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melski94

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Everything posted by melski94

  1. When my DD was 18 it was a huge adjustment as we cruise a few weeks after she turned 18 and she was still in HS. Now that she is in college, she hangs out with us. Since there are 2 of them they may not need to. We go to the shows, casino (slots are cheaper than table games as $20 goes much farther), or she hangs out with us at the pub or schooner bar to listen to the singers. It is quite fun to hang out together.
  2. At the very least, they should refund your money. If they don't, I would dispute the charge with your credit card company.
  3. What are the scheduled times to be in Maui? All aboard tends to be about 30 minutes before the ship is scheduled to depart. Most of us recommend being back at least 2 hours before all aboard especially if doing a 3rd party excursion. They will wait or get you to the next port if it is a RC excursion but RC will NOT help you with 3rd party excursions or wait for you if you miss the ship (except to maybe get your passport if its in the safe). It is YOUR responsibility to be back on time. Guest are left all the time, just look for the videos on you tube. If your excursion is even remotely cutting it close to the all aboard time, I'd suggest you look at another.
  4. It isn't intuitive but if you go to the dining choices page first, there is a button to make all reservations for the week. I haven't changed my time on the app but it is very easy to ask the maitre'd to change the reservation or call down.
  5. We use the trip insurance from USAA. If you are a USAA member, I'd recommend it. Very easy to handle a claim when my husband couldn't join us this summer. A couple of things to note, at least with USAA, pre-existing medical or CFAR coverage, insurance must be purchased within 30 days of the deposit.
  6. No one can predict it. You may want to look at 8-10 weeks out, just past final payment. I think if you'll probably be ok assuming you aren't trying to travel for Spring/Easter Break. Also be careful if you need a room for 4 as those can sell out. As long as you aren't picky about location or room category, you probably can take a chance on it.
  7. Harmony still at $61! Not sure I'll get it at that price with 4 ports! That being said Voom has finally at a price where I'll buy it!
  8. 1. You can purchase it onboard for the remaining days of the cruise. You can't buy it for certain days only (like if you wanted it for only sea days). 2. It doesn't have to be packed but since you can't get into your rooms until 1pm then you are lugging it around the ship however you brought it on. 3. Yes mini fridges 4. Yes 5. If possible I'll rent a locker at the resort. If I'm snorkeling on a boat tour, I don't worry about it. 6. No. If you wanted them close together, you should have picked your own room. I'm surprised that you were allowed to book your sons in a GTY room by themselves. 7. Minors don't need a photo id. However, I'm team passport and bring our passports with us on longer excursions.
  9. Yes they can however it has only happened to me once. When I booked Navigator, I booked one of the new JS and it was listed as occupancy for 4. However after the AMP, the occupancy was changed to 2. So my kids reservation was moved to a JS that could hold 4. Luckily my TA caught it and changed it so both rooms were next to each other. All that being said changing rooms isn't typical. We book multiple rooms each cruise and outside that one time, we keep the rooms we booked. It isn't something I worry about.
  10. I personally would take the birth certificate. Not hard to pack. I would rather have it and not need it than be denied boarding for not having it.
  11. Welcome to the boards! 1. You will most likely have 1 dress your best evening. You don't have to be formal anymore and you will see a variety of attire. 2. I personally don't think the Key is worth it but it depends on the cost and if you can buy it for around the internet price. That being said 2 device internet would be cheaper. You could probably use whatever money you save on the Key for a specialty lunch or dinner. 3. Lots of suggestions for Cozumel if you search Matt's blog posts or the excursion board. Many people like Nachi Cocum.
  12. The wheel chairs were outside but not at their exact muster station. I'm sure someone probably scanned the card in the muster station but they let them listen near the doors. I thought it was nice to let them have a 2 minute head start over the crowd. Just ask the crew.
  13. You need to get into your cruise planner. To get to the cruise planner go to the RC site and then click on "already booked". There you will see the sales. It is better to purchase on the cruise planner since it will be higher on the ship. If you buy it on the cruise planner, you purchase it for the entire cruise. Now you can cancel it onboard if you don't feel it is needed.
  14. I used Cruise Compete once. They have other agencies bid on your booking. I wasn't crazy about the service I received. I don't need much help but the one thing I asked seemed like a huge hassle. I also use MEI. I'll get some discounts from MEI but I know other agencies offer more. The biggest reason to use them is if and when something goes wrong. My past July cruise RC moved one of my rooms (my kids room) to a different deck. It took my MEI TA and her supervisor 3 days to get to a solution they knew I'd accept. The amount of business the agency does with RC gives them some power to help their clients when they need it. I've never had a problem in 5 years but all of a sudden there were problems in 3 of my cruises and MEI helped with all of them. Hopefully, I won't need this kind of help again but it's nice to know it is there if I need it.
