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I'm keeping a copy of this handy.

As those that are following along the reveal is Celebrity Edge. This card depicted here is the last non Royal Caribbean International cruise ship I sailed. This card was from my 17th cruise. Celebrity Edge will be cruise number 43. Other thoughts this is my first non Royal Caribbean International cruise in 6 years. Now one could argue that Celebrity is part of the Royal Caribbean Cruises brand so really it isn't truly cheating on another brand.

BTW, even if you find out in advance that your partner cannot cruise with you, do NOT cancel him/her from the reservation. Only bad things can happen if you do that. Just have that second person be a no-show.

In Oceanview Cafe (hence the Windjammer difficulty comment @Lovetocruise2002 ) Sorry to hear about Harmony @Sweety. If it isn't rubbing salt in the wound here is a picture of Red Velvet cake. @AshleyDillo this one is for you @Matt and other Indian food lovers

Some pictures of The Retreat Lounge Available beverages Only one snack item, full meal is available in Lumine.

So boarding has started and first impressions are great. Plus some welcome aboard bubbly is nice touch.

Another feature of the Terminal 25 waiting area for Suite and Zenith guests is rooftop access. Guess if you didn't mind being under the watchful eye of a security guard you could get a pre-boarding tan started.

First impressions, traffic patterns at Terminal 25 could be a bit better. Also would help to have travel lanes better marked. One suggestion is hang all the way in the left lane. The luggage drop off area is after the terminal building. Also for "priority" guests they have a very small drop off zone closer the entrance. The keep left theme continues for Suite and Zenith guests. Similar to Terminal A in Miami there is a small podium next to an elevator to reach security screening and check-in. This part was fast paced and didn't have any time to stop for pictures. Same tablet check-in method is used as Terminal A. Now the actual waiting area for Suite and Zenith guests is a step up from Terminal A. Even has a small bar setup with some snacks, soda, and water. Plus some snacks

Morning everyone! Such a great sight seeing your ship in port. Here let me get a closer view of the one on the left.

I like to see military members in dress uniforms, they almost always look sharp. If my wife sees a handsome naval officer in dress whites she starts to breathe funny, gets the shakes and begins to mumble.

Greetings all! Currently sitting on the Tri-Rail at the Miami airport station waiting for it to depart northbound heading towards Ft. Lauderdale. (Check out writeup @twangster did going from Ft. Lauderdale airport.) Day started off catching a 6:30 am flight to Miami with a landing just after 7:30 am. Have to admit a hour flight sure beats sitting 7+ hours in either a car or bus. Just a shame the flight costs 3-4 times what RedCoach would have been. But the convenience so far is worth it. So those wondering what exactly 3343 means, I'll reveal that tomorrow. Sure some smart folks might figure it out. Also if you want to get an idea of what to expect. Please check out my previous LIVEish:

Quick visit up to The Retreat sundeck One unique thing is the Edge Villa guests have direct access to The Retreat sundeck from their room. Doors on the left side I'm going to assume lead to a locked door to the Villa. Also a bar up here, just didn't get the chance to take a picture.

It really opens up some nice late night options. We found when were on Anthem last year that after 10 PM we really could only eat pizza. This opens up have tapas at Vintages, or Pub food, etc :)

I've taken teens on helicopter rides before in different tourist destinations. Mine loved it. What I like about the helicopter visit and walk on the glacier is the totally different perspective you get. When you look at a glacier from a distance you see the black streaks that run down them. When you walk on a glacier up close you see the boulders and large pieces of rock that are those black streaks. You can imagine the massive forces at work as a glacier slides down a valley breaking those large chunks of rock off. You see the surface and streams of water flowing across the surface. We even got to sample the glacier water runoff. Years later I still remember that today when I see a glacier from a distance. With each glacier we sailed past or saw way off in the distance it meant more to me having walked on a glacier and seeing it up close. Mendenhall Glacier when viewed from the visitors center is impressive but walking on it is something else all together. I paid $350 per person in 2017. Last year the best price I saw was $339. My turn at this excursion was documented in this live blog post: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/5211-alaska-recap-celebrity-millennium-june-2017/&do=findComment&comment=51839

