TM38Rob

In the past (a decade ago) I've had issues at the pier check-in where an agent told me I might not be able to board next time if I didn't have the Jr on my reservation.  I would add the Jr to my last name when making a reservation, but then it wouldn't match my Crown & Anchor profile, and I'd have to make several phone calls to get this issue resolved for that cruise only.

Long story short, there's a suffix folder where Royal Caribbean keeps it on file.  It just doesn't show up on cruise documentation.  I didn't add the Jr to my upcoming cruise on Wednesday (delayed from Tuesday).  I think I put my full name when entering my passport information, but can't remember. 

Sailing Serenade of the Seas and looking for info about the photography shop on how the photo package works, and purchasing photos without the package.

Do they use facial recognition and put printed photos in a binder like Oasis (2014)?  Or do you give your stateroom number to the photographer and select your photos from a digital kiosk like Anthem (2017)?  Or is it still the old fashioned way of finding your photos on the walls in the photo shop?

If it's still the old fashioned way, do you have to wait until the end of the cruise or can you get your photos as they become available?  And how does the digital package work?

Thanks in advance

18 hours ago, Cruise_maastricht said:

This is a picture of a map of the stations on the Jewel 2 weeks ago. I think the Serenade might be the same. 

Thanks.  When I sailed the Jewel I had W13 inside the Schooner Bar.

17 hours ago, John&LaLa said:

Serenade Deck 5  Starboard aft

Thank you very much!

Anyone know where muster station U15 is on Serenade of the Seas?

Thanks

5 hours ago, southendcruiser said:

I took the 5 night Canada cruise on the Serenade last year.  It was also right after the TA.  The disembarkation seemed to be quick, but since it was the first U.S. port, the Coast Guard decided to do an inspection.  Royal informed me the day before that there would be delays.  The check-in was quick, but they did not start boarding until quite late (maybe 1:00 PM--I can't remember exactly) and the Coast Guard inspection was still going on so some service were impacted.  The sail away was delayed a bit, but not significantly.  Upon returning to Boston, there was also about an hour delay in clearing the ship since Customs wanted to talk to a few of the passengers.  Once the ship was cleared, we just walked off with no further stop at Customs or Immigration.  We were coming from Bar Harbor, so we had done the immigration before that port.  Since you are coming from Bermuda, you might have a different experience, but please be aware that the Coast Guard might want to do their inspection again.

Thanks southendcruiser, this is what I was worried about.

I think they also did a Coast Guard inspection on the Oasis upon her return to the US.  I remember getting texts and phone calls from Royal Caribbean a couple days before the cruise to not arrive early to Port Everglades.  I arrived at Port Everglades after hotel check-out as planned.  Although I had to sit for a long time, at least I got a seat and boarded the ship as soon as possible.  Last October on Norwegian Escape in New York she was delayed arriving due to a storm in New York the day before and then had a Coast Guard inspection.  I had just ran 5 miles through Central Park in a race and was waiting in line to check-in when the terminal became full.  Standing in the same spot for a couple hours was not fun as they stopped the check-in.  I could see the crew muster drill with the Coast Guard take place from inside the terminal.  At least the Serenade is much smaller compared to Oasis and Escape.

As for The Key, I think I'll pass this time.  The carry-on luggage delivery to stateroom was the one perk that would influence my decision.  If there's a good chance boarding will be delayed to 1PM or later and staterooms open at 1:30PM, then this benefit would be lost, and possibly lunch at Chops Grille.

On 6/6/2019 at 2:14 PM, 138east said:

You’ll probably be just fine.  When I did a TA to Boston on Brilliance they couldn’t wait for us to get off.  My husband picked me up at 9 am.

Thanks Carol!

Started online check-in and the earliest option to arrive is Noon.  I plan on arriving by 10AM and thinking about purchasing The Key in part to enjoy lunch at Chops and have my carry-on luggage delivered to my stateroom.  If embarkation was delayed, then I'd lose out on the luggage delivery.  At this point it all comes down to whether or not I want an internet package.  Either way the ship will go Vroom....

How long does Serenade of the Seas (or Radiance class ship) take clear when arriving to Boston for the first time following a Transatlantic sailing?  I'm on the Sept. 10 5-night cruise to Bermuda. 