  15. We were on Navigator in July. We had an unusually long muster and my DD8 had to use the restroom. There were a bunch of people with wheelchairs just outside the doors. I saw they allowed those people to leave the area first to get to the elevators before the rest of us could leave.
  16. Real ID is just a minimum standard of security for IDs. Your passport is Real ID compliant. A Real ID drivers license cost depends on the state. My state just came out with Real ID on its drivers license a few months ago. It will be required to have a Real ID to fly after 1 October 2020.
  17. I've seen it done on Harmony. In their MTD seating, they had several tables pushed together to accommodate large groups. If you are in Traditional dining, I think there are a few rounds that seat 12. Make sure your TA links the reservations and everyone has the same dining. When you get onboard, go right to the MDR to verify your table. Good luck!
  18. I've made as early as flights at 9:30am out of both MIA and FLL from POM. The FLL flight we arrived at the airport at 8 am and had plenty of time for a sit down breakfast. We just do self disembarkation and if you have US passports then getting through customs is a breeze. Also, we have TSA precheck. Clearly this is a risk as there could be a customs/fog/whatever delay but it's a risk we are willing to take. Typically, you'll be allowed off the ship about an hour after the arrival time so in your case about 7 am. I figure that even if it takes me an hour to get off the ship, I still have 30 minutes to get to the airport and I'll still be an hour before my flight. It's easy for people who have many choices or not in a time crunch to wait for a direct flight home to say after 11 am. However, when you only have limited direct flights, we'd rather take the risk considering they are either at 9:30 am or 4 pm. I'd rather not sit around the airport for hours before you can even check bags (4 hours before the flight), so I'll take my chance with the 9:30 am.
  19. Similar to @KJones, I just held my sunglasses in my hand for all the slides.
  20. Yes. My kids love to eat at Playmakers and they love to play the games there with their arcade credits.
  21. The teen club (12 and up) can come and go as they please. No sign in and no sign out. In Voyagers, ages 9-11, you give permission to be self signers (sign themselves out). You can also give them permission to sign out siblings.
  22. This happened to us on Navigator. The new staterooms were changed from the original passenger capacity after the renovation. The original JR suite that I booked for my 4 kids was only listed for 2 after the renovation. My TA was told about 6 weeks prior to our departure and in my case our rooms were originally put on different decks. Luckily for me, my MEI travel agent escalated the situation and found 2 adjoining aft staterooms. I have a feeling that RC moved someone else out of the room. The best part was my TA waited until after she found what she knew would be an acceptable room configuration to tell me ? Keep escalating the situation. Ask to speak to a supervisor. I know people have had good luck complaining on FB messenger and/or twitter. You still could do this room with you and your younger children in the room for 4 and the 2 teens in your 2 person room. However, I completely understand this isn't what you wanted and you should get some compensation for the trouble. Good luck!
  23. It is completely possible to make this flight. You do need to accept that things can go wrong and be willing to have a back up plan just in case. We've done early flights 9:30 from FLL but we were out of Port of Miami. Port of Miami has facial recognition which makes customs a breeze. Your choke point at PE will be customs so you need to be one of the first in line to get off the ship As someone who is willing to take a chance on an early flight, here are some tips: You must do self disembarkation (ie carry off your bags) Get the Key. Many ships allow Key members off with the suite guests. You still need to carry off your bags. Verify with the ship that key members can get off early with the suite guests. Each ship operates slightly different so verify the rules of your ship. If you don't have the Key, get to the line early, like around 5:30 am. You need to avoid a long customs line. Either chose to Uber or use a taxi. You may want to use a taxi as they will be waiting. You don't want to wait for an Uber. Have TSA precheck. If at all possible, try not to check bags. We always have bags to check but this means you need to make sure you are at FLL by 8. Like others said, even if the ship docks at 5:30, you typically can't get off the ship until at least an hour later. So the earliest disembarkation will begin is 6:30. Even if they start later, you still have about an hour to get off the ship. Your goal is to be through customs by 7:30.
  24. I was on Adventure over Spring Break and didn't get the key and never felt that I needed it. The shows were more than half empty so the seating wasn't a great perk. My kids don't use the flowrider. To me, really look at what you need it for and what you would actually use. Internet for 1 device is about $12 and for 2 devices about $16 a day but the key for 2 people will be $50 a day. Are the key perks worth an extra $34 a day? That is $238 more than a 2 device package over a 7 day cruise, which would pay for a 3 night specialty dining package for 2. I'd rather do a specialty dining package than get the key.
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