SensFan11

Does anyone know how many formal nights there are on the 10-night Southern Caribbean cruise sailing on Dec.2/16? Any idea what night(s) they would be on?

 

Also, while I do like to get dressed up, I have been reading that the trend has been for less formal attire on formal nights. Is a nice maxi dress good enough these days? Will I look out of place if I step it up a notch to a classier long dress?

 

Thanks.

I was on the 10-night Serenade Southern Caribbean cruise in March 2016...looks like it's the exact same itinerary as you're on...it was a great cruise!

We had two formal nights...on night #2 and night #9. I would say it was a similar level of formality as 7 night cruises we've been on in recent years...still several people dressed formally, but not as may as five or more years ago. I brought my tux and I certainly didn't feel out of place.

If you've got any questions about the cruise, ship or ports, I'd be happy to answer to the best of my ability.

Also - you can drop me an email to sensfan11cc AT gmail DOT com and I'd be happy to share copies of the cruise compass from our sailing.

Cheers,

Noel

I have been trying to get a response from Celebrity for the last few months with regard to the legal drinking age on the sailings on Constellation from Abu Dhabi. We were interested in booking the Christmas/new Year sailing for 2017 but our son will be 20 years and 6 months at the time of sailing which may preclude him from drinking, not great for a UK 20 year old, legally able to drink for several years, on a festive sailing.

 

After several emails to the celebrity 'one touch' email address - no response - my Celebrity Customer Service contact via Facebook has finally got a response, although not the one we wanted.

 

According to the US beverage manager sailings on the Constellation from Abu Dhabi will be subject to a minimum drinking age of 21 not 18. I believe this is contrary to what guests in the US are being told, hence this post for your information.

Following. I can see this would be very disappointing.

Just a suggestion, but it might be worth contacting the Captain's Club.

I will say that if anyone gets to watch the Opening Ceremony on the pool big screen' date=' I'm jealous because Wimbeldon was awesome![/quote']

 

Yes, I'm sure some of the big events will be on the big screen by the pool and will be great in that environment...things like the Opening Ceremonies and some of the track & field finals.

 

But what I'm really interested is for other events, and in particular for streaming while on board.

 

Does anyone have any current/very recent experience streaming the olympics or other sporting events while on board?

 

Anyone tried streaming Major League Baseball games on board this summer while cruising the Mediterranean?

 

What about soccer back in June? Did anyone stream Euro2016 or Copa Americano on board a RCCL ship?

 

Thanks,

 

Noel

There will likely be some broadcasts. But as is typical on board for sporting events, you will probably get the international feed. So exactly WHAT you'll get is hard to predict. On the bright side, since it's the international feed, you won't be stuck with NBC jamming sappy stories down your throat constantly instead of showing you know, actual competition!:cool:

That's exactly why I'm particularly interested in live experiences on board today and this week.

Did anyone currently on board see if today's games were available on the onboard TVs on via streaming?

We'll be boarding Brilliance of the Seas in Barcelona in two weeks, and I'm curious about the availability of coverage of the olympics on board.

I'd be particularly interested in the experience of cruisers on board different ships in these early days, as the Olympics get underway.

I expect there will be some Olympic coverage on some of the TV channels on board. When I've sailed in the Caribbean before, I know ESPN Caribbean has had olympic coverage. Do RCCL ships in the Mediterranean also carry ESPN Caribbean, or do they carry other channels?

Also - is there an option to stream olympic events to an iPad or other device if you have the internet package. Has anyone tried this?

I know streaming is often very location-sensitive when it comes to the Olympics...so I'm wondering if Canadian (CBC) or American (NBC) olympic streaming apps would work while on board in the Caribbean...or perhaps an olympic app from Sky Italia or RAI?

Noel

Sorry to report you will at the whim of whatever games ESPN International Carribbean happens to carry. They're most likely to carry a few of the games that are national broadcasts listed here...this list is added to regularly:

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/official_info/broadcasts/national.jsp?tcid=mm_mlb_schedule

As mentioned before, one option that may or may not work is to stream the games with the MLB.TV premium package and on board Internet...but it will depend on how fast your connection is, and whether the MLB app or website is able to determine where you are (if their on board Internet has unusual location codes based on the IP address they use, MLB may just block it).

