burbuja0512

I think I'm going to look for it. It may not end up being my thing, but I still feel like I'm missing out on some fun. Thanks!

Thanks for your perspective. I didn't know craps had slightly better odds, but I had heard that about Blackjack. I don't know if I would work up the nerve to try craps, but we are definitely going to walk through the casino more than once to maybe catch in on other people's excitement. I agree that the slots look really flashy! I hope you guys win some $$$ on your next cruise

Thanks for the video Chris. I was hoping also to understand a little bit more about the fun behind the games. I have always been jealous of movie scenes where people seem to be having such a blast while in a casino. I still don't get it. I just feel like it's not fun to lose money and the house always wins. Yikes.. I am a spoilsport but thanks anyway for the great content. Maybe someday I'll understand.

Hi all, First-time cruising family, kids 12 and 15. I plan to check them in to The Living Room on embarkation day to meet other teens and then see if they want to return to the club. My understanding is that the kids often use the club as a meet-up space then just hang out on the ship during the day on subsequent days. What are your experiences with this? Is it even safe? I've never cruised, but the idea of my son roaming the ship and potentially roughhousing with other teens near the open ocean scares the crap out of me!!! (he's very gentle, but boys will be boys in some cases) Do we need to pick them up from Fuel? The Fuel nightclub hours are later than my 10:00pm bedtime, so can they return to the room on their own? Any other advice or comments appreciated. Sorry so naive about this matter.

My family of four has our first ever cruise on the Allure on Aug 6 to Aruba, Curacao, and Labadee. I booked based on port itinerary and family schedule, but now I've started worrying about the heat. We're from a very dry climate (Denver) and humidity + heat might be too much for us. I'd love to hear your experiences with this, especially if you're not used to humidity. I'm just worried we'll want to spend all our time in the cabin if we're too hot.

We will be snorkeling on two separate excursions during our Aug 6 Allure sailing. (Curacao and Labadee) All four of us will be snorkeling, so my question is regarding how to handle valuables. I know we'll need to bring credit cards, some cash, and passports, but am worried about these while we're in the water. Is there a safe place to leave my purse while snorkeling? I have a waterproof bag, but I'm not really sure I trust it enough to swim with it. How do you guys handle your valuables when you're swimming/snorkeling/etc? Thanks in advance.

Thanks so much for this confirmation! We've never snorkled before so I would be terrified to buy equipment without knowing if it's for us.

I'm so confused. I booked two different snorkeling excursions for my family of four on our Aug 6 sailing. I just assumed that the equipment was included. Am I going to have to buy equipment on top of the expense of the excursion? Edit: I just checked the excursions and it says top quality equipment provided. So I don't need to buy any? Is there something I'm missing.

Please let me know how it goes. We don't sail until August 6, so there's time to find out what happens. Thanks

Thanks for the info. I assumed it was included with Voom. Sounds like we'll go with What'sApp and I hope there won't be an issue with my 12 year old using Voom. I guess the age limit is just for the chat?

Since the chat app age limit is 13, does this also mean that our 12 year old will not be able to access the ship's internet, or is the age limit only for the chat? I've been digging around on RC's site and don't see any limits to the internet. I was able to purchase the surf + stream package for all of us, but now I'm worried she won't be able to use the internet. Do I need to cancel it? Or, should I just plan on using What'sApp or another messenger service for our family of four to message while on the ship so that our 12 year old is included? Thanks

YES that helps and saves me lots of money. Had I not known, I would have ordered us all 2-packs. Now I can plan better. I still may order an extra "just in case," but won't order an extra for each person, Thanks

One thing doesn't make sense to me about the at home testing. We are four people testing. Wouldn't we have to get four two-test boxes? I wouldn't think we could share a box. Don't they need to see each person open it? If we counted on sharing a box, it would seem that we would fail the test since some of wouldn't have a fresh box to open. Does that make sense?

Ok I'm definitely considering giving to a porter now. I'll really think about it because I do want to get on the ship and start exploring right away. Especially since it's our first cruise and will be a new experience for the whole family.

My fear is lost luggage. It's kind of the reason I never like to check bags with the airlines. So I don't really relish the idea of lugging them around the ship, but it sounds so overwhelming that the porters have to get luggage correct for thousands of people in such a short amount of time.... I will really think about this point though.

Thanks for the great info. It's very helpful. I'm from Colorado, but have heard of Publix and it sounds like we have a lot of options. Since we're flying in a day early, we'll have plenty of time to stroll around and find the stores that you guys are mentioning.

Hi! First Cruise on Allure Aug 6. My questions are the following: 1) Is the MDR open for lunch on Embarkation day? It sounds like the Windjammer can get quite packed. 2) If we plan to bring only carry-ons (meaning backpack+rollaboard) on the plane, would it be easier to just carry those on board the ship ourselves or will they make us check our rollaboards with the RC porters? 3) Since we're not checking bags with our airline, we will need to buy liquids like sunscreen at the stores near the port. We're staying at the Hyatt near the port and from what I can tell on Google, it looks like there are shops. If anyone has feedback about what type of stores you can find near the port, I'd be really interested in hearing it. Please feel free to answer any or all of the questions. Thank you so much in advance.

What about check-in and the muster drill? Can I just do those from my phone for our whole party of 4? Thanks for all of your replies.

I have already downloaded the app and am ready to go (even though I don't leave until August!) I've done a ton of research watching the RC Blog videos, and among cruise groups on Facebook. One thing I'm still uncertain about is the app. I'm used to being in charge of family travels, so my natural instinct is to just have the app on my phone and handle everyone's needs for them. I'm traveling with husband and two teen kids, so they're all capable of downloading and using the app, but my question is: Do they have to have the app for checking in and other important functions? We got the internet package so we can already message each other on Snapchat or Whatsapp, so we don't need to use the app for messages. I'm just wondering whether I can do everything we need from my single app. Thanks in advance

This is really helpful and a great idea. Thank you!!

Will I always have the same waiter at the MDR? That would make it a lot easier to just tip them in the same way I would tip the room steward.

Wow thanks for so many thoughts!! You guys are the best and I'll be hanging out here learning as much as possible so I'm not such a novice when I sail.

Thanks for the info. Wow I really was confused. I think that I'll just pre-pay and then bring some bills for excursion tips. I don't mind tipping extra but this helps me budget a little better.

Hi, I'm a total cruising newbie and have booked Allure for Aug 6 departure. I have time to learn and have watched about everything I can find on YouTube. I've read a bunch and think I'm learning, but am still totally confused about tipping. Please let me know if I understand the policy. 1) I can choose to prepay or pay 18% on board for tips 2) Many people tip above and beyond for good service. even if they prepaid the tips. This makes no sense to me because I am always a good tipper, but usually tip at 20-25%. If I pre-pay the tips, then I would hypothetically only tip a small amount on board for extra good service. In some cases, I would imagine this would be just a couple of dollars. That would make me look cheap. OR do I just pre-pay and not tip? 18% isn't terrible and if other people aren't tipping extra, would this be the normal thing to do? All the answers I've seen about this aren't very specific and just say something to the effect of "do what you're comfortable with." Well, I'm only comfortable tipping how everyone else is doing it. TBH I think that having to tip on top of a prepay tip seems like a hassle, but I would like to know honestly what to expect. Thanks for your help and for patience with my newbie post.