JillK

7 minutes ago, netpj said:

When you received your PCR results, was it on Royal Caribbean letterhead or on a partner lab letterhead?  I am curious since our Government says the test has  to be done by an accredited lab and I am wondering how the cruise lines handle this.  Thanks.

As an FYI, as of January 5th, Royal will no longer be offering the free PCR test for those who need it to return home from US ports. You will have to now make your own arrangements after you disembark. As far as I can tell they will still provide from international ports but have to assume they will stop doing this at some point as well.

5 hours ago, chucknmarilyn said:

Will the monitored BiNax tests work for you?

I'm not sure. When we deposited on this cruise a month ago (all the way back when it seemed things were getting better!) it was with the understanding that tests were being done a day before disembarkation and knew from other Canadians who have cruised previously that whatever RCI was using was acceptable for re-entry so I didn't do the kind of detective work I normally would.

I now will look into the requirements and determine what may work for us or will cancel and plan further out when hopefully the PCR test requirement will be dropped.

We truly do want to cruise again but I can't bring myself to spend the equivalent of half our cruise fare on COVID tests. IMHO $2000 for our family's COVID tests is insane and that's setting aside what I am figuring will be a very stressful end to the trip. 

2 hours ago, 38anchor said:

Interesting to see that the T&C's have changed yet again...

 

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/when-to-take-a-test-if-traveling-to-us-from-another-country

 

International Re-Entry Testing Options for Cruises from U.S. Homeports 

 

For Sailings Departing On or After February 1, 2022

Optional testing to satisfy your International Re-Entry Testing requirement is offered in the terminal after you disembark the ship, through our test provider partners. The cost of testing is the responsibility of the guest, and varies depending on the port, with antigen tests starting at $105 and PCR tests starting at $210. Either test is “swab and go,” and results will be emailed to you within an hour after testing. Once onboard, you will receive further guidance on how to schedule a test appointment.

You can also make your own arrangements with test providers at the airport, or in the area of the port, such as local pharmacies or clinics. 

Wow- "starting at $210"... so my for family of 6 it will be "starting" (surprise you won't know until you get there) at $1260 USD ($1615 Canadian) or the stress-inducing option of trying to find somewhere along the way home. Feels like Royal doesn't want me to sail! 

8 hours ago, Fyona said:

This new policy by RCI puts more expense on Canadian guests, as already we pay  30% more than our American counterparts for our fares. One US dollar is approximately $1.30 Canadian dollar, then now on their blog, we have to acquire our own PCR tests to return home and these tests in the US can be very pricey.  This all adds up. We were on the Odyssey in November and it was free then, so we came home and booked 2 cruises in January and two in February and one in March. Looks like we will have to get a FCC for our January cruises and will cancel February and March cruises. These PCR tests just adds too much costs for us. Perhaps now we will have to wait till the Fall and use our FCC then.  Can't understand how they cannot advise on costs before we leave home.  Very poor PR on their part.

 

 

 

Ya I'm not too jazzed about the additional $600 - 1100 USD ($780 - $1400 Cdn) line item for PCR tests post-cruise for my family of six either. Or - as my mom who is coming with us suggested - the cost of booking a night or two in a hotel plus meals ($$$$) on the route home to wait for results if we can't find rapid tests.

I think what has most upset is that this was sprung on guests who had already entered into a contract with Royal on the understanding that testing would be done onboard. We are due to cruise in March and I don't think I would have booked this cruise otherwise as I am travelling with my four kids. 

The stress of trying to get the test done in time to get back home is even worse than the additional cost in my opinion.  We are driving, so at least we have the benefit of a 6 hour drive to the border but I couldn't even imagine trying to get this figured out if we were flying. Especially if your flights are already booked and you weren't able to take testing into account and build in some buffer. 

I'm prepared to keep our booking as is for now because I find it's stressing me out and I want to focus on the positive right now when all the news is back to 2020 level negative, but we will make a final decision before final payment in February. It just seems like a horribly stressful way to end what is supposed to be a relaxing and fun vacation.

1 hour ago, bookbabe said:

Look for a Walgreens in New Jersey offering the Rapid ID Now tests somewhere close to the port or along your route home if you’re driving.  Currently free, works to get you back into Canada, results in an hour or two.   You can book about a week ahead most times, and just use the port address if you’re not staying in a hotel.

 

Thanks - this is exactly what my husband has suggested we do. He travelled to NYC for business at the start of November and said it was very easy to find the regular PCR test for free, but had been unable to book the test on line because of being a non-citizen - great suggestion to use the port address to circumvent that. 

We're in holding mode on this one.... going to watch closely what happens over the next 6 weeks prior to our final payment and hope for the best, then try to deal with the testing requirements. 

If anyone else is driving to/cruising out of Bayonne over the next few months and finds a place that they'd recommend, please report back! 

This is a tough call for most of us. 

We have a Bahamas March break cruise with our four kids currently planned (make up using FCC from our March break 2020 cruise that didn't go) and a Med cruise in August with our two teens planned. 

Given how fluid things are generally with the virus, I'm not concerned yet about our summer plans so am happy to leave that alone for now.

I am increasingly concerned about our March plans and that with numbers spiking we may see a number of things that could negatively affect us like mandatory two week quarantine upon return or land border closure. 

What truly has me on the fence though is Royal's change in PCR testing. I understand that they no longer want to provide that service free (a nice perk for a Canadian family of 6) but that they aren't even offering it at a cost onboard and I have to figure it out upon disembarkation is a stress I don't think I want to end my vacation. I'm just trying to picture my family driving around New Jersey trying to find six rapid PCR tests so we can go home or worse needing to get a hotel room for a night or two while we wait for test results ($$$).

I'm not keen to budget an additional $800 - $1000 USD for tests (on top of the cost of antigen tests required to board of course) but paying it to test onboard knowing I will get the results in time to go home as planned would be far less stressful than what we will now have to face.

Hubby and I are "gifting" this cruise to the kids for Christmas and I am really wondering if we should even tell them about it at this point in case we elect not to go or cannot go as things progress. So disappointing how something I was so excited to book and plan for just a few weeks ago has now turned into a source of worry and stress. Feels a little like 2020 right now. 

Best of luck to all of you struggling with your decision - whatever you decide, I'm sure it will be the right call for you and your family. 

2 hours ago, Fouremco said:

Yes, the test is still available on the last full day of the cruise. Whether or not a fee is charged depends on when the cruise was booked. From the website:

 

Currently all fully vaccinated guests requiring a COVID-19 test to return to their home country will be provided the option to receive complimentary testing onboard prior to disembarkation. Proof of return travel scheduled within 24 hours of disembarkation will be required. As of Tuesday, November 16, 2021, for new bookings, home country re-entry testing will be available onboard for a fee of $55 per person for an Antigen test or $95 per person for a PCR test.

I'm extremely disappointed that Royal didn't move in this direction as well - make it easy for non-US citizens to get a test in advance of disembarkation at the very least. I thought it was a nice perk that it was provided to cruisers previously but I do understand their desire to stop spending money on testing. 

Now I have to decide if I'm willing to roll the dice with my family of 6 on disembarkation day trying to drive around New Jersey to find a place to do rapid PCR testing at who knows how much (assume $95 USD per at minimum). The cost sucks (line item of minimum $1000 for COVID tests) but worrying about finding somewhere to get it done with my kids in tow sounds like an absolutely horrendous way to end what is supposed to be a relaxing vacation. 

My husband is pretty chill about it but this might be a complete show stopper for me, assuming of course the border remains open, we're not under lockdown, etc etc etc doesn't make the decision for us like it did two years ago. 

Oh goodness, like others I feel so disappointed for your family.

I really hope that your family is able to find a replacement that works for everyone. I completely understand where you are coming from as I share your same issues since my eldest is currently in her final year of high school and if our March break cruise next year doesn't happen, we also will not be able to pull it off in future (this is a re-booking of the March break cruise in 2020 that didn't happen to boot). 

Best wishes for a speedy recovery and hope that the rest of your family remains COVID-free and are able to enjoy Christmas even though it wasn't what you had planned. 

8 hours ago, Californian said:

I have two bookings back to back starting In early January — one with RCI and one with big box TA.  I am thinking of canceling my January sailings to moving it to one March cruise.   If I do, I was thinking I would book the March cruise with RCI.   RCI should apply the FCC from my RCI booking, but how about the January booking with another TA?  Can RCI apply the FCC from them, too?  Or would I have to go through the other TA to transfer the FCC?  
 

I also have an April cruise where the final payment is due January 14th to a different TA.  What should I do to get the FCC transferred to this booking in a timely manner?

 

By the way, is the FCC going to be the fare only or has anyone had their taxes and fees included?

Thanks in advance for your help…

 

Once you are issued the FCC from the TA, you are free to use them yourself or with another TA - they are owned by you and not the TA. The tricky part could be notification that they have been processed and are ready. 

If you want to apply to a booking where final payment is due in January I would recommend that you begin the process of getting them issued now and understand there is a chance they won't be ready in time. Mine took almost two months to be processed and I had to extend a booking I had on hold three times waiting for them. You could always speak to Royal or your TA about it before moving ahead to see what their average wait times is for FCC's these days.

FCC can only be applied to base fare and cannot be applied to taxes and fees. 

Happy cruising! 

Mine took almost two months and several hours over multiple calls with Royal before they were finally issued correctly.

If you're willing to donate the time, a phone call to Royal might at least confirm they are in progress. 