Third, I'm sorry to say my own experience probably isn't comforting to you - last October I sailed on Celebrity Summit the week of the ALCS. NONE of the games were available on board. ESPN International Caribbean only carried the NLCS! I couldn't believe that the second last round of playoffs for 'Americas Pastime' wasn't available on an American cruise ship!

The best I was able to get were static updates on the MLB app's 'GameDay' and updates via Twitter. Occasionally - maybe 20% of the time - the Internet was consistent and fast enough to stream the audio play by play.

Changing topics somewhat, we will be on the Allure next March, taking our kids and g-kids. For the first time, we are cruising during the Ontario March break, and I was amazed how much more expensive flights are. Pretty much double what we would normally pay flying out of Ottawa.

 

Having considered a number of alternatives, we discovered that the Quebec March break is a week earlier, and flights out of Montreal for our dates are pretty much "normal". Anyone living in Eastern Ontario who might normally fly out of Ottawa for March break should definitely consider Montreal.

We flew out of Montreal for crushes during Ontario March Break in both 2013 and 2014. It is much cheaper! A couple tips:

- if you've got a very early morning flight, consider staying an a Montreal airport hotel. The Marriott that right in YUL is particularly convient. It's on top of the wing for US departures. You literally take the elevator down to check in and security.

- make sure you leave enough time to park your car. If you use Park N Fly, they're lots are VERY full and it can be tricky to find a spot...they're already loaded with cars of Quebecers who are still on the tail end of their March Break.

I think I will be one of the people who disagree with this ;)

 

At least for Visa and MasterCard, they are the ones who set the exchange rates for their cards, based on the date of settlement (which could be different from the transaction date). So it doesn't matter who the card issuer is; the currency exchange rate will be the same.

 

That leaves the issuing bank to decide whether to charge a foreign currency conversion fee on top of the exchange rate set by either Visa or MasterCard. As previously discussed in this thread, the rate as set by the issuer varies from 0% and up. This rate is mentioned in the disclosure statement provided by the card issuer.

 

Accordingly, the card issuer can't arbitrarily set the exchange rate. The cardholder agreements from the issuer for Visa and MasterCard credit cards explicitly state how foreign currency transactions are handled. They will state that the rate set by Visa or MasterCard is used, and then tell you if they charge a foreign currency conversion fee per the disclosure statement.

 

Here are the links to Visa's and MasterCard's exchange rate calculators:

 

https://usa.visa.com/support/consumer/travel-support/exchange-rate-calculator.html/

 

https://www.mastercard.com/global/currencyconversion/

Well, I agree with this, but it's also important to put it to the test.

Here's a live example to purchase US dollars - rates current as of time posted...

Rogers Platinum Mastercard (0% fee): 1.2681

Marriott VISA (0% fee): 1.2691

Accurate Foreign Exchange (foreign exchange bureau in Ottawa) - cash: 1.2752

TD Canada Trust cash (with Borderless Banking discount): 1.2923

Scotiabank cash (standard public rate to purchase): 1.2945

Most other Mastercards (2.5% fee): 1.2998

Most other VISA cards (2.5% fee): 1.3000

So what's this difference work out to? If you bought a cruise for $2000 US dollars, you would save C$63.80 by using the Rogers Platinum Mastercard versus most VISA cards.

We always use either our TD debit card or Sears Mastercard to get funds from an ATM in the country we are in...either pounds or Euros. For us, we still pay the ATM fee so perhaps it might be worth checking into the Capital One debit card that Bob mentioned previously. :) I didn't realize ATM fees were refunded.

Good advice, but you may want to note that Bob's from Illinois, and may be referring to an American Capital One debit card.

I'm not familiar with any debit/interac card that doesn't charge a 2.5% foreign currency conversion fee. I also don't know of a Canaidan bank that will refund the 'convenience fee' charged by an ATM.

