capriccio

If you do find one that offers a shuttle (most seem to only offer shutlles from/to the airport) it will most likely require a per person payment. With 8 people make sure you do the the math comparing that price to 2 Uber XLs (at least that is what we needed for 8 in Fort Lauderdale last summer) before deciding your best option.

I'm not @lx200gps but I can answer that question. Princess no longer assigns check in times and the entire process, once they open the doors (usually by 11 am) and you get through the initial security, is very quick. Try to fill out your information on the Medallion app before arriving at the port (if you run into issues, don't panic since staff can help you at check in). It is even a few minutes quicker if you have had the Medallion delivered to your home. In July we (a group of 8 including 2 kids) arrived at the terminal around 11 am and waited maybe 10 minutes to get through security. After security those with the medallion go through the green line and those who need to pick up the medallion or have other issues go through the blue line. DH and I were in the green line and hardly slowed down. Our kids and grandkids were in the blue line and met up with us within 10 minutes and we all boarded the ship together. Enjoy your cruise!

A wise decision. Best wishes to you and your family and I hope you all have a wonderful cruise!

In the 15 years we've sailed out of Port Everglades (most recently in July 2023) T4 is the first stop because the road from Eisenhower Blvd. is one way entering the terminal area. It passes the garage,turns right for the drop off for T4 and then curves around to left for T2 and back out to Eisenhower Blvd. Now in many of those years T4 was only used very sporadically (we embarked Princess ships once and disembarked on another Princess ship once and I'd occasionally see a Celebrity ship docked there) but now T4 had a major makeover is and is dedicated to Disney that home ports one of their ships in Port Everglades.

We seldom take Princess excursions so I find the rolls calls extremely useful for joining and/or organizing private tours with like minded passengers. We've had some great successes both joining and organizing them.

If the shuttle makes multiple stops, the Disney terminal (#4) is closest to the Renaissance. It and terminal 2 (Princess) share a driveway from Eisenhower Blvd. It is also before the security check point so I am 99% sure you would be the first stop.

We have little knowledge of how Facebook works because we've never joined for a number of reasons. This discussion just added another reason to the list. Thank you.

Now that there is a dedicated Signature restaurant, I presume the suite breakfast no longer takes place in one of the specialty restaurants. Is that correct? If so, how does the experience compare (food, service, menu flexibility) with the specialty restaurant suite breakfasts? Thanks.

Wasn't that comment about closed loop cruise requirements? The OP is on a Fort Lauderdale to San Juan cruise. In that case a valid passport is required but the question is the length of validity and is 6 months a requirement of RCI or a recommendation?

So true but as someone who lives just up the beach from Fort Lauderdale, here in south Florida spring break season is the entire month of March with the highest number in the middle of the month. We will not drive anywhere near the beach in March. We learned that during our first year here when it took forever to get down A1A (the beach road that separates the beach from the hotels and restaurants) because of jaywalking beach goers. Once they got to the beach, in some areas it was standing room only!

I noticed you are new to Cruise Critic (welcome!) so you might not be aware of all the different forums. There is a forum specifically for each cruise line where questions and comments by that lines past, present, and future cruisers are posted and answered. The RCI forum is https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/51-royal-caribbean-international/ Post your concerns there and ask if anyone has been on your specific itinerary with a US passport with less than 6 month's validity. This type of question comes up with some regularity (last month it was an itinerary on a different cruise line that included stops in Panama and Honduras if I remember correctly) and posters who had just completed that itinerary were able to give a knowledgeable response.

That State Department website identifies if the country is part of the WHTI and the accepted alternative (to a passport) documents in the Entry and Exit requirements section. They also include a warning that a passport is required if having to fly back to the US in an emergency. For example in the case of Barbados: Those traveling to Barbados on a cruise may use another Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) compliant document. However, we strongly recommend visitors obtain a passport before travel in case of an unforeseen emergency that requires a cruise passenger to disembark and return by air.

This itinerary is not a closed loop cruise. According to the Department of Homeland Security (https://www.dhs.gov/western-hemisphere-travel-initiative) U.S. citizens on closed-loop cruises (cruises that begin and end at the same U.S. port) are able to enter the United States with a birth certificate and government-issued photo ID. Please be aware that you may still be required to present a passport to enter the countries your cruise ship is visiting. Check with your cruise line to ensure you have the appropriate documents.

1) You can confirm the general requirements by country on the US State Department's website: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages.html 2) Get it in writing from Royal Caribbean that is only a suggestion, not a requirement of the cruise line and be ready to show that at check-in if necessary. 3) In a worst case scenario (RCI insisting on an expiry date more than 6 months away) this qualifies as Urgent Travel. Get an appointment and the passport(s) will be issued the same day. See https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/get-fast.html and https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/get-fast/passport-agencies.html#Map of Passport Office Locations. 4) As far as visiting US territories or returning to the state, it is only required that the passport have not expired before the day or re-entry. Good luck!

When in November? If it is the first weekend, that is the International Boat Show (Oct 30 - Nov 30) and everything will be booked and getting a hotel room and an early check-in may be very difficult and expensive. Then at the end of November the weekends book ending Thanksgiving week are busier and more expensive than mid-month. In any case, if you have loyalty status with the hotel chain you chose that may help (it works for us but DH has the top level status with Hilton). Otherwise, as @CruiserBruce says you should be able to drop off your luggage.