HBE4

Agree unless you are dropping folks and bags off at terminal first . If so Stay on Broadway to 22nd, turn left and straight into entrance of terminals .

 

However fairly soon Harborside improvements will be finished , and ingress and egress with terminals are changing. 23rd will become an entrance . No more present 22nd .

Dropping off luggage/family @ terminal #2 (RCI), then parking car at Galveston Park N Cruise at 2514 New Strand. A few questions:

1) From Broadway, can I make the left onto 25th street and go straight into terminal #2 parking lot? Or alternatively, take Harborside drive and turn left @ 25th street?

2) Once I do the drop-off at terminal 2, how easy is it to make a left out of the parking loet onto Harborside to get to Galveston Park N Cruise? Or do I have to make a right and go “around the block”?

Just trying to get the timing down. I expect to be there around 10:00 on Nov 4th. I know its Lone Star Rally weekend but on another thread I created, that doesn’t seem to be much of an issue.

1. Balcony Discount

2. Diamond Lounge

3. 3 Free Drinks

Still an Emerald member with 2 ½ cruises to go before achieving Diamond status (may book a Junior Suite to get there in 2 cruises) and this thread got me thinking about which benefits to look forward to. So, once I reviewed the C&A benefits list, I realized most of the ones I would enjoy the most are at the Diamond PLUS level.

I’m officially bummed now.

Increased Balcony Discount ($225) would have been #1 but as the swinging Thorben-Hendrik mentions, it’s getting harder to use as it’s not combinable. I’ve experience this as well with the Emerald balcony discount ($100).

Probably not the free drinks as I’ll continue to purchase the beverage package. Although the 3 drinks loaded to the seapass card may get me to rethink the math. I usually break-even on the drink package now. It’s really more for convenience than bang-for-the-buck. I like to drink what I want, when I want, where I want and experiment with new drinks.

Diamond lounge. – I like to stay outside as much as possible on a cruise so I don’t know how much I use I get out of this. Maybe on an Alaskan cruise or similar cold weather cruise. I guess I really won’t know until I experience it for myself first hand. I do like a nice, calm breakfast though so this could be a possible #1.

We have so many pic stashed in a drawer somewhere we never purchase them anymore. But Free is for me so #2, maybe

I think my heart is set on Allure or another on Symphony.

 

Harmony seems more expensive.

Symphony - enjoy your favorite features again, maybe get to try a feature you didn't have a chance to do the first time around, plus Perfect Day at Coco Bay & the brand new Miami cruise terminal.

Plus, it's Miami!

All that Allure has going for it is the "revitalized" propulsion system.....and Mama Mia. By the time you sail next year, she'll be the "oldest", least revitalized of the Oasis class.

Why all the hate for the windjammer. I have never had anything bad in the windjammer. It's free food and a lot of it. I loved it the windjammer on Anthem. I don't get the hate.

Food wise, the WJ is fine.I just don't like the crowds or commotion at peak times. When I first started cruising, I'd wander around looking for a table while my food would get cold and/or soggy.

Now I just schedule accordingly. But STILL, often times the DW and I would take turns holding the table while the other would get food. I'd wish they would seat you at table like most land-based buffets.

EDIT: This is more of an issue at breakfast and lunch. The dinners in WJ have always been good and calm.

On Liberty as I type this had Dinner last night in the Windjammer food was good. Sent from my iPad using Forums

Good to know. I'll be there in 4 1/2 weeks.

I guess I’ve always used the words “adjoining” and “connecting” interchangeably. So I learning something new.;)

I’m a light sleeper and twice I’ve has a connecting cabin. First time, I could hear some muffled noise thru the door – mostly the TV – but once in a while a child crying. The second time, not a peep. The young couple next door was very quiet.

One thing to look out for is a cabin next to the service doors used by the crew. You’ll may hear them come and go at all hours of the day and night. The service areas are usually the white space on the deck plans next to a cabin.

Last cruise less than a year ago drink package included 18 year old Chivas regal scotch , if you think rccl prices are high never order a drink in nyc.

Living in the suburbs of NYC, I travel into the city often so I’m all too familiar with overpriced everything.

Heck, even out here in the ‘burbs, the price of drinks are still higher than on the ships. Beer is slightly more or maybe about the same, depending upon the level of divey-ness of the bar.

I love having conversations around the pool bar when people complain about the high price of a drink and I tell them it’s actually cheaper for me to drink on the ship rather than my local watering hole.

I'm not on a cruise now, but the limit varies ship to ship. In the past, for US based cruises, it seemed that the biggest ships (Quantum and Oasis classes) had a $13 limit, and the others had a $12 limit

Got it. Thanks!

Give Royal a year or two, I've already seen $15 drinks.

Do you have the drink package? Just wondering if the cutoff is $12 or $13? It seems to vary by ship. Not that it will stop me for ordering a $14.80 drink at least once a day.

Repricing on same cruise you should keep the booking on board obc. Be aware though that not all discounts are combinable. I was excited to see a lower price than I paid just a week or so ago, only to find out that my diamond discount could not be (fully) applied so I would have had to pay an extra $23!

That's just annoying. There was a thread here a few months ago (when I was still an unregistered stalker) about different ideas on revamping/changing the C&A loyalty benefits. I'm surprised this issue - lack of combining discounts - did not come up.

I had the same situation where if I repriced my cruise, I would have gotten $125 OBC but lost my $100 balcony discount. Granted, in relation to a $2,000+ cruise, $25 is just pennies so I opted to not rebook. But hey, it could have bought us lunch at JR.....or lunch for one at Chops....or a few beers at the pool bar. ...

