michelle

if you want to see the new future of crazy cruise ships go watch the video of
the new Celebrity EDGE coming in 2018.  Now that is going to be a ship.

pamw -this is the biggest reason I tell older clients to get cruise insurance
Yes the PASSENGAR pays for the helicopter, and if they are not insured, and/or
do not have the credit on hand, they will not send a helicopter out - this does
happen.  And yes it costs between $35,000 - $50,000 depending on where you
are for the flights.

pamw -this is the biggest reason I tell older clients to get cruise insurance
Yes the PASSENGAR pays for the helicopter, and if they are not insured, and/or
do not have the credit on hand, they will not send a helicopter out - this does
happen.  And yes it costs between $35,000 - $50,000 depending on where you
are for the flights.

pamw -this is the biggest reason I tell older clients to get cruise insurance
Yes the PASSENGAR pays for the helicopter, and if they are not insured, and/or
do not have the credit on hand, they will not send a helicopter out - this does
happen.  And yes it costs between $35,000 - $50,000 depending on where you
are for the flights.

if you want to see the new future of crazy cruise ships go watch the video of
the new Celebrity EDGE coming in 2018.  Now that is going to be a ship.

pamw -this is the biggest reason I tell older clients to get cruise insurance
Yes the PASSENGAR pays for the helicopter, and if they are not insured, and/or
do not have the credit on hand, they will not send a helicopter out - this does
happen.  And yes it costs between $35,000 - $50,000 depending on where you
are for the flights.

Hmm
Just listened to a podcast from Norwegian and they are sailing here also
and it will be all inclusive on the Sky (drinks included) and they over night
in Cuba...now that is tempting.
 
Will wait for the next time they roll out sailings and see how these first one's go...

Hi
Going to try a Boardwalk balcony on the Oasis of the Seas, Nov 27th to see about the Eat/Play/Dine
amenities they are offering and see if the all work well and are easy.  Just wandering since these begin
on Nov 5th if anyone else has a Central Park Balcony or Boardwalk balcony if they can post reviews before
I get on - other wise I will.  Agent at Royal told me for the Johnny Rocket's meal etc I will be given onboard
credit on my account, rather than a coupon or voucher - HMM

I love the CP balcony rooms.  Here is my info on them: http://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2016/01/21/royal-caribbeans-central-park-everything-you-need-know
 
I would love to see your review of what you end up with and the ins and outs of it all!
 
Not surprised to hear that.  Anytime there is free spa, dining or excursions, it is almost always an OBC credit to just make things simpler than coming up with a means of validating discounts for certain situations.

Been watching closely, as we're supposed to be leaving on Freedom of the Seas Sunday morning out of Port Canaveral.  No changes to our cruise yet.  My guess is at this point they just need to let Matthew pass through and then assess afterwards.  Hopefully not too much damage and the port can still open Saturday as they are planning.  We're going to start the drive down to FL from Indy tomorrow morning and just plan on staying inland, instead of staying Friday night on the coast as we had planned.
 
As much as I REALLY hope this cruise still happens, I'm sure Royal will make the best decision for everyone!  Fingers crossed!!

such a great topic - thanks for all of you that chimed in about your agents in
general - We love that we do not charge fees in our office - and are glad many
of you all use agents !

The statement that using a TA will cost you more money is absolutely NOT true.  The TA is paid a commission by the cruiseline and you will NOT pay more when using a TA.
 
Having said that, you should be aware that you lose some flexibility when you use a TA.  If having absolute control over your reservation is something that you want, then you might not want to use a TA.  If you find a situation where you want to make a very quick change to your reservation (either a price drop or a room becomes available that you want to change to) then you will have to wait until the TA is available to make that change for you.  If you have a very good and responsive TA then this will not be a problem but SOMEtimes you can be in a situation where the TA is not immediately available and you need to make a change immediately....and you can miss getting the room you want or take advantage of a glitch price drop.
 
I have never had this happen to me, BTW.  I have an excellent TA.  But for all of the advantages of using a TA there are a few drawbacks and giving up some control is one of them.  You will not be able to look online and find out what your cruise balance is.  All things dealing with money are removed from the website when you use a TA (the Payment tab mysteriously disappears !).
 
Some people expect miracles from their TA but even the best, most attentive TA in the world is never going to care as much about your reservation as you do.  So it's going to be up to YOU to look for price drops and up to YOU to be on the lookout for a room in a better location, etc.
 
It's a teamwork approach as are all good things !

They ran out 'cause you drank it all. :)
 
When I hit Adventure in November I'm going to go to every bar and ask "what do you have that most people aren't drinking?"  That should fill my dance card for the week. :)

My wife and I cruised to Bermuda with our two oldest granddaughters (almost 17 and 14) on the Grandeur last week. We normally cruise out of Florida in the winter but planned this cruise for when the girls would be on summer vacation. The Baltimore cruise terminal is incredibly easy to get to, and out of, as the exit (#55) is immediately south of the Baltimore Tunnel on I-95 and the parking entrance is literally just a few feet from the exit. We parked the car and were through embarkation and in the Windjammer within 45 minutes. Rooms were ready exactly at 1PM and the bags were there when were allowed into our rooms. Even though the two reservations had to have one adult and one child in each stateroom (since the girls are under 18), the attendant had one room made up with a king size bed and the other with separate twin beds. The rooms were connecting and  adequate  for two; some rooms on our deck had fold down beds so a family of four could share one cabin but I looked in one while it was being made up one morning and it was very crowded and looked uncomfortable (tight and one small bathroom for four people. The beds and mattresses were quite comfortable. The cabin started out a little stuffy (there was an “excessive heat warning†in Baltimore that day), but with the A/C cranked to the max, all was fine by dinner.
 
