CruisingJade

We are now within the 24 hour window with no email yet. I’m awaiting our rejection. 😉

I just checked our family in for our upcoming cruise, and I'm flummoxed about two things, mainly #1!

1) My husband and daughters each have "expedited" on their set sail pass, but I do not. I hope this does not mean they go through expedited boarding, while I go in some other line! Do I need to call RCI or just get in the expedited line with my family and not worry about it?

2) Months ago, I requested my Diamond status be shared with my husband and children, and RCI agreed, giving them all Diamond-level C&A #s. However, at check-in just now, I noticed one of my daughters is Gold, not Diamond. She is 3, so this has no actual impact on THIS cruise, but can I get this corrected while on board? Does it even matter what status kids are, at any age?

14 hours ago, Tapi said:

Last November, we cruised the Mediterranean and packed for 10 days in one carry on per family member and it worked out wonderfully.

That is impressive!!

4 hours ago, Curtzilla said:

Tell the shuttle provider you're arriving on a flight that lands an hour or two later (look one up).  Then, you'll have some time to get a leisurely breakfast at the airport and your shuttle will be one that's a better schedule for you.  Arriving at port anytime after 10:00 or so will usually get you inside to the waiting area.

This is really tempting. They probably just use flight times for guidelines for filling shuttles and to track whether they are missing arriving passengers, right? No harm in giving a later time?

Pretty sure Larry’s was one I contacted, but I’ll have to review my notes. I am just shocked to learn we can’t enter the terminal. What if someone has to use a bathroom? 

11 minutes ago, JohninDC said:

And welcome to the boards! 😎

Thanks! 😄

12 minutes ago, BNBR said:

Lingering at the airport IS the answer.  I think you just need to find a better transportation company that can pick you up when YOU are ready.  You definitely don't want to get to port everglades that early, you will be sitting against a wall outside basically.  I wouldn't show up prior to 9:30AM at the port.  We usually get there around 10AM and we are not the first by any means.  People already inside at that time.  So 9:30 would be the earliest I imagine.

 

I definitely wouldn't be trying to find a hotel and all that when you are only trying to kill an hour or two.  Have an iPad, snacks, and find a quiet place to hang at the airport.  We have layovers much longer than that with our young kids, it's not a big deal at all.  Then find transport that can handle the car seats/kids at the time YOU specify.  I'm sure many can chime in with alternate transportation companies to call.  I know Larry's Limo's is mentioned often.   Could start there.

The shuttle service we ended up with (after calling around to about half a dozen shuttles and private car services) did say that once we land, we can put in a request to catch a later shuttle, but it was not a guarantee.

We may have to suck it up and pay for a private car service. I was just very frustrated by the prices. The only black car service we spoke to that could guarantee two full size child seats (not boosters) was outrageously priced (twice what we paid recently for private car service in California from the airport to Disneyland!) AND they were prickly about us requesting a later pick up not associated with a flight arrival time.

I appreciate the replies and support. The whole experience of trying to get our children a distance of two miles between airport and port has been ridiculous.

5 minutes ago, JohninDC said:

You need to change your plans. Standing around, outside, with 2 young kids for a couple of hours, is not a fun way to start your cruise.

 

Look at taking a shuttle to one of the airport Hotels with a free shuttle, tip them to watch your bags while you enjoy breakfast, and the head to the port about 10:30 AM.  Better yet rent a cheaper room the night of your flight, check in about 7:30 AM, head breakfast, enjoy a nap, shower, maybe a dip in the pool, and head to the port about noon.

Ugh. So we'll be forced to wait outside the building??? Now I honestly don't know what to do.

We did look into the hotels. Unfortunately, we could not find one that offered two car seats for their shuttles. I had read that we had an option to do shuttles without car seats (not that I was very comfortable with that), but both a shuttle service and a hotel with shuttles we spoke to said they would not allow it.

Bid but no word yet. Less than 2 weeks out. I did not see the weak/medium/strong feature when I bid, but I may have been on mobile, so that could be why?

I'd be interested to know how RCI measures weak/medium/strong. Even if there is an algorithm (that factors in things like who bid more than you but maybe also bid on a higher room so you could win, etc...) it still would only be relevant the moment you bid. As other bids come in after yours, the strength of your bid would change without you knowing.

We are (unfortunately) going to be arriving very early at Port Everglades for our upcoming cruise. We will likely get there before 8:00 a.m. on a Thursday. I understand ships will be busy unloading passengers from other cruises, so porters will not be taking bags (and advice I've read says not to drop off bags that early anyway, as they could accidentally get put in the wrong pile.)

My question is: what will this look like for us? Can we even get inside the building? Are there places to sit? Are there bathrooms, restaurants, or other facilities?

We are going to be traveling with two very small children, two strollers, two big suitcases, and at least 3 smaller bags. (I know, circus!) I am already stressed about sitting around the port for hours before we can possibly even check in. At this point, I'm just hopeful there are bathrooms and a safe, quiet place for a family to sit.

We looked at many different options to avoid this early arrival, including all of the recommendations on these boards, such as renting a car or hotel, lingering at the airport, going out to eat, etc... Our situation is that we are traveling with two very small children and not taking car seats on the plane. It makes all of these otherwise lovely recommendations much more complicated for us. We did (finally!) find affordable transportation with two appropriate-size car seats provided between the airport and the port, but they are not allowing us to delay our transfer to the port. 

