creativecarriet

Just a heads up... Currently on Grandeur and was told (and the flyer states) that everyone over 21 in the cabin has to buy a package

 

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"A" package or all the same package?

Not in my experience. If you are used to being around kids you may not notice them. The vast majority are reasonably well behaved. But I haven't been on a true spring break cruise. The absolute worst behavior I have seen on a cruise was a 3 day Friday/Saturday/Sunday cruise where a number of adults were sloppy drunk before muster drill. I prefer the kids.

 

By the way, the show on the building of Fredom is scheduled to air on Destination America [i think a new channel to us] 11/27 at 6am Eastern

I have three kids (11,9 and 2). Usually when my husband and I take an overnight away or get dinner alone, kids around us don't even phase us. And if a kid is pitching a fit or kids are needing attention we ENJOY being able to walk away and not have to take them with us. Ha.

Kids are fine with me.

Thanks for the drink ideas! :-)

I was originally on the $7 drink package bandwagon but we never get drinks when eating out (adds about $10-$12 for our family of five!). So I'm thinking that planning ahead and being able to just drink whatever whenever will be very luxurious and add to the spoiled feeling we will get on the trip!

So are the kids horribly behaved? Eek.

Excuse my non drinker ignorance. What would be some non alcoholic cocktails that would be interesting to try, not frozen ones?

I just remember driving through that Bay Area between Tampa and st Pete once and thought it was pretty haha. When I think space station I think industrial. :-) but I've never been to either port!

Just a quick piece of advice... The port of Tampa frequently has problems with dense fog. If you plan on doing a 5 night cruise try and avoid Tampa. Dense fog had delayed our cruise once from Tampa and we lost one whole day which on a 5 night cruise is a big deal. Rccl website is always posting travel adversary updates about dense fog in Tampa.

Oh noted!

Tampa I think is so much prettier than canaveral isn't it?

Did anyone find out if the $20 package includes non alcoholic frozen cocktails?

10. Get your travel documents in order early. [Hey -- this one is pretty important. You'll sleep better the last week if this one is taken care of.] Your itineraries are probably "closed loop" which means you can travel on a birth certificate and photo ID. But consider springing for a passport if you don't have one. Consider it an incentive to go someplace you will need it.

I love this list!!! Esp checking out the travel sections and the tv shows!

I already have my passport application ready just waiting bc I'm doing it as a Christmas gift to myself with my Christmas money. :-) I've already been thinking about all the options that will be open to me once I have one!

Side question: why don't cruise ports stamp your passport? I was reading about it on another thread of someone people getting "novelty" stamps which I would never want to do.

I've been thinking a lot about all these options as well because we will be leaving our two year old for the first time for more than an overnight. It's not so much me wanting to know about emergencies (which is a no brainer I definitely want to know!) but more for just peace of mind. I know she will be lovingly cared for but I KNOW she will miss us so I would love to be able to FaceTime or Skype every other day at least.

Even just briefly.

I have thought about making some pre-made video messages from us to her so that she can at least feel like she's seen or talked to us if something were to happen and we couldn't get the FaceTime idea to work after we were gone. I would hate for her to go that long with no sign of her parents either one haha. She will actually be close to three by then so very much aware.

She will have her older two siblings with her which will help. But I am a very attached mama as she's my last baby and really it's me whose having separation anxiety not her lol. :-)

My best advice for about any travel decision making question is don't let yourself get too overwhelmed by all of the options. Pick the one you want and don't look back. You can never do it all in one trip so don't lose any sleep trying. Look at it this way -- you will have to take a few dozen more to see what you missed. How can that be bad?

 

Enjoy the looking and planning [to me that is half (well at least 27.34%) of the fun of any trip]. With due respect to Carly Simon, anticipation can be a good thing.

 

Most importantly, enjoy your cruise.

Yes planning is at least 27.34% of the fun for me too! I could look at options and choices for HOURS!

Every option someone posts I think "yeah that would be perfect!" Haha!

I think just getting on a cruise period will be perfect!

I do think I am persuaded away from driving to Miami or ft lauderdale though. That is a LONG drive!