5 years ago I was on the first Oasis cruise from Fort Lauderdale following her transatlantic sailing from drydock.  Took a long time to clear ship and didn't get to board until well after 3pm.  Since Serenade is a much smaller ship, I'm hoping it doesn't take that long to clear.

Thanks

Anyone know how important reservations are on the 4 day Sky cruises?

I did not make a reservation for the MDR on my 4 day Sky cruises. The only wait was to be seated. I was asked if I would sit at a shared table, which I look forward to as a single traveler. I think there were a couple or two who had to wait longer for a private table around 7PM.

Norwegian sent me this email yesterday:

Norwegian Cruise Line is making a nominal adjustment to its daily service charges, effective April 1, 2017. Norwegian's discretionary daily service charges make it easy for guests to provide gratuities to key onboard staff who provide superior guest service during the cruise, including their room steward, restaurant servers and behind-the-scenes support staff.

The new rates for all ships, except Norwegian Sky are:

$13.99 per person per day for any category up to a mini-suite stateroom

$16.99 per person per day for any suite or Haven category

Any guest that has made a booking by March 31, 2017 will have the option of prepaying their service charges at the current rate if done prior to sail date. Guests with existing cruise reservations who have already pre-paid their service charges at the current rate are not affected.

Service charges can be prepaid on My NCL or by contacting our Reservations Department at 800-327-7030.

Sincerely,

Norwegian Cruise Line®

Please do not reply to this email.

For additional questions or concerns, please contact our Reservations Department at 800-327-7030 for further assistance.

My advice is to see what the review is about and how it might affect you. If someone writes a bad review about food items I would never eat, then I discard that review as it wouldn't necessary apply to my experience. Basically, I look at reviews to see how I can make my experience better. If the review is about long lines, I'll plan to get there early, etc.

Tried searching but didn't find much about the arrangement RCI has with Universal Studios. I'll do my own homework once the '18 itineraries are released but wondering if booking both aspects of the trip with RCI has saved anyone a few bucks? I like the idea of not having to book separate ground transpiration but I'm not willing to pay much of a premium when Uber/Mears are so easy to book.

 

Thanks!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2344667

See my post (#12)

From my experience, the cost savings was like getting the transportation for free. From the fine print ***..."The package is booked as a pre/post hotel. Once booked, all elements of the package are included (hotel stay, theme park tickets and transfers for the Port Canaveral sailings). Transfers included on ships that sail out of Port Canaveral."

This is the link found at the Bottom of the Royal Caribbean Homepage:

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/contentSitelet.do?pagename=universal_main

Two vacations

one amazing journey

Royal Caribbean® has teamed up with Universal Orlando Resort™ for an exclusive vacation package you won’t find on any other cruise line, featuring Universal’s imaginative parks plus two Royal Caribbean fan favorites — the bold and innovative Oasis of the Seas® and the Majesty of the Seas.®.

What's included?

• 3/4-Night Bahamas or 4/5/7-Night* Eastern/Western Caribbean cruise onboard Royal Caribbean.
  
• 2/3/4-Nights at Universal Orlando Resort™ including on-site hotel accommodations and Park-to-Park admission** to Universal Studios Florida™ and Universal’s Islands of Adventure™ during your stay. Stay in the heart of it all at an Universal Orlando™ on-site hotel and enjoy exclusive theme park benefits you won’t get by staying anywhere else
  
• All transfers between the Orlando airport, Universal Orlando™, and your Royal Caribbean departure port***
  

Why should you book?

• Combine two amazing family experiences into one vacation
  
• Save time and money compared to booking each separately
  

On our recent Harmony cruise they let you get your Diamond drink comps served at the main dining table. We aren't drinkers so we were able to treat the other's at our table with our diamond perks. The waiter didn't care as I assume his tips are raised by the number of drinks he serves.

Skip

I've read that the bar staff tips are pooled, and it's possible that the tips are divided by the number of drinks they serve. Your waiter (all of them actually) will be making money from the Bionic bar where they charge 18% gratuity and didn't serve a single customer as a machine makes and serves the drinks.

While I tip cash in the Diamond Lounge and/or getting my free drinks at another venue, I never tip at any of the Crown & Anchor events. Nobody does! (I will give that server an extra tip next time I order a drink from them outside the event.)

