debandbill

I called the C&A desk this am to make sure re: testing sites.  They said that Rapid Test & Trace was fine.  As long as it's a proctored test using an FDA approved test

and the certificate contains your name, DOB, test time and results -you are fine.

14 minutes ago, luv2sailAgain said:

 

So the test from the following link (provided up thread) will not be accepted?

 

https://rapidtestandtrace.com/product/observed-test-for-travel/?fbclid=IwAR0bo0mxML7Ysl5JvPAUjC-LH9bqLpWNXTwyBqZQUgrypgqA31PoPAT5iSs

4 minutes ago, BobNoxious said:

So this site uses the kits (orange box) that we received from the government?

Yes.

5 minutes ago, SherriZ366 said:

We have been doing the emed, which has been less stressful for us.  But Walgrees has always be a viable backup.  Glad to hear that Medicare picked up the cost of the test.  

Hope you family were all able to bock tests.  

There are seven of us leaving Sunday out of Galveston.  Three including me have negative tests in hand.  Son and his crew are thankfully scheduled for today at Rapid Test & Trace .  With Walgreens now charging $129 pp, the difference in cost was $400.  That's a lot and another reason the sudden change of policy is terrible. Agree the proctored tests are probably less stressful.

Verified that Walgreens is charging as of yesterday.  I (and my family) booked a test last Tuesday for today so it was showing as no cost when I booked but that does not matter to them..they are still charging which, I think, is a poor decision by the corporation.  I was able to submit my Medicare insurance and it did cover my test completely but my family is scrambing to get a proctored test today.  So stressful for all.

No upfront for me....$0 bill.    It did take the pharmacy a ton of time to get the approval...I finally parked and waited inside but then had to rejoin the drive thru to take the test. 

Walgreens definitely fouled our family of 5 up.  Made our appts as soon as we could (Tuesday) for Friday tests....no mention of a cost.  Then yesterday, I saw people posting that they were charging.  Checked the website that now shows a blue bubble saying costs will apply.  Verified with the pharmacy that even tests schedule previous to the change will be charged.  I kept my appointment since I have Medicare and I was able to get it at no cost this morning.  The kids had to scramble to find proctored tests today.  For a large corporation - this was a very poor way to handle things.  People are already stressed about testing before any event and this adds to pain.

Thanks also from me because I was freaking out that no Walgreens in San Antonio (and there are 10 just in my close area) had appointments available past tomorrow when I checked last Friday.  I now see it load another day each morning so I now feeling more calm about scheduling for this Friday.

Anders Ingebrigtsen as of August 20.

My Time Dining is almost a necessity for sailing this ship so consider it a positive. This will allow you to book the shows you want, when you want and then work your meals in around that. I have always pre-scheduled the shows and then we just show up for dining whenever without pre-booking a time. You can get all the shows in in one week with a little planning (sometimes doing them back to back.)

Good luck - you will have a blast!

Includes a two hour happy hour in the evening and a full, cooked to order breakfast in the am.

I was very surprised last year when we were upgraded from a Junior Suite to a Grand Suite on our Allure cruise...about a two weeks before sailing. It was our first upgrade from RCI ever.

I was especially shocked in light of the fact that this was a "free" Visa points cruise - booked just before that perk was taken away from the Oasis/Allure sailings. I just used our 125,000 points and upgraded to a JS and then we were again upgraded to the GS. Loved that gold card!

I am surprised at all the D+ who have never been upgraded...does not bode well for another one for us.

I think the confusion lies in the difference between choosing MTD and then setting reservations with MTD.

When you book a cruise you choose for all in your party, at least on Rhapsody:

1. My Time Dining or

2. Early Seating Traditional Dining or

3. Late Seating Traditional Dining

If you choose My Time Dining you will be charged all of your gratuities (even for your room steward) at booking time. MTD is very flexible and will allow you to set a standard MTD reservation time or just show up with whoever is in your party. You may or may not have the same waiters every night...I know they strive to seat you in the same area and with the same waiters but it is not promised.

Well I have and while the cruise was very nice, Disney did nothing to make me change cruise lines. I would say in most arenas, it was a comparable cruise with RCI and it was way more expensive. Embarkation/Debarkation was maybe a little smoother but Disney ships are smaller than the most recent RCI ships so understandable. Entertainment was great on Disney but so are a lot of the shows on RCI. Food, rooms, etc...very similar.

We had a great time with our family on the Fantasy, but I will stick with Royal Caribbean and Celebrity.

I am communicating with my son who is currently on the Quantum. He has several RCI cruises under his belt in all classes of their ships (he is Emerald - close to Diamond.) His overall impression is that the ship is really nice but the service has been abysmal and the last straw was a reported power outage in his stateroom that was not responded to without a trip to Guest Services 6 hours later. Restaurant service has been terribly slow.