There are, however, some banks that will waive their foreign ATM fees. For example, TD Canada Trust's 'All inclusive' account includes the use of all ATMs, foreign or domestic. Other TD customers pay fees: $3 (using an ATM in the US or Mexico) or $5 (ATMs elsewhere in the world).

This subject is getting more complicated by the day.

 

A couple of years ago, I would have said that SMS texting was not possible without a cellular connection. However, now carriers are starting to offer their normal cellular services over WiFi. So the ability to send SMS texts over WiFi could depend on carrier, phone, and IOS version.

That's a good line of thinking Bob.

My comment here is I don't want non-tech folks to be 100% convinced that their texting will work with Voom.

The one thing I can confirm is that a messaging service such as iMessage (where both the sender and receiver have Apple devices) or Facebook Messenger WILL work with Voom.

You can text with the basic package.

Hmm. I invite others to chime in here, but I'm not convinced all texting will work with voom packages. Wouldn't it kind of depend on what kind of texting program and service you use?

If you're thinking of texting via SMS - the traditional type of texting that works across any type of phone and is a limited number of characters - doesn't that require a cell phone signal? Do SMS messages still go through when you're in airplane mode and just on wifi (which is what voom is)?

It's been years since I've used SMS...I use Apple's iMessage...and I know that will work via Voom. Texts sent via iMessage (where the messages show up in blue on the screen) are sent via data, and therefore work on Wifi and Voom (plus, I've done this dozens of times myself on board Quantum).

Hey - does anyone know....

 

If I buy a 1 Device Package - can I log in on my phone (i.e. in the morning) and then log in on my iPad (i.e. in the afternoon) .... Does this work as it's under one username or is it locked down to only my phone?

 

Thanks

Yes, you can use it on multiple devices...but only one at a time.

When you're finished using it on your phone, you need to logoff (as I recall, you open your browser and go to logoff.com). You'll then be able to log in on another device.

The PC Financial MasterCard credit cards have a 2.5% foreign currency conversion fee that's on top of their exchange rate at the time of the purchase transaction. That said, I expect it would always still be lower than RCI's exchange rate, so you should have RCI charge your card directly in USD. I generally find that a "retailer" exchange rate at the point-of-sale is higher than a bank or credit card issuer's rate, which in turn is generally higher than a currency exchange counter due to the markups that they build into the rate.

 

There are some credit cards that charge a lower (or zero) foreign currency conversion fee, so that only the exchange rate applies. For example, the Chase Amazon.ca Rewards Visa credit card does not charge any foreign currency conversion fee. The Tangerine Money-Back MasterCard charges a 1.5% foreign currency conversion fee. I'm sure there are other examples out there of low- or no-fee cards with respect to foreign currency conversion.

 

Onboard charges are in USD.

If you elect for Royal Caribbean to convert on board charges to Canadian dollars, they charge a 3% fee over and above the exchange rate. This is a very poor rate.

As mentioned above, most Canadian credit cards charge a 2.5% fee...better, but still a significant premium.

Along with the amazon.ca credit card, there's two other cards I know of that charge 0% currency conversion fees: the Marriott Rewards Visa (Chase Bank of Canada) and the Rogers Platinum Mastercard (Rogers Bank of Canada).

Also - as noted above, be sure to highlight and talk to the agent at check in that you DO NOT want Royal Caribbean to convert currency. Even then, after taking these steps, it happened to me once. As an extra precaution, I now also visit guest services on day two to confirm that they will not be converting currency. They have told me that if a mistake was made at check in (which is apparently fairly common), they can correct it on board, provided you catch it before the charge your credit card!

Here is from the Crown and Anchor page:

 

"A Crown & Anchor Society member can be added into a relationship with other family members in the same household and receive equivalent tier status; however Cruise Points will remain according to actual cruises taken and calculated using the Program-level accrual system described above. Pinnacle Club member tier status will not be awarded to dependents if earned by their parent and/or guardian. Pinnacle Club member tier status can only be earned by an individual, spouse or significant other by one of them accumulating 700 Cruise Points or more in the CAS program.

