Skid

56 minutes ago, godukes_2017 said:

Yes, I watch the weather this time of year as well. Def have to look into it, as Baltimore is closest to us as well in Fredericksburg, VA. Plus always wanted to go to Bermuda. Thanks for the information. 

Do it! So much to see and do. We have been there 3 times (2 land vacations, 1 cruise). So much to see and do. Don't miss the pink sand and crystal clear water on Horseshoe Bay beach!

12 minutes ago, coneyraven said:

I just repriced my 2018 Bermuda Cruise that I booked when the itineraries came out  --- Just saved $190 --- So, in my case, this was a good thing ...

Always a great feeling when that happens. I am happy it worked out for you and hopefully some others.

5 minutes ago, stubee said:

Have booked a cruise for early 2018 and notice that RCL want to charge me USD$69/day for the ultimate drinks package.

This is up from the price of around USD$55/day we paid on a cruise earlier this year.

Has anyone heard about changes to the pricing of the drinks packages for 2018 ?

WOW (but not the good kind)! That's a 25% increase. Cruise planner for my May 2018 trip still shows $55/day. Wait it out. It will probably come back down and then some more with a cruise planner sale. Royal's inconsistency is, at the very least, frustrating.

FYI, new "sale" just started, runs through Sunday. 50% off 2nd guest plus OBC. Pays to check because it may be different for various ships and sail dates.  However, no surprise at all, the cruise I booked in early June for May 2018 would now net out to $25 more. 

31 minutes ago, mom2mybugs said:

and this is why food is so hard to judge  by other people's opinions.I I love outback lol!!!  Haven't been to Ruth Chris but I hear it is excellent.  However, I will put that giavannis steak up against anyones!   Jane

Yup, as the saying goes, that's why they make chocolate ice cream. 

4 hours ago, tiny260 said:

Jane, stole my thunder, I was going to say that the MDR is big and can be noisy, so by going to one of the specialty restaurants you are getting a smaller much more quaint experience. The MDR is dinning for the masses (Still very good in my opinion) and the specialty is just a little step up, say like going from Outback to Ruth's Chris, both very good for their niche market.

As stated above, if you don't like something, send it back and try something different...

Not really an Outback fan and love Ruth Chris, so great analogy. Thanks.

1 hour ago, mom2mybugs said:

Our steak in giavannis was one of my best meals ever.   Service was wonderful.   I like the mdr...im not picky...but to have a specialty meal or 2 was really nice.   It was a little "special" thing that made the trip better.   We could have survived without but im really glad we did giavannis and chefs table.  Jane 

That is a great thought. Thank you!

1 hour ago, Floski said:

I agree.  I love eating in the MDR.  IMO (which with a fiver will get you a nouveau cup o' joe), it's a great venue - the food is excellent, and if I get something I don't like, I just get something else.  The waiters do their damndest to please you (I still can't get my wife to put a clean, cloth napkin in my lap and call me "sir").  My wife thinks that I grill the best steak she's ever had by far, so why go to a steak place?

That said, we will probably do First Night Done Right, and also hit up Sabor for lunch.

 

 

So funny. If you ever figure out how to get that done, publish it-you'll be rich! Thanks for your input.

There have been so many varying opinions about food and it is certainly a subjective topic. We have been on 5 cruises and always used the MDR (and fortunately have never been disappointed). Sooo....are the specialty restaurants really THAT much better than the MDR? We are cruising again in May on Adventure OTS and will be considering the dining plan. Thanks!

1 hour ago, cruise-y said:

Just boarded Liberty and I can report there is nothing in the fridge and no bottles of water on the vanity.  So it looks like this practice has been stopped. 

The 12-pack of Evian I pre-ordered and paid for is here. 

Thanks for posting. Now stop it and go enjoy your cruise!!!?

14 minutes ago, cruise-y said:

Thanks Skid.  I want to see this practice stopped.  Since I am sailing 1 day after the mandated stop, I will be curious to see if it actually happens.   I hate to be jaded, but somehow I doubt they can institute this mandate that fast, especially after they promised it July 1 and it didn't happen.   I'll let you know what I discover.

I think the room stewards remove the water when cleaning, then the fridge/bar checkers come in and find them missing so they bill.  It's a process that doesn't work, obviously.

Enjoy your cruise! Please do report back.

Got a call from RCCL executive office within hours of sending my e-mail. She apologized profusely (and seemingly sincerely). Said that the new no bottle plan WILL be in effect fleet wide starting tomorrow July 15. Said they had originally decided to leave those bottles of water in the cabin when they eliminated the contents of the mini bar, but "obviously that did not work out well". Reiterated that there will be an order form left for those who want to order.
Because I wanted an e-mail response, I did not give my telephone number or past/future reservation numbers in my email. That means they had to do some research to find my number. So although I did not end up getting a written response, I am, in fact, impressed with the extra effort they put in to find my number and contact me so quickly.
So, fellow cruisers, please post here after next week to let us know if this issue is truly resolved. TIA

5 hours ago, Sarah said:

I was on Indy last week.  Two bottles of Evian up on a high shelf - not touched.  Also received 2 bottles of "other" water, left on the side with a Crown & Anchor compliments tag (first cruise as Emerald so I guess a perk) - these we used

No account statement left on last night / morning - have always received this in the past.  Didn't have time to go to the desk to query it.

