ZoeyVictoria

I understand making cutbacks due to pandemic losses, but it has gone way too far when it includes Royal making a huge mistake and failing to compensate affected guests.

We are on the December 5 four-nighter. We always expected to see last-minute work being done and don’t mind, but now I have a sliver of concern that we might be canceled to allow a last-minute surge of activity.

Possibly on a dirt-cheap last minute cruise 😂

Yesterday I saw four nights on the Allure on 12/4/23 for $205 fare, total just over $600 for two in an inside guarantee. This morning it is $399 fare, total for two $976. Apparently it was spotted and booked by some during the temporary price drop. I still see November 21 & 22 on GGG. They aren't as good about posting at a set time as they were pre-pandemic.

I received 41 emails from the Princess Players Club during 2022 and through mid-January 2023. I have not received one since that date. When I log into Princess, I am taken to a screen to register my account, and in my profile “Receive offers and News” had “no” answered for mail, phone and email. I did change those answers to “yes”. I called Princess and got exactly nowhere, no help at all. Yet I have this posted under OBC: Like you, none of this makes any sense at all. It looks like $100 OBC may have been added to my December 2024 cruise. Does anyone have any ideas for who I can contact to get this straightened out?

SAS Transportation has shuttles that pick up from FLL and also a fairly long list of Fort Lauderdale hotels (but no Miami hotels). They charge $15 per person each way. It might be more reasonable to stay in Fort Lauderdale and use SAS. I believe flights to FLL are also less than Miami.

I have sailed on the Mardi Gras twice and the Celebration once. If this was to be my first cruise, I would find the Mardi Gras overwhelming. I think you would be better off on the Horizon, Vista, or Magic for the in-laws’ first cruise and also for the kids. At 10 and 12, you might want to allow them some freedom to go to specific places alone (with your permission), and the Mardi Gras might feel too large for either parents or kids to be comfortable with that. That being said, the Mardi Gras would be a great ship for the following cruise. Something to look forward to once you are familiar with Carnival.

I used to feel the same way, but cruise fares are increasing as well as adding additional charges for as many things as they can possibly charge for.

I wonder if Royal has someone checking out CC for sensitive issues and saw all of the comments regarding lack of interest in a party atmosphere. I hope so.

I hope that Royal will not sell more passes than they have loungers to accommodate. Paying for a beach experience and not being able to find a lounger is not good. I am pleased with the location, as I walked from South Beach a couple of weeks ago because the tram was impossible - it looks like a shorter, less crowded walk. To answer your original question, you have already seen two couples who originally said “No!” change our minds and do a conditional booking. I think there will be a number of people who think it sounds great, are just curious, or are willing to try it for the relatively low initial price (that we know is going to increase). It just might result in fewer people in the other areas.

I figured I had nothing to lose except the use of $64 for a few months, and the possibility of gaining something new at a good price.

Great ☹️. I caught the “four more watering holes” but not the “non-stop DJ-spun beats”. Oh, well, I will have ninety days to read reviews before I cancel. I remember bands at two locations being mentioned and hoped they wouldn’t have other music conflicting with the bands.

I was definitely opposed to it when it was first advertised because it sounded like a non-stop, loud party instead of a relaxing beach day. There is less emphasis on the party atmosphere now. I just checked (since you brought it to my attention), and it has a 50% off Black Friday price of $28.99 (total for two is $64 with taxes) for April 2024. I booked it with the intent to check reviews carefully and cancel if my first impression was correct. If I booked it after already deciding it wasn’t for me, I suspect there will be plenty of other people who book it just out of curiosity. It was the $28.99 price that caught my attention.

I thought March 27 would be late enough to avoid it. I was wrong.

The only good thing to come from the closure of the Solarium Bistro is that there will fewer people in the other restaurants.

The December 5 cruise gets back to Miami on the 9th, the WC leaves on the 10th. Interesting that they kept that extra day, if it is not offered to WC guests. Possibly just a lot more cargo to be loaded? Last minute detail work?

We were on the Celebration the week of October 1 and 100% agree with you. We went to the MDR one time, on the first formal night, and did not return. There are too many other options to bother with the MDR for meals you can get on any ship, even if the food and service had been good. We were on the Mardi Gras twice, in September 2021 and February 2022 and experienced the same thing. On the Mardi Gras we were assigned to a table. We were led there to find the table already occupied. We stood awkwardly in the center of the MDR while they got another table assigned. Led to that table, which was also occupied. The third try was a table right next to the kitchen doorway, which required every waiter to immediately turn to the right and go past our table. Every waiter that entered or left the kitchen was within inches of us and some even brushed up against the table or our shoulders. On the second Mardi Gras trip, we didn’t even try it once. I love a lot of things about those ships, but not the MDR.

Yes, same as you. Planning to have a great time as usual, but not a fan of rudeness. Going into it prepared, thanks to CC.

We are on the January 21 sailing, as a free Prime casino cruise. We are leaning more and more towards smaller ships and this cruise might be the boost we need to say “no more” to the Oasis class. It is tempting to choose newer and more expensive ships when there is no cost, but next year’s cruise will probably be chosen with different priorities.

After a bad breakup years ago, my ex received an email that showed the second person’s name and address. He had been on the booking at the time we split up, so I halfway understood why it happened (and, yes, all of his info including his email had been changed to her info). He called me to tell me that he had the name and address of my female companion. It caused me no trouble other than a little irritation, but there could have been serious consequences.

I will be on the four-nighter on December 5, in between your cruises and the WC. I’ve been curious about the changes, so I am paying close attention to your comments. We were on the Serenade in July, so hopefully the differences will be noticeable to us. We are hoping it will be similar to the early post-pandemic cruises, based on the number of cabins still available. We booked an inside with a casino offer, but received a Royal Up offer with a “special promotion” on balconies a couple of weeks ago. The minimum was $15 pp, we bid $20 and were upgraded within a week. It should be an interesting cruise.

Uniforms.

We were on the Conquest on Christmas Day in 2021. We were so surprised to see families wearing matching pajamas, not just for breakfast but all day long. Never saw anyone with gifts, though. We felt a little bit left out. Last year we were on Jewel of the Seas, in San Juan for Christmas Day. We did not wear pajamas to walk around San Juan, but we had Christmas shirts.

No, we want to see the cute video of your feet on the sea walk!

Well, those may be your feet, but that is not the sea walk. Tomorrow?