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Showing content with the highest reputation on 09/19/2021 in all areas

  1. We just got off 4 weeks on Symphony, weeks 2~5 of Symphony's restart (More on that later). First, I wanted to talk about passenger count and the odds of a Royal Up bid. Our cruise passenger count would drop daily as better counts were out. Aug 21st the first count was around 1,500 and eventually whittled down to 1,127. Rumor was 125 were turned away for insufficient or improper documentation as adjustments were made. Aug 29th we heard about 1,700 and eventually Coco Cay was told to prepare for only 1,414. Sept 4th, the holiday week, they still had 2,100 reservations on the books. Ended up with a number around 1,725 +/-50 Sept 11th we had the largest number of B2B at 93. It was moved from Boleros to the Schooner Bar. Last number I heard, but seemed high compared to Sept 4th, was 1,750 +/- 100. Things are very fluid right now. It is hard to plan for an exact number, as some people are waiting till the last minute to cancel, likely in hopes of better protocols. But to cruise with those numbers is perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Royal Up was crazy. People would Royal Up from Interior to Balcony, Balcony to Grand Suite, Grand Suite to Royal Loft (Aug 29th). People we interacted with won Royal Up to the Ultimate Family Suite (About 8 passengers with only paying the Bid for the first 2 passengers), Deck 8 Aqua 2-Bd with the largest balcony (1 occupant), Crown Lofts were going like penny candy in a candy store, Owner's Suite were available, and naturally those Royal Ups created a backfill for Grand Suite, Junior Suite, Balcony and Ocean View. Right now, if you are cruising on the Symphony, have an interior stateroom, and give a reasonable Royal Up bid there is a lot of backfill above you sitting empty. We received Royal Up all 3 weeks we bid up from Grand Suite (Aug 29th we did not bid, rather stayed with Star Class Aqua 2-Bd). Below is meant as nothing more than reading the past x numbers on the roulette wheel sign to increase your odds of winning. Therefore, I am not giving the exact $$ number, which likely would not work right now anyway, but my Aug 21st and Sept 4th bids were notably less than $500. (Remember, the bid $$ is per person for up to the first 2 passengers). Aug 21 Grand Suite to Crown Loft. Aug 29th - We did not bid up from Star Class Aqua 2-Bd, but I know the winning Grand Suite to Royal Loft Royal Up bid was notably less than $3,000 per/person. Sep 4th Grand Suite to Owner's Suite Deck 12 240 (Which has a mildly annoying post in the several yards into the middle of the entrance to the room). Sep 11th Grand Suite to Star Class Aqua 2-Bd Deck 10 734 for notably less than $1,700 per/person. Again, the passenger counts were very low, and those numbers may not be more than a guideline right now, especially since they are now more public. You may get it for a lesser bid, or you may bid a little more and still not get it. The objective is to encourage you to sign up for Royal Up if you have not done so, and to BID FOLKS! Closing thoughts: Professional Photographer, Ajuraj (pronounced Achoo, like a sneeze is acceptable) and Aakash are fantastic! Though his studio shots are excellent, Ajuraj is willing to break away from the normal studio style photos. I saw him shoot one couple at CBC getting low for a continuation of the pool into the ocean at the infinity pool. It is worth a sitting. Some examples below. Sunil is a great Royal Genie. At various times we had interaction with the entire Royal Genie staff. Even the newest Genie was great and willing to serve from my interaction with him and one passenger where that is who was his Royal Genie. Hairspray, Mark Preston, and Jeff Tracta were great entertainment. When comedian Landry said he would bring on the headliner for the Family Comedy Show, the lady behind us appropriately said, "Headliner, I thought he was the headliner," because he was that good. The entire staff is so eager to serve. We made many friends over 4 weeks. Priya in Guest Services, Flavia in Next Cruise, if we could have packed waitress May at Hooked Restaurant in our luggage we would have, Victor, Praveen and many of the photo staff for special night and port pictures produced great shots in our photo package, Made and Alina on the Rising Tide Bar, Sachin and Mark in Chops, Radu and Boodhoo in Jamie's, Justin and Decan have the Coastal Kitchen and seating running like a well oiled machine, same with the Johnny Rockets crew who occasionally come out and put on a performance on Boardwalk, Rebeka at Sugar Beach is sweeter than the sugar behind the door, even Maria in housekeeping whose task was to keep the fwd Promenade stairs by the big lollipop cleaned down to the entertainment on Deck 4 was super friendly and excited to see passengers she recognized. If possible, I would list so many great crew members, but let me list those who were not great--ready--NOBODY! On a sad note, the Mad Hatter of so many years retired (24 years) at the end of the Aug 21st cruise. There is a replacement, but it will take some time to get the character down, according to those that went starting Aug 29th. Safety