The first thing I did once my cruise was booked was set up a Crown and Anchor Membership. This is Royal's loyalty program for their cruisers. You can start earning rewards with your very first cruise. Points are awarded based on number of nights and same categories earn more.
The second thing I did was my online check in. Best to get it done and out of the way. Also strongly recommend you do it in advance as it is one less thing you have to line up to do at the pier. Makes things go smoother. You confirm your name, passport number, birth date address etc.. You also confirm how you want to pay for on board expenses, set up a credit card or cash deposit.
Once that is done you have a lot of other decisions you have to make about your time sailing. First thing you need to consider is beverages. Many cruise lines have several drink package options that you can chose from. Royal has an ultimate beverage program that includes alcohol, coffee and soda with discounts on bottles of wine. They have packages that include specialty coffee and fresh juice, a soda package and a package that includes non alcoholic drinks with coffee and soda. They all range in price. They are per person per day sailed. They also have a bottled water package. All of these packages can be pre-ordered before you travel or arranged once you are on board. Keep in mind that the prices on board are usually more expansive than if you pre-order.
Second thing to consider is dining. Yes a lot of the dinning is included in your price. The specialty dinning is not. If you would like to try some of these venues you are able to pre purchase dinning packages as well allowing you to try a number of different venues and again the price being less than booking on board or paying for each one.
Spa Services you can actually pre book these services in advance and take advantage of when you want to have a treatment. Keep in mind however that sometimes they run specials during port days or time because so many people so get off the ship to have an adventure. (Which leaves many areas on the ship less crowded)
Next thing to decide on is internet. Do you want to take a vacation and be completely turned off or do you need to have some connection with the people in your life or are you working while you are away. Different ships have different packages and services but again booking in advance is usually much cheaper than while on board.
Then the most important step of all is to decide on shore excursion. This is where I suggest you do some independent research of the area you are going and decided on things that interest you. You can look at the cruises shore excursions as well as independent companies. The independent companies sometimes can be less expensive and have he same guarantee to get you back to the ship on time or get you to the next port. Also you can decide once you have done your research to explore on your own. Consulting with your travel agent will also help you narrow down what you want to do and see.
Because I am a travel agent and this is working cruise my excursions have been pre-booked through the cruise line this time around.
photo courtesy of Royal
With my countdown on I can not wait to board the Freedom the Seas and experience all the wonders it has to offer and to be able to provide all of you with my personal review.
As always check me out at www.exclusivetoyoutravel,ca or www.exclsuivetoyoutravel.com
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Email:slough@excluivetoyoutravel.com
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