Leaderboard

Day 6 has brought us to Cozumel. On tap for the day... ATV excursion + lunch & snorkel Impromptu trip on our own to Paradise Beach Portside BBQ 20 Minutes of Cats Cruise Ship(s) gone wild We had our excursion booked through a third party and it was pretty much scheduled for right when we got into port. So Rebecca and I needed to get up even earlier to make sure that we could be in the first wave off the ship and get to our meeting location in time. After navigating through the endless maize that is the Cozumel port terminal, we made it to our meeting spot... Carls Jr. When we arrived we met our guide for the day, Omar. Along with Omar there were four other tour participants, all of which were friends who were on Empress (or maybe Majesty) of the Seas which was docked directly next to us. From our meeting spot (which was directly across from the port entrance) we walked about a block to where their excursion headquarter was (I say headquarter very loosely). Before I continue about the excursion, I am going to preference that I am going to crack a lot of wise-ass one liners. The reason being is because this was no Royal Caribbean all buttoned up, no cutting corners, excursion. Things were... let's say very lax. Which honestly, was not bad. We had a great time. The excursion made our time in Cozumel and was one of the highlights of the trip. But I will say this would not have been for everyone. It was a few notches above organized chaos, but it worked. We never felt not safe or uncomfortable. Honestly, we felt more uncomfortable and on edge when we did our beach break excursion in Jamaica and we booked that through Royal. On this excursion, you could just tell this is the way they operated. Just go with the flow. Which given the cost for what we were doing, that was more than ok with us. And, we were very lucky in that the group with us, had the same personality as us in that they were there for the experience and not going to get caught up with the unorthodox flow of the excursion. Ok, so back to the excursion. Once we finished providing final payment and filling out some paper work (may have forgotten our drivers license - oops) Omar comes over and asks who in the group knows how to drive shift. A girl in the other group raises her hand. So Omar points to her, one of her friends, and then to me and Rebecca and ushers us over to a small little compact car. Then Omar jumps in another car with the two other members of the group. Odd. One would think you all would load into a van/vehicle - together. Not the case here. But hey, maybe it is only Omar working and he needed to drive one of the cars? Nope. Omar hops in the back seat of the other car and makes one of the other guys drive. The one girl in our group cracked a joke that either Omar doesn't know how to drive or got his license revoked. As bizarre as it was, it was also pretty hilarious (we have an odd sense of humor). But we all got an even bigger chuckle as we can see Omar in the car in front of us, reclined in the back seat just enjoying the drive. After about a 20 minute drive we arrived at a little side of the road shack where we got an extensive (and completely thorough) two minute introduction on to how to operate an ATV. Again... just going with the flow. From the shack, we headed down the road until we reached the beach. Then from there we entered onto the trail. Now let me say this. The ATV experience was exactly what was advertised and exactly what we were looking for. The trail ran through the jungle all along the coast. There were pockets where we would come out and see pristine beaches and coastline before zooming back into the jungle. And as far as the terrain, it was a fairly smooth ride. There were some bumps and rocky areas but overall the ride was pleasant. At the half way point we stoped at an area where would could walk out onto the beach to snap some pictures as well as view an ancient ruin. Finally from there were headed back the way came. All in all the ride was probably just over an hour and a great experience. Now next up was a... tequila tasting? ?This kinda came out of no where. I mean, we all welcomed it with open arms, it was just out of the blue and definitely not part of the excursion itinerary. Anyway, it seemed to be a little "I scratch your back you scratch mine" between our excursion provider and the tequila guy. Again, Rebecca and I along with the others from Empress all took it in stride and had a great little experience. At the end when they try to get you to buy some of the tequila that you sampled, our counterparts could not have flown out of the room faster. But we ended up buying a coffee infused bottle... so nice that TSA on the the flight back home wanted a sample apparently. I just wish they completely closed up the bottle after they were done. As we were about to head back into the car we heard Omar talking about two cruise ships colliding in port. At first we thought he was talking about a different day. But then he confirmed it was that morning. After watching the video (which I am sure everyone on her has seen - i.e. the two Carnival ships hitting), Omar then mentions that a Royal ship may have been hit (and then he shows us the other clip). Now image, you are on island in Mexico, on an excursion, with no idea if what is going on and you hear that your ship was in a possible collision. I had visions of my mother freaking out and looking to buy a flight that day to come to Cozumel to make sure we were ok. But now I have Rebecca starting to freak out and trying to send emails to her mom to let them know we were ok. Me on the other hand? Not going to lie, I was hoping our ship got hit ?