negc

I just contacted RCCL and they told me we would have all the benefits including CL access. I'll let you know how it goes once we board...

Ill-informed RCI customer service reps strike again. :rolleyes: Just don't be disappointed when you are not provided with access to the CL due to your (not your cabinmate's C&A status.

I guess the real question is why, aside from receiving truly horrible service, you would want to remove the daily tips? And in the extremely rare event of horrible service, there are several other methods to deal more effectively with that problem before there is any need to resort to removing them. The staff on RCI ships, and other lines as well, work extremely hard to make your cruise experience a wonderful one and more than earn the relatively modest amount you are asked to tip them.

That it's a show that's won multiple awards (7 Tonys, 3 Drama Desks, a Grammy, and an Olivier) that's had long runs on both Broadway (3rd-longest @ 7,493 shows over an 18-year run) and on the West End (6th-longest @ 8,949 shows over a 21-year run) and appeals internationally (translated into 20 languages). Really, only two shows on Broadway have beaten its run - Phantom and Chicago.

I understand all that you say, however, its reception on Oasis has been less than enthusiastic and the production, while technically very good, didn't seem to appeal to a large segment of the audience (especially those who brought very young children to the afternoon performance). I also think that many of the adults were there solely because they had heard of the show but didn't really appreciate what they were going to experience. Of the three shows you cite only Chicago was something that I enjoyed on stage in London, on the screen and onboard Allure. Apparently not everything that has worldwide acclaim translates into success onboard a cruise ship. I'm afraid that only the expense that they incurred in mounting this show and whatever royalty agreement they have with ALW will keep them from removing CATS before its due date.

Les Miserables? Phantom?

 

People have been complaining about the 2hr30min running time of Cats on RCL - how could they sit through the same amount of time (or longer for Les Mis or Phantom - or even Wicked) though I LOVE all of the shows.

 

A review like Jersey Boys, Million Dollar Quartet, Motown the Musical, maybe Smokey Joe's Cafe. These are all reviews or "jukebox" musicals where all the songs were existing and usually very popular and the storyline (if any) is woven around the music. Usually a LOT of fun - and entertaining to the "non-theatre" going audience. They can also be more "family friendly."

 

And - though I LOVE The Book of Mormon - that is possibly the LEAST family oriented show ever. :-) Someone complained about the adult themes in Chicago - can you imagine what people would say about the themes in BOM? (I'd certainly go see it every showing - but still wouldn't happen.)

 

Love that everyone is discussing this as a former Equity actor. :-)

Please nothing else by Andrew Lloyd Weber. Considering how many negative comments CATS has received I would suggest that they consider none of his other shows. I was just on Oasis and sat through the entire performance (a lot of folks didn't) but for the life of me I don't understand what they were thinking when they decided to feature this show.:confused:

Luggage arrived in Cleveland.

We will get it tonight by 1am.

Or tomorrow by 8 am

Luggage valet is the best.

The airlines lost the bag in Chicago not the luggage valet

 

It was so nice to meet you BILL

Enjoy all your future travels.

 

Sue

Likewise, Sue. Hope that the next time our paths cross we will be able to find more time to talk.:)

A good travel agent would be able to answer most of your questions or would at least know who to contact for that information and make your ordeal much less frustrating. If you are still within the time frame that would allow you to transfer your booking to a TA, you might want to consider finding a good local agent who could reduce the stress you are experiencing. Dealing with faceless CSRs from any line can be frustrating and not all of them are really well enough versed in the product to answer your questions accurately. Good luck. If all else fails, ask your questions on here and someone can likely answer them for you.

Far far too big and how would Costa be able to fill them ?

By using a very large shoe horn. So much smaller than Oasis or Allure but 600 more passengers. Gonna be very congested.

600 more passengers than Oasis and Allure on a ship considerably smaller? Are you kidding me? Gonna be a very "friendly" group of passengers.

If Grandeur is really a failure, why do they keep sending her back there? I seem to recall we've all gone through this discussion before...

I think that some people, when they don't like a particular deployment, prefer to categorize it as a failure despite how many others continue to sail on that ship. RCI is not slow to remove a ship from a particular itinerary if it is not generating sufficient revenue or if they believe that placing it on a different itinerary would be more profitable (see Mariner- West Coast), so if they continue to sail from Baltimore they must not view it as a failure.

We were just on Oasis and Luggage Valet made debarkation in Ft. Lauderdale so much less of a hassle. Didn't see our bags again from the time we put them outside our room on Friday night until we arrived at our destination airport. Having complimentary luggage Valet was among the wonderful perks we have received since we made Pinnacle.

We tried MTD for the first time during our last cruise and loved it.

 

It was actually a variation. I tipped the host up front and we were seated at the same table for two at the same time, every evening.

It is also possible to get the same table or the same servers by simply requesting it and no up front tip is necessary. We also prefer MTD because of the flexibility it offers and while we were not originally predisposed to like it because of problems we had with similar programs on Princes and NCL, we quickly decided that RCI makes it work quite well.

