Just off Liberty OTS. A few comments

[SpongeAlan]

We just got off the LOTS on Saturday and had one of the best cruises we ever experienced. The ship is in great shape, the service is amazing and in the opinion of our group of 11, the food was good to very good.

 

I do have a few constructive criticisms that I want to share. Maybe RCCl is watching.

 

1. There are good programs for the kids under 18, but my 18 year old daughter found there to be very little directly geared toward her age group. She still had a great time, but things for her to do were not as abundant as for the lower age groups.

 

2. Drinking on the ship. Me and my wife normally will have 2 to 4 drinks per day. We would have not benefited from the drink program. I also know that if I did get one of the drink programs, then I would have been drinking a lot more than I should, and that's not a great idea. I would have made sure I got my monies worth. But as far as the drink prices, I think that $14 for a Pina Colada is extremely high, as well as the cost for most of the drinks with the inclusion of the 18% gratuity. I definitely would have purchased more drinks had the prices been only a little over priced.

 

3. I think it would be a great idea for RCCL to have an app that would provide you the ability to communicate with others in your group on the ships. We found that we all still carried our phones with us to take pictures. I think that if they could provide the ability on an app through Wifi and allow people to communicate. I wouldn't mind paying a small fee for this. It would have to be much less than the fee for Wifi though. The app could have adds on it for stuff on the ship. They could really create an additional profit center with this.

 

That's really about it. Every thing else exceeded our expectaions. Can't wait to cruise Royal again.

[Tunkhannock]

Drinking on the ship. Me and my wife normally will have 2 to 4 drinks per day. We would have not benefited from the drink program. I also know that if I did get one of the drink programs, then I would have been drinking a lot more than I should, and that's not a great idea. I would have made sure I got my monies worth. But as far as the drink prices, I think that $14 for a Pina Colada is extremely high, as well as the cost for most of the drinks with the inclusion of the 18% gratuity. I definitely would have purchased more drinks had the prices been only a little over priced.

 

Exactly. The wife and I aren't what one would call "big drinkers". We'll have the occasional drink socially or at a special occasion, but that's it. As such, there's no point for either one of us to get one of the alcoholic beverage packages.

 

But the insane pricing on the alcoholic beverages completely discourages us from having that rare drink. We can easily do without, and probably will. So, lost income on RCL's part.

 

I think it would be a great idea for RCCL to have an app that would provide you the ability to communicate with others in your group on the ships.

 

Agreed, and rather surprised they haven't done so. And "communication with friends/family" doesn't have to be the end-all of it either. Simply set up a shipboard intranet and use the app to provide an interactive, handheld "cruise compass". Make it a game... allow people to "check in" certain locations for bonuses or whatnot (think the Foursquare app).

[DonnaK]

 

1. There are good programs for the kids under 18, but my 18 year old daughter found there to be very little directly geared toward her age group. She still had a great time, but things for her to do were not as abundant as for the lower age groups.

 

This seems to be the situation on all ships/cruiselines. Sometimes there are schedule meetings for 18-20 and activities for 18-25, but our daughters found that they were poorly attended, not very exciting/interesting, and not well-organized.

 

One question: Who was your cruise director? Luke or Dru?

[mirp]

Thanks for the information. I think I will pass on the drink package as I will probably drink way too much.

[George C]

Glad you had a good cruise, we are looking forward to sailing on Liberty in April and will be getting the drink package

[SpongeAlan]

 

One question: Who was your cruise director? Luke or Dru?

 

It was Luke.

 

He seemed to do a great job.

[Big Whiskey]

Hmmm.... I was just on Granduer in March and Pina Colada's were 7 bucks.....

Are drinks more expensive on larger ships or was your PC made with some higher line liquor's ?? Them 151 floater's sneak up on ya !!!

[Clarea]

Hmmm.... I was just on Granduer in March and Pina Colada's were 7 bucks.....

Are drinks more expensive on larger ships or was your PC made with some higher line liquor's ?? Them 151 floater's sneak up on ya !!!

That's about the time the drink prices were raised. We were on Adventure in February, and could get a house margarita on the rocks for $6.50. It was around $10 in late March on Liberty.

[SpongeAlan]

Here are some approx. prices that I saw last week.

 

The Drink of the day was $8.50 or $10.03 with tip.

Craft beers (12oz Bottles) ranged from $6 to $7 or about $8 plus with tip.

House level wine was $8.50 or $10 with tip.

Mixed drinks varied from $10 to $14 with Tip.

