luckyprincess

Lol you made that look easy! Im not at home and my phone starts at the beginning! 😣 im not tech savy and just kept scrolling forward! Looks like I get the last week of Jamie Fenton. Have you ever had him? Lol I wonder if the last week of a cd is a good or bad thing??

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It is so hard to scroll through the dedicated threads and see who is actually on now! For anyone recently off were they outgoing and fun? I have a new cruiser and want him to love the entertainment experience and imo the cd is a huge part!!

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We may all have our opinion of what constitutes self made, but Crown & Anchor's policy is what really matters.

In this instance the op posting the original question is the only thing that matters in answering it I guess. It doesn't matter what rccls policy is if op was specifically asking about people that booked their own cruises. I know Im curious as to the youngest person that is pc that did not inherit any points from their spouse and weren't booked on cruises as a minor. I think that under 30 with those parameters would be quite an accomplishment! And indeed self made!

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I guess there are different definitions of "self made"

 

Even though a baby or child can cruise with mommy and daddy and earn points that add up to Pinnacle , to me that doesn't answer the question but IS one way to become Pinnacle, but NOT self made.

 

You are NOT going to get your pilot's license by just being in the plane that daddy is flying to get his hours.

 

I do not know how to explain it any better, but to me, the question has not been answered.

 

Hopefully that 37 year old couple will repost as they seem to be the youngest so far, but I'd like to know if they "grew" off their parents.

I agree with you on this. Self Made implies that you accomplished something. Having parents book a cruise for a 3 year old or a minor at all does not mean the child has done anything themselves. I guess I hear self made and assume it's actually accomplished on your own. Being a child brought onto a cruise by parents is not accomplishing a cruise on your own. That would be like saying Paris Hilton was a self made millionaire at birth because her parents were millionaires. Yes, she was physically present in her parents mansion, purchased by her parents like a toddler is physically on a ship booked by her parents but neither had a choice in that. To me that is not self made.

I would like to know the age of the youngest pc that is actually self made, ie: accomplished this status on their own. I cannot imagine someone doing this at a very young age!

After reading that Giovanni's was a bit hit or miss on Indy and that they had discontinued the filet there on a recent cruise (my fiancée would eat steak every night if I let him!) we decided on Chops on the third night. The bogo is a great deal but the first night can be nuts and I think I want him to experience his first formal night in the MDR. Happy cruising!

Thank you for all the helpful posts!! I don't know if anyone is familiar with Xcaret but I did a manatee swim there when I did a land vacay in Cancun. We wore vests and I did have to swim out to the platform. My friend actually let me hold onto her and swam us both out but it wasn't far. I do get quite nervous but have never let my fear keep me from a safe situation. I've snorkeled in Cocay and Cancun, parasailed in the keys, did the stingray swim in Grand Cayman and then the manatee thing in Cancun but none of them seem as intense as the dolphin one. I chose the push/pull and swim one where I have the boogie board. I guess I could chicken out and count the money as a lesson in bravado :p or I could preemptively cancel that part but I'm afraid we booked through RCCL to be sure we get back in time and I don't know how to get me on the same excursion without purchasing it. :confused:

I'm SO happy we have time at the park! I was hoping it wouldn't be a there and back situation!

I realize this may get moved but wanted some RCCL peeps to answer. We are doing the Dolphin push/pull and Manatee meet and greet in Chakanaab. I cannot swim (doesn't typically stop me from water excursions) so anyone have experience with that? Also do you know how long we get in Chakanaab? I'm not sure if all day will be taken up with these two things and then we board a bus back or we get to stay until we want to leave? The description is a bit vague. Thanks you!!

There is no actual Starbucks on Independence. Therefore you cannot use the cards. (If you were on one of the few ships with actual Starbucks, like allure and oasis, then you could)

 

Indy might use sbx beans, but it's not a sbx.

 

 

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Thank you so much for the info!!

Maybe pack a bow tie into your carry on - wear that with your shorts and call it even[emoji23][emoji23]

 

 

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Best answer lol!

