traveln2c

I’ve been having a problem for weeks now. I usually use Tapatalk but it’s not working with cruise critic. The cruise critic app is not working and on can’t get anywhere on the cruise critic web site. 

I did read that in USA it’s mexican but was Indian in Europe, wife likes Indian I will not eat it , have done navigator 3 times always Mexican but always USA , our last navigator was late last November. Indian Indian food is now big in Dallas area

As I said, I was lucky that I like Indian. Actually, I don’t think there is a good I dislike but I definitely lean toward spicy.

Patti

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We do live in Texas but that’s my wife’s least favorite , we done all of rccl specialty restaurants many many times except Sabor

Just a heads up. Last year when I cruised on the Navigator, I booked Sabor because it was Mexican. When I boarded the ship I received a call from the restaurant to advise the it was not Mexican but Indian and it would stay Indian until they left Southampton as a port. Good thing I also like Indian food.

Patti

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On our navigator cruise last November diamond lounge had a real nice buffet with nachos and other Mexican food during happy hour , much nicer than food in concierge lounge.

The buffet is really nice. I came back to the ship after a full day of touring in Lisbon and didn’t really feel like going into a restaurant for dinner so I made the food in the club dinner.

Patti

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So is buying a coffee card worthwhile?

Hi Diane, while I’m late to the discussion on coffee,in my opinion, I don’t think any of the drink packages are worth buying unless you are a massive drinker. If you are Diamond, you have the lounge for coffee and for drinks and you also get 3 free drinks during cocktail hour at the bars. I’m not a big drinker, so I typically don’t even drink my 3 free drinks. I usually have 1 at the bar and then take another into dinner.

Patti

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We are on the Explorer of the Seas next month and Ovation of the Seas in November. Other than free drinks, what do you get in the Diamond Lounge?

 

 

 

Diane

I usually have breakfast there (nothing hot) and they typically have nibbles at cocktail hour.

Patti

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I am planning a Norwegian fjord cruise out of Southampton this summer. The plan is to fly into London a couple of days early to see London. We plan to stay at a hotel near Heathrow and would like to utilize the RCCL transfer to Southampton on the morning of embarkation for convenience. Since we will be flying in two days early, how do I arrange this transfer? I imagine RCCL will want my flight information, thinking I'm flying in that morning, but that won't be the case. Will the transfer give the option of leaving flight information blank?

 

 

 

Similarly, at the end of our cruise, we plan to do the Stonehenge excursion with RCCL and take advantage of the drop off at Heathrow. We plan to stay at the same airport hotel that night and will fly home the next day. I, again, imagine that RCCL will need my flight information for this excursion, but if I put that it's the next day, will that mess things up?

 

 

 

I've never done post-cruise excursions or used a cruise line transfer when not flying in the day of embarkation/disembarkation.

While I have not checked recently, in the past RCCL has charged about $100/person/transfer for their transfers. At that rate, I would look into a private car service which charges for the type of car not per person. For my last cruise out of Southampton, I paid a total of 248£ which covered Heathrow to Central London, Central London to Southampton and Southampton back to Heathrow. Each segment is priced individually. I use Blackberry Cars (blackberrycars.com) and use them every time I am flying into London.

You have nothing to lose by asking for a quote.

Patti

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Havent sailed Royal in the last few years, but will be on the Freedom soon and remember the crown and anchor booklets with coupons in them. Do they still have them? Are they now on Seapass...think that is what I heard?

 

Do they include any drinks?

 

Thanks!

Royal no longer uses physical coupons. Depending on your level you get different things ranging from some free or discounted internet, a specialty coffee and some wine. I am a Diamond Plus but from the time I was Diamond, I also got 3 free drinks at almost all the bars during cocktail time. It doesn't include the type of scotch that I usually drink but I have found something else that I like. Usually, I have only 1 of my 3 and whoever I'm traveling with or have made friends with benefits from my others.

Patti

So when it says "Buy one beer, wine, soda - get one free" - that is just a one time thing. It isn't going to happen every time I purchase, right? So every time my husband buys a beer, I don't get one free :):)

Yes. Depending on your level there is typically, a one free glass of wine as well.

