Paid4c4

We used Emed for our March and August cruises with zero problems. If you're on a cruise which requires a proctored Covid test go with a known given like Emed no need to have problems with the boarding process. Bill

Our TA was recommended to us by my best friend. Our TA is really a CA (Cruise Agent) as she only books cruises. She has booked our last 60 cruises and we have been very happy with her. Her office is within 15 miles to where we live but in all that time we've only met her twice for lunch. If our TA retires we will probably go with MEI at least for a trial basis. Bill

On our August cruise on aboard Adventure we flew into Newark and uber'd to Springhill Suites airport. Springhill Suites is a Marriott property which we used because of ratings on Trip Advisor and our stay was paid for using Marriott points. We were satisfied with the hotel and would use it again. I cost twenty dollars to Uber from hotel to Cape Liberty. Bill

I really like the app and use it for all types of things including check in. However I have all needed boarding documents printed out and tucked inside my passport which I had the agent when checking in. Luck favors the prepared. Bill

I am not discounting anyone's experience with regards to a particular cruise on a particular ship. It would be helpful to know what were the problems leading to such dissatisfaction. I was on the August 18th, 2022 sailing on the Adventure of the Seas out of Cape Liberty and was one of our best and fav cruises. I have also seen were two people were on the same cruise and one had a great cruise and the other person had a terrible cruise. Perhaps attitude and/or expectations may play a part. Bill

Always use a Travel Agent. Our Cruise Agent has been with us for most of our 70 cruises. She knows us and knows what we like. She takes care of the bookings and air reservations. Try not to allow the sourness of this experience to ruin your cruise. Bill

On our March trip from San Juan we used RCCL transfers. We were met by a representative in the luggage claim area. She stayed with us until our porter collected our luggage and took us to the pick up area. She also stayed with us until our coach came to pick us up. The representative had an RCCL sign which she held up so it was easy to see. Just a suggestion, we compare RCCL transfers and compare to Uber or Lyft. Many times Uber or Lyft are quicker and cheaper than RCCL transfers. Enjoy your cruise! Bill

We just came back from the Adventure and used a really great charger/night light. I Plugged usb charging cords into the unit and placed it in my carry on bag so if there were any questions I would be there to explain and show how it works. It went through port security. The unit worked very well and kept our devices charged while providing a great adjustable night light. I purchased this unit at Amazon. LENCENT USB Charger Plug, 4 USB International Travel Adapter Wall Charger with LED Touch Night Light, UK England/EU European/AUS/USA Adaptor Plug (Type A/C/E/F/G/H/J/K/L/N) $14.99.

The Double Tree worked well for us in March when were sailing on the Explorer of the Seas. RCCL had a shuttle pick us up at the hotel. A quick ride and we were at the ship. Bill

We were on the same cruise in 1274 on deck 10. Your summation is spot on. We made the mistake of using My Time Dinning which was truly a disorganized, mismanaged mess and I am being kind. Aside from MTD we had a great time on a great ship. Bill

Research the ports of call for your cruise and the excursions being offered. If there are any excursions which are really important to you book them using the app before embarkation to avoid disappointment of having an excursion sold out. Have your documents printed out and sorted by person before you go for boarding check in. I've noticed those who are prepared have a much easier time with boarding. Pack your swim suit on your carry on so when you board you can take advantage of empty pools and pool decks areas. Bill

We just disembarked on August 27, 2022 from the Adventure of the Seas. We were in a Suite and had priority disembarkation. We were off the ship, claimed our luggage, caught a taxi and checked in at Delta at EWR by 9:15 A.M. We weren't flying until later in the afternoon so we jumped the air train to NJ Transportation and went to visit the 9-11 Memorial in New Your. I did notice the TSA was 30-35 minutes when we went through. Thank heavens Pre-Check was a walk through. Bill

NO, it wasn't when we were in Bermuda in August. For that matter I've never been aboard a ship which the casino remained open in a port. Bill

We carry this usb night light which works very well with 110 or 220 volts. https://www.amazon.com/LENCENT-Charger-Universal-Adaptor-Worldwide/dp/B07TZHN5J3/ref=sr_1_2?crid=2HERL12RR2ES9&keywords=lencent+4+port+usb+night+light&qid=1662212090&sprefix=lencent+4+port+usb+night+light%2Caps%2C60&sr=8-2 Bill

I have heard Matt on more than one occasion mention to check your account often and to take care of any business with Guest Services before the last day or the day of disembarkation. With the app or the room TV it is very easy to keep track of your account. On the fifth day I decided to check our account and discovered we had been charged $178 for VOOM. This was strange because I bought and paid for a VOOM package several months before the cruise. I also found two drinks from a bar we had never been to. I went to Guest Services and was second in line which only took a couple of minutes. I spoke with a Purser who looked up our account and agreed I had been charged a second time for VOOM. She also agreed the two drinks were billed incorrectly. She credited my account and the refunds were posted almost immediately. While I was there I got change for gratuities. The last day of the cruise was a sea day and I looked anytime we passed by Guest Services and noticed a line which at times went all the way to the staircase. I am trying to cruise smarter not harder! Thanks Matt for the tips and tricks of cruising. Bill

We've used this service a number of times and have found it to be very convenient. We wish it were offered on every cruise. Bill

Last month while answering health questions on the app I came to the block of three questions: Are you vaccinated? Have you been boosted? Are you more than 23 weeks pregnant? I miss read the last question and answered yes! I am a 73 year old man so being pregnant would indeed be a real miracle and shock. I called and was told to disregard the app and just check in normally at the port check in. Our check in at the port was super quick with no mention of my pregnancy. Enjoy your cruise. Bill

