Leaderboard

It would be a media goldmine for Desolation county Wyoming to have one person test positive with COVID. This would be 50,000 per 100,000 as only 2 people live in this imaginary county.

Being a numbers person it is hard to not critique an article like that. I will refrain from pointing out likely intentional statistical dishonesty again. Another surprising statistic: 50% of the graduates of Harvard are in the bottom half of their graduating class….I though they were all smart.

I feel for the crew (who are 100% Vaccinated) that have to wear masks. ESPECIALLY those in outside venues. Why are lifeguards at Coco Cay wearing masks?! I know, I know…. CDC.. optics…. Etc. I just feel for them. ??

Hi, The dining options and arrangements on the itinerary prepared by the Royal Genie (see attachment above), weren't not chosen by us. As the upgrade happened just 1 day away from the sailing, there wasn't enough time for the Royal Genie and for us to interaction with each other and to pre-plan the itinerary at all. When she first contacted us and introduced us as our Royal Genie, it was 9am in the morning and our boarding starts from 2pm on the same day. Hence, I think she did a very very good job by planning the itinerary for us in advance before she contacted us via WhatsApp. I'd imagine if we had enough time (i heard the Royal Genie will contact you 1 month before the sailing), the planning of itinerary will be a much detailed and personalised one. However, (here comes the main point), the Royal Genie was extremely flexible with our requests. Even though the itinerary was pre-planned by her, she told us that it was just a formality and if we want to amend anything, simply inform her via message and she will do her best to make it happen for us. A summary of the things that I've requested to change (when we are onboard, as well as days into our sailing): - On the first day, we requested for a late dinner seating for all nights. She helped us update all dinner reservations to 8pm seating. - We requested to change the lunch venue on the 4th day from JI to Izumi. I remember I made the request at the very last minute, but the request was fulfilled and the wait staff at Izumi greeted us by name when we arrived at the restaurant. From this, you can tell how well the communications went behind the scene. - We requested to take the North Star Ride on Day 1 instead of Day 3, and it happened. - On the first day, the Royal Genie asked if we have any preferred beverages that we would like to have in our minibar. After informing her, she sent someone over to stock up the drinks in our mini bar (Evian Water, Diet Soda and Bottled Stout), and also serves us freshly squeezed orange juiceby the glass every morning. - There was an activity at the SeaPlex that does not take reservation in advance. The reservation list opens for signing up 15 mins before the start of the activity. The Royal Genie knows that we are interested to take part in the activity. She told us that she will go over to SeaPlex 15 minutes earlier to help us write our names down on the reservation list. Basically, if you have any last minute requests, just let your Royal Genie knows. She will do her best to work it out for you. Things like last minute changes of restaurant (for example from Chop's to JI) should not be any problem unless the restaurant is fully booked. However, even if that's the case, you will be assured that you are at the top of the waiting list.

