Paul65

Yeah, it depends on what you mean by a 'fridge that works. They generally keep things cool, but not to normal refrigerator temperatures. I've never measured what the actual temp inside one of the cabin refrigerators is, but I would guess somewhere in the 50-60°F range (rather than the 35-40°F of a standard refrigerator).

Didn't you just send me proof that more people own iphones than any other phone? :confused: As long as you feel better after your rant, that is all that matters. Thanks for the link!!!

LOL. You have a very low threshold for what you call a "rant." :cool:

I believe the Belkin also has a surge protector which means it's not safe for marine use. At least that's what I've read on CC...

That's okay. Most people don't care whether it's safe or not; only whether or not they can get away with bringing it anyway.

People keep mentioning that a lot of regular cruisers book before the 6 month time period so it doesn't matter. It does matter because if you request a price change within that 6 month period (when a lot of price drops may occur) you will lose your balcony discount if you reprice (according to what is being said).

 

So it affects more than people who book with less than 6 months until sailing.

 

It really affects anyone who is eligible for a balcony discount due to C&A level.

Not really. I suppose it could potentially affect anyone with a balcony discount, even if they booked more than 6 months out, but I've only ever had one price drop, and it was well before six months until cruise time.

It would have been better to be truthful saying we decided to remove the benefit with no smoke and mirrors attached. It still would have upset long term cruisers, but would have more palatable then the excuses being offered.

I doubt it. People get upset when things change. I don't know if trying to sugar-coat it helps a whole lot, but I don't think it really hurts, either. If you want to be upset, you'll be upset.

People need to speak with their spending. If this is the final straw, then move cruise lines. If the cost now is above what you want to spend on a balcony, book a different cabin.

Well, that's what some of us have always done. While the C&A benefits are nice, it's not the reason I have cruised several times on Royal Caribbean. I have gone back, because I enjoyed the vacation experience. As long as that is the case, and the cost seems reasonable, I'll probably keep going back, even if C&A benefits were to go away entirely. (But I hope they don't. The last cruise I took was my first as a Diamond cruiser.)

A whole slew of cruise-related things are opinions, or have multiple good answers ... but other things are indeed absolutes. That is, they're things that all smart cruisers do; for example:

 

- Pack plenty of sunscreen and any over-the-counter meds that you're likely to use.

- Double check your identification and cruise documents immediately before leaving home.

- Attend your muster drill, even if you've done it before.

 

Arriving the night before -- unless you're a local -- even if it's late -- falls solidly into this category. For most of us, missing our long-awaited cruise would be a disaster (both emotionally and financially), and traveling late the night before is a simple, inexpensive way to secure ourselves against this possibility.

Actually, no, it doesn't fall solidly in that category. This is one instance in which you think more of your opinion than it's really worth. It's not a bad idea to fly in a day early, but if that doesn't fit your schedule, it's certainly not a must. Thousands of people fly in same day every week. It mostly works out fine.

Saying that it's something "all smart cruisers do" is just a way of trying to insult other cruisers who don't feel the same way you do. I would say what I really think of that, but it would only get deleted. :cool:

An experience I've encountered ... the flights on an airline with limited code share on the day before were cancelled due to fog. Cruisers who originally had tickets for the day-of were fine but the day-before people missed the ship.

That's a good point, too. Sometimes things happen "the day before," and if you're not one of the first in line to rebook, all the flights the next morning can be gone.

I'm all for the idea of planning to arrive a day before. I think it's generally good advice. But those who try to say it is somehow mandatory, or the only way to go, are being a bit melodramatic.

Absolutely plan to arrive a day ahead -- doesn't even have to be the whole day; you could come in late the evening before. But never, never -- unless you're local -- never, never travel "day of". If you don't have time to make it a day ahead, the cruise doesn't fit into your schedule.

