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Not live any more, but this was our live blog of our Canada and New England Cruise. https://thesmallworldfamily.com/2018/08/31/canada-and-new-england-cruise-live-blog-day-1/

Thanks for sharing! You have a lovely family, and it was great to see how your kids took in all the experiences through the pictures you took. Your son's expression in the wigwam is priceless! Was it your husband who took most / all of the pictures? They all came out really well!

You're welcome, just know that the cruise line does not offer updates unless there is a problem so no news is good news. The best place to look up tropical systems and where they might be heading is: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ Welcome to the RCCLBlog forums and I hope you enjoy your first cruise!

What updates are you expecting? There are no tropical systems near or looking to be near Miami, Nassau, or Coco Cay in the next week. Is there something else going on that you are concerned will affect your cruise?

absolutely the finest work I have seen to date?thankyou for the effort

Thanks for sharing! Enjoyed reading through it on a Saturday morning ?

Totally agree with @JLMoran. If you drink anything other than coffee, the refreshment package is the way to go as it is unlimited. And very likely that between now and your cruise, it will go down a bit from $26/day at some point.

He is on Facebook. I don't think he is on anything else.

Yes, the Refreshment Package includes all espresso-based coffee drinks: lattes, cappuccinos, Frappuccino-style beverages, etc. However, the ship’s are not consistent in how they will punch the card. Some just do one punch per drink, regardless of size, where others do one punch per espresso shot IN the drink. So a grande or venti size, which is typically two shots, will mean two punches. Since the Refreshment Package also includes bottled water and fresh-squeezed OJ, it’s not a bad purchase if you expect to be drinking a lot of medium or large espresso beverages every day and also get a couple bottles of water, maybe that OJ with breakfast.

From the dark side... Thanks for the update!

https://www.royalcaribbean.co.uk/ FREE drinks on UK site :)))))))))))))))))))))))))))

I have found that if I go on the RC website during off-hours (4:30 - 5 AM) it seems to work better. So maybe the server(s) where their website is housed is not up to handling the amount of traffic that is on the site sometimes.

It is $60/day on my March 2019 Harmony sailing. Prices will vary depending on sailing. It is not standard. And they will go up and down. Purchase when it is at a price that you can handle. Then check regularly for sales and re-price if it goes cheaper. Usually you will see sales closer (3-4 months out) to the sailing. Black Friday sometimes has the best sale.

I'm so glad to see this and that charleston was hopefully spared. Still thinking about @rjac and others too. Prayers continued.. And yes, get these next 50 overwith!! so you can enjoy!

I hope I'm not being premature, but speaking for us in the Charleston area, we seem to have been spared the worst of Florence and I don't think we'll get a lot from her. I wish I could say the same for all of the folks in eastern/central NC, upper SC, and eventually western NC, VA, WV, and possibly even into the NY area. I'm praying for the best outcome for all (He already was merciful enough to downgrade her before landfall). Now, let's get the next 50 days over with, hurricane-free, so I can get on Oasis and finally relax!

It was wonderful! I plan on a full review tonight or tomorrow!! and I did a YOLO too last night! LOL Will tell you all about it. Just so busy with work and Doctors and dogs! I need another vacation by myself!! LOL How is School??? Thinking about you and @Sweety!

And note that in this case "cheap" is very relative. A lot of those $30-40 bottles on the ship are ones I can get on land for $8-9. So if it's a variety of wine you know and have bought before, you may want to do the mental math to see how the price works out after the discount compared to land price, and decide if that price is OK relative to your opinion of that wine.

Stay safe everyone, and don't forget to check back in afterwards so we know all are okay!

I decided against a daily blog of the Allure as this ship was so very close to the Oasis of the Seas. Instead, I will call out what I think are the main differences I noticed. The good: entertainment - overall a step above the entertainment on the Oasis. Mama Mia was the Broadway show on board. I think that because I grew up with the music of ABBA I enjoyed this show better than Cats, the Oasis Broadway show. Headliner show - Ronn Lucas was the ventriloquist act. He was good and very funny. Blue Planet production show - good but I thought it had so much more potential. The effects were great but the lack of story dropped it down a bit for me. The bad - The food- bad isn’t the correct word, but the selection seems thinner and more items I have enjoyed in the past are disappearing. New items are not showing up to replace them, just repeats from previous days pop up on the menu more. the Coke machines- my big complaint. On a ship this big it is just wrong to sell soda packages based around coke machines that are almost always behind locked doors. Four in the Windjammer that are inaccessible when it is closed, or even when open, two are unavailable because that side is closed. One in the Wipeout Cafe that has very short hours. Two in the Promenade 24/7 but usually with at least one out of much of its product and in need of service the number of machines is probably about right, placement is bad. The Other- itineraries: I wish there was greater variety of itineraries Out of our three stops, I only bothered to get off the ship in Puerto Rico. St Maarten and Labadee are one time visits for me. I know everyone is different and this is very subjective. I do look forward to my June Amsterdam cruise for new destinations. The ship overall is in good shape no complaints there. I had the internet “surf and stream” the whole cruise. I Speedtested it multiple times and consistently got ~3mbps. Not blazing fast but it’s in the middle of the ocean so no complaining from me I consistently got notifications from my security system and the video loaded after a short wait. I didn’t see the rude passengers we have encountered in the past. The school year kept the children to a minimum. Elevators were rarely packed and when it was busy people seemed willing to pack a few more on. Overall, I would rate my week on the Allure of the Seas a solid 4/5. Oasis class remains my favorite.

This just goes to prove @Matt's theory of YOLO Book it!! ?

Re Maybe, maybe not. Just as you think you’re an empty nester, you’re a grandparent and you end up spending holidays (happy ones) with family. We were able to sneak away this one time and now we’re committed to traveling here, there and yonder to spend holidays with children and grandchildren. ALTHOUGH WE LOVE IT, another Christmas cruise is a dream.

No, just come hang out in our suite! We can order room service!!! We are blue collar as they come. The suite is a splurge for Hubby's retirement.

I'll find out in two weeks on sept 9th ?

I guess. But then again aren't spaghetti, lasagna, and ravioli all essentially the same thing served in different formats?

We were on Oasis in May and ate in the Solarium Bistro twice. There was NO CHARGE except for the lobster and lamb. It was very good and a change from the main dining room. Appetizers and desserts are "buffet" style. You order the entree from the waiter and it will be served to you. They will bring you a receipt at the end of the dinner. There is a place for an additional "tip", if you so chose. My only "gripe" was that the 2nd day we were there, two large parties were also dining (22 people in each). Since the area is tiled, the noise was a bit of a factor. It wouldn't stop me from booking it again. We loved the Mediterranean appetizers.