I agree to always formal dine and that the dessert buffet was overrated.
About the portion sizes, I thought that it was expected that you order an appetizer, salad, soup, etc. and that was why the main course was more moderately sized.
We also ended up with huge orders by the end of the trip. French toast with hash browns, a side of oatmeal, fruit, and a bagel with cream cheese. 
If you want to be hobbbits, now is the time. First breakfast, pool, second breakfast, sit in sun with a book, brunch, lunch, tea, dinner, snack.
It depends on the excursion. When we cruised up the Orinoco River, we took an excursion that flew us past Angel Falls and landed in a camp in a jungle buy a lake with seven waterfalls feeding into it. I don’t remember how much it cost, and 20 years later it doesn’t matter, but I’ll always remember the excursion. I don’t think I’ve ever been on an excursion that I regretted.
Re: the whole ‘smuggle’ idea.
People, why smuggle? There are these really neat things called ‘gift baskets’ that you can have waiting for you when you arrive in your stateroom*****. They are usually fully customizable in terms of what you want in them.
Getting wine? May I suggest a cheap $.99 cork-screw be included in the basket as well. Just don’t try to take it home with you. Bringing kids to a beach? Some cheap plastic sand toys might be a good idea. The trick is to say up-front that everything in that basket is to be fully consumed/disposed of by the trip’s end so that you don’t have to cart anything from it back with you via luggage.
*****Please Note: only certain companies are authorized to deliver gift baskets to cruise ships. You need to find out which ones are available to the line you are using and from the departure port you are using and you’d need to order from them at least a month ahead of your departure date with your ship name, departure date, and cabin number.
I went on the boat about a year and a half ago. Agree with most of your assessment, although the casino employees weren’t begging me for tips, and I really didn’t like the buffet. We also went with anytime dining - what that meant was you could show up at the on-board restaurants anytime you wanted. I prefer that versus fixed meal times, although some old-time cruisers prefer the fixed times and dinner companions. Buffet was good for snacks or late breakfast.
In addition to a mix of Eastern Europeans, there were many Filipinos in the crew. My wife is a Filipina, as was the maitre d’ for one of the restaurants (and several of the cooks), so she got to share when they had a ‘Filipino Food Night’. Our cabin steward was also a Filipino and he took exceptional care of us - don’t know if that was because of my wife, or how he took care of everyone, though.
This was the same exact cruise my wife and I went on when we were on our honeymoon.
When you get onto the boat and get to your cabin, take some time to explore the ship and see where everything is on each deck. It will making getting around a lot easier.
If there are 2 different seatings for your meals, by all means, SIGN UP FOR THE EARLY SEATING! Maybe things have changed in 13 years, but my recollection was that the late seating was almost 2 hours later than the early one and lots of people were literally waiting just outside the door to the formal dining room to get in because they were all starving.
Since we are on the subject of the formal dining room, eat there for every meal when you have the chance. The servers will learn in just a couple of meals what you like and don’t like. If you ask for milk with your dinner the first night, the second night you will automatically get a milk brought out to you. Also, be prepared for the meals to be themed. When I was there, each night’s meal was entreé had a different country of origin. It was quite spectacular and very fun to try different food I don’t normally get to try.
At Catalina Island, we took the bus tour of the island. It was very nice and I highly recommend it.
Something that nobody has mentioned (and maybe because it is no longer featured on cruises today) is the passenger talent show. It could be fun to watch or even participate in, but be prepared to see the majority of acts either singing or dancing.
Speaking of shows, see the evening shows that they offer. The caliber of entertainment they hire on cruise ships is top notch professional entertainment.
Cruise ships have on board pools, but beware that they are almost always filled with water pumped in from the ocean.
The cruise ship will have just about anything you would like to do available there, so take advantage of it. You will have a schedule placed in your cabin every day that will detail what is available to do. Don’t be afraid to ask your cabin steward for anything you might need.
My last bit of advice would be to get a cabin near the middle of the ship. That will minimize the rocking feeling you might feel while you are trying to sleep.
Have fun!