We board next Sunday. Are there separate lines for loyalty status? Do they adhere to the check in times selected online! We have a 11.00 to 11.30 slot so hopefully that won’t be too busy.

 

 

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Yes, their are lines for loyalty status, as well as for suite guests. I also had the same time slot. The ride from the hotel to the port was shorter than anticipated so we actually got to the port just before 11AM; no problem.

Enjoy your cruise.

Patti

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I have done a number of Barcelona embarkations. Most have gone smoothly but one or two have been chaos, very much in line with above.

 

 

 

When things go wrong or the perhaps the usual guy in charge doesn't turn up to work, ground crew do seem clueless on how to manage things properly.

 

 

 

With Symphony, I understand 2 terminals are used. So it is possible for some to have a really good embarkation experience and others to have a really bad one.

They do use 2 terminals. The problem with that is at the end of the cruise. I had a car picking me up and there is no way for a car service to know which side you will exiting; B or C. The side you go to is depending on what number your exit luggage tag is. I was able to call my car service

& tell them.

On a good note for your luggage pickup, they use a numbered luggage carousel similar to that used at airports; again the number is based on your exit luggage tag. Unlike the airport which seems to just throw your bags on a carousel, these are place nicely with the ease of removing the in mind.

Patti

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Evidently whatever was wrong with earlier checking in has been solved. Check in for the April 21st cruise was easy. Yes, no iPads and we had to go to a counter but that wasn’t bad either. No additional picture was taken. The picture I uploaded was used.

Patti

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Boarded yesterday.

 

Complete joke !!!

 

You stand in the car park (rain or shine - and yesterday it was raining heavily).

 

A few guys collecting luggage and within 10 yards you have 2 checkin lines.

 

All this exposed to the weather.

 

Everyone just pushes foward because theg dont know what to do and it is every man for him or herself.

 

Royal or the port staff need to sort this out as really poor first impression.

 

At least split the lines properly. Bag drop then a decent space before the std checkin line and then another for diamond and up.

 

Yesterday we had people just climb under the rope barriers and it was a farce.

 

Once under cover you fo through security screening.

 

Then you have the long line of checkin desks.

 

We got the most poorly trained staff member ive ever encountered anywhere. The staff member next to us checked in 8 families while we were stood waiting with zero communication from a girl clearly outnof her depths.

 

Now, they have dozens of checkin desks and ALL guests then have to walk along the row of desks to get to departure area - can you imagine all those guests trying to get down a 3ft wide passageway - at the same time non checked in guests are trying to cut across to reach their desk.

 

For those wondering about staff with ipads - forget it.

 

Photo submitted before you get there? Nice but its taken again.

 

Dint forget the health form thrust into you hand (no pens) just as you join the allocated line.

 

A total disaster of a checkin for us.

How disappointing to hear about your experience. I wonder what happened between your experience and the easy experience that occurred for someone else last week.

I hope the balance of your experience is better, along with mine this coming week.

Patti

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I am also on the upcoming cruise on the Symphony out of Barcelona. On the newer ships, if you uploaded your picture when you did online check-in, they have personnel walking around with iPads to check that you are who you say you are, etc. I know that on the Ovation & Allure, I basically walked right on board the ship after they checked my identity.

Not sure about the App as I just saw that they have a new App which I downloaded. My setsail pass shows up once I sign in but I don't see the picture that I uploaded. Guess we will all find out when we get to the ship.

Patti

With regard to Royal. If you find a better rate either for the cabin category you booked or better you can get a refund. That being said, there is no guarantee that you will get your same cabin if that is what you want. You actually have to cancel your original reservation and make a brand new reservation. They do not transfer any money paid, it is refunded and then you pay the deposit again. All of this is if you cancel & rebook prior to final payment which puts you automatically in a penalty phase of your original reservation.

Hi. The family Jr. suite is set up with an additional passageway door so the you can basically have two cabins together. I don’t remember anything different about the suite. A Spa Jr. Suite has an additional half bath which is nice if you are traveling with someone else. Don’t remember the other Jr. Suites and that is what I stay in all the time.

