TxStacey

Thank you all so much!  This info is very helpful!

Thank you!  Just want to make sure we can get around without a car since we will be there almost a full day before our cruise.

We will be flying into Ft Lauderdale on the Saturday before our cruise which will leave out of the Port of Miami on Sunday.  We get in around 10:00 AM and  will Uber to Miami.  We would like to stay somewhere that has walkable restaurants or easy access to get places.  We will not have a car.  I am not familiar with the many areas Miami so not sure where we should look.  A beach day might be an option for us but not sure what would be close to the Port. Should we look in Brickell, South Beach, Downtown?  We like casual restaurants but not fast food and a mid range hotel would be great. Any advice/recommendations would be greatly appreciated.  

Thank you!

11 hours ago, chefchick said:

I will be boarding this Friday….can you tell me what sort of entertainment was available?  Shows? comedy? Music?  Did you notice any lack of food or alcohol? I keep reading about regular items not being available (supply chain issues)?  How would you rate the staff?  The cruise overall?

 

Also, how was embarkation?  Thanks in advance for my many questions…Can you tell I’m excited?

We're getting on with you!  Can't wait

This same "almost" exact thing happened to one of my friends for our upcoming cruise this Friday on the Ovation.  She still hasn't gotten her money totally refunded...luckily she was able to re-book her cruise..but has spent countless hours on the phone with customer service.  It's been a nightmare for her.

Our group of 13 is on your sailing!  Sending good vibes your way..especially since you already had to miss a cruise due to Covid!!  I have cruised over 20 times, but first time on this class of ship and first time to Alaska...I have some of the same questions that you have, so I'm following this thread!  We sail in just a week!

Following in case I need this for a back up to my E-med tests!  Thanks for posting the link to rapid test and trace!

Thank you so much for this live review!  I will be on Ovation for the June 10th sailing and can't wait!  I'm not looking forward to the cold/windy weather though 🙂

Following!  I will be on The Ovation sailing out of Seattle on June 10th!

28 minutes ago, davekathy said:

rcldining@rccl.com

Thank you!  I needed that also to arrange seating for my group of 13 🙂

7 hours ago, TravelGirlinDallas said:

This is our question, too. We will be on Ovation in July (round-trip from Seattle). I suppose many things could change by then, though.

My question also..we're on the Ovation in June and stop in Victoria.  If we have to test to get off the ship, I would think Royal would provide the tests since it's the last stop on our itinerary.  Otherwise all of the passengers would have to bring their own test on board or pay for it?  Should be interesting.

We did a very short 3 day on the Freedom and it was great.  I felt very safe and never worried that I would be exposed.  Most if not all crew were double masked and I honestly didn't see any passengers that weren't following the rules.  Here are some bullet points but feel free to ask questions.

*Our check in time was 12:30 but we got to the port around 11:00 and were on the ship by 11:15. 

*The windjammer was very quiet and not crowded at all.  All food and drinks are served by staff.

*We ate at Chops for dinner the first night (2 night dining pkg), Giovanni's the second night and the Main Dining room the third night.  Giovanni's was far and away the best dinner we had on the cruise.  Chops was ok and the Main dining room was average at best.  This is subjective so my opinion may not be the same as yours.  The servers in the Main dinding room seemed under staffed and stressed.  The level of service was just not the same.

*Food at Coco Cay was good.  I had the tacos which were excellent!

This was my first time to Coco Cay in several years and I really enjoyed my day there.  We got chairs at the Lagoon Beach area which was quiet and very relaxing.  We did get off of the ship at 9:00 which was a smart idea as the Allure was in port with us.  It did get more crowded once they got off, but nothing like it would be if both ships were at full capacity.

*We booked Blue Lagoon Island in Nassau with lunch which was fine.  The boat ride to the island is about 20 minutes and the weather was great..in the high 70's.  

We don;t usually book tours through the ship, but we decided to do it this time as the Bahamas are very strict with Covid and we didn't want to have any issues.  We did have to wear our mask on the boat to the island and also if we were walking around.  We also had to have our vaccine cards with us.