 

We brought 2 bottles of wine on which saves a few bucks.

 

I find those amounts to be quite high.

[Big Whiskey]

WOW !!!!!!! That is terrible !!! This post interested me because we're shipping out on Liberty on the 8th of August.

I'm thinking with those prices, the package just may be worth it.

But, on the other hand, did those package prices go sky high also ??

What is their thinking to double drink prices ??

[Clarea]

WOW !!!!!!! That is terrible !!! This post interested me because we're shipping out on Liberty on the 8th of August.

I'm thinking with those prices, the package just may be worth it.

But, on the other hand, did those package prices go sky high also ??

What is their thinking to double drink prices ??

They are trying to push people to the packages.

[SpongeAlan]

I would say that the break even point on the packages is about 4 drinks. If you plan on having more than that each day, then I say go for it. If you like to go out after dinner and have some drinks at the club or the piano bar, then it would be a no brainer. I was with my kids and I didn't want to over-indulge with them around. Perhaps if me and the wife would have gone alone or with some friends, then the packages would have been the choice.

 

I also find that drinking fills you up, and I like the food on the cruise, so I didn't want to replace food with alcohol.

 

The problem is that the line is so transparent in its desire to move everyone towards the packages by charging extremely high prices for individual drinks that they almost make the choice for you if you are a 3 to 4 drink per day person.

[ryano]

Agreed. Drink prices are outrageous now.

[George C]

seems like mixed drinks are way more than my scotch on the rocks and cognacs, 18 year old Johnny walker platinum was only 11 dollars on Naviagtor a couple of months ago.

[karmacats]

Here are some approx. prices that I saw last week.

 

The Drink of the day was $8.50 or $10.03 with tip.

Craft beers (12oz Bottles) ranged from $6 to $7 or about $8 plus with tip.

House level wine was $8.50 or $10 with tip.

Mixed drinks varied from $10 to $14 with Tip.

 

We brought 2 bottles of wine on which saves a few bucks.

 

I find those amounts to be quite high.

 

Did you (or any other recent liberty cruisers) happen to notice if the virgin mocktails (like non-alcoholic pina coladas etc) are still $4 or $5? that's how much they cost on my last royal cruise, but that was in january, and it seems prices overall have gone up by then. we'll also be on liberty on aug 8 and are trying to decide whether to get the replenish package.

[kicker]

We did the June 4 9 day; had a great time, no complaints. To add to your comments (which I totally agree with):

 

We just got off the LOTS on Saturday and had one of the best cruises we ever experienced. The ship is in great shape, the service is amazing and in the opinion of our group of 11, the food was good to very good. Very happy with the food. Oddest thing: we never met our Head Waiter until the last day of the cruise. Less attentive because of more auto tips? Actually, we did Liberty out of Fort Lauderdale this past January, and the Head waiter was at our table every night.

 

I do have a few constructive criticisms that I want to share. Maybe RCCl is watching.

 

1. There are good programs for the kids under 18, but my 18 year old daughter found there to be very little directly geared toward her age group. She still had a great time, but things for her to do were not as abundant as for the lower age groups. Yes, every ship/line seems to ignore this age group. When our kids were in their teens about 7-8 yrs ago things were more relaxed (easier to get into nightclubs and such, but not able to drink); too many lawsuit threats - they have to be extra careful.

 

2. Drinking on the ship. Me and my wife normally will have 2 to 4 drinks per day. We would have not benefited from the drink program. I also know that if I did get one of the drink programs, then I would have been drinking a lot more than I should, and that's not a great idea. I would have made sure I got my monies worth. But as far as the drink prices, I think that $14 for a Pina Colada is extremely high, as well as the cost for most of the drinks with the inclusion of the 18% gratuity. I definitely would have purchased more drinks had the prices been only a little over priced.

Drink of the Day was usually around $7, wine $7 or $8 per glass. We're not drinkers; wouldn't benefit from a package. But also, as far as prices are concerned, think how much you pay for a beer at a game or concert.

3. I think it would be a great idea for RCCL to have an app that would provide you the ability to communicate with others in your group on the ships. We found that we all still carried our phones with us to take pictures. I think that if they could provide the ability on an app through Wifi and allow people to communicate. I wouldn't mind paying a small fee for this. It would have to be much less than the fee for Wifi though. The app could have adds on it for stuff on the ship. They could really create an additional profit center with this. I think the newer. larger ships have Ipads or something to communicate with, but I don't know if they can be personalized to interact in a group. On Disney they give parents phones so you can be reached at any time if your child is in their program. Expensive touch, but nice feature. I doubt we'll see that from Royal, unless they offer it at an additional charge.

