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It's all conjecture at this point. It's way too early for anyone to be making definitive conclusions about it. It's worth noting that South Africa's big surge last fall started pretty much this exact same time. There have already been three post-Delta variants that were a hyped as a big cause for concern but they never amounted to anything.

I get your point, but in my experience Royal goes above and beyond with customer service. For example, my wife had foot surgery shortly before a recent cruise. We needed an accessible cabin, but none were available. Once we boarded, we asked at guest services. They moved us to an accessible cabin within 2 hours. On another occasion, my son slipped and broke his foot on an excursion. Royal put it in a cast for no charge. They even refunded the price of the excursion without anyone even being asked. Does Royal occasionally mess up? Absolutely! Do they work hard to make it right? In my experience, yes!

Hello fellow cruises from down under, we did the first of our check-in today and thought I would share. We have been regualarly checking the app, which you must have, and saw our ship, Grandeur finally get an upgrade which finalised last night. Previously it sat on its lonesome below all the other bookings we have where the ships which already use the app we could access details, but the Grandeur we could not. So check-in was noted on the app as 25 Nov, and being a RCB insider knew that the key to an early check-in time was to get in early, and start 11.30pm, so half an hour prior to the day. First thing to know is do not do what I did and get up at 11.30pm on the 24th and continue to check the cruise planner and app waiting to see the change to "open". Anyway by 2am I gave up. It dawned on me this morning; stop laughing, I am slow; that it would be US time, eastern pacific, so Miami or New York time. This afternoon at 3.15pm Sydney time, 11.15pm, NY time, my app changed to open and off I went. Do you sense I am keen??? Being old school, I used the computer to check-in but you need the app to complete, and the process is similar as peviously, except with a number of protocols and disclaimers which you can print. There are three steps you can do prior, with the fourth step needing to be done the day of the cruise. Step one and two are as before, personal details, passport, credit card, emergency contact, and then you can select the boarding time. On our cruise which is out of Barbados, there are a couple extra local government protocols and we have the addition of not only a test three days prior (which is different to the two days prior on cruises out of the US),but also a complientary test required at the port prior to boarding. Oh our noses are going to be sore, lol. Also the earliest boarding time listed was 1.00-1.30pm which we secured. However the third step must be done via the app, there is nowhere via the computer check-in to access it. Maybe I did something wrong but I have gone back and checked several times, so you need to go to the app and into your booking and add your vaccination details, type and date of last dose. It will also allow you to take a picture of the front and back of your vacination card. In Australia we have the a government issued International Vaccine Passport, which is a single side paper or picture on the Medicare app run by the Australian governement. I could not work out how to upload a digital copy to the app so I opted to take a photo, which is one way offered, of the print out I will be carrying. It is in the pending stage as Royal needs to validate it, and I will update this when I either have approval or required to do something else. I really need to check-in using only the app, similar process but we have nicer phots saved on the computer. Silly I know. So happy, one step closer and only 45 long days to go before our 674 days of waiting to step onboard a cruise ship is over.

They are feeling it, especially on this ship. The fatigue is palatable. They are wearing masks outside and always, just to much. FYI the concierge is the WORST we have ever had the pleasure of experiencing. No worries though we are making the best of what we have been dealt.

Hi Neesa. Our genie said they will be doing an 815PM show tomorrow and she has two seats for you.

Excited to follow along with this one. I’ll be on oasis in February in a star class room. I can’t wait!! I won’t start my blog early…….I won’t start my blog early……

People love RCI because for the most part, they have a wonderful time, and are treated very well. The few complaints we have are balanced by very, very many great experiences. You will find that over and over on these boards. ALL cruise lines have gimmick sales, but those of us who have sailed before know how to maximize our savings. You can find great tips for that here. And damage to bags could have happened on the ship, but more likely in the port as they were offloaded. I’ve had the airlines mangle one of our bags beyond repair. No, I’m not a Pollyanna. I am one of those people that tries to shrug off negative situations when they are minimal compared to the rest of the experience. It doesn’t hurt that we just got our Concierge email about dinner reservations, and within 24 hours, the concierge emailed me back to confirm all dining times. So, yes, we are sailing soon, and know we will have a fantastic time because we always do on RCI. I hope you have a great experience on your cruise. And back to the topic: we wouldn’t sail these days without insurance. We purchased our first (of many, hopefully) annual policy for our next cruise.

