificates). I share this because by doing this, I was not paying for my cruise by using any one particular credit card. Some credit cards include trip insurance if you pay for the trip with the card, so buying certificates may not be an attractive option for some.

Personally, I book myself and buy CardCash gift cards at ~10% off to pay for my cruise. Saved over $700 off of our next vacation using gift cards.

Slow to reply. They Key was purchased for all three of us, and with Zoom bundled, the internet youth benefit wouldn't apply if only I was to purchase the Key for myself. The suite-class perks is what sells me on the Key The $135 difference is for the three of us to upgrade, not per person. I purchased on Black Friday.

I will start by sharing that I am only Gold status- I think that really matters when considering the true value of purchasing the Key for my family. For me, I think the Key is totally worth it. For a one week Mediterranean sailing this summer, it was only $135 more than the Internet package alone. I would pay that just to be one of the first off the ship. Considering it includes priority seating for shows and the Chops lunch, it was a no-brainer when booking the cruise for myself and my two teenagers. I had no regrets during our Alaska cruise last summer and didn't hesitate to add it again this year.

My son lost his cup during our last cruise and I had to pay to replace it. They cannot deactivate the cup.