RCI emailed my friend her account statement and charges included $6 for one bottle of Evian.  She has queried the charge and is being refunded

I had to email and ask for my account statement and I wasn't charged

Very odd

Thanks for posting, Sarah. I just sent an email to Michael Bailey:

THAT, I think, everyone can agree with!

36 minutes ago, rjac said:

Thanks Matt. 

For the first choice, are there discounted pre-paid drinks cards available or will they be? And, yes, I understand why this is being tested. 

I have mentioned this before--since we are not big drinkers and would not get the value from a package, we would love to have a pre-paid drink card that is sold from the start (typically they only sell those for the last few days of a cruise). That would work for us even if it wasn't discounted, just to be able to pre-buy. It would eliminate a sharing problem, actually increase revenue and not take any sales away from those who do want the full package. They do it for coffee, why not for drinks?

2 hours ago, jce2 said:

Still waiting for sales that include January sailings, but the other day I thought I saw something out here that would effect my budget......I know they have sales form time to time on the Deluxe Beverage Package.  Am I correct that typically they do NOT put the Soda package on the same sale?

 

I have not personally seen the soda package go on sale on the cruise planner. However, the price on the planner, $8.50 pp/per day, is way less than purchasing it on board ($11.99 if I remember correctly). I suggest you get it in advance via the cruise planner. If the prices does get lower after that, you can cancel and reorder. We already got it for our May cruise, thus providing protection against any possible increase.

27 minutes ago, rjac said:

Matt,

Read your article regarding the drink package test. Also, Fox News online had a write up about the test today. One question I'm sure a lot of us has is, what if a member of a couple does not drink alcoholic beverages and the other cabin mate does? Doesn't seem right that the non-drinker would have to purchase a drink package also. 

Matt-- I, too would like your thoughts on that. Thanks.

2 hours ago, jticarruthers said:

In their defense they really aren't lying to you, corporate just has no idea what either the left hand or the right hand are actually doing onboard ship. So many of their policies are completely inconsistent across different ships and sailings.

Respectfully disagree. I was told it was a "corporate decision" to change the policy on July 1st. If corporate failed to get that out to all ships there is no defense. It's on them.

23 minutes ago, cruise-y said:

Nonetheless, because we have empties from the pre-paid package in the trash, we inevitably get charged for those 2 extras.  I guess the cabin steward just gets confused.  I always have to call to fix it and it's really annoying, because they do act like it's a "courtesy" rather than a correction.  I think RCCL just assumes most people won't bother with 2 incorrect charges for $4.75 each or whatever it is.

Absolutely ridiculous (Royal, not you cruise-y). I may just email them again and if they aren't living up to what they told me about stopping this despicable practice I will consider cancelling the cruise we have booked for May. That may seem like an over reaction, but I hate being lied to!

2 hours ago, FManke said:

I'm assuming this means that there is water placed in the cabin, and is charged to you if you drink it? I guess some would assume, if it's just sitting around , it's complimentary?

58 minutes ago, FManke said:

I guess better to ask it to be removed to avoid any possible charges. But, I'm sure this isn't fool proof, but should help.

The mini bars are empty. However, they were putting 2 bottles of water on the vanity and then billing for them after debarkation. Either the cabin steward or someone then moved or removed them and a bar staff inspection started the billing process. They were supposed to stop leaving those water bottles on July 1, and just leave an order form, but it seems that may not have happened. 

29 minutes ago, Matt said:

I got hit with this.  $5.84.  Just called RC this morning to rectify the situation.

Easy enough to fix, but seems odd it happens this frequently.

So much for them doing away with the bottles and the charges. I guess when they called me from "Michael Bailey's office" immediately after my complaint to say the policy will change on July1, they were just flapping their lips to appease me.

3 hours ago, arebee said:

In December on Oasis and May on Majesty, the fridge was empty.

Yes, the fridges have been empty for a while, but they were leaving 2 bottles of water on the vanity and then charging for those after debarkation.

Can anyone that has gotten back recently please post here to let us know if they were charged post cruise for unused water? And if Royal truly did stop putting the bottles of water in the cabins? Thanks.

4 hours ago, RCVoyager said:

RCCL had a Reggae band on the Pool Deck last June on the Adventure of the Seas.  Has this changed? 

Yup, we were on Adventure in May and there was a band by the pool a good amount of the time.

57 minutes ago, craig403 said:

I have often thought that buffets were counter productive to hand sanitizer when people go in to lunch.  When I'm serving my plate I think of all the people that have already touched that serving spoon.  I bring my own sanitizer for after I sit down to eat.  Yep,,I'm a germophobe.  I don't even like to touch the chair to pull it out and don't even get me started on menu's.    

This got off topic.  Sorry.  

Too funny. My daughter always talks about the menus, but I never thought about the chairs! Darn!