Funny, this is a conversation Hubby and I had the other day about Star class on O vs. Q class. I feel like it would be hard to decide which is better as they are different. Q class has a lot more activities that the Genie can be of value in securing for you (Bumper cars, iFly, North Star, etc.) whereas O class has a lot more dining venues and shows that can be taken advantage of when sailing Star Class. For us, it is always going to be O class over Q, whether it be star class or not. That is simply because we like the venues on that class of ship best. Q class is not bad, but Central Park, the Aqua Theater and Boardwalk, and the location of the Suite Lounge/CK makes O class the clear winner for us. We're sailing Anthem again in a few months. It's sort of my way of giving her another chance. This time in a different season (summer). You will have a fantastic time on your cruise! It's a cruise after all. Can't wait to read your blog!

Hmmm.... we retire in June 2024. Sounds like a great retirement cruise!

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/experience/cruise-room-upgrade

Thanks everyone for your constructive comments. It's great to see that we can have a discussion and voice our own opinions without it all going sour which appears to happen so very often when people talk about an issue online where they are actually anonymous. Pat on the back to all! ? @2Beeze Agree with all you said although we have never been able to secure a 55+ fare either. We also love the Americans and the Canadians. My husband and I have visited your lovely country many times and have made many friends that we enjoy seeing each time we return - friendships that I feel confident will last a lifetime. The New Zealand people are lovely people and some of my close friends are Maori. "Kia ora". @twangster your last post did make sense. I told my SIL about it and it appears it is the talk of the army barracks among those that live to ski and snowboard. He'll be on that one for sure! I guess there's not much we can do about RCCL's obvious attempt at gaining good PR and then not following through with the offers. Like so many have said (and I agree with), it is better that RCCL doesn't make offers they are not prepared to follow through on.

I'd be afraid of the answer I would get to " Does this kilt make me look fat?"

We used Blexie last year.. It cost us130 CUC.. I was so impressed by his assistant Jorge that I tipped them an extra 30 cucs on top of the bill.. Message him on FB.. sometimes it takes a day or two for him to get back with you ? I actually own a bar in Key West.. Its called Ricks lol ?

So true!! I never get to dress up anymore. Nowadays I'm either covered in my kids' snot or milk, or food splatter from cooking. Alright, I'm gonna fancy it up like no one's business.

I have a feeling I won’t look as cool in it.

No, of course not.... ?

Thanks everyone. This is our 5th cruise on Ovation, and the Concierge lounge has always been open to D+, plus of course Suites and Pinnacle, so this time it is different, brought about by the high numbers of C and A. Probably just a sign of the times, however still happy that they are giving us both levels of the Music Hall for Happy hour. We just need to find another quiet spot for our mid morning relax.

The Room We finished at chops at 12:50 and decided to see if the room was ready, it was. We passed our luggage in front of a room down the hall, so we picked it up on our way to the room. We have a ocean balcony on deck 12, right in the middle. Room 610. My biggest concern was it being too small with 3 of us, we tend to overpack. We have 3 large suitcases and 3 roller bags and 3 backpacks. I’m happy to report all our bags fit easily under the bed and all our stuff fit in the space provided. I listened to all the blogs and read up on other things to bring so I also brought 2 over the door shoe things for toiletries etc, a small laundry hamper, magnetic hooks, towel clips and a USB hub. There are 3 shelves in the bathroom so I ended up not using the over the door things in there, I used it for guess what, shoes!

Yes, well I am booking Oasis for next year.

Is it necessary for a young person to have health insurance? My 20 something son hasn't needed a doctor visit in years. You can buy house insurance that covers the dwelling only, no content coverage. Do you need to protect the stuff in your house? You can buy the minimum auto insurance coverage required by your state. However if your car is stolen you are on your own. For anyone who has had something occur that they didn't expect the resounding answer is... YES! You need insurance. A cruise vacation can be a sizable amount of money. If you have lots of money and can afford to walk away from the potential loss then you don't have to have insurance. Insurance is for the unexpected. No one expects to miss a cruise when weather or an airline cancels your flights. No one expects to have a car accident on the way to the port. No one expects to be rescued off a ship with a $40,000 helicopter medical evacuation and placed into a foreign country in a foreign hospital that doesn't take your health insurance from home. If you decide to travel without insurance you assume any loss when the unexpected occurs. You can scream at an airport gate agent. You can shout at the cruise line on the phone. You can write a negative on the internet but at the end of the day it's not their fault and you have lost the money.

