colerosebud

On 1/15/2020 at 9:01 AM, cleobella said:

Hi! We are cruising to Tenarife and Gran Canaria. Ideally I would like to get around these ports on our own, maybe just walking around the port for one site and touring the places of interest for the other. Which port is best suited to a quiet port stroll and maybe beach time, and which is more interesting to actively tour attractions? Thanks for any info!

Was there November 2018 and there was a hop on hop off bus with a guided walking tour.

I am in the process of emailing various transfer companies in Rome. For the 4 of us Rome in Limo transfer from Rome to port would be 170 euro. They are often mentioned on CC. Adding a stop in Bracciano to see the castle would be 400 euros. It is interesting to note they answered my email in 15 minutes. Impressive! :p

 

 

 

I found this website for Rome Cabs that has the exact tour we are considering.

 

http://www.romecabs.com/tours/precruise-rome-countryside-tour/

 

Their price for 4 on this transfer/tour would be 350 euros. But, if we get 2 other couples it would only be 450 euros. 8 is the max in their vans and it includes 1 large suitcase and a carry per person [this seems to be standard for a transfer].

 

I also sent an email to the Iteritaly company. I found them on Trip Advisor.

 

Are there any other companies you have used for transfer I should contact?

I am also on the Jewel of the Sea and considering staying at the Hilton FCO. Would be interested in sharing a ride to the ship. Please email me so we can discuss. colerosebud@aol.com

We are Diamond on RCI and want our status matched to Gold with MLife. We are going to Vegas in 2 weeks. I have written to comments@mlife.com and had not response. I called the MLife phone number and was told the supervisor could do that and I would get Gold status. 2 days later....nothing. How do you get them to align your status???? I need it done soon. Thank you!

I talked with MLife last week asking the same thing. They told me that your tier with Royal Caribbean does not coincide with MLife. I had read somewhere that if you proved you were Diamond that MLife would bump your status. Not sure what to show MLIfe regarding status - Seapass?

Don't feel bad. We have been Platinum for 3 cruises. On the last night of our last cruise we got our little pin congratulating us for making Platinum. This is one night away from Emerald. And, both DH and I are Platinum but we got one pin. :rolleyes:

Good to know. I am Diamond and have not received any pins!

Thank you. Will make a note of the schedule. Is this for the #20 bus?? Did you go by bus to honfleur? Did you have to purchase the tickets early to get a seat??

I am in the same boat. From what I can figure out it is bus 50 and the tickets run about 4.20 Euro each way. You can purchase tickets on the bus. There is also a bus 20 but I haven't been able to figure out a schedule. The previous poster said there is a tourist info at the port so maybe they can give info or certainly at the bus station, they will have info.

I was on a B2B on the Empress this summer. A lot of times I would stop at the bar get a drink then move on to the dining room. I don't think they monitored the drinks.

For those of us playing MyVegas on Facebook or on smartphones, a bunch of rewards including OBC (up to 300$), 35% off cruises and drink packages are being offered against points. Has anyone tried this yet? I know it's brand new, I just saw it yesterday. Thanks!

I just checked and don't see it under my rewards there are several casinos but not cruise line info

Has anyone offered you a cruise on Royal Caribbean through MLife? I am almost at the Platinum level (through play at the Bellagio) and one of the benefits at this tier are cruise offers via Royal Caribbean. Would love to know what offers come at this level (even though I'm an NCL cruiser). Thanks!

I book a TA on Royal Caribbean last year and really didn't know what was going on. After asking a lot of questions finally figured it out. After they asked me if I was an MLife member they said I qualify for Club Royale and somehow they found a promo from MLife for the cruise. Not sure what it was but they assured me that Club Royale membershp gives the best rates. I also got MLife credit for my slot play on the ship. For a future cruise, Club Royale told me to keep checking the MLife offers. I don't receive anything from them just have to check my account online.

Looking for info on Transatlantic sailings. This will be my first TA and I'll be traveling solo.

 

I'm currently working and this will utilize a large portion of my vacation. I'll also need to obtain approval although I don't foresee any concerns.

 

What are the pros and cons of a TA sailing?

In your opinion is it a better option to take 2 separate vacations as opposed to one long vacation?

The cruise price is good. Any idea about one way airfare? I tried to do a fake reservation and the one way fare was $2500.:eek:

 

Sailing - Brillance 2017 Westbound. Also the sailing coincides with my birthday.:)

 

Thanks

I did the transatlantic Tampa to Barcelona last April as a solo traveler had such a good time, many of the passengers were cruise critic so there were some activities set up to meet others. I had such a good time will do again next April. Someone on cruise critic set up a dinner table with 10 people from cruise critic so that is a start not to mention we met up at the pool bar prior to sailing. Was on the Vision which is a fairly small ship so since we were at sea for about 10 days straight you got to know a lot of people on the ship.

Looking forward to this. We did the opposite TA last October, and two subsequent cruises on Vision, so this should be enjoyable.

I did this cruise last year and had such a good time will do again April 2017

Does anyone have a good hotel recommendation where we can get a shuttle to the port?

