HBE4

4 hours ago, BSocial said:

     I’ve come to expect negative postings  to every thread about Galveston Port expansion. 

 

     It would be nice if people would be happy for the Galveston cruisers with the news of a new terminal and an Oasis class.   I was happy for cruisers from Miami when their new terminal was announced.   Why do folks want to diminish others’ joy? 

I don't think people are hating on Galveston.  At least I'm not. Just pointing out that it's not the most convenient  for air travelers. The fact that Oasis-class is coming increases the passenger capacity by 50% so the demand is there. Hopefully there will be some additional itineraries and longer cruises. I have family in Houston so I'm sure I'll be sailing from there again & I'm looking forward to it!

6 hours ago, Goodtime Cruizin said:

Whether you accept it or not, each week 1,000s of people fly into Houston and board ships out of Galveston. Thousands. There will be 1,000s more when the new terminal is completed. 

I don't think anyone is saying that it's impossible to fly-in to Galveston, it's just not as convenient as other ports for air travelers. Lack of one-way car rentals deter people like me. I like to fly in a few days early for a pre-cruise vacation & have a car makes it easier. But to leave the island to return the car 30 minutes away, then Uber back is an unnecessary hassle, especially  when hauling 10-12 days worth of luggage.  Maybe that will change with the new terminal. Fortunately I had my daughter in Houston to drive us in.

Galveston is considered a "local port" with mainly drive-ins. My last cruise, close to 75% (3,000 out of 4,000 passengers) were from Texas. When I cruise from Florida, I'm meeting people from all over the country and world.  I kind of like that. That's not a knock against Texas either. One of the reason I'm hesitant to sail from Jersey is that there are too many NY/NJ people (I'm born, raised and still live in NY state).....it doesn't feel like I'm on an exotic vacation when someone wants to "axe me a question"

8 hours ago, Goodtime Cruizin said:

That extra half hour to arrive at a port isn't all that bad and who doesn't mind an extra day of fun while vacationing? It sure sounds like to me that you didn't enjoy what Texas had to offer.  Which is a shame. I tell you what, if you ever make it to Texas again, we'd love to meet up with y'all and extend some good Texas hosptality and show y'all  a good time. I'm very serious and sure would enjoy it. 🙂 

My daughter moved to Houston about 2 years ago and I've been there 6 times since then. Made 2 trips down to Galveston (including one for my recent cruise last month). Probably will visit her 3 more times on 2019 so I may take you up on your offer.

Love the warm hospitality, bouncing around downtown, midtown, near town and all the other towns, love the BBQ, having a beer at an Icehouse and probably the best Tex-Mex food I've ever eaten. Could do without the humidity. And while Astro fan can get a little  boastful (rightly so), they are not nearly as bad a Red Sox fans are to this NYY fan. All you need is a NHL team in H-town.

I've enjoyed my trips to Texas so much I've actually started using words like "fixin" in every day conversation. For my 2019 trips, I'm fixin to expand geographically and visit Austin & San Antonio.

8 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

 

You are comparing apples to oranges.  I'm comparing flying to Florida for a cruise vs flying to Galveston for a cruise.

I have to agree with Bob. If I have to fly to a port - with the extra cost, luggage restrictions, overnight hotel - I'll pick Florida. There is much more variety of cruise lines, types of ships and itineraries. It's the cruise capital of the world.

Right now, the ships & itineraries out of Galveston are limited. That's not a knock against Texas. I could drive 75 minutes south of my house and be in Bayonne NJ and eliminate the flying hassle. But again, my choice of ships and itineraries is limited. I'd rather sail from Florida. I'm actually baffled as to why someone would fly to NY/NJ to cruise, unless they were pre/post vacation in NYC or really wanted to sail Anthem.

FYI - I sail Liberty out of Galveston last month. Great crew, great ship and met a lot of great passengers, mostly from the great country of Texas!

18 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

I met opposition on another thread when I suggested making DL a loyalty lounge for D+ and P  during cocktail hours only and giving D members extra drinks vouchers but still allow them access to the lounge after cocktail hours for coffee.

It's hard to have something taken away once its' been earned.

Having said that, it actually sounds like a great idea. What's the point in having an "exclusive' nightly event when half the ship in eligible to show up?

3 hours ago, heatherb1958 said:

I am sure CC’rs from the other boards regard RCI cruisers as a bunch of raging alcoholics as that is what most of you are obsessed about. One of the reasons we now love MSC is because for us it feels like cruising used to do when we first started.No one is obsessing about when and where they can get their free drinks , constantly moaning .

I think you may have missed the point.  It's not about getting drunk. As you know, you have 3 drinks loaded to your card and can drink just about anywhere on the ship.