What happens on a group cruise stays on a group cruise

I know better than you try BBQ outside of Texas!

Here are my annual plan details. I use Allianz and it's $475 for me yearly (41 years old FL resident).

Just tried the PSBBQ - good portions, reasonably priced, but not very good. All the meats were dry. Ribs & chicken tasted brined.

After so much travel…including so many cruises…I’ve learned that anything can happen. Especially after reading stories on this forum and others. Although these incidents seem to be very few and far between, that doesn’t really matter when it happens to me. The best I can do is make sure I do my research and exercise due diligence regarding where I spend my money. The biggest takeaway from all the stories is the benefit of good travel insurance. That and paying attention to protocols, policies and changes regarding my trip. I don’t want to be surprised and have to struggle to get something done at the last moment. I’ve also found that for me, the investment in good, waterproof luggage is so important. I always do walk-off so I need strong, long lasting wheels. And I’ve seen many times where loaded luggage carts are sitting on the pier in a sudden downpour. But…all that planning doesn’t matter if the worst happens. Ergo…insurance!

Thank you! I'm so glad you liked enough to think about re-reading it! That warmed my heart!

Is the performer OK? We missed our reservation and have not been able to rebook. In speaking with staff, they’re fatigued with the masks and inability to get off the ship. Glad to be earning again but believe the conditions are too harsh. Also crew compliment is down. Think I was told about 1800 at this time.

We absolutely never close down the casino and drink multiple bars out of Patron when we have a podcast to record in 7 hours.

Happy thanksgiving. I’m giving thanks for family and feeling healthy. I agree with @FManke.

oh yes. I love Singapore and well worth pre/post cruise time. Chilly crab, yummy. Also, I should have posted it here as it relates to Aussies but I started a post after checking in for our first cruise in the discussions area Australian's Taking US Cruises and Checking In

Happy Thanksgiving! My hope is that all of us have so much more to be thankful for this year beyond cruising getting back to normal.

Happy Thanksgiving Mon!!!

Happy turkey day all !

Here are my thoughts on the Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale for the cruise fares themselves- They aren't good. I checked all of my clients' reservations, and only about 10 saved. That's not a great deal of savings. But, it seems like the cruise planner is where the sales really are, so I hope everyone get some good deals there!

Where do dads keep their jokes?In a dad-a-base.

Man how things have changed.. Just a Couple of months ago I was on Symphony with my wife of 23 years.. Now I'm divorced stressed and needing a cruise! I cant wait to share my experiences with you all from my Pre-cruise Stay at the Hilton Cocoa Beach Oceanfront to my week on Harmony being a newly single person.. Coming with me is My friend Lisa and Ill be meeting a few people that I've cruised with before.. No.. I don't have the dining package.. Drink Package on the other hand is a must.. I think its time to venture into the world of different cocktails, talk to strangers and hopefully entertain you all.. again its my first live blog.. Ill be shooting and blogging from my iPhone 12 Pro XR.. Hopefully ill figure out how to upload pics from my Phone.. Until Friday.. Peace Love and whatever crap you're into lol!