A note about food in the regular dining room for those with hearty appetites: get what you want, and get as much of it as you want. You can get several entrees, either duplicates or different ones. It works best to order everything at the first opportunity, if you can, and you are not limited to just seconds. If you want to order something after the first one is served (yours is so wonderful you need another, your neighbor’s choice is so wonderful you want one too, your choice was disappointing and you need a replacement), do so as soon as possible. Likewise for appetizers, salads, desserts, etc.
I’ve been on three cruises…all with Carnival.
Here were the surprises the first cruise - at the end we were expected to leave a hefty tip which we weren’t advised of until the last day. They let us know what we were expected to tip the maitre 'd the cabin servers etc. It added up to about $200 :eek: . We were almost out of cash and the last day of the cruise the ship’s ATM was out of cash too. We left very small tips for everyone with the $80 in cash we had but I felt bad.
We were also a little caught off guard that we managed to spend $600 on alcoholic beverages in our 8 days on board (we like to party and my then husband was a lush). It did surprise us how quickly a drink here and a drink there added up. You can’t pay for anything with cash or a credit card on board (not sure about the casino) you had to pay with your ships credit card which was tied to whatever credit card you assigned at the beginning. Made it hard to keep track of what we were spending.
The ship’s huge! We were surprised at how much walking we did just getting from point A to point B around the ship.
Other than that it was a blast.
The second cruise we got an upgrade to a cabin with a balcony. It was like heaven compared to the inside cabin we had first time around. Just being able to see day light was wonderful.
Yes, the sit down meals in the dining room were always better than the buffet but there was such a wide variety of food available that we were never lacking for something we liked.
The cabin staff will bring you just about anything you want as will the servers in the dining room, you have but to ask. My husband would order a club sandwich and a beer every night after being out partying. Always delivered with a smile.
I loved most of the shore excursions we went on even if they were touristy…what the heck, we’re tourists.
We went to a few shows and by and large all of the performers were very good and the shows very enjoyable.
I appreciate all the advice. Teeming Millions, you have come through like the champs you are!
On RC, they give you the option of prepaying your gratuity when you pay for the cruise (which we did)–I believe it was $39 per person. If anyone has done this, will that cover all the tips or am I expected to give more at the end of the cruise?
As far as beverage options go, they have a soda package for $15 per day–unfortunately, once you choose that option you are charged that for every remaining day on the cruise.
First of all, great screen name!
I’m a little old for such hijinx, but thanks anyway! I’ll stick to the duty free cigarettes and stuff. Besides, I’ll be alone (Mrs. Know has already made it quite clear that she is not getting off the boat in Ensenada, thank you very much!) and I don’t do well in rowdy crowds without some sort of moral (if not physical) support.
Again, thank you all for the advice you have given and I welcome more!
I disagree with the early sitting of dinner… it’s typically around 6 while the late one is at 8:30, and if your time in port is such that you can stay off the ship until 4, then, IMHO, it sucks to barely get back on the boat, have to shower and dress for dinner and eat right away. Then again, my husband and I are late eaters anyways (typical weeknights for us we eat around 7-7:30 pm, often later!) Also, if you enjoy taking your time to eat, then you won’t have that luxury on the early sitting… they are a bit pushier about getting you out the door and having the dining room turned around for the late sitting. While the late sitting will turn up the lights and start to set for breakfast around you at about 10:45 or so, they don’t insist that you leave.
Royal Caribbean doesn’t require that you sign up for an either/or dinner: you have a place at the main dining room regardless, but if you want to go to the buffet or a specialty restaurant, then you are free to do so. You will never lose your place in the main dining room - it is assigned prior to boarding, and those chairs are yours.
We paid the gratuities at the end (we always personally delivered them to our waiters and busboys) but I don’t really remember what we gave. The recommended amounts by Royal Caribbean seem fair though, at least as a baseline. The advantage of tipping after is that you can hand deliver, and adjust for good or bad service.
We paid the soda package the first time around, but figured it was a waste of money. There is no WAY we could drink that much pop in a week, let alone a day! We stuck to water, lemonade and iced tea. If you are wine drinkers, you might want to check out the wine-and-dine packages. We bought 7 bottles (7-night cruises both times) the first cruise and 10 the second, since we enjoyed a bottle with every meal and had a bottle in our room that we would have a glass from over a couple of days.
If your cruise has “The Quest” and/or the “Love and Marriage” game show… GO! GO GO GO!! It is a total riot, and believe me, for the rest of the cruise, it is nearly the only thing people will be talking about, and it sucks if you miss out on it! Especially the Quest!