*  Entertainment..we only went to the Welcome Aboard Show the first night which was good.  We did not go the ice show or production shows as we opted to watch playoff football in Playmakers.  We really enjoyed our time in Playmakers and the bartenders were great.

Overall, this was a great way to break back into cruising.  Our group of 6 adults all said that we wouldn't hesitate to sail again.  In fact, we have a Greek Isles cruise on the Odyssey booked for June..not sure we will make that one though if we have to test to come back to the US..too risky at this point, but my fingers are crossed!

Let me know if you have any questions.  If you are on the fence about going on a cruise right now..I say GO! 

Does anyone know the dates that the double points promotion was?  I cruise this weekend but I dont remember when I booked it.  Would the double points be reflected anywhere on my Royal account?

23 minutes ago, karena1 said:

We just got off 1/10 and going again 2/4/22.  Capacity was about 1/2 I think (we will be thrilled when we are back to full capacity).  We heard of zero positive rates on our cruise, everything was super great.  Staff is amazing.  Food was very good.  We had a blast. Ice show is awesome, probably in our top 5 of the Royal Ice shows on their ships. 

 

So glad to hear that Karena1!  It's nice to get some positive feedback.  Cruising these days is not for the faint of heart!  DH tested negative so we should be good to go!

Thank you!  That sounds a little high but most people are probably getting their covid tests today so there could be some cancellations.  I just took mine this morning and I am NEGATIVE!  DH will test shortly so fingers crossed!  I'll be glad when I can breathe a sign of relief.  That won't be until Im on the ship!

Thank you!  I took my test early this morning and also had a moment of panic when the liquid container was hiding 🙂  It is a little tricky and the person that was proctoring for me was a bit hard to understand.  Luckily I tested NEGATIVE!  WooHoo!  DH will be testing at work today during his lunch break.  I will be glad when this part is OVER!

Thank you!!

Thanks for the info!  Any idea what the normal passenger capacity is for Freedom?

I need to take my at home test early tomorrow morning.  Just wondering if the proctors are only available certain hours or anytime?

Ill be on the 21st sailing provided DH and I test negative on Wednesday!  We cannot wait!

My daughter has been trying to log into Navica to take an at home test (not for a cruise) and the site has been down for at least 2 hours.  Just wanted to put this out there that this is one of the reasons a back up plan is a good idea.  Anyone else trying to log in today and having issues?

  Outbound flight is on American out of DFW.  Our return flight is Rome to Toronto and then on to DFW on Air Canada.  Will we have to have a covid test to return to the US since we are going through Canada?  Just wondering if I should try to change our return flight to another airline that doesn't go through Canada.  DH is afraid of having a positive test after being on the ship and getting stuck in Canada.  Any experience with this?

31 minutes ago, Named-Tawny said:

 

Why would you be taking a 50% loss?  I thought they were offering full credit?

Personally, I'd stick with it - if COVID is still a thing in June, then a resort probably isn't going to be that appealing either. =/

If I cancel now, I would get 50% "cash" back and could book something in Florida for example..  If I wait and cancel in June, then I will get a FCC for 100%, but I still wouldn't have a summer vacation this year, as I need to take it in June.  It's a gamble either way.

Currently booked on the Joy departing Seattle June 20th.  At this point I would rather NCL cancel my cruise so I can book another summer vacation.  The final payment was due at the beginning of February so my money will have been tied up with them for several months.  Unfortunately I do not have a lot of flexibility of when I can take vacation, so it will have to be June no matter what.  My dilemma is do I take a 50% loss(2000.00) and book a beach vacation or sweat it out and hope for the best.  I haven't even mentioned my flights and the cost to change them (American Air).  What would you do?

Great news!  We board her this coming Saturday in Barcelona!! My last 2 RCCL sailings were on Harmony and Oasis, so it will be a bit of an adjustment to go back to a smaller ship. I would like to add that this is a VERY port intensive cruise, so it is not about the ship this time. Can't wait!!