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Miamia65

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    RCCL Next Cruise Cert help.

    in Australia & New Zealand Cruisers

    Posted

    Thanks for starting this thread and posting to advise that it worked out.

     

    So from what I have read, if I use my FCC in this current sale I can combine the sale with the Crown and Anchor society balcony or suite discount and the $100 per person booking amount.

     

    AND because I am booking a suite I should choose the $300 OBC offered under the sale rather than the OBC attributed to the FCC (because it is less).

     

    Can you guys confirm this for me? and advise if there is any other benefit I am entitled to within the current T&Cs?

     

    The savings on the current sale which finishes 28 Feb are awesome, we are saving over $3000 for a GS on a 12 night South Pacific/Fiji cruise in November. At the start of the week there were 8 out of 12 GS cabins available, today there is 2 ..... the deal is so good.

    Rhapsody - Deck 8 cabins noisy?

    in Australia & New Zealand Cruisers

    Posted

    we were in cabin 8520 on rhapsody in oct 2012, there was noise on the night of the pool party (to be expected) but only up until the party ended around midnight. Some mornings I heard the chairs scraping across the floor but it didn't wake me up, I was already awake, so if you are a light sleeper or don't wake up early it might bother you but it wasn't really loud. Don't let it make you choose a balcony on another deck, keep the junior suite, you will love it.

    Taking your own snorkel gear to the Caribbean?

    in Australia & New Zealand Cruisers

    Posted

    If you can fit it in your luggage, take your own, we used equipment supplied by tour operators and they are not in very good condition. I also watched them, after we had finished with them, they were washed in the ocean and thrown back in the hull of the catamaran where they came from. Albeit we didn't get sick but just sayin.

     

    Loved the caribbean especially the Bahamas, St Thomas and St Maarten. Don't care much for Jamaica and Mexico (Cozumel) and if you are cruising on Oasis or Allure, Labadee (Royal Caribbean's private beach) isn't anywhere near as nice as our beaches. I'm not complaining - just saying. Loved Oasis of the Seas the ship.....

    Royal Caribbean - Oasis of the Seas

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    There is so much to do and many places to eat on Oasis.

    Specifically for snacks, there is a donut shop (no charge), ice ceam parlour (charges apply), Johhny Rockets (free for break and $5 cover charge for lunch and dinner - same as the land version) plus you pay for drinks - awesome peanut butter milk shake ... actually thick shakes.

    Solernos - pizza (no charge)

    Cup Cake Cupboard (charges apply per cupcake)

     

    Park Cafe - the awesome roast beef rolls, salads, sandwiches, cookies, wraps, packets of crisps, muffins, fruit, tea coffee, etc

    Promenade cafe - cakes, slices, biscuits, tea coffee etc

    Wipeout Cafe - make your own burgers, nachos, fries, frozen yoghurt machine, hot dogs plus open for breakfast

     

    There is no shortage of food on this ship...

     

    There aren't any vulgur shows .... they are all good. There is an event in studio b one night called "The Quest" ... it's over 18s but funny ... its an adult scavenger hunt... if you aren't a prude you will think its fun... it has audience participation which you don't have to do. If you've been on an RCI ship you would know about it.

     

    There are so many positive things about Oasis .... i love this ship .... except for boarding day and the first night in the dining room you really don't notice the number of passengers, ie. over 6000. The embarkation is very streamlined and takes less than 1 hour, but there are a lot of people mulling around on this day that you notice the number of people. Sometimes there is a queue in the morning at the dining room, mainly because some people aren't prepared to share a table with strangers.

     

    Book your shows early, keep an eye on your my cruises account for booking shows as you don't want to miss any of them.

     

    Starbucks has snacks too, but there is a charge.

     

    Enjoy your cruise.

    Rhapsody, Voyager or Radiance of the seas

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    You don't hear someone badmouth the Radiance, or the radiance class very often.

    Based on the posters signature he/she must live in the USA ..... and doesn't realise that down here in Australia we only have a choice of 3 RCI ships .... which are varying in class and of course size. No offence to the poster, I wish I lived in Florida and could go on all the different ships that leave from Florida ...

