msvickyes

I had the same worry. I had COVID in August. My cruise was last week. I did a “practice” test 2 weeks out with Rite Aid. Negative.  I did the emed proctored test 2 days before. Negative. I had a fabulous time on my cruise. 

We bought a 6 pack for 4 of us. We did one at 2:30 am. One at 8:30 a.m and 2 at 2:00 pm. Immediately got a person so no wait time. We did 3 on a desktop and one on a phone. My mom is 83 and could not hear at all. They were fine with me there repeating everything to her and preparing the swab for the kit.  Our sound went off halfway through so we finished with the chat option. 
my sister had a continuous beeping during her test and we used chat for her also.

the cell phone option did require 2 people as the camera switched from back to front a couple of times. 
We were very relieved when we were all negative. Received Emailed results within minutes.

Printed those out and had no issues at the ship. 

Had a great time on the Dream so it was worth it in the long run. 

We had a water leak in our cabin on the last night of a cruise. I emailed and received a call within a couple of days.  They gave us substantial future cruise credit to book a do over cruise and $200 on board credit to spend. I was very impressed. 

10 hours ago, eileen11 said:

I am curious why you would get an OBC.  Did you upgrade or downgrade?

We didn't change anything - the rate was just less expensive and he gave us OBC to make up the difference.

They have always split it on our accounts. Guest services has always been very accommodating. 

We are sailing on the Dream on Oct 17. Called and left a message for my PVP and he called me back the next day.  We got $388 OBC on our balcony cabin. Excellent. 

Hello,

 

How was the mattress at cabin 6644?

Is it was firm or soft?

I have heard that the mattress on the Anthem are very firm and not so comfortable.

We will have this cabin on our next cruise, so we are very curious.

 

 

Thanks

It was firm but not uncomfortable. I prefer softer but did sleep well. It’s a great cabin.

On a recent cruise on Antham my suitcase was damaged. I lost the first handle on the Virgin American flight and the other handle at the port. When I went to retrieve my bag before customs, the handle was there with the luggage tag, but my suitcase was in the unclaimed section. Hard to maneuver with zero handles.

I decided to try to put in a claim with the travel insurance I purchased at booking. I thought it would be a futile since the claim form wanted all kinds of paperwork from the airline and port, but I sent it in anyway with my original receipt of purchase and pictures.

To my surprise and delight, they approved my claim within a week and are mailing me a check for the full price of the suitcase. Excellent. I came very close to not bothering since I knew it would be denied. Glad I was wrong.

AON Insurance.

Thank you for the report. It is very hard to find any info.

We will have time after the tour as our flight doesn't leave till close to 7pm. The free shuttle sounds good.

The shuttle is from the Embassy Suites Elizabeth. You pick it up outside P4. The mall is right across the street from the hotel. Pretty close though you do have to walk across the huge parking lot at the mall. There is also a Ruby Tuesday right there if you need a meal.

If you saw Spectra's Cabinet on your voyage, can you think of any reason why they would cancel one of the shows and then rebook you for the last night of the sailing?

 

My Roll Call received an email from RCL regarding the cancellation. We were given other dates and times and we all did not book for the original same date/time?????

 

MARAPRINCE

It is a very high tech show. They cancelled it a couple of times during our cruise because they were having tech. difficulties. I also heard they had cancelled it the week before because of high seas. I can't imagine they would know any of that in advance.

We came in a few days early and enjoyed visiting Liberty Island and New York. Never been there so it was a treat.

My husband and I are staying at the Renaissance Airport Hotel at Newark. I ordered a car from Airport Shuttles.com and they are $56 each way. I immediately received a confirmation from the driver and a picture of him, so we would know it was our car. Great service, let's hope being picked up will be. Sailing Oct. 28th on Anthem, can't wait!!

Have a GREAT Cruise. We loved it.

If you are with Royal on Antham, we just got back. We had a 4:00 flight so we booked their excursion, Manhattan highlights and transfer to EWR. We left the ship with our luggage and got on the bus at 8:30. We toured all over Manhattan with one 30 minute stop at Ground Zero. They got us to the airport at about 1:45 for our 4:00 p.m. Flight. I would recommend it.

We have completed our cruise so I thought I would update this with information on the post cruise excursion we took from Antham of the Seas "Manhattan highlights and transfer to EWR".

They gave all of us the same luggage tags (zone 15) with departure at 8:30. Those on the tour met at 8:30 in a bar on deck 4. We went out together as a group to pick up our luggage and go through customers. We bypassed the main line and got to jump ahead. We were on the bus by 9:00 a.m. We toured all through Manhattan and had a guide on the mic giving us info on what we were seeing. It was a huge bus with a restroom on board. We got off the bus at ground zero for 30 minutes. There was a pizza place there with pizza to go and several got lunch at that time. There was also 2 tourist gift shops if you were fast. We also had 1 quick bathroom stop. The rest of the time was on the bus. We got to the EWR airport at about 1:45 p.m. Our flight was at 4:00. Others had later flights and the guide told them that the airport let them check in early and they could take a free hotel shuttle to a nearby mall if they wanted to kill some time.