(of course it goes without stating while with the intention of hoping no one was hurt). I am hoping for an extra night in Mexico. Envisioning an extended vacation. I'M THINKING CRUISE CREDIT!... However (as we all know), my hopes and dreams were crushed and our ship was spared. From the ATV spot we rode back towards town and to the beach club where we were set to have lunch and to snorkel. The spot was super nice, however because of the wind, we were just limited to having lunch and to walk along the beach. After lunch, our excursion came to end and we started to head back to the port and the ship. However, when we were halfway through the maize on our way back to the ship, Rebecca and I both realized that we didn't want our day in Cozumel to end. So we ended up making a u-turn and heading back towards the exit and the taxi stand. We really didn't have a plan but we decided to take a ride and check out Paradise Beach club. Really cannot tell you why we chose to go there other than the price of the cab was reasonable and the name seemed somewhat familiar... probably from ready other peoples blogs. Upon arrival we decided just to the beverage and food minimum to gain access, which was perfect. We probably arrived around 1:30 and ended up staying until to just about 4 taking in the beach (the weather got much nicer), crystal clear water, and the pool. Getting a cab back was super simple (there is line waiting outside), which put Rebecca at ease since she thought we weren't going to get one and end up missing the ship. One we got back to port and on the ship, we did a little more lounging in the Solarium and some other water activities up on the pool decks. Since we were planning to have dinner in Portside, getting ready for dinner was going to be a little less of a production. Which was nice because after being up super early for the excursion and being out in the sun all day, having a casual dinner planned was exactly what the doctor ordered. Now onto dinner. Portside was awesome. This was probably what I was most excited for after reading about the amplifications. The whole concept, location, food, environment are just so cool. And for the price, considering its BBQ (very very good BBQ) - you simply cannot beat it. And you get so much food. And as a proud member of the clean plate club, I had to have my membership revoked. Yes, I had to take a to go container. Between myself and Rebecca we probably got to try everything on the menu (excluding the ribs maybe?). It was all delicious. It was a little sad that the restaurant was more or less empty, because it really is a great concept that I think more people need to give a try. I will say that Royal does not do that great of a job marketing the restaurant when you are actually on the ship. Which I think they definitely should do given the hidden/tucked away location up on deck 15. We did get a chance to talk to the manager who was super friendly and engaging. We ranted and raved to him about how much we loved everything which I hope made him feel good. You could kind of tell he was just as confused/frustrated that it was not a little busier. Maybe over time as more people find out about and the word spreads, the crowds come. And hopefully Royal does add it to other ships. As dinner came to end, Rebeca and I needed to roll ourselves down to the theater to catch the critically (not-cruiser acclaimed) production of Cats. But not before running into this guy... Now let me just say this. I was fully prepared to ride it out for the whole show. I was going to prove everyone wrong. No way it could be that bad. Everyone was overreacting. Well... we lasted 20 minutes. But in my defense, I think if we weren't up at 7am (after going to bed at 2am), did two excursions, and just ate an entire cow & pig for dinner - we could have made it. But after almost falling out of my chair multiple times we decided it was time to exit. *We also strategically sat in one of the bar hight ops along the edge as to not to disturb anyone - I guess we were really foreshadowing our early departure, huh? From the theater we ventured around and then settled down in Globe & Atlas to catch up with Rudy. As we hung out, we noticed that Adam was not performing (but we did catch his set during dinner in Portside ?) Speaking of Adam... Now I know by now everyone is sick of hearing of how much of a fanboy I am. Deal with it. Every night, I am filled with envy when he sits down with a group in between sets and has a beer and shoots the sh$t. But at the same time, I am too shy to even go up and say hello. Anyway, there were are, just sitting there minding our own business and who comes walking in and sits down at the table next to us. After he chatted it up with a few guys next to us, I saw my opportunity to say hello. But every time I tried to form a sentence, nothing came out. I started to stress. What if he leaves? What if someone scoops him up and brings him to their table? I could not let that happen. So after a shot of liquid courage I made my move (sorry Rebecca). I cant remember exactly what I said, pretty sure I blacked out. But next thing I know, Adam is sitting at our table and we just chatted the night away. Literally. We shut Globe & Atlas down with him just talking about everything under sun. Quite literally a dream come true. We may have even gotten Sorrentos with him So after we had to say good bye to my man crush (Rebecca could have not been more relieved), I think we may have tested out the casino. I believe the roulette gods were surprisingly in a good mood, which means Ryan is in a good mood, which means Rebecca is in a good mood. But this was probably the most fun I had in the casino on the cruise (of course winning helps). We had a table filled with a cast of characters, all of which were great people, which made for a fun time. From the casino we probably ventured maybe to Blaze before then calling it a night. Tomorrow is a sea day on our way back to Miami. Highlights include: T-Shirt Sale, Trip to next cruise, Multiple food comas, And losing my sea pass card for the first time (on the last day no less!)

