MKESail

log in at the main web page and then about half way down, you should see a section called Purchased and Held cruises. Click on your reservation number and it will take you to a screen that show your Vacation Summary and your package total and balance should be listed

Oh, I do see it that way, and it's correct, but I thought the moment you log in (as in type in your user id and the password) you are basically redirected to My Cruises pages, even if you didn't specifically click on My Cruises link. I thought there was a way to see your balance by going to Before you Board - Countdown to Cruise - by entering your Last Name, Reservation, Date, Ship, etc... because you are kinda not logged in.

Thank you for your help :)

I guess checking is a good idea but I would, for the time being, refer to POST #30 for how to check and not risk botching up your price.

 

UPDATE: went in via the preferred method in Post #30...So far...so good...Went to book an excursion...(well at least to see what was available...)did not select any package or excursion. Went out of that screen and guess what...My ZERO balance from the previous 2 days in now back at ME owing $388 dollars. So now I have to call them again and get it adjusted. Where I work, you would be fired for this gross negligence. Seems like a law suit is just begging to be filed...What really hacks me off is that I would not be any the wiser to the balance until we check in and then it is a real PITA...

Would you mind sharing how do you see your balance when going through Before you Board - Countdown to cruise? I went several times and I cannot figure out where the balance shows in there. I know I can get it if I went through My Cruises but I don't want to do that :(

RCI should call Amazon and ask if they could borrow a couple of IT guys to come over and fix their mess.

AMEN!!! :rolleyes:

I think I posed this before, on our last New Years cruise on board Indy, I was told several times by Guest Services that they do not offer Luggage Valet. That's when we were on the ship. I did call ahead before the cruise many times and every time I asked the different rep if it was offered and was told that it was. I was counting on that cuz our flight didn't leave til 6 pm and then we basically got stuck with the suitcase. I tried going to Guest Services several times and always got the same answer. :mad: Not sure why, may be they just didn't want to have to do it during the holiday cruise as it was so busy. And I have read many reviews before our cruise and after it, where people said they were able to use the valet service on Indy. :confused: Just check and double check and triple check, is all I'm saying.

I have to agree with the previous posters, the two ships are identical. Freedom has the Dreamworks Experience and the 3D Movies, which Indy does not. I, personally, like Freedom better, it's got that kinda cozy feel to it, I liked the crew better and I do like Port Canaveral so much better then Fort Lauderdale even considering the ride from Orlando. We sailed on Freedom during Spring Break and Indy over the New Years, so both are kinda busy seasons, but I am not sure if this is an apples to apples comparison, and Fort Lauderdale was just SOOOOOO busy :-O I would imagine with Disney World and all - Orlando would be as busy during the holidays. Just my 2 cents, I guess. ;)

We took a New Years cruise this last New Year on board Indy and absolutely loved it :) Like people said, balloons in the Promenade with the countdown to the New Year, free champagne, noise makers, hats, etc. The biggest party was the one in the Promenade but there were others all over the ship as well.

You will enjoy it, I am sure :)

Wow, so this is still an issue! :mad: I had the same thing happen, can't remember exactly what the problem with my reservation was during our New Years cruise but I had to call several times to make sure it was resolved and was told not to use My Cruises. And this is almost a year ago! :-O

Now, for my upcoming cruise, I guess I should be going through Before you Board - Countdown to cruise, and from there how do I see the balance? I am fully paid and so I just want to make sure I still have 0 balance in there. Anyone can help me, please?

Following. We're on that same cruise, with all the same questions :confused:

Hi, all.

So we're going to be in Cozumel Xmas day, with I think, 6? ships in port that day. :eek: Can anyone who's been to Playa Mia on a relatively crowded day before advice how bad is it going to be? Should we even bother? :confused:

Does anyone know if this sale can be combined with Balcony discounts? I'm guessing no, but I just thought it wouldn't hurt to ask :)

How about Internet places in GC and Falmouth? Usually they are not far from pots.

When we were in Grand Cayman, we went to Royal Palms - you have to pay $2 pp fee to enter, but then there was free Wifi in there. Just an FYI.

Not sure about Falmouth as we only stayed in the port area and never tried to see if there was a free Wifi.

I have to agree with the people who liked Labadee. I'm so glad we went to Columbus Cove beach - it was one of the nicest beaches I've ever cruised too! :) Great for swimming, has lots of shade too. The Aqua Park is right there if you have kids.

In Falmouth we just did some shopping and walking around in the port area, it was very nice.

Hi, MM, thank you for your review :) hope your leg is all better now.

We were there on the first leg of your cruise - the New Years part - tons of fun. And we also went to Royal Palms when in Grand Cayman and I have to agree - it was VERY crowded.

We actually saw people still boarding as we were heading back AFTER the muster drill was over :confused:

This was our first cruise out of Port Everglades and we flew back from FLL on January 4th, which is BEFORE all the bad weather started and yet I have to agree - WHAT! A! MESS! :eek: our flight was delayed, causing us to miss our connection, we didn't get onto another flight til the day after.:(

You only receive one envelope because it is the cabin steward who is leaving it for you hoping that you will tip him/her extra. Additional envelopes for other staff are available at guest services.

Thank you, I did not know that. The line at guest services gets ridiculous towards the end of the cruise, I try to avoid it at any cost. But they used to provide all those envelopes in the room before :confused:

I just filled ours yesterday for the New Years cruise.

