Another Royal Newbie

[buckeyefrank]

So we have a family cruise already booked on the Icon for next September and cannot wait.  My wife and I are debating on a Royal cruise this September on the Grandeur.  We are frequent cruisers, just not on Royal so we do know it's an older, smaller ship..  No issues with that.  I do have a couple of questions though:

 

• We are buying Royal's cancel for any reason insurance.  If we do need to cancel and get 90% in obc, can we apply those funds to the Icon cruise next year?  I don't want to assume yes.
• Can you pre-order a bottle of alcohol like rum to drink in the cabin?
• I have some my vegas rewards that I can redeem for casino credits.  On Carnival, we could put that credit on a machine, pull the arm once and then cash out and keep the rest.  Is that possible on Royal?

 

TIA

 

[firefly333]

It is possible to cash out in the casino at a machine, though I have never done such a large amount. Wait to pay tips and stuff onboard and spend what you can.

 

That being said grandeur is the only rcl cruise since restart I was disappointed in. Cabins are smaller than other ships. Pizza up in the solarium isnt as hot as having a sorrentos onboard imo. I had a female waiter from jamaica who tried to make me order what she wanted so maybe she is part of it. Food just wasnt as varied as I'd prefer and food is important to me.

 

I doubt I'd book grandeur again unless with friends who wanted it and couldnt afford a better cruise.

[Biker19]

30 minutes ago, buckeyefrank said:

Can you pre-order a bottle of alcohol like rum to drink in the cabin?

Yes, though availability varies ship to ship - you'd have to look up in the gift&gear section.

[buckeyefrank]

Just now, Biker19 said:

Yes, though availability varies ship to ship - you'd have to look up in the gift&gear section.

Is it a certain time prior to sailing because I don't see anything on my Icon booking, but we're still over a year out on that.

 

[Biker19]

Just now, buckeyefrank said:

Is it a certain time prior to sailing because I don't see anything on my Icon booking, but we're still over a year out on that.

 

The availability of items in both the planner and gift&gear section may vary over time but should get better closer to sailing.

[boscobeans]

48 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

 

I doubt I'd book grandeur again unless with friends who wanted it and couldnt afford a better cruise.

We have cruised on the Grandeur 3 times. 

The third time was actually the last day cruises left when the industry closed down because of Covid. 

The ship is definitely more than long in the tooth and our suite had problems from day one throughout the entire cruise.

Staff is wonderful and meals were about par with most R/C cruises however CHOPS was an easily forgettable experience.

Since nothing seems to have been done to do a COMPLETE refurb of the ship, I would avoid it.

 

I admit I have more wrinkles than the Grandeur and although there were many problems it was still an adventure, but our next adventures have all been on other ships.

[PhillyFan33579]

I cruised on Grandeur earlier this year because it went to a few ports I had never been to in the Caribbean. Although I enjoyed Grandeur, I definitely wouldn’t cruise on her again. 

[buckeyefrank]

1 hour ago, firefly333 said:

It is possible to cash out in the casino at a machine, though I have never done such a large amount. Wait to pay tips and stuff onboard and spend what you can.

 

That being said grandeur is the only rcl cruise since restart I was disappointed in. Cabins are smaller than other ships. Pizza up in the solarium isnt as hot as having a sorrentos onboard imo. I had a female waiter from jamaica who tried to make me order what she wanted so maybe she is part of it. Food just wasnt as varied as I'd prefer and food is important to me.

 

I doubt I'd book grandeur again unless with friends who wanted it and couldnt afford a better cruise.

The rewards I would be cashing out is only $100 so not so large.

[buckeyefrank]

22 minutes ago, boscobeans said:

We have cruised on the Grandeur 3 times. 

The third time was actually the last day cruises left when the industry closed down because of Covid. 

The ship is definitely more than long in the tooth and our suite had problems from day one throughout the entire cruise.

Staff is wonderful and meals were about par with most R/C cruises however CHOPS was an easily forgettable experience.

Since nothing seems to have been done to do a COMPLETE refurb of the ship, I would avoid it.

 

I admit I have more wrinkles than the Grandeur and although there were many problems it was still an adventure, but our next adventures have all been on other ships.

All of that is fair and will be taken into account.  We were on MSC in February and had an awful time.  The ship was great and was very well kept up, but the lines were out of control... everywhere.  We have been on Carnival's oldest and smallest.  A little rust doesn't bother us.  This would be a birthday cruise to get some sun before the Ohio winter kicks in.  Mostly looking at this cruise because the travel expenses make a 5 day more palatable for us and we like the idea of going to Cococay.  In general, as long as we can get some sun during the day, main dining room food, a drink here and there and a little live music in the evening, we're golden.;

 

[BirdTravels]

6 hours ago, buckeyefrank said:

So we have a family cruise already booked on the Icon for next September and cannot wait.  My wife and I are debating on a Royal cruise this September on the Grandeur.  We are frequent cruisers, just not on Royal so we do know it's an older, smaller ship..  No issues with that.  I do have a couple of questions though:

 

• We are buying Royal's cancel for any reason insurance.  If we do need to cancel and get 90% in obc, can we apply those funds to the Icon cruise next year?  I don't want to assume yes.
• Can you pre-order a bottle of alcohol like rum to drink in the cabin?
• I have some my vegas rewards that I can redeem for casino credits.  On Carnival, we could put that credit on a machine, pull the arm once and then cash out and keep the rest.  Is that possible on Royal?

 

TIA

 

Hmmm,,,, newest fanciest ship after the old yucky ship. At least you will have something to look forward to once you're done with the Grandeur. 

[buckeyefrank]

18 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Hmmm,,,, newest fanciest ship after the old yucky ship. At least you will have something to look forward to once you're done with the Grandeur. 

Not many people can claim they went from the worst to first in a fleet within a year 🙂