luckyprincess

Thanks so much everyone! Im really appreciating all the input and tips! For the bogo dining do they guarantee you will get two different restaurants? Also does RCI have a list of wines and beers on their site. I don't know where to look on there.

To be fair my search function isn't working that great. But I'm not finding many current 5 day reviews on Indy. Maybe I'm searching wrong but not seeing many live or pic reviews. I'll be sure to do a good one when we return but if anyone can point me towards some I'd appreciate it! Compasses too!!!

Thanks for the replies so far!!

Clarea I think I could easily do 3 beers and 6 glasses of wine a day. He could do 5 or 6 beers a day

Champagne that's good to hear about Giovannis! lol

Hi! So I haven't really sailed since before the whole ala carte pricing became popular on Royal. They now have beverage packages, internet packages and purchasing specialty restaurants before boarding. I'm trying to figure out what is worth the $$.

So I drink on cruises but mostly wine. My fiancé will be for sure having beer. Do those that drink moderately - heavy on board feel like the package is worth the money? Also I used to just buy a cruising package through Verizon. Is the internet package they offer reliable? Worth the $$?

Also I've never been on a ship with a Giovannis. I've done Chops and Portofino. My fiancé is a huge steak guy so I'm pre booking Chops. What does cruise critic think of Giovannis? Thank you all for your input!!!

Ok so take this with a grain of salt because I did lol! My friend is a very funny but mischievous guy. He sailed in a balcony cabin last year and said he could smell someone smoking on their balcony. He didn't care, said it was just a whiff, whatever. However there was a very loud, dramatic, gauche couple near his balcony as well and they would make a giant performance about it all the time. He said the first day they were peering over everyones balcony trying to find the culprit and waving their arms, coughing and generally being a nuisance. So in order to annoy them or put a stop to their antics or probably just to amuse himself, he called and reported their cabin for smoking every time they disturbed him lol. He said she sounded like Edith Bunker yelling 'It ISN'T US!!!' every time security came. I know that's awful but it just made me laugh so hard!:p

Well! I haven't sailed since 2013. I'm going on the Independence this January. I've been on Freedom before and the beds in balcony cabin were great. Have they tossed their mattresses to install hard ones or is that in the newer ships? Also can't believe how much they are charging for specialty restaurants. It used to be $20 per person and it wasn't like you were getting a fine dining experience! Ours was clumsy with disorganized service and alright food. Totally fine for the $20 we paid each but unless the quality has gone way up almost double seems nuts!

Thanks for the reply! That sounds so awesome! I'm upset because I was just checking our excursions for the cruise and now Xplor isn't on there! Not sure if it just isn't offered or what but I'm bummed!

Hi! So we are a super active couple and are interested in the Xplor excursion! I've been to Xcaret by myself and loved it but this seems so much more active with the zip lines and underwater cave! Has anyone else done it? Do you have to be able to swim?

If you have been on Freedom before then Indy will be very similar as they are sister ships. I was on Indy last month and there is no Dreamworks Experience or Freestyle Coke machines compare to Freedom. The Broadway show Grease is now shown onboard and it was very good.

Thank you for the tips!! That's great! I would love to see Grease! And of course want my guy to experience the important things like Quest lol

Thanks! I have sailed Freedom before on the hump and it was amazing! I'm sailing deck 7 almost middle hump so I'm hoping its great with no obstructions. I'm super excited to sail again because I'm finally platinum lol!

Hey all! So I haven't been on in a while. But my fiancée and I are getting married and I'd love to get married on a rccl ship! He has never cruised and it's taken me forever to get him to take one in the hopes that he loves it and will want to get married on a ship too.

He agreed to at least try a cruise so I booked us a 5 day out of Fort Lauderdale going to Cozumel on the Indy in January. I got us a hump balcony cabin 7336. We are going to do the XPlor adventure in Cozumel because we are super active people and it sounds great. He has never been out of the country and I think this will help hook him lol. Can anyone tell me about the Indy or our hump cabin?

So if I buy the package and my cabin mate doesn't but most of our pictures are of both of us that's fine? Meaning only one of us has to buy the package per cabin?

You absolutely must do the hot tubs at like 10pm with a glass of wine and a movie or game on the big screen! My husband LOVED having our night cap under the stars while watching the World Cup. Amazing! I loved Liberty. It may even tap out as my favorite ship to date. We also loved the wine bar. We would get a bottle and just sit there before dinner. I can't wait to do Liberty again! Have a fabulous time. You are a great friend!!!! :)

This seriously sounds magical! I have to say, we have really fallen fast into a great friendship (the girl version of a bro-mance, I guess lol) and it's been so fun to get to know each other on that intimate girl level! Even at 40 and 34, we are most excited about being on the balcony, in our pj's, with a bottle of wine talking about life and what we want out of it and who we are! Now switch out of pjs into bikinis and the whirlpool sounds perfect! :p :p

You guys have got me so excited for this cruise!! I played the ship video from the rccl site for my friend this morning and she was bursting at the seams, asking if we could go now! Lol Thank you so much for these tips! And although she is super gorgeous, I'll tell her to wear a t-shirt for the flowrider as will I!! :D

We LOVE to go out to clubs and dance so the white party sounds awesome!!

