monorailmedic

I can't say for certain that this is the case every time, but in general, cruise lines (not just X) tend to strip OBC or other incentives for resident rates and other discounted fares.  It's another reason it's important to compare apples to apples when looking at prices.

I can't say for certain that this is the case every time, but in general, cruise lines (not just X) tend to strip OBC or other incentives for resident rates and other discounted fares.  It's another reason it's important to compare apples to apples when looking at prices.

I have unlimited paid leave, and they're pretty reasonable with letting you actually use it so long as your work gets done and it doesn't cause a big issue with coworkers helping out.  Not a bad perk.

I have unlimited paid leave, and they're pretty reasonable with letting you actually use it so long as your work gets done and it doesn't cause a big issue with coworkers helping out.  Not a bad perk.

My wife has similar paid leave benefits.  Right now, I get 20 days. 

I have unlimited paid leave, and they're pretty reasonable with letting you actually use it so long as your work gets done and it doesn't cause a big issue with coworkers helping out.  Not a bad perk.

I have unlimited paid leave, and they're pretty reasonable with letting you actually use it so long as your work gets done and it doesn't cause a big issue with coworkers helping out.  Not a bad perk.

Let those kids head to Coco Cay, I don't need water slides and balloons to make me happy ?
I don't doubt that one factor in their color and height decisions at Coco was visibility to Norwegian guests - it's especially visible from the rather impressive villa area at the far end of Great Stirrup.  On both islands, I'm just hopeful they can maintain a "remote island" and peaceful atmosphere for those not looking for a theme-park experience.  For those who are, I am glad it's an option.

I'll echo something several have shared already, speaking as someone who has been booking with MEI for a decade.
To me, it's not about saving money (though when it happens, that is of course awesome).  It's not even about how easy it is to book on any given line's site (more on that in a sec).  It's about the service.  There are agencies out there that rebate commission, and to those who use them - I genuinely hope you have awesome experiences.  I don't use agencies that do that for the simple reason that I've worked in that world, I've been around the industry - those agents are stacking as many deals as possible and just don't have the time to get to know their clients, triple check their work, provide guidance as needed, check for price drops, etc
I love that my agent (and others) at MEI have got to know my preferences (and they've got all my info stored, too).  I don't like to speak for @Matt, but I think it's safe to say we're both quite capable of booking trips ourselves.  Despite this, we've used MEI agents for a long time.  What's awesome is that I often book trips with a call or email of just a sentence or two.  My agent knows my tolerances, so if I ask for an OV, but they've got a group rate or other incentive that makes a verandah $250 more for a seven night, they know I'll probably want that - and I'll end up with a hold until I confirm that difference.  There are times too that I am not sure what I'm looking for, and I'll just throw out some basic criteria (x type of line, y date range, z part of the world), and that's another time when it's helpful for an agent to really know what you like.  
When something has come up, either because I've needed to make a change, or the cruise line wants to bump me, etc - I have a liaison.  Someone who will fight for me.  I'll never have to wait on hold for Royal or any other line (that's never fun), nor will I have to plead my case.  It's pretty great.
In short, booking is a bit easier, but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  Sometimes there are some additional perks (OBC, category upgrades, etc), but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  I use them because whether things go perfectly, or the trip encounters some unexpected turbulence, they're in my corner - and those are the times you'll REALLY wish you were working with a great travel agent - whoever that may be.

I'll echo something several have shared already, speaking as someone who has been booking with MEI for a decade.
To me, it's not about saving money (though when it happens, that is of course awesome).  It's not even about how easy it is to book on any given line's site (more on that in a sec).  It's about the service.  There are agencies out there that rebate commission, and to those who use them - I genuinely hope you have awesome experiences.  I don't use agencies that do that for the simple reason that I've worked in that world, I've been around the industry - those agents are stacking as many deals as possible and just don't have the time to get to know their clients, triple check their work, provide guidance as needed, check for price drops, etc
I love that my agent (and others) at MEI have got to know my preferences (and they've got all my info stored, too).  I don't like to speak for @Matt, but I think it's safe to say we're both quite capable of booking trips ourselves.  Despite this, we've used MEI agents for a long time.  What's awesome is that I often book trips with a call or email of just a sentence or two.  My agent knows my tolerances, so if I ask for an OV, but they've got a group rate or other incentive that makes a verandah $250 more for a seven night, they know I'll probably want that - and I'll end up with a hold until I confirm that difference.  There are times too that I am not sure what I'm looking for, and I'll just throw out some basic criteria (x type of line, y date range, z part of the world), and that's another time when it's helpful for an agent to really know what you like.  
When something has come up, either because I've needed to make a change, or the cruise line wants to bump me, etc - I have a liaison.  Someone who will fight for me.  I'll never have to wait on hold for Royal or any other line (that's never fun), nor will I have to plead my case.  It's pretty great.
In short, booking is a bit easier, but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  Sometimes there are some additional perks (OBC, category upgrades, etc), but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  I use them because whether things go perfectly, or the trip encounters some unexpected turbulence, they're in my corner - and those are the times you'll REALLY wish you were working with a great travel agent - whoever that may be.

