CanadianMAG

If we had a later dinner would we miss any shows?  Or is it best to do the early one?

I looked through the forum and seeing some conflicting information / confusing information. Here is my plan and my questions. Please tell me what I might be missing.

We are flying in to Orlando June 23 land about 4pm (cruise is June 24), on June 28 we will spend 3 days at Universal and then head home we MIGHT add a day in to Epcot. Flight home on July 3. Normally when we go to Universal we rent a car gives us more versatility.  Family of 4, 2 kids 11 and 16.

Our plan is to get to Port Canaveral and stay the night there. It appears to make more sense to not rent a car at the airport since we'd be paying for parking at $25 a day plus the rental fee while on the cruise.  We plan to get a Uber from the airport, I see that it can cost anywhere from $75-150. Is it really that much of a span?  I am not a fan of shuttles; we hate waiting forever for people, unless there is a shuttle that you suggest that would bring us to our hotel with minimal wait.  Whats the best way to get from hotel to port? or is it dependant on hotel?

Now the question is, after the cruise what's the best way to get back to the universal area.  We haven't booked our hotel yet, we'd stay in Bonnet Lake area near the Disney gates (thats our typical go-to area).  I priced out on Costco (with very limited research) we can get a SUV for $293 with Budget prom Port Canaveral to the airport.  Is it easy to get picked up by the car rental places at the port and brought to get the car?  or would we be Ubering it again?

I am looking to save some money, but willing to spend a little to avoid the hassel of waiting around, packing up luggage a million times. Some family members have limited patience 🤣

11 minutes ago, shipgeeks said:

Many family-friendly beverages can be had free of charge (juice, coffee, tea, iced tea, etc.)  On a big ship there will be some rides and activities for which there is a charge.

thank you! we only drink water, juices and tea. We are not pop people, so this is good to know.  

thanks again

thank you! this was helpful. 

We took a break from cruising when we had kids. They have always loved our annual Mexico, Jamaica and DR trips,  now that our boys are older (10+15) and they claim "all inclusive beach" vacations are for old people.  We returned from Universal Orlando last week and they loved it after being away from there for about 4 years. We thought we would try a cruise. We were looking at the Oasis class ships since there are a lot activities for them.  

I can figure out the staterooms I want that is easy (ocean view balcony X 2) but what I cannot figure out is what's included.    I saw there dinner packages, you have to pay extra for dinner now?   Where do I find what activities are free, and what costs extra money?    I am not partial to any cruise line, i thought Royal Caribbean looked like it would be the most fun (non-disney) but if I should look elsewhere let me know.  tips are not included anymore?  

Is there a link somewhere that's for us people who haven't cruised in 15 years, so much has changed.  What can't I find a page that breaks this down easy for me.  🙂  

On 6/9/2019 at 4:51 PM, Dunner said:

 

Flight Medic555 and davwe81---if you are comfortable with this ????-----could you give me the contact info and phone number of your T.A.? You can email me at dunne99@yahoo.com.

Me too please.  I'm having a difficult time connecting with a knowledgeable TA. Michelle.miles77@gmail.com 

2 hours ago, MisterBill99 said:

 

Excellent choice -- we love Silhouette! Be sure to eat at the Lawn Club Grill. And avoid Concierge Class cabins that are underneath the Oceanview Cafe.

 

In terms of perks, the best "bank for the buck" is the drink package. If you wait until next week (Thanksgiving/Black Friday sales) you will probably be able to find an online travel agent offering free tips and OBC in addition to the free perk from Celebrity.

Thank you! I will wait until next week!  There are a lot of rooms left still so I guess it will not hurt to wait a week.

Question, can the OBC be used towards an excursion booked with the cruise line.

UPDATE:  we have decided on a S-class  silhouette  9 day southern Caribbean!  

Now that is solidified just working on seeing what room we want and if it makes sense for the prepaying perks - and of course finding the best TA.  I am glad we now at least know where we are going!

