New to RCI

I am a seasoned cruiser but will be taking my very first 14-day RCI cruise on the Splendour later this month. I chose these two 7-day btb cruises because of a fantastic itinerary and great reviews. I am doing this btb Med cruise from Venice and have a few questions.

1. Bottled water - I like a certain mineral water. Is there a limit of how many bottles I can take on board? How about juices or soda?

2. How much wine can you take on board? My first cruise will end in Venice. If I get off the ship after the first seven days, can I bring more wine on board as I have paid for 2 cruises?

3. Is it possible to buy a bottle of liquor at the bar or from room service for the cabin? Is there a menu on the RCI website? All I found were the packages.

4. When the cabin service is excellent, I usually tip extra on top of the pre-paid gratuity. Should I tip the room steward at the end of the first cruise or wait until the two cruises are finished? I am staying in the same cabin for both cruises and assume that I will have the same steward for both cruises.

5. Is the shampoo/condition in the cabin of good quality? I don't want to overpack my suitcase.

6. Any advice for this RCI newbie would be appreciated. Thank you.

I am a seasoned cruiser but will be taking my very first 14-day RCI cruise on the Splendour later this month. I chose these two 7-day btb cruises because of a fantastic itinerary and great reviews. I am doing this btb Med cruise from Venice and have a few questions.

 

1. Bottled water - I like a certain mineral water. Is there a limit of how many bottles I can take on board? How about juices or soda? Technically, no other beverages besides two bottles of wine can be brought on. However, they frequently don't enforce the rule.

 

2. How much wine can you take on board? My first cruise will end in Venice. If I get off the ship after the first seven days, can I bring more wine on board as I have paid for 2 cruises? Two 750ml bottles of wine per stateroom per cruise. You can bring on 4 bottles on the first cruise of a back to back.

3. Is it possible to buy a bottle of liquor at the bar or from room service for the cabin? Is there a menu on the RCI website? All I found were the packages. No hard liquor can be purchased for your stateroom.

 

4. When the cabin service is excellent, I usually tip extra on top of the pre-paid gratuity. Should I tip the room steward at the end of the first cruise or wait until the two cruises are finished? I am staying in the same cabin for both cruises and assume that I will have the same steward for both cruises. Your choice.

 

5. Is the shampoo/condition in the cabin of good quality? I don't want to overpack my suitcase.

 

6. Any advice for this RCI newbie would be appreciated. Thank you.

Answers in RED above.

The shampoo is NOT great....usually, it's some kind of bodywash/shampoo/ shower cleaner combo....not kidding! Bring your own hair products if you are female. Men don't seem to care much! If you happen to get small bottles of stuff, it's usually a shampoo/conditioner combo. That stuff is awful!

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4. When the cabin service is excellent, I usually tip extra on top of the pre-paid gratuity. Should I tip the room steward at the end of the first cruise or wait until the two cruises are finished? I am staying in the same cabin for both cruises and assume that I will have the same steward for both cruises.

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I can offer suggestion to number 4. If your cabin attendant isn't leaving at the end of your first week then I would wait until the end of your second cruise. You might to ask him/her if they will be there during your second week.

We were on two B2Bs and each time even though we had the same cabin our cabin attendants left after the first week because their contract was up.

We were on two B2Bs and each time even though we had the same cabin our cabin attendants left after the first week because their contract was up.

Yes! This happened to us too. Our steward's contract was up the last day of our first leg. We saw him in the terminal on turnaround day. :)