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Just did 21 days on the Rhapsody. I was impressed with how well maintained and clean the ship is. For me, I like a ship as opposed to the an amusement park. Just personal preference.

Onboard the Rhapsody now in the Med. No taxes on the T/A from Tampa, but since Barcelona(B2B), there is a tax added no matter if we were in Spain, France and now Italy. It seems to be as others have posted, just under 10% on food like Giovani's. However, buying pictures in the ships photo shop was taxed at 21%. It does state in the compass that foods and drinks will be taxed at 21%. Drink purchases made with the preloaded 3 drinks for Diamond have not incurred added charges to us. I know that does NOT clear things up, but just wanted to post current information.

Thanks DocLC, figure we better sail on the Rhapsody before it goes the way of the Dodo. We even get our 140 crystal block on this T/A. Klaconqueso, laxed weight limits makes it a lot easier for you to bring things home with you. When we dispose of 14 days worth of underwear and socks, we can bring home more STUFF!!!!!!

DW is packing now, we leave Saturday on Rhapsody for our longest trip yet.... 23 days. B2B 14+7+2. For me, I take all old underwear and socks, along with those nice neat packets of new ones(enough for the trip). Throw away the old ones as you go, at the end there's a lot less to pack to come home. On cold weather trips you can wear a couple layers getting onboard to help. At least this trip will be all warm weather, so it will be a bit easier. Sometimes you had to get in the shower with a couple pair of under wear and socks and hand wash them with bar soap, wring them out and hang on the little string. I have a digital fish scale I use to weigh our luggage before leaving. It turns out to be very accurate. Get those checked bags in at or under 50lbs.

Lately, it seems it's RCI in the news again and again heading into bad weather, even after weather is forecast. Not sure how or who makes those calls at corporate.

I have done this before. You will never get money back, even if the cabin you want is less than you paid. They will accept MORE money for you to upgrade yourself. Call and get a quote............

Have seen this type cabin on a cabin crawl. Very nice and roomy. Balcony is a bit squashed, but not any less usable than a normal balcony.

I find the domestic flights are about the same as other sites. The cheap prices come on the overseas flights for Transatlantics etc. Example: New Orleans to London-about $300PP, Venice to New Orleans-about $400PP. These were within the last month, so current info.

Agree with Doc, E class(Deluxe) balcony cabins on Radiance ships are "OK" for 2. Would not push past that...

Yes, it's done once a year. We were on it this past August. Not to be missed. Avatar is from that trip. They changed it a bit for this coming trip. We had16 days, 4 days in Iceland, 3 ports. Overnight in Reykjavik. This year they dropped one Iceland port and shortened the trip to 15 days.

You should be good, the difference is not that great on the Freedom class ships(Liberty).............

What ship? The differences can be a little more on different class ships.

That is a nice upgrade for the money. Sometimes it pays to keep up with the rates even after final payment.

Agree with above, I checked the airfare to San Juan even from New Orleans was a lot more than a cheapie R/T Southwest ticket to FLL with transfer $15PP to Miami. Even managed to find a cheapie A/A flight to Miami direct. Have been to San Juan on another cruise, would not mind sailing out of there. I don't find the cruise prices much better though for sailings from SJ.

Serenade had the high wire shows in the centrum a few months ago.

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I have read more than one poster report soot issues on aft balconies. Have had several on different ships and have never seen this, could be luck of the draw I guess.

Divina was OK, on a par with RCI overall. Little differences here and there. Good value for the money. On Freedom class the the sought after aft cabins are 1700/1400/7708/7408. On Voyager class 7388/7688/1688/1388........Good luck with your choice .............

The picture on the left is Navigator 7388, the one on the right is MSC Divina 10254, did these B2B last month....

Some people hate the hump cabins on Radiance and other class ships because of the loud music noise coming up through the centrum, several threads about this on another site. We have had hump cabins twice, never had a problem sleeping. Aft cabins are far away from elevators, OK by me. It tends to be very quiet at the end of the hall, no foot traffic. Some aft cabins have larger balconies(do your homework), don't go by deck plans. The view is great, but I like the side view also. Bottom line, I would take either one for the right price and itinerary.

Done it a couple times, once with Princess out of New York. Last year on Celebrity Summit out of Port Liberty. Cruise is great, port is terrible compared to others. Newark airport is less than great !!!!!!, Cab from hotel (next to airport) to cruise terminal was $75 and no, it ain't that far. Will be nice and just say that the cruise terminal and surrounding area need a little sprucing up. Beautiful places to see, October is better for fall foliage. Been to Halifax 3 times now and have yet to really see the area. Fog and rain all 3 times, still determined though. Would go again tomorrow if I could.

Follow the money trail, more profit in the larger ships. I do like the Radiance class ships best, similar to the Island/Coral Princess ships. Have been on the Liberty, Navigator, Allure.......They were fine(never had a bad cruise) but, we prefer the smaller ships. Doing a T/A on Rhapsody shortly, have not tried a Vision class yet.

Above replies are true. The prices are basically the same as RCI, the difference is the perks. OBC and free gratuities are the reason to book with any travel agent. The caveat is if there is a price drop on your booked cabin class, or a higher class cabin comes available for a few bucks more, etc.....YOU will have to call Cruise.com and have them call RCI to take advantage of these offerings. If they are not offering any perks, I would book with the cruise line direct.

Just off the Navigator, a new $6 charge appears on the credit card after we are home. And then 10 minutes on the phone. A big deal? not really. This is the third time for us though. Imagine how many people don't bother with the call......food for thought.

After several tries with different class ships, we keep coming back to the Radiance class as our favorites. Right size, layout, number of people, etc. They just seem to work for us.....Second would be the Navigator(Voyager Class).