Hutcherl

I feel Grand Cayman is the most beautiful island we have seen. Also, it feels to be safest. With that said, it's probably the most expensive to visit. Now, if you just want to head to the beach and rent some chairs then it won't be too bad. But, if you expect to have a few drinks and maybe something to eat then look out. Which is the way we do a beach day so it adds up. The place is so beautiful that it makes higher prices seem to be more tolerable. In Cozumel, we do All inclusive beach day at Mr. Sanchos. Which is priced reasonably imo. There are a few beach breaks in Cozumel to choose from that sound similar and seem to get good reviews.

Yes they do play around with the pricing. A sale rarely ends up with any real cost saving. Not always but most of the time. The more you deal with them, the more you will see this happening. Still pays to check for a saving on any new promotion but you get used to not seeing much if anything.

4/22/17 Harmony- no luck. Have the drink+voom deal so probably wasn't going to work for me anyway.

Have you tried? Never had much luck with this type of stuff. But, if you testify to its effectiveness, I'll try another!!

Okay I follow you now. I guess I approach table games similarly. I just never put a real number to it. Makes sense. I don't sit at table unless I'm willing to play through a early bad run. But, at any point, if I happen to get up a good bit my tolerance for a bad streak lessens and I get off the table. Im not a big gambler but I do like to dabble a bit while having a few drinks.

Not sure I understand what this means. Are you saying the casino expects you to play 20 deals each time you start at a table? If so, my thought is that there is no minimum requirement. Once if you wish.

Not 100% sure but I do believe there was a single deck blackjack table. I rarely play but I was just at a land casino with a cruising buddy and he said he can't wait to get back on a ship to play single deck blackjack. Our last two cruises were on the Freedom. Others here might be able to give a definite answer.

Only 3+ hours drive from Baltimore. Would love to see a second or larger ship from that port. I think there are limitations due to the bridge clearances. Really like the freedom class but doubt that they would pass. Not having the expense or hassle of flying would mean more cruises for us!! So, I'm hoping that prediction comes true!

I agree with you. If you already purchased with the expection of drinks being covered up to 12-13 dollars then they would have to honor that! No? Sounds unethical in the least, illegal probably. Bait/switch?? I really don't believe RC would play that game, in all honesty.

I'm loyal to Royal but not going to be fleeced. It never set well with me when they first started offering the drink packages, they raised the price of drinks to the point to where I felt It best to buy the package for the wife and myself. Not once yet did we drink to the total of both. Effective strategy on RC's part you might say. A couple cruises back we didn't purchase the package. Going off the previous pricing, didn't find a value to it for us. That is until I got in board and ordered a beer and frozen cocktail and signed for around $23. That's when I realized RC was digging in deeper and the cost of cruising for us just got significantly more expensive. The other part that I don't like about it is the decreased bar service around the pools and private islands now that drink packages are offered. Used to be they were everywhere. Now, with the drink packages, the roving bar staff has decreased significantly. When at the pool or private island, most of the time, I have to go fetch my own drinks. Now, I love cruising and RC but enough is enough. Sorry for the rant! Lol

I wouldn't worry that the price will go up before you set sail. But, I would purchase before you board because the price to purchase the drink package probably will be higher on the ship. Wait it out to see if it does drop but pull the trigger before you get on. Just my thought. On my Apr. 22, 2017 Harmony sailing, the drink package sale never reflected a price drop. Once it was combined with voom, that was enough to get me to order it even though I wouldn't purchase voom independently. Some sailings reflected a discount during the sale while others not so much. My last cruise I waited to buy the package on the ship because I thought the prices precruise weren't reflecting a discount from the on board price. I was wrong and it cost me a few extra bucks by waiting.

Harmony April 22, 2017. First cruise above freedom class so we are excited to see what the larger ships have to offer. So far, the bigger the better has been our experience.