UK Cruiser2

Had to cancel our upcoming cruise because of serious life threatening health issues with a family member.

Why can't RC just "bank" my money (Nearly £3K) for me to use with them at a later date. Have been told as its so close to sailing date nothing can be done. Its not like I want a refund,i'd be happier to book another cruise with them later in the year.

So you can use your seapass card for the HOHO bus ? I would have thought you would have to buy a ticket.

12 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

The Dubai Mall and the Emirates mall are brilliant.

If you plan to go to Burj Khalifa pre-book on line as you will not get on on the day.

Afternoon tea at the top of the Hotel Burj Al Arab is a lovely experience with great views.

We have already booked Luxurious Afternoon Tea at Burj Khalifa

5 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

You can see the tower in this photo.The lift is free and you can get snacks and coffee etc at the top.There are seats all the way around.

No dress code for the mall.

We wore shorts.

The mosques are the only places where you need to cover up.

Thank you once again. I feel like I've hijacked this original post. Take care

16 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

Fantastic.

First time we flew Newcastle/Heathrow-Dubai

Second time Newcastle-Dubai direct.

Both times we arrived around midnight and stayed overnight in a hotel.

Last time we flew Manchester-Dubai arriving 8.30am in Dubai and took private transfer to Port Rashid to check in.

You pass the QE2 on the way to Port Rashid.

Yes,I think we will because we are in a hotel for 3 nights and its in that area near the QE2 and Port Rashid

14 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

We got the ships shuttle to the Marina Mall and back.

The hop on hop off bus is at the terminal.

There was plenty of taxi's too.

Even better. Thanks we fly out on 31st from Newcastle  join Jewel on 3rd for the two back to back cruises. What is the dress code for the mall,any shorts ?

4 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

Marina Mall in Abu Dhabi.

It is about 15 minutes from the port along the promenade.

You get a fantastic view of the 

Emirates Palace from the viewing site at the top of the tower.

Brilliant thank you. Looks like thats where we'll go. Are taxis readily available ?

57 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

The hop on hop off bus is an excellent choice.

There are 2 big shopping malls in Dubai well worth going to.

The gold souks are good but haggle hard.

The shopping centre in Abu Dhabi has a big tower in the centre.

Take the lift to the top where there are several cafés with fantastic views.

If you have any medication take your prescription with you to prove it is yours and a doctor's letter if you can.

Don't drink or kiss in public places as this is illegal.

Hope you have a fantastic cruise.

Graham

 

Looking at your valued tips,which mall is it,Marina,Al Wahda or Al Raha Mall ? I'm guessing its the Marina one

Always a suit on Formal for me and trousers all the other nights. But this is my personal choice. There have been many,many posts regarding this and sometimes they get a bit heated unnecessarily

5 hours ago, little britain said:

Currently on Jewel on the amended itinerary which cancelled Bahrain and we now have overnights in Doha and Abu Dhabi.

 

No Russians on board but the seen to have left a legacy of a vodka menu which I have never seen before. Not to be outdone there is now also a new Gin Bar for the Brits! 
A very large group of Chinese on board and also it is the first ship where I have seen a halal section in the WJ.

Jewel also has the separate curry menu at dinner.

33 pinnacles and 356 D and D+. The whole of Vortex is opened for drinks.
 

Doha was fantastic: well worth seeing. Spotless.  A ride in the brand new metro was so cheap! 
Royal are very silly imho to be pulling out of this vibrant buzzing affluent region- the construction in Doha preparing for the football in 2022 and the infrastructure they are building  - shame to not be where the action is! Downside is the construction is 24/7 so there was a pile driver pounding all night! Long line at GR this morning from those who had no sleep!

"A very large group of Chinese on board" eek, Coronavirus I'm sure it is only a very limited number of people have contracted it although today they have closed another city down.

Our upcoming cruise has had an itinerary change by R.C. This change meant one of our shore excursions booked through R.C.was also cancelled.

They told me that the amount would be refunded back to my credit card,but this has not happened yet. Today I reserved another shore excursion and immediately the amount was showing as pending on my credit card. Seems to me that they can debit the funds quick enough but are not so quick on refunds ?

On 1/20/2020 at 1:16 PM, SRF said:

 

I read that post as short hand for "I always get the package."

 

And the poster is from UK, so speaks some form of English, NOT American. 🙂

SRF,Yes, you are correct. Sorry,my mistake it should have started with I. I wasn't implying that everyone should get the package.

2 minutes ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

And if you don't like beers?  There is no definite rule. "Always get the package" is poor advice as is "never get the package".  

 

The one cruise I got the drink package on, while I might have "broke even" (possibly a LITTLE on the 'plus' side), it really wasn't worth it.  I was making sure I purchased enough (including water & OJ) to break even... drinking more on sea days to make up for the port days.  

 

It comes down to each person's preference.  I do love the argument "Well, I can try different drinks and if I don't like them, just toss them and I'm not wasting money."  But if you don't get enough drinks, guess what... you've wasted money.   

 

"Is it worth it" is an individual question.  How much do you anticipate drinking?  

Yes,it is def an individual question. Us having done some 25 cruises we know its worth it for us.