Mike in KY this is Bill from KY and we just came back from Adventure of the Seas on Saturday. I don't know of any RCCL ship which allows JS into the suites lounge which I find confusing at best. Many of the ships do have nice Diamond Lounges to kill some time. The suites lounges are interesting and enjoyable and when combined with other perks is on of the reason we generally book GS. Bill

Great news! Last week on Adventure of the Seas VOOM was all but useless. Starlink has to be an improvement. Bill

We just returned from Adventure of the Seas on Saturday, August 27, 2022. We have discussed our trip and both agree salt air makes clothing shrink! Bill

Yes we enjoyed the ship as the Explorer Class of ship is one of our favorite. For a twenty year old lady is has been very well cared for with paint and maintenance. It has a long bow and rides the waves well. Hope you enjoy it. Bill

One of the most useful items we packed this cruise was a Lencent USB 110/220 wall charger with adjustable night light. https://www.amazon.com/LENCENT-Charger-Universal-Adaptor-Worldwide/dp/B07TZHN5J3/ref=sr_1_2?crid=2HERL12RR2ES9&keywords=lencent+4+port+usb+night+light&qid=1662212090&sprefix=lencent+4+port+usb+night+light%2Caps%2C60&sr=8-2 I put this in my carry aboard luggage so if there were any problems it could be discussed at time of inspection so I could explain and not aboard ship in the bad luggage department on deck 2. To make it even easier I plugged USB cords in the adaptor so there could be no question as to what it was. This device will plug into the 220 outlets in the cabins or regular 110 and will charge up to four USB devices. It also is a night light which provides just enough light so you can see to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. Also the price is right! This was must useful and kept all our USB items charged. The next item was Beams MB720A 20 Lumen Amber LED Sleep Friendly Wireless Battery Powered Motion Sensing Nightlight https://www.amazon.com/Mr-Beams-Battery-Powered-Motion-Sensing-Stick-Anywhere/dp/B01FIAWKCC/ref=sr_1_6?crid=3CTNCC70LKK45&keywords=battery+led+night+light+motion&qid=1661802829&sprefix=batter+led+night%2Caps%2C78&sr=8-6 This was nice to place in the bathroom an only turns on when the bathroom door is opened, it shuts off automatically in about a minute. I also carried it aboard should there be any questions which there were not questions. The 4 AA batteries should operate this light for many cruises since it's LED. It also is a great price. Bill

On our recent cruise 8-18 thru 8-17 on Adventure of the Seas out of Newark, NJ. here are several things which greatly helped us get to our cruise in an enjoyable and timely fashion;At least three times on our way there and home having TSA Pre Check really paid for itself. The regular TSA line at Newark Airport was 30-45 minutes while Pre Check was a walk through. Secondly, having our documents printed out and ready to hand to the agent checking us in made for a quicker checkin than having our documents on our phones. This also includes traveling with a passport instead of birth certificates and government photo identifications. Fourth, being early for checkin both at the airport and particularly early/on time for RCCL embarkation. Fifth, avoiding RCCL transfers to and from the airport choosing instead for Uber which was cheaper and quicker in all instances on this particular trip. Fifth, having luggage properly tagged and easily identifiable both at the airport and tagged with our stateroom numbers for the ship. Sixth, try to keep a positive attitude and polite even when things seemed to be questionable. Bill

We flew into Newark, NJ Airport on Wednesday August 17th and spend the night at the Springhill Inn Suites Airport. We had an Uber from the hotel to the ship for twenty dollars to the luggage drop-off point. We had a short walk to the terminal building to begin the checkin process. Our checkin time was 11:00 A.M., our arrival time was 10:30 A.M. We were directed directed to the Suites Guests line and then to a processor. After greetings I handed the processor our passports which contained:Set Sail Pass, Bermuda Health Certification, Covid Vaccination card, Covid Test Results from Emed for each of us. We were on the ship by 10:45 A.M. boarding on deck 4 which was only 100 feet from B5 Muster Station which we went to for checkin and orientation. We were in the ship with all checkins taken care of at 10:50 A.M.! We went to our cabin retrieved our pass cards and dropped off our carry ons and we were off for the obligatory Windjammer first day lunch. Much to our delight the Windjammer was almost empty, we had a great lunch and were off to see the ship. We found the ship to clean and well maintained with a friendly staff and crew. We had MTD, Three Specialty Dinner Package and one dinner at Johnny Rockets. The horror stories being reported about MTD are way to Positive! This was my seventieth cruise on RCCL and only one other time have I have witnessed a more disruptive, disorganized and possibly violent event a ship. The line for the dinning room wrapped all the way around the elevators on both sides of the dinning room. The first night there were no signs for those with Reservations and those without making for one large group of hungry people looking to be seated. Unfortunately the large group of hungry people soon turned into a large group of angry hungry people. Not a pleasant beginning for an enjoyable dinning experience. This mayhem got slightly better with signs for Reservations and No Reservation lines. We spoke with the Hotel Manager Francois and the Resturant Manager. To their credit they offered no excuses and said improvements were coming and were planned to start on the next cruise. MTD is the only negative comments we have about our entire cruise. Disembarkation was one of the most orderly and well conducted we have ever witnessed. Luggage tag areas were well marked and sorted with plenty of porters to give assistance. Cape Liberty is equipped with Facial Recognition which made Customs a walk-through. We went outside to the Taxi area loaded our luggage and was on the way to the airport by 8:45 A.M. Since we had a late flight we caught the train and went to visit the World Trade Center Memorial which we highly recommend. I will write more over the next couple of days about excursions, hints and tips. The attached photo is a view from our cabin. Bill

We just returned from Labadee last Wednesday and had a beautiful day. We only saw RCCL employees or people approved by RCCL. The beach and water were wonderful. It was perhaps the best stop of the cruise. Bill