Landsharks

Regarding "why", someone on facebook forwarded this; "someone said on another group that they were on the phone with RC and it is a confirmed change from April 30 thru August. It’s due specifically to changed in the vaccine protocols in Bonaire. So it sounds like RC was forced to make the change."

I was ready to make the best of this, and still intend too, but my concern is with the possibility Aruba and Curacao may block us out as well. If so, we will have a very expensive flight and hotel to pay for and only get a Western Caribbean cruise to show for it. I can drive 2 hours to Galveston and get that. The ABC cruise has been a bucket list cruise we were really excited about. Hoping this doesn't turn out that way...

 I'm guessing the Harbor Pilot was in charge when this happened, not the Captain.

Thanks everyone. I did in fact book two of us into an inside stateroom, and the other into a balcony. Of course we will all be staying in the balcony and use the inside for storage, if anything at all. Pretty much a waste of space and money, but I got the cruise booked that I wanted.

Thanks for the replies. The phone rep found a stateroom with a fold down Pullman and tried to book us, but the booking was denied, so I think the lifeboat capacity response is probably correct, and it's my guess this is impacted due to the top deck stateroom additions. Tried to book the July 29th cruise, and I have a limited range of leave. I  just should have booked earlier.

I know I'm waiting until last minute to book, but this is really frustrating. We are trying to take our 2 year old granddaughter on her first cruise this summer. I've tried several booking dates on the Navigator, but I keep getting the same message "NO STATEROOMS AVAILABLE FOR 3 GUEST(S), yet there are plenty of staterooms available with 3 and 4 guests per room. After spending an hour on the phone I was told "it can't be booked due to capacity restrictions and we could be heavily fined for over booking." I was thinking about how Royal modified the top deck of it's Voyager Class and other ships with additional rooms and I'm wondering if that's causing passenger capacity issues.

Sadly, we share some of the same disappointments. We made our 11th straight "Loyal to Royal" cruise last November on the Allure. Now, we're not feeling so loyal anymore. The up-sale is out of hand. We are balcony cruisers, I buy the drink package, photos, and excursions, but that apparently isn't enough for RCI.

First day, very first meal at the Windjammer, we were approached by a crew member as soon as we sat down. Instead of asking if we needed something to drink, we got hit up to buy a dining package. It seems the new Royal has a bigger mandate to up-sell and take even more money from your wallet than they are to provide great customer service for what you've already purchased.

A few years back we decided to try booking our own excursion and I found Bodden tours on the web. Our driver and guide did a fantastic job of showing us the Island. If you look at their reviews you will see almost all to be outstanding.

FYI- there are NO cabins on deck 12 on the Liberty Of The Seas..deck 12 is above the pool deck ( 11)..in fact, E2's are only on decks 6,7 & 8..I think you have misread the cabin number, certainly the deck..Liberty cabins are ONLY on decks 6-10....

 

Big Al

I found out she is going into dry dock to have the deck 12 staterooms added.

Stateroom: Deck 12, Deluxe Ocean View Stateroom #1840

I just booked an E2 (Deluxe Stateroom with Balcony) on Liberty of the Seas deck 12. So far I've found no reviews of any deck 12 stateroom. Even the photos I've seen don't show balconies on deck 12. It made me wonder if these staterooms were recently added??? I chose 1840 because it's the last starboard stateroom closest to mid-ship. Hope I chose well.

RCCI does return confiscated liquor to you, at $7.60 a glass.

We used Galveston Park N Cruise during our first ever cruise in January of 2010. They were cheaper than the alternative, but the Galveston.com website did not offer them for the week we needed. I Googled and went directly to their website to book the space. I had a new car and I was concerned with leaving it out in the elements for a week, in an area I did not know what the crime rate was like. They are located in what appears to be a group of converted warehouses directly across from the cruise terminal. The place looks like an old shipping warehouse separated into small compartments that hold about eight or ten cars each. Once the compartment is full, they close and padlock the door to the compartment. We met the couple that ran the operation and found they were locals with a family run operation. We travel heavy, so I decided to drop off our baggage at the terminal in advance which turned out to be the smart thing to do. They did offer us a ride to the corner on a golf cart and we crossed the street with our carry on bags. Be prepared for a short walk to the terminal. When we returned, our car was safe, clean, and cool from being kept inside. Great for your peace of mind while on your cruise. We will be using them again on our next cruise in February.