onthewater51

31 minutes ago, MoniMommy said:

I decided to call one more time before initiating the CC dispute. I was told last week that teh funds has been posted on 4/11. Today I was told that the funds were posted on 4/11 and released to the bank on 4/19. So I learned that posting and releasing are not the same. She also told me that the funds would come back as 2 payments and she told me the amount of each payment. So I am hopeful that I really will get my money.  This is not from a canceled cruised. I put down a deposit on a Sep cruise and I have decided to cancel. IFF cruises are happening in September, I am sure there will be plenty of cabins and I can jump on board and pay a few weeks before sailing. At this point I am not willing to have Royal hold my money. When cruises do resume I will book something close to sailing. 

For what it’s worth, they told me mine were posted on April 6 & 11.  Yet still nothin on our credit card.   I think they are just feeding callers whatever BS they can at the time.   
 

We’re waiting until May 1 before we do the same.  At that point it will be 6 weeks, and while that may not be long enough under the circumstances, the fact they said it was refunded , there is clearly a problem 

3 hours ago, adidas5676 said:

Still waiting on an FCC that was supposed to be issued 7-10 days from the date I canceled on March 13.  This was hours before the official cruise suspensions, but the initial round of cancellations did not include my late April cruise.  The 2nd wave of cancellations did include it, however.  I'm approaching the 45 day mark of the "new" promised date, so hopefully will see an email soon.

 We cancelled the day after you, 3/14, and also still nothing 

We also cancelled that same day, $3000 in DisneyWorld tickets for a family reunion.    Three days later it I was already on my credit card.   Kudos to Disney in my book

 While  some say the cruise lines are overwhelmed and understaffed, and I’m sure they are, I know if I called right now to book a cruise someone would pick and up that charge would appear on my card within the hour 

We are in a similar place as others here.  We called on 3/14 and cancelled our 4/19 trip.  
 

We called RCCL this morning and told our taxes and fees were refunded on 4/6 & 4/11.   Nothing has shown up on our credit card so we called the card company.

 They are only taking urgent calls due to Covid, so we  had to ask our question via a secure email.  The response will be at least one week

As for the FCC, RCCL said we will receive an email for that by 4/30

One other thing if anyone can clarify this,...

when we cancelled we were told we had until  the end of 2021 to book and must sail by  December 2022.  This rep said that was incorrect and we had to sail by April 2022, which   would be years from the original sail date 

Thanks

Bob

Thanks to the previous two posters.  No FCC yet and nothing back for taxes & fees.   I’ll certainly  let you know when something happens, if you’d do the same

On 4/3/2020 at 10:31 PM, CarolRoy said:

We also canceled on 3/15 for a cruise departing on 3/27/20 - Grandeur of the Seas.  And we also got the email that our dinner plans for the MTD was canceled.  What gives?

 Still nothing and if we don't hear back by Friday we'll call them  Im sure they are swamped  but Friday makes 4 weeks.  Just want to be sure it doesn't fall thru the paperwork.  Have you received yours?

We cancelled on 3/15 which has been 15 business days. So far nothing except for an email that our dinner plans for MTD have been cancelled. Big deal.  
 

when we cancelled the RCI told us it could take up to two billing cycles of our credit card.  I’m trying to be patient

Hey at least no one is moaning and groaning that they no longer get a chocolate in their pillow each night 😀

Well, sometimes we do and sometimes we don't buy it.   But your story tells me it will be bought everytime in the future.   

Thanks for sharing

Thanks everyone, after calling we just decided to upgrade to  balcony on deck 7.  I appreciate everyones input

Thanks for the suggestions on 6001 & 6002.  Coincidentally  that is  the type of room  we booked with RCCL, a forward facing on deck 7 on Radiance 

My wife’s gonna call Holland shortly, I’m want see a few more responses here first 

Hi All,

My wife and I are looking at taking the Noordam, May 2020 to Alaska.  We have a courtesy hold good thru 11/14 on cabin E1120, which we now know is under the galley and not recommended by posters here.    We already have an Alaska trip booked with RCCL for that month which we can still cancel.   

We want an unobstructed ocean view room and it looks like those are only on the Main Deck, 1.  We don’t see any on that deck that look ideal given the promenade is above you.   That leaves moving up to a Veranda room, which we could do, but we were trying to avoid that.  

So the question is....Are there any good ocean view rooms on the Main Deck, or is that a deck we should avoid?

FYI... we aren’t novice cruisers.   Both in our early  60s, very fit and active.  Been cruising  with RCCL & Princess for 30 years.  Thought it might be time for something different 
 

Thanks in advance 

Bob

Just got off Sernade    Hours were 6am to 10pm , which was consistent with the hours I have encountered on other RCL ships 

I tried getting in earlier.  No luck 

We were in Nassau in February and honestly we had low expectations.  My wife and I were there in the mid 90's and really disliked it at that time. It was dirty and seemed little to do.

However, we loved it this time. It was clean, people were friendly and not at all pushy.  We just did a short walk from the pier and wandered around town all afternoon.  Nassau gets a bad rep and I'm sure its like any place else in this world, it depends on where you venture.  As for the area and town close to the pier, absolutely wonderful

Have a safe, fun trip.

Bob

My apologies, i meant my post- cruise survey that RCL sentbus vua email

To  clarify a little. Grand Bahama Island was devasted by hurricanes.  There’s nothing really there.   We took a cab to the “shops”.  it was just sad.   Just a few shops selling trinkets and junk

They need the revenue tourism will bring, but there isn’t anything to even spend money on if you wanted to do so.   It’s going to take a long time 

We just returned from Grand Bahamas, like you Coco Cay was cancelled.  I hate to say this but it   was the first time  in 25 years of cruising we slammed a port in the post-cruise review.  Utter waste, they have no business going there.   My wife and I aren’t complainers either, we are very flexible 

49 minutes ago, superduper123 said:

Yes, I understand. I was just making the comment that I am not one to usually worry about travel time, but I would not feel comfortable making this flight after the cruise, driving from Baltimore.  

