New To RC.. A Few Questions.

[surfjock27]

My partner and I have taken a few cruises on another cruise line, but have decided to give RC a try.

Last night, along with another couple, we booked Oasis on 5/24/14 through a travel agent we found online that was offering a great deal of no deposit down.

Now with the other cruise line, I always booked directly and was weary of travel agents.

 

With that background given, here are my questions ..

 

1. If I notice the price of our category drop, can we get the difference in price taken off our balance due? If our balance is paid in full, is it given in onboard credit? If so, do I contact my travel agent or RC directly?

With the other cruise line I just submitted a quick application online each time and it was taken off the balance or put as on onboard credit. Not sure if or how RC does this?

 

2. We are set up for My Time Dining. Do we have to make a reservation every night? We are used to My Time Dining, but we just came and went as we wanted on the other line.

 

3. On sea days we love doing trivia, interactive games, etc. Is this stuff offered

 

4. At night we love grabbing a cocktail and watching Karaoke. Available?

 

5. Has anyone experienced the "unlimited alcohol" package and is it worth it?

 

6. Is there a sail away deck party?

 

7. We are not accustomed to making reservations to see shows. On the other line, you just come and go. How does this work?

 

8. Other than alcohol, what else carries a fee?

 

9. Is there food available at all times? We are college kids who like to munch!

 

Sorry for all the questions, I will probably have a ton more.

Thanks in advance for any insight.

[OCruisers]

From your signature seems your cruises have been on Carnival.

 

We've been on Carnival cruises and on Oasis.. You are not going to find things all that different on Oasis ... except there's lots more to do.

 

Have a great time on Oasis! :)

 

LuLu

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[garnetpalmetto]

I'll answer what I can, even if you're a Florida fan.

 

My partner and I have taken a few cruises on another cruise line, but have decided to give RC a try.

Last night, along with another couple, we booked Oasis on 5/24/14 through a travel agent we found online that was offering a great deal of no deposit down.

Now with the other cruise line, I always booked directly and was weary of travel agents.

 

With that background given, here are my questions ..

 

1. If I notice the price of our category drop, can we get the difference in price taken off our balance due? If our balance is paid in full, is it given in onboard credit? If so, do I contact my travel agent or RC directly?

With the other cruise line I just submitted a quick application online each time and it was taken off the balance or put as on onboard credit. Not sure if or how RC does this?

 

2. We are set up for My Time Dining. Do we have to make a reservation every night? We are used to My Time Dining, but we just came and went as we wanted on the other line.

 

3. On sea days we love doing trivia, interactive games, etc. Is this stuff offered Yes, absolutely - you'll be given a Cruise Compass with the activities of the day that will note those events.

 

4. At night we love grabbing a cocktail and watching Karaoke. Available?

 

5. Has anyone experienced the "unlimited alcohol" package and is it worth it?

 

6. Is there a sail away deck party? Yes.

 

7. We are not accustomed to making reservations to see shows. On the other line, you just come and go. How does this work? You can make reservations on your cruise page on Royal's website - choose whichever show you'd like and voila.

 

8. Other than alcohol, what else carries a fee? Soft drinks, the specialty restaurants (Johnny Rockets, Cupcake Cupboard, Seafood Shack, 150 Central Park, Chops, Giovanni's Table, etc.), and the golf simulator

 

9. Is there food available at all times? We are college kids who like to munch! Yes!!!

 

Sorry for all the questions, I will probably have a ton more.

Thanks in advance for any insight.

[reallyitsmema]

I will answer a few of the questions for you. Yes, you can get a refund if your cruise fare goes down before final payment. That is a question you really should have asked the online TA prior to booking though. Some TA will charge a fee for making changes so I would try to find out if you ended up with one that does. I would also ask if there is a cancellation fee if you decide to cancel you cruise.

 

My time dining (MTD) can be done with reservations or you can just show up and ask for a table. We have always booked reservations since we wanted the same time each night but others have had no issue just showing up.

 

There is trivia, sometimes twice a day. They will have a name that tune trivia which is fun. We have seen Harry Potter trivia that was really hard but some got all questions right!

 

Shows have to be booked but you can do that online prior to your cruise. There is a list of when the shows are on the cruiseline website to help you plan. You can also walk up last minute but you might not get in, especially to the comedy club since it is a small venue.

 

There are a bunch of good reviews with pictures that should help you, just do some poking around, you should be able to find them.

[ehfl]

If you have a good TA, they should watch for price drops for you. If you see one, they should be able to get a reduction if it's before final payment, or you can call the cruise line if you don't have any luck with the TA. After final payment, see if you can get an upgrade.

 

There are trivia and other games throughout the day.

 

There is Karaoke on the Oasis.

 

Yes, there is a sail-away party.

 

Make reservations for shows online as soon as you can. There are some seats reserved for booking on board, but you don't want to spend your vacation trying to make show arrangements, and booking ahead of time will let you enjoy the vacation.

 

There is an extra fee for some of the restaurants, as well as some items like Starbucks coffee, cupcake shop, etc. The restaurants are really good, so if it's in your budget, try one or more of the upscale restaurants.

 

I'm not sure if it's 24/7, but there is food a lot of the time. There is a cafe on the promenade that has snacks most of the day and night.

 

Enjoy the cruise....I think you will be impressed.

[Trekker954]

Ehlf is wrong about one thing, you can NEVER call RCI directly once you have booked through a TA. That is why I never use TAs. Just because you can't reach the TA, RCI is unable to discuss your booking with you. And I highly recommend you track your own price drops. And you will have to be able to reach your TA regardless of what hour of the day/night/weekend. Sometimes price drops are only a few hours.

 

Another option if you see a price drop across the board and its after final payment you may be able to upsell to a better cabin.

[SoCA6ft5]

We just got off the Oasis April 6. We all commented on how good the entertainment was onboard. We enjoyed all four of the "biggies": Hairspray, Oasis of Dreams, Come Fly With Me, and Frozen in Time. Unlike smaller ships, reservations really are a necessity on the Oasis class.

[nwualum]

I have a question as we are taking our first RC cruise next spring. We leave and disembark at Fort Lauderdale. What time can we safely book our airfare to leave that Saturday? Our ship arrives back in port at 5:30am that morning. Thanks.

[Clarea]

I have a question as we are taking our first RC cruise next spring. We leave and disembark at Fort Lauderdale. What time can we safely book our airfare to leave that Saturday? Our ship arrives back in port at 5:30am that morning. Thanks.

You would be very safe to book a flight at noon. However, our experience has been that if you are getting off Allure (and probably Oasis too), you can be at the airport by 8:30am, even without self disembarkation. Just get early luggage tags from Guest Services if you want to make an early flight.

[woehwdy]

You can call RCI to assist you with you pre-cruise reservations, shows, shore excursions, soda packages, liquor packages, etc, they will not discuss financials with the cruiser.