Itchy&Scratchy

Not a fair comparison because you forgot to add that Viking INCLUDES a shore excursion in EVERY port ($125.00 ish) and Gratuity and soda and alcohol and fewer passengers with higher ratios of crew to passenger. When I used Viking air they picked us at the airport and returned us to the airport no charge. If Value is added into the mix the disparity in price shrinks quite a bit.

I didn't FORGET it. I simply know nothing about Viking, because I could never afford cruising with them, judging by their prices. Our entire family can go on 3-4 cruises with Princess or RCI instead of one cruise with Viking.

We do beach excursions by taking a taxi and it doesn't cost us $125. Taxi from FLL to the port is about $20, so it doesn't break a bank either.

I can't drink, and DH enjoys a couple of beers or mixed drinks during the cruise - so, we don't need or pay for an all inclusive alcohol package.

We've always been happy with the speed and quality of the service provided - no complaints whatsoever. Food on Princess has been great. RCI's food was good several years ago - we'll try it out next year again.

So, why would I pay 3-4x the Princess/RCI cruise just to have something I am already happy about or have enough of or won't use at all?

You will find that even in the Lido buffet, the closer it gets to 8 AM, they stop replacing the items.

we didn't find that to be true.

We usually show up at the buffet at 8 am (our flight home is at 5 pm, so we are not in a hurry). We eat (no hurry) and then wait until it's our time to disembark.

on our last cruise, Princess upgraded us to a balcony for free. It was our very first balcony cabin ever. I won't lie - I loved it. Princess ships are very boring to us because they don't offer many family activities for families with kids, so it was terrific to have a balcony to read a book on for hours. We also saw dolphins! And the sunsets were magical.

Now, we can't always afford a balcony, so our next cruise is in the inside room. But if a balcony is sold at an agreeable price - I'd most certainly get a balcony.

P.S. Drying swimsuits on the balcony is also a plus.

hmmm, I got it yesterday (we are also Ruby level) and it wend directly into the recycling bin. I am not sure what's so awesome about it.

Originally posted by Brad1185 Years ago I rated the food and service on Princess, RCI, Celebrity, Holland even Carnival a 10 out of 10. Years ago I rated NCL a 3 - 4 out of 10

 

Now I rate the above lines a 0 to 1 out of 10.

you must have impossibly high standards.

We've always had impeccable service on Princess. The food is great as well - trust me, I am a glutton and I personally go on cruises to EAT FANTASTIC FOOD.

And wow, your Viking's FREE internet isn't all that free. A 7 days cruise on Regal Princess for Thanksgiving is going to cost us $1,600 (inside) -$2,400 (balcony) total for the 3 of us. Viking cruise STARTS at $2,799 per person for the same month. Internet is simply included in the exorbitant price.

It is been discussed many times before. May want to do a search...

DS has been cruising since he was 3. We don't dress him up. The most he's been "dressed up" in in MDR is a polo shirt from Target/Kohl's and khaki pants that he wears to school.

Some cruise lines offer a service where the kids club staff will pick your kids up from the MDR and then take them to the kid's club. Other than that - it takes a whole 10 minutes to walk back to your cabin after dinner, change your kids and take them to the kid's club.

P.S. DS doesn't do kid's club, so he spends all dinners with us in MDR. He is 7.5 yo now.

“...actually bored to death...”

 

Certainly no need, nor even possibility, of ANY further cruising.

he is right, you know. We love Regal and Royal Princesses because the food is fantastic and we are major gluttons. However, unless your kid is in kid's club, there is nothing for a FAMILY with an elementary school aged kid to do. NADA.

That's why our next cruise is on the Allure. Yes, I know, we'll take a major hit in the food department, but we will have fun as a family - ice skating, carousel, zipline, kid aqua park, shows, etc.

You just missed it in July, and I'd assume it's rather random.

we definitely took turns: when DS was napping during the day, I'd stay with him and read a book or listen to an audio book, and DH would explore the ship on his own. At night my DH would stay with DS because he knows I am into shows and he is not.

it would be great if you visited the subforums dedicated solely to your destinations. Within them you will find a ton of stories and reviews.

The crack IT team at royal hasn't figured out how to let you book all the nights at the same time so until then it's one at a night time. Check out then back in for next night

2 weeks ago I was able to book all 7 nights for MTD on the Allure without a hitch.

my parents and my friends parents don't speak English, yet, they enjoyed cruising and don't miss a thing.

Now, my parents only went on one cruise last year, and loved every minute of it.

My friends' parents go on cruises 2-3 times a year (my friend pays for them) and don't speak a word of English. Neither do they speak Spanish.

they usually come in twice a day - in the morning to take out the trash, clean and make the beds. In the evening for a turn down service. We don't need turn down service, so we tell the steward that and put the do not disturb card in in the evening.