I have said a few times that this will be one of the ways that cruising could start up.. Adjust for the delays it causes and test everyone, every time they go onto the ship.

Thanks for the suggestion. Yes, I have applied for the PPP loan which would cover salaries for up to 2 months. I believe it to be fully forgiven if used for such. Awaiting word on that, my bank submitted our application last week. No timeline on approval process. Timing unknown for so much. Hope everyone stays safe and healthy till we begin to resume normal lives and cruising again!

Well slap me with a fish....dining package just reduced by £50 That’s a £250 saving in total Time to cancel and rebook ?

I would just ask that the speculation of RCCL filing bankruptcy or such topic thereof, just stop. It just creates more unecessary issues and even more misinformation.

Holy Cow what a deal! John Ames from MEI just emailed me with a crazy new price on our Sept. 6th cruise. Now I don't know if we are gonna sail but this price is just nuts. We booked a Central Park balcony and the price was 1,791 and now today its 1,355. That is for 3, our 7 year old son. Please lord we have to sail now with this price. After the FCC is applied we are gonna have 900-1,000 bucks in more FCC for next year. I am in total awe of John Ames at MEI. This guy does not stop, he continually keeps looking for price breaks and deals.

Part of the federal government's $2 trillion CARES act is availability of loans for small businesses to allow them to stay open and avoid having to lay off their employees. Loans are supposed to be forgivable as long as the business does no layoffs and I think makes some other commitments (e.g., no stock buybacks if they are a publicly traded company). Is this something that would help you out? My understanding it's pretty much a matter of applying at the local bank.

Is your business online??? Maybe you can share the link to see if any of us can bring you some business or go shopping??

We all, as one, need to book cruises in order to help the employees. I, for one, have several already booked. I hope they don't get cancelled.

A firm hand shake from the Captain or First Officer when you board.

Day 1 continue. We went to rest a while before preparing for dinner , we had plans to go to the MDR although it was the first day which can be a problematic one . On the cruise compass it said dress as you feel and decide in which mood you want to dine. Did not understood it at the beginning but after watching the guide on the TV that explained you should take your VR light glasses for dinner, at the application you can choose between :formal night , casual , Caribbean, white and some more options. Once you set it and wear the transparent VR glasses you see everyone wear outfits per what you choose. For sure I played with it for a while just to see how people are in tuxedos and after few minutes in shorts for very casual day. As I was explained it was working the same for the official cruise photos . I think its a grate new change and will make most of the people happy without forcing anyone for a certain style, I think some forums will not like it as it will end the endless discussion about MDR during official night , oh well I guess you can not please everyone. Oh and no you do not have "natural" mode, not in this kind of cruise anyway. The food was good , we got some salad for starters and a a small rib portion for main, we ask and got some fruits to share . Post dinner we got a reminder from the application we have reservations for the Broadway play - Hamilton , with the new app you just need to come 15 minutes before and it will guide you to your seats which were pre booked during the time we booked it on the cruise planner. If you are not arriving on time your seats become available for whoever signed for the standby. We arrive on time and it was fabulous, RCL really done a wonderful job with every aspect of this play and most important the have chosen a very talented cast. Unfortunately due to copy right issues they are not allowing to take any pictures. After the musical ended (around two hours) we went to visit the Casino to see what is new there. First of all its huge comparing to any other ship I visited before , just to let you know how big it is , its has 4 crap tables and around 14 three card poker tables. The most important feature is the smoke isolation system, if someone seats down and start to smoke a set of air streams goes from the ceiling and isolate the smoker and its smoke is sucked leaving anyone that seats near him without the smell nor the health hazard. we stayed and played for a while , we decided to call it for tonight it was quite a long day and tomorrow finally we arriving to our first port . Once we went back to the room we were very happy to find this gift waiting for us , for sure it will serve us well.