My mistake, sorry about that

14 hours ago, superduper123 said:

I am from the Baltimore/ DC area and I personally would not do this. And I am usually one to take chances, as I rarely have flown in the day before a cruise. DC area traffic can be a nightmare.

The OP is talking about post-cruise flight.

Yes I think you could do that, and in my opinion, its a smart decision.  You wont get a lot of in-depth sightseeing in but you'll definitely have enough time to drive around the DC area and see a few things.  If you plan carefully you may be able to see a few memorials around the Mall area  .  Even if you just park near the Mall and have lunch it will be beautiful in June.  Decent temps and our oppressive humidty hasn't typically arrived yet.

FYI...Most of the public school systems here let out around the 2nd week of June, so it can get crowded on a weekends.  Id also suggest checking the Wash DC event calender.  Events come up that cause road closures which will impact your travel time.  Have a wonderful trip.

Bob

WINO & LINDZ

I defer to your direction, from our home we travel down 270 to 495.  I see from Google your route from Baltimore is diff, and definitely shorter. 

But for the OP one thing we agree on,  our traffic here stinks big-time...regardless the day of the week.  Not worth the gamble on that flight time.

On the lighter side...wife and I are cruising out of Baltimore next week on Grandeur 🙂

OP...we live between Baltimore and Reagan National Airport.  While you might make it, there is no way we woud try a flight that early.  Traffic around here can be brutal, I mean really brutal   A 10 mile drive can take an hour with the slightest traffic problem.

You will be crossing the American Legion bridge on I495 from Maryland into Virginia.  Even on a Saturday it can back up at the bridge because the road narrows by a lane or two. My wife and I travel this route frequently on Saturday mornings heading to Tysons, VA.    Personally I would look for a flight closer to 12-12:30.

If you can book a flight out of BWI then yes, you could do a 11am flight.  Its much closer to the port, and a very nice airport,  but flights there tend to be more expensive the Reagan.

With a later flight, and if you do find yourselves arriving early, there is no need to just sit at the airport for hours.  To reach the airport you'll travel the George Washington Pkwy.  There are many places to park along the way along the Potmac River and see gorgous views of the nations capital, and several memorials.  In June it will be beautiful   The closer you get to the airport you can park and wacth the planes land right over your head , because they approach over the river. Its a lot of fun.

Have a safe and fun trip

Bob

I’ve belonged to this board about 10 years. What I’ve noticed that has reduced the amount of time I spend here isn’t the app, but the  the overwhelming amount of negative and whiny-complaining posts.  

Maybe it’s the name of the board “CruiseCRITIC” that invites negativity. It’s just not as cheery or fun as I recall it being 

Plus like any other board, after a while the questions and reviews become  repetitive 

just my my two cents...

3 hours ago, Bookish Angel said:

We felt similarly when on the Granduer in January. Service was friendly but slow as it looked as though the waitpersons were each handling too many tables.

 

After a couple of dinners in the MDR, we opted for the Windjammer for the rest of the cruise. With its better selection, quiet ambience and casual dining, we were happy not to go to the MDR.

 

Completely agree...

We also were on Grandeur in January and did exactly what you did. After the first two nights we ended up going to th WJ for the duration of the cruise.  We enjoyed it a great deal, quiet, relaxing and very friendly staff.  

It seemed to us the  MDR staff had too many tables to do their job well. It was hectic.  We were ok with food quality but service was bad.  No beverages , slow service, getting order wrong, not offering coffee at desert or forgetting to bring it, etc.  it felt rushed and sloppy and wasn’t worth the bother of getting dressed up 

My wife & I first sailed on Grandeur in January 1997. She was commissioned in ‘96 I believe, so she was brand new. I think she may have been the largest ship at the time as well. I remember approaching her in the cab at Port Canaveral and just being awestruck.

The following year we returned with our 3 kids who were in their early teens then. It was an amazing time and we have memories that we all still talk about

I still remember waking early, and going to the Windjammer with one of our daughters for breakfast as we watched sunrise together.

Since then my wife and I have been back on Grandeur just once, it was last year. The crew at that time was the best we had ever experienced.

But we are booked again on her for next January.. She’s a very special ship for us indeed

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Sorry I haven't been back to this thread.

 

 

 

Yes, we did reserve all of the shows ahead of time. While it is not in stone, around 90 days out is when you can usually make the reservations. We only booked this cruise two months out so could book right away. Only takes a few minutes and makes it so nice once you are on board.

 

 

 

We also pre-booked the 5 night dining package (you pick whether you want your first specialty dinner on night one or two and at what time, once on the ship you can go to any specialty restaurant and make you reservations for the other nights. Even though they pick your first night restaurant you can change it.)

 

 

 

And lastly, we pre-booked the "refreshment" package when it went on sale for $18.00 a day. Its a good deal, includes specialty coffees, sodas, "mocktails", fresh juice, pretty much all beverages that do not have alcohol. Its normally $26 a day.

Thank you very much

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Good review Ryan. Question for you ref pre-cruise reservations. Did you make any for theatre or Aqua Show? Or anything for that matter. Our son & fiancé will be on Oasis in October. They haven’t been able to reserve anything yet via the RCL cruise planner as nothing is yet listed. They are getting nervous about it, hoping you might be able to help. Thx you

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