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Why do I feel like I'm watching a Game Show .... SHOULD I REALLY PACK IT? With LIVE Studio Audience, Brought to you by Dove Moisturizing Hand Cream

Day 5! Our last port day was a full beach day at Great Bay Beach. It started relaxed with room service and breakfast in bed. Just fun to do it once during the week. ? After that it was a leisurely get ready to meet the group at 9:45. We did the typical herding in line to and from the water taxi and were sheparded to a fairly packed area with chairs, umbrellas with drink and food service. It was definitely a party feeland fun to meet others. Also we were informed that since there was not a second group our 3 hour beach adventure was actually all day with the return taxis running every ten minutes or so. It was enjoyable but completely opposite of the relaxed, room to spread out beach time of Mehgan's beach yesterday. Vote goes to yesterday! Back on board with a fantastic dining room dinner. Service has been top notch with offers of seconds every time we finish our plates or for something different if we leave a bit left over. We tend to search out quiet places on the ship so we strolled around the track after dinner taking in the moonlight and the appearance of the planets as it got darker as more stars could be seen. The ice show on the Oasis was more high energy than the others I have seen and was appreciated. Studio B on the Oasis seems to be the same size than other classes but better designed to move crowds in and out. The Freedom and Voyager versions all had a single choking point. Talking about quiet spaces, we finished the evening with the Central Park violen concert. 6000 people on the ship and you can find entertainment with a few dozen people spread out under the stars and among the plants listening to a pair of talented artists. Next up is a first of two sea days! Who knows what Oasis adventures awaits!!

Just saved $46 on a deluxe cabana at CocoCay for March 2019 cruise. Originally $309. Got on sale awhile back for $293. Today - $247. Check early, check often! UPDATE: There was no advertised "sale" on the website nor an email that prompted me to check. It was $293 yesterday, $247 today. UPDATE2: prices for Grand Cayman excursions for 2018 Holiday are back at the lowest I've seen them. Cozumel the next day still the higher price. UPDATE3: just got the sale email... CRUISE PLANNER PASSPORT REQUIREMENTS ONLINE CHECK-IN BEFORE YOU BOARD UP TO 25% OFF Select Shore Excursions* BUY NOW 10% OFF Deluxe Beverage Package* BUY NOW 20% OFF VOOM® Internet Packages for Multiple Devices* BUY NOW OVER 20% OFF Deluxe Beverage Package + VOOM® 1 Device Bundle* BUY NOW 30% OFF Refreshment Beverage Package* BUY NOW 20% OFF Dinner at Chop’s Grille* BUY NOW BOOKING ID SHIP Brilliance Of The Seas® SAILING DATE 12/29/18

Hi, I’m Chris, I'm a database programmer in the direct marketing industry. My family & I are from Connecticut and have somewhat recently re-caught the cruising bug. Our kids are 12 and 14, and up until the last few years we've spent most of our vacation time in Disney World. Before we had children my wife, Dawn, and I were cruisers, starting with our honeymoon back in 1999 on the then, somewhat new, Grandeur of the Seas. We have been on NCL and Princess, but we have found that although they are good cruise lines, RCCL seems to do most things better. We would love to try Disney, but the costs for a cruise with them is just too crazy to consider - we could book two (or more) cruises with RCCL for the price of one with Disney. Our last cruise was this past April, on the Liberty sailing out of Galveston and we all loved it! I have also been on the Explorer, and the Serenade. This week I just booked two cabins for the group cruise next July 4th on Anthem. We are all super excited! Chris

Welcome! Unfortunately RCI doesn't have any self-service laundry facilities. You can bring on board some beverages, and the policy just changed on this 19 days ago. You can read about the current policy here: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2018/08/28/royal-caribbean-now-allowing-guests-bring-non-alcoholic-beverages-onboard