Though I appreciate your sentiment not all of us, as one, want to rebook. My business has been shut down, no income coming in. We can feel bad for the employees being laid off, but there are those of us with cruises up in the air that would prefer Royal cancel and isssue refunds so we can support our own families at this time.

Did you use an OBC to pay for the drink package? If so, and if you lost the OBC when you repriced, you only have a certain amount of time to go into the cruise planner to pay the balance before the item is canceled.

I totally agree and have my fingers crossed as everyone else should have them crossed also!!

By: Matt Hochberg Royal Caribbean is offering past cruisers up to $425 combinable instant savings on new cruises booked between April 15 – 21, 2020, based on the length of the cruise and loyalty tier. The Crown and Anchor Bonus is combinable with the April Splash Sale or a Crown and Anchor existing member discount. April Splash Sale applies to new bookings made between April 15 – 21, 2020. Spring Sale offers instant savings of up to $200 USD per stateroom on select sailings departing on or after May 15, 2020. Savings amount determined by category booked and sailing length: On sailings 5 nights or less, $25 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $75 for Balconies and $75 for Suites; on sailings 6 nights or longer, $50 savings for Interior and Ocean View, $100 for Balconies and $200 for Suites. Instant savings applied as instant rebate to the price of cruise fare at checkout. Instant savings do not apply to China departures. Crown and Anchor (CAS) Bonus offer applies to new bookings made between April 15 – 21, 2020 to Gold, Platinum, Emerald, Diamond, Diamond Plus, and Pinnacle Crown & Anchor Society members. CAS Bonus provides up to $50 USD instant savings per stateroom on select sailings departing on or after May 15, 2020. Savings amount determined by sailing length: On sailings 5 nights or less, $25 savings; on sailings 6 nights or longer, $50 savings. Savings are not redeemable for cash and are non-transferable. When reserving, a valid Crown & Anchor Society membership number must be included in the reservation. Instant savings applied as a single instant discount from the total price of cruise fare at checkout. Balcony and Suite Discounts are a per stateroom discount applicable on balcony and suite categories only available to Platinum, Emerald, Diamond, Diamond Plus, and Pinnacle Crown & Anchor Society members. Savings are not redeemable for cash and are non-transferable. When reserving, a valid Crown & Anchor Society membership number must be included in the reservation. Platinum, Emerald, Diamond, Diamond Plus, and Pinnacle Crown & Anchor Society members will receive an increased discount for making a reservation for a sail date outside of six (6) months. Within six (6) months of sailing, if the guest cancels and reinstates the booking, applies a fare change, changes categories, or changes the ship or sail date of the booking, the discount will be automatically adjusted to the lower value. Kids Sail Free applies to new bookings made between April 1 – 30, 2020. Kids Sail Free provides free cruise fare for 3rd guests and higher who are 12 years old or younger as of cruise departure date, booked in the same stateroom as the first two qualifying guests in a triple or quad-occupancy stateroom. Kids Sail Free applies to select 4-night or longer Alaska, Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, Caribbean, CaribNE, Coastal, Europe, Hawaii, Repositioning and all 2020 Serenade of the Seas sailings departing between September 1, 2020 – December 17, 2020 and January 8, 2021 – May 17, 2021. Offer excludes 2020 Thanksgiving sailings (Sailings between November 21 - 28, 2020), 2021 President’s Day Sailings (Sailings between February 12 – 15, 2021), and 2021 Spring Break and Easter sailings (Sailings between March 13 – April 4, 2021). Taxes, fees, and port expenses are additional and apply to all guests. BOGO60 and Kids Sail Free are combinable with each other as well as promotional OBCs, NextCruise offers, instant savings, restricted discounts (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military), Promo Code driven offers, Free Upgrades, Shareholder Benefits, Crown and Anchor Balcony and Suite Discounts and CAS Bonus. April Splash Sale is combinable with BOGO60 and Kids Sail Free as well as with promotional OBCs, NextCruise offers, Instant Savings, restricted discounts (for example, Seniors, Residents, Military), Promo Code driven offers, Free Upgrades, Shareholder Benefits, with Crown and Anchor Bonus but not combinable with Crown and Anchor Balcony and Suite Discounts. Crown and Anchor Balcony and Suite Discounts is combinable with Crown and Anchor Bonus but cannot be used with certain restricted fares and is not combinable with any other promotion or offer, including, but not limited to other dollars off and onboard credit offers, MyCruise® Upgrades, Companion Fare and Free Cruise promotions and benefits. Offers are not combinable with any other offer or promotion, including, but not limited to, Standard Group, Interline Rates, Travel Agent, Travel Agent Friends and Family, Weekly Sales Events, and Net Rates. Promo Code driven offers are based on select ships and sail dates and must be applied at time of booking; limit one promo code per booking. Offer available to residents of United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and select countries in the Caribbean.