     

    I went on Oasis of the Seas in December and it is an absolutely AWESOME ship, so if you love cruising you have to go on this ship. But I have also been on Rhapsody ... post refurbishment and it's a really nice royal caribbean ship. So as other posters have said it depends on who you want to do, if the OP wants lots to do, I agree go on Voyager, but if they are looking for a laid back / keep to yourself type of experience then Rhapsody will provide that experience.

    Debarkation - FLL Airport

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    The luggage valet is a very good service and worth the $20, however either way whether you use it or pick up the luggage in the terminal it will take no less than 45 minutes to get through the line, so allow plenty of time. There are 2 lines, one just inside the terminal to get from upstairs to downstairs, then this breaks into a line to the customs line and a line to collect your luggage. RCI tries to manage the people in the queue by getting passengers to leave the ship at specific times but some people elect to self disembark whenever they want and this is whey the first line inside the terminal can be long as RCI can't control the people who self disembark, even though they are encouraged to disembark before 7.30 am.

     

    It is a well organised process but there are 6000 passengers getting off the ship between 6.00 am or a bit later and 10.30 am. Hope this is useful information.

     

    We did use the valet service but had to battle through both lines. I have given feedback to RCI suggesting that they create a luggage valet / consecutive cruiser "in transit" line for people without luggage.

    Back to Back - Ft.Lauderdale

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    xjc

    I just did a b2b on oasis in december, you don't need to wait for the group. You will be invited to a meeting on the thursday of the 1st cruise and given information.

     

    You will be advised that you can pick up your new set sail pass/s at Guest Relations on the friday night, take both passes with you. You will also be given an "in transit" card which you must also take with you to go off and on the ship. Unfortunately you will have to go through customs and border protection but you just show your in transit card and you will pass through there pretty easily.

     

    One piece of advice, if you go off the ship yourself, anytime after 6.30 am just don't stop in the line, keep walking a show your 'in transit' card otherwise you will get stuck behind the passengers departing the ship and it will take about 45 minutes. Just go down the gangway into the terminal and head for the escalators, then stay in the middle line avoiding the passengers collecting their luggage and head for the customs line.

     

    When coming back on the ship, you have to go through security check and then just head straight to the middle of the check in counters, past the photo opportunity (which you did when boarding) and go straight up the escalators to get back on the ship. Even though you will have your new sea pass which you will use to get back on, they will stop you and take your photo again, it just takes a couple of seconds. Also don't be alarmed when you get off and on, they usual one ding that you hear in the first week when you are getting on and off the ship will turn into a longer chime which just signals to staff that you are a VIP / consecutive cruiser!!!!

     

    We also went sight seeing around fort lauderdale, but to be honest there's not much to see once you've seen the beach ..... I don't think I would do this again as it was just an added cost that really wasn't worth it especially if you arrive the day before or stay the day after your cruise. In hindsight I would probably just go on and off the ship with the staff and enjoy the ship with less people on board.

     

    Enjoy your back to back .... we loved the eastern itinerary, both were good but just preferred the ports on the eastern side. Make sure you go to Maha (Airport) beach and stay for a while to watch the crazy people hold onto the fence when the plans take off!!!

    Royal Caribbean onboard accounts…

    in Australia & New Zealand Cruisers

    Posted

    Fishtaco's advice is right .... if your friends used a credit card and they let Royal caribbean convert their onboard account from US to AUD then the exchange rate is in Royal Caribbean's favour. There are 3 options on your set sail pass paperwork....

     

    1. let RCI convert your final account from US to AUD - very bad exchange rate

     

    2. let RCI charge your credit card in USD - best exchange rate and usually equivalent to the going rate, not the published rate you see on TV but around 3% lower. The bank or credit card company then converts this at a better rate.

     

    3. cash account ONLY and pay in cash, if you choose this option you can expend up to $350 before RCI puts a hold on your onboard account and you will then have to go and give them CASH or a credit card to continue charging back to your room via your seapass card (like you do in a hotel).