precautions were great. In San Juan, Channel 13 interviewed myself and several passengers about safety concerns. Safety Concerns? I told them I was more concerned during my air transportation than on the ship, and my daughter is a flight attendant. Here are some examples: The day before the cruise, even though I answered several emails, I received a call from Royal to verify I was vax'ed and would be providing proof. Don't have the negative test paperwork, you don't get on. Ever see that at a hotel? At the airport? Vax'ed have a colored wristband, Unvax'ed do not, so anyone can instantly tell if the person next to you has been vax'ed or not. Ever see that at the grocery store? Shopping Mall? (Let's hope that never comes to land. No Scarlet Letters or wristbands, but because of the media, I can understand it on the ship). Even though Vax'ed and UnVax'ed are separated by Decks in the MDR, there is still table spacing distancing. Maybe some land restaurants have that, but do they include the proper docs to verify? At the Casino, when anyone gets up, they wipe the area down fast. The crew is tested once or twice a week, perhaps depending on the amount of interaction with passengers. We had Zero Positives during our cruises. 6 or your group in an elevator. Okay, a comment here about elevator limits, folks. Use common sense. If 6 unvax'ed strangers can get in the larger capacity elevators, is it really unsafe if a group of 6 and 2 vax'ed get in the elevator? Many times, as long as no one objected, 6 or more of us invited vax'ed (we would see their wristbands) in the elevator if they wished. In 4 weeks, I only had one group of six friends, panicky adamant about the sign saying only 6. I mean over the top panicky. If a 7th got on, especially not one of their 6 group, they would all surely die before the end of the cruise. That was okay. I understand how the media has overplayed the safety concerns aboard ships. In that scenario I wasn't concerned about CoVid-19 variants. I was concerned about forgetting all my years successfully writing procedures and protocols to meet general Federal Aviation Build Guidelines. Anyway, on and on the precautions are in play. In 4 weeks B2B you see so much that many shorter time passenger miss. In this case, I was impressed.
    10 points
  2. Thank you! I'll be honest, there was many a night I stayed awake while Steven fell asleep, but I did enjoy blogging the trip and hope it helped answer some of the questions that others have. Steven did catch a picture of me blogging on the balcony one day.
    8 points
  3. Final thoughts: This trip has been absolutely amazing. It was off to a rough start, but wow, it ended as one of our favorite cruises. We worried about how cruising would be with all of the new Covid restrictions and if we would walk around with a scarlet letter on our heads bringing kids too young to be vaccinated on a cruise. We were totally wrong. Everybody on the ship was very nice and some even smiled, laughed, and played with the kids, especially the youngest two. We didn't get a single rude comment or look from other passengers about cruising with kids. The staff seemed so happy to be back at sea and were very accommodating. There were obviously things we missed like the Quest, Love and Marriage, World's Sexiest Man Competition, and the Belly Flop Competition. We also wish we could have done laser tag and the escape room, but there is so much to do even without those that it was still an amazing trip. One thing I missed was the interaction that we usually get with our room attendant. I don't think this was his fault though, as there are so many new rules they must abide by such as not going into the room when the guests are there. It made the experience less personal with him even though he seemed like a nice guy. The vaccinated only and everybody shows were also an annoyance at times when the everybody show ended up playing too late for kids. Hairspray was phenomenal, but Steven commented that the minimal seating detracted from the ambience (there was less people to laugh and clap at key moments in the performance). We also did not like having the Windjammer closed for dinner, but we were always so full anyway. We only made one stop at the Windjammer this cruise, and we actually perferred how it is now with them serving you food. It's nice not to have to worry about people touching all the food with their hands plus the food seemed fresher perhaps due to smaller portions being brought out at a time. Sunil picked out all of our servers at the specialty restaurants and he did a fantastic job because all of the servers we had were wonderful (with the exception of the guy at Playmakers, but Sunil did not choose him). We continually saw the Covid restrictions being modified. Room service went from not being allowed in your room to allowed in if you go into a different room and then finally to closer to what it used to be like all within a one week period. We watched a limit of five in a pool be modified to no limit. The genies went from not being able to pick up your kids from Adventure Ocean to being able to. Initially, we were told they were not doing the 2 for $20 t-shirts sale on this cruise because it puts people in too close of proximity to each other, but on day 6, the t-shirt sale happened. Cruising is slowly returning to normal, and we watched this transition happen every day. I would be remiss to end this without taking about Sunil. If you are lucky enough to get him as your genie, you are in for a treat. He truly made this trip unique. He went above and beyond and became like family to us. The kids are already talking about requesting him as our genie when we go on Symphony in April, which we are definitely going to do. For anyone wondering, he goes home on November 27th, and then he is going back to Symphony in January. Lastly, thank you to everyone who followed along. I hope this helped show what the current state of cruising is. Happy cruising and best of luck to everyone!