What do packages and social media share? A post-al system What's clever and can fit in your hand? A smartphone

This is yet another reason why with the exception of my local news station, I don't watch the news anymore right now. A lot of hype, misinformation, and over-exaggeration right now. Since we're drydocked due to work until early next year, I spend my days when not watching Netflix looking at next year's cruises.

For me I would have to agree with anywhere on the ship because that means that I am far away from work, but if I had to rank them the top three for me would be Central Park, The Boardwalk, and my balcony in that order! I enjoy being able to grab a small morsel and people watch or watch the sea roll by and watch a sunrise or sunset!

Cream of mushroom soup, Coastal Kitchen filet and Grand Mariner Soufflé for me Escargot, French Onion soup, braised lamb shank and Tiramisu (from Jamie’s) for Dan We both also enjoy the whole Maine lobster from the Chops upcharge menu

While I'm somewhat relieved to see this news, the reality remains that even if the US allows cruise ships to resume sailings from its ports, that doesn't mean spit if all the destination countries / ports remain closed. Canada could choose to stay closed off through the summer; as could England, Spain, and other countries that normally serve as destination ports for transatlantic cruises. And if the states that own the cruise ports decide they're not ready for that influx of tourist traffic, the Federal government can't stop them from continuing a block. The governors of NY, NJ, PA, CT, MD, DE, and RI had a big conference call with the press yesterday afternoon, hosted by Andrew Cuomo (governor of NY). They were unanimous in their statement that since the states ultimately had to be in charge of shutting down businesses and enforcing isolation policies when the Federal government wouldn't provide clear guidance or actions, it will therefore be the states, not the Federal government, who decide when and how they reopen for business and resume normal activities. They also stated that it would be done in a controlled and measured manner to avoid causing a second wave like Hong Kong, China, and other APAC countries recently experienced. So definitely hope for the best, but continue to contingency plan for the worst.

It's a concern for us for sure ( here in quebec canada). We have a lot of cases here but hoping things start to start slowly running again in about a month if we keep up our social distancing. Another fear for me is possible mandatory 14 day quarantines for anyone travelling. Worried they make us do it in the future. It's not so easy turning a 1 week vacation into 3.

I find this so very sad. Praying for RC and it's employees https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/tourism-cruises/article242023321.html

Could definitely see this used for cruises. I mean we get to the port super early and usually sit for 30 minutes anyway. If its just a prick of the finger, no big deal. I don't want that stick up my nose into my throat but prick of the finger, no big deal at all. I just want to freaking go!

Yes, because I could snorkel at both locations, shop in Labadee, and enjoy dancing on the ship.

When the weather is nice, Central Park. Love to listen to the musicians in the afternoon/evening and have a glass of wine. 2nd favorite spot is the cafe on the Promenade.

Yep used in many UK comedy sketch shows..?

Yes, and they want it back !!

I feel bad for you guys. Let’s hope they do the right thing today and give us a new resume to sailing date!

We were with Mario on the last Oasis sailing before the shutdown, March 8-15 and had the pleasure of hanging out with him during Muster Drill. What a kind and colorful person he is! He showed us his Royal app, with over 8500 C&A points! We saw him in the Coastal Kitchen the last night of the cruise (one day after Captain Klaus announced the sailing pause to the ship). We asked him what he was doing during what was then thought to be just 30 days of land living, and he said he was spending the time on a friend's yacht. I'm guessing he's home in his Miami condo by now.

Don’t get me started with the hourly sale prices ? they publish. Lol.

Here's the spread from the Suite Reception on Enchantment in February. I didn't get a picture of the passed drinks - we go through them too quickly! ?

Funny how pricing a cruise today with that discount and senior discount it costs more then the cruise I purchased a week ago. And that’s for the same cruise ?

Whew. I was worried for a minute until you said that the VR glasses do not allow for "commando" mode at dinner. That would probably would have spoiled my appetite. LOL

RCCL is being a little too quiet....has me wondering what's going on through their minds??