Some of my thoughts before getting on Mariner of the Seas: Connecticut Gots’ta’s Are Florida Must-Do’s I’m excited to see what Royal Caribbean has packed into a medium-size ship as part of the Royal Amplified initiative. There are six new things on Mariner that Matt would call his gots’ta’s, for me, they’re my must-do’s: Jamie’s Italian The Perfect Storm water slides Playmakers The Bamboo Room tiki bar LaserTag SkyPad Jamie’s Italian sits at the top of my list of memorable meals on Harmony of the Seas. My friends and I enjoyed it there so much, we made it a point to get a second dinner there during our 7-night cruise. On our first visit, I ordered the lamb scottadita. This dish was so good I had to share it with my friends. On our second visit, we all ordered the lamb scottadita. My plan is to go by Jamie’s Italian after the muster drill and see if they have any promotions for dining on the first evening of the cruise. Everything else on my must-do list is new to me and (maybe not the waterslides) new to Royal Caribbean. Some friends of mine who I recently caught up with at a wedding went on the first sailing of Symphony of the Seas in the Mediterranean. They told me about Playmakers on that ship, so I know a little bit of what to expect from a firsthand account, but it’s tough to say that it would be exactly the same in a different space. I’d expect this venue to get rolled out to most, if not all, the Royal Amplified ships from here on out. When I told a friend of mine, who I’ve gone on three cruises with, about the Bamboo Room, he texted me back “Just when you think a cruise can't get more laid back, they add a tiki bar.” I could not have said it any better. The menu for the Bamboo Room looks great with at least three drinks I’d like to try. Wanting to sample from the menu here convinced me to get a drink package. Truth be told, I needed no convincing, but if you’re on the fence, have a look at the menu here. There’s a list of $12 drinks, which would be covered by the package, and there’s a list of $14 drinks that would be a charge of $2, since the drink package covers drinks up to $12 on this ship ($13 on Quantum class and Oasis class ships [Matt, check me on that]). I haven’t played LaserTag since the 80’s most likely. I have to start telling myself now, “I’m just happy to be here. I’m just happy to be here.” I’ll probably last 3 minutes. Hey kids, this is why grandpa buys the travel insurance. I think the arena has fluorescent blacklight, so I’ll have to remember to wear dark colors and not stop by on my way to the glow party. When I read the description of the SkyPad, I don’t know what to think. Seeing a picture of the SkyPad does nothing to clear things up. I have no idea what to expect out of the SkyPad except that I will have tried out the SkyPad. What I do know about it is: trampoline, bungee cord, virtual reality (?). Sure. I’ll do this.

Well , it was long time ago since the last cruise . I guess its another Med cruise before Symphony is going to Miami. Actually this cruise was the original cruise we planned for this ship but then we added one in April. This time we are going to focus mainly on exploring the ship , we scheduled only 2 tours so I am not even sure we will go out of the ship in every port, but things can change. The main different for this cruise is the fact it will be our first time on a JS , The price was right and hey YOLO , I booked it. As always we arrived 1.5 days before the cruise , after all there are allot of things to do in Barcelona , this time I found a flight with a connection in Istanbul with Turkish Air as they are part of star alliance and we get points and access to the lounges (due to the status in United). It prove itself as we enjoyed the very impressive lounge while waiting between the flights and they also upgraded us. Tomorrow we will tour Barcelona , not decided yet where to go so it will be a free style and mainly for the day to pass so we can board the ship ? Not everyone were happy we are cruising again : The lounge : They have food stations were they prepare some fresh dishes : And how I can Ignore the Baklava cakes, mental note to myself - avoid checking you sugar level at least few weeks after the cruise

We had the same experience as @ellcee on Harmony. We had 7 and I linked our dining reservations for our March Harmony cruise. We also had the same time and same wait staff the entire week. After boarding, I double checked at the MDR to make sure our reservation was set and the wait staff told us a huge tip. The tip is that 2nd reservation desk on the left (its just behind the first one) deals with the larger parties. They told us to bypass the long line for the first desk and go right to the second desk to check in and we were seated very quickly every night. Your cruise planner should have the shows already. If not, then look at a previous cruise compass as they don't change that much. We had a 6:15 reservation and had no problem getting to the shows.

The Royal Carribbean App now has a "beta" feature that allows for guests on the same/linked reservations to chat free over the wifi. I imagine that would require everyone to have RC account. That's free even if you don't have VOOM. Also, if people buy VOOM you can look at Signal or Telegram. Those are encrypted chat apps that work over Wifi.

Welcome Chris! Looking forward to meeting you next July! I have a 12 year old who needs a friend in the Living Room ?

Hi! We just did this. We had more people and tried linking everyone online, we thought we handled it between ourselves and our travel agents. Right after we boarded we wound up having to go to the dining area (2 of us went for the large group) and spoke to someone. We got the same table for 6pm every night - same waitstaff, same table.

Take a 10 min walk to get some greycliff cigars and chocolate. 45 mins roundtrip including getting on and off the ship.

Check the age restriction. Last year we were on the Serenade and went to Bonaire. Months before we left port, I tried to book a two tank scuba dive through Royal only to find that over 60 years of age cannot book this excursion. I called the excursion folks and did not get any satisfaction. So, I booked with a local dive shop in Bonaire and had two fantastic dives!

Correct.

Maya Chan is the place to go https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2018/04/23/excursion-focus-maya-chan-beach-costa-maya

We rented jet ski's for 1/2 hour. They were fun to ride. Then we just hung out at the beach and had nachos and drinks at the Krazy Lobster

Was able to change my Christmas Holiday 2019 to a PV for less than 300 on Explorer.

This is the lowest i've ever seen a drink package go for....anyone seen it lower that this?

July 4 - Anthem of the Seas, Royal Caribbean Blog group cruise

We enjoyed the Mystery Dinner on Adventure OTS on the the Aug 31 NE and Eastern Canada cruise. While the Mystery Dinner menu is limited compared to the regular Giovanni's menu, the food was great. The filet was our favorite dish on this cruise. They rearranged the dinning room into seating at six long tables to maximize the number of patrons for the event, while maintaining an aisle in the middle of the dinning room for the actors. So I can understand that a limited menu would facilitate efficient food preparation and serving for a densely-packed room--and provide a few breaks for between courses for the show. Giovanni's Mystery Dinner Menu.pdf

i asked for chicken tikka masala and sag paneer on a cruise a few years back, didn't give them a heads up, either. but it came out quick and was delicious. i might have had naan bread too, if i had told them this request a day ahead. they seem to like cooking the food of their home for people.

Just in navigator is doing a 7 week dry dock and it is getting fish and chips

Oh, and for the ladies who don't carry a wallet, check this out, "The world's first glamour utility necklace", https://zootility.com/collections/tulry

Checking in using the Royal Caribbean app has streamlined check-in for Mariner of the Seas. I was able to load my passport information and then use my iPhone’s camera to take a selfie for the ship’s records. I selected the time I expected to arrive at the port and the app produced a SetSail pass that could be scanned at the port. The new process looked good and it worked well. Around 10am on Monday, I departed from the CruiseHabit.com Global Headquarters (aka Billy and Larissa’s place) and drove to the port. This a drive I’ve made a few times now, but I still use Waze to get me there. Upon arrival, I promptly forgot the order of the letters in the alphabet, and even though Mariner of the Seas was at Terminal G, I drove to the Terminal A-D parking garage. Thankfully, Port Miami is one big loop. After a course correction of my own, I was able to get a parking spot, cross the street, drop of my checked baggage with the porter, and proceed through security. Once in the terminal, a Royal Caribbean agent noted the Gold status on my SetSail pass and directed me to the line for Gold members and fortunately, I was next to be checked in. After asking me a couple of public health questions, I got my SeaPass card and I walked right onto the ship. Easily the smoothest and quickest check-in process I’ve ever experienced. My first stop was of course the Windjammer, and of course, it was packed. After loading up a plate with some curries and chile con carne, I found a table with a young woman sitting alone and, with no other tables available, I asked if I could join her. I also got to meet her husband and learned they were on a vacation with the kids back at home. We had a great conversation (minor spoiler, I’ve run into both of them a few times on the cruise, and we have great conversations every time). Once the staterooms were available, I made my way down to Deck 2, where I’m staying in one of the four new single-occupancy staterooms. The staterooms are tucked away behind the Loyalty Ambassador’s desk, so there’s a feeling of being in a private space that no one else knows about. Having seen how small the interior staterooms on other lines can get, I was nervous. Turns out, I had nothing to worry about. The bed is approximately full-size and the bathroom is a standard size bathroom for a cruise ship. Given the chance, I would book this cabin again without hesitation. After staying up so late catching up with Billy and Larissa the night before, I was pretty beat, so I decided to set an alarm for 3:30pm and get a nap in before muster. Once I was up and moving around, I did a walk around the Royal Promenade and got to compare the area to the one on Harmony of the Seas. I sought out Playmakers to get a drink and see what Royal Caribbean’s new concept was all about. At 5:45pm, I went down to the Main Dining Room for an early dinner. The waiter assigned to my table, Rowen from India, was great. As I was dining by myself, I didn’t want dinner to go on too long. He picked up on this and made sure my courses came out with very little time in between. I started with the crab cake and the mushroom soup (both hits), and then had the fried seafood mix. The fish and shrimp on the platter worked just fine, but the breading on the scallop didn’t stick — still an enjoyable dish. After dinner, I went to The Bamboo Room and ordered a Saturn Landing. The flavors in this drink were unexpected, but all worked well together. I think the ginger syrup and the allspice liquor were flavors I’d never tasted in a drink before, but they were a hit. I’ll probably get another one of those before the last night of the cruise.

