Anyone Currently on Jewel?

[little britain]

1 hour ago, icsys said:

Been to Oman (Muscat) twice with RCI and don't recall ever being charged a tax.

Been to Oman (Muscat) 4 times with RCI and don't  recall ever being charged a tax.

 

You get a little plastic laminated credit card sized landing card when you disembark and hand it back in when you reboard.

 

Because of the relationship between UAE and Qatar you now have to go through customs in AD  - this has been reported on the 'All about Jewel Dubai' site.  

[suzycruize]

Thanks for this info.  I couldn't find the 'All About Dubai' page.  Is that a page in cc?

Thanks again.  Susan

[little britain]

Currently on Jewel on the amended itinerary which cancelled Bahrain and we now have overnights in Doha and Abu Dhabi.

 

No Russians on board but the seen to have left a legacy of a vodka menu which I have never seen before. Not to be outdone there is now also a new Gin Bar for the Brits! 
A very large group of Chinese on board and also it is the first ship where I have seen a halal section in the WJ.

Jewel also has the separate curry menu at dinner.

33 pinnacles and 356 D and D+. The whole of Vortex is opened for drinks.
 

Doha was fantastic: well worth seeing. Spotless.  A ride in the brand new metro was so cheap! 
Royal are very silly imho to be pulling out of this vibrant buzzing affluent region- the construction in Doha preparing for the football in 2022 and the infrastructure they are building  - shame to not be where the action is! Downside is the construction is 24/7 so there was a pile driver pounding all night! Long line at GR this morning from those who had no sleep!

[grapau27]

On 1/14/2020 at 1:21 PM, little britain said:

Been to Oman (Muscat) 4 times with RCI and don't  recall ever being charged a tax.

 

You get a little plastic laminated credit card sized landing card when you disembark and hand it back in when you reboard.

 

Because of the relationship between UAE and Qatar you now have to go through customs in AD  - this has been reported on the 'All about Jewel Dubai' site.  

We have sailed 3 time's from Dubai.

January2011 Brilliance.

January 2012 Brilliance.

February 2017 Vision.

On each occasion their was a $ tax added to our seapass cards in Muscat whether we got off the ship or not.

I can't remember the exact amount but think it was about $15pp.

[pstone1]

On 1/13/2020 at 3:57 AM, Norwich Cruiser said:

 

Damond lounge was good after day one when they got it sorted and opened up an overflow but they were very strict about taking drinks out not that it mattered as we have the three drinks options anyhow.

 

Hotel Director Antonio Muresu Italy

 

 

That is 100% the policy of this Hotel Director.  We had him for 21 Nights including the TA on Rhapsody in 2018.  No drinks were allowed out of the Lounges.  It was so wasteful and staff were miserable!  On the way out of the Lounge, there was a “wall of shame” where every night, all night, rows of full drinks were lined up to be thrown away.  Staff were forced to patrol the exit and take drinks.  People were very unhappy, but then could just walk to the Schooner Bar, a short distance away to get another drink which overloaded the staff there.  Wasteful and made no sense.  Sad to hear he is now on Jewel, one of our favorite ships.

[Norwich Cruiser]

12 minutes ago, pstone1 said:

 

That is 100% the policy of this Hotel Director.  We had him for 21 Nights including the TA on Rhapsody in 2018.  No drinks were allowed out of the Lounges.  It was so wasteful and staff were miserable!  On the way out of the Lounge, there was a “wall of shame” where every night, all night, rows of full drinks were lined up to be thrown away.  Staff were forced to patrol the exit and take drinks.  People were very unhappy, but then could just walk to the Schooner Bar, a short distance away to get another drink which overloaded the staff there.  Wasteful and made no sense.  Sad to hear he is now on Jewel, one of our favorite ships.

You are so right a complete waste of drinks time and money.

[little britain]

47 minutes ago, pstone1 said:

 

That is 100% the policy of this Hotel Director.  We had him for 21 Nights including the TA on Rhapsody in 2018.  No drinks were allowed out of the Lounges.  It was so wasteful and staff were miserable!  On the way out of the Lounge, there was a “wall of shame” where every night, all night, rows of full drinks were lined up to be thrown away.  Staff were forced to patrol the exit and take drinks.  People were very unhappy, but then could just walk to the Schooner Bar, a short distance away to get another drink which overloaded the staff there.  Wasteful and made no sense.  Sad to hear he is now on Jewel, one of our favorite ships.

There is no Wall of Shame and absolutely no one policing entry or departure (wink wink).  In fact there isn’t even a sign outside Vortex saying closed for private function so anyone could walk in and go to the drinks table... they are not serving from the bar itself. 

[little britain]

Anyone seen this before?

[Bobal]

1 hour ago, grapau27 said:

We have sailed 3 time's from Dubai.

January2011 Brilliance.

January 2012 Brilliance.

February 2017 Vision.

On each occasion their was a $ tax added to our seapass cards in Muscat whether we got off the ship or not.

I can't remember the exact amount but think it was about $15pp.

 

We were in Muscat last week on Jewel. We definitely didn't get charged anything. We also called into Muscat on a Celebrity cruise last year and didn't get charge.

Edited January 23, 2020 by Bobal

[Biker19]

29 minutes ago, little britain said:

Anyone seen this before?

Gotta make the clientele happy.

[sgmn]

3 hours ago, little britain said:

 

Royal are very silly imho to be pulling out of this vibrant buzzing affluent region- the construction in Doha preparing for the football in 2022 and the infrastructure they are building  

Plus of course expo 2020 from Oct20 to Mar21 is going to be a very big deal in Dubai

[Miryam1234]

47 minutes ago, little britain said:

Anyone seen this before?

Thanks. 

Now I know where I can find my husband if we get separated during our cruise next week. 

Finns and Russians seem to share at least one thing besides the border between the countries. Our mutual love to vodka. And not to gin!

[UK Cruiser2]

5 hours ago, little britain said:

Currently on Jewel on the amended itinerary which cancelled Bahrain and we now have overnights in Doha and Abu Dhabi.

 

No Russians on board but the seen to have left a legacy of a vodka menu which I have never seen before. Not to be outdone there is now also a new Gin Bar for the Brits! 
A very large group of Chinese on board and also it is the first ship where I have seen a halal section in the WJ.

Jewel also has the separate curry menu at dinner.

33 pinnacles and 356 D and D+. The whole of Vortex is opened for drinks.
 

Doha was fantastic: well worth seeing. Spotless.  A ride in the brand new metro was so cheap! 
Royal are very silly imho to be pulling out of this vibrant buzzing affluent region- the construction in Doha preparing for the football in 2022 and the infrastructure they are building  - shame to not be where the action is! Downside is the construction is 24/7 so there was a pile driver pounding all night! Long line at GR this morning from those who had no sleep!

"A very large group of Chinese on board" eek, Coronavirus I'm sure it is only a very limited number of people have contracted it although today they have closed another city down.

[CatetPat]

1 hour ago, Miryam1234 said:

Thanks. 

Now I know where I can find my husband if we get separated during our cruise next week. 

Finns and Russians seem to share at least one thing besides the border between the countries. Our mutual love to vodka. And not to gin!

Wondering what would be the best currency to bring , I have US n Euro but will it be ok ?

[grapau27]

6 hours ago, Bobal said:

 

We were in Muscat last week on Jewel. We definitely didn't get charged anything. We also called into Muscat on a Celebrity cruise last year and didn't get charge.

That is good news.

We enjoyed our visits to Muscat even though we had tax charges on our seapass cards.

[grapau27]

3 hours ago, CatetPat said:

Wondering what would be the best currency to bring , I have US n Euro but will it be ok ?

Credit cards are the best option.