Hi guys. I’m here to share my recent experience with RoyalUp, a program that allows people with existing reservations to bid for an upgrade to a higher room category. The reason why I’m sharing my experience is because prior to and after the upgrade, I had a ton of questions that I’ve been trying to look for answers all over the internet but couldn’t find any. Hence, I’d like to share my experience with everyone and hopefully it can give some answers to my fellow cruisers! A brief introduction: (or skip to the end for the answers to the “FAQs”) I’ve booked a last minute 4-night sailing onboard Quantum of the Seas in Singapore, also known as Cruise to Nowhere. It is basically a hospitality restarting program by the Singapore government with no ports of call. Strict restrictions are also put in place for the safety of the guests. I’ve booked a Junior Suite (J4) for me and my wife. The price displayed on the RC’s booking website was SGD 1399pp for 4-nights before pre-paid gratuities and port taxes. There wasn’t any other suite options left for booking, which I presumed was fully booked. Almost immediately after completing the reservation transaction, I received the RoyalUP email, and invited me to place a bid to a higher room category. Even though I could clearly see that none of the higher suite categories were available for booking, I still decided to give it a try at bidding for RoyalUp. Long story short, I placed bids on all categories, ranging from Grand Suite to Royal Loft Suite and kind of forgot about the whole RoyalUp thing. Until around 24 hours before the sailing, I received an email saying that my bid for a Grand Loft Suite was successful. My bid amount was SGD 1210 per person hence SGD 2420 was charged to my credit card on file immediately. In general, I paid about $2710 per person ($1399 (JS) +$1210 (RoyalUp) +$100 taxes and pre-paid gratuities) I’ve checked the price of a Grand Loft Suite on a different sailing date, and it cost around SGD 5400 per person and before taxes. Which means, I’ve gotten nearly a 50% off the original price. From Junior Suite to Grand Loft Suite is a big jump. In terms of Royal Suite class, it was upgraded from Sea Class to Star Class. At this point, I was very excited! But at the same time, I have a lot questions that needs answers to. To be honest, even with a “huge discount”, SGD 2710 (SGD 5k+ for 2 people) is almost double the original budget hence to me, it is still a lot of money to fork out for a 4-day vacation. As we know, Grand Loft Suite is a Star Class suite and it is practically All-Inclusive such as free specialty dining, deluxe beverage package, internet package etc and it comes with a Royal Genie. So naturally, some questions flashes through my mind, and since it was an upgrade through RoyalUP: “Am I going to get a Royal Genie as well?” “Will I be treated differently in terms of services than those guests who paid the original price?” “How about the things I’ve pre-paid on Cruise Planner such as beverage package and internet package since my suite already includes all those packages?” I’ve tried searching for answers on the internet but I couldn’t find any. However, after I’ve completed my sailing, I kind of gotten all the answers I needed. So now, I’m going share them with you guys. My very own set of FAQs: Q: Am I going to get Royal Genie as well? A: Yes! Even though I gotten the upgrade 1 day before the sailing, the Royal Genie got in touch with me via WhatsApp on the morning of the sailing and she already took the liberty to arrange all the activities for us! She already pre-booked all the shows, specialty dinning and some activities such as iFly and Flow Rider. And she was extremely flexible and accommodating on all our requests to change meal timings, shows timings. All you need to do is just let her know your preference and leave everything to her. Q: Will I be treated differently in terms of services compared to those guests who paid the original price? A: Not at all. From my observations, only 2 groups of service crews knew you are an “upgrader”. They are the Royal Genie, and the cruise terminal staff. Usually, Genie will contact you 1 month before your sailing to get to know you better. However, she does know that you are an upgrader since she contacted you just 1 day before the sailing, not the usual 1 month. As for the cruise terminal staff, our information was given to them by the cruise line at the very last minute hence our information was “hand-written” on their paper. They did “congratulate” us on the successful upgrade by the Cruise Line which is why I knew they knew we were an upgrader. Nevertheless, they escorted from the moment we reached the terminal until being handed over to the Royal Genie. Very good service rendered. Q: How about the things I’ve pre-paid on Cruise Planner such as beverage package and internet package since my suite already includes all those packages A: They will be refunded to you and the Royal Genie made sure of that. It will be under “refundable” onboard credit and you can requested to get them in cash on the last night of the cruise. Otherwise, it will be refunded to your credit card. Q: How about my SeaPass card? Will I be recognized as a Star-Class guest? A: You will be identified as a Star Class guest on your SeaPass card, not the original room category that you were booked on. Q: Do I get the same perks and benefit listed under Star-Class suite even though I’m an upgrader? A: Yes! Complementary Dining Package, Beverage package, internet package, complementary mini-bar for the whole cruise with replenishment daily, complementary room-service, complementary laundry (I don’t think they set a limit on the quantity of clothes). For Izumi, there is no limit in terms of the amount you can order. If you have a Ultimate Dining Package, I believe per meal you will get USD35 credit per person for Izumi as it is based on A-la-carte pricing. But for Star-Class, there is no limit on that. The wait staff made it known to you before you order. Q: How about those chargeable activities? A: For our sailing, the chargeable activities are iFly (~$40) and Northstar (~$20) and strictly by reservation only. However, with the help of our Genie, reservation was done before hand. There is no charges for Star-Class guest for these activities. However, you are only entitled to 1 free session for each of these 2 activities. If you would like to go for a second-time, you will have to pay the charges. All other FAQs regarding Star-Class: Q: Can Royal Genie fulfill all your requests? A: Yes and No. I’d emphasize that your request must be reasonable. If you would like to change your dinner venue to another restaurant at the very last minute, you can kindly check with her. Most of the times it can be fulfilled. However, if the restaurant is full, she might suggest to change to an earlier or a later time for you. I’m not sure what kind of magic they have, but I’m definitely against them pulling out other guests from their original dining timing just to slot you in. Firstly, you are putting Genie in a difficult position, secondly, you are causing unhappiness to the affected guests. So I’d suggest to give the Genie some leeway. Do not force you request onto them. If it can be done in a gentle way, go ahead. If not, please do not force or blame them. Q: Do I need to tip the Royal Genie? A: Absolutely. They are not a receiver of the automatically gratuity system on board. Hence, the tips relies solely on you. Royal Genie is not just a regular butler, they are there to learn about you and make arrangements for you which you didn’t even think of. My wife somehow mentioned to the Genie that this is our 2nd anniversary trip when we were casually chatting. (but did not mention in details). The Genie caught it and arranged for a surprise decoration and cake in the room for us. My wife and I were surprised as initially, we really can’t figure out how she knew about our anniversary. It is only when we tried to recall every single thing we said to the Genie, and realized that it must have slipped out of our mouth at certain point. Their attention to details are just simply unbelievable. Hope this post is useful for whoever is looking for the same answers as I did. Happy cruising!