    8 points
  4. Gotta say, Royal is doing it right -- ship was about 30% capacity -- (I heard everything from 1200 to 1400 passengers). The crew was incredibly attentive and happy to be sailing. Chops Grille (my first time there) was delicious. Check in was simple and staterooms were ready when we got on board. We had a bit of a scare. on night 3 (Nassau) We were scheduled to leave the port at 9pm and didn't leave until around midnight due to a passenger that needed medical attention. I heard that the passenger had a fever and needed to find a hospital bed, but I also heard that the passenger was injured and needed medical attention. Gotta admit it was a little worrisome, but AGAIN, Royal handled it as best they could. Now counting down to my next one in 7 weeks!!!
    7 points
  5. We are currently on our last day on Independence. We have had a wonderful time. The number of guests is 1398, so around 35% occupancy. The ship never felt empty but it definitely was not crowded. The staff has been wonderful and the shows have all been very enjoyable. I'm so glad we came.
    6 points
  6. Hey all, I know there are a bunch of you that are coming to Cali for a cruise on Navigator at some point this next year. Living in the area I thought I would roll out the welcome mat and give you options for some of my local favorites that are within an Uber/Lyft drive. If you are staying in San Pedro, one of my all-time favorite breakfast spots is San Pedro Cafe (605 S. Pacific Ave.) - try the strawberry stuffed French toast (to die for!!). Can get a little crowded on the weekend, so plan accordingly. Most of my favorites are breakfast options, but I will check with some locals for dinner options... more to come! OK, back again (edit) with some additional ideas/recommendations: Think Cafe (302 W. 5th St) - casual dining, breakfast/lunch/dinner. San Pedro Brewing(331 W. 6th St.) - lunch/dinner. 22nd St. Landing (141 W. 22nd St.) - lunch/dinner, a little pricey. After looking at the menu, I might have to check this one out (just to make sure it's OK for you all... you know, taking one for the team! ha ha) Ports O' Call Village isn't what it used to be (filled with shops & restaurants), but it's still a nice spot to walk through, with some terrific spots for fresh fish. Battleship USS Iowa opens at 10 am for visitors. If you want to wander a little further, you can check out the Korean Friendship Bell located at 3601 Gaffey St., or further into Palos Verdes you can visit the Wayfarers Chapel. Located just past Portuguese Bend, it is a small chapel, tucked away in the trees. It is also known as the 'glass church' because its walls and ceilings are made of glass. The winding road to get there affords amazing views, and the chapel is truly amazing. It is one of the most peaceful and beautiful spots that I know. Long Beach is a close Uber/Lyft drive if you want some options for dining overload, or just a nice spot to stretch your legs and enjoy the view. Shoreline Village is one of those spots to simply take in the world around you (located on Shoreline Dr.). If you want to dine there, I would suggest Parker's LIghthouse or Yard House, but there are many options in the area. A further drive into Long Beach, 2nd street (between PCH and Livingston Dr.) is another lovely spot to wander, shop and eat. Looking for a romantic gondola ride around Naples island? Check out Gondola Getaway (http://www.gondolagetawayinc.com/). Just up Ocean Blvd. a bit is Belmont Brewing (good food and great views). If you have a day to spare, I would highly suggest a drive down PCH to Laguna Beach. The views on the drive there and back are definitely worth the time spent getting there. Suggestions for getting around in the area: If you are looking to check out anything in Long Beach or further out to Huntington Beach, be aware that weekends are crazy crowded, especially on Sunday. Plan accordingly, head out early, and know that traffic in So. Cal is truly insane! Use a ride service to get around if you can, it will take the stress out of getting somewhere and then looking for parking (which is a whole next-level challenge). More ideas to come as I think of them. Feel free to ask any questions and I'm sure that more of the locals will chime in with their answers/suggestions as well.
    5 points
  7. When I retire in 9 years, Hubby and I want to take one of those world cruises. What is that? Like 3-4 months onboard? That sounds awesome!
    5 points
  8. BrianB