Seasoned travelers won't find any Earth shattering info here, but we only started being able to travel in 2019. We never would have even thought about third party insurance if not for this site. Back in September, we cruised out of Nassau on Adventure. We bought the ship to airport shuttle from Royal and on the way to the airport, my wife's suitcase got crushed. It was very noticeable, to the point that it wouldn't stand up on its own....although when we grabbed our bags at the airport, hers was strategically wedged in between others so it was upright. It would stay closed, but it will never roll again. It was kind of a bummer since it's only been used twice. The transportation company was not Royal Caribbean, however they gave us an RCG claim form to fill out. After a couple months of no response despite sending all asked for documentation and repeated emails/phone calls/social media messages, we submitted a claim through our third party travel insurance (Allianz). They asked for pictures of the damaged bag, a copy of the claim form we sent RCG, and something that showed replacement cost (we sent a screenshot of a current Kohl's page that showed the replacement cost). After two emails apologizing for any delays due to high claims volume, we received a check for full replacement cost a couple weeks later. While it's not an expensive piece of luggage, it still sucked to have to buy a new one.

I saw something disgusting last night, in the elevator. A young gentleman, in his 20s (I am guessing) not only couldn't manage to put his mask over his mouth or nose, but was sucking on his key card! (I mean it was all the way in and out of his mouth, like a lollipop.) I could only watch in horror, thinking about the poor unsuspecting staff member who may touch it next! If that guy doesn't care about his health, that is one thing, but to endanger an innocent person who may touch it and get sick (a cold or anything that can be passed by saliva) is another issue all together! No hand sanitizer will help in this case!

That is a flat rate for your entire sailing.

It really does suck if the crew members are already feeling fatigue. Oasis hasn't even been sailing that long since the restart. This means they have either had some of the worst and demanding guest or those members aren't cut out for this type of work. Also @Neesa needs to speak to the concierge, they deserve an amazing experience. I also agree about the water, we actually preferred the ships water to that True bottled water.

They are the Rapid ID Now tests

It may show up on the invoice, but sometimes the codes aren't clear. But I've checked the one reservation of yours that I already have and I don't see a further discount. I'll check the other one when it's in my hands.

I guess I got lucky. Able to save on both cruise fare and planner items.

I am sure you will have a great cruise. We have had more good experiences than bad, and are loyal to RC for the overall satisfaction we enjoy. We don't know any other institution (in our price range) that offers consistently high on-board service. When I report a misfortune, it is to reinforce the travel tips that Matt and others offer, like carrying some type of travel insurance. We have found that our occasional "travel worries" have been caused by airlines, not Royal Caribbean. But we have survived even delayed flights (and a train that broke down) to make our cruises on time. We always use travel agents, just in case an issue crops up.

finally got through, yay

The store has skimped on their samples on our visit yesterday. In September, they had about 3-4 sampling stations and I was able to sample about 10 kinds of cheese. Yesterday, there was only one station with three kinds of basic cheeses. No asparagus flavored ones. Maybe I'm the one to blame here... I tried 10 kinds of cheese but I did not buy any ha ha

I have just jumped into the app and checked if an earlier boarding time was there and noticed the third step which requires vaccine information, which was pending to be verified by Royal has gone. I would assume this is a good sign and Royal has accepted our Australian Government proof of vaccine. Also for our sailing 1.00pm is still the earliest on board time, which is fine by us. So far so good, will complete the ESTA (US Visitors Visa) in early December and start enquiring for an approved PCR test medical facility and book a date. I have a couple of websites my travel agent has recommended. It is $150 per person, but this is the cost of travelling today. I won't pay for it yet as things may change. I hear the US may accept our local COVID tests but I do not think Delta Airlines and Barbados Government will, so will have to pay. There is also a Barbados entry application we willl need to complete but only 72 hours from landing. We also reached out the Barbados Covid Labs as we will need to book a test to board the ship. PCR tests are $94 USD per person. This is our biggest concern in trying to time the testing so we can get results in time to board the plane but also work it out to clear customs in Barbados within the 72 hours. We should be fine with travel time, but it is our end locally which is the issue as it will be Sunday 2nd Jan and will the labs be open? Talk about first work problems. Now the first Royal check-in worked, next is due Dