Perl47

The vitriol being thrown at me for not understanding the upgrade policy has been as surprising to me as the policy itself. I asked a simple question, I got an answer. I don't understand why people are continuing to pile on. My grandchildren are with us in a vacation cottage on a remote lake in the woods and I sit here chuckling because reading Cruise Critic is supposed to be my relaxation after dealing with young kids frenzied non-stop activity and sibling rivalries since 6 AM. Perhaps the timing was a good thing because it makes the kids look like angels.

If I owned a car dealership and a customer came in and signed a contract to buy a Ford Fiesta on a day we were having a sale and came back before the order was delivered and wanted to buy the Rolls Royce that's been sitting on my lot instead and get the sale price it was the day he bought the Ford Fiesta, I think it would be a really good business decision to do it. A bird in the hand is always worth more and all that plus happy customers tend to spend more money on the higher profit margin items, etc.. You can disagree with my philosophy but to berate me for it is non-productive.

Thanks for playing.

Try going to You Tube and type in the ship and cabin number and you might find a video of your room, or just try the ship and type in E2 cabin and you should get some videos that way.

Really, my question was about how RCI prices an upgrade. It's been answered and put to rest.

I've been on enough cruises to know that you can't assume anything about a cabin by it's category. The deck plan page for each ship has a key at the bottom that gives more specific information for many of the cabins. Some have a 3rd pullman bed available, etc.

Google images has many pictures as well. As does flickr. There are also websites where people post photos of their cabins.

I've found conflicting photos and info about our particular cabin so I called RCI to ask specifically. They said it has only a chair.

All these other exercises are not necessary.

Thank you, Molly. You understand and I appreciate it!

But for those who don't get it yet, I didn't realize we couldn't upgrade by just paying the difference between the two fares, whether they used today's pricing or yesterday's. I was surprised they have a policy that discourages their customers from upgrading so that's why I asked.

I wrote that I thought it would be $200 or less since it's only a $33 difference today, recognizing they might ask me to pay the difference between what the fares were when I booked and I don't know what an E1 cost at that time.

Yes, we got a killer deal, $2500. We booked a year ago, onboard the Freedom.

There's no reason to insult me or chastise me or treat me like an idiot. I came on to ask a question because I wasn't sure the TA had given me good information. I already responded to the early replies, thanked the responders and said I learned my lesson. We've never changed a cruise reservation before and I guess that makes me a dummy in some people's eyes and they feel compelled to point it out on a public message board. Repeatedly. But it's OK, I'm a big girl and I can handle it.

In the meantime, RCCL told me we only have a chair in our cabin. Unless I can find pictures that prove otherwise, I'm going with that.

Thank you for all the replies, they're much appreciated.

To clarify,

1. Yes, we were going to switch to 8102. Mostly because we just realized there is only a single chair in our cabin and we both have back problems so we wanted a cabin with a sofa so we could both sit down when we watch TV and/or read.

2. I had no idea you couldn't upgrade by just paying the difference. Lesson learned.

3. If I booked yesterday, the difference was only $33 at today's prices. I have no idea what it was when we booked. We did it onboard and it was a rush-rush thing and since we've never seen a cabin without a sofa, we didn't realize they existed.

4. We can cancel penalty free until tomorrow and that's what we're going to do. 14 days without anywhere to sit when I read is not for me and I'm not paying $1500 to get one. We live in FLA, we can hop on a 7-day cruise for less than $1500 so it would be ridiculous to pay the higher rate.

Thanks again.

We're booked on a cruise in October and decided we'd like a different cabin. If someone made the reservation today, the cost is only $33 more so I assumed if would be $200 or so.

Anyway, I was told by Cruises Only (RCCL won't talk to me about it because we booked though Cruises Only) that they'd have to cancel our reservation and book us a new one using todays prices. The difference between what we paid for our Cat E2 and today's price for E1 is $1500.

That just doesn't sound logical to me so I'm wondering if anyone hear knows how it works.

Thanks!

Thank you! Exactly what I needed to know.

We haven't cruised Royal Caribbean in a long time even though it's always been our favorite. So we are really, really excited about our upcoming cruise on the Freedom of the Seas. Balcony stateroom on Deck 6. I think class E2.

I feel so silly asking these but as I start packing, I realize it's a lot easier to make decisions if I know:

1. Does RCI provide shampoo and body wash? I don't mind bringing my own but if I can leave those things home, it does make life simpler.

