SA Mom

We have baileys every morning.  The cheapest I’ve found the beverage package (without Vroom) for our July sailing is $47. 

I didn’t have a problem with $17 for refreshment package.  That’s in line with what  we usually pay.  But to offer something one day at $47 regular price and then offer it at 25% off the next day but the price is the same at the regular price is something else.  We’ve always purchased the deluxe plan and I had never seen prices do this before.  I price through cruise planner.  

I started watching the prices on all bev packages since we booked.  I got the refreshment package for the kids for $17, supposedly 40% off onboard prices. Yesterday it was priced at 10% off totalling $17.  Weird.  Then went to book our deluxe bev package.

Yesterday, it was not on sale at $47.  Today, it’s on sale (buy one get one 50% off, so 25% off each) and it comes to $47.  So they raised the price to about $62 in order to give a “discount.”  Talk about deceptive trade practices.

We opted out of a package this trip.

We have an uncle that was able to stream his games while on a transatlantic repositioning cruise. It only cost him $4000. Yes, four thousand dollars.

This may have happened at one time in the past, but it isn't currently being advertised. We took advantage of the BOGO50 sale and when you bought one premium pkg, you got the 2nd premium pkg at 50% off. This is the only time I've seen something like what you're asking about.

I'll also add that the BOGO50 on beverage packages only applied to passengers in certain staterooms. Our interior cabin for two did not qualify.

The kid issues were the definitely the lows and highs. They were so good in some places and so bad in others.

The evening entertainment in particular the song and dance shows were not good at all. The had an awesome and funny magician on and only offered a one time 7:00 show. it's like I said in my review. That part of the cruise just seemed off. I can't figure out why they scheduled it the way they did.

 

 

I'm really looking forward to the Liberty arriving. I just hope they don't take away from the toddler area to make room for the new slides (which look awesome btw) like they did on the Navigator to make room for the Flowrider. Looking at the deck plans, it appears to me at least the H2O zone is going to stay.

I agree with the problems with the pool. My daughters kept saying they wished they could go in the adult area. They were shocked to find out that the adult area was just as crowded as the the main pool. RCI lists 10 pools on this ship, but they are really more like spa sized.

When we initially booked, the girls were disappointed that there were no slides.

Also, the scheduling of entertainment was strange. We never saw the magician because we were at dinner. We were on My Time Dining, but the times available for a table of 6 was either 5:45 or 7:45. We ate at 5:45. It took us 2 hours every night, and that is not a complaint. We truly enjoyed the dining experience every single night. We are foodies and this was our chance to try things we never would have tried.

We caught the 8:30 shows. They were fine, but nothing fabulous.

We were on the Navigator last week. In addition to those mentioned above, the staff held a speed climbing competition on the rock wall.

We were given bottled water with the premium package. We figured we needed to drink about 5 a day to break even. It also included shots of Baliey's in our AM coffee.

None of the packages include the special drinks in the pineapples they sell by the pool.

on our last trip in aug 2013.

we had now problem finding a chair. has in become more difficult situations since then?

 

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My guess is that it is worse in June and July. Many private schools in Texas go back to school the second week of August and public schools start having practices during the first week. I would imagine the pools are busier with more kids aboard.

We were on the same cruise. Yes, tons of kids, but they were awesome. I really enjoyed them, especially the boys at the end of our hall way. They were a mess and made me laugh everyday. Their poor parents looked a little frazzled. My in laws are frequent cruisers, but always off season for the best deals. They could not believe the number of kids. True, cruising used to be an adult thing, but now it is a family trip.

In general, the pool area is just too small for summers coming out of Texas. The actual pools were packed with people. It was hard to get in and out of the pool. I didn't pay attention for a toddler area, but that is a great point. Those little ones need a place to run around.

The other issue we had is trying to walk/run on the deck 12. It was way too crowded. We opted for running on Deck 4, until we saw the sign that said not to run there.

Most everyone seemed dressed for dinner. I noticed very few in shorts and flip flops. However, I wasn't paying attention.

I think it took us about an hour and 45 minutes from exiting Studio B to getting into the car at EZ Parking.

I was on Navigator July 26-Aug 2 and did not experience any of that behavior. Just goes to show how different everyone's experience can be.

If this is your first cruise on RCI, I would stick to Main Dining. The food on Navigator is amazing with a menu that changes daily. They will bring you as many items as you would like to try.

I think we got it on day 3. It was very small.

We just returned from our very first cruise on Navigator. The Pool area was crowded and finding a chair was an issue. One thing that would help is if they would provide some sort of cubby holes for teens. They spend all their time in the pool and just need a place to put their stuff. I told our 14 year olds to share a chair since they didn't sit in it. When we were by the pool, they put their belongings on our chairs.

Then there is the grandmother that is guarding 5 chairs that go unoccupied for hours while another more elderly grandmother stands to the side watching her grandchildren. Ugh!

I finally said to the guard, "This lady is standing here and needs a chair, you have five. Would it be alright if she just sits until your family returns?" She agreed. Sure enough, no one returned to those seats before the older woman left for her cabin.

We purchase trip insurance whenever we have a large outlay of money that we could not get back if we cancelled: airline tickets, some sort of package deal, etc.

Age has nothing to do with it.

We are looking for a Parking Company for our upcoming cruise out of Galveston. I see good reviews for lots of places. Has anyone use Discount Cruise Parking or DCP? They have a special right now, $45 for the week.

Thanks for the info everyone. The original poster made it sound like one would be completely out of touch without internet or some sort of mobile plan. I am looking forward to being some what unreachable for a week.

We will be cruising for the first time this summer with my in-laws that cruise several times a year. Question: how do people get in touch with you in case of a real emergency? Is there some sort of emergency number?

I also have an elderly parent that I am the primary contact for. We go camping in places that have no internet or phone service, so a week without is fine. But we always have a way for someone to get in touch with us if absolutely necessary.

To clarifiy, our rooms are not connecting with our kids. We are next door and at age 14, Royal let us book it that way.

We booked our teens (both 14) in their own cabin. Our travel agent said Royal allowed it so we booked it that way. We have three cabins in a row with the teens in the middle, us on one side, and the grand parents on the other.

However, we are considering shuffling the booking so that we have an adult in each cabin and could bring another 2 bottles of wine aboard.

This story sort of creeped me out a little. It reminded me of the story a few years ago of an 11-year-old girl molested on a DCL ship in the elevator by a staff member. That was about 2 years ago.

We will be enjoying our first cruise this summer. We are frequent guests to Disney parks. I think of the cruise similarly to being at Disney. You are not in a crime free bubble and maybe even more susceptible because you let your guard down when there.

We used citymaps2go. It was great.

There is a travel agency here in San Antonio that offers mystery trips. It mostly caters to retirees and they have a blast. The agency tells them what to pack and they show up at a designated place at a designated time. My mother booked several of these. Once they ended up in the north east for fall foliage (we are from Texas and don't really have seasons) and another time it was the Blue Ridge mountains and Biltmore. They usually let them know if it's air or bus travel.

I think a mystery cruise would be a great idea!

Thanks to all. I just wasn't sure if there was anything specific to look for in each port (like glass in Venice or lace in Brugge). We were in Montego Bay for our Honeymoon many years ago and the only thing we brought home were coffee and booze. I'm hoping to branch out this trip.

We set sail on our first cruise next month. What have been some of your favorite souvenirs? Besides alcohol, what items are particularly good deals? Items you've treasured for years? Things teenagers purchased and still enjoy?

I have visions of us coming home with a bunch of cheap crud and thinking, "Why did we buy this?"

Our ports are Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Falmouth.