The box cutter, leatherman and screwdriver are unnecessary in my humble opinion ?

Most of those things I don't even have at home....can't imagine why I would go buy them to go on a cruise.

No corkscrew....NO problem. First, you remove the protective foil covering the top of the bottle (known as the "capsule.") Then, you place the bottom of the bottle inside the shoe to protect the glass, and then bang the sole of the shoe against the wall repeatedly until the cork eases out of the bottle.

Another happy Oasis day in the books! Here is my happiness list worth noting... A nicely timed stop at St Thomas from 10:30 to 6:30 allowed for a relaxed morning while watching the arrival and late enough to have significant time in port. Nassau was a 2:30 all aboard that just felt like we left to early. Breakfast was at the Park Cafe and we took some snacks for our day ahead. Then up to see the ship sail into the harbor. We walked around a bit and then started our "five star" tour if the island. Honestly some of the tour was lacking but the full two hours at Megan beach was worth all five stars. The shopping on the Main Street was nothing to write about so I looked to see what was around. We saw that the second oldest synagogue in the western hemisphere was a 5 minute walk so we header there. The suprise was we were just in time for Yom Kippur services and were welcomed in. The building itself is amazing with white sand floors. Back on the ship and to the main dinning room with our usual table. I wasn't sure what to have for dessert so I said surprise me. Well, when dessert rolled around I had a large mashup of I ice cream and cookies. A fun surprise. We were tired so we didn't do much of the normal entertainment. Sometimes it's the unusual that is most enjoyable. We went down to the track took a seat the back of the ship where there are about a dozen wooden recliners. From there we watched St Thomas vanish in the night ski with the sound of the water churning by the props. While we were there the water show began and we were able to see the behind the scenes hustle and bustle stage crew and performers moving from stage left and right. Some quick thoughts- elevator banks can get busy but it's mostly the set at the back - I have seen more organized kids events which have made me smile such as the pirate parade and games on the board walk. - The captains update on channel 14 is a first for me on my 4 cruises and very much appreciated. Way more useful than the public address announcements during the day. Another port tomorrow with more beach time. Love the carribean sand and water!!

This must be so painful for you! #poorpoorMatt Following along @CruiseHabit Ric! You're sailing with @twangster ?

I cruised Explorer in June. We ate in the MDR almost every night, never had any issues with the food. They ran out of food? I've never heard of such a thing. I met people this morning while waiting to board Mariner who were on that same cruise and they didn't mention any issues. It's unfortunate you got sick from another guest. I've heard of people refusing to give up their cruise because they were sick and they boarded any ways. Getting sick happens on land as well. As a frequent business traveler I can't count the number of times I've gotten sick after flying domestically within the U.S. They only quarantine when it's appropriate. Not going to the doctor for fear of quarantine puts other guests at risk. If you've both gotten this sick you've likely infected someone else. Imagine how they feel.

I'm sorry that your experience was sub par, but, I find this all a little bit hard to believe. My wife needs to eat gluten-free and Royal has been EXTREMELY accommodating to her needs; even at the Windjammer. See this post I made about the topic "Gluten Free" last month.

seems a little bit over the top that you are blaming royal for getting ill. sugar free desserts to me don't sound like desserts :/

With 35 minutes left there was time to enjoy the outdoor patio at the restaurant. I mean the ship is right there... Beer time. I loved ISP last year and I really enjoyed it again this year. This port never seems to make it on the Seattle round trip itineraries despite being very close to Juneau and South of Skagway. I like this port enough I may cancel my 2019 Ovation booking and look at doing another one-way. The friends I will cruise with next year will definitely enjoy this port. It's uniquely Alaskan without the commercialization yet with modern luxuries, great food and very friendly locals.

....of the Jewish faith, have a safe, healthy and happy New year.

My friend and I are also not doing Voom, we're planning on a small whiteboard or even just a notepad and going old school. ("@ Solarium if you need me", "Wandering around, be back 4:30 to get ready for dinner") Also packing two different color highlighters for the Compass to highlight what we each think we're interested in going, as that will also probably provide a tentative help to track each other down at any point in the day.