Introduce yourself!

[WAAAYTOOO 9,965]

Welcome, Stacy !!

[Matt 9,788]

My name is Stacy (mrskhodak).  My husband and I LOVE cruising!  Just don't get the chance to cruise as often as we would like.  Our next cruise is May, 2016 on the Oasis of the Seas!

Welcome Stacy!

[lildawgscottFL 191]

Welcome aboard, Stacy (and her husband)! I love the Oasis! Judging by your cruising history, so do you!

Feel free to ask us all anything. Here to help.

[KJSherry 2]

Hello, my name is Kevin and my wife is Renee, we live in Southern California and will be taking our first Royal Caribbean cruise this coming April. We will be be on the repositioning cruise from Tampa to Barcelona along without cousins from Minn. looking to connect with any other cruisers who will be on this trip.

[lildawgscottFL 191]

Hello, my name is Kevin and my wife is Renee, we live in Southern California and will be taking our first Royal Caribbean cruise this coming April. We will be be on the repositioning cruise from Tampa to Barcelona along without cousins from Minn. looking to connect with any other cruisers who will be on this trip.

Welcome aboard, Kevin (and Renee)! A repositioning as your first Royal cruise! Sounds like a blast! Which ship?

 

Feel free to ask this group anything! Such a great resource!

[Matt 9,788]

Hello, my name is Kevin and my wife is Renee, we live in Southern California and will be taking our first Royal Caribbean cruise this coming April. We will be be on the repositioning cruise from Tampa to Barcelona along without cousins from Minn. looking to connect with any other cruisers who will be on this trip.

Welcome Kevin and Renee!

[Mandykat9270 0]

Hello- My name is Amy. I am from Ocala, Florida and Im sailing with a large group of legal support specialists on the Brilliance of the Seas on April 9th. This will be my 14th cruise, but only my second with RC. The last one wasnt too great. I am hoping for a great time with a lot less incidents of generator failures, power outages, hamburgers and hot dogs for 2 days :)    I think I will be getting the premium drink plan this time around, has anyone done it and its it worth it?  Thanks.

[WAAAYTOOO 9,965]

Welcome, Amy !!!

[lildawgscottFL 191]

Welcome aboard, Amy! :D B)

Ah, the old drink package debate. Can AMY drink enough? That's the only real question. Every other answer is subjective. If you can drink an average of 7 a day, EVERYDAY, then get it (the "average" is based on the quantity of drinks, as well as the price of the drinks you enjoy). I consider myself a professional drinker. I drink nearly everyday. I got the Premium Package on Freedom last October. In the end, it worked out in my favor. However, there were days I was worried it wouldn't. The experience gave me new insight.

• Do you have a lot of port days?
  • Don't get it.
• Conversely, do you have a lot sea days?
  • Get it.
• Do like beers?
  • Don't get it. The lower price will make it harder to break even. At $5-$6 per, you'll need ten a day.
• Do you like premium spirits like Hendricks Gin or single malt Scotch?
  • Get it. The higher price makes is much easier to break even. At $12 per, you'll need less than 5.
• Do you like the idea of having the freedom to do whatever, whenever, and even if you lose out a little, it's still worth the peace of mind?
  • Get it.

You get the idea?

My typical cruise day: (1) I would have Bailey's with my coffee to start the day. (2-3) I would have a pina colada or frozen margarita poolside (or both). (3-5) I would have a cocktail or two at R Bar before dinner. (4-6) I would have wine with dinner. (5-7) I would have an after dinner drink. (6-8) I would have a drink at the show. (8-11) I would have a drink or two (or three) during the evening festivities. So each day, I was somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 drinks.

But, that's a sea day! If I had to be off the ship by 8 am, I'd miss the first 3-4 drinks. And, if you drink while in port, you might miss even more when you get back (because you're already buzzing nicely). Remember though, in the end I did win. There were party nights which helped to make up for the sea days. And again, I drink top shelf, so that helps. As did my wife.

Final point. On the other hand, we're about to board Enchantment in 5 days, 3 hours, 6 minutes, and 7 seconds (but who's counting?). We are NOT buying a package. We're testing an idea: Drink as freely as we did on Freedom and see what the price comes out to. If it's less, no more packages. If it's more, packages. Got it? However, there is one exception to this. We've already decided that we'll be getting a package in April of 2017 when we sail on Navigator. Why? Our Canadian and British friends are joining us, and they can drink!!!! So, we're fairly sure we'll win that one! ;) (In other words, your sailing buddies can also help determine how much you'll drink.)

Hope that helps.

[Matt 9,788]

Welcome Amy!

[atmuma 13]

Hi everyone! After how long now,I've finally got on the message boards. I know a lot of you from Periscope. I'm atmuma there as well. My name is Angie and I'm from Milwaukee, WI. I have a 11 year old daughter and we are somewhat new to cruising. We've sailed twice on DCL and are looking forward to our first RC cruise this summer to Alaska. I'm starting to prepare for it, so I'm sure there will be lots of questions coming about both RC and Alaska. Nice to meet all of you!

[WAAAYTOOO 9,965]

Welcome, Angie !

[Jerel 358]

Welcome Angie. I think you'll like it here, very knowledgeable folk. Not too hectic either, relaxed.

[Matt 9,788]

Welcome to the boards Angie!

[lildawgscottFL 191]

Welcome aboard, Angie! :D B)

[ken_nyc 1]

Hi, we are Ken & Gaye. Started cruising in 2002 with Carnival and tried Royal Caribbean in 2007 on the Mariner of the Seas and loved it and have only sailed with Royal Caribbean since. Cannot wait for our Harmony of the Seas cruise June 26, 2016!!

[WAAAYTOOO 9,965]

Welcome, Ken and Gaye !

[Matt 9,788]

Hi, we are Ken & Gaye. Started cruising in 2002 with Carnival and tried Royal Caribbean in 2007 on the Mariner of the Seas and loved it and have only sailed with Royal Caribbean since. Cannot wait for our Harmony of the Seas cruise June 26, 2016!!

Welcome!

[lildawgscottFL 191]

Welcome aboard Ken and Gaye! I'm so jealous you'll be on Harmony before us! I'm busting! We have to wait until January. :-( But, at least we get to go! Woo hoo! :-)

[Todd 224]

Hello everyone my name is Todd. I am from Boston Massachusetts but for the last 15 years I have been living in SE Asia, 7 years now in the Philippines. When I lived in Boston I did many cruises, as it was a easy short hop to Florida and the other East Coast Cruise Ports. When I  moved here to Asia cruises were very limited, so I spent most of my time doing other trips. But over the last few years RCI has seen that the Asian market is very large and is a great profit center.

 

So I got back into cruising in Asia and really only one company with many choices RCI. It is also fun introducing my Reynaline to cruising as it is brand new to her. I have traveled to every country in western Asia (except North Korea) so now time to change back to cruising.

[bcarney 880]

So I got back into cruising in Asia and really only one company with many choices RCI. It is also fun introducing my Reynaline to cruising as it is brand new to her. I have traveled to every country in western Asia (except North Korea) so now time to change back to cruising.

 

Welcome, and thanks for your interesting perspective on cruising in Asia!  When I'm finally able to retire I want to do an Azamara cruise in SE Asia...at least that's the plan right now. :)

[lildawgscottFL 191]

Welcome aboard, Todd!!! :D B)

[Haddonqueen943 0]

Hi, We are Brad and Linda from the uk, We have just booked our 1st RCI cruise on voyager of the seas in October. We have cruised with P&O in the past and a few other lines.

[WAAAYTOOO 9,965]

Welcome, Brad and Linda. Happy to have you with us !

[lildawgscottFL 191]

Welcome aboard Brad and Linda!