Royal Virgin

[mn_isla_girl]

I'm doing the southern caribbean itinerary sailing from Puerto Rico on Adventure of the Seas. I've been on 4 cruises and sailed from San Juan before and taken land vacations in the caribbean. My questions are mainly about how is this cruiseline different from others (Carnival)? From what I'm reading I get the idea I have to make reservations for shows? I cannot take any beverages onboard? When will the ship's excursions be available, I'm paid in full? Any other big differences?

 

Gracias :rolleyes:

[Dave85]

I'm doing the southern caribbean itinerary sailing from Puerto Rico on Adventure of the Seas. I've been on 4 cruises and sailed from San Juan before and taken land vacations in the caribbean. My questions are mainly about how is this cruiseline different from others (Carnival)? From what I'm reading I get the idea I have to make reservations for shows? I cannot take any beverages onboard? When will the ship's excursions be available, I'm paid in full? Any other big differences?

 

Gracias :rolleyes:

 

You don't have to make reservations for shows on the Adventure unless something has changed very recently and I didn't get the memo. That's only on the few of the newest ships (Oasis, Allure, Freedom, Liberty, Independence(?)).

 

As you can see from my signature I've sailed a lot on both Carnival and RCI and I disagree with those who say that they're quite similar. I think they're very different, but like both of them. You'll find that the Adventure blows any Carnival ship you've been on out of the water... there's just no comparison. However, I've found other things that I prefer on Carnival. I've always liked Carnival's MDR food and casual offerings (grill out on deck, etc.) better than RCI's.

 

All in all, keep an open mind and you'll have a great time. Plenty of people here to answer your RCI questions should you have any more.

[Clarea]

I'm doing the southern caribbean itinerary sailing from Puerto Rico on Adventure of the Seas. I've been on 4 cruises and sailed from San Juan before and taken land vacations in the caribbean. My questions are mainly about how is this cruiseline different from others (Carnival)? From what I'm reading I get the idea I have to make reservations for shows? I cannot take any beverages onboard? When will the ship's excursions be available, I'm paid in full? Any other big differences?

 

Gracias :rolleyes:

Royal offers show reservations on only a limited number of ships. At present, Adventure is not one of the ships that offers show reservations, so no difference there. It is against Royal's rules to take beverages on board. However, while this rule is actively enforced for alcoholic beverages, it is usually not enforced for water and soda. There are times (spring break) when they seem more likely to stop water and soda, but most of the time they let it go.

 

Excursions should be bookable about 90 days before the cruise. With Royal, when you book an excursion, you must use a credit card which is immediately charged in full for the excursion cost. So if you have on board credit you want to use for excursions, you must wait and book on board.

[Dave85]

However, while this rule is actively enforced for alcoholic beverages, it is usually not enforced for water and soda. There are times (spring break) when they seem more likely to stop water and soda, but most of the time they let it go.

 

Agreed. I haven't had trouble with reasonable amounts of water or soda either.

[bigeagle12]

Agreed. I haven't had trouble with reasonable amounts of water or soda either.

 

It seems to vary by ship, port, and captain. But have never had a problem in San Juan with small quantities of either.

[mn_isla_girl]

Thanks for the info. I'm super excited. I don't really care which cruise line I'm on. I'm always most concerned about the itinerary and cost, and this time Royal fit the bill. I'm sure I'll have a splendiforus time!!

[karena1]

We have sailed on Royal many times out of San Juan and have never had a problem taking water/soda/juice with us. We have walked on with it, checked it, and never had any issues at all.