This is consistent with what Zack told me over messenger.

And this is what drives me crazy. Why can't they place into the terms and conditions what you get? I'm not buying a UDP again until I know what I'll get.

Are you surprised? lol

We ordered the Ultimate Dining for our cruise on 13 May. I just checked our "order history" information on Cruise Planner and the name has changed to Unlimited Dining. So RCL is changing the Ultimate Dining to the Unlimited Dining.

On my last 7 day on Rhapsody they appeared on day 4, and the bartender indicated that was the usual day they've been released.

I wasn't sure I would like Anthem as I am also a O Class fan but I did enjoy our B2B on Anthem. I actually think Dan prefers Anthem to the O class as he loved, loved, loved 270 and doesn't have a particular love for the Aquatheater. I truly love them both. Anthem is very different from the other ship classes but it's a beautiful ship. Enjoy your cruise on her !

There were a lot of things my wife and I liked about our 3 night Ede Bahamas preview sailing back in December. I haven't been on a quantum class ship but I see a lot of features from there and Oasis class ships along with some new features and the best of Celebrity cruise ship features. While we didn't care too much for the entertainment including the Eden area of the ship because it was a little too artsy and without a clear direction or purpose. The ship did not feel crowded and we did like the multiple main dining rooms despite having different servers in each of them. The ship was like a modern resort with lots of spaces with ocean views. It was definitely non traditional with the added element of technology with the app and the infinite verandas were unique, we were fans of them overall. The ship was fairly easy to navigate and had plenty of design features they were unique like not having a large desk at guest relations but a series of small counters instead. We would love to go on more Edge class ships when our kids aren't with us. However, Edge only sails the Caribbean in the winter months and it is expensive since it is the only ship in its class for now. We are looking forward to having more options including one that might sail the Caribbean year round. Definitely recommend it @SpeedNoodles

There is a time when WJ is not manic? ? Enjoy your cruise!

I'm really super picky about my haircare products and have super long damaged hair, so I bring my own. They do provide, and they're decent products, but I like my old faithful. When it comes to soap, i'm the same way. Same with lotion. They provide it, but I like bringing my own. This said, I dont fly. So I dont need to consider the liquids rule for flying. But I do have a method to my liquids madness. I have a packing cube I use exclusively for my liquids. That way if any happen to spill, the spill is isolated to the liquids cube. I keep shampoo, conditioner, body wash, lotion, hair spray, sunscreen, and my face care products in the cube. Within the cube I do additional isolation of liquids in quart size ziploc bags. Hair stuff goes it their own isolation bag, body wash has its own, face stuff, etc. On shorter cruises I'll use samples. I wind up with SO many freakin samples from Sephora and a cruise provides a great opportunity to thin the sample herd. Curling irons are not provided, but are allowed. Hairdryers are permitted and are provided. So its up to you if you need your super high power blow dryer, or if you're good with a hotel hair dryer quality. Personally, I use a little extra conditioner or a hair mask, and I use nature to get my hair from wet to nearly dry. Then I style with the in room dryer to finish the job. But my hair is thin and doesnt need aggressive blow drying. The in room hair dryer isnt like a high end blow dryer. Think the cheapest blow dryer you can possibly find at Walmart, and put about 500 hours of dry time on that inexpensive hair dryer, and you've got about the quality of blow dryer onboard.

I think its GREAT! I have a floor length black gown I like wearing for formal night. I love embracing formal night. My mother has borrowed an old prom gown of mine for a cruise (was kind of funny seeing her rocking my circa 1990 peach colored prom dress but hey, like daughter like mother!) She now has a sequined jumpsuit and a silk pantsuit she uses as well. I dont think there's anything that would be "too fancy" for formal night. If you want to rock a ball gown, you rock that ball gown. If you want to rock a gown with a train, you do you. And if you want to rock a sundress or a pantsuit, you rock that pretty sundress or pantsuit. In the end, if you want to wear that black sequinned gown, then you rock out that gown! Have photos taken (you dont have to purchase them), take your own photos, dance with your +1 if you have a +1. Make it a wonderful night to remember!