We found it a great way to get a taste of Manhattan before we flew back to California.

Yes, there was a shuttle. It was $20 per person. Since we had 4 of us, it was less expensive to take a private car. Sorry, I didn't get the times.

We just go off Anthem of the Seas - Sept. 9-14, 2017. Here are a few notes I would have found useful before we left on our trip.

We left our car at Wally Park LAX. $140 for 8 days covered parking, We had not been there for a while and didn't realize they no longer pick up at your car. We had to drop all our luggage off at the first floor and then drive up the ramp to the 5th floor to park. The shuttle took us directly to our airline entrance.

We flew into EWR from LAX. We had reservations at Embassy Suites in Elizabeth. We used the hotel shuttle. Once you pick up your luggage, you have to go upstairs to the second floor to the air train. The shuttle will only pick up at P4. The shuttle came quickly after we arrived there but it was a pain to get us and all our luggage to P4. I had checked in on-line so we were in our rooms in 5 minutes. They had free internet which was great. Ruby Tuesdays is walking distance (very close) and a mall across the street.

We came in a couple of days early so spent Friday at the Stature of Liberty. It was a great way to spend our day. The hotel set us up with a driver (Lucy) who was great but expensive. $140 round trip to Liberty Park. Uber would have been a LOT less expensive but we had my mom with a walker and we wanted as easy as possible.

We did use Uber later that day so we could run out and pick up some wine for the cruise.

Hotel to Port - We had planned to use the Hotel Shuttle for $20 per person, but Lucy charged us less so we enjoyed our private car to the port. We left at 10:30 and arrived to the port before 11:00. Check in was quick and easy and we didn't have to wait to board the ship.

Cabins 6646 and 6644. These are great cabins. Close to elevators. The best part were the balconies. They are extended out from the ship and very private. No obstructions.

Wow band - we wanted the Wow band and got in line at customer service that evening. Really long line and since it was the first night, several people had to talk about issues that took awhile. We were in line for about 20 minutes when we saw one of the agents going to the back of the line and getting sea pass cards from people in the back of the line and getting their wow banks so they didn't have to wait. That made the people in line with me very upset as we had been waiting for the same thing. At least 10 people behind us got their bands before we did. They need 2 lines. 1 for wow bands and 1 for other issues. We finally got them and found them very convenient.

IFLY -I was the only one in my group who did this. I'm in my 50's and not athletic at all, but I did it. They are very patient and there is training before hand. It was quite an experience. I can't say it was fun, but I was really glad I did it and got some great pictures. My shoulders hurt a bit the next day.

Meals - we ate in the Dining Room for dinner each night. Most of the meals were excellent. The tiger shrimp was the only bad meal. Very tough and tasteless. Lobster was the last night. Formal night was the first at sea day.

All other meals were in the Windjammer and were excellent. The staff was great.

Bermuda - We did the Wildcat boat tour. Loved it! It lasted about 2 hours. My mom is 80 and they made sure she was in a very stable seat.

Snorkel Park - Very windy so they couldn't give us umbrellas or kayaks. They refunded 30% of our tour cost. We still enjoyed the snorkeling and the beach but didn't stay all day because of the wind. Clean and well staffed.

Manhatten Tour and Airport Transfer - We booked the Manhatten tour since our flight didn't leave until 4:00. It was very organized. We all had the same zone numbers for our luggage. We meet together at a bar on Deck 4 at 8:30 a.m. We left the ship as a group, picked up our luggage and went through customs and then met at the bus right outside the terminal. It was a great tour. We made 1 stop at Ground Zero for 30 minutes. 1 bathroom stop. The rest of the time we had a guided tour of Manhatten. I recommend this tour if you want to see all the sights of Manhattan and you have limited time. We arrived at the airport at about 1:45 p.m.

We loved the cruise. The shows, the food, the staff. Shopping was all the same as every other cruise.

I was on this cruise. We only got 1 towel animal all week. You all did better. We were in 6646 just down the hall. Our attendant, Craig, usually showed up after we returned from dinner so we declined service a few nights. Loved the cruise!

According to twitter (jamesfleet) the cruise will not be cancelled, however, may go to Halifax. Tweeted last night.

Thank you for the information. The mobility issues are not severe. My mom is 80 and just gets tired. She can do stairs and walking but will have a walker so she can sit occasionally. I considered a tour from the airport but don't know about luggage. The taxi costs is high but manageable with 4 people. I'll check into Uber. Never used them. I had first planned on the NY tour through the company you mentioned from our hotel but need something to do on the last day since we can't even check into the airport until 4 hours before our flight at 4:00.