I'll echo something several have shared already, speaking as someone who has been booking with MEI for a decade.
To me, it's not about saving money (though when it happens, that is of course awesome).  It's not even about how easy it is to book on any given line's site (more on that in a sec).  It's about the service.  There are agencies out there that rebate commission, and to those who use them - I genuinely hope you have awesome experiences.  I don't use agencies that do that for the simple reason that I've worked in that world, I've been around the industry - those agents are stacking as many deals as possible and just don't have the time to get to know their clients, triple check their work, provide guidance as needed, check for price drops, etc
I love that my agent (and others) at MEI have got to know my preferences (and they've got all my info stored, too).  I don't like to speak for @Matt, but I think it's safe to say we're both quite capable of booking trips ourselves.  Despite this, we've used MEI agents for a long time.  What's awesome is that I often book trips with a call or email of just a sentence or two.  My agent knows my tolerances, so if I ask for an OV, but they've got a group rate or other incentive that makes a verandah $250 more for a seven night, they know I'll probably want that - and I'll end up with a hold until I confirm that difference.  There are times too that I am not sure what I'm looking for, and I'll just throw out some basic criteria (x type of line, y date range, z part of the world), and that's another time when it's helpful for an agent to really know what you like.  
When something has come up, either because I've needed to make a change, or the cruise line wants to bump me, etc - I have a liaison.  Someone who will fight for me.  I'll never have to wait on hold for Royal or any other line (that's never fun), nor will I have to plead my case.  It's pretty great.
In short, booking is a bit easier, but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  Sometimes there are some additional perks (OBC, category upgrades, etc), but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  I use them because whether things go perfectly, or the trip encounters some unexpected turbulence, they're in my corner - and those are the times you'll REALLY wish you were working with a great travel agent - whoever that may be.

I've asked my TA to re-price for as little as $20. It all adds up.

This. Sooner or later, it will happen to you and the difference between having a good travel agent and not having one is quite apparent.

I'll echo something several have shared already, speaking as someone who has been booking with MEI for a decade.
To me, it's not about saving money (though when it happens, that is of course awesome).  It's not even about how easy it is to book on any given line's site (more on that in a sec).  It's about the service.  There are agencies out there that rebate commission, and to those who use them - I genuinely hope you have awesome experiences.  I don't use agencies that do that for the simple reason that I've worked in that world, I've been around the industry - those agents are stacking as many deals as possible and just don't have the time to get to know their clients, triple check their work, provide guidance as needed, check for price drops, etc
I love that my agent (and others) at MEI have got to know my preferences (and they've got all my info stored, too).  I don't like to speak for @Matt, but I think it's safe to say we're both quite capable of booking trips ourselves.  Despite this, we've used MEI agents for a long time.  What's awesome is that I often book trips with a call or email of just a sentence or two.  My agent knows my tolerances, so if I ask for an OV, but they've got a group rate or other incentive that makes a verandah $250 more for a seven night, they know I'll probably want that - and I'll end up with a hold until I confirm that difference.  There are times too that I am not sure what I'm looking for, and I'll just throw out some basic criteria (x type of line, y date range, z part of the world), and that's another time when it's helpful for an agent to really know what you like.  
When something has come up, either because I've needed to make a change, or the cruise line wants to bump me, etc - I have a liaison.  Someone who will fight for me.  I'll never have to wait on hold for Royal or any other line (that's never fun), nor will I have to plead my case.  It's pretty great.
In short, booking is a bit easier, but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  Sometimes there are some additional perks (OBC, category upgrades, etc), but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  I use them because whether things go perfectly, or the trip encounters some unexpected turbulence, they're in my corner - and those are the times you'll REALLY wish you were working with a great travel agent - whoever that may be.

I'll echo something several have shared already, speaking as someone who has been booking with MEI for a decade.
To me, it's not about saving money (though when it happens, that is of course awesome).  It's not even about how easy it is to book on any given line's site (more on that in a sec).  It's about the service.  There are agencies out there that rebate commission, and to those who use them - I genuinely hope you have awesome experiences.  I don't use agencies that do that for the simple reason that I've worked in that world, I've been around the industry - those agents are stacking as many deals as possible and just don't have the time to get to know their clients, triple check their work, provide guidance as needed, check for price drops, etc
I love that my agent (and others) at MEI have got to know my preferences (and they've got all my info stored, too).  I don't like to speak for @Matt, but I think it's safe to say we're both quite capable of booking trips ourselves.  Despite this, we've used MEI agents for a long time.  What's awesome is that I often book trips with a call or email of just a sentence or two.  My agent knows my tolerances, so if I ask for an OV, but they've got a group rate or other incentive that makes a verandah $250 more for a seven night, they know I'll probably want that - and I'll end up with a hold until I confirm that difference.  There are times too that I am not sure what I'm looking for, and I'll just throw out some basic criteria (x type of line, y date range, z part of the world), and that's another time when it's helpful for an agent to really know what you like.  
When something has come up, either because I've needed to make a change, or the cruise line wants to bump me, etc - I have a liaison.  Someone who will fight for me.  I'll never have to wait on hold for Royal or any other line (that's never fun), nor will I have to plead my case.  It's pretty great.
In short, booking is a bit easier, but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  Sometimes there are some additional perks (OBC, category upgrades, etc), but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  I use them because whether things go perfectly, or the trip encounters some unexpected turbulence, they're in my corner - and those are the times you'll REALLY wish you were working with a great travel agent - whoever that may be.

