CruisinBarb63

Lol thanks again :)

 

 

 

You didn't get any noise from the pool? I wondered if there might be loungers been dragged about early or such like?

So sorry I didn't answer sooner. We did not hear any noise at all and neither did other members of our group who also had inside rooms, further down the hall. I did hear noises were likely but it was never an issue for us.

Our last cruise there were four women/girls sharing an inside so space was tight. We had hard-side luggage that we unzipped and opened up to slide under the beds. We used one for a laundry "hamper" and the others were used like drawers. It worked perfectly to get things out of the way and save on space.

Our cruise was last October and while in San Juan we walked around (ours was an evening stop so we wouldn't have had a lot of time in the forts), did some local shopping and ate some local foods. It was wonderful and beautiful.

While in St. Maarten, we booked a tour with Bernard's after reading MANY positive reviews on Trip Advisor and these boards...we were not disappointed! We went to Maho to watch the planes take off and land, Orient Beach for some beach time, both sides of the island for some shopping and had a great time. You can choose from their pre-planned tours or book a private tour.

I agree with room upgrade ideas. In addition, I would have the group jump in front of ever photographer you see and buy the entire photo package.

Enjoy your cruise and your time together.

I don't think you are asking if you can get drinks included on your package for your daughter but I may be wrong. You are free to purchase anything you want on your card, including virgin drinks for your daughter. I bought Royal Replenish packages for my daughters when we cruised and they could then use their own cards to get a drink whenever they wanted. It also included bottled water, which was a big savings for us, soda and fresh squeezed OJ.

Be aware that even if you do not give her charging privileges, that block does not work in the arcade so she will be able to use her card to play all the games she wants. You may want to discuss this with her if she is a child who likes to play video games. There is nothing you can do to put a block on that. I had to keep my kiddos out of the arcade.

We sailed in October so I can't comment on the ship full of kids.

Enjoy!

I never thought of opening the suitcase to fit it under - that would have worked. At least I know for next time - Thanks!

We did this on Indy and used our hardside suitcases as extra "drawers" as there were four "girls" in our room...2 teens a 20 something and a 50 something. we needed the extra drawers!

Enjoying your review. We don't sail on Majesty until October 2017 but it's wonderful reading a review after drydock.

I'm so sorry to hear of your experience. So many of these things could have happened to me with three teenaged girls in tow had I not gotten up to speed on these boards well in advance of our first cruise last fall.

I planned on arriving the morning of our cruise (it was a non-issue when I was young and single so I didn't consider it could be an issue) and I did not plan on getting passports (they weren't required). Instead, after reading these boards for months, we flew in the morning before and had an extra day of vacation plus got to the port before boarding even began so we had a full day on board before setting sail. I also got all of us passports (that took a chunk out of our budget) and felt so much more at ease that if something were to happen, that was one thing we wouldn't need to worry about.

I hope you are able to get some closure and can actually cruise in the future...with all plans in place well in advance.

 

Also, in regards to Independence... friends of mine were on her earlier in the Spring and were completely underwhelmed. Generally poor service, poor food and crew members that were uninformed and uninterested.

We were on IOS in October and LOVED our experience. The crew, the food, the venues...all were wonderful! With that being said, many crew advised they were leaving. Some were going to other lines and some other ships. Many who advised they were leaving were going to be doing so in January and February. Everyone who told us they were leaving said it was because they did NOT want to work on her once she crossed the Atlantic.

I would imagine it takes a while for the crew to work well together if there is a large turnover.

We struggled with this same question last year on Independence. After speaking with an RCI agent, we chose two insides, primarily for the two bathrooms. We were able to see a Family Promenade when we were on our cruise and I was thrilled with our decision. Despite the nice walk in closet, it would not have been better than our two insides. One of us may have ended up sleeping in the closet :) The two bathrooms were so much better!

She left around 4:45 or so yesterday. She is parked in a bad spot to really watch sail away on the webcam. There are palm trees between her and the webcam and she is further away so sail away wasn't very exciting. A Disney ship left at the same time just behind her and they had a lot of great close ups there.

Someone who boarded yesterday posted saying the pool deck was not yet open, internet was working but was not very fast and the rooms did not seem to have any changes.

It will be interesting to see what those who are on her now have to say after a few days.

She's in port but the webcam is behind a palm tree to its difficult to see much. I look forward to hearing reports and seeing pictures of the updates and changes.

Interesting discussion. I took three of my dd's on a cruise last year and didn't even consider taking a notarized letter. The youngest was 16 so only one of us needed to take them for their passports. I wonder what would have happened if they had asked for a letter and I didn't have it. Next time we cruise the youngest will be 18 so I imagine it won't be an issue anyway.