I don't see the point in being so adamant about an issue that you feel is an absolute to you, therefore everyone should feel the same way. Sure, there is risk to traveling the day of a cruise departure. Yet thousands of people do so, and most of the time it works out fine. Occasionally it doesn't. If you understand there is a risk, and you are willing to take that risk, then there is no problem with flying the day of a cruise.

Thanks so much everyone for all of your valuable input. I took my son shopping last night and picked up a nice pair of light tan dockers. He also has smart (as in brand new with belts) knee length shorts, nice jeans (dark colored, not faded, no holes, not baggy) as well as dress pants, shirt, tie and shoes. Whew! I think we're all set and ready to sail on the 14th :D

I think you'll be fine. Enjoy!

To clarify, I was laughing at the argument of jeans being too hot or not :D

I know, and that's why I was mocking you a bit, because there is no such "argument" in this thread.

They cancelled Roatan and Belize altogether. The storm sounds like it's getting pretty wicked.

That's too bad. I know there's not much that could be done about it, as you don't want to head right into the path of a tropical storm. But Roatan and Belize are more interesting stops (in my opinion) than Nassau. Maybe you'll get another chance to visit them in the future.

We are planning a Liberty cruise next year to Roatan and Belize. What excursions did you have planned for those stops?

I can tell you what we did in April. Roatan is a great place for diving and snorkeling, if you're into that kind of thing. We did a wonderful private snorkeling tour with Roatan Ocean Adventures.

In Belize, we did the cave tubing with cavetubing.bz and were somewhat disappointed with them. It was a lot more of a cattle-call type excursion than I expected, packing 50 or so people on a bus. But others have given them good reviews, so maybe it's not always like that. (We had even bigger problems, as they overloaded the bus and ask for a party of three to get off, and we ended up getting off and were put in a van. Turned out that van had a group of people from a different ship who were doing a different excursion. It was chaotic.)

Yep. Know the drill. The polo shirts are fine for casual nights; that is my uniform of choice these days. There is really nothing wrong with a clean pair of jeans IMO, but I do find that khaki pants are comfy on the cruise and that is what I wear. Years ago we had a friend of our son sailing with us and he did not read the material we gave him. He showed up with a suitcase full of shorts and swimsuits. We stopped by a Target (or maybe Wally World?) on the way and he picked a couple of pair of inexpensive Khakis & he was all set. That said, don't stress. You and he will be fine.

Careful, you're just adding more fuel to the fire of those who somehow thing this thread is judgmental and are "laughing at this thread", because a couple people have expressed a preference for khaki pants over jeans. :D

I'm not sure if all the ships have an R-Bar now, but if you like fruity drinks, the specialty of R-Bar is using fresh ingredients, so you can get some good drinks there made from fresh fruits vs the mixers.

Smart Casual traditionally meant a sport coat, but I haven't ever noticed much difference in attire on a cruise between "Casual" and "Smart Casual" nights. Most people seem to treat them both more or less the same, and in some cases, they've dropped the "Smart Casual" designation altogether.

If your hubby wears a sport coat on Smart Casual nights, he'll be one of the more dressed up passengers around, I would expect.

That is great news. I just love these threads and all the judging that goes on. I think RCCL has moved on and left some of the cruisers in the past.

Actually, some people like to see and call out "judging" where it doesn't exist. Although I suppose your post could come off as a bit judgy.

I was on Liberty recently, and shorts were definitely not listed as acceptable for dinner in the main dining room. So, if it has changed, it's a very recent change. And the information on the website still says, "Remember, shorts, T-shirts, and bathing suits are not considered appropriate attire in the dining rooms at dinner." Perhaps that is starting to change, but I heard someone declare about a year ago that they had changed this, and it turned out not to be true at that time.

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/beforeyouboard/whatToKnow/whatToPack.do

Still said no shorts in the July 10th Compass for the Liberty, but I think vettecruiser1 was on the sailing after that.

Based on two weeks ago. There are 2 formal nights and the rest are casual. It list shorts are acceptable for casual. Only thing not allowed in main dining room are tank top and swim shorts. Gone are the days of enforcement. Relax you are on a cruise.

No, the guidelines still list shorts as not appropriate for dinner in the MDR. You're right about enforcement, but not about what is requested.

I, too, have never understood the comments that jeans are too hot. Inside the ship is cool all the time. No reason not to wear them inside anywhere. My husband always wears jeans in the MDR on casual nights. If he decides to go outside to walk, he changes into shorts. He stays in jeans if he is going to the casino. It's plenty cool there. And jeans are great for the ice shows!

What's not to understand? Some people prefer not to wear jeans. To say you can't even understand someone thinking they're too hot seems odd.

I would rather wear something to dinner that wouldn't necessitate me going to change, in order to enjoy walking in outside areas of the ship. That doesn't mean I can't understand your comments on it - just a different perspective. :cool:

I can't help but smile when I see people talking about not wearing jeans on a warm weather cruise because of the heat.

 

In DFW the "feels like" temp is routinely between 102 and 110 from late June (sometimes) through mid September. The actual temp the last few days topped 100 a couple of times...and we are having a mild summer. I see people in jeans every day.

 

WIMPS!!! Man up...put on them jeans! :D

I think you're sort of bringing it into this thread, though. Sure, a couple people (including me) have mentioned a personal preference of a lighter-weight pant, but nobody is saying jeans are simply too hot for a warm-weather cruise. (I've seen that expressed before in other threads, but not this one so far.)

Polo shirts are common in the dining room.

Yes, on casual night polos are more or less the standard for men. Either that or Hawaiian-style shirts.

Thanks for your help. Other than his dress pants, I think the only long pants my son has are jeans! Do you think those would be alright? Hmmmm. We may be dining in the Windjammer all week :(

Jacket is definitely not required, and jeans are okay. Personally, I find lightweight khaki/tan pants more comfortable for a Caribbean cruise, but if that's not in his wardrobe, and you don't want to buy a couple pair for the cruise, then there is not a problem with the jeans.

I was trying to direct the conversation back to the seating arrangement earlier, thinking that would be most helpful to the OP. Now, it's obvious that she didn't want help, but merely wanted to vent about the cost to upgrade.

Oh well....

I don't think he asked for anything. If it were business, RCI should have known it's good business to take care of their guests and when something like this happens, it's a good opportunity to "wow" them with a couple of very basic comps. Dinner at Chops, a few drinks, whatever.

 

In my business, when customers call us with an emergency, other companies say no, too bad, should have planned ahead - we aren't working late, blah blah... We jump on those because it's a great opportunity to win that customer for life.

 

I would think RCI should have had a concierge or guest services person assisting this couple and making sure they were set and ready, just that extra little touch.

 

It's business.

I agree that it's nice when a little something is offered, but saying that you are "shocked" and "almost livid" that you didn't get something does display a bit of, in my opinion, the wrong attitude. One could just be happy that RCI made an effort to help arrange their joining up with the ship mid-cruise, and consider that good service. Or you could be shocked and livid that they didn't do more. It's just a choice of how you want to look at things.

There would be some who would be unhappy with the comped dinners and/or drinks, feeling insulted that they were only offered such a paltry compensation for all the drama they went through.

Yes, that part makes total sense (not sure why the OP is confused about why they need to pay the difference), but I'm still confused about where the OP is getting the $33 difference. Oh well, it doesn't matter since the price difference, regardless of what they assumed, is not $33, lol.

It's really not that complicated. The price difference between and E1 and E2 is $33 at current rates. Current rates just happen to be a lot higher than the OP's original booking, so she can't change categories without bumping up to those higher current rates. But she's not making up the $33 difference. That's what the difference would be right now, for someone looking at booking this sailing.

Still this is all pretty irrelevant. I think the most important thing for the OP is that her main reason for wanting to change cabins (lack of enough seating in the cabin for two people) is not really an issue.