2. Do they have the 1/2 price ironing special at the beginning of the cruise?

3. Are we allowed to bring a 12 pak of diet Coke?

4. Does anyone have any photos of the bathroom they could share with me so I can see what storage I'll have?

Thanks!

Norwegian is in the process of updating the way it charges for internet, so some ships now have a plan for MB use, rather than time, while many ships still use the old "by-the-minute" plans. This link covers the minute plan info: http://www.ncl.com/about/staying-connected-sea-internet-access

 

I'll be on Epic before you, and I'll try to remember to post whether she is now offering the MB package, or is still on the minute package. ;)

 

 

 

Entertainment on Epic will totally blow you away. It includes Blue Man Group and Legends in Concert, both in the main theater. In addition there is Howl at the Moon, and various comedians at Headliners, and there is also Fat Cats which is a Blues Club.

 

There is also the Cirque Dinner show in the Speigel Tent.

 

Reservations are required for BMG, Legends and Cirque. The theater shows are complimentary, and the Cirque Dinner show has a cover charge based on seating choice. $29 for regular seating, and $39 for Premium seating. (do yourself a favor and spring for the Premium Seats).

 

In addition to all that, there will also be live music in various locations, and DJ's in the nightclub and around the pool at various times as well.

 

I hope that helps!

And one of our favorites, the Second City Improv! They're phenomenal.

We've cruised several times with friends and family and have made it clear from the start that we're all spending a lot of money to go on this cruise and that it would be unfair and unwise for any of us to feel pressured into doing something that isn't exactly what they want to do.

Therefore, we say we'll have dinner together every night and enjoy one another's company. While we're together, we'll discuss what our plans are for the next day and if they happen to be the same, we'll attempt to do it together but if not, we'll see them again the next night for dinner.

I didn't stick to it a couple of times and learned my lesson. Perhaps offer to send your cousin the website links for items of interest you've found so that it'll be easier for her to do the research she needs to do.

As for the cc points for the purchases, RED FLAG, RED FLAG, RED FLAG, nip it in the bud ASAP. Just tell him/her that you've already made your plans and you'll share your itinerary so they're free to make the same arrangements with their credit card or choose something different.

Hopefully they'll make friends and find other people to hang out with on occasion.

Have a great trip!

Thank you for taking the time to do this. DW and I sail in about five weeks and as we have never been on Oasis are information junkies. Have a great cruise.

I've lost all my stuff from our cruise on the Sun because I wanted to reconnect with you guys and see when you're sailing next. It just so happens that we're going on the Sun again, Nov 9-16 with our daughter and family. And then on the NCL Epic Nov 30 and I was excited when I saw that you'd also be in the Caribbean the same week. But the fates didn't shine on us -- we'll in the western and you'll be in the eastern. But would love to keep in touch and maybe coordinate to be on the same cruise again someday. Plus, we'd love to hear about your experience on the Oasis - we've been wanting to go on that one so would love to talk to you about it. We live in FLA now so you should stop by and spend a few days. :)

I apologize for being off topic but John & Bertha are the world's nicest people and I don't know how else to contact them.

I'm on aol. JP2697.

We had cabin E218 on the Coral Princess in December, 2005. A wonderful cabin, convenient location. But don't plan on getting any sleep if you book it.

The first night out, I came back to the cabin and noticed a rhythmic noise coming from the other side of the wall behind our bed, like bedsprings squeaking. I thought it was the people in the next room having a romantic time but it kept on going and going and going and going and well, I finally decided to go get a cup of coffee cuz I couldn't stand it. Imagine my surprise to step out into the hall and see the neighbors entering their cabin and it was a middle-aged woman and her elderly mother!

Anyway, the noise went on all night and the next night. My husband went to the desk and they sent an "engineer" to our cabin but of course, the noise stopped. He left and it started again. So we called and another guy came. He poked around, listened and decided it was coming from inside the wall (joists rubbing against one another when the ship was moving) and there was nothing they could do about it.

We asked to be moved because we couldn't sleep but the ship was full so there was nothing anyone could do.

We bought some earplugs and suffered through it, but the nights were long and frustrating. In spite of that, it was our favorite cruise of all time but I was disappointed that Princess did nothing for us other than to shrug their shoulders and say they were sorry.