My First Royal Caribbean Cruise!

[MelRandom]

Hi everyone! 
I just booked my first Royal Caribbean cruise (I’m not new to cruising, but am new to this cruise line) for the Ovation of the Seas next June and have some questions. Is there a way to preload money on to your onboard account? I’ve purchased cruise credit pre-cruise on other lines but haven’t been able to find anything like this on RC’s site. How is the food on the ship? Is a dining plan for the specialty restaurants worth the money? Also, is the non-alcoholic beverage package worth buying? I thought about buying one in my last Norwegian cruise and was glad I didn’t because the bartenders wound up only charging us for alcoholic drinks, not sodas. Any other tips and tricks I should know?

😎

[pharmdawg]

I can't speak for beverage packages because they don't appeal to us. We do enjoy the specialty dining. On a 7 day cruise, we get a 3 night specialty dining package. We think the $ is worth it.

[Biker19]

17 minutes ago, MelRandom said:

Any other tips and tricks I should know?

Welcome to CC.

 

 Read Ovation/Quantum Alaska related threads.

[cruiseguy1016]

21 minutes ago, MelRandom said:

How is the food on the ship? Is a dining plan for the specialty restaurants worth the money?

😎

 

This is very subjective as everyone's tastes differ. For me, I don't pay to eat in the specialty restaurants. I have dined in them a few times because it was a perk given by my TA. I will say the dining experience was a little better than in the main dining room. But, IMHO, there are enough dining options on the ship that are included with the fare that I don't see a need to spend more money on a specialty restaurant.

[taglovestocruise]

We were on Ovation in SEP.  All food venues from the Dog House, WJ, Solarium Bistro and MDR were the best we have experienced in the last 5 or six cruises.  We were on Quantum a week after Ovation and it was by far the WORST food ever served by Royal. Not enough variety of Specialty choices for the UDP a three night package would be the way to go. They run a Coke package on sale for about $8.  A can of coke or bottle of water runs 3.50. Book I fly and Northstar as soon as they open for reservations, we waited until day two and everything was booked solid for the week, that was for both the free versions and pay version. You can call C@A to pre purchase OBC. Gifts and Gear (800) 722-5443 , ship, date and reservation number 

[Sunshine3601]

You may want to consider booking a lunch at a specialty restaurant as the cost is about 1/2 the price but basically the same menu.   

As for refreshment package, if you enjoy fresh squeezed juices, specialty coffee, soda and bottled waters then it would probably be worth it.   Otherwise, regular juice, coffee/tea, ice tea and some other juices in the Windjammer are included in your cruise fare.  

As for items on the cruise planner, you can purchase items such as internet, drink packages, dining packages, etc. now then when you see a sale (Hopefully Black Friday sales will be good again this year) you can cancel the item and rebook at the sale price.  Or chance it and see what the pricing is for the Black Friday sale.     

[RedJessi]

For beverage packages, it's always a god idea to try and calculate what you would spend a'la carte versus the package. We've never done a beverage package because it just doesn't make sense for us.

To illustrate, the most up to date prices on drinks I am aware of is as follows:

Bottled Water           $3.25

Soda.                       $3.50 

Energy drinks.         $4.00

Specialty Coffee      $4.50

Smoothie/slushie     $7.00

Beer                         $7.00 to $8.25 

Wine                        $11.00 t0 $14.00 (average cost - in trust, it's more like $11 to $24)

Cocktails.                 $10.00 to $12.00

Speciality cocktails  $14.00

For myself, my husband and our 10 year old, the breakdown would be as follows: 

Me: 0-3 cocktails a day (beach day being the big one), 1-2 glasses of wine with dinner. 

Husband: MAYBE 2-3 alcoholic beverages the entire cruise

Child - 1-2 sodas with dinner

 

The rest of the time, we are just fine with the water/tea/juices that are available at no extra cost. So, for our cruise in November, where current packages are prices at $9.99 for sodas, $27.99 for non-alcoholic speciality drinks and $72.99 for alcohol included beverages (and knowing these are mandatory for everyone in the cabin who is of age regardless of whether or not they plan on utilizing them), it doesn't;t make sense. 

 

 

[MD_Dan]

Mel,

You ask a lot of good questions!

 

Is there a way to preload money on to your onboard account?

    If you booked through a TA, they can do that.  But I don't know of another way.

 

How is the food on the ship? Is a dining plan for the specialty restaurants worth the money?

    Opinions are mixed but there are so many options its very hard to not enjoy a meal.  The menu for the Main Dining Room (MDR) is posted.  If there is nothing there that tickles your fancy, head to the Wind Jammer (WJ), Royal's buffet.  I'd suggest trying at least one specialty restaurant. 