Hello, We are cruising on Anthem of the Seas on September 9 out of Cape Liberty. There are 4 of us and we are coming in Sept. 7 and staying at the Embassy Suites EWR airport. We had planned on a tour of New York on that Friday before the cruise, but our flight after the cruise is not until 4:00 so we are considering the Post Cruise Tour that will give us Manhatten highlights and then take us to the airport. Has anyone done this? I would love to know some details as the description on the website is very short. If we do that, we are thinking about planning Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty on the Friday before the cruise. We are from California so are not comfortable with subways or public transportation. We drive everywhere. Any advice is appreciated. I have 2 with mobility issues. Cost of taxi from Embassy Suites to Ferry to Ellis? Thanks in advance for any advise.

We didn't know about the cookie of the day until Thursday. We asked our asst. waitress about it at breakfast and she brought us a plate right out of the oven. Coconut!

We didn't get the wine packages so I can't answer your questions. We did bring 4 bottles on board between our two rooms so we just brought our own bottle to the dining room. The other nights we ordered wine by the glass. It was about $7 per glass and we each had one buy one get one coupon on our sea pass cards.

Yes, we had a flat screen. Yes, Chops and Portifinos were the specialty restaurants and yes, they had wine packages.

We just returned from the Jewel of the Seas Pacific Coastal Cruise on Oct. 3-10, 2015. I thought I would post a quick review to answer questions I have seen raised here.

We originally booked an oceanside cabin. We changed that to Balcony Guarantee in July. We received our assignment about 2 weeks later. We were assigned adjoining balcony cabins on deck 9. We paid base $791 per person which was less than we had originally paid. We received the difference back to our credit card.

Check in - Quite an ordeal. Took about 3 hours, but I figured I have waited almost that long for a ride at disneyland for a 3 minute ride and this was for an 8 day cruise, so I was good The lines looked equally long for each category. We ended up having to wait in line to check our luggage. Then we waited in chairs to be allowed to wait in line. Then in line, we dragged a chair with us so my mom could sit during the hour long wait. Then we waited in line for security. We were able to bring on a case of water and our two bottles of wine without question. We did chat with those around us and developed friendships that lasted throughout the cruise.

We did take our wine to dinner each night which they served without a corkage fee.

Our luggage was delivered before the early seating for dinner and our beds were separated while we were at dinner. Plenty of room for everything in the cabin and I brought ALOT of shoes so that is saying something.

We had OBC which showed up the evening of the second day.

Santa Barbara Tender - again, quite a wait and a line. It was raining in Santa Barbara and everything was slippery on the tender. Two people on our tender fell while boarding. 1 of them had to be carried off when we got back to the ship as he had injured his knee. 1 man spent most of his time in line complaining bitterly about Royal and how he would never cruise with them again. That made it very uncomfortable for everyone in line. The staff just kept smiling and apologizing. I thought the staff were amazing under difficult circumstances.

Monterey Tender - Much quicker and no line. Beautiful weather and beautiful port.

Meal Service - We had dinner in the MDR each night and loved the service and the food. We had most lunches in the Windjammer. Loved the outdoor seating. Also, I would definitely recommend Chocolate Breakfast in the MDR. It was on day 7 on our cruise. We had coffee and juice delivered each morning. We scheduled it for 6:30-7:00 and it almost always came a littlle early.

San Francisco - hop on hop off bus tour. We booked that for 2 days. It is a 2 hour loop but only goes one way. We stayed on the full loop and just got off at the Golden Gate Bridge. The second day we would have liked to go to a couple of stops, but it would have meant doing the full loop again to get back to the ship so we had to taxi back. We really enjoyed Pier 39. They have the biggest chocolate store I have ever seen. Don't miss it!

Ensenada - We just did main street for about an hour and then went back to the ship and spent the day at the pool.

Shows - We went to the song/dance shows. Very talented performers. We were disappointed in the Broadway review show. We didn't know many of the songs they performed and would have enjoyed it more if they were from more popular shows.

Shopping - typical watch sale, purses sale, t-shirt sale. I did win the drawing for a pearl necklace so that made it all worthwhile.

Jewel - lovely ship. Best part was all the windows which included glass elevators. Beautiful. I figured out most of the layout by day 6. Just in time to get off the ship!

We had an absolutely fantastic time and can't wait to cruise Royal again.

I called and changed our Ocean View rooms to Balcony guarantees in July for a October cruise on Jewel. We received $80 back per room. About 2 weeks later we were assigned 2 superior balcony cabins next to each other. I had expected deluxe balcony cabins with obstructed views far apart from each other so was very pleasantly surprised. When I called about another matter, the phone rep. at Royal told me that once a cabin is assigned, they don't change it. Hope she is correct.