1 hour ago, Lady Arwen said:

We've sailed on both Summit and Rotterdam.  Summit is an M class ship and does not have the glitz and glamour of the S class ships.  Summit is due for a re-fit in early 2019, so I'm sure it will have a newer feel.  We always found the service and food to be very good in both the MDR and in Blu when we sailed in Aqua class.  It's a smaller ship, so you never have to deal with line- ups like you do on the larger ships.

 

Rotterdam is one of the older HAL ships and is very traditional HAL decor and feel.  Lots of wood and brass and nautical art.  I personally would not recommend this ship if you enjoy a more lively atmosphere, especially after dinner.  Very low key entertainment.  Rotterdam is showing her age, but is dearly loved by folks who are loyal to the traditional cruise experience.  A much older clientele is the norm. 

 

I would recommend Summit over Rotterdam, but probably recommend an S class ship over the M class.  Have you considered the newest ship in the Celebrity fleet......Edge?  Very innovative, modern and some unique surprises.  Sorry, I'm not totally familiar with Edge's itineraries or if they would interest you.

The Edge was almost double the price so we decided against  it. Thanks everyone  for opinions, it is helping.

9 minutes ago, miched said:

All of the Caribbean Islands are basically the same.   

 

Seeing that that you are from Seattle I would suggest a Alaska Cruise.   Big advantage is that you won’t have to fly to the port.   Celebrity and HAL both cruise there so you could try both.    It was one of the nicest cruises we have done.   There are a lot of different type tours take and things to see and do.   They also had a snorkeling tour using wet suits.   It really isn’t freezing cold and the main thing is you are on a cruise.  One of the main advantages is that it is the USA and your cell phone will work and the ports are safe.  Another is the it always seems to be day time.  It is still light outside at 3am.  

 

We mostly do the Caribbean but the East Coast/Canadian Cruise and Alaska are our favorite.

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

Alaska is not an option, I am from the West Coast of BC, I grew up in a town  that ships used to go to.  I have seen the scenery that a paid cruise has to offer for free my whole life. I also worked for a small local airline and would often take flights along the coast, so I have seen everything by sky and sea. Thank you for that option - but I just would not enjoy it 😞  

I need a little help I don't know where to start. 

DH and I have been on 3 or cruises before we had kids. Once we had kids we stopped (been about 12 years).  For the past 12 years we have done AI mexico trips and Disney world annually.  DH and I like good food, great wine great service.  When going to land resorts, we typically get suites and swim up rooms.  We like nice things, we are no party people and we like to eat - but we like familiar foods.   We do like good nightly entertainment we will usually do one or two  excursions a trip, but that is starting to stop as we feel like we have done them all.

We are looking at a few things for our trip in May which will be DH and I.  Punta Cana at a AI resort, the only reason we are not going there is the travel time from Seattle is crazy.  We want to stay away from Mexico this year. So we were looking at a cruise. We have narrowed it down to two and I really don't know what to pick. Do we want to go to ports we have been before but a nicer ship? or do we want to go to new places on a different type of ship.  My other hesitation on cruises are only so many times you can snorkel go on catamarans, go visit distilleries, coffee plants  etc.  We also just got back from Bora Bora and are afraid we won't be blown away by the water.  

Our choices - Summit Aqua Class (its about $100 more than the concierge class).  Grenada would be the only new port for us.  The ship would obviously be new for us to explore. BUT we leave from Puerto Rico which would mean a similar travel time as Punta cana 

Option 2 - Rotterdam HAL - in a Vista Class room all ports will be new we leave from Tampa. Stops are in Key West, Costa Mata, Mahogany Bay, Santo Tomas De Castilla. This ship is smaller although we like the Zeiderdamn 10 years ago, our traveling style has changed.

We also don't want to be charged for everything!  The only thing we drink is OJ and coffee at breakfast and water through the day and wine at dinner.   NO pops or cocktails.  DH LOVES room service, we often book hotels based on the room service menu.