 

Also, is the non-alcoholic beverage package worth buying?

    We never have!  Breakfast comes with coffee; tea; powdered orange drink (think Tang); milk - the only thing a drink package adds is fresh orange juice.  Lunch and dinner have the same powdered orange drink; ice deal; powdered lemonade, coffee, and tea.  So the real difference is the real juice as compared to the powder stuff.

    You can bring drinks on the ship (per person, a 6-pack of soda/water and a bottle of wine).  As a former soda addict, this was a lot cheaper than their package, 

 

Any other tips and tricks I should know?

    Something we rarely discuss here is that RCL tries to up-sell nearly everything.  People begin to think they will go thirsty if they don't get a drink package!  The internet package is pricey ($20/day).  There is so much to do and see, you won't miss unplugging from the world for a few days.

    And speaking of tips, there's "tips".  They are automatically added to and drink or food you purchase.  You will need to tip the wait staff and room attendant.  See the suggested tips.

   

[OCVTSGIRL]

36 minutes ago, MD_Dan said:

Mel,

You ask a lot of good questions!

 

Is there a way to preload money on to your onboard account?

    If you booked through a TA, they can do that.  But I don't know of another way.

 

How is the food on the ship? Is a dining plan for the specialty restaurants worth the money?

    Opinions are mixed but there are so many options its very hard to not enjoy a meal.  The menu for the Main Dining Room (MDR) is posted.  If there is nothing there that tickles your fancy, head to the Wind Jammer (WJ), Royal's buffet.  I'd suggest trying at least one specialty restaurant. 

 

Also, is the non-alcoholic beverage package worth buying?

    We never have!  Breakfast comes with coffee; tea; powdered orange drink (think Tang); milk - the only thing a drink package adds is fresh orange juice.  Lunch and dinner have the same powdered orange drink; ice deal; powdered lemonade, coffee, and tea.  So the real difference is the real juice as compared to the powder stuff.

    You can bring drinks on the ship (per person, a 6-pack of soda/water and a bottle of wine).  As a former soda addict, this was a lot cheaper than their package, 

 

Any other tips and tricks I should know?

    Something we rarely discuss here is that RCL tries to up-sell nearly everything.  People begin to think they will go thirsty if they don't get a drink package!  The internet package is pricey ($20/day).  There is so much to do and see, you won't miss unplugging from the world for a few days.

    And speaking of tips, there's "tips".  They are automatically added to and drink or food you purchase.  You will need to tip the wait staff and room attendant.  See the suggested tips.

   

FYI...your canned soda allowance you can bring on board is a 12 pack not a 6 pack.

[Airbear232]

3 hours ago, MelRandom said:

Hi everyone! 
I just booked my first Royal Caribbean cruise (I’m not new to cruising, but am new to this cruise line) for the Ovation of the Seas next June and have some questions. Is there a way to preload money on to your onboard account? I’ve purchased cruise credit pre-cruise on other lines but haven’t been able to find anything like this on RC’s site. How is the food on the ship? Is a dining plan for the specialty restaurants worth the money? Also, is the non-alcoholic beverage package worth buying? I thought about buying one in my last Norwegian cruise and was glad I didn’t because the bartenders wound up only charging us for alcoholic drinks, not sodas. Any other tips and tricks I should know?

😎

Welcome to Royal, I hope you have a wonderful cruise.  The Ovation is a beautiful ship, you’ll find it more spacious than NCL.  I’ve never preloaded money to my seapass.  Like most, I have it linked to a CC and never think more of it.  The food quality is good but can vary from ship to ship.  If you’re a foodie then the specialty restaurants are worth it.  As a few people mentioned, you can often get promos for specialty restaurants prior to cruising, on the first day, and for lunch.  Being a coffee freak, I used to get the non-alcoholic beverage package as between lattes, freshly squeezed juices, and mock tails, it was worth it for DW and I.  If you find you enjoy Royal, you’ll find many perks as you move up their loyalty tiers. 

[crzndeb]

1 hour ago, MD_Dan said:

per person, a 6-pack of soda/water

 

43 minutes ago, OCVTSGIRL said:

FYI...your canned soda allowance you can bring on board is a 12 pack not a 6 pack.

Maybe he was thinking 2 in a cabin, which is technically a  6 pack pp or 12 pack per cabin. Now if there were more than 2, it’s still 12. LOL

Edited July 4, 2023 by crzndeb

[MelRandom]

Thanks for all the quick responses! You’ve all been so helpful!