We have lived under tighter restrictions these past 18 months than some other countries. My husband travelled for work to NYC in November and found many people seemed to have returned to normal living. The hardest thing for him to get over mentally was that masks weren't required indoors if you are vaccinated.

Meanwhile here we have stricter measures coming into place tomorrow when we had just started to loosen them up a few weeks ago. It's so frustrating. 

We are due to cruise over March break and hope that more is known about Omicron between now and then and things are a little calmer. I feel like right now the media is creating a lot of fear in people in the way they are reporting the new variant when we don't have a full understanding of this strain yet. 

I hope that this strain won't be aggressive as Delta and am really hoping that further travel restrictions and border closures won't be put into place as we move into the new year. 

I doubt Royal will alter their policy for Canadians.... they were wholly unsympathetic to us in March 2020 when they refused a refund from our cancellation when Canada imposed travel restrictions and advised no cruise ship travel. We cancelled on the last day we could using CWC which had just been implemented. Had we ignored our top doc's and hung in there, we would have gotten a refund when Royal shut down two days later.

I am trying to use that FCC for the new cruise this coming March and will be unable to do so if the borders close or there are punitive measures put into place such as mandatory two week quarantine put into place for returning travellers.

19 hours ago, Bananas27 said:

The "discounted" price for my Jan 30th cruise is $70 a day for the beverage package!  This is probably so they can advertise a bigger % off for Black Friday.  

 

Any guesses how low it might go?

Agree with other posters that the cheapest you are likely to find it will be $50/day. 

Mine was originally at $60, then dropped to $50 and then last week magically is back to $60- I assume in anticipation of Royal being able to offer it "on sale" next week for $50. 😉

11 hours ago, Peak city said:

FREE CRUISE!!!

https://www.royalfreeshipping.com/

 

Note: for Americans only.

8 hours ago, adametro said:

I’m in Canada and when I click that link, it sends me to a blank page that reads “must be in the US”. So it looks to be only for US residents. 

Kind of ironic that the webpage was apparently posted in Canada. 😂

As usual we loose out again.... 

If this info helps, my former TA cancelled our cruise without our authorization on October 13th for which I had used FCC's from a March 2020 cancellation to deposit. In speaking with Royal yesterday I was told the FCC's still have not been issued and to "call back in another week or two - it can take up to 45 business days." 

Wish there was a way I could check their status online rather than having to call. 

In speaking with Royal on a few occasions now, at no point have they disclosed the balance... they have only told me that they haven't been re-issued and to keep calling back.

Hang in there and best of luck !

I'm glad to hear that this story has a positive ending. I'm sure that somehow you will be able to work out the logistics once onboard or perhaps with Royal direct should you be able to successfully move her booking to Royal directly.

I empathize completely with your situation as I had a travel agent cancel my cruise next August without authorization a month ago when I made an inquiry on the cruise. I found out when I logged into my Cruise Planner and saw I had no cruises pending after having just spent $2000 on excursions when they were on sale over Labour Day. 

The kicker for me was that they actually denied cancelling it when I asked them for a full accounting of what happened. So if I didn't cancel it and they didn't cancel it, who did? The cancellation fairy? Give me a break - at least own up to your mistake. The denial was it for me. How can I ever trust them to execute a booking on my behalf after this? 

I have now lost the double points promo, lost $117 in exchange/bank fees on the shore excursions that I had to chase Royal to have refunded as there was a "glitch" on their end and a month later I am still waiting for new FCC's to be issued so I can re-book.

Super frustrating to say the least but at least you and I have learnt a valuable lesson on who not to book with in the future.

Best wishes for a fantastic cruise! 

My (now) former TA cancelled my Med cruise without my instructing them to do so. I only found out by logging into the Cruise Planner which showed no cruises booked. 

About a month before this happened I had purchased $2000 in ShoreEx. 

I called Royal right away to see if this could be reversed but was told it was too late and a refund was already in progress. 

Three weeks tick by and nothing back on my credit card despite having spoken with two other agents who assured me that the refund had been processed.

I have now re-booked the cruise and want to rebook the same shore ex I had already purchased. So I called Royal again to get a status update on the refund so that it hits my card at the same time as I buy again.

After 1 1/2 hours on the phone with them on Friday they were able to determine that  due to a processing error, the refund had not actually been posted to my credit card on their end. This apparently has been fixed with a "new" refund issue date of 11/05. The agent who was assisting me told me that I could expect it would be about 7 - 10 business days for the refund to come through.

All this to say, keep checking... but if the time you were told you should see it has come and gone, call back and have it investigated. 

Good luck! 

Thanks hancogran and Fouremco for your insights - that's exactly the kind of input I was looking for. We are currently planning on arriving several days early to tour Rome ahead of the cruise so perhaps we'll borrow a day from the start of our trip to add a day in Rome upon disembarkation.

I definitely do not want to spend any cruise time stressing out about making our flight home. 

Very much appreciate your feedback! 

18 minutes ago, d9704011 said:

I'm with you.  Club class on Air Transat is very comfortable and, in my opinion, reasonably priced.  I think the 1340 flight out of FCO is very doable; if you can't plan on making your way from Civi to the airport by 1100 you're just not trying or things have gone very wrong.

1 hour ago, macmax said:

Air Transat also has non-stop flts FCO-YYZ departing at 13:40 at lower fares than AC.

That time is more doable but still somewhat risky.

Thanks for the recommendation - in our case, we are going to be booking with Aeroplan points so can only consider Air Canada flights. 

Will keep Air Transat in mind for future though! 

Hi everyone. We are going to be booking a cruise next summer out of Civitavecchia and I was hoping a fellow Canadian could offer some insight regarding return flights.

The only direct flight from Rome to Toronto departs at 11:30 am and is only offered once a day.

I'm concerned about having enough time to disembark the ship, clear customs, pick up luggage, find transportation (which I plan on pre-arranging) and travel time from Civi to the airport to make the direct flight. Our only experience flying from Europe post cruise was in Amsterdam where we barely made our flight (others on our ship sponsored transfer missed theirs) and in that case, the port and airport were in the same city!  

Not knowing what we can anticipate for COVID protocols that may still be in place next August, in addition to regular security at the airport for international travel, I'm a little concerned that we will be at risk of missing the flight.

I know no one can give me a definite answer but I was hoping that based on previous experience some recommendations could be made as to whether or not we should stay an extra night in Rome to make the 11:30 flight the day following disembarkation or if we should be able to make the flight on disembarkation day. 

A final consideration that at this time (and of course this could change) is that we need PCR tests to re-enter Canada that would be provided by Celebrity on board which I believe has to be within 3 days of re-entry. 

Thanks in advance for any insight! 

Sounds like you are stuck with the assigned flight as you are in the penalty period. 

When we last cruised in December 2019 we also had booked the free air promo. We ended up going to a different destination post-cruise for my husband's work Christmas party but decided to leave the "free" air promo in place and just booked our flights to the new destination on our own... we were no shows at the airport.

You can always do the same with no financial loss at this point. 

For what it's worth, when I priced that December cruise both with and without the air, there was no difference in the fare so it genuinely was a "freebie" as such you are should not be out of pocket for not using the flight.

Perhaps you can just think of it as a perk you are unable to take advantage of this time around.

Most importantly, enjoy your cruise! 

We have booked for this package for March 2022 at Hilton Garden Inn Ridgefield Park where we stayed the last time we cruised out of NYC in December 2018.

I was able to find the rate using the Hilton website.... select the room type and hit the "more prices available" button.... scroll to the bottom of that list and click "show more rates".... that's where they are hiding the "Park, Ride and Cruise" rate and the "Park and Cruise" rate (no shuttle). 

I understand that the cruiseline has to follow guidelines but there has to be a better way to handle it than to kick people out of their cabins without consulting on what would constitute an acceptable alternative. 

Like the OP, I take (probably) a ridiculous amount of time choosing my cabin (and often it's two as we are a family of 6 so if we are all cruising we are split 3/3 in two cabins). Some of us are prone to motion sickness so I prefer mid-ship and make sure that there are no public spaces that will be keeping us awake until the wee hours (learned that lesson the hard way). If we are cruising together and can't get connecting rooms I try to keep us close. So in that sense, the cabin I have spent a lot of effort selecting is very important to me.

Hopefully the OP will keep us posted and has a satisfactory resolution.

I purchased a Cruise First a few months ago to take advantage of the bonus $250 but I was sure to read through all the terms and conditions (fine print) before I did. 

I am actually surprised that the OP is getting an FCC for $500.

My interpretation was that if I cancelled, I would lose the promotional value and that I would get an FCC worth what I paid $250... so kind of like what happens when you cancel with a CruiseNext without the bonus. 

19 minutes ago, worktocruise610 said:

What is the difference between Cruise Next & Cruise First? I read them both and not seeing it

My understanding is a CruiseNext would be the voucher you buy on an existing cruise to apply to a future cruise and the CruiseFirst is a voucher anyone can buy through NCL right now. 

They both act in the same way in terms of having a bonus value beyond what you paid (ie. CruiseNext buy for $125 and get $250 value and CruiseFirst buy for $250 and get $500 value).

I did note that in the T&C of the CruiseFirst, if you cancel the cruise you applied the certificate to, you loose the "extra" value. I would guess the amount you paid would be retained in an FCC or "CruiseFirst" voucher (worth $250) but the bonus additional value of $250 on top of it would be lost.

You can cancel a cruise booked with a CruiseNext and it still retains its "extra" value when you use it on a future booking.