When I purchased my truck, the dealer told me I would receive a survey and to put all 5s. He told me if I put a 4, it means they failed. The automaker's survey was designed to only get my input about the level of service I received from the dealership and NOT about the quality of the product I purchased. If there was something about the quality of the truck I didn't like, that would be something I'd have to contact the automaker about instead of the dealership.

Same thing applies to the cruise survey. They are only interested in the level of service and NOT the quality of the food. Think of the ship as the dealership and RCCL corporate as the automaker. The food vendors (and quality of food) are from RCCL corporate, and you should contact them directly about those issues. The surveys (provided by corporate) are used by the ships officers to determine the level of service their crew provided their guests.

Since these surveys are provided by RCCL corporate, you should contact someone at the top about these surveys and ask them to stop pressuring the guests to give good scores in addition to asking for better quality food.

FLL Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International airport also serves the Miami area and may be cheaper to fly there. 30-40 minutes away.

I've booked a hotel at Universal as part of a package through Royal Caribbean that included the transfer. Maybe Royal could arrange transfer to Port Canaveral for you, but I'm not sure how much it would cost. You may need to get to the airport to catch the transfer to the ship outside of that package.

The Florida Departures board may have some posts about transportation companies that would pick you up at your hotel and bring you to the pier. I think Mears Transportation offers this service, but there may be others that offer better rates.

Great Stirrup Cay is going to be closed for an additional month due to construction delays and storm cleanup. Not sure when GSC is scheduled to reopen.

Thank you nissan720 for posting the Freestyle Daily Papers.

Very helpful for planning my trip on the Sky next month. :)

Some of the vendors at CocoCay (Straw Market, Parasail, etc.) live on Great Harbour Cay 8 miles away and commute to CocoCay by boat. Maybe you can go home with them after your ship leaves and then fly from Great Harbour Cay to Nassau to catch up with your ship. Remember to bring your passport, phone, credit card, and your toothbrush. :D

Almost forgot, your ship won't leave CocoCay unless EVERYONE is back onboard. They will search the island looking for you if you try to stay behind. ;)

Some of the vendors at CocoCay (Straw Market, Parasail, etc.) live on Great Harbour Cay 8 miles away and commute to CocoCay by boat. Maybe you can go home with them after your ship leaves and then fly from Great Harbour Cay to Nassau to catch up with your ship. Remember to bring your passport, phone, credit card, and your toothbrush. :D

Thanks OP for your review. I'm so glad I did not book Empress for next Saturday.

Looking at an old brochure from 1995-1996 there are two pools listed, however, one of those pools was listed as a "Wading Pool" in the 2007-2008 brochure. Not sure if there were ever two pools, or if one of them was converted at some point.

Also in the 1995-1996 brochure is a picture of "Kids' Konnection" with an enclosed spiral slide and a folding card table with chairs in a playroom. Empress was sailing the 3 & Night sailing to The Bahamas then, with a call to Freeport, Bahamas instead of Key West on the 4 Night. This was long before the summer camp type programs of Adventure Ocean were offered.

On the Empress of the Seas home page: http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/ships/class/ship/home.do?shipClassCode=NE&shipCode=NE&br=R , the tagline under Empress of the Seas is "Party. Chill. Repeat." I can see why they are promoting the ship as a party cruise. They're hoping you won't bring the kids, get drunk, and not notice any of the problems with the ship like no A/C or lack of food.

My guess is that the problems in galleys that caused the 1st two rounds of cancellations are related to the A/C and hot water problems in the staterooms. The Food & Beverage director probably didn't order enough food anticipating a 3rd round of cancellations. With the bad press and loss of revenue, looks like Royal decided not to cancel again and most likely had just enough work done to pass inspection. Just my theory.

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

Thank you for the review, lbushov,

Looking forward to sailing Norwegian Sky in the fall.

No breakfast at Johnny Rockets on Majesty. Only on Oasis-class.

Also, if the cost of the upgraded stateroom is less than what you paid (ex. Jr. Suite is less now than you paid for a Balcony), then they will not refund you the difference when upgrading.

Get one from the Cruise Critic store if you're worried, then it won't matter which cruise line you sail. http://www.cruisecritic.com/store/

Otherwise I don't think it matters.