     

    In terms of credit cards that have no transaction fees or currency conversion fees .... have a look at the 28 degrees master card ... just google search it. It has no annual fee as well and you can apply for it on line. It is also very good for online shopping outside of Australia. Because what also happens is your bank or credit card company will charge you a fee to convert the currency and sometimes an international transaction fee (amazing yes as the computer does this for them)... which could cost anywhere from an additional 3-6% depending on the card.

     

    Lots of people don't do their research and end up with charges that they didn't expect and then blame the company who applied the charges ..... there is alway fine print in online shopping and travelling when using credit or even debit cards and cash passport/cash cards....

    Current Captains Con't

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    Did Rhapsody have a rotation 11-4?

    Adventure OTS - Capt Ron Holmes (started rotation 10-7-12)

    Adventure OTS - Capt Ole-Johan Gronhaug

    Allure OTS - Capt Tommy Nyseter (started rotation 10-28-12)

    Allure OTS - Capt Johnny Faevelen

    Brilliance OTS - Capt Henrik Sorensen (started rotation 8-21-12)

    Brilliance OTS - Capt Manolis Kasselas

    Enchantment OTS - Capt Anders Ingebrigtsen (started rotation 9-14-12)

    Enchantment OTS - Capt Gus Andersson

    Explorer OTS - Capt Olav Nyseter (started rotation 8-25-12)

    Explorer OTS - Capt Henrik W Loy

    Freedom OTS -Capt Tore Grimstad (started rotation 10-21-12)

    Freedom OTS - Capt Tor Olsen

    Grandeur OTS - Capt Trond Holm (started rotation 9-14-12)

    Grandeur OTS - Capt Espen Been

    Independence OTS - Capt Arnolf Remo (started rotation 10-20-12)

    Independence OTS - Capt Teo Strazicic

    Jewel OTS - Capt James MacDonald (started rotation 9-16-12)

    Jewel OTS - Capt Thore Thorolvsen

    Legend OTS - Capt Vinko Mozara (started rotation 8-5-12?)

    Legend OTS - Capt Aril Hansen

    Liberty OTS - Capt Leif Bang (started rotation 10-5-12)

    Liberty OTS - Capt Kjetil Gjerstad

    Majesty OTS - Capt Per Kjonso (started rotation 9-10-12)

    Majesty OTS - Capt Frank Martinsen

    Mariner OTS - Capt Flemming Nielsen (started rotation 11-3-12?)

    Mariner OTS - Capt Per Kristoffersen

    Monarch OTS - Capt Kjell Nordmo (started rotation 11-9-12)

    Monarch OTS - Capt Rune Johnsen

    Navigator OTS - Capt Claus Andersen (started rotation 10-20-12)

    Navigator OTS - Capt Erik Standahl

    Oasis OTS - Capt Patrik Dahlgren (started rotation 9-8-12)

    Oasis OTS - Capt Trym Selvag

    Radiance OTS - Capt Bill Wright (started rotation 8-17-12)

    Radiance OTS - Capt Sindre Borsheim

    Rhapsody OTS - Capt Rick Sullivan (started rotation 11-4-12)

    Rhapsody OTS - Capt Rob Hempstead

    Serenade OTS - Capt Karin Stahre-Janson (started rotation 9-14-12)

    Serenade OTS - Capt Michel Claveau

    Splendour OTS - Capt Iv Vidos (started rotation 9-29-12)

    Splendour OTS - Capt Carl Graucob

    Vision OTS - Capt Lis Lauritzen (started rotation 11-2-12)

    Vision OTS - Capt Felix Shrecko Ban

    Voyager OTS - Capt Charles Teige (started rotation 10-19-12)

    Voyager OTS - Capt Sverre Ryan

    Wolfcathorse

    Sorry to give you incorrect info, although Captain Rob said he was flying home he has not yet got off rhapsody, apparently it is soon but I cant find out the date! Sorry

    Current Captains Con't

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    Capt Frank Martinsen is no longer on Liberty, he was only there for 1 week as Capt Bang had a meeting in Miami. This is according to Capt Bang's wife, Darlene.

    Wolfcathorse

     

    Just got off Rhapsody yesterday and Capt Rob Hempstead was also getting off and flying home, he told us at a tour of the Bridge. Not sure who was replacing him.

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