The point is not being able to access a lounge that you are entitled to. It's not a party lounge, but a quiet space (I think) where frequent cruisers can meet other frequent cruises while noshing on appetizers and sipping a pre-dinner cocktail.

I'm not even a Diamond and I understand that.

As for moaning, I'm  sure that if you have ever earned a reward / perk / bonus / benefit and were unable to use it, you'd might want to voice your disappointment.

13 hours ago, PhoenixCruiser said:

Some of you are really over thinking this.  We purchased $500 chips each last week.   We went to the cashier and was given 5 $100 promotional chips, a twenty five dollar regular chip and a scratcher each.

 

 

 

Did you win while playing the promo chips? If so, how was the promo chip treated after the win, i.e. did you have to continue to play the promo chip until it was lost or was it replaced by a (I hate to say it) chip that was redeemable for cash?

I am having a hard time believing that you have to continue to play until you lose.

2 hours ago, matj2000 said:

The Liberty in Galveston has started to run its course.

 

Soon it will need to be replaced with something bigger & better..

Once the new terminal is complete, will Royal move all sailings to the new and abandon the old terminal?  Or will it continue to use both?

If it's the latter, they might keep Liberty there full time in addition to Oasis-class.

2 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

 

Unlimited specialty coffee.

 

Unlimited drinks at any bar during the 3.5 hour evening cocktail period.

I would add to that, drinks from the full menu, not the limited C&A menu.

But with unlimited HH drinks at all bars, Royal might start cracking down on sharing the drinks with non-Diamonds. 🙁

1 hour ago, Goodtime Cruizin said:

 

Well somebody is cruising out of Galveston... it's the 4th largest Cruise port in the US now... when they add a 3rd terminal and it could jump another notch. I'm not sure about all of the talk of two day minimums on hotels.  I'm sure it happens on traditional busy weekends but it's the same everywhere else too. In fact, in February, we have a two night min in Miami due to the boat show. My point is there are plenty of weekends that this does not occur.

Is that true? I was advise on the Gulf Coast departure threads that weekends are always a 2 night minimum stay. The info came from Galveston residents so I assume it to be true.

It's usually not as issue for me as I like to have a little pre-cruise vacation from my departure port. But as it turns out, I was sailing the first weekend in November during the Lone Star Biker Rally when the hotels required a 3 night minimum.....and with 400,000 bikers in town, rooms were scarce and expensive.

4 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Newark might even better than Bayonne.

But not Stamford, CT? 😉

On 12/4/2018 at 11:49 AM, BrandFam4 said:

Because I am the classic over thinker, what would happen if we miss our My Time Dining Reservation? Are we on the naughty list? 😉 I made reservations every night depending on port times and activities, but am worried we may have a night where we wish to eat elsewhere or be too tired. And if we are able to will certainly cancel the reservation if possible or planned ahead.

I did the same as you, booked MTD for every night ahead of time.  Missed one night and was 35 minutes late another night. It was no big deal and we were greeted warmly on all of the other nights.  This was on Liberty of the Seas.

On the night that we were 35 minutes late, we fully expected to be told that our table was given away and to go to the end of the somewhat long MTD No Reservation line. Surprised to find out that the table was held for us that long. Usually it's given away after 15 minutes.

2 hours ago, RFerrington said:

Same here.  The last time we were there we chatted with some locals who told us that they will never, ever build a pier; too much local opposition.  Guess we'll see....

I thought the reason was that the pier would damage the reefs?

At least that's what I was told from a guy.....that knew a guy...that had a friend...that knew things.

Maybe combine all of the lounges (DL, CL and SL) into one to relive crowding?

I'm not even sure why there is a suite lounge.  If I book a suite, that room will be my lounge! I'm spending as much time in there as possible. Especially if it's a RSL or Aqua-theater.

28 minutes ago, The Fun Researcher said:

An "exclusive" lounge, due to brand loyalty, is not something I'm interested in.  I'm very much looking forward to the drink coupons though, as that is a true money saver and a very nice incentive for us.

 

I've always been able to find plenty of open loungers and tables at any number of bars/lounges on all of the ships we've been on, yet it's the D, D+, and P's that we hear complaining about overcrowding.   That won't be me when I reach those levels because I just don't care about an exclusive lounge.  I would be happy if they just opened them up to all.

I will definitely take the DL for a "test drive" when I hit D.  Probably more than once just in case my first time coincides with an over-crowded/rude crowd condition.

 I'm more of a bounce around the ship person and usually spend the late afternoons lingering by the pool/Jacuzzi area or Schooner bar/English pub. If anything, I'll probably use the DL early in the day to escape the windjammer crowds. 

As for socializing, I find the vast majority of cruisers to be friendly no matter where in the ship i am. So I don't need an "exclusive lounge" for that purpose. But for those that cruise more frequently than us (a few times a year), having a place where they can bump into other frequent cruisers is not necessarily a bad idea. But that brings us full circle, how to control the ever-growing crowds.

11 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

What I posted is how those on board have described the payouts. 

 

The terms and conditions read different for the tables but Roysl is not following that or are interpreting it differently than most 

Ah, got it!

7 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

 

It seems to me that if you risk the promo chips once, they should be converted to real chips.

Agreed!

EDIT: Then again, I'm more of a slot guy than a table guy.

15 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Very strange that they are paying out differently on slots vs tables.

 

slots, play through once and able to cash out

tables, play your promo chips until you lose.

It is strange. Apparently, I'm confusing the slots T&C with tables T&C.  Let me go back and re-read them one more time.

17 minutes ago, Thorben-Hendrik said:

You only walk away with $1000 and you PAID $1000 - you won NOTHING!

But it seems many people do not even get that

They are a multibillion $ company and can not draft very clear T+C?

If it is coffee shots or gambling the T+C are crap -  their managemet is either stupid or very clever because they know their passengers are stupid!

How stupid is that?

But I guess many of their passengers are as stupid...that is why they get away with it!

I guess it's the T+C I'm struggling with. Every time I read it, I come to a different conclusion. 

I bet if I call RCI 3 times for clarification, I'll get 3 different answers.

2 hours ago, The Fun Researcher said:

This is only going to get worse and worse and in my opinion the special lounges (relating to C&A status) should simply be done away with.  D, D+, and Pinnacles are simply growing in numbers at a rate that it doesn't make sense to create special places for them on the ship.  RCI needs to find another way to reward "Loyal to Royal" cruisers. 

 

The current situation with the lounges is just going to make it more and more frustrating for folks who finally make D, D+ and Pinnacle. 

 

Instead of dedicated lounges, improve the cabin discounts, offer better perks, etc...

Dan

I'm 2 cruises way from Diamond. With my luck, the DL will be eliminated as soon as I get there.....which at my current rate of travel will be in 2 years....or next year if I book a JS. Better enjoy it while you have it!

Either way, improved cabin discounts and better perks should be offered. At least make the discounts conbinable with whatever "sale" is going on. If you can combine your 30% off beverage package with the BOGO 50% off (or 25% off), maybe more would buy the beverage package which could lessen the crowding in the lounge.

41 minutes ago, Thorben-Hendrik said:

Again missing the point!

T+C are very clear you have to play them once.... not over and over again! 😡

Has nothing to do with feelings... but as long as passengers will let them.... they will take advantage and earn more and more by taking advantage of the passengers that will let them screw them over..... 🙄

Where is the scam?  You said yourself, you need to play the promo dollars, not lost them.

So I put $1,000 in promo dollars on Red, hit, the dealer gives me $1,000. I now have "played thru" the $1,000 promo dollars and can walk away with $2,000.

I'l take that scam every time!

23 minutes ago, Joseph2017China said:

It's complicated doing business in Cuba.  People who want to go, will go, but this is not a Caribbean resort island.  This is Cuba, and accept it as it is. 

 

Great place to visit, if you are not looking for beaches, swimming with dolphins, snorkeling (all the boats were already moved to the USA). 

All great points. And now I know why Royal uses its smallest, oldest ship.

A friend of mine visited Cuba about a year ago and described it as a "throwback" to pre-1960's Caribbean travel before many of mass-market tourism companies began to commercialize the island with the "canned" entertainment. 

It definitely sounds intriguing & I'd like to give it a try but maybe not just yet.

2 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Web forum behavior is not that different from 10 years ago - the CC "upgrade" is what is keeping traffic down.

Wonder how long it will take for traffic to rebound.....if it rebounds.

As for web forum behavior, perhaps I'm noticing it more now that I'm a registered, contributing member with more time on my hands. 10 years ago, i was basically a part-time lurker in the shadows.

1 hour ago, MSPGuy said:

On Allure now. I purchased the slot credit. Like someone mentioned, you download credit from the card to the machine. Once you do that, you have to play that amount. You can cash out your winnings at any time, but the promo amount stays with the machine until you play through it. Example: downloaded $50 to the machine. First $3 spin won $40. Cashed out the $40 winnings. $47 promo left in the machine I had to play.

 

I was not earning points on any of the pre-purchased credit, since the machine treats it as promo credit. However, after a visit to the casino host, she manually added the points to my account at the 1 point per $5 purchased rate.

That's how it works in every casino I've ever visited in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Connecticut, Florida and Louisiana.

I'm still failing to see how this is an RCI scam. Basically, they are making Casino Royale work like land-based casino's.

Great review, thank you. It's pretty much sums up my Nov 4th sailing as well.