I am staying at the crown plaza at ft lauderdale airport. They have a shuttle between the airport and hotel. Then they will take me back to the airport where I get a shuttle to miami port for $15/person through QLS transportation I then will take them back to ft lauderdale airport

Hi, I just got home from our cruise on the Empress of the Seas and wanted to pop in and share my experience. Hopefully it will ease the minds of some of you that are scheduled to sail soon as I know that most of the reviews since her refurbishment have not been stellar.

 

I booked this cruise for myself and my 14 year old step-daughter. I'll admit that after reading the reviews on cruise critic from the first few cruises, I was really nervous about taking this trip. I can honestly say that I worried for nothing.

 

This was the fastest/smoothest embarkation I have ever experienced. We pulled into the parking lot about 12:10 and were eating lunch at the windjammer by 12:35. It seriously took us longer to walk from the car to the terminal than it did to check in and board.

 

The buffet was crowded when we arrived, mainly just due to the small size and cafeteria layout, but the line moved quickly and we didn't have an issue finding a table. The food in the buffet was good, pretty typical cruise fare. It was hot and there was plenty of it. I do have to say that the Empress had the BEST cookies I've ever eaten on a cruise ship. Bad news for my diet. LOL The lemon-sugar cookies were my favorite, although I ate plenty of oatmeal as well. My daughter favored the chocolate chunk.

 

We had my time dining, our wait team was fantastic! Even the maître'd came by to visit every night. We also chatted with her and out assistant waiter in the wind jammer on several occasions. We were able to get the same time/table every night except one. The night we ended up having to sit in a different server's section, both our normal waiter and assistant waiter made a point to come visit with us in the adjoining section. The food was good to very good. They had the best bread ever. The rolls were still hot when they served them. The pumpkin seed were my favorite and my daughter liked the cheese rolls. The deserts were for the most part. yuck. typical cruise deserts. look really pretty, but not much taste.

 

The ship looked great, she's a grand ol lady. I know lots of people will dislike the ship just based on the size, but we really enjoyed it. Very easy to get around. The staff was always cleaning, polishing, vacuuming etc.. I have to also say that the staff is probably the friendliest I've ever encountered on any ship. Every single staff member from the guys bussing the table to the ship officers acknowledged you every time they passed. They always smiled, and asked if there was any way that they could help us. Even my 14 year old daughter commented on how nice every one was and I think that says a lot.

 

Our room steward was great. She kept our cooler filled with ice and always addressed us by name when she saw us out in the hallway.

 

I love the fact that there are so many little out of the way sitting areas to read or just watch the ocean go by. When you are going up or down the stairs by the main dining room there is a small sitting area at each landing. This was one of my favorite places to sit and read.

 

There was live music in every venue most nights as well as the band playing poolside during the days. The dance parties in the atrium appeared to be well attended. The production shows were absolutely awesome. Better than a lot I've seen on much larger vessels. We also had a couple of comedians and a singer. I'm not much of a night owl, and never made it to the crown Viking lounge, so I can't say what the disco or Bolero's had going on late at night.

 

I only have a couple of negative comments, keep in mind they are just observations and didn't ruin our vacation or anything, but here they are.... The ship doesn't have a dedicated teen "hang out". The various teen activities moved to a different venue every day. Not really a big deal if your kids are outgoing, but my daughter is really shy, normally she will kinda just hang around the teen area until someone strikes up a conversation with her. That didn't happen this trip and it was kinda a hassle to keep up with WHERE the teen events were being held on a particular day. I think a lot of times they were just not well attended. She did finally make a few friends on the last day, but I think it would have been easier with a set teen spot.

 

The AC still doesn't work wonderfully well in the casino, I'm not a gambler, so it didn't really affect me, just to let you all know that it is still warmer there than the rest of the ship. It wasn't unbearable or anything, just warmer that most other public areas.

 

The door on deck 10 that leads out from the elevator lobby to the windjammer on the port side SLAMMED constantly. It needs a soft close thing or something. It drove me crazy one night when I was sitting in the library on deck 9 right below that door. I kept hearing slamming and couldn't figure out what the heck it was. Next time I went to the buffet, I discovered where it was coming from. It wasn't that big of a deal, but I'm sure that any cabins on deck 9 forward on the port side could hear it in their rooms.

 

I guess that's all for now. I just thought some of y'all that are sailing in the next few weeks would like to know that they seem to be getting the kinks worked out.

Thanks so much for the great update. Am doing a B2B in July.

Casino Royale - I just got off the Vision transatlantic. They had a sign posted that if you reached 2400 points in slot play you would receive a free cruise. I earned that and had no problem receiving the certificate for a free cruise. Not sure how the 2400 points converts to how much gambled. I played slots most of the time.

To receive benefits how does one link Crown and Anchor account with existing M Life account?

I don't think you can. It is the Casino Royale section of RCL that interacts with MLife. I received a casino rate on my upcoming cruise because I am a Pearl member of MLife. Spoke with Casino Royale TA yesterday to get this all straightened out. I believe if you are in the casino on the ship you should speak to the host/head honcho so they can monitor your play for additional perks.