Does this mean you get on the ship tmw? I'm living vicariously through you for now. ? Star Class for us 2 weeks from today.

Ok, so I just got off allure on March 31 and was not happy the Chicago forecast predicted snow this week. That might have had something to do with it! Or....I was feeling guilty that my daughter was graduating from university of Illinois and I didn’t go to mom’s weekend! Or....I was still not 100 days til we head to Barcelona and board our first European cruise! Or it might have been the excitement of finally making platinum but I totally flipped and decided to give my daughter the choice of a trip for her graduation. And she picked a cruise! And in searching I realized that the 4 day cruise to Havana and key west was pretty much the same as the 5 day to Cozumel. Within 24 hours of coming up with this crazy idea, we booked it with my husband’s blessing...which was nice because he will be teaching summer school to pay for the other summer cruise. So in 66 days, my 22 year old, my 16 year old and I will be boarding majesty! With this cruise I will have been on 5 different classes and to 11 different ports. I never thought when I booked my first cruise in 2015 that I would take more cruises in 4 years than trips to Disney! My obsessions still war (someday Disney cruise) but I have to say that 4 cruises in a 13 month period will make all those long hours of babysitting worth it! And I must say, this blog might encourage my yolo book it tendencies a bit too much. I will need lots of advice on where to go in key west and Havana! Jane

WHAT!?!?! But they have RUM there!!! ? When we went, even after being told 'no smoking' by all the staff there, one idiot lit up. He was all but body tackled by security. Certainly made the tour a little more exciting.

We always pay the auto gratuity. On top of that, we are pretty much in line with what other have already posted. - $1-2/bag for the porters - $20-50 stateroom attendant - $20 assistant waiter (if we end up with the same one for most of the cruise) - $30-50 waiter (if we end up with the same one for most of the cruise) - $1-2/drink for the Diamond lounge or suite lounge bartenders - $20-50 for the concierge (depending on how much we needed from them; usually it's not much) Tipping is very subjective. I don't tip a set amount per cruise. It really does vary depending on the level of service I feel that I have received. The one thing that never changes for us is the pre-paid gratuities. There are so many people who work hard to make your vacation what it is, not just the people you run into (which is what many people believe).

How about a charcoal gray suit with a black turtleneck? (Tan belt and tan dress shoes also)

I've been dying to wear my new suit......said no man ever!!!!! ?

same... I don't bring mine either...the one in the room works fine for my thick curly hair...that i straighten every single day of my life. lol

So @Matt, can we consider a “slap” reaction face?! ??

This reply is for MEN ONLY. Women, DO NOT read this post! Okay, now that we men are together by ourselves.... here's where I stand on formal night. Women like to dress up. Sorry but they do. Ask the wife what she's wearing. Ask her to suggest something for you. She is thinking not just what you or she will look like, she'll be thinking what you'll look like together, standing in that line or in front of the photographer. Of course you can suggest a slight downgrade "Honey the jacket is nice but I don't think the tie is necessary" might get you out of the tie, but if the wife wants to dress to the hilt.... sorry bud, you will too. Think about it... it's all really about making them happy, and if a night or two of pinched collars, tight shoes and sweating in a jacket will do it, it's really a small price to pay. When dinner's over suggest grabbing a drink to take back to the room. Then change out of that monkey suit as fast as you can and continue on with your plans for the night.

I have a lot of hair, and I don't mind the in-room hairdryers. I don't want to lug my own, so I just deal with theirs. They are no worse than any hotel hairdryer.

Go if you having fun from playing , never go for the free cruise or other benefits , remember , they are not really free , you are paying for them . Its a good thing to have them if you are playing anyway ?

@dodgestang I'm glad you said that. I initially though "free shipping AND a free cruise? Cool"

We did it not long ago and had a blast, as for the beach..you don't have much time after the cooking to really enjoy it. If I recall it was 2 hours.