WOW. You have no idea have much you just saved our vacation. I am on hold now requesting to cancel this sailing. I'm also on the website and it says "royal tots" is on this ship, and when you follow that link, it says dedicated nursery! Yet, the rep has just confirmed this ship does not have a nursery. She tried to offer me in room babysitting. So, I want to pay MORE, to have my child sit in a dark small room with a stranger by herself?

 

This has been a nightmare experience to say the least.

 

Funny thing is, I called back just a little bit ago (third time) and requested them to review the call which they obliged and said they would do in the morning. Again, I can't thank you enough for responding to this thread.

Wow!! I am so sorry for the nightmare booking you've dealt with tonight! I really, really hope you follow this up the chain tomorrow, going as high as you can. The website shows an amenity that isn't available. The customer service rep tells you you are in a room that you aren't and no one else has been helpful. If I were you I'd be telling them that cancelling your reservation and keeping ANY of that money would be unacceptable. They should get you on another cruise ASAP with no penalty or give you back your money from this one AND give you obc for another cruise! Outrageous!

I agree, keep calling and trying different people and asking for a supervisor. I don't know what they mean by 'proof' needed for a handicap room. I don't think you have to be handicapped to book them.

My parents did this and my mom was an absolute nervous wreck but it was fine. They had the exact documents you have (her marriage certificate was uncertified) and it was just fine. Have a great trip!

bump - has anyone found this? I'd love to see some compass'

Thanks guys. I get motion sick on rides, I took Bonine daily on Freedom and was fine, hope Brilliance will be good too. Glad to hear its not much smaller.

I can help with that! :D I'm a fellow motion sickness sufferer, blah! I will say I felt less movement on Radiance than I did on Freedom or Explorer. I'm not sure why that was, just luck or size or what but what also helped me was being able to see outside so much. You know how just focusing on a point on the horizon is helpful sometimes for motion sickness? On Radiance class there is glass everywhere and you really get to see outside more. That helped me a lot.

I think it's what your first experience is. I went on Radiance first so I felt Freedom was a bit too big and had less real service. You did opposite so you might feel Brilliance doesn't have enough 'stuff'. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised and I think if you go into it knowing the major differences you'll be fine. What is a Scrubs cruise, btw?

When I went to Montego Bay on a cruise years ago I was so nervous after hearing all the bad reviews of it being unsafe. I have to say, there were lots of officers with weapons everywhere but I'm not sure if that made me feel more or less safe! Every single woman I passed asked to braid my hair but I said no thank you and they all were fine. We did have a couple of people try to sell us pot and only one was super pushy. He was very enterprising though lol - he literally snorkeled up to us in the ocean and asked if we wanted to buy! Crazy!

I'm going to Ochos Rios this time and I'm going to do a cruise sponsored excursion I think. I'll just feel safer. We did Samana recently and I was afraid it would be awful but it was totally lovely and the people were wonderful, imo.

Dressy shorts!

Pretty!! Dressy shorts are so very in fashion right now and I think the look is tasteful and elegant. And if anyone wants to do a 'crotch fabric' check on me to see if it's shorts or a skirt they are going to get a nice slap across the face.... lol! It's the same length as a skirt or longer and imo dressier than a lot of skirts - so yes, the difference is a panel of cloth in the crotch region. And that upsets people eating. :confused:

Mmmmmmmm - Radiance IMHO isn't one of the most beautiful ships.

 

It's quite small with a few areas of disrepair however it has a great crew who make up for some of this.

 

Let's bang the drum for Voyager, Freedom & Oasis class. Get rid of the smaller ones - stop sending them to Europe.

 

:-)

Totally disagree! I think Radiance was WAY more attractive than Freedom class or Voyager class! Less dark areas and more ocean views! Much classier too! Although I wish there were more to do on board..

Wait, one more vote for Radiance! Breathtaking!! And Labadee was an amazing port for someone that loves adventure (zipline) AND luxury (OTW cabana!)

Get the wagons in a circle. Those pesky forgeigners are coming in to spend all their money. Keep them out. Americans only. Lol.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

I don't think he meant it that way exactly and sorry if you took offense! I will say when I worked in NYC and Miami we charged a non-removable 18% for gratuity because so many people coming from non-tipping countries refused to pay a tip even when they got good service because they weren't used to it. What happened is no one took a job as a server and everything sucked. Who would work for no money? So to keep good servers, they did auto-gratuity. I almost always got 18% but usually they added a bit more as I'm very attentive and like to make my guests feel special and as if they are in my home and I'm their host. In countries (and in places where an auto grat is included) where they are paid the same wage for everyone the service is not nearly as good. I know that not only from my many friends from other countries that work in hospitality here but from many sites discussing the much higher service bar you get in the US. Why would you work harder for the same amount of money if you knew you would also never get a promotion or raise? That's just silly.

I need a prayer :) WHAT DID I DO

 

SEE BELOW :eek:

I would say if you have any problem at all don't act like a jerk to customer service and be rude. That's probably your best bet. But you seem to be a seasoned cruiser so I would think you value customer service employees. I would also say check your cabin picture if you are expecting a sofa bed apparently lol!

And this is posted by someone who would be happy to try any line that is geared towards fun :D