We're back to discussing Covid in general terms, with little if any reference to cruising. Shutting down the thread, thanks for playing.

It's like you've never even READ me... ? ??? @Patta_Conna, big congratulations on winning that. I'm betting though that now you're both spoiled and can never sail anything less than SC ever again. That's what @WAAAYTOOO and @Lovetocruise2002 and all the other SC addicts say, anyway....

Exactly! In fact I'm pretty sure that hospitalizations are not increasing with increased case counts. Trying to hit a zero CoVid goal is like trying to hit a zero flu goal, it will not happen.

100% of reported cases from yesterday are among unvaccinated individuals. Why in the world does a mask mandate come back to include vaccinated people, when the vaccinated are not developing CoVid? Can we for once use some common since or has that been thrown out the window?!?!?

Royal Genie Questionaire received!! 51 days out! Is it weird that I'm savouring the moment before I hit the "See my questionnaire" button. Worried that it will be gone too soon and it will be awhile until I see another royal genie email in my inbox...?

I used to teach Business Statistics for a college night class. My intro was always something like, "Tell me what you want the numbers to say, and I will get them for you." They have to be careful not to insert their bias in the work, that is, if the goal is to get a true number, not a desired number. What is the most popular color Floridians wear to basketball games? You want the answer to the Poll to be BLUE? I focus more weight on a Magic hosting the Dallas Mavericks game. Then add Magic/Heat and guess what? I checked 2 locations and came up with BLUE! So many ways to make it look fair, but when you dig into the details, it is what whoever wanted. Then they can sell that data to the media and general public that does not understand. "We checked both Florida NBA Teams, and overwhelmingly Floridians wear BLUE?" Want the answer to the Poll color to be RED? I choose Heat/Magic & Heat/Rockets. "We checked both Florida NBA Teams, and overwhelmingly Floridians wear RED?" I would have the raw data to prove both correct (unless you dig into the details) If it is not what I want, I may have to do another game with the color I want and a non-Red or non-Blue team. Then the data looks more credible. Same with political or CV-19 polls (Did I just say Tune Fish). Tell me what you want, and I can get the number. You have to look at any Poll in the media without the raw data with a skeptical eye.

If not using a TA you can use an automated system: Call 866-562-7625 then options 4 then 2 then 1. It should tell you and send it to the email on file

Here, the district court stayed its order for 30 days to give the CDC the chance to propose a narrower injunction. The CDC offered no proposal, but instead delayed almost three weeks in seeking this extraordinary relief. The Court should deny the motion for that reason alone.

