Just Booked Symphony for 11/23/19.....Have questions. :)

[kalliyan1]

If we do one of the dining packages, can we book reservations online prior to sailing?  If not, do people typically have trouble getting reservations once on board?

 

Can laser tag and escape room be book in advance?

 

Pros/Cons of the CP balcony rooms.

 

Thanks so much!

[Clarea]

No, you can only make reservations for dining packages onboard.  Try to make reservations as soon as you board to have the best selection of times.

[BekkaW]

Laser tag can not be booked in advance. Session times will be advertised in the cruise compass and you just line up. 14 players at 1 time. I recommend lining up 10 minutes before the start time. 

 

We we really enjoyed it, great fun 

[Floridadude]

I had a CP balcony deck 11 and found it to be hot, no air movement on the balcony.

Same with the BW balcony.

Now I only book OV balconies.

Cheers!

[Clarea]

1 minute ago, Floridadude said:

I had a CP balcony deck 11 and found it to be hot, no air movement on the balcony. ...

 

Same here.

[kalliyan1]

Thank you all for your replies! 

[renza]

When you board the ship you can go to sign up booth on deck 4 near studio B and sign up for laser tag. 

[mickeygirl78]

I cruised on Symphony in April. I was able to book the escape room online through the cruise planner - but it didn’t open up til 3 days before my cruise. I recommend it, we had a lot of fun.

[taglovestocruise]

When we were on Symphony we had several packages.  When we boarded there was a line for the reservation kiosk in the promenade. We went straight up to Wonderland and made reservations for 11 nights, had no problem getting all the days and times we needed. In the cruise planner you pick your first night, once on board you will find they no longer pre reserve anything. We eat late, you may have a hard time getting reservations at the 6 -7 pm time slots, being flexible is key to happy outcomes. 

[kalliyan1]

Sorry another question I forgot to ask....regarding the sales on dining packages, drink packages, shore excursions etc., that I'm seeing, is it better to wait until closer to the sailing to purchase them?  Will the sales continue and/or be better closer to sailing?

 

[kalliyan1]

48 minutes ago, taglovestocruise said:

When we were on Symphony we had several packages.  When we boarded there was a line for the reservation kiosk in the promenade. We went straight up to Wonderland and made reservations for 11 nights, had no problem getting all the days and times we needed. In the cruise planner you pick your first night, once on board you will find they no longer pre reserve anything. We eat late, you may have a hard time getting reservations at the 6 -7 pm time slots, being flexible is key to happy outcomes. 

Thanks for that information.  We are flexible as well with our dining times.  I'm understanding you correctly that there is an option to book speciality dining up at Wonderland for other restaurants correct?

[kalliyan1]

5 hours ago, mickeygirl78 said:

I cruised on Symphony in April. I was able to book the escape room online through the cruise planner - but it didn’t open up til 3 days before my cruise. I recommend it, we had a lot of fun.

Thanks!  We are excited to do this!

[Oxo]

Everyone has options and yes, they do differ. We always take a CP Balcony on Oasis class ships,  and never had any complaints about it being noisy or hot. We enjoy see the CP greenery and watching the people below. Even at night it is nice to see the lights instead of just staring out to the ocean.  In addition, you get a couple of perks such as wine and a free lunch. May not be for everyone, but it is for us.

We have use CP cabins on Allure, Oasis , Harmony and soon Symphony. JMHO!

Happy Cruising!!  

[Queen of Oakville]

55 minutes ago, kalliyan1 said:

Sorry another question I forgot to ask....regarding the sales on dining packages, drink packages, shore excursions etc., that I'm seeing, is it better to wait until closer to the sailing to purchase them?  Will the sales continue and/or be better closer to sailing?

 

Sales will come and go.  If you see a sale price you like - book it.  If a later sale has a better price, you can return/cancel your original purchase and re-buy at the lower price.   I panicked when my sale price disappeared, but it came back.  I was shopping the refreshment package, and for me it never got lower than $20 though it did go as high as 26.

[Queen of Oakville]

54 minutes ago, kalliyan1 said:

Thanks for that information.  We are flexible as well with our dining times.  I'm understanding you correctly that there is an option to book speciality dining up at Wonderland for other restaurants correct?

 

As I recall, on embarkation day, there is always a table outside the Windjammer for making dinner reservations.

[brillohead]

Any of the specialty dining venues should be able to make you reservations in all of the various venues.  

 

[Clarea]

2 hours ago, kalliyan1 said:

Sorry another question I forgot to ask....regarding the sales on dining packages, drink packages, shore excursions etc., that I'm seeing, is it better to wait until closer to the sailing to purchase them?  Will the sales continue and/or be better closer to sailing?

 

 

The "sales" are totally unpredictable.

[kalliyan1]

Thanks again for all the replies.  They are very helpful in our planning.  

 

[happymanitee]

I am booked on your exact cruise, and the cruise planner is already open.  We already booked all of our shows and the escape room.  But, we bought a BOGO dinning package, so I'll have to wait until we board to make those reservations.

i am so excited!

edited to add:  I have been steadily watching the Deluxe drink package and it has bounced back and forth between $49-$52.  I am still waiting to see if it drops lower, but $49 is the best I've seen so far.

Edited July 27, 2019 by happymanitee

[mk907]

I had purchased the deluxe drink pkg for my hubs at $49 per but it dropped to $46 a couple weeks ago. We sail late September so there's always hope! You should definitely buy at the price you think is reasonable just in case prices never go lower.

[parsec0298]

Regarding the sales, it always seems there’s a decent one on holiday weekends.  So when Labor Day comes be sure to check the prices.  You can usually count on Black Friday having the best prices, but since your cruise leaves before then you obviously won’t be able to take advantage.

 

As for the escape room, DO book that in advance.  We didn’t in January, thinking we would be able to find a slot later in the week once we were in the mood.  But it was completely booked up the entire week and we never got to do it.

 

We had an OV balcony, but I wouldn’t hesitate to book a CP one.  That was our favorite spot to end our evenings.  There was always someone playing relaxing piano or classical guitar music.  We later found out the piano player was the director of the orchestra for all the theater shows.  As for heat, we never thought it was too hot, but we also cruised in January and daily highs were in the low 80’s or upper 70’s.

[kalliyan1]

On 7/27/2019 at 10:14 AM, happymanitee said:

I am booked on your exact cruise, and the cruise planner is already open.  We already booked all of our shows and the escape room.  But, we bought a BOGO dinning package, so I'll have to wait until we board to make those reservations.

i am so excited!

edited to add:  I have been steadily watching the Deluxe drink package and it has bounced back and forth between $49-$52.  I am still waiting to see if it drops lower, but $49 is the best I've seen so far.

We have booked our shows as well.  THANK YOU for the reminder for the escape room.  Going to do that now.   Where did you see the BOGO dining package, did I miss that?

[kalliyan1]

On 7/27/2019 at 10:39 PM, parsec0298 said:

Regarding the sales, it always seems there’s a decent one on holiday weekends.  So when Labor Day comes be sure to check the prices.  You can usually count on Black Friday having the best prices, but since your cruise leaves before then you obviously won’t be able to take advantage.

 

As for the escape room, DO book that in advance.  We didn’t in January, thinking we would be able to find a slot later in the week once we were in the mood.  But it was completely booked up the entire week and we never got to do it.

 

We had an OV balcony, but I wouldn’t hesitate to book a CP one.  That was our favorite spot to end our evenings.  There was always someone playing relaxing piano or classical guitar music.  We later found out the piano player was the director of the orchestra for all the theater shows.  As for heat, we never thought it was too hot, but we also cruised in January and daily highs were in the low 80’s or upper 70’s.

I will look over the holiday day weekend.  I wouldn't have thought to do that.  I was actually able to change one of our CP balconies(we have 3 cabins total) into a BW balcony so we will have both views.  Excited about that.

[happymanitee]

1 hour ago, kalliyan1 said:

We have booked our shows as well.  THANK YOU for the reminder for the escape room.  Going to do that now.   Where did you see the BOGO dining package, did I miss that?

I just looked and the BOGO is no longer available to purchase.  It was 2 nights of specialty dinning for $52.  I booked it a long time ago, but maybe it will come back.  

[Clarea]

9 minutes ago, happymanitee said:

I just looked and the BOGO is no longer available to purchase.  It was 2 nights of specialty dinning for $52.  I booked it a long time ago, but maybe it will come back.  

 

I believe BOGO has been replaced with Chops+1.