While not exactly answering your question, we did stay on deck 10 on Indy but an inside room under the pool deck. We heard no noises at any time of the day. It was so convenient to only have to walk up one deck to the Windjammer and pool areas. In addition, since most of the suites are on deck 10, the cabin stewards were the BEST! They are trained to service the suite guests and service all their guests the same.

Thanks for the heads up. I called to check the five rooms we booked October 2017 and while the insides were higher, we were able to move our three small outsides to three large outsides for $10 per room.

I brought travelers checks. I paid our bill with them and cashed some before going to each port. I just didn't feel good about carrying too much cash.

We were on deck 10 on Independence in October and LOVED it! One deck up to the Pool and Windjammer. No need to wait for an elevator to head to breakfast in the morning or go hang out by the pool. The Cabin Stewards were also wonderful. We had inside rooms (1605 & 1607) but the outsides are mostly suites so the cabin stewards are trained for the suites.

Nachos? I didn't see that on the menu someone posted earlier. Was it chips and a cheese dip or like cheese poured over a plate of chips

That was me. What we did was order the spinach dip, which comes with chips and I asked if we could have some melted cheese on the side, which they happily supplied in a small bowl.

I cruised Independence (sister ship to Freedom) with my three dd's (21, 17, 16) last October and we shared an inside. The only time it felt crowded was on the last night when we were trying to pack our six bags. Otherwise, there was plenty of room. I booked in 2014 when there was a true (and I believe last) BOGOHO so it was much less expensive than two connecting rooms.

I've had no issues navigating around most of the site but I was not able to look at prices for an Australian cruise at all today. Any US cruises were no problem but any I got an error message whenever I chose an Australian cruise.

Since this thread is a waste of time, I will take it on a tangent rant, driven by the mention of ranch popcorn topping. Why would anyone in their right mind use ranch dipping sauce when eating Buffalo wings? There is only one accompanying sauce for wings...blue cheese! The real wings question is not blue cheese vs. ranch, but rather Duff's vs. Anchor bar.

 

Yes...I'm in my own little world here.

Not in your own world at all. Whenever I hear "ranch" I think the same thing. There should be a warning when places try to give you ranch or even worse...give you ranch and call it blue cheese :eek:

My girls, then 20, 17 & 16 decided room service was too cool to miss out on when we were in Independence in October. We shared an inside cabin so room was limited but we went for it one night when we were too tired to go for a walk on deck for a snack. We got cookies, pizza and nachos. There was more than enough food for snacks and they had fun with the whole idea of room service. It was certainly nothing outstanding but it was something they wanted to do...and it was free (of course we did tip the person who brought the food).

I cannot answer your question with regard to shape, but wanted to make sure you know about the lack of privacy with deck 7 oceanview staterooms. Those staterooms are on the same level as the outside promenade, and the stateroom windows are at eye level for the folks walking by outside.

Thanks Bob! I had wondered about that as I recently saw a video blog of a Majesty cruise and one of the participants in the vlog was looking thru a window while on the promenade and realized it was a cabin. Interesting concept for sure. I think I will cross those rooms off our list!

I have researched this trying to get answers but have found nothing. Surely someone must have stayed in one of these rooms. The deck plans show these rooms on Deck 7 in the front corners of the ship. Both look oddly shaped and indicate obstructed views.

Can anyone shed light on whether the odd shapes give more or less room in these cabins and what the obstructed views might be as the cabins on either side do not have obstructed views.

This issue is not limited to Royal Caribbean. I got the same speech when I bought a car several years ago. If I didn't give the salesperson all 5's (their highest rating), she wouldn't get her sales incentive for my car. Every time I went for service, even just an oil change, same thing from the service people. They even went as far as putting a large flyer on the dashboard of the car reminding me before I left. Department stores, same thing..."please rate your experience (insert # here depending on the number scale used by said store).

Many corporations have decided to use their perception of perfection to rate their employees on all levels. I'm sure it saves them money because in so many cases, they withhold money or other incentives from their employees. By the same token, it annoys the consumer they are trying to keep.

On our October cruise, there was no need for (nor did we receive) any speeches from our waiter, head waiter or cabin attendant. On the other hand, the waiter's assistant only became helpful on the last night...a bit too late for him.

Our first cruise (my 2nd but after 30 years, I guess it counts as first) was in October and I read it all and thought I had my list pared down. I brought the vast majority of the "stuff" everyone suggests and all it did was weigh down my luggage and take up valuable time on our last day to pack. There are only two of the extra things we brought that we would bother bringing next time...the over the door shoe holder (invaluable with four women in one room) and the bathroom spray. All the other "extras".

The best advice, that I will definitely follow next time is to finish packing and remove half the clothes. We came home with a lot of clean clothes that were not necessary. next time, we will be packing a lot lighter!