ang73

I know it's pretty common knowledge among cruisers.  But to anyone new to cruising or just to confirm for those who've heard it before...book early to get the best price!! 
 
We booked within days of Royal Caribbean releasing our October 2016 cruise. So well over a year out from our cruise.   Our travel agent has checked EVERY sale that has come out since and not one has been able to give us a better deal than our original booking.  Even with higher percentages off, and even with OBC added, we still have a better deal.
 
So while of course I'm still hoping there's that one magical sale that will save us some money before final payment....I'm really glad we booked as early as we did since prices seem to only go up from there!
 
Happy Cruising :)

I know it's pretty common knowledge among cruisers.  But to anyone new to cruising or just to confirm for those who've heard it before...book early to get the best price!! 
 
We booked within days of Royal Caribbean releasing our October 2016 cruise. So well over a year out from our cruise.   Our travel agent has checked EVERY sale that has come out since and not one has been able to give us a better deal than our original booking.  Even with higher percentages off, and even with OBC added, we still have a better deal.
 
So while of course I'm still hoping there's that one magical sale that will save us some money before final payment....I'm really glad we booked as early as we did since prices seem to only go up from there!
 
Happy Cruising :)

Hire Leo (??)  Brown for St. Maarten adventures.

I know it's pretty common knowledge among cruisers.  But to anyone new to cruising or just to confirm for those who've heard it before...book early to get the best price!! 
 
We booked within days of Royal Caribbean releasing our October 2016 cruise. So well over a year out from our cruise.   Our travel agent has checked EVERY sale that has come out since and not one has been able to give us a better deal than our original booking.  Even with higher percentages off, and even with OBC added, we still have a better deal.
 
So while of course I'm still hoping there's that one magical sale that will save us some money before final payment....I'm really glad we booked as early as we did since prices seem to only go up from there!
 
Happy Cruising :)

Hello all!!
 
I haven't been on the site in quite a while because we were busy planning a Walt Disney World vacation for this October and I was consumed with all that came with it.  But I just have to share with you what my kids have said since returning home from vacation 2 days ago.
 
First of all , we are a huge Disney family.  Have done the parks, the cruises, and my kids have grown up only knowing Disney vacations.  That is until fall of 2014 when we went on our first RCI cruise on FOS and had a wonderful time!!  I shared on one of Matt's periscopes that my 8 yr old daughter had told me before we left for Disney last week that Disney would be the 2nd best vacation place because our cruise on FOS was the best.
 
Well, you know how kids are, and whatever they did most recent is the best.  So I totally expected this to change after Disney.  Well, I asked my 8 yr old daughter and 12 yr old son, both separately at the end of the trip. And they BOTH said without hesitation "The FOS cruise"
 
I was shocked!!  But honestly I think I agree.  Disney is amazing and has some things you can only get at Disney, but I found myself very done with the trip and exhausted by the end.  Instead of like at the end of our cruise where all I wanted to do was get back onboard!!
 
Also, I didn't even ask my 16 yr old what he thought because I knew his answer.  Because he told me multiple times at Disney "there are no teenagers here to hang out with".  Now of course there were teens, but there was no place to get together and meet them.  He made so many friends on our cruise in the teen area and had a great time hanging out with all of them!
 
Sorry this is so long, but I just had to share!  We are really missing RCI and aren't booked again until Fall 2016.  On Freedom again!!  But until then I will count down, enjoy the blogs, boards and periscopes and dream of the cruise!!
 
 
Thanks for listening!!
Angela  

Hello all!!
 
I haven't been on the site in quite a while because we were busy planning a Walt Disney World vacation for this October and I was consumed with all that came with it.  But I just have to share with you what my kids have said since returning home from vacation 2 days ago.
 
First of all , we are a huge Disney family.  Have done the parks, the cruises, and my kids have grown up only knowing Disney vacations.  That is until fall of 2014 when we went on our first RCI cruise on FOS and had a wonderful time!!  I shared on one of Matt's periscopes that my 8 yr old daughter had told me before we left for Disney last week that Disney would be the 2nd best vacation place because our cruise on FOS was the best.
 
Well, you know how kids are, and whatever they did most recent is the best.  So I totally expected this to change after Disney.  Well, I asked my 8 yr old daughter and 12 yr old son, both separately at the end of the trip. And they BOTH said without hesitation "The FOS cruise"
 
I was shocked!!  But honestly I think I agree.  Disney is amazing and has some things you can only get at Disney, but I found myself very done with the trip and exhausted by the end.  Instead of like at the end of our cruise where all I wanted to do was get back onboard!!
 
Also, I didn't even ask my 16 yr old what he thought because I knew his answer.  Because he told me multiple times at Disney "there are no teenagers here to hang out with".  Now of course there were teens, but there was no place to get together and meet them.  He made so many friends on our cruise in the teen area and had a great time hanging out with all of them!
 