A rise in case counts does not necessarily mean a rise in hospitalizations and deaths now. something to remember when you hear about a rise in case counts. The media often ignores that fact. Zero Covid should not be goal nor is it attainable.

I won't sail anything eith a whale tail funnel! Any RCI ship works for me

Just booked Oasis! Mask or no mask lol.. going to experience this amazing ship!

dont bring that kinda of reasoning around here lol

@tonyfsu21 if you have time, go through these videos by an RC Blog Insider, Shannon Ford. She sailed FR with her little boy July 2, and she vlogged the entire trip. It was really informative, especially if you are travelling with little ones. I just linked the first video, but she has a whole series (14-15) of them that she vlogged over the 3 days. You can find them on her channel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCKukdWYHew

Right The CSO going from requirement to suggestion only applies to Florida ports. Not Seattle, Galveston, et al.

Corduroy pillows are making headlines!

TBH, I've stopped reading most pandemic metrics reported - summarized is a better word because those summaries can be terribly misleading - by the press. There are data bases available on line that report dozens of different metrics. The good ones don't try to interpret them. One really has to look at what's available and do your own interpreting. I have some knowledge but not the expertise to roll what's available into meaningful conclusions about any number of things having to do with the pandemic. That PH officials and virologists dance around what the data means and speak in frustratingly vague terms is because these people know how difficult it is to make authoritative statements based on the data that is available. I've posted here previously that reporting rising case numbers, without other background data, is not an indication of a worsening pandemic situation. But that is uniformly the conclusion that the press often implies or the reader/viewer of those reports concludes. As well, politics have been folded into interpretations and this is just another factor that makes most interpretations flawed. The best way to proceed is to reject almost everything that is reported in the press and on social media platforms, find data bases that reliably report raw numbers (there are many), study them and draw your own conclusions. Then, assess your own risk tolerance and proceed accordingly. It's too bad that most governments and businesses take liability into account when making policy and that produces various restrictions - inconveniences - that sometimes we just have to deal with.

Thank you. I needed a confirmation and this got me there quickly.

Correct, plus old man Doc Winston is only at the General Mercantile once a week to administer tests. In regards to cruising, it has been reported that neither resident of Desolation county has ever seen a cruise ship.

Club soda/seltzer shouldn't have any sugar, even if flavored. I gave up soda during the pandemic and switch exclusively to soda water. Other than a smidge of sodium, it has nothing in it and is basically the same as water. I love it as I get my bubbles fix and don't have to worry about the bad stuff.

The answer is the Milk Run!!

Time for some new reading material... CDC/HHS Motion for Stay (filed 7/7): https://1drv.ms/b/s!AjpWMo-t4z28-WmXO6Y3sW2Onwjp Florida's Response (filed 7/12): https://1drv.ms/b/s!AjpWMo-t4z28-jA7ayFMI5m9nCca Any docket being cross referenced should be viewable at: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/59804600/state-of-florida-v-becerra/

You can go through Royal and they will provide an officer and venue for the renewal ceremony. All this costs a pretty penny. We renewed on Radiance during an Alaskan cruise in 2017. Royal did a great job. A couple came right after us who had not used Royal but used their own official and our venue and decorations for a short ceremony. Lucky for them. You could do the same without going through Royal. [email protected] or 1-888-WED-RCCL. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/plan-a-cruise/cruise-weddings https://www.royalcaribbean.com/content/dam/royal/resources/pdf/royal-weddings-brochure.pdf

I track it pretty much the same way I track my cabin prices. I only book Delta, so each day or two, I check on my Delta app if the price has changed and if it did, I just call Air2Sea directly, not Royal. If the price has dropped on Delta direct, it’s dropped each time on Air2Sea as well. It’s easy. I’ve done it several times now.

BUT an unmasked day on a cruise ship beats all others; and it is an option with other lines

Interesting data that would tell more of the story is the number of tests conducted and or the total number of cases. I assume vaccinated people are testing less or not at all. This would explain a higher positivity rate even if total cases are unchanged or even decreasing. A higher positivity rate does not necessitate an increase in cases. Cherry picking statistics can tell almost any story. I did not investigate beyond the article. I’m simply stating that as written it isn’t relevant in terms of statistical validity.