I'll echo something several have shared already, speaking as someone who has been booking with MEI for a decade.
To me, it's not about saving money (though when it happens, that is of course awesome).  It's not even about how easy it is to book on any given line's site (more on that in a sec).  It's about the service.  There are agencies out there that rebate commission, and to those who use them - I genuinely hope you have awesome experiences.  I don't use agencies that do that for the simple reason that I've worked in that world, I've been around the industry - those agents are stacking as many deals as possible and just don't have the time to get to know their clients, triple check their work, provide guidance as needed, check for price drops, etc
I love that my agent (and others) at MEI have got to know my preferences (and they've got all my info stored, too).  I don't like to speak for @Matt, but I think it's safe to say we're both quite capable of booking trips ourselves.  Despite this, we've used MEI agents for a long time.  What's awesome is that I often book trips with a call or email of just a sentence or two.  My agent knows my tolerances, so if I ask for an OV, but they've got a group rate or other incentive that makes a verandah $250 more for a seven night, they know I'll probably want that - and I'll end up with a hold until I confirm that difference.  There are times too that I am not sure what I'm looking for, and I'll just throw out some basic criteria (x type of line, y date range, z part of the world), and that's another time when it's helpful for an agent to really know what you like.  
When something has come up, either because I've needed to make a change, or the cruise line wants to bump me, etc - I have a liaison.  Someone who will fight for me.  I'll never have to wait on hold for Royal or any other line (that's never fun), nor will I have to plead my case.  It's pretty great.
In short, booking is a bit easier, but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  Sometimes there are some additional perks (OBC, category upgrades, etc), but that's not the reason I use an MEI agent.  I use them because whether things go perfectly, or the trip encounters some unexpected turbulence, they're in my corner - and those are the times you'll REALLY wish you were working with a great travel agent - whoever that may be.

We're working on changing that!

Exhibit A:
I won't say that you will not find this level of service with AAA if you run into the same kind of problem as @alamode123 got slammed with. But at least you now know you will have it with MEI, even if you don't get a lot of extra perks up front. It may not spare you a lot of stress while waiting for the outcome, but it certainly takes a load off knowing you have that person undeniably in your corner and working to at least try and make things right.

While I hate parking at ports in general (I live in Boca but usually Uber to PortMiami and PortEverglades) I've never seen an issue with regard to a lack of spaces.
You can drop off your family (and the bags) right in front of the terminal and then park.  This may make things a bit easier.  Each garage also has a number of disabled parking spaces.

Just thought I would share my opinion. I am 32 and I really like celebrity.. Sure its a more relaxed environment but I don't mind.. I find the food to be much better than Royal. I also find the beds more comfortable than Royal.. Also I am a gambler and I like that their casinos are totally NON SMOKING. This really is a plus for me.. They have the old style shows but I am ok with that. I know what I am getting when I go on celebrity. I like to mix it up I like Royal for certain trips and celebrity for certain trips.. But I don't think only old people have to go on it.. True I don't see many children but like I said I am in my early 30's and really enjoy it. I really suggest it for such places like Europe, Alaska, O Canada New England because they are more port intensive so less need for the extras that Royal provides.. 

Woa, "friend" is a strong word. I'd say "guy from the internet that I can tolerate being downwind from occasionally"

This thread has been locked due to continued political discussion, abrasive discord, and personal attacks.  For more information on changes in itineraries due to new Cuba travel restrictions, please check https://RoyalCaribbeanBlog.com and https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2019/06/05/royal-caribbean-cancels-all-scheduled-visits-cuba

This thread has been locked due to continued political discussion, abrasive discord, and personal attacks.  For more information on changes in itineraries due to new Cuba travel restrictions, please check https://RoyalCaribbeanBlog.com and https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2019/06/05/royal-caribbean-cancels-all-scheduled-visits-cuba

This thread has been locked due to continued political discussion, abrasive discord, and personal attacks.  For more information on changes in itineraries due to new Cuba travel restrictions, please check https://RoyalCaribbeanBlog.com and https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2019/06/05/royal-caribbean-cancels-all-scheduled-visits-cuba

This thread has been locked due to continued political discussion, abrasive discord, and personal attacks.  For more information on changes in itineraries due to new Cuba travel restrictions, please check https://RoyalCaribbeanBlog.com and https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2019/06/05/royal-caribbean-cancels-all-scheduled-visits-cuba