julesbeara

A one time payment of $400 was given to Royal crew members that were stuck onboard in April.  Crew members that have had their contracts delayed due to the shutdown have received zero assistance from Royal Caribbean.  (They do not have a Hardship Fund available or Emergency Funds available, or it is not been communicated to many crew members 😒).

Here is the article:

I just talked to a Carnival crew member that received a one time $500 assistance payment to alleviate their hardship during the shutdown.  Do you think Royal Caribbean should do the same thing?

I was just having a problem booking a cruise using Chrome.  I switched to Microsoft Edge and it worked just fine.

Thank you.  I'll keep an eye out on my credit card statement.

I got my Future Cruise Credit Certificate, so what happens to my Vacation Protection Plan purchased through Royal Caribbean?  Is it refundable, since they cancelled the cruise?  Can it be transferred to another booking?

We received our Future Cruise Credit today, and it included an extra $1.25 US. 😁

Has Royal Caribbean cancelled your cruise because of the suspension of cruising? or have you chosen to cancel on your own?  Have you received your FCC or Refund? Still Waiting?

Time for some European (topless) sunbathing on the upper deck, below the smoke stack.  Special reserved sunbathing area, for special people.

ShipShape poolside water fitness in the afternoon.  Have to collect enough ShipShape dollars to get a free yellow t-shirt.

32 minutes ago, julesbeara said:

Just received this letter from a crew member on the Adventure of the Seas.  He is still waiting to see if he'll be staying on board, or going home during the suspension.

I have news to share with you.  And it is, in fact, stunning.

Beginning midnight tonight, we are pausing the fleet's U.S. sailings for 30 days.

We understand the gravity of the public health crisis confronting the country.  And this is our part to play.

This is probably a good moment to take a breath.

This is obviously big news, and there's no point in sugarcoating it - it's rough news to hear.

But it is not the end of the world.

We have a lot of work today to address the many ramifications of this decision.  We are reaching out to our guests to help them work through this disruption to their vacations, and we are also communicating with our crew to work out the issues this presents for them.

We are on it.  And you need you to be on it - in fact, we're all about to work as hard as we ever have.

We have a lot of updates to send you in the coming days.  Look for them.

Let's stop rumors.  Let's stay together.

The next destination on our journey is on the other side of this crisis - the time when things start getting better.

Just received this letter from a crew member on the Adventure of the Seas.  He is still waiting to see if he'll be staying on board, or going home during the suspension.

Looking at a few smaller ships, and not sure which DO NOT have a Concierge or Diamond Lounge?  Wondering if an area is designated for cocktails and mingling on the ships that don't have one?

On 10/24/2019 at 10:43 AM, marshaatn said:

Congratulations on your upgrade! For your sailing, were any suites showing up as available on the RCCL website? We are in a JS on the 11/23/19 sailing of the Rhapsody and have been offered the same bid terms. No suites have been showing available for months, but my past experience shows that this really doesn't mean anything. We were on the Oasis in June and our bid for an ATS 1 bedroom was accepted (we were booked in a GS), and those had not been available for many months as well. 

 

Congratulations again! 

Suites only showed available a few days before we bid.  It happened really fast.

It depends on the ship.  Last couple years we always sail near Thanksgiving and the ship is typically decorated when we board.  On Serenade we sailed from November 30th to December 21st last year, and the decorations did not go up until December 10th.  We asked why, and we told they were observing Hanukkah.  The Christmas trees, gingerbread village, banister garland, Windjammer decorations and poinsettias appeared overnight. 

For Serenade of the Seas, December 9, 2019 sailing - 11 Night - Southern Caribbean, Panama, Costa Rica, and Columbia.  Bid $300 per person on October 10th to upgrade from Junior Suite to Owners Suite.  Received a notification on October 15th that we won and the bid had been accepted.  Owners Suite is mid-ship with a very large wedge balcony, so we're very happy.