We don't need cleaning services every day, so we used to put the do not disturb card in and just leave it there. You usually get a call after 2 days from the housekeeping manager, because the room must be cleaned. It was explained to me (on this board) that it's easier to clean the room in small increments every day than to leave the big clean up for the last day of the cruise.

I got MTD on Allure in July for March 2019 sailing and have already booked MDR.

We LOVED Aruba, like Curacao (I picked an average beach, don't do it). Curacao was too hot and humid that day and we only made it to the bridge and had to turn back because all three of us were dying in that heat. And we are from GA! Even my 5 year old was miserable.

Aruba was gorgeous, the beach was free - we went to the butterfly farm and then just crossed the road and stayed on the beach for free (chaises in the palm shade).

I am not sure what HMC is.

When is a sale not a sale?

 

 

When it is advertised by RCL....

unless it's Kids Sail Free combined with BOGO, which in our case just saved us $1,400.

I booked a cruise back in July (during KSF promotion) for $1,600 total (2 adults, 1 kid). Right now the same cruise, same type of cabin, it's actually right next to the one I booked - just over $3,000.

If the child is under 5, there is no charge. They can even order from the MDR children’s menu. No need to make them starve - lol.

oh, it's not about starving - this kid does not starve, but my child has rather peculiar tastes when it comes to MDR dinners.

On his first cruise at 3 years he ate nothing but Cesar salad and ice cream. On his subsequent 2 cruises he ate only bread with butter and ice cream.

On his last cruise I made him eat a fruit salad for dinner. And ice cream was mandatory, of course. Once he requested a bowl of steamed green beans and ate all of them with gusto.

He doesn't like the children's menu anyway. Nor would he touch any of the adult menu choices at a specialty restaurant.

But at home he is quite an omnivorous and prolific eater.

I was just curious what happens if the child doesn't eat (but is over 5), since we wouldn't spend money at a specialty restaurant anyway with all the free food so abundant.

we've never had specialty dining, but I am wondering - if the adults eat, and the child does not, would the child be charged at all?

Urbini Reversi - still about $55 https://www.walmart.com/ip/Urbini-Reversi-Stroller-Fog/44656185

RCI's Allure of the Seas and sister ships have cabins for 5 people, but you just missed their July-long Kids Sail Free campaign....

You could also book 2 adjoining cabins: parent with 2 kids, parent with 1 kid. Then keep the door between cabins open and have the 2 older kiddos sleep in the other cabin.

Our kids will be 5, 3, and 1 at the time of sailing. I've looked at booking two rooms (interior and balcony) and only using the balcony room,\

that would be extremely tight, unless you get some kind of a huge balcony room. We were in a deluxe balcony room on Regal Princess last year with our then 6 yo kid, and I can't imagine having 2 more kids sleep in it. 2 kids in bunks - yes, ok, if they don't fall off (the 3 yo), but where are you going to put the 1 yo?

our very first cruise was on Independence. We had a blast (no kid then)! Our forth cruise was on Independence as well - with our 3 yo (first one for him)! We had a blast!

Don't forget flip flops for both of you. I don't know what happened, but I forgot them and had to wear dress shoes to the pool. :( They got wet and disintegrated...

Relax. No need to be stressed out about anything on the cruise. It's a great vacation. Watch the shows, eat the yummy food, watch people fall down on the Flowrider, climb the rock climbing wall, walk the promenade - we loved going to all the stores window shopping, watch a movie, have tea and cookies at the Promenade cafe (that was my favorite thing about RCI), read a book and watch the ocean, have the drink of the day, walk around the ship! It's all about relaxing and having fun.

P.S. Airplane mode for the phone!

My friend has been raving about the beef wellington on Princess for years now, but I tried it once and didn't care for it.

Regal princess had it in MDR in November 2017.

I booked us a 3rd and 4th passenger for $1 last March for a November Caribbean cruise.

 

The pricing came up on the Princess website but there was nothing specific identifying the promotion. I only found it because I got an email from Princess announcing the promotion and listing the sailings it applied to.

 

I will say that it was an incredible deal since we got the 3rd and 4th for $1 AND we all got pre-paid gratuities AND a small ship board credit.

dang it, I get bombarded by Princess emails every day, but NOT by this particular email, huh?

strange, I must have missed the current one. Thank you for taking the time to reply =)

I am waiting for the $99 deal myself. Last year Princess had this deal in mid-July, so I snatched up a Thanksgiving cruise last year. I am still hoping for this deal for this year.

P.S. I didn't see this deal in early March.