 

That's really about it. Every thing else exceeded our expectaions. Can't wait to cruise Royal again.

Me too! Cruising in October!:D

[ryano]

Did you (or any other recent liberty cruisers) happen to notice if the virgin mocktails (like non-alcoholic pina coladas etc) are still $4 or $5? that's how much they cost on my last royal cruise, but that was in january, and it seems prices overall have gone up by then. we'll also be on liberty on aug 8 and are trying to decide whether to get the replenish package.

 

Virgin mocktails were around 5 dollars in April. Freedom of the Seas. I didnt purchase but talked to a lady in the elevator that had a virgin daquiri. She was rather happy that it was only 5 bucks.

[barbon2]

Hi,

 

Just a quick general response to drinks on ships, and a bit off topic.

The hubby and I usually don't drink, so I don't get involved in these threads.

However, I notice that more and more cruise lines are becoming more inclusive which raises prices and for a couple that does not drink makes it unfair.

We liked Crystal and then they became all inclusive and the pricing went even higher. It seems like Celebrity is starting to lean towards this.

So from another prospective, I hope that more of the lines do not go all inclusive.

 

Barb

[karmacats]

Virgin mocktails were around 5 dollars in April. Freedom of the Seas. I didnt purchase but talked to a lady in the elevator that had a virgin daquiri. She was rather happy that it was only 5 bucks.

 

awesome. thank you! that's really cheap for where i live (dc-area) so i'd also be pretty happy if it stayed around $5. :D

 

i think i may skip replenish on the aug 8 cruise. we'll be in bermuda for 2 full days so i probably wouldn't get full use out of it. i can certainly handle five bucks a pop for a drink.

 

thanks to the OP for the report, too, and everyone else who commented. i've been on liberty a few times but this upcoming cruise next month will be my mom's first and i want her to enjoy a great ship and crew!

[bkrickles1]

I was also on this sailing with 28 in my group.

We had an awesome time too.

Except for the 1st full day, the weather was perfect and we enjoyed every minute of it.

I only got off in Bermuda (Horseshoe Bay) St. Maarten (Orient Bay jet skiing and banana boats) and Labadee (zip line and private cabana), so the ultimate drink package I purchased was very worthwhile for me.

We loved the entertainment!

Unexpected Boys were terrific, Saturday Night Fever, In the Air, The Illusionist, Elton John tribute were all really good. The 2 comics were great too. Their late night adult shows were hysterical. Jimmy in the Hoof and Claw was always fun. On the last night he joined me and my family in the concierge lounge after Hoof and Claw closed and played until 4am for us. Sooo much fun!! If anyone was at the Hoof and Claw that last night, that was my cousin doing the comedy.

White party, 70's party (we all dressed up for this), and especially the silent dance party were great fun.

We did the flowrider many times and I did do a face plant the first time trying to get up on my knees.

Chair hogs were out but there are actually many areas to get chairs so it's not the worst thing and shouldn't get you irritated.

I went to the gym almost every morning at 6 so I was out by the pool before 7:30 most mornings and always chose the stadium seating by the pool and sky bar.

Jason Morgan at the pool bar was my guy. I took care of him and he took care of me and my people. Made an excellent, very spicy, bloody mary with kettle one. Yummy!!

Watched Wimbledon almost every day and it was just great sitting in the water by the pool watching the tennis with a bloody mary in my hand. That's vacationing.

It was funny the day that Sharapova played and they turned on the sound to the match, her grunting took over the pool area. She's got to be the loudest grunter in all of womens tennis. I'm sure some people hated it, but I found it amusing.

Food could be average to very good. I think you just have to be smart about what you order or choose from the buffet. There is plenty that is very good. I did find some of the seafood to be a little fishy, but overall I enjoyed eating and did plenty of it.

My wifes birthday was 7/7 and I ordered a giant cupcake from the cupcake store and the guy there (I think Mario) made it from scratch and it was beautiful. It was a big hit and was a pretty reasonable $30. I highly recommend it.

There's really too much to describe, but know that it was all good. Service was great for the most part. Everyone seemed to be trying their best and they are servicing a lot of people. You can nitpick about elevators being tough and things of that nature, but it's just not worth it. The ship is beautiful and kept super clean. Enjoy yourselves.

Feel free to ask any questions.