To finish up Monday, aka embarkation day, here is a video that my fiance filmed. He used a mini tripod for his cell phone and did a time lapse over 30+ minutes. I tried to add music behind it but it didn't work too well. Enjoy!!

 

 

[YOUTUBE]9vCU1oqAtE4[/YOUTUBE]

That video was awesome!

I don't think this is pushing people to beverage packages at all. Quite the opposite, really. If KC is indeed $17 or higher than $12 even I'll cancel my drink package. I'm on Indy though so who knows if that is affected. I leave in about 2 weeks so I'll check and post here. Why in the world would I pay for a drink package if I have to pay above and beyond that for the drinks that were included when I purchased it? I'll just have one a day instead and get the free coffee and other beverages. I'll also bring two KCs on board. If anything this will push way more people to smuggle. Very dumb move if it is indeed fleet wide price adjustments. Something like that would push me back to my fabulous land vacations at all inclusives.

Merry Christmas and good morning! A bunch of my clients gave me Starbucks gift cards for the holidays. Can you use them on the Starbucks on the ship? Also is there even a Starbucks on Independence? Thanks!

Before I continue, I suppose our first drink would be a good time to talk about our beverage packages. Originally we weren’t going to buy drink packages. We’ve had them on our last two cruises and although fun, didn’t think we’d want them in the future. The more we talked about it and saw the 20% off “sale” online, we decided my fiance would get the Select (Wine and Beer) package, and I would get the Premium (Liquor, Beer, Wine) package. This was, of course, before the packages changed.

 

Once the packages were changing and we saw that anyone in Premium or Ultimate would automatically get upgraded to the new Deluxe package, we upgraded my fiance to the Premium before things changed. (Sorry, I know that’s super shady, but it is what it is. RCCL still got a ton of money from us and we don’t feel too terrible about it.) Three days before our cruise, I convinced my parents to buy the drink packages as well.

 

Overall Impressions of the Deluxe Drink Package: My fiance and I LOVED it. We so enjoyed buying fancy coffee drinks from Cafe Promenade, we tried the fresh juice a few times, my fiance loved the cans of Red Bull that were included, and of course we loved the liquor, beer, and wine. It’s not for everyone, I totally understand that. We thought we absolutely got our money’s worth, especially since one of our two port days was at Labadee, so we were able to use it all day there as well. It is expensive, though, and I think our next two cruises will not involve drink packages, especially since our long cruise next November includes 4 port days.

 

My Dad completely enjoyed it the first day and went crazy with different drinks. The entire time, really, he was all about getting drinks, and I never really saw either of my parents without a drink. (That sounds way worse than it is; they just enjoyed the freedom and variety and availability.) As we’re sitting in the airport waiting to go home, my dad made comments about how he felt pressured to drink and wouldn’t get it again. A pretty interesting dichotomy between actions and thoughts, but that’s my dad. As a wrap-up to this topic and a final word, each person has to make their own decision if it’s “worth it” for them. Happy Drinking!

 

(This was actually our second or third drink, but it fits the topic! Also it was super sunny, so that's my excuse)

 

Loving the review so far! Good to hear about the drink packages. We are buying them for the first time as well. He is a SUPER beer snob so I'm a little scared but my degree is in wine and spirits lol so I scoped the menu ahead of time and there is a ton of great wines in the price range of the package. Glad to hear you thought it was worth the price.

Also I have that shirt!!! Totally wearing it for the cruise lol! You guys look great!

It's a shame they took them away I agree! I have gone to the ports of call boards and looked for them there and also the website that reviews trips with a little owl logo. I always make sure to do a good review and if I can a linked video review when I go on an excursion and post either here or there.

Good work! Now we can read follow up responses to your post and infer which ones are the parents of these brats. Lol

Lol I was already doing that too...

Good for you!! I posted about kids running around the ship and pressing all the buttons, knocking on doors etc, and someone called me a party pooping child hater.:p

And it's attitudes like this that allow precious snowflakes to flourish. Assault and uttering threats? Are you a lawyer?

 

I see this as being caused by a lack of parenting. Someone has to show the kid the difference between irresponsible and responsible behaviour. Too bad the parent couldn't do that. All you're showing the kid is do what you want and play the legal card at the first sign of trouble, which is way worse than a grab of the wrist and a veiled threat.

 

IMO

Lol yes, I'm always expecting the 'but but you grabbed his wrist to stop him from pushing a zillion buttons and inconveniencing everyone on the elevator??? That's child cruelty!!! You can't say 'touch it and I'll break it' because he may get traumatized and not be able to enter elevators as an adult! waah! Protect the feelings of a spoiled, poorly raised brat!' garbage. I don't care. Would I have broken his wrist? Ummm no. :rolleyes: But he did think twice and sat down. I guarantee you that he is so incredibly poorly behaved because his parents would have made a post chastising someone or threatening suit over stopping their brat from doing something like that.

Omg thank you!!!!

Word is someone wore shorts to the MDR for dinner.

Balcony smokers.....

Lol! When I last cruised on the Explorer I had to take the elevator and there were three teen boys on it that I had seen all night riding up and down just sitting on the floor of the elevator. I got on with a bunch of other people and one of the teens got up and ran to the buttons with his palm out (in order to slam on every button) and I grabbed his wrist and growled 'touch those gd buttons and I'll break it' and he gulped, said 'sorry ma'am' and sat his ass down lol! I was the hero of the cruise for the next day. :p Hey, someone has to teach somebody's brat some manners! May as well be me. It takes a village and all....

Currently on independence, no alcohol package discount..Diamond plus.... Mattress is comfy with an extra foam layer... Ship is beautiful

 

Heading to lunch. Hope everyone has a great day

 

And Internet is slow. We have the surf and stream package

Hi Dapple! Hope you are having an AMAZING time!!! Did you ask for the extra foam layer? Was it firm without it? And dammit for the slow internet!!! My techie man is going to be so frustrated lol!

Zomg I'm so excited!! Lol thanks for the review! I love pic reviews that start out the day before and have lots of info. It really gets me excited to go. Can't wait to see your next posts. :)

Thanks everyone!

Just checking before I buy! Am I allowed a small battery powered fan?

You may just want to relax and focus on the vacation part.

 

And not so much on writing a review, taking a bunch of pictures, and researching questions for others.

 

I know you are trying to be helpful.

 

However the ship has been around for 8 years and there are already a ton of photos and hundreds of member reviews already out there.

 

A 4 day cruise is pretty short and it will be over pretty quick.

 

It would be a waste to stress yourself out trying to document everything...

Thanks for the advice lol but I love reviews! It's a 5 day cruise and honestly there are not many good current reviews out there on her. I and many others have expressed requests for reviews. Reviews and pics of a ship 8 years ago are hardly helpful now :) Compasses and menus and new drinks and entertainment call for new pictures, reviews and of course opinions! Relying on a review from 6 years to go to find out about mattresses is not useful.

I'm sure you were looking out for me and thank you lol! I guess for some taking pictures and doing reviews may be stressful but I'm sure not one of those people :p I hope you relax and enjoy your next cruise in the way you enjoy!

Totally forgot to mention we are doing the dolphin and manatee excursion in Cozumel and possibly the everglades airboat tour in Ft. Lauderdale and will include them in my review.

What cruise line? HAL has luggage direct where they take your luggage to the airport from the ship . They also check you in and print boarding passes.

 

You sign up via HAL's site ( it will link to the site)

 

Also other lines offer this .. Carnival did but discontinued it..

 

The fee isn't much (20 or so ) plus normal baggage fees

 

 

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That sounds awesome! I'm on RCCL so I'll see if they have this!

Spend another night and then fly home the next morning; we've done this and the airfare savings once more than paid for the hotel! :D If your room is not ready when you arrive the hotel should be happy to hold your bags while you grab lunch.

I wish!! My fiancé just started a wonderful new job so we don't want to push it lol!

Someone else mentioned to check the length of the tour but I think it says it starts at 8:30am and goes for 3 hours concluding at the airport. So I'd be there around 11:30 which seems too early. I guess I can check to see what restaurants are there.