What I did find weird is in the past they would provide envelopes in case you want to add on to the prepaid gratuities and you had enough envelopes for all those people - stateroom attendant, MDR waiter, assistant waiter, etc. Now, they give you one envelope that says something like "Wow! factor"- blabla.. and you can put the name of the person you'd want to tip extra, that supposedly provided the "Wow" service. One (1) envelope! What if I want to tip extra several people? What if I had several people providing the "Wow" service during my cruise? Isn't that what RCI is shooting for? Why just one envelope then?

I have seen a few tweens in the audience. I feel there should be an age limit for this show.

Definitely. They should really add the word "Adult", like "Adult Quest" or something. A couple years ago on Freedom there was a "Family Quest" (which was fun still for kids and families, but "clean"), then there was the regular Quest. They should really differentiate and having two of them is a really great idea, I think. :)

There is always hope!!

Exactly! I only found out about our upgrade when I went to do an online check in, a week before the actual cruise. :D I was so absolutely positive we would not get an upgrade this cruise with New Years and it being very very busy, that when I saw that our room numbers changed I totally freaked out and was about to call and yell at them for switching our rooms :D Last several weeks before the cruise, I didn't even log in or checked prices or anything, with the holidays and all. So definitely, keep hope alive! The Upgrade Fairy visits when you least expect it! ;):)

So, other than the luggage valet issue, did you enjoy your cruise? Was this your first experience on a Freedom class ship?

We did enjoy it, but being a Holiday cruise it was very crowded. The New Years eve at the Promenade was awesome, the shows were good, the food was great in the MDR and in Windjammer, though it was crowded, again, Holiday cruise. We also cruised on Freedom of the Seas about two years ago and the two ships are pretty much identical except for the Dreamworks Experience. It was a great cruise all in all. :) You will definitely enjoy it!

One more thing I remembered, in Labadee we went to the Columbus Cove beach (the farthest, I think) but it was so worth it! If you have kids who like to swim - the water is very calm and the Aqua Park is right there ;)

Do you have the order of menus from the main dining room for the 6 night cruise? (Basil, Saffron, Pimento, etc.) I am looking to reserve Chops for one evening on our February cruise, so it would be helpful to know which night in the dining room will be our least favorite! Thanks!

Sorry, I don't have any menus, but like I said, they've shifted and changed a lot of stuff since this was a Holiday Cruise, so I didn't think those would help anyone.

We are going next week and wondering what is the entertainment like? What are the shows?

 

Also is there a way to see menus ahead of time?

 

And anything else I should know or remember to bring...

Once Upon a Time was one of the shows, then the Headliner on New Years Eve was a soul band which was very nice. Quest, as always ;) Love and Marriage, the late night Adult Comedy show - those are the usual. Ice Show (Freeze Frame) is a must, you should go get your tickets on day 2 (Sea Day) in the Promenade, the line is really long but it moves quickly.

Sorry, I didn't bring any menus or compasses, because since this was a Holiday cruise and they shifted the first formal night, I thought may be they shifted their entire schedule around.

Also, this was a 6 day cruise, but Indy rotates 6 and 8 day cruises, and I think some of the ports also differ. So if you are going on an 8 day cruise - it will be different for you.

Thank you so much for your reply! I had a feeling Adventure Ocean is fun for younger kids, not so much for older age groups.

Thank you!

So we just got off the other day. Any questions anyone may have - ask away. :)

One thing I do want to note is that Indy does NOT do luggage valet. I found that out the hard way, as I was told several times by the RCI reps on the phone before sailing that it is offered on Indy and I will have no problem doing that. When I got on board I found out that was not true, they do not do luggage valet.

Instead the option is for you to try a different ship - there are some shows that are on more than one ship, but usually not the case.

Yep, we saw Once Upon a Time on Freedom almost two years ago, and now again on Indy for this New Years cruise. Now, I do enjoy the show a lot, but I would think after 2 years and a different ship we'd get something different. :rolleyes:

We just got off of Indy for our New Years cruise too :-)

It was a little disappointing really, as we went on Freedom almost two years ago and absolutely loved it, so I kept comparing the two cruises but wasn't sure if something went really wrong with RCI in general during those two years, or it was the Holiday cruise crowds or what. After all, the two ships are identical minus the Dreamworks Experience. So now we can really compare apples to apples, thank you :-)

Question #1, was Windjammer really THAT crowded when you were there? I mean, during this whole cruise on Indy, never did we get our drinks order taken while at Windjammer. We had to always get up and go get them ourselves. Did this happen to you on Freedom?

Question #2, since you have a child, would you happen to know if Jibber Jabber and Hyper Piper are still there at Adventure Ocean? Did your kid enjoy Adventure Ocean? My daughter was kinda bored on Indy really, and didn't want to go after going there once. She loved Jibber Jabber and was expecting something similar on Indy. :confused:

I am sure I will have more questions, but this is it for now :-)

Thank you! :)

On our Holiday Cruise on Indy we originally booked two Oceanview rooms, but an Upgrade Fairy visited about 2 weeks before the cruise and we got two connecting Balcony rooms instead! :p :) I did not think this will ever happen to us, especially not on a Holiday Cruise!

So you, guys, don't loose hope! She is working very hard ;)