TheRobinsons Posted August 5, 2022 Report Share Posted August 5, 2022 Hey, Thanks for this awesome blog and boards, I am sure they are going to be very helpful for us in these coming months. Even when booking the cruise I was so confused about what was included, what was not, and now I have all these dining options and drinking options to choose from. 1. I chose the my time dining, do I still need to choose a time every night (paid gratuities in advance, but will of course give more at the time if the service is good). Do we have to take additional dining and drinks, or is there enough 'complimentary' items to keep you alive? Haven't really been able to find a concise list of what is included and what is not. 2. Are you allowed to bring drinks and snacks on board from the ports 3. Do you have to get off at every port, or can you stay on the boat, follow up, when you get off, do you have to do a shore excursion 4. Does it cost extra to go to the onboard shows and movie screenings 5. If you don't opt for a drinks package, are drinks very expensive, same kinda question, if you dont opt for a dining package and do fancy somewhere some night, is it terribly expensive? Explorer of the Seas in July 2023 is when we are going if that holds any relevance/information J. x WAAAYTOOO and KristiZ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spang1974 Posted August 5, 2022 Report Share Posted August 5, 2022 1. You can choose a time every night in advance on the Cruise Planner before you sail, or just show up and wait for a table. 2. Sealed prefaced snacks allowed, YMMV on other food. You should be fine bringing an open can or bottle of coke/water back with you, but no to other drinks. 3. You can totally stay on board, it's your vacation. 4. I cant think of any on board shows or movies that cost extra, its usually activities/experiences that cost extra, like escape rooms, fly, dining, etc. 5. Drinks run between $3.00-13.00 plus 18% from the states. Really depends on how much and what kind if you want a drinks package. KristiZ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChessE4 Posted August 5, 2022 Report Share Posted August 5, 2022 You'll get a lot of replies, so I will just say that you don't have to exit at ports if you don't want to, and there are restrictions on what you can bring on the ship. Matt has a lot of videos for first time travelers you should watch. We find the complimentary drinks are fine, and we pay a la carte for soda or alcohol if we need to. Have a great cruise! KristiZ and Spang1974 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FJ28 Posted August 5, 2022 Report Share Posted August 5, 2022 Plenty of included beverages(non carbonated, non alcoholic). Multiple choices of included food. You will do just fine if all you did was pay for the cruise and no added extras. Shore excursions are nice but not necessary! Welcome to the boards and enjoy your vacation! WAAAYTOOO and Spang1974 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRobinsons Posted August 6, 2022 Author Report Share Posted August 6, 2022 Thanks all, I just don't think any of the cruise lines make it overly clear what you get when you book, then suddenly there were all these additional options We have been talking about a cruise for years, so now we are on the countdown to one :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berkeleykel Posted August 6, 2022 Report Share Posted August 6, 2022 I would make up a tentative schedule and book your MTD slots as soon as the option opens in the cruise planner. That way when you show up for dinner your wait should be minimal and you’ll likely be given the same waitstaff and even same table throughout the cruise even if you don’t book at the same time each night. Then if you want to tip extra you can bring cash tips on the final night of dining for the waiter and assistant waiter who you’ll have gotten the chance to get to know throughout the cruise. You can get envelopes from guest services for the tips or your steward may leave some in your cabin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokeybandit Posted August 6, 2022 Report Share Posted August 6, 2022 As a general rule, the included drinks are anything except drinks that: are carbonated, come in their own bottle/can, or have alcohol (or could have alcohol) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordell1 Posted August 6, 2022 Report Share Posted August 6, 2022 On the subject of shore excursions, you can either book a Royal Caribbean excursion, a 3rd party excursion, or none at all. Each port is different in terms of how to evaluate what is best for you. Royal excursions are often more expensive and crowded but have the advantage of a guaranteed return to the ship on time - they will wait if something happens. 3rd party excursions are often cheaper and better but do not have the guarantee above Often, you can just get off and find your own fun. Some ports are in a city/town or close to a beach - if not you could just take a taxi. I would recommend spending time at the shore excursion section of this website to get ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRobinsons Posted August 8, 2022 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2022 On 8/6/2022 at 2:52 PM, berkeleykel said: Then if you want to tip extra you can bring cash tips on the final night of dining for the waiter and assistant waiter who you’ll have gotten the chance to get to know throughout the cruise. You can get envelopes from guest services for the tips or your steward may leave some in your cabin. Does cash have to be in dollars? On 8/6/2022 at 3:09 PM, wordell1 said: On the subject of shore excursions, you can either book a Royal Caribbean excursion, a 3rd party excursion, or none at all. Each port is different in terms of how to evaluate what is best for you. Royal excursions are often more expensive and crowded but have the advantage of a guaranteed return to the ship on time - they will wait if something happens. 3rd party excursions are often cheaper and better but do not have the guarantee above Often, you can just get off and find your own fun. Some ports are in a city/town or close to a beach - if not you could just take a taxi. I would recommend spending time at the shore excursion section of this website to get ideas. Awesome, thank you so much. I think we will book a 'RC Excusrion' for Athens, as it is further away than the port, but i think everywhere else stops in a little town, or near to one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
berkeleykel Posted August 8, 2022 Report Share Posted August 8, 2022 If the cruise is originating from an EU port euros or dollars should both work fine. I think we did a mix of both during our cruise from Venice depending on what we had on us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRobinsons Posted August 8, 2022 Author Report Share Posted August 8, 2022 Yeah we are Ravenna > Kotor > Corfu > Athens > Mykonos > Argostoli > Ravenna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lugnut Posted August 9, 2022 Report Share Posted August 9, 2022 My personal opinion (it's worth TWICE what you're paying for it…): When you get to Mykonos, take the ferry to Delos and tour the ruins there. YMMV. We booked an excursion thru the ship but you can apparently do it somewhat on your own. https://www.davestravelpages.com/visiting-delos-island-greece-mykonos-to-delos-day-trip/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALnAtlanta Posted August 9, 2022 Report Share Posted August 9, 2022 On 8/6/2022 at 8:52 AM, berkeleykel said: I would make up a tentative schedule and book your MTD slots as soon as the option opens in the cruise planner. That way when you show up for dinner your wait should be minimal and you’ll likely be given the same waitstaff and even same table throughout the cruise even if you don’t book at the same time each night. Then if you want to tip extra you can bring cash tips on the final night of dining for the waiter and assistant waiter who you’ll have gotten the chance to get to know throughout the cruise. You can get envelopes from guest services for the tips or your steward may leave some in your cabin. One can't tip nightly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teddy Posted August 9, 2022 Report Share Posted August 9, 2022 1 hour ago, My3rdAct said: One can't tip nightly? Sure. I don’t think there are any truly hard and fast rules about tipping ALnAtlanta 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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