I made a casino offer booking that requires me to buy/pay for $200 in OBC. Is it true that you can't use the OBC for prepaid gratuities? That's what I'd normally use some of it for, but if you can't use it that way, is it best not to pay the gratuities in advance and just let them accrue on a daily basis and use the OBC to cover them that way?
So my next RC cruise (September) will be the first one I've taken since reaching Diamond. I'm not a big drinker, so the four daily drinks are not a big attraction for me, but if I purchase the soda package (because I'm sure I'm going to want more than 4 sodas/day), and I order a soda at a bar or restaurant, how can I make sure they don't charge the sodas against my 4 drinks in case I decide to use a few of them for alcoholic beverages or something other than soda?
In the past I've always gotten a response to my booking request in a day or two. I submitted two on Monday and haven't gotten a response yet. I checked to make sure they had been submitted, and verified that they're still being worked on. Maybe they're understaffed or overwhelmed.
I was on the Firenze a couple of months ago on a 4-day cruise out of Long Beach. I really liked the ship and all of the complimentary food options, but it was definitely a "booze cruise" and that's not my scene. Anyway, I thought maybe a longer cruise would be more to my liking, and I got an offer for a 14-day Mexican Riviera cruise (including three ports I've never visited) at an excellent price, so I booked it.
The cruise is adults (21+) only. I've done a little research into changes they make for this type of cruise. Apparently they add a lot more gambling opportunities throughout the ship. But the one that I'm most interested in (and curious about) is the "Dining Elevated." Someone posted samples of the special menus that they use on these cruises and they truly sound amazing. I'm hoping they live up to my expectations.
Any of you out there who've been in a SEA cruise, please share your thoughts and your experience. One thing I noticed is that all of the SEA cruises that have been offered for next year seem to be in the Caribbean (out of Florida or Galveston.) Since I have no interest in going there, this might be my only opportunity to check out the "SEA Experience."
I've used free casino offers (always going solo and only using the "free room for 2" offers) for four cruises and I've always only paid taxes and port fees, plus prepaid gratuities. I just tried to book another one and now they're adding on even more fees to the point where it's hardly worth it. Specifically, now there's a $100 "booking fee" and a $75 "casino upgrade," whatever that means. So instead of costing around $300, my total is now over $500. Is this a new policy?
I'm trying to work on booking my Prime "free cruise" this year and was wondering about using a travel agent, since I will likely need help with pre- and/or post-cruise stays and flights. Are travel agents willing to help with the casino offer cruises since presumably they don't earn much, if any commission on that part of the trip? (I've done a number of the regular "free" cruises and handled everything myself, but none of them involved flights or hotel stays.)
Tried to book this as a solo - offer is clearly "complimentary room for two" which always allows a solo to just pay the taxes/fees for one. When I attempted to book this and changed occupancy from 2 to 1, the price went up to $901! What happened?
I live in the LA area and mostly sail out of San Pedro (five cruises since Sept.) but I noticed a new itinerary out of San Diego on Serenade of the Seas. I thought it might be a nice change of pace to try a different ship out of different port that's still accessible without flying. So - I'm looking for suggestions on how to get to San Diego and then to the port. Options would be driving (either day of or the day before) or public transportation (train). It looks like the port is walking distance from the train station, but I'd have to make sure I got there early enough. For driving, are there any good options for hotel + parking, or just parking only if I don't do the night before?
This "Traditional Pork Pozole" seemed suspiciously light, and the bottom container with the soup was not even half full. Sure enough, I weighed it, and with TWO plastic containers and lids, the total weight was not even up to the NET (i.e., excluding the weight of the containers) weight of 13.23 oz. on the package. Of course I brought this to their attention, including this photo. And they asked for more photos, which I also sent. All I got in response was the usual "thank you for bringing this to our attention" nonsense. No offer of a credit. Sorry, but I'm not paying $16 for something that wasn't even as large as a can of Campbell's soup.
I've put up with the overpromising and underdelivering and mediocre food for long enough (since July 2025.) Adios, CU.
Does anyone have any suggestions for a comparable (but better) service?