    Royal Up offers

    Last night at 8pm…sixteen hours before I am due to board…I received an email from RoyalUp telling me my bid for this sailing was ‘Unsuccessful’. First I get the email telling me my bid was cancelled…now the email telling me my bid was unsuccessful. Sort of rubbing it in. What’s next? An email telling me my haircut is ‘old fashioned’?
    4 points
  9. Disembarkation: Today was the day we had been dreading. When I woke up, I opened the curtains to see Miami. We tried to drag leaving out as long as possible and told Sunil we wanted to be the last ones he escorted off the ship. Room service does not make deliveries on disembarkation day, but Sunil made sure we got our normal breakfast and Starbucks delivered to our room. He showed up to our room at 9:15am like we had arranged. With him, was a porter to get our luggage. It took about 15 to 20 minutes to get from our suite to our car. Disembarkation was very smooth and we didn't have any issues.
    4 points
  10. If I learn the secret knock and handshake will you let me in? If not I’ll put a glass to the wall from the Diamond Lounge to hear what y’all are doing in there!
    3 points
  11. I have noticed that there is a great deal of variation in the competency and organization with different CVS branches. I suppose that could be really be said of any of the chain stores/restaurants. But because I once lived an equal distance between 2 cvs’s and used both and then recently moved residences, the disparity across the cvs locations is particularly evident to me. It is tough to trust anyone or any place with this particular task, a heavy duty “shot” of anxiety ahead of each sailing for sure @CrusingfromClayton that has been my experience with them for all tests/vaccines - there is a 2 week window.
    3 points
  12. 3 points
  13. Oct in NJ is beautiful. On sunny days the temperature can get warm enough to enjoy the beach and at night it can be sweater/windbreaker brisk. Especially on the water. But remember, weather is a fickle thing. Just be prepared.
    3 points
  14. Im booked out of PR in March with a 4 day stop in NYC on way back to UK. Cant see it happening but cant change it as she who must be obeyed is missing the shops in New York and is having severe withdrawal symptoms
    3 points
  15. AshleyDillo

    Limited Capacity

    They are still having hundreds of no-shows day of sailings, so reduced capacity it pretty much handling itself right now. In fact I think the cruiselines would happily take more passengers. Folks are canceling for the protocols, testing requirements, mask requirements, etc. Royal's letting people get refunds when the protocols are released so people are taking advantage of that if they aren't comfortable with sailing.
    3 points
  16. CrznTxn

    Limited Capacity

    With the media circus blaming the worst COVID-19 infections on cruise ships a lot of people have cancelled or will not book cruises at the moment. That is why you see 1,000 or less on ships that can carry 6 times that number. Only the faithful and knowledgeable cruisers have been willing to put their trust in the cruise line and sail. I can say that I have stayed on cruise ships and in large hotels/resorts and would rather spend my time on a ship for the cleanliness and care put on the ship. Crews are vaccinated, tested regularly and live in a controlled environment and I cannot honestly say that about the hotels I have stayed in recently.
    3 points
  17. Agreed. I have unmasked, complete strangers closer to me at work than I did at any point on the ship (or during check in it/disembarkation). Everybody on a ship WANTS to be there and has made the personal decision to follow all protocols required.
    3 points
  18. Sorry for all the noise. We had plates flying everywhere, but I saved my Starbucks, so it's ok.
    3 points
  19. As long as it doesn't become the golden shower room on some sailings....everything is ok
    3 points
  20. Inshan Mohammed, absolutely. The mannerisms, the conversation, he was a fantastic as the Mad Hatter. I even tried pouting on the steps of Wonderland in an attempt to get him to stay.
    2 points
  21. NEW CRUISE VLOG I FINALLY GOT OFF THE SHIP! This was my first time getting off the ship since quarantine. Exploring CocoCay was incredible.
    2 points
  22. Thank you for posting the review, and best wishes for your next cruise in seven weeks!
    2 points
  23. They weren't on the Freedom last week. And I had a full breakfast (Omelet and bacon, etc) without a service charge
    2 points
  24. Many years ago, when we took a Med cruise on Brilliance, it was about two weeks. I remember thinking at the time that I was ready to go home. However, in retrospect, I think that partially has to do with how busy that cruise was. Not many sea days, mostly port days. It is one of my favourite cruises to date, but while I am in no way opposed to a long sailing (or sailings), I think I would make sure there is enough down time. Because we love our sea days.
    2 points
  25. My check-in info is back for my cruise with everything as it was. Time to board is still the earliest they offered...1pm. Hope everyone finds theirs is back with no issues!
    2 points
  26. Let's hope NYC is in better condition by the time you get there. It's not that great right now.
    2 points
  27. So a regular OV stateroom and balcony have a total of 244 sq ft. A spacious OV stateroom has a total of 245 sq ft. From the difference in price that I've seen, that is a very expensive 1 square foot of space
    2 points
  28. Awesome post, thank you. I wish there were more and more posts of first cruise after cruise restart. If its good like yours was it gives others [me] more confidence and expectations of what to expect.
    2 points
  29. Day 7 continued: Sunil told us to meet him in the suite lounge at 10:20am. The genies had all of their guests do this, and then we priority elevatored down and pretty much got off the ship immediately. There was one genie at the top elevator, one at bottom elevator, and one right outside. It was very quick and worked well since they could priority the elevator back and forth to get Star Class families without having to worry about it stopping on any other floor between. Sunil said this is the first time they've done it this way, and because it worked so well, they would probably stick with it. Coco Cay:
    2 points
  30. Marlena

    Best Price guarantee

    So we had past our original final payment date so I expected OBC. But since they changed the final payment date recently we ended up with 300$ refund! #winning
    2 points
  31. Day 7 continue. Back to the ship we got to the cold room which was a blessing and started to think our packing strategy as we did not want to leave it for the last minute. Just when we thought we done with it we heard the door bell , it was the cabin attended with the bottles of liquor we bought in the ship and during our previous cruise. More things to pack great. It was also a good opportunity to give the cabin attended the envelope which he rightly deserves as he was doing good job maintain our cabin. We went to chose our diamond free photo , we found two that we liked and asked to print it. Dinner was again in the cabin , we asked for few salads , few rolls of sushi and the cheese cake from 150. At the distance we could see the convoy doing it's way back to Miami After dinner we went to check some activity, its funny how on the last night all the bars seems to be full. I went to guest service to pay in cash the week bill when I found out they charged me for towels , they took it out quickly. I pinged Sunil if he wants to come and say goodbye , he said he will see us tomorrow while disembarkation, wanted to give him the envelope and some present we brought with us back from home. It had to wait for the last last day :-). We tried to go to sleep early so the disembarkation will be less stressed , some of us successfully done ,other went to update the blog. Day 8 , we schedule the meeting with Sunil at 8:45 , I went to being some food from Park Cafe and later coffee from Starbucks. At 8:45 Sunil came and we brought him a present and the envelope . He brought a porter with him and we did our way down to the port , Sunil hand is over to another porter which handed us to a lady who took until the exist. The taxi line was 5 minutes and at 9:10 we were already in the airport
    2 points
  32. Thank you all so much for your answers! I called this morning and not only changed from a GTY ocean view to an assigned balcony stateroom, and I actually saved $40! Y'all rock!
    2 points
  33. I've gone to CVS at least 3 times for pre-cruise covid tests. Couldn't be easier. The results get texted, emailed, and stored online at the minuteclinic website. This saved me when I forgot my print out at home and instead showed a digital copy.
    2 points
  34. I had the test done yesterday at CVS in central NJ. 9:20am it was completed, and they called me about twenty minutes later to tell me it was negative. At noon I received an email from CVS advising me to log into the MyChart app for my result. The complete report was there and I printed a copy (actually multiple copies that I will stick into every pocket, nook and cranny to make sure I have that ‘Golden Ticket’ with me at check-in!). No problems, no issues.
    2 points
  35. NEW CRUISE VLOG Is it safe to cruise? My take on the current health and safety protocols for cruising.
    2 points
  36. Pattycruise

