Lesson 5 of 5

Book each leg, step by step

Find the trip, book every leg, and check three things before you pay.

Video, 19 min: 10 Steps to Find Back-to-Back Cruises and Spend Your Casino Offers. Free, on our YouTube channel.

Step 1: find a trip that connects

Open the finder, choose your home port and the dates you can go, and it lists the back-to-backs that connect, with each leg and the total. It is free. Prices are checked on a schedule, so each page tells you when.

Step 2: book every leg

Each leg is its own booking with Royal Caribbean. Book leg one, then leg two, and so on, each on Royal Caribbean's own site or with your travel agent. Pick the dates carefully, because leg two must leave the day leg one ends.

Step 3: ask for the same cabin

Two bookings do not automatically give you the same room. Ask for it on every leg. It sometimes costs a little more, and it saves you a packing day.

Step 4: if you hold casino offers

A Club Royale offer covers one sailing, so you put one on each leg. When you redeem, Royal Caribbean asks for up to three sailings in order of preference, and a representative books your first available one. Before you pay, check that the offer is attached and that the bill shows it. In our reading of the terms, ask Royal Caribbean about the day your legs meet before you put an offer on both. The number to ask is on the offer terms page, and our Club Royale guide lists it. Course 2 goes deeper on spending offers.

Step 5: check before you pay

1. Does every leg connect, on the right ship, on the right day?
2. Is it the same cabin on every leg?
3. Is every offer attached, and does the bill show it?

Then, before you sail

Use the one-page checklist. It covers the money that stops at turnaround day, the cabin, the papers and the packing, and it prints on a single sheet.

Open the checklist or watch the ten steps above.

In short: Pick the trip, book each leg as its own booking, ask for the same cabin, and check the bill before you pay.

The legtolegcruises.com lessons are independent and not affiliated with Royal Caribbean International or Club Royale. Fares, offers and rules change often, so confirm every detail with Royal Caribbean before you book.