I would be open to feedback and maybe even questions asked that will make me thing of something I never had before!

My husband and I just came back from Bora Bora. It was a hard decision for us to decide whether we were going to take a cruise with Paul Gauguin or just stay in some over-the-water bungalows. We decided to just Island hop. Now that I'm home I really really want to go back but I know that was a one-time trip. I love everything about this Cruise Line. I haven't researched other similar Cruise Lines very much however I'm wondering if there would be something similar to this in Hawaii? Or would it not be a comparison? I've been to Hawaii before it's beautiful but really no comparison to Tahiti but if I can't go back to Tahiti maybe something closer to us would work? Thoughts.

Uncle just came back from the Windstar in the Caribbean. That's Cruise Line sounded very appealing but I've been to the Caribbean too many times.

5 and 10. My 5 year old is a little bit of a dare devil. Neither child would be allowed on the balcony though.

How old are the kids? Most of the balconies, have either metal bars or glass partitions making it difficult for any child to fall over.

My kids are 10 and 5 so we wouldn't be able to have them across the hallway. I don't think my husband would be too fond I'm sleeping on the inside cabin with one of the kids either

Virtually all ships have Balcony Cabins but the other side of the corridor are the Inside Cabins. If you book opposite rooms go for "no upgrades" and you will be really close together and save cash.

 

Regards John

First aide kit. We always use it on every trip. This is our favourite

https://amzn.to/2GmKaN3

My husband and I loved cruising. We had kids we didn't feel like cruising was the best option for us. Mainly because of the cabin space. So we moved on and did all inclusive travels or hotel travels. When we travel the four of us usually get two bedroom suites we like our space. My hesitation on getting back into cruise traveling is the size of the rooms. We cannot afford a suite which would be the best option for us. How do other people travel with two kids when they like room? I thought would be to get to adjoining rooms because we would want a balcony and that would require us to get to balconies. But then I'm nervous about having a balcony for the kids. I don't know I'm sure I'm not the only one with this dilemma. Thoughts?

Please don't say it doesn't matter you don't spend much time in your cabin anyways. We actually do, our kids go to bed early ( on vacations too) and we just like the space.

We do two big trips a year so we are very aware of the time we spend in our room.

We have this one and love it

https://amzn.to/2Gb7dai

We have this one and love it!

https://amzn.to/2Gb7dai

We have this one and love it

https://amzn.to/2Gb7dai

Thanks! I did notice I had more choices in April for cruises. Which we can go then too. We travel in April/may every year for the past 13 years. The weather will work for us.

Never will do Alaska. I grew up on the very nothern tip of Vancouver Island and have been up and down that coast many many times by boat, sea plane. I would spend money on it . Lol

I am planning our 10 year anniversary trip in May. I have no clue where to go. We have traveled the last 7 years with kids and have never been away over night away from them. DH And I have cruised 3 times in carribean and love HAL. We've been to Jamaica resort stay and I have been to Punta cana without him 8 years sgo. Hawaii several times, peurto rico. I'm torn between a cruise or a carribean destination. Top 2 places are Punta Cana or st. Lucia. We live in Seattle I have a budget of 3500 with flight. I don't want a 100% sitting around relaxing. Probably 50/50. If We select a resort I don't see us venturing too far from resort so it must have a lot of activities. Must have is good food. We are not much into parties . I nice glass of wine (or rum) is our thing. I'd love to hear some ideas. I'm overwoverwhelmed with choices especially since I don't know whewhere to go. On a cruise it's a must have balcony and maybe Suite.

LLM, did you take Godreys tour when you took that picture or your own tour that brought you up there?

I like your picture better

I have 2 favorites

St Thomas

Thanks for making me laugh. I had a rotton day and I honestly cannot remember the last time I laughed so hard

Ziggy you crack me up!!!