    Royal Up offers

    I presented a spreadsheet to hubby. If I do 21 cruises at double points/solo sailers I can make pinnacle by December ‘22. I’m not too sure he’s bought into that idea
    2 points
  37. is this the mad hatter you are referring to that retired ? He was great if so
    1 point
  38. krhardy

    Symphony 9/25/21

    Sending positive vibes your way!
    1 point
  39. We're on the same sailing. Since we drive down from New Hampshire we'll have some warmer gear, but can leave things like heavier coats in the car. As @BrianB said, weather can be fickle, we've had snow that time of year in NH.
    1 point
  40. The beginning and end might be a bit chilly but once you hit Florida and Caribbean it’s summer. I’d pack a light jacket/sweatshirt and a pair of jeans/pants mostly for leaving Bayonne and arriving. We did an oasis cruise out of PC to eastern Caribbean one March and we hit a cold front on our last day and it was pretty chilly on deck
    1 point
  41. fireclan

    Limited Capacity

    I cancelled our Sept. 5th Oasis from NJ sailing several weeks prior to sail date due to protocols (we're not vaccinated) and Royal continued sending emails/notifications as if we were checked in and sailing. So I guess we may have been considered a "no-show", but my TA assured me we were officially cancelled. It was strange (and sad for us) to keep getting these communications day after day knowing we were cancelled and not cruising. Our expectation is a refund as this cruise, and our next three, were all scheduled prior to current protocols. My TA says Royal has been "very understanding" regarding refunds due to protocols so we shall see, I guess. No $$ has shown up yet.
    1 point
  42. I agree with the advice offered. October tends to be our favorite time to cruise and you’ll still be safe with shorts/tshirts/sundresses and it’s plenty warm for the beach further south (not too hot not too cold), but pack some items that will help keep you warm for once you get towards chilly climates.
    1 point
  43. Day 7 continued: After sampling the food, we set out to ride the waterslides. We were successfully able to ride every waterslide in the park, spend some time in the wave pool, and do the pool obstacle course thing in less than two hours. The reduced capacity definitely came in handy today. Several of the slides had no line, and the longest line, which was for The Slingshot, took about 10 minutes. Even Daredevil's Peak was almost no wait (maybe 3 people in front of us). We had so much fun at the waterpark and wish the ship was in port longer. Daredevil's peak was very fast and a lot of fun. Screeching serpent or should we call it the wedgie maker (the blue slide that is open and pretty much straight down) was Steven's favorite. All of the slides were so much fun, and we really enjoyed our time there. It was time to go get the kids so they could enjoy Perfect Day as well. When we got back on the ship, Sunil had pizza delivered to the room, so the kids could snack while they switched to swim clothes. He also had a very long and fun conversation with us. It was nice being able to joke and get to know him a little bit better. We only had a little time left at Coco Cay, so we asked Christian what he wanted to do, and he rode two of the smaller waterslides before him and I headed to Daredevil's Peak. He also rode Steven's favorite waterslide, and of the four, he agreed with Dad and said his favorite was the Screeching Serpent. We also took the kids to the wave pool. The wave pool was very nice. A nice touch was it had water sprayers that kids could turn and play with but if they turned them away from the wave pool they lost pressure and turned off, so kids couldn't spray people walking by. Christian, Nyssa, and Kat played on the obstacle course in the pool for a bit. Then, we headed to Splashaway Bay, so the babies and Sophia could play and slide on the smaller slides. They were just shutting down the waterslides at Splashaway Bay when we got there, but they were nice enough to let the babies and another toddler each slide once before shutting down. We started to head back to the ship, and when we were walking through Captain Jack's, the entertainer started singing Baby Shark. It was really cute and he also joked with us about having five more kids, which was quickly shot down by Steven and me. Then, we passed belly dancers who Nyssa decided to try to dance with. They all played along and danced with her. It really was a Perfect Day, and out of our three trips to Coco Cay, this was the best one yet. Truly a Perfect Day at Coco Cay:
    1 point
  44. Day 6 continued: We picked up the kids and asked both of the older two if they wanted to go ride the waterslides, but they opted for pizza and video games instead, so Sunil had pizza, fries, and fruit delivered to the room for them. I really don't know what they are going to do when they get home and can't have pizza for every meal. Steven and I had 150 Central Park reservations for the evening. We always try to do 150 as our date night restaurant, so we brought the kids back to Adventure Ocean and Royal Babies and Tots after a few hours. They were excited to be back. We met Sunil at 150 Central Park where we had a nice conversation. Our server was very nice, but it was much different than the other restaurants. At the other restaurants, we had our main server taking care of us, plus other servers, and the restaurant managers would come by numerous times asking if everything was to our liking during the meals. We even had the Mad Hatter at Wonderland serving us food and continually bringing the kids cotton candy. At 150, our server took care of us but we really didn't have any one else stopping by the table. We did enjoy having everyone fawn all over us at the other restaurants especially since they kept the kids occupied, but it was kind of nice having a quiet meal since the kids weren't there. For our meal, I had ceasar salad, seared honey glazed scallops, roasted spiced pumpkin bisque, and lobster thermidor. Steven had ceasar salad, crispy Berkshire pork belly, and pan-seared veal medallions. We have always really enjoyed the food at 150, and this trip was no different. It was delicious, and we ate so much that we didn't have room for dessert. The presentation of the food was beautiful as well. We even pulled up a picture to compare the presentation from when we were on Allure; and while it was delicious at both, Symphony definitely wins on presentation. On the way to get the kids, I realized we hadn't had Baked Alaska on this trip, so I messaged Sunil and asked for some to be delivered after we picked up the kids. After picking up the kids, we returned to our room to find a towel animal surprise. We always keep all of the towel animals, so that we have a towel animal menagerie at the end of the trip. After the first towel animal, I put it on the desk in the master bedroom, but the next day, the room attendant took it even though it was set to the side. I was going to ask him not to take any more, but our paths didn't cross. We had one towel animal (our 2nd towel animal) and were getting off in port. I was still unable to find him, so I called Sunil and asked him if he could let him know not to take the towel animal that we like to have a zoo at the end of the trip. Sunil made sure we had our zoo, because we returned to the room to find... Sunil also called soon after we arrived to the room and asked if we were ready for our baked Alaska, which was yummy as always and a good end to the day. 150 Central Park: Baked Alaska:
    1 point
  45. Anyone notice it changed check in date? Ours was aug 28th and we had checked in. Now it says oct 13th and im thinking I have to do it all over again. I also had the earliest check in time. Im assuming its gone?
    1 point
  46. I mean how many of us long to do what 'Super Mario' does?
    1 point
  47. I will be in this “golden room” on March 18th and report back.
    1 point
  48. Makes sense. If cruising is such a vital part of the state's economy we shouldn't have that dependent on a foreign nation. If I'm not mistaken there are lobbying groups in Victoria that would love to see a cruise ship ban enacted or the current ban made permanent. If they are successful they could cause a lot of harm to Alaska's tourism industry. It's better to get ahead of that in case it comes to fruition. https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2021/09/16/alaska-senator-introduces-bill-permanently-allow-cruise-ships-sail-alaska-without
    1 point
  49. Our NextCruise rep from last week kept goading us about needing to do Wonder and we said it would never happen because we weren't traveling to China. She told us, "You never knowwwwww!" Our Genie also told us about the lifting of the B2B restrictions for the kids and I didn't want to believe that as a rumor either. I always try to consider the source, but I guess hearing it directly from a crew member is a better source than someone who says, "I heard from a crew member that..." on an internet messageboard.
    1 point
  50. October 10th 2021 Oasis, THIRTY DAYS BAYBAY!
    1 point
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