FLTraveler

I've gone diving twice at CocoCay and probably won't do it again. It's kind of fun to take the jetski out to the starting point, but there's not a great deal to see. That said, it's nice to start a beach day with a low-stress dive. Additionally, the price has increased substantially recently. I've dived at Cozumel through the cruise ship once. It was okay, but too crowded. I got it at a great Black Friday price--something like $60 for a two-tank dive. I will say that I appreciated that they picked us up right at the dock and took us by boat to the dive shop to get geared up. I much prefer to go through Jungle Divers, a 3rd party company about a 15-minute walk from the dock.

Lots of great tips here. I did Alaska in June of last year on the Quantum and had an absolute blast. I wore a t-shirt and shorts in Ketchikan; in Juneau, I wore three layers (including rain coat and waterproof pants) and was still cold and soaked through by the end of the day (whale watching in freezing rain and then a short hike at the glacier). So, layers were definitely a must for us. Waterproof shoes or boots would have been a big help, too. In addition to what's already been recommended here, my traveling companion and I really appreciated having: Thick fleece blankets to hang out on the balcony with. We bought the ones offered by Royal, which made for great (if over-priced) souvenirs. A coffee thermos for enjoying hot beverages on the balcony. A tripod for timelapse videos on our balcony (one whole morning of the cruise was the Tracy Arm Fjord, and it was awesome scenery the whole way) A camera with a good zoom. I'm a weirdo, but I bring a hammock on every cruise where I have a balcony, and we made great use of it in Alaska. I know I talk about the balcony a lot here...but much of this cruise was spent drifting along beautiful coastlines, so having a way to maximize use of outdoor space/views is key, in my opinion.

I'm pretty sure on Independence all of the sushi tables are two-person (and there's only like three of them), but they also offer limited seating at the sushi bar. It was a lot bigger on Quantum, by comparison.

Scuba diving on CocoCay dropped from $62 to $35 (after taxes) for multiple sailings, so that was great savings! It looks like dinner prices are unchanged, but specialty lunches are 40% off for numerous cruises. For one of my May cruises to Labadee, a lot of items there are 50% off, including beach beds and bungalows...although the beach bed price is still more than the beach beds used to cost at CocoCay when not on sale. For the later May cruise, though, the same items are only 15% off. Interesting difference. No noticeable improvements in price for internet or the Key for any of the cruises I have booked. Nothing particularly good for my Thanksgiving cruise on the Wonder--although 40% off lunches would be great if we didn't already have the UDP. I'm interested to see if they add to these deals as we get closer to Black Friday!

Agree with what everyone's saying. I did Quantum out of Seattle and loved it, but we really only had three days where it felt like we were enjoying Alaska versus just enjoying being at sea. If I ever do it again (and I want to!) I'd want to do one of the cruises that starts or ends in Alaska and I'd build in time on one end or the other to do additional exploration.

I just did a JS on Quantum, and Coastal Kitchen was to die for. Go up there as soon as you board and request to make a reservation for all of the nights; they booked us every night of the cruise. CK was never packed when we were there. Elmer was a fantastic waiter! You also get priority embarkation as a suite member--keep an eye out for the separate entry line.

In terms of on-cruise comps, make sure to visit the host at the end of every cruise and ask for whatever free play you've accumulated. (You may be able to use that as OBC instead, not sure.) They don't give it to you if you don't ask. I believe it's something like $20 per 1,000 points acquired during the cruise. This doesn't affect future comps and doesn't "spend" the points you've received.

I had the time of my life holding a sloth on an excursion in Roatan. I would agree with everyone saying to arrange something in advance--it's overwhelming in terms of people mobbing you for business.

Unfortunately, due to an injury I ended up not diving in Cozumel, so I don't have any useful insight to offer. I hope you have a great trip!

I haven't been on the Nav, but Independence and Mariner both have $6 minimum blackjack tables. Oasis I believe the minimum is $10. The minimums don't change night to night, but may change based on demand.