Bill, the OP is flying into Fort Lauderdale but sailing out of Miami on Majesty which is a slightly longer drive than 10 minutes.:D I thought the driving time was about 30-45 minutes from FLL to the Port of Miami.

Thanks Patti. Didn't read the original post carefully enough. Your estimate of the driving time required to go from FLL to the Port of Miami agrees with mine and makes arrival on time more problematic. I agree with most of those who recommended flying in the day before.

You will be waiting for hours and hours...i'm not kidding.

Care to elaborate as to why or where such a wait would be encountered? Thousands of passengers disembark from Oasis, Allure and any number of ships of other lines and have not reported such problems. Of course expecting you to respond is as fruitless as putting any trust in most of your comments on these boards.

To the OP, unless you encounter exceptionally rare circumstances you should be able to go through the normal debarkation process and be at FLL with time to spare for a noon flight. We have a 12;37 flight from there in less than two weeks and anticipate no need to take extraordinary measures to make it to the airport in plenty of time.

That might be a big "IF" but since the cruise terminal in Ft. Lauderdale is only a short distance from the airport an on-time arrival should not create a problem for you. However, my son and his family flew from Providence to West Palm Beach on Sunday and their departure was delayed by almost three hours. If a similar situation arose for you, I'm afraid you might be at the pier just in time to see the ship sail away.

Of course they did.

 

While no-one really wants a dirty and trashy world, it has almost gotten to the point that the "environment" is "more important" than people. That is pretty sad to me that a company would rather support oceans, birds and fish than human beings.

Unless or until another charity that doesn't support human beings in some way, is chosen to replace Make a Wish Foundation, your conclusion seems a bit premature and totally unfair to a company with as good a rating for supporting social causes as RCI. Let's not start pitting the value of one worthwhile charity against another.

Prices were crazy cheap. Couldn't find the time to join in though.

And that is a large, perhaps the largest, problem for so many cruisers who would love such an itinerary but who can't find the time to do such a trip. Even breaking it up into smaller(shorter) segments apparently won't fill the ship at prices that make such a trip worthwhile. Until RCI decides that redeploying some of the ships in its fleet to the West Coast can be more profitable than their current deployments, more exotic itineraries such as this one are very unlikely. RCI currently offers a wide variety of itineraries if one takes the time to discover them.

Around the horn, Florida to California.

But when Mariner did that very itinerary they couldn't fill the ship on any of the legs without significant upgrades and discounted prices. Perhaps the amount of time required limits the possible audience but I don't think that the financials work for RCI.

And sometimes the itinerary such as in Alaska (and whether you are on a northbound or southbound route) can make a difference.

Glad to see that we are not alone in our appreciation and enjoyment of sea days. We did a cruise from Hawaii to Vancouver that involved several days at sea (Pacific) and were never at a loss for things to do. On Vision class ships such as Jewel and Brilliance we have frequently done both westbound and east bound TAs and again found plenty of things to occupy our time. While we enjoy visiting various ports of call, on some itineraries the ports are almost indistinguishable from one another and the opportunity to relax onboard during sea days is a great bonus.:)

Dynamic dining has been postponed.

I think that you will find that the correct word is "cancelled".:)

Both CATS and Chicago were hugely successful on land and we thoroughly enjoyed the RCI version on Allure a few years back Will see CATS when we are on Oasis next week and will render our verdict then. However, no matter what shows that may be selected to replace them or to feature on another ship, there will be some who feel the decision was ill-considered while others will applaud the decision. Some may even book or cancel their booking based on the show being staged.:rolleyes:

Ship-friendly shows may be in the eyes of the beholder and what you or I might consider "ship-friendly" or "fun", someone else might consider to be sophomoric. Tastes among the wide range of passengers who sail with Royal Caribbean so it is unlikely that there will ever be universal approval of whatever decision is made.

Arrangements to stage Broadway type productions can be quite involved and while I am sure that RCI may appreciate suggestions, there may be more to it than just picking a show that we think would be popular.

It felt so much smaller than freedom or voyager class balcony cabins for some reason.

 

I really, really disliked the location of the closet and our bed was next to it which made it difficult to access the closet. And the closet sliding doors meant you could only access one side of the closet at a time.

 

From pictures of Quantum cabins it looks like there's a wardrobe on each side of the bed...this would be better, I think.

That was on reaction to our staterooms on Allure and Oasis. Arrangements on Quantum were better although the frosted window in the bathroom caused a problem if you were in bed beside it when the bathroom light was turned on. We are due to sail on Oasis again at the end of the week, so cabin arrangements isn't uppermost in our criteria when choosing a ship.

We will be close by in B1.:)

Correction: We are in S1 not B1

Too bad they cant even fry an egg correctly :rolleyes:

I especially dislike the ice cream scoop of cold scrambled eggs (portion control at its worst) that they serve in the main dining room and forget about finding the assistant waiter for a second serving of toast, pastries etc.