Always get the package. You only need 6 beers or so over the course of a full day to break even then theres wine,spirits,water etc..

On 12/4/2019 at 11:11 AM, Gordoncruickshank said:

Thanks Anne

The cruise starts in Athens and, at the moment, BA is far cheaper than anywhere else. I have been checking using Skyscanner for a while. It may be because the low cost options will not have their schedules done that far in advance.

 

 

We live in Newcastle and Emirates fly daily to Dubai from here,

1 hour ago, LXA350 said:

 

You seem to confuse the passage comming from the Suez Canal and passing the Gulf of Aden, but there is no Issue crusing to Oman from Dubai.

I would thin that Joseph2017 was concerned as the Oman/Dubai passage is through the Straits of Hormuz as this is where merchant ships have been targeted

Jewel of the Seas has cancelled Bahrain on its Feb.3rd cruise....

9 hours ago, StephenNJ said:

I am scheduled to leave on a cruise out of Dubai (UAE) on Saturday.  I am well traveled, having been to 52 countries.  My 17 year old son is going with me.  Two people have come to me in the last day and told me not to go.  One (a female friend) used to live in Syria and the other (a male coworker) is Ukrainian.  My cruise also goes to Abu Dhabi, Doha (Qatar), Manama (Bahrain) and Muscat (Oman).  I don't want to stoke any fears, and I know there are no guarantees in life.  I'm looking for some reassurance as to why I shouldn't worry OR some sincere advice not to go.  Please help!  I'm emotionally drained thinking about this.  Any recent cruisers have feedback about the current situation with cruising in the middle east?  Thanks in advance for your help!

Just go,if you were worried every time something kicked off you would never leave your home

1 hour ago, sddsddean said:

If you look on line, you will find the maps of the routes of the two companies. From memory, they are pretty similar. We picked Big Bus because, as we were there 5 days, they had extra perks in the 5 day ticket, like a side trip to Salaha(sp?), and I think whatever ticket you buy you get a cruise around the marina area included. A lot depends on how long you are in Dubai for. Have a look at their websites and see which deal works for you. We loved Dubai...it’s so clean!!! Just thought, when getting on the top deck of the bus, try and get a seat under the awning...the sun is mighty powerful out there!

 

Simon

Thanks for the info. Wont be too hot when we go in 3 weeks.

11 hours ago, sddsddean said:

Hi Anne

 

We stopped at the HI for the last week of December 2018 and New Years Eve. I actually picked the hotel so we could see the NYE fireworks at Burj Khalifa, Burj al Arab and Atlantis from the rooftop pool, but when we got there they asked if we wanted to join their rooftop party...for £125 each!!! So we watched the fireworks from the road outside with about 200 locals!

Anyway, the hotel is fine...its a Holiday Inn! We got the bed and breakfast deal which worked out really well. Big breakfast in the morning and we normally ate out somewhere in the evening.

Its a 200 yd walk from Sharaf DG metro stop (one of the reasons we picked it, as we could go straight there on the metro from the airport) and a 10 minute walk to the Mall of Emirates. In the bottom level of MoE is where the HOHO buses have an interchange between routes. There is the City Sightseeing bus and Big Bus. We picked Big Bus 'cos at the time they had a better deal on a 5 day ticket. As we had the 5 day ticket, we used the bus just for getting around (eg up to Dubai Mall and Burj Khalifa area). It takes about 10 minutes to get up to Dubai Mall on the HOHO and Big Bus also have a route that goes south to the Marina area.  If you decide to use either of the buses, let me know as they pick up at different places in the MoE. The MoE has a food court and a couple of chain restaurants (eg TGIFridays overlooking the ski slope) and we quite often ate there. If you are interested in gardens, you can get the bus from the MoE bus station to the Miracle Gardens...one of our favourite things in Dubai.

There are always taxis waiting outside the hotel if you want to go that route, and they are pretty cheap too. A guy took us from Dubai to our next hotel in Abu Dhabi for £56!

In conclusion, no problems with the HI and I'd stop there again. If you have any specific questions, ask away.

 

Simon

Hi any help/info on the HOHO would be fine as this will be our first time in Dubai but we are staying in Hyatt Regency but think this is in the old part of Dubai ?

5 minutes ago, chmusar said:

You have to add 18% gratuity 

Ah,right. I'll see what happens when I add to cart and checkout. Thanks.

17 hours ago, chmusar said:

Jewel of the seas in February $57 which includes 18% gratuity 

 

We too are in UK. Haven't booked the package yet but just looked,it's currently £38:76 (Around $50)

Hi Anne,We will be staying 3 nights pre cruise at The Hyatt Regency.All I know is that it is an older hotel but I don't know anything about the area it is in. Any pointers or help would be great. The only thing we have booked is afternoon tea in Burj Khalifa.

On 1/5/2020 at 5:38 PM, Skoobdo said:

By the way, you'll really like it there.  Very peaceful and relaxing.  They'll serve buffet lunch, 3 bars and have music/dancing/exercising.  Lots of beach loungers.  Have fun!

Sounds like just what we want.

15 minutes ago, Skoobdo said:

There's no cruise dock. You'll use a tender. The beach is on the entire coastline of the island.

OK thank you