So now I've got some great recommendations out of Tampa and port canaveral.

Thanks for the insight. More looking to do now!!

Ok, I just got off the phone with Royal Carribean. They told me that everyone in your cabin must purchase the exact same drink package. I asked what if one person doesn't drink and is willing to purchase a lesser package. They said No. It must be the same.

Okay so which is it?!?!

I am wondering too since it's a bigger ship if I would have more of a chance getting a last minute balcony because there are more of them overall or it would lower my chances since it's probably in higher demand?

I think you'd be ok in March. Since Easter is in April elementary/HS kids won't be on Spring Break until April. If you look at the prices you can see how they spike with any cruises starting around April 12.

 

I'd go with Liberty, we were on Freedom which is its sister ship and it was great. Or if there's something in Voyager class they're similar they jsut don't have the Flowrider.

That's good to know. It's hard to wrap my head around the differences between the classes!

We live in Atlanta, Ga and have sailed out of Port Canaveral using only a weeks vacation. We would leave the day before (Sat.) and come home on Sunday.

The ship arrives in port real early so we opt for carrying our luggage off and away we go. I think we were in the car by 7 am.

The newer ships will go on the longer cruises (7 days in this case) and are a lot nicer. The Freedom of the Seas is our favorite RC ship.

Good luck planning. We lucked out on finding a good TA, we get great service

and great OBC.

Keep reading and keep asking questions this is a great site for info.

When time comes to actually book we will take everything into consideration. Obviously coming home from Tampa or canaveral could be done same day but I would hate to spend 12 hrs driving home from Miami same day. I think it would ruin my vacation haha! We are in north georgia. About an hr from Atlanta.

I am glad to find this thread I'm trying to find more info on BOS too!

I would think it would depend on if it's a separate cafe or just a place that brews the coffee. Like some hotels or restaurants brew Starbucks and you can't use the rewards card or gift cards. It just depends on if it's an actual Starbucks location or if it's a place just using the rights and brewing the coffee.

I just looked over the options for the western caribbean itinerary we want and it looks like our choices come down to Brilliance or Liberty of the Seas.

Which do you like best and why?

My husband likes the advertised chains on Liberty which I don't see on Brilliance. The port for Brilliance is a closer than Miami but that's not a deal breaker for us if it's worth it to do Liberty.

I am a posting maniac today! Sorry if you get tired of my screen name popping up!

Omg it stinks so bad that we can't post info about specific agents! I want to use one for our booking next year but I would hate to choose the wrong one and get crappy service!!!

I can deal with kids I've got three. Ha!

The problem with a 7 night is vacation time. If we drive from georgia we are going to need a day on either side for travel. Plus it's the first time we will be gone from our two year old for more than one night so I'm a bit nervous about it.

I was hoping with Easter in April that all spring breaks wouldn't be in March! We could go later but would April be any better?? Boo!!

Hi all! I've been lurking around doing research and had decided that we would try to do Celebrity for our first cruise. Then my husband and I explored the websites for the first time together yesterday and he really liked the offerings and just overall everything about Royal Caribbean better! I guess since we've never been on a cruise we won't be able to tell if the food has gone downhill or if the crew is better on one or the other haha!

Our plan is to do western caribbean 5 day. We live in georgia so we have four driveable ports to choose from, Tampa, canaveral, Everglades, and Miami. His favorite from the online info was liberty of the seas for all the dining choices and activities. So I believe that's Everglades or Miami.

We can't afford to pay until after the first of the year (Christmas gifts etc haha) but plan to go in March. So I can't join a roll call yet! It will all depend on what's available when we can book.

What are the chances of a veranda room being available for a last minute deal?

I plan on finding a travel agent and sharing our specific requests to see what's all available and maybe get some bonuses when we do book. I know recommendations can't be listed on threads so I will just check out the big list on CC.

Any other tips for a first time royal caribbean cruise?

I am sure I will have more questions I am kind of an obsessive planner.

Thanks!

I went thorough and I think I found everyone and added to my friends on MFP! Gotta stay strong during the holidays! (Cheat meals instead of cheat weeks haha!)