 

For all tiers except Pinnacle Club, a relationship is defined as a spouse or significant other and children of less than 18 years old. For Pinnacle Club a relationship is considered a spouse and/or significant other. Children will be taken out of a relationship with a parent or guardian upon their 18th birthday date. If it is found that a dependent or child is not immediately removed from a relationship upon their 18th birthday and accumulates a higher tier status outside of this time period, the dependents record will be adjusted back to the appropriate tier status".

 

 

Yeah...that's exactly the rules that I didn't find very clear...

So, is the current rule that when a child turns 18 that they continue to have the same status as their parents', or that they revert to the status based on cruise points they have earned?

For example, let's say I sail with my daughter when she's 17. I'm Platinum at 100 cruise points. She's Platinum during that sailing as my daughter, but only has earned 55 cruise points.

If the following year, when she's 18, would her card say she's Platinum (as she inherited my status), or Emerald (status based on points earned)?

We are edging up to diamond and that will make our children that but they have not "earned" it. We take a cruise just the two of us every year because we feel like it's good to focus on each other occasionally without the kiddos. That being said they'll likely be diamonds in their own right by the time they're 18.

 

 

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We're in a very similar boat. We should earn Diamond in 2017...and our kids are still pretty young, so they should get to Diamond 'on their own' by the time they turn 18 too.

But this is interesting as I was reading through the C&A rules, and my understanding is that kids no longer 'inherit' their parents' C&A status. Kids get their parents status while they're kids, but once they turn 18 their status becomes whatever they have 'earned' themselves.

It's my impression that it never used to be like this.

I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of kids lose out because of this....especially for families that don't start cruising until their kids are a bit older, and where it's a mix a family and couples cruises.

The other thing to watch for is the overall capacity of the ship...sometimes, even if they have cabins that will accommodate 3 or 4 passengers available, they aren't able to sell them if they've hit total capacity.

Even us lowly Platinum members were invited to the helipad in Nassau a couple years ago...

Thanks for the info! I heard that UP is decreasing prices to $9 with a presto card as of tomorrow so I will probably end up doing that as I live close to a GO train station or using Aeroplan points to get a airport hotel the night before. I had a nightmare that I used an airport car service and there was an accident on the highway, which caused me to miss my flight!!

Yes...I took UP Express for the first time two weeks ago...very convenient.

While ancient history now, also worth noting during the two weeks after after they had announced the price change but before it came into effect, passengers paying the 'old' price were being given a coupon for a second free trip.

We're going next week. I'll post and let everyone know how it is.

Thanks...looking forward to your review!

Our cruise calls on St. Maarten on Friday, March 25th...your perspective will help us decide whether on not to book this excursion!

For anybody interested.

 

For the Toronto School Board - Pending Board of Education Approval.

 

school year calendar 2016-2017

 

Christmas Break - Dec 26/16 to Jan 6/17 (inclusive). Last day of school is Dec 23/16. School resumes Jan 9/17

 

March break - 'March 13 to 17, 2017

The Ontario Ministry of Education does publish School Year Calendars for the guidance of local school boards across the province. The current version has projected school holidays up until June 2019.

The catch is that with provincial ministry approval, local school boards can alter the dates. This doesn't happen that often...only in years when Christmas falls on a weekend.

For example, for the Christmas 2016 break, the official ministry guideline is that the last day of school should be Dec 16 and that kids go back Jan 2. However, some school boards (including ours here in Ottawa) have applied to the Ministry to push it back a week, so that kids would end school on Dec. 23, and not go back until Jan 9. I would be very surprised if the ministry doesn't approve this request.

For those of us contemplating cruises with kids in school boards that have pushed the Xmas break into the first week of January, the big advantage is the availability and pricing of cruises should be significantly cheaper for the week of January 1st, with most kids in North America already back at school. Our board here in Ottawa did the same switch back in Xmas 2011...we got a much better deal on a cruise that left New Year's eve, and post-cruise spent two days in Orlando theme parks that were MUCH less crowded than the Christmas peak!

Also note - francophone school boards in Ontario as practice follow a different school year calendar. Kids at those schools go back in late August, have an earlier March Break, and finish school earlier in June.