This is a holiday sailing and some delays are to be expected with a full ship but I do not think bad service in their eating venues should be acceptable any

time of the year.

The app to schedule reservations is not working and this coming from an IT specialist so it is not user error.

Come on Royal Caribbean - I really want this ship to WOW.

Agree that the nursery was really really super and worked so well for our then 10 month old GD on the Oasis. My son and DIL felt very comfortable with leaving Haley (DIL is a school teacher) and everything I observed gave me comfort as well.

The staff was so good and accommodated all requests. Everything was documented during her stay and her parents were supplied with a phone so the staff could call if necessary.

It was well worth the $8/hr for her parents to enjoy a nice evening dinner and show while she was happy in the nursery.

Deb

Called D+ desk yesterday to book Allure and use my points for a "free" cruise. The CS Rep was able to:

1) Apply my Next Cruise certificate (OBC hopefully will show up onboard)

2) Apply the $225 balcony discount to the JS I booked

3) Log into the Redemption site and apply the 125,000 points which gave me $2038 ($1019 x 2) toward the cruise total.

I have received an email confirmation both from the cruise booking and the rewards application.

I queried the rep twice about the balcony discount being applicable and she assured me that it was. I asked her when the cutoff was for booking Oasis/Allure with free points and she said "when Bank of America got their act together and made it official."

We will see if my balcony discount remains in effect when they apply that

free cruise credit. Now, if I could only sneak in a stockholders OBC, I would be really happy ;).

Deb

With the longer length in the D cabins comes a bigger vanity as well with more drawer and storage space.

I did notice the difference between the two on Radiance. I had to book my parents in an E near the elevators and we were in a D aft. I thought the difference was quite noticable.

Deb

We had an aft JS on Navigator 11/26/11 and had a tall 36" round table, three chairs, two loungers with nice pads, and a small chairside table.

and two sleeps..and we will be boarding Freedom!

Can anyone, to the best of their ability, clarify, what my understanding is after calling Berkley just recently regarding the preexisting clauses and how it affects treatment while on a cruise for something that relates to a preexisting condition. I read the policy 5 or 6 times and still could not glean what I needed so I called.

The rep told me that the preexisting clause does not pertain to medical treatment while on a cruise..that that would be covered. The preexisting only affects the cancellation portion.

I am taking my elderly mom and her friend on a cruise in November

and I am concerned because both of them have had a trip to the hospital recently.

What say ye???

Suggesting not to use a purse is assuming the person is too stupid to figure that out.

 

I really got a laugh.

 

 

Ha ha

I am glad that I could amuse you but bewildered at your comments???

I made no suggestion to the OP not to use a purse(please reread my post)...I simply stated what I do/did. I did not assume the poster was stupid at all. Everyone has their methods and I, for one, have learned from others on this board when they posted their experiences and ideas. Apparently you felt like the answers on this topic did not meet a certain criteria but I assure you that even if the OP couldn't use the information, someone appreciated it.

Deb

Deb' date='

 

I LOVE your signature! Haley looks so cute ... she was definitely "designed" well. :D[/quote']

 

Thanks Grouch,

 

Yep...our little Liberty of the Seas souvenir. She sailed with us and our son and DIL on the Oasis this past December so she has two cruises now;). Here is a picture from the Oasis cruise:

 

 

We had tons of fun.

 

Deb

Question: Why are all you people who dont carry a purse on vacation answering this question when thats not what this person wants?

Think about it.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Brenda

The OP did not give her cruise history therefore as a possible newbie, maybe she needed the wide variety of comments that she got (in a very kind and helpful manner) to see that she may or may not have to have a purse. She did ask what purse we used onboard as well as during travel....we told her. Perhaps she was appreciative of our "no purse" approach....think about it.

Deb

I love cruises because I don't have to carry a purse EVER!

For the airport (before I moved to Florida) I simply placednecessary ID in my carryon case along with a brush, money, etc. That ID gets placed in the safe onboard. All I carry then is my little retractable lanyard with my seapass card which I hook to my shorts and tuck in my pocket.

For shore excursions..a hip pack or a beach bag is fine.

Love to be purse free on a cruise..don't have to worry about it at all.

Deb

Agree that this time frame is a great time to cruise if you can swing it. It does put a rush on getting ready for Christmas and when you get back..the holiday is on your doorstep, but with a little planning it is a super time to cruise...weather is just right out of Florida and the prices are usually very good. I have booked longer (10+ days) cruises at this time over Thanksgiving as well for usually good prices probably because the kids can't be taken out of school for that long.

Deb