The on-board prices for duty-free liquor are comparable to what you find in most of the ports we visited, in case you wanted to buy on board.
Dammit, I want to go on another cruise now. It’s an oddly addictive form of vacation! We might do one in the next couple years, either for my father’s 60th birthday, or my parents’ 35th wedding anniversary…
Cyn and I did this exact cruise in Nov 06. If you are a naval afficianado of any kind, check out the USS Midway in San Diego, and ask about the superstructure tour.
Catalina, Meh. Its ok, not exactly my cup of tea for a cruise stop.
Ensenada, your wife is missing out not wanting to get off. Something to consider, the RCCL “shopping tour” IIRC is like $39. There are buses that will take you to the same area for $2-3 via private local companies. They have dozens of buses and we have never had or heard of any problems with them getting you back to the boat. Don’t be afraid to dicker a bit on your purchases, its expected in Mexico, especially if you are buying extra. For example, like that margarita glass @ $3 each, ask if they will give you 4 for $8, worked for us. Stuff in town is WAAAY cheaper than right near the docks, the further you get from the touristy areas the better the prices will get.
Warning about the soda cards many of the crew we crossed paths with seemed to have a little tude about the soda cards since there is no tip attached to them. Cyn and I brought a couple 6 packs of 20oz bottles of soda on board, nobody even blinked. Best part is, you can restock at any port :D.
Plug bars are a common need, bring one.
The formal dinners are always fun, dress nice, meet new people, share experiences, its great. Order whatever you want, as much as you want, the staff will not so much as blink. We would regularly order 2 appetizers, and a soup or two, etc. Portions are very small so you won’t be wasting it unless you’re a supermodel.
Midnight buffet, I agree, pretty but a bit overhyped and crowded, go to see it, skip it on your next cruise.
Activities, grab the newsletter in the morning and look for what you want to do, plan your day, you will probably never get to do everything you want to.
We usually go for smaller cheaper rooms since we are hardly ever in there anyway, its basically a bunk/dressing room.
As Mnemosyne mentioned, its addictive. Having the hotel drive you around is a really neat way to travel.
Remember, what happens on the cruise ship…is all over the internet tomorrow.
Ensenada We plan on getting off the ship at Catalina to look around–what’s to see? And is it worth disembarking in Ensenada?
We went on this cruise in November. Ben and Jerry’s and the coffee place is extra, sodas and alcohol, extra. We’d been to Catalina and enjoyed the Glass- bottom Boat tour the year before so didn’t get on the little tender boat. San Diego was great—went on the USS Midway ourselves—it’s right there, you can walk. The Star of India and the HMS Surprise from Master and Commander movie is right there, too.
I bought some great Kahlua-filled chocolates and a tacky hat for my nephew. We wandered around on our own but people on ship said the La Bufadora trip was worth seeing. We’ll do that next time. Enjoy your cruise!
In San Diego you should be docked right near the Maritime Museum (Star of India iron-hulled sailing ship) and most of downtown. The Zoo is close by (taxi fare in single digits IIRC but that was back around 1997); you could easily spend several hours there and still have plenty of time to get back to the ship. If you go to the Zoo, try the restaurant–I think it’s called Albert’s Treetop Inn or something like that; it was named after a gorilla that lived there for many years.
You MAY wish to tip additionally. I’d plan on it, if you can afford it. Our first servers on our first cruise were so fantastic (particularly our assistant server) that I think we tipped 50% or more over recommended. Our second cruise the servers weren’t as incredible, but still exceeded what was required, therefore, got overtipped.
You’ll also want to have tips on hand for luggage, room service. Your drinks will be charged to your room and will include a gratuity. Adding a buck onto your charge will get you MUCH stiffer drinks (so my father tells me) as the bartenders learn you tip well. (Other hint is to skip the fruit drink/slushy drinks, which don’t tend to be too stiff, and stick to the “lighter fluid in a martini glass” sorts of drinks if the idea is to get buzzed. )
You might want to check out the forums at www.cruisecrazies.com, there is a roll call forum for people on every departure. If you want you can talk to folks on there and meet them IRL on the cruise. We met one couple that way, was kinda neat.