On 2/23/2019 at 9:05 PM, Thorben-Hendrik said:

It is about $20 per person - I am sure if you buy 10 spots they will let you have your own group! 👍

This is how we usually do it on land! 😉

Thank you, everyone!

I love escape rooms, but I always feel they are a little awkward with strangers. Maybe we'll make new friends on board and get a group together. 🙂

Looking into Bonine and crossing fingers for ice skates!

Thanks again.

1 hour ago, melmar02 said:

I would think they have smaller skates because RC's website says a parent has to be on the ice with any child under 6, implying they have smaller sizes. I'm not sure how small the skates go though.

Ice Skating

• Parents must be present to supervise their minors at all times and must be on the ice rink with any child under 6.

 

Thanks! I did not see that. Hopefully that means they have toddler size skates!

And thank you both for the motion sickness response. I suppose better safe than sorry. I'll look into non-drowsy Dramamine.

I have been searching for answers to a few questions that are turning up either no answer or conflicting answers. Can anyone who has been on independence recently tell me:

1) Are there ice skates for toddlers? (My girls wear toddler size 6. They are just turning 3 years old. So, pretty tiny feet.) I’ve heard mixed reports on this.

2) If two people want to do the Observatorium (escape room), will we be forced to share the time with other groups, or are we able to reserve the room for just the two of us? (I assume this depends on demand, but i was surprised I couldn’t find a discussion on this anywhere.)

3) I’ve only been on smaller ships, never one of this size. I hear they don’t rock and sway as much. My husband gets motion sickness and my girls have shown signs of it too. Should we bring Dramamine or sea bands or is that unnecessary on indy?

Thanks in advance!

I just wanted to com back and update this thread, since we found a ride! It took a lot of calling around and emailing, but we did find a shuttle company that provides car seats (as many as needed) and airport-port round trip service for a reasonable rate (a third of the price of the private car service I almost booked!) -- South Florida Shuttles.

The reviews are as mixed as any other shuttle service we looked into, but this was the only one that provided multiple infant/toddler car seats (not just boosters). Anyway, just wanted to share that for anyone in my same situation who stumbles upon this thread!

Thank you for the insights, everyone. We have tried traveling both with and without car seats and definitely fall into the camp of without, but i always appreciate seeing how others do it! 

I am struggling with the idea of renting a car (and car seats) for such a short drive each way. Seems crazy to me that there isn’t a reasonably priced car service with seat rentals. 

I think we we are going to look into the official transport shuttles next.

Thanks everyone! If we could get a phone, we’d be more at ease for sure!

Thank you for sharing!

17 minutes ago, nascarcruiser said:

From what my friends with kids say they are pretty strict about the ages.  You can ask if they can stay in the younger group but be prepared for the answer to be no

bummer. I was afraid that might be the case.

Thanks!

I'd love to know if anyone here has experience placing a 36-month old in the babies/tots program? Our girls are turning 3 only two weeks before our cruise next month, so they are right on that cusp between the babies/tots and A.O. Aquanots 3-5 program. Developmentally, the 3-5 program would probably be more appropriate, and they are pretty well potty-trained, but unfortunately they are not yet at a point where I trust they can appropriately clean up after themselves in the bathroom, so I'm hesitant to put them in A.O.

The babies/tots program says 6-36 months. Does that mean "up to" the 36 month mark and not a day later?

2 minutes ago, Grandma Dazzles said:

 

Key program says 2 pieces of baggage per person. Everyone in cabin over age 6 has to purchase, so if you have 4 people, but only 2 participants, I would assume you would be allowed 4 items. 

Thank you! I did not catch that in the Key info. Appreciate it. 🙂

Hello, I am a new poster to these boards, and this is the first thread I've started, so please forgive me if this is an old question. I have been researching answers for days!

We have twin toddlers who will be turning 3 just before our cruise next month. We do not fly with car seats and typically will rent cars with car seats or book private cars that provide car seats at our destinations. Unfortunately, I am struggling to find a service for this in Fort Lauderdale. So far, I've contacted:

• The private service RCI recommends through website - $140 ONE WAY quote (absurd upcharges for the car seats)
• Execucar private service - does not appear to accommodate small children but waiting on a follow up
• JiffyJeff shuttles - Can provide a car seat and a booster but not two car seats. 😞
• South Florida Shuttles - still waiting to hear back on this one

All we need is round trip FLL-Port Everglades. We do not have a hotel, as we are arriving on a red eye very early the morning of our cruise. If there is a service that will pick us up from the airport later, so we can have breakfast at the airport and not get to the port so darn early, that would be icing on the cake. But at the point, I would settle for any transportation that either provides two car seats or gets us on a big shuttle where they are not necessary without charging us the cost of an airline ticket!

Thanks in advance for any recommendations!

To the OP, I am curious what your family decided. If not bringing car seats, what transport are you using between airport and ship? I was just about to post a thread asking about this.

TIA!

7 minutes ago, luckyprincess said:

Hello! I didnt notice any luggage in the Key luggage drop off but that's because they literally had someone immediately take your bags and bring them to your room. They would have no problem taking the strollers though. They took up to 8 things to the room it looked like.

Great! Thank you!

Thank you for this thread. We have The Key for our sailing on Independence next month, so I'll be following along!

Did you happen to notice any strollers in the carry on luggage drop off area or any small children in Chops? We are traveling with twin toddlers who will want to ditch the strollers the second we board. They don't officially have The Key, since they're too young, but I assume we can bring them to lunch?