Sorry this is so long, but I just had to share!  We are really missing RCI and aren't booked again until Fall 2016.  On Freedom again!!  But until then I will count down, enjoy the blogs, boards and periscopes and dream of the cruise!!
 
 
Thanks for listening!!
Angela  

Hello all!!
 
I haven't been on the site in quite a while because we were busy planning a Walt Disney World vacation for this October and I was consumed with all that came with it.  But I just have to share with you what my kids have said since returning home from vacation 2 days ago.
 
First of all , we are a huge Disney family.  Have done the parks, the cruises, and my kids have grown up only knowing Disney vacations.  That is until fall of 2014 when we went on our first RCI cruise on FOS and had a wonderful time!!  I shared on one of Matt's periscopes that my 8 yr old daughter had told me before we left for Disney last week that Disney would be the 2nd best vacation place because our cruise on FOS was the best.
 
Well, you know how kids are, and whatever they did most recent is the best.  So I totally expected this to change after Disney.  Well, I asked my 8 yr old daughter and 12 yr old son, both separately at the end of the trip. And they BOTH said without hesitation "The FOS cruise"
 
I was shocked!!  But honestly I think I agree.  Disney is amazing and has some things you can only get at Disney, but I found myself very done with the trip and exhausted by the end.  Instead of like at the end of our cruise where all I wanted to do was get back onboard!!
 
Also, I didn't even ask my 16 yr old what he thought because I knew his answer.  Because he told me multiple times at Disney "there are no teenagers here to hang out with".  Now of course there were teens, but there was no place to get together and meet them.  He made so many friends on our cruise in the teen area and had a great time hanging out with all of them!
 
Sorry this is so long, but I just had to share!  We are really missing RCI and aren't booked again until Fall 2016.  On Freedom again!!  But until then I will count down, enjoy the blogs, boards and periscopes and dream of the cruise!!
 
 
Thanks for listening!!
Angela  

Hello all!!
 
I haven't been on the site in quite a while because we were busy planning a Walt Disney World vacation for this October and I was consumed with all that came with it.  But I just have to share with you what my kids have said since returning home from vacation 2 days ago.
 
First of all , we are a huge Disney family.  Have done the parks, the cruises, and my kids have grown up only knowing Disney vacations.  That is until fall of 2014 when we went on our first RCI cruise on FOS and had a wonderful time!!  I shared on one of Matt's periscopes that my 8 yr old daughter had told me before we left for Disney last week that Disney would be the 2nd best vacation place because our cruise on FOS was the best.
 
Well, you know how kids are, and whatever they did most recent is the best.  So I totally expected this to change after Disney.  Well, I asked my 8 yr old daughter and 12 yr old son, both separately at the end of the trip. And they BOTH said without hesitation "The FOS cruise"
 
I was shocked!!  But honestly I think I agree.  Disney is amazing and has some things you can only get at Disney, but I found myself very done with the trip and exhausted by the end.  Instead of like at the end of our cruise where all I wanted to do was get back onboard!!
 
Also, I didn't even ask my 16 yr old what he thought because I knew his answer.  Because he told me multiple times at Disney "there are no teenagers here to hang out with".  Now of course there were teens, but there was no place to get together and meet them.  He made so many friends on our cruise in the teen area and had a great time hanging out with all of them!
 
Sorry this is so long, but I just had to share!  We are really missing RCI and aren't booked again until Fall 2016.  On Freedom again!!  But until then I will count down, enjoy the blogs, boards and periscopes and dream of the cruise!!
 
 
Thanks for listening!!
Angela  

Hello all!!
 
I haven't been on the site in quite a while because we were busy planning a Walt Disney World vacation for this October and I was consumed with all that came with it.  But I just have to share with you what my kids have said since returning home from vacation 2 days ago.
 
First of all , we are a huge Disney family.  Have done the parks, the cruises, and my kids have grown up only knowing Disney vacations.  That is until fall of 2014 when we went on our first RCI cruise on FOS and had a wonderful time!!  I shared on one of Matt's periscopes that my 8 yr old daughter had told me before we left for Disney last week that Disney would be the 2nd best vacation place because our cruise on FOS was the best.
 
Well, you know how kids are, and whatever they did most recent is the best.  So I totally expected this to change after Disney.  Well, I asked my 8 yr old daughter and 12 yr old son, both separately at the end of the trip. And they BOTH said without hesitation "The FOS cruise"
 
I was shocked!!  But honestly I think I agree.  Disney is amazing and has some things you can only get at Disney, but I found myself very done with the trip and exhausted by the end.  Instead of like at the end of our cruise where all I wanted to do was get back onboard!!
 
Also, I didn't even ask my 16 yr old what he thought because I knew his answer.  Because he told me multiple times at Disney "there are no teenagers here to hang out with".  Now of course there were teens, but there was no place to get together and meet them.  He made so many friends on our cruise in the teen area and had a great time hanging out with all of them!
 
