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My Royal Cruises - the new alternative to the Cruise Planner


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There have a been few threads about the new GUI so I thought I'd share my experiences and identify a few nuances to the new interface.

In general terms I like the new interface and it has some new features.  Iit flows much better compared to the old cruise planner such as when checking out and paying which is so much easier in My Royal Cruises.

There are some differences that are catching some users off guard who are used to how the old cruise planner works.

Over the next few posts I'll post some some tips and warnings of what to look out for.

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Some of the notable differences are with dining plans.

In the old Cruise Planner dining plans included gratuity.

In the new My Royal Cruises it appears that dining plans display a lower price however gratuity is added during the checkout process.

In my experience comparing sale versus normal prices for the same ship on cruises before and after My Royal cruises is implemented, the price is effectively the same.

However some users who booked something before My Royal Cruises was implemented for their cruise may see a lower price expecting gratuity to be included so they cancel their old purchase.  As they check out using My Royal Cruises they suddenly come faced with the gratuity added as a separate line item.

If you bought something during a sale in the old Cruise Planner don't get fooled into thinking the new lower price you see in My Royal Cruises is a better deal.  Once gratuity is added you may find yourself at a higher price if you bought a dining package while it was on sale in the old Cruise Planner.

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Another notable difference has to do with shore excursions at Royal's private destinations.

It seems they have begun applying local taxes during the checkout process.

As far as I can tell this tax rule only applies to Royal activities.  Third party excursions are not subject to the tax, at least not yet.  

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For items like Voom the old Cruise Planner made it more cumbersome to understand multi-device plans.  You basically had to select the right plan but be careful not to select more than one guest in a cabin.

Going forward with My Royal Cruises you can select multi-devices plans as you first pick Voom.

2101693739_MAVoom2ScreenShot2021-04-22at7_43_25AM.thumb.jpg.bb3ca707fa5d6c5b395fd804173ab1a1.jpg

 

Once you select how many devices you want you are ready to check out.

661222_MAVoom1ScreenShot2021-04-22at7_43_43AM.thumb.jpg.d368f403d0c81a732dfb29bc75294fa0.jpg 

 

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Like the old Cruise Planner there is an order history for previous purchases.

You can cancel items you have already purchased.

2040867427_MACancel1ScreenShot2021-04-22at7_58_21AM.thumb.jpg.705fd8a460d4f9cad621ce5f48ff1b50.jpg

A cancelled item remains in your order history.

2145630872_MAorderhistory1ScreenShot2021-04-22at7_45_20AM.thumb.jpg.aab04e5059aca5c9135b1bffb957f38f.jpg

 

In this example I had purchased a Scuba dive without equipment then cancelled it and rebooked it with equipment.

My order history displays both the cancelled activity and the newly booked activity.

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When you come back to look at something later you can see your purchase by using the "See order history" link.  It's also marks the activity "Reserved" so you know you already booked it.

749471966_MAbooked2ScreenShot2021-04-22at7_44_54AM.thumb.jpg.0d61623649bf6c442d70c10301d48ff1.jpg

Note the current price is $64.99 but looking at my order history I paid $45.90 ($40.99 plus tax).

493428825_MAorderhistory1ScreenShot2021-04-22at7_45_20AM.thumb.jpg.b1017d6b03513c28a884561510019641.jpg

It is very easy to see the current price and to find out what you paid. 

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In my case my Mariner cruise doesn't allow booking entertainment because reservations are only used on specific ships, Oasis and Quantum class.

578129805_MAEntertainmentScreenShot2021-04-22at7_55_25AM.thumb.jpg.aef9815fdd5ac4ee80571129974284b8.jpg

Interesting that Navigator is included in their list of ships where you can book entertainment.

Things that make you go Hmmm.  

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For the Ultimate Dining Package here is a comparison of the old Cruise Planner pricing versus the new My Royal Cruises pricing.

 

In the old Cruise Planner the price displayed included gratuity.  In this case it was $87.

 

1593214010_MACPChanges13.thumb.jpg.b7d7c4e22ac59fc7421dbf0e015338ef.jpg

 

The pricing did not change in your cart.   

 

418302807_MACPChanges14.thumb.jpg.a813d3179e021571f8a0ae9503b759db.jpg

 

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The two big gotchas are:

  • Anyone who booked certain items in the old Cruise Planner and now may think they see a lower price in My Royal Cruises but gratuity is added separately.
  • Taxes at Private Destinations.

To that end if your cruise still uses the old Cruise Planner and you are thinking about a Cabana or any Royal excursion you may want to buy it now before your cruise is migrated to the new interface where taxes may apply.

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  • twangster changed the title to My Royal Cruises - the new alternative to the Cruise Planner

I sure wish they would deploy this to all sailings. When RCG combines Haines AND Skagway into one day, though two different port stops, I wish they would make it two different landing pages for each port. Instead, they combine both stops into one landing page, and you have fish through which excursion goes with which port. If you try to uncheck the box for Haines or Skagway, the page refreshes back to both port checkboxes checked. Nevermind all the broken .gif, .png, and .jpg. See below. The form, fit, and finish of the cruise planner are seriously lacking, but we all know that here.

image.thumb.png.b3f1845ce0cba8afb04244ce3dc838c2.png 

 

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On 5/18/2021 at 7:04 PM, twangster said:

Some of the notable differences are with dining plans.

In the old Cruise Planner dining plans included gratuity.

In the new My Royal Cruises it appears that dining plans display a lower price however gratuity is added during the checkout process.

In my experience comparing sale versus normal prices for the same ship on cruises before and after My Royal cruises is implemented, the price is effectively the same.

However some users who booked something before My Royal Cruises was implemented for their cruise may see a lower price expecting gratuity to be included so they cancel their old purchase.  As they check out using My Royal Cruises they suddenly come faced with the gratuity added as a separate line item.

If you bought something during a sale in the old Cruise Planner don't get fooled into thinking the new lower price you see in My Royal Cruises is a better deal.  Once gratuity is added you may find yourself at a higher price if you bought a dining package while it was on sale in the old Cruise Planner.

I've experienced a loss of a link to Air2Sea.   Only seeing a phone option.  I prefer surveying options before I speak with an agent.   I was able to access a link from the Azamara site which allowed me to look for on-line air quotes for Royal, X, and Azamara.  

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