doa70

2 hours ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

Start booking Junior Suites for double points. 

This is the way. In fact we started booking Grand Suites as we worked through from Gold to Diamond. Now that we've made it, we're going back to Jr Suites, at least for a trial. 

The added cost for a Jr Suite over a balcony also comes with added perks. It's partially the perks, and partially an investment and getting more upgrades faster.

Depends on how dedicated to cruising with RCI you are. We do a couple each year generally, so well worth it for us.

So in June I think Oasis is in Bayonne. I mention that because the percentage of people who dress for formal night seems to be tied to the port as much as anything. While there are less people who dress up each cruise we've done, there still are plenty who do. At Bayonne it is less than ports like Ft Lauderdale, but more than Baltimore. There are enough who participate in formal night that those who do NOT dress up are more noticeable, at least to me. No judgement, but just personally I never want to be under-dressed for anything. Don't need to be best either, but appropriate. I think these days a tux is pretty rare, but suits and ties for men is most common. 

Yes, we were right below Windjammer too on Grandeur in our GS. it wasnt't too bad though really. If we go back on Grandeur I would absolutely book a GS again.

19 hours ago, tinkertwo said:

What are the food options on the island that you have to pay for?  That seems odd that they would have an upcharge on dinning.  I want to be prepared though.   

We just got back and I believe Captain Jack's was an extra charge. The Snack Shack was included. We had food from the Shack and it was very good. This didn't surprise us though since food on the island was great when we were there in January as well. It's just burgers or chicken sandwiches in our case, but it was better than I expected! 

We too always book a GS and get the drink package. Honestly, it's just simpler and if you book it right it's not that much more expensive, if at all. The Suite lounge will sometimes limit drinks, I believe 2 per night, as there is a policy in place. Also the choice of liquor may not be what you prefer, for example we like Tito's and always ask for it. With the package the concierge lounge servers will be happy to bring that if you ask. The added flexibility is nice. On Harmony you will have access to Coastal Kitchen for all meals, so no need for the Ultimate Dining package. However on smaller ships we generally have been booking that when available as well.

Having been on Harmony in a GS recently, I can say you have selected an amazing ship for the occasion. The added benefits that come with the GS will make it even more special. I can't think of anything else I would add honestly! Enjoy your trip! 

Oh, and now that you have booked a GS you won't want to go back. Welcome to the club. ;)

1 hour ago, Host Clarea said:

 

Try an_concierge01@rccl.com and/or an_concierge02.rccl.com

 

 

 

Well it looks like those might have worked. I waited some time after trying - and I used both addresses - and so far no bounce back. 

Thank you!

5 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

 

What email address did you use?

Hi, 

I used "an_concierge@rccl.com" as indicated in the spreadsheet. I received an "address not found" message back. 

It looks like the concierge email in the spreadsheet for Anthem may have been changed since my email to it bounced this morning. Does anyone have an updated email for the Anthem concierge? We will be suite guests and first time as Diamond, so not sure which concierge we will be assigned. I was hoping to contact them a couple of weeks ahead of our cruise for a special request.

thanks!

We did this trip a couple of years ago around this time of the year - late Sept to mid-Oct sometime - and really enjoyed it. It's likely to be colder obviously so maybe hoodie/jeans weather. I'm generally prepared with this plus t-shirts i would wear under a hoodie so I don't really double pack for different weather. As the weather gets colder seas do tend to be a bit rougher. If you're a seasoned cruiser though it's generally not bad at all.

Hi,

I've seen a bunch of threads here regarding car services around the CT/NY/NNJ area, but not sure those are the best options in our specific case. Has anyone had good experiences with a service coming from farther south in NJ, specifically the Ocean County area? We've always driven, but are considering trying something different for our next trip in December and are looking for some input.

thanks!

Put us on the "loved Anthem" list as well. It's very different than the rest of the fleet as others have pointed out, but we enjoyed that. With most of the fleet being so similar it's nice to have an option that while still familiar is also unlike the rest. We still love the other classes as well, especially Oasis, but we have no complaints about Anthem and are looking forward to sailing her again later this year.

I noticed the concierge emails seem to be not coming as far in advance as they used to. Like observed here, only a couple days ahead now vs almost a week previously. One issue we had recently on Anthem was that our concierge claimed to not be able to book a cabana at Coco Cay even though online that section was reserved for suite guests / D+ and could only be booked by the concierge. That stop was cancelled due to weather anyhow, so it ended up being a non-issue. However we didn't appreciate the confusion!

I searched RC’s website for 7 night Bermuda cruises next year and can’t seem to find any. All that comes up is a 5 night on ATS and GTS. Does anyone have any information about this?

Really not a big fan of the five night to Bermuda. We did one one last year and we basically ended up with an afternoon and the next morning docked. Hard to plan a beach day around that. Definitely prefer the seven day we did to Bermuda a couple of years ago. Docked for a couple of days, plenty of time to hit the beach, Dockyard, and ferry over to Hamilton or St George.

I'm all for loading books on a tablet and I do see people reading from kindles which is great.

See, I can't even do this. I want to be disconnected so much I bring one book with me for the trip. Generally I don't even pick it up until day 4 when I start to feel guilty about not reading it after I bothered packing it. I blame 25 years in IT (so far) for my desire to avoid tech to such an extent while on board.

My question is why do you get the WIFI package and what do you do with it?

My wife and I have never purchased the wifi package on any of our cruises. We have received it for free on a few cruises and it definitely took away from the vacation. We only started cruising in 2011 but I miss those first couple when wifi on the ship wasn't a thing. We boarded, the phones went right in the safe, and they came out maybe for 5-10 minutes if we hit a US port where we didn't need to roam on another carrier's network. Now with the day's schedule from the Compass on the Royal app, the past couple of cruises we basically carried our phones with us. Not to mention they also act as cameras for the trip. I definitely like this less than the way it was - disconnected.

We just returned from a cruise on the Adventure of the Seas.

<snip>

Turned out that this cruise had more older people (70+, not that there's anything wrong with that) than we had ever seen on Holland. Could be it was because of the destination (New England), not sure.

We've been on eight or nine Royal cruises, all out of NJ and FL. The New England / Canada cruise had the highest average age of any by far. Strangely there was also a newlywed couple in their 20s on that cruise as well. They took some ribbing.

I was having this issue. I found that with the new site I need to use my email address to login, not my user id I had been using. That was a week or so ago that I figured it out finally.

Completely agree with Merion Mom. Just got back on Anthem and never went to the main / my time DR. Coastal is fantastic. As for the other restaurants, they are all great if you want to hit a couple. Wonderland is a great time and everyone should try it once. The filet at Coastal is every bit as good as what Chops had, something to consider. As for booking shows and activities, reserve them as soon as you can. Don't wait on the concierge for that.

I have to agree, Chops wasn't up to par on Liberty last month. I get much better steaks from Omaha Steaks to be honest. I'll probably skip it in the future.