Thankfully all of these networks that spew so much hate have minuscule audiences. Not only are the audiences tiny, they are largely the choir that is being preached to so there is no real damage. The vast majority of Americans tune them out altogether. Now back to the real topic, I have been cruising for 30 years, and I come from a family of cruisers. I'm glad you found the industry when you did, and I hope you and your loved ones have half of the fulfillment my family and I have had over the years. I have not done DCL. I love my children, but I'm not sure I love 1,000 of other people's children. But, I have a sister-in-law who swears by DCL. I plan to try it one day... maybe when my grand children come around. It may not be too many years down the path. My oldest (22) is getting married this summer. She and her fiance love the parks, so a progression to the ships is a real possibility. One other thing, the caption on your cartoon could also be "I wanna hear my voice". There is a lot of that going on too!

Did you actually book a sailing, or did you put the $200 down at NextCruise to book in the future? If it was the $200 to use in the future, those are non-refundable deposits. If you actually booked then it would depend if you booked refundable or non refundable (I"m guessing the $200 would be a non-refundable, but not sure.) Anyone else? https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2019/05/13/royal-caribbean-offering-book-two-months-later-option-nextcruise

Regarding the new Terminal 3 in Galveston... In yesterday's Special Meeting, the Galveston Wharves Board: Delayed until April 28 the vote on Royal Caribbean's request to delay the Galveston terminal construction by one year. The board member who moved to defer the vote wanted more details about "where we're going in the future" with Royal. Royal has reiterated their commitment to the new terminal project, but with a one year delay. https://www.galvnews.com/news/free/article_48caa8ab-1a9b-5216-9e98-7a1ace114e9d.html

@RCVoyager Yes! They (CNBC) were teasing the cruise line CEO all day, we just started sailing and discovered our love for it in 2016 so we have DCL & now RCL as our experiences. I paced with the TV on with zero sound until Mr. Donald appeared. I gave this presentation my full attention and I sat with mouth gaping at the sheer nastiness of the two "talking heads" Their palatable disrespect for this man was disgusting, I was pained as they tag teamed him, having not been familiar with him I found him to be so professional, never loosing control of his emotions and directly responding to everything posed. He reminded me of old school Bob Iger style. Upon conclusion of the interview I felt his representation was amazing, I hope he was heard, and even after he invited the "heads" on a future sailing they were snarky, my teenager has better manners! Right now I am doing my RCL tour with 5 future bookings all on her different ships, but it did make me say "I hope the other CEO's contact him and communicate gratitude as he was just wonderful....and brave. I just can't understand the pure HATRED, just so sad. I believe the CDC (as reflected below) spearheads this feeling too, shame on them! Be safe & stay healthy !

Maybe I’m wrong (wouldn’t be the first time) but I don’t read this article as lessening the the CDC order to 80 days; rather this article is referring to the original 120 day order being downgraded to 100 (article written April 13) The document in the public inspection section of the federal register still shows 100 days and is due for publishing at midnight.

I still contend I'm more likely to get sick on an airplane than a cruise ship. It never seems to fail that I feel like crud a day or two after I get off a plane. We're all crammed into a space that is MUCH smaller than when we're able to spread out on the ship. At least if I get sick on my next cruise (even with the sniffles!), I can hang out in my cabin and on my aft balcony and have space to myself and be distanced without being stuck inside. I've edited the post where I posted the article in its entirety via screenshots to include a link for anyone who needs it.

