OCSC Mike

No set times these days. Start checking in August. It used to be early in the month prior to your sailing month but reservations have begin opening even earlier for some ships/dates (like my June Wonder cruise).

This varies by ship, location, and even location within the ship. It has been very good on my last few cruises (Wonder twice, Allure once). Adding a WAP to cabins on newer ships like Wonder and Icon has helped tremendously with reception in them.

No.

Sure, dynamic pricing my throw the numbers out of whack at some point but that's by far the exception.

No but glad you at least know your requests were fulfilled and are happy.

This. When you book a group rate room you can pick from anything available in that category.

The one with calves of steel from constantly running up and down the beach? I remember wondering how she must be in crazy good shape from that, lol. As someone who gave a somewhat negative (but I feel fair) review, my experience wasn't too different from yours and I think my expectations were reasonable. The frozen drinks were terrible (I switched to margaritas, like you switched, and it was fine, but I don't think expecting remotely decent frozen drinks is asking too much). I wasn't impressed with the food and I like to eat so I was likely better off trying Paradise Beach like I am this summer but when I went to Nachi it was a last minute itinerary change and I had 2 days to book something, I had always heard great things about Nachi so quickly chose it. The quantity is on me, not them, I knew I was getting a 4-course menu. The quality, which is of course subjective, is on them. It was fine but not great, IMO (again, this is subjective). The peacefulness aspect lived up to 100% of the hype. Could not have been a more relaxing atmosphere. $69 isn't cheap for a Mexican Beach club, it's just reasonable for the market. Paradise Beach was $67 when I booked (think it's $68 now) and you trade off the peace and quiet for unlimited food with more options and what appears to be more drink options. I don't think the CocoCay Beach Club is an apples to apples comparison. I just mention this b/c I don't think the price should excuse any lack in quality of food or drink. I wasn't looking for top shelf mixed drinks or 5-star cuisine. I went to a small AI beach club in Costa Maya years ago that didn't look very nice and the food was amazing! We did this on the way there but went back on our own as our new friends wanted to stay longer than we did. I agree there's no point in complaining about the cab fares... they are what they are and don't reflect on Nachi.

Somewhere in the $17-20 range for up to 4 people. Don't remember the rates for larger parties.

I was there on Wonder in March. Glad you enjoyed it!

Yes, that was the only time I won one.

If I'm understanding you correctly, this was assigned from booking a GTY? If so, you can absolutely move to any available cabin in the same exact category (if booked in North America). Your TA can move you if you used one and if you booked direct you can call for a switch.

Absolutely. I don't do a ton of specialty dining but I've definitely done this. I've never eaten at Jamie's but at Giovanni's Table I've always ordered a filet and pasta dish. At Mason Jar brunch on Wonder we were encouraged to order as much as we wanted the two times I've eaten there. At Sabor, after telling our server one app is my favorite she brought me a triple order. You get the drift... In my experience, they are happy to bring you whatever you want within reason.

I have limited Sky Class experience but I always got responses and they were usually very prompt. I don't think you're being a pest. You paid for the concierge service that comes with booking a suite. As long as you are being polite in your e-mails (I'm sure you are) I don't think you're being a pest at all.

Worth, like most things, is subjective. Nothing at Hideaway is of any significant value to us so we even passed at $19.99pp recently and had yet another great day in our preferred spot by the Oasis pool without spending a penny (besides tipping for voucher drinks). Lots of people, like you, find much greater worth in it, which is great. Others find worth in the beach club or even a cabana. The more options the better! Different strokes...

Beach Club cabanas (like you phrased your thread title) hold 8 people. There are also beach cabanas and over the water (OTW) cabanas. OTW cabanas are more expensive. As mentioned above, prices vary... A LOT! They can be $4K or more at the high end and in rare cases closer to $1k on the low end... and everything in between.

@RFerrington was just there and went to "Aqua World", a sea life park that she spoke highly of if that's of interest to you. Maybe she'll chime in.

No, it's not just you. Have seen multiple people mention it elsewhere (myself included). EDIT: Working fine now.

Food is subjective. 20 people will have 20 different opinions. I'd choose whichever looks best to your personal preferences (and factor in cost if that matters).

No, anything you don't use "pre-cruise" can be used onboard. It will appear in your onboard account.

Not the OP but I've done one 3/4 before and have several more booked. Some of our reasons (which are all related to personal preference as @doghog mentioned)... - We sail mostly for the ship and love CocoCay so don't mind lack of ports and enjoy going to PDCC twice in 7 days - I only sail from PC and group rates for Utopia were either similar to Wonder or far less than Star for the dates I was looking at (plus I'm not really interested in Icon class). - We won't spend a penny on excursions and I usually do on 7N cruises so that helps bring the total cost down. -Internet is totally covered by D+ on short cruises (we share one device) so that also saves money. -We want to see Utopia after going on Wonder 4-5 times (even though they will be very similar). Different strokes...

Anything is possible. Keep checking the cruise planner (someone may cancel in advance) and if nothing else, visit the ShoreX desk when you board and inquire. Worst case is they say no.

You'll get instructions onboard (via a letter in your cabin). You'll be told to meet somewhere at a certain time in the morning, hang out for a bit while everyone else disembarks, then be led into the terminal (briefly) to go through customs, get new sea pass cards, then be led back onto the ship. It's business as usual after that. You have to do muster again like any other cruise. Looking forward to a few Utopia B2B's myself but not for a while.

I can definitely attest to this. On Allure in October we had Sabor dinner reservations and decided we wanted to change the time that day. The app said nothing was available. We went there at lunch time and were offered literally any time we wanted. It was almost completely empty that night. I felt bad for our incredibly nice server, who we chatted with for a while since she barely had anything to do until a large party eventually showed up. Who knows how many tables/tips she may have gotten if the app showed the actual availability?

No issues for me on either website or app (iOS) since changing my PW the one time.

Nice to meet ya! I enjoyed the filet & coconut crusted lobster sandwich (actual lobster is overrated IMO) but I’m just as happy sitting in our preferred spot by the Oass pool under an umbrella making frequent trips to the nearest snack shack and Chill Grill. Only way I’d ever be back would be if someone else was treating… like the other two times. I enjoyed it, don’t get me wrong, just not an experience I personally value as much as others may.