Thanks!

The English pub, which is the list posted in that thread, has the most extensive beer selection. Most of the common area bars - pool, theater, piano - tend to carry just the basics - Bud, Miler, Heineken, Corona, plus a few other popular brands. The casino may carry a slightly expanded selection.

Bolero's will have a few Mexican beers you can not find anywhere else on the ship. I like SOL but I can only get it at Boleros. And apparently I'm the only person that likes SOL because the staff look confused when I order it.

Or, to give you the short answer, your selection will vary based on bar/ship.

EDIT: Looks like Bob beat me to that answer. :)

We were on the President's cruise a couple of years ago and Michael Bayley came to the Meet and Mingle. He spent quite a bit of time there answering questions. Probably the first question was about making the casino smoke-free. He said that RCI was "looking into it". I call that corporate speak for "no". I'm guessing that some changes will happen, like better pizza, but others will fall in to the company is still "looking into it" category.

RCI "Looking into it" = a parent telling a child "we'll see" when the answer is an obvious "no' but don't feel like dealing with the whining and hoping within 10 minutes the child will forget what they asked for .

Not sure why the smiley did not come out. :(

Supposed to be :D

i promise not to break it before you get on. :halo:

:d:d:d

Hmmm, the pizza is at 92% guest satisfaction. That seems pretty good to me. Why spend the effort and money to get it to 95%? They should spend it on improving the food that is less than 90% guest satisfaction.

Having said that, with the exception of not having enough variety, I think the pizza is just fine. Of course, I'm usually eating at 2 am after stumbling out of the casino. Ketchup on a piece of cardboard would be tasty at that hour. :cool:

The point to me that seem like lip service is cruising from California. Sure, its being evaluated, but can't figure it out from a business perspective, not going to say "no" but maybe "yes"...in 5 years....or 10.

I think he just said yes, no and maybe in one statement. :)

This past August I would say the majority of the people I saw were dressed very nice. At least 75%

That is a pretty high percentage, based on my recent cruises. I know someone else mentioned 80%.

Thanks again to everyone that responded!

It isn't a snob thing either. I like to look special for my wife and to give ourselves a special time together. We rarely get to enjoy an atmosphere that is specifically made for such a time.

I agree. I basically only wear a suit for weddings & funerals. Never get dressed up at home when going out. So when on a cruise and its suggested......

Plus, IMHO, the MDR in Liberty is so gorgeous, it makes me want to dress nicer.

My wife and I dress up, but we drive so it is convenient to take lots of clothes (luggage and garment bags). If we were flying I'm not sure I would pack a suit.

I'll be flying and you're right, suits & shoes take up a lot of room. But I can check 2 bags for free via Southwest so it's not an issue.

One thing to note - many people will change clothes after dinner. We've done it ourselves.

I started doing the same myself. At a minimum, take the tie off and maybe return the jacket to the room. It depends on what is going on that night. If it's Quest or I'll be sweating in the night club trying to pretend I can dance, then i may go full casual.

I've just checked the prices and Alaska is too expensive. Can get on SY for less than Ovation.

As a recent graduate, won't you have plenty of bank to spend? ;)

In all seriousness, since we all have access to the same information, I don't think anyone is going to find something that you haven't already thought of. Knowing your preferences but not know the dynamics of your group, I would say pick a port intensive itinerary with plenty to do and where the ship won't matter as much. Pick an area of the world you haven't been to. Also, depending on how you feel about cruising with children, I would think the Caribbean cruises in late June/July would have plenty of kids. Not sure if that is a deterrent of not.

Let us know what you eventually decide on. Good luck! (yn)

Ok, let me think... the last good one I had was 3 years ago, on Indy. It was made with real coconut water and amazing! Light, refreshing... then, on every cruise after that they have been syrupy and gross :(.

Ok, thanks for the heads up. The last cruise I took in April the drink was rather ordinary. I just assumed it was the bartender. The cruise before that was over 2 years ago.

I’m usually a beer/wine drinker but on embarkation day, any fruity concoctions with a colorful umbrella will do. Puts me in a cruise/vacation frame of mind. And now that I think about it, I’m usually sampling the menu. But the coconut mojito was always the first drink on embarkation day.

I got the perfect cruise for you – Alaska.

Ok, so It’s on the Radiance BUT every day is a port day so there will be something to keep the group entertained. At that point, it’s more about the itinerary and the ship becomes nothing more than a hotel/restaurant. It was refurbished 2 years ago including the pool deck, although not sure how much you’ll be using the pool in Alaska.

And bonus: You are already on the left coast of USA.

There is also an Ovation should you want to try Q-class again and prefer round-trip. It hits on most of the check-marks.

Heck – I might book myself an Alaskan cruise now.

Thank you! I feel much better now. I was thinking we'd need to drive down in the middle of the night to avoid being stuck in some massive, miles long traffic jam....inching along for hours....within sight of the ship...where my free food and drinks await me...mocking me. lol

Who's graduation are you celebrating? Make them decide.

Or, to really go outside the box, go on a smaller ship. Like you, we favor the bigger ships and 7 of 8 cruises have been Liberty or bigger. However, we did a cruise on Serenade that ranks among our favorites. The reason was the people we met. We were seated with 4 other couples (traditional dining) and the 10 of us hit it off like we had been best friends since childhood.

Of course, we had 5 island days in a row and only 1 at sea day so the ship itself didn't matter as much. And its' always a crap-shoot as to who you'll be sitting with. But if you find a port-intensive itinerary you like, give it a shot.

I'd have no issues doing a Radiance-class again.