I was planning on waiting to book the character breakfast until we were on board (so I could use my OBC bought at the 1.1 exchange) but when I checked last night, I noticed that the first meal is no longer being offered (i.e. I assume it is now sold out) so thought I should go ahead and book it.

That's certainly the risk. We're sailing next week and I've held back booking any excursions or specialty dinners just so I can use by OBC (also bought at 1.1). Main difference is, I think it's unlikely the one excursion we want will sell out in advance (we'll book it as soon as we board), and we have pretty good flexibility on the dinners.

For the character breakfasts, they're more of a 'limited availability' kind of thing...if you really want to make sure you have it, by all means book it in advance!

You have the right idea :) It's a breakfast in the MDR during which DreamWorks characters (from Shrek, Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda, etc.) come around. There's a little song and dance number (i.e. music plays, the characters dance) and invite the kids to come over and dance with them. Then they visit each table for photos and usually give out some small gift such as stickers or a "Shrek ears" headband.

 

In my experience, a 7-day itinerary has 3 breakfast opportunities and different characters visit during each one (usually 3-4 characters per breakfast).

I'm not thrilled by them charging for character meals, but it does have one advantage...it means there's space available to those who really want to go.

When it was free, in my experience, all the character breakfasts would fill up by day 2, but then several guests would just not show up (overslept?). It seems to me it's now easier to get a booking, and they have fewer no-shows.

Also considering doing this excursion on an upcoming Royal Caribbean cruise...anyone done it before?

My two daughters are both allergic to peanuts. They've sailed on Allure, Oasis and Quantum without any issues.

As mentioned above, we've always met with the head waiter at the start of each cruise, and every night, we're presented with the menu for the following night to 'pre order' their dinner meals. They can prepare most items without peanuts, and when we pre-order, also go the extra mile by preparing their meals in a 'clean' area of the kitchen to further help avoid cross-contamination.

We actually try to completely avoid the windjammer...and the peanut allergies are just another reason. And yes, while items are often labeled with allergens, or a windjammer chef can clarify what are 'safe' items, it's again the possibility of cross contamination that keeps us away from the buffet.

And the great things is, with SO many great eating options, it's pretty easy to avoid the windjammer on Allure!

We're getting ready to take our two boys (ages 10 and 12) on their 3rd Royal Caribbean cruise (Allure, Independence and now Oasis). On past cruises, they've both LOVED the Adventure Ocean program (as have we parents)! I'm a little nervous now about my 12-year-old moving up to the 12-14 year old group. Is it correct that that group can come and go from the Adventure Ocean area as they please? Please please convince me that I don't need to freak out if that is in fact the case :) I'm generally not a nervous mama, but the thought of my 12-year-old running loose on the Oasis does have me feeling a bit uneasy. I'm also wondering how on earth I find him when we are ready to pick him up. Any words of reassurance/advice from those who have been through this?? Thanks!

Your kids will be in two different programs.

Your 10 year old will be with the 9-11 age group in Adventure Ocean: the Voyagers. At this age group, parents have the option to allow their kids to sign themselves out of Ocean Adventure. The catch is that some of the activities (e.g. scavenger hunts) require that the kids be allowed to sign themselves out...if they don't have their parents' permission, they aren't allowed to participate (and have to stay back at Adventure Ocean, perhaps with the younger kids?)

For teens - and yes, your 12 year old is considered part of the 'younger teen' group on RCCL - ages 12-14, my understanding is it's completely different. They don't go to Adventure Ocean, they go to the 'Teen Club', or join up with the teen group activities as they take place at different venues around the ship. Yes, the activities are supervised by staff, but my understanding is that there's no signing in or out of the program.

As far as keeping in touch, well, that's an ongoing question/issue across age groups and families. Common meeting spots in public places are good. Leaving voicemail messages on the cabin voicemail also works. Certainly some type of tech system works best, but that can get pricey...you and your teen would each need a device, and either purchase the internet for both, or use text messaging (if your provider allows roaming on cruise ships) and pay per text message.