Is RoyalUp bidding offered outside the United States?

5 hours ago, LINDAE3213 said:

my set sail has neither deck nor muster station.   at this point I anticipate being left on the pier and already have my TA looking into options to fly to Aruba, St Martin or St Thomas..... seriously ( we can drive from Bayonne to EWR in 30 minutes and be on an afternoon flight somewhere )   … there is no guarantee that this process will go smoothly  considering the reliability of the  IT dept of RCCL  and I want to have a back up plan to proceed with. 

 

I am not comforted by the fact that I may need to pull up to the curb next Sat and ask a subcontracted employee handling luggage to check the manifest to see if I have a cabin assigned, as if they have any ownership in the RCCL process. 

 

My TA  who happens to be a Pinnacle has checked the TA site last night and only sees 2 OV cabin guarantees open --  so she was wondering if possibly they plan to call her and DOWNGRADE me from balcony to OV and offer compensation.

 

8 more days of anxiety to go to see how this turns out.   i am going somewhere on the 19th  - it just might not involve RCCL.

thankfully live in NJ and not flying into a port for a cruise.

 

lesson learned for me -- no more guarantees -- can't handle it due to RUMA  ( Royal up my  xxx )  program in play  - was flexible on cabin assignment but not flexible on "possibly" being bumped or downgraded.

 

Quote

Our last guarantee stateroom was issued 3 days prior to sailing.  We had a Suite Guarantee.  I was told they have staterooms set aside for entertainers, possible maintenance work, and crew with family members visiting and sailing.   We ended up with an Owners Suite, but I hated the waiting.  It was so stressful.

Thanks everyone for you feedback and responses.  I'm going to check and see if I can find out what type of detergent they use for laundry too.

6 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

There would be no issues using your own sheets and towels.  Would cloth napkins in the restaurants also be an issue?

It's exposure for extended periods of time, so napkins and tablecloths aren't an issue.

Has anyone brought their own sheets & towels?  I've got allergy sensitivity and use All Free & Clear detergent at home.

If you do bring your own, any issues using them?

Is their a separate dining area available for Diamond Plus members other than the continental breakfast in the Diamond & Concierge Lounge?  On some ships an area is reserved in a specialty restaurant or designated area in the main dining room.

On 11/17/2018 at 6:31 AM, SargassoPirate said:

 

We quit using the Foodjammer for all but an afternoon treat or some coffee/tea.  Since they removed the trays, it takes multiple trips from the table to assemble a meal.  Plus, people shuffling around trying to assemble a meal makes the atmosphere something akin to a zombie apocalypse. No thanks.

 

The MDR for breakfast and lunch is much more civilized, even if it does take a little longer.

We feel the same way.  It's a bit of a zoo for us and we like a more mellow environment.  

6 hours ago, SteelMagnolia9 said:

I was on the Serenade of the Seas in October. One morning at breakfast, I heard the couple in line in front of me ask to be seated in the Diamond Plus area. I saw them escorted to a part of the dining room away from where the majority of others were being seated. It didn’t appear to be anything special, they were just seated in a  different area of the dining room.

Thank you!!!

Is there a Reserved Room off the Main Dining Room or designated area in the Main Dining Room for Diamond Plus C&A Members???  Not a fan of the Windjammer for breakfast.

Looking at using Resort for A Day to book in Antigua, Curacao and St Lucia.  Looking for feedback if you've used them, and the resort you booked at in these ports.  Any feedback is appreciated.

On 10/25/2018 at 6:02 AM, FionaMG said:

I too have seen posts from people on Freedom cruises up to and including (I think) 18 November that their stop in Bonaire has been switched. Someone on one of the affected roll call threads mentioned that Freedom is too big to use the Northern Pier but I don't know if that's correct as I have not yet been to Bonaire.

I will be on the Navigator 23 November sailing, which calls in Bonaire on 29 November and so far have not received notification of any change to the itinerary. 

Thank you for this information.