Basically when you pull into the terminal and you're in the far right lane, there's a curb where they're getting everyone out of the cars and taking luggage. You want to keep going and you'll see a closer to the curb wall area, which is the backside of the elevator banks. You want to be dropped off right past that for Star Class.

YUCK ????? lol ….. I hate Pepsi ??? ….. Coke Zero Rules! ???

Thank you, Matt. So glad cruising is back. I missed it. Maybe they will add Coco Cay instead of Grand Cayman. Not a bad substitution!

I believe capacity was slated to be around 400, and that includes those with access via a Beach Club Beach Cabana or Floating Cabana. The island is designed to hold 10,000, so 400 is a really small portion of a max-capacity island.

This thread is very trivial ?

@steverkThe Mardi Gras looks alright. But yes I don't like CCL ships, its the garish decor, not necessarily the offering. Also they had Pepsi, which is one of the more disgusting soda brands. So when I was a heavy soda drinker, I stop cruising with them as a main reason.

Rural counties tend to have higher positivity percentages, too, since people aren't nearly a likely to go all the way into town just to take a test "just in case"

@Mattneeds to pin this! Awesome information!

Here is a site I use to check daily. It seems to tell a different story when national hot spots are compared to Florida. https://usafacts.org/visualizations/coronavirus-covid-19-spread-map 7-Day Average July 11th Miami-Dade 23 cases per 100,000 0 Deaths per 100,000 To show how deceptive data can be unless you look deeper. That dark red in Montana is Powder River County. 7-Day average per 100,000 July 11th 161 Cases 17 deaths However, the Population of Powder River County (2019) is 1,607 Don't trust the media's statistics until you do the deep research. You can adjust the data by dividing the population of Miami-Dade by 100,000 then multiplying that number times 23. Of course, whatever that number time zero deaths, is still quite low. I am thinking it is less than .5 per 100,000, but without the knowledge of how the stats are compiled, it is only a guess.

Ah, the irony. Florida.

Any sailing out of Florida..

Stealing a gif that @Mattuses all the time lol, but so appropriate

Our next cruise I'm planning for is 05/05/22 Alaska. I've looked at the excursions and wrote down the ones that really impress me and their cost so I can track the prices. On our cruise this August I've booked everything so I just check to make sure the price does not go lower than what I've already paid. Like @FionaMG said just look at the bottom line, RC math is worst than Core Math.

Ideal is that area that comes in view at 7:23, just after the main drop-off area. Right after where it says "Welcome" and those blue cones are. That is the main entrance to the terminal and the Star Class banner would be near the doors. It is somewhat of tight squeeze at that point. Unless things have changed it would be great if the Star Class banner was closer to the curb. Excuse I was told why it wasn't curbside was so people using the elevator would notice it.

This video might help visualize the drop-off layout. 7 minute mark is the normal drop-off area. Goal drop-off area is coming in view at the 7:23 mark.

Not only have you booked the only Oasis class ship that has been amplified, you also are going to be sailing out of the new terminal in Miami, which is another big bonus !! The suites lounge (if they are using it...which I would be very very surprised if they are not) is a completely separate area with separate elevator access. There will be a Star Class greeter outside of the terminal that will get you where you need to go. Do NOT give your luggage to anyone until after you check in with the SC greeter. Your Genie will meet you in the suites waiting lounge and escort you onto the ship. Congratulations !! Nice digs for your first Royal Caribbean cruise !

For Miami if driving I'd highly suggest parking at the terminal in the garage. Yes, it does cost more versus a park and go type lot but the traffic ease makes it worthwhile. Star Class side, keep and eye for the banner near the main entrance and don't hand your luggage over to any until an agent summons a porter. Same applies if parking in the garage, you’ll need to drag your luggage to the entrance unless you deal with the traffic and make the loop around. Best part is the Genie will take of all the key highlights and arranging a schedule. Truthfully I think a 4 day sailing will burn you out trying to fit everything in. Plan on a show every night, some nights it might be two. Dining, sure everything will be covered between lunches and dinners.