We ate breakfast and lunch in the Windjammer, the food was good buffet but the venue may be a little small for the capacity. One morning the Captain made an announcement around 8 AM over the loudspeaker explaining why we had stopped to recon a floating barge adrift and notify the USCG. This woke everybody up at pretty much the same time so everybody went to breakfast at once and a mob scene ensued. At a few other times it seemed crowded also but not to that extent. We have previously sailed on Grandeur’s sister ship, Vision, and don’t recall experiencing that feeling. The waitstaff was attentive, checking on refills and clearing as well as helping people find available tables.
 
Our dinners were MyTime scheduled in the MDR and were a highlight of the trip. The waitstaff couldn’t do enough for us and our granddaughters. The food was very good and extra entrees/appetizers/drinks/desserts were there promptly, often without our asking! In fact, throughout the ship, the entire crew was the most pleasant and accommodating of all the RCL ships on which we have sailed.
We only attended one show, a Broadway song and dance review, and it was very entertaining. We have never before cruised with children/teens before but we were quite pleased with the Teen Club activities and so were the girls, who enjoyed them every night. They also really enjoyed the pool and the rock climbing wall. The entertainment in the R-Bar, The Real Time Band (cover dance band) and the Harmony Duo (piano and violin) were excellent.
 
If there were negatives (and there always are!), one we knew going in, it is that two half days is not enough time to spend in Bermuda. My wife and I have vacationed there six or seven times over the years, so there is little we haven’t seen but for those without that experience, it is unfortunately a short overnight stay. RCL used to also run a seven day cruise to Bermuda out of Baltimore but that ceased last year. Too bad, really.
 
Occasionally, the A/C in the elevators wouldn’t be fully functional but that was sporadic.
 
All in all, a great trip!

Have a great cruise - and like Monorail Medic replied that is the place for numbers
There should be something also in your E-Docs that lists information !

It is a posted curfew in the Compass even on my current cruise aboard the Serenade in Europe. And while it does state that it is enforced, I am unsure if it is actually enforced.

great information and input not only for the Suites but also about Grand Cayman
And SO very sorry your Casino God's did not work in your favor!

I am not one to produce lengthy cruise reviews but there are a couple of things from my cruise last week on Freedom that are worth passing on.
 
My streak is in tact !  I still have never had a bad cruise !  WHEW !
 
1.  Diamond Plus members are no longer invited to the reserved section of seats at the ice shows.  We had no problem at all finding a good seat but I was surprised that the reserved seating no longer includes D+ - Gold card holders only.
 
2.  D+ were welcome in both the D Lounge and the Concierge Lounge although all of our voice messages came from the Diamond Lounge Concierge.  We did not receive any voice or written correspondence whatsoever from the Concierge Club Concierge.
 
3.  D+ are still included in the reserved seating area of the main theater.
 
4.  Even though we were only in a Junior Suite, we were allowed to go to the express disembark line for Suites.  I was very surprised at this.  It has been my experience in the past that the express line for Suites only included Gold card suites but it was a very welcome and unexpected benefit as the disembark line was endless by the time we got downstairs.  This was our own fault.  We had a disembark number of 3....but chose to wait until later to disembark since we had a later flight.  What a mistake that turned out to be - until they moved us from that endless line into the express line where NOBODY was.  We were very fortunate.
 
5.  The seas were some of the calmest we have ever experienced.  We almost NEVER cruise in the summer but since we were repeat victims of Empress Gate this was what we got.  Cruising during the summer can be very risky but we got lucky.  The seas were like glass.
 
6.  While on Grand Cayman, we heard from some locals that they are going to be building a pier next year !  Finally !  I know that they had resisted building any kind of dock or pier b/c of the unavoidable damage to the reef.  I guess finances finally overcame the environmental concerns.  While I heard that this construction had been approved, there is still significant resistance to the plan - primarily from environmentalists and those financially impacted (primarily those that operate the tenders, I am guessing).
 
7.   While snorkeling on GC, Dan saw an (approx.) 8' Nurse Shark.  He was so tickled.  Of course, rather than being afraid, he followed the thing as far as he could.  When he returned to shore, the locals (same ones who told us about the pier) said that it was a very, very rare occurrence.  This young man had lived in GC all of his life and said that he could count the number of times he had seen a Nurse shark on 1 hand.
 
8.  The casino gods were not favorable to me. 

You've been amazing to work with, Michelle, and I appreciate your help and professionalis.

truthfully I love the freedom class ships - and like the idea of back-to-back but it comes down to
what you want to actually do and see - Either way happy to be helping your family

Were you given onboard credit to BOOK a new cruise - or given onboard credit
during the cruise you were taking, when you made the booking.  They could
have mis-spoken.  Check the final invoice of the cruise you were on and see if
they gave you onboard credit on it.  Otherwise - it is listed below the pricing and
above the cancellation area, if in fact you earned OBC  - good luck

I haven't been on a Freedom-class ship yet, but we have had two on Vision.  I rather liked the ship and crew.  So much so that I hope she returns to Tampa sometime soon so I can sail on her again.

Hi All
 
Since I do not smoke - I know they have designated areas for
smokers on the ships but does anyone know of Oasis areas for sure that
you can tell me about?    For Cigar smoking?
Thanks in advance
 

sounds like a great time!   sorry to miss this one - hoping for the next one

woo hoo way to go Matt