If you haven’t stayed in a Jr. Suite before, you should expect a walk-in closet, robes and upgraded toiletries.

Patti

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Patti. I sent you an email. I was able to recover your last email that you wrote.

Mary

 

 

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Got it. Will write you when I get home.

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Hi Patti. It was a nice surprise to see your post. I’m back up and running. We are cruising from Vancouver BC to Sydney in Oct. and then spending four days afterwards in Sydney. We are doing two segments of the cruise as we wanted to see parts of Polynesia. This cruise has lots of sea days which we love.

 

How wonderful for you to be able to do a land tour in Australia prior to your cruise. We had considered staying over for a land tour but in the end decided to save that for another trip. I really wanted to go to Kangaroo Island. I hope you have a wonderful time. Thanks for posting.

Mary

 

 

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When in October will you be in Sydney? Maybe we will be there at the same time.

Patti

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Has anyone experienced Quantas Air recently. We can book them using partner air miles but we only have enough for two economy tickets. I would like to upgrade to economy plus but they are not available. We do not have enough for business. I’m a little nervous after reading some reviews but we are not so concerned with the food as we could bring our own onboard from the terminal.

 

How are the seats and the service and cleanliness?

Impressions?

Thanks

Mary

 

 

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Hi Mary,

How are you? When are you headed down under? I’m on the November 2nd - Ovation cruise. I currently working on an Australia tour for about 10 to 12 days before the cruise.

Patti

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Although I have not cruised on Celebrity, I can say that what cruiser should wear into the dining rooms and what some of them actually wear can be very different. Other than breakfast or lunch, men are supposed to wear trousers, not shorts. In everything I have read recently, more & more cruisers are getting upset by the lack of the enforcing of any kind of dress code. While I do not want to be forced to bring cocktail dresses or gowns for any "formal" night, I always wear nice pants (although sometimes those are very nice jeans i.e. no holes, rips or fading) and a nice top and I don't believe a man should be forced to wear a tie or jacket.

Just my opinion here.

Patti

Hi all,

 

I'm a seasoned cruiser but I would like to take a cruise on my own but the price is almost double as soon as I try to book for one. Does anyone have any tips or ideas? Or do I just have to suck it up and pay?

 

 

 

I've recently became a Diamond Member with RC, not that it means much but still.

 

 

 

Thanks,

 

 

 

Paul.

Good morning Paul,

I am also a solo cruiser. Most of the major cruise lines went to charging double for the single traveler several years ago. Other than my Diamond Plus discount, I usually try to book my next cruise while I’m still on a cruise as the rates are much better. If you like river cruises, some of those cruise lines offer single fares or are still offering 1.5 times their current rate.

Patti

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Do you like the Specter folders over the older ones?

Although I have not used them as yet, the only difference is the fabric & sheerness. I am a type A personality to be sure and am usually packed long before my trips. With the sheerness I can easily tell what is in each cube or envelope.

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Have you tried the folders?

 

 

 

https://shop.eaglecreek.com/packit-original-garment-folder-medium/d/1325C2574?CategoryId=211

I’ve used the cubes & the folders for years. I just recently purchased some of their new cubes & folders, the Specter series, which are made of even a lighter material which a sheerness to them. Some of the cubes are compression cubes.

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Where is the best place to buy these packing cubes??

 

 

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Eagle Creek cubes can be purchased directly from them, Container Store & at Amazon to name a few places. Tripped Travel Gear I found on Amazon.

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Anyone use packing cubes? I'm considering buying some but wanted some opinions.

 

Do they save space or just organize?

 

Thanks!

 

 

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I have been using packing cubes & envelopes for years. Not only do they keep your clothes organized but help to keep them from wrinkling. If you are concerned about extra weight which is minimal, Eagle

Creek and Tripped Travel Gear now have cubes made of an extra light fabric with are also compression bags. Eagles Creek also using the very light weight fabric makes envelopes and non-compression cubes.

I never really unpack my cubes when I arrive at my destination. I just unzip them and put them in a drawer or on a shelf. Makes it extremely easy to repack when it’s time to head home.

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