Pretty sure it was $25 for half an hour and $45 for an hour. I was tempted, but honestly I enjoyed my little slice of heaven too much to move.

I don't know what I was thinking...We had a 1 p.m. check-in time and left my house in Saint Cloud at 9:45. Google said it was a 3 hour drive. We pulled into the parking garage at 2:15 and found the not-really-legit parking space at 2:30. Give yourself plenty of extra time, and have so much fun on the cruise!! I miss the Oasis already!

Can confirm that it absolutely does. We arrived later than planned due to traffic/weather/general insanity last Sunday (apparently there was flash flooding that caused multiple lanes in the port to be closed last minute, causing utter chaos). There was a sign that said the garage was full, but the attendant told us there were 12 spaces left. When we drove up, the car in front of us took the last legitimate space. Two other cars parallel parked against a random wall. I was too nervous to do that and was anxious that we'd miss the boat if we moved garages, so I asked the attendant where to go and he directed me to squeeze into a little yellow marked-off non-space between two cars. It was a source of semi-anxiety all week as I wasn't 100% sure my car was fine where it was.

I don't know if they've just upped their game on the grading or what (I've seen those posts as well), but I'd say take a Dramamine, hydrate well before and after, and call shotgun, and you should be fine!

I visited Maya Chan today for the first time. We got in off of the wait list a couple of months ago, much to our excitement. I'm happy to report that it exceeded expectations by far. The service was phenomenal, the food and drinks exactly as wonderful as described, and our private little section of beach was a slice of paradise we never wanted to leave. As a side note, I was quite nervous about the drive to/from Maya Chan as I had read a lot of horror stories and a) I get motion sick easily and b) I recently suffered a concussion. I reached out to David at Maya Chan and he assured me I'd be fine. It ended up being a non issue; the drive there took about 15 minutes, and although it was occasionally bumpy it was nothing I'd have felt the need to mention in a review if I hadn't read so much negative feedback about that portion!

There were two items that I tried to book earlier today (on separate occasions) and was told could not be processed. I then saw that my credit card was charged, so I didn't try again. Several hours later, I got my confirmation emails and saw them in my order history...

Agree with those who are having luck on the app--Mariner of the Seas, 4/20 sailing, just cancelled an $83.99 Certified Scuba excursion and rebooked for $63.99 through the app. Cruise planner still down on the website.

While it's down for maintenance, here's a dumb question... I'm going on a cruise that leaves in 48 hours, so the online cruise planner is locked for me anyway. Would it be possible to call in for Black Friday deals for that cruise, or is everything to do with pre-orders for that cruise already done? (I assume so, but it's worth asking...)

The website is glitching for me when I try to actually purchase and/or cancel older purchases. Anyone else having that problem? I'm seeing amazing internet deals on all of my cruises.

Hi everyone, My upcoming cruise on the Oasis will be the first time I've been at sea on a major holiday. I'm curious about what to expect in the MDR on Thanksgiving. Will it be a special menu? Or should I maybe try to book a specialty restaurant for that day instead (we're not getting a dining package)? Thanks in advance!

Sailing on Oasis on November 20, but there's no option to book entertainment for that sailing...Maybe they're implementing it as of December.

Thank you!

I've never gotten the Cafe Select card. Question: is it actually a separate card rather than loaded to your SeaPass? If you don't use all 15 on a cruise, can you use the others on a future cruise?

Update--I called and asked if I could purchase the refreshment package rather than the drink package (with my cabin mate still getting the drink package) because I am prime in the casino and don't plan to buy additional drinks. They allowed it! Very pleasant surprise. I'm not sure if it was just a lucky fluke--I know the agent I spoke to had to talk to some other folks to get the go ahead.

Has anyone tried the Coral Gardens Shore Dive in Cozumel? I'm debating between that and arranging my own scuba excursion while I'm there for a day in November on the Oasis. I'd love to hear some tips!