Sorry this is so long, but I just had to share!  We are really missing RCI and aren't booked again until Fall 2016.  On Freedom again!!  But until then I will count down, enjoy the blogs, boards and periscopes and dream of the cruise!!
 
 
Thanks for listening!!
Angela  

We haven't stayed in a family ocean view on Navigator, only Freedom.  But I can tell you we had plenty of room even for a family of 5!  And our kids aren't tiny anymore they were 7, 11  15 when we went.  Loved it so much we booked another one for our next cruise. 

Thanks Matt!   
 
Here is a picture of our two youngest with our waiter Oswaldo, and our assistant waiter Mauro, both from the Philippines.
 
I really cant say enough good things about these two.  They were wonderful!!  Oswaldo is excellent at what he does and just a wonderful person to get to know.  Mauro entertained the kids each night with new magic tricks.   They were a huge part of what made our first Royal Caribbean cruise so amazing!!

Hi Linda27! 
 
We sailed on Freedom of the Seas in October and we had only sailed DCL before.  I was also worried before we went about my kids having to be in separate groups.  On our DCL cruise not only were they able to go in together but we sailed with their cousins also, so they always had someone with them.  I really wasn't sure if they would go alone or not, and went in with the attitude that if they went to the kids clubs great, but if not that's ok also.
 
I can tell you that our experience was better than expected.  They did go into separate groups most of the time.  I do think they combine them at times, but it's not all the time.  I know one evening I went to pick up my 11 yr old and he was in the 6-8 yr old area playing a video game, so I know at least then they had groups together.
 
What we experienced was that the RC kids clubs have a very different feel to them than DCL.  On DCL they had the super cool rooms and the kids just ran in and it was kind of a free for all and there were tons of kids!!  RC club is smaller and they usually have group activities going on when they walk in.  Either it would be a game that staff was leading, or art activities out they were working on, there was always something the staff would get them involved in when they walked in.  I think the smaller group made my shy 7 yr old more comfortable and she felt included and had a lot of fun!  So much that when we went to St Martin she asked us if she could stay on the ship in the kids club because she had heard they get to eat lunch together.  Before the cruise I would have never thought I would agree to this!  But I felt comfortable and she was so excited to do it that we let her stay in the 4-5 hours while we were off the ship.
 
Hope this helps :)
 
Angela

Thanks everyone!  I've finally recovered from the long 16 hour drive home and wanted to let you know that we had a wonderful time!!  Royal Caribbean far exceeded any expectations I had!!  The service was amazing!  We had the best waiter and assistant waiter I've ever had on any cruise!  The kids loved adventure ocean and the teen clubs.  All three kids said they preferred this RC cruise over our Disney cruises.
 
Our first Royal Caribbean cruise was definitely not our last! 

Thanks everyone!  I've finally recovered from the long 16 hour drive home and wanted to let you know that we had a wonderful time!!  Royal Caribbean far exceeded any expectations I had!!  The service was amazing!  We had the best waiter and assistant waiter I've ever had on any cruise!  The kids loved adventure ocean and the teen clubs.  All three kids said they preferred this RC cruise over our Disney cruises.
 
Our first Royal Caribbean cruise was definitely not our last! 

Thanks everyone!  I've finally recovered from the long 16 hour drive home and wanted to let you know that we had a wonderful time!!  Royal Caribbean far exceeded any expectations I had!!  The service was amazing!  We had the best waiter and assistant waiter I've ever had on any cruise!  The kids loved adventure ocean and the teen clubs.  All three kids said they preferred this RC cruise over our Disney cruises.
 
Our first Royal Caribbean cruise was definitely not our last! 

Awesome news on the trip!

Great to hear you had such a great time!! And interesting to hear your kids preferred it over Disney!!
 

Today's the day! Headed to port canaveral now! Just wanted to say thanks to Matt for all of the information on the podcasts and website and to everyone who answered questions for me here on the message board. Its good to feel prepared!!

Today's the day! Headed to port canaveral now! Just wanted to say thanks to Matt for all of the information on the podcasts and website and to everyone who answered questions for me here on the message board. Its good to feel prepared!!

Today's the day! Headed to port canaveral now! Just wanted to say thanks to Matt for all of the information on the podcasts and website and to everyone who answered questions for me here on the message board. Its good to feel prepared!!

Today's the day! Headed to port canaveral now! Just wanted to say thanks to Matt for all of the information on the podcasts and website and to everyone who answered questions for me here on the message board. Its good to feel prepared!!

Today's the day! Headed to port canaveral now! Just wanted to say thanks to Matt for all of the information on the podcasts and website and to everyone who answered questions for me here on the message board. Its good to feel prepared!!

Slow doesn't begin to describe it.... 6 days for us too... Can't..... come.......fast.......enough!

Totally agree with Matt!!!  Sailing out in 6 days and this week is already going sooooo slow!!!!!

That last week is the best, and worst, week ever.  So close but it seems to crawl by!