Day 1 - its cruise day ! Yaaaa As always I was already up on early 5 Am , I need to work on this (sure , who I am kidding) , I understood quite fast that I will not be able to go back to sleep so I went out and started to walk near the beach watching the sunrise from the mountains side. Went back to prepare a quick breakfast (eggs , salad and some fresh local cheese if you ask) and we organized our stuff packed it back to the car. As its a new ship the RCL application already supporting it so all we had to do is just to check in. After you check in you are getting a time slot (09:45 for us ) and all you need to do is to come to the port at that exact time , in case you missed the time the application is assigning you another slot which is 15 minute later. We arrive to port on time , the nice thing is that you do need to go out of the car . They scan your face and a 3rd imaging machine check the car and its content for something you should not bring on the ship. Once the scan was done we rolled in the car into the ship and parked it on our designated parking space.We took out the luggage assigned it the smart tags we got and left it on the nearest belt. We took the elevator up to our deck (deck 12) and went directly to the room which was already ready. Our luggage arrived near our door 10 minutes later , the application beep us whne it arrived so we started to unpack. The room is very nice (sorry no picture allowed yet) two rooms , huge walking in closet and a very nice balcony. The balcony has some nice new gadget which allow you to control if you want to cover it (glass cover) and if you can control its transparency you can also choose what to screen over the cover , it can be the current view or any many other options which you can choose from your application) It was a very nice weather so we decided to keep it open. One other option you can choose is to cover the balcony but to allow the sun inside while the other side is sealed so you can enjoy the sun in a very private way and have the air condition continue to work. We organized our stuff and went to the traditional lunch in the WJ. The WJ on this ship is bigger so no issue to find a place and all you need is to ask the application to guide you to an open table , once you got to the table its starts a timer and a small screen show your picture and indicates its occupied. If you are not back to table in 10 minutes it will become a free table again. It was very nice to know you do not need to leave anyone to watch the table. One nice feature is the washing station which shows you a countdown timer of 20 seconds so you will know when you are ready. Once you complete to wash your hands you go directly to the buffet but you pass via a scanner that will send you back if your hands are not clean enough. They are testing the system now and they consider to move the scanners near the washing station as some people already complained and called it the walk of shame but I think , just wash your hand as you should and no one will shame you. The food in the WJ really improved , they can even sever the filet from day one of the CK: After lunch we went to tour the ship , we used the application which gives you a guided tour and explain all the new things while you pass them .When you want to get some more details about something you see you just press the button on the application , scan the station and an hologram of an officer pop out and starts to explain what you see and what you can do. After the tour we went back to the room to plan our cruise , all you need to do is to link you account answer few questions on your preference and the virtual genie show your scheduled for the cruise including shows ,activities , games , tours and dinner plans, no need to worry about anything. Soon it become the time for the muster drill and no , you do not have anyone knocking on your door and kick you out , you are doing it from your own cabin using the virtual glasses which were waited for us on the bed. Once you wear the VR glasses they starts the drill you see were you need to assemble , you see who are the station leads and the other people in your station ans most important you do not watch the "James Bond" movie. It was so nice to do the drill while laying on the bed in the air condition. More to come

Called today regarding my refund since I had to add a name to my December reservation anyway. My cruise was for Enchantment on March 16th. I called and cancelled on the phone on March 12th, however it appears they did not cancel my cruise when I called as according to two customer service agents my cruise was not cancelled until March 14th, AKA the day that Royal voluntarily cancelled. The representative I spoke to today confirmed that it was canceled on March 14th, so I should be receiving my Cruise planner refunds today or tomorrow, but to give them until the end of the week to show in my account. She also said that my refund for the taxes/fees will be in the account by the end of the week, again to call on Monday if the refund isn't there. As far as FCC, the first round of cancellations should still have the FCC today at some point. Sit tight everyone. Maybe we will all have our refunds and FCC's by the end of the week. The good news is the current hold time is only about 10 minutes if you need to call them.

Ah, to be so young ?

Eh, by then you can just leave her back home ?

As we all know, the cruise lines in general and Carnival in particular are hated by the mainstream media. I have said many times, and I will say again, the vast majority of people with negatives to say either have an agenda or they are ignorant of what cruising in general and Carnival in particular are all about. I love to cruise both Royal and Carnival. Each has advantages over the other, and in the end, they balance out to about equal in terms of the quality of the overall experience. I am working with a new PVP at Carnival now to finalize the details of our twice cancelled cruise into an October trip. The guy is amazing and I believe he will get us the $600 obc, our future cruise, and a cash refund of the difference because of the October cost savings. They say it can't be done, but it's being done for us right now.

Thank you for the heads up. I will go over mine when its issued hopefully soon so I can apply it to my "long hold".

OK, essential workers, etc. I was more referring to non-essential travel. i.e. vacation travel and the like.

Hi everyone, I know we get heated debating which dessert is the best one to order, or if a balcony room is worth it, but let's keep these basic rules in mind when chatting here. No profanity No personal insults No political discussion This includes tropes about politicians and generalizations about political parties No debating religion Keep your posts relevant and accurate to each specific thread. We can all have our little fun within each thread but please make sure the information you're putting out there is correct and current. Topics not related to Royal Caribbean may be removed. Posts or comments encouraging cruisers to break any Royal Caribbean policy is not allowed and will be removed.