Dirhams handy in Dubai and Abu Dhabi if you go to the downtown market area's but dollars and Euro's were accepted but poor exchange rate.

 

 

[CatetPat]

14 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

Credit cards are the best option.

Dirhams handy in Dubai and Abu Dhabi if you go to the downtown market area's but dollars and Euro's were accepted but poor exchange rate.

 

 

Definitly credit card was our first option but was wondering for taxi our market if we needed local money

Thank you

Leaving today for Dubai 

Embarquing the beautiful Jewel on the 27

[grapau27]

2 minutes ago, CatetPat said:

Definitly credit card was our first option but was wondering for taxi our market if we needed local money

Thank you

Leaving today for Dubai 

Embarquing the beautiful Jewel on the 27

The hop on hop off bus is an excellent choice.

There are 2 big shopping malls in Dubai well worth going to.

The gold souks are good but haggle hard.

The shopping centre in Abu Dhabi has a big tower in the centre.

Take the lift to the top where there are several cafés with fantastic views.

If you have any medication take your prescription with you to prove it is yours and a doctor's letter if you can.

Don't drink or kiss in public places as this is illegal.

Hope you have a fantastic cruise.

Graham

 

[CatetPat]

12 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

The hop on hop off bus is an excellent choice.

There are 2 big shopping malls in Dubai well worth going to.

The gold souks are good but haggle hard.

The shopping centre in Abu Dhabi has a big tower in the centre.

Take the lift to the top where there are several cafés with fantastic views.

If you have any medication take your prescription with you to prove it is yours and a doctor's letter if you can.

Don't drink or kiss in public places as this is illegal.

Hope you have a fantastic cruise.

Graham

 

ok thanks for the tips

Do you know if Advil and Motrin (counter medication in Canada) is ok ?

 

[grapau27]

11 minutes ago, CatetPat said:

ok thanks for the tips

Do you know if Advil and Motrin (counter medication in Canada) is ok ?

 

Yes, Ibuprofen brands are okay.

Co-Codamol and Codeine are definitely illegal even though available over the counter in the UK.

If anyone has a prescription for these you must take only a small amount with your prescription and doctors note.

 

Edited January 23, 2020 by grapau27

[CatetPat]

2 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

Yes, Ibuprofen brands are okay.

Co-Codamol and Codeine are definitely illegal even though available over the counter in the UK.

If anyone has a prescription for these you must take only a small amount with your prescription and doctors note.

 

Great thank you again

 

[grapau27]

15 minutes ago, CatetPat said:

Great thank you again

 

You are welcome.

We loved our 3 Emirates cruises I'm sure you will too.

 

[UK Cruiser2]

57 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

The hop on hop off bus is an excellent choice.

There are 2 big shopping malls in Dubai well worth going to.

The gold souks are good but haggle hard.

The shopping centre in Abu Dhabi has a big tower in the centre.

Take the lift to the top where there are several cafés with fantastic views.

If you have any medication take your prescription with you to prove it is yours and a doctor's letter if you can.

Don't drink or kiss in public places as this is illegal.

Hope you have a fantastic cruise.

Graham

 

Looking at your valued tips,which mall is it,Marina,Al Wahda or Al Raha Mall ? I'm guessing its the Marina one

 

Edited January 23, 2020 by UK Cruiser2
More info

[grapau27]

11 minutes ago, UK Cruiser2 said:

Looking at your valued tips,which mall is it,Marina,Al Wahda or Al Raha Mall ?

Marina Mall in Abu Dhabi.

It is about 15 minutes drive from the port along the promenade.

You get a fantastic view of the 

Emirates Palace from the viewing site at the top of the tower.

Edited January 23, 2020 by grapau27

[UK Cruiser2]

4 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

Marina Mall in Abu Dhabi.

It is about 15 minutes from the port along the promenade.

You get a fantastic view of the 

Emirates Palace from the viewing site at the top of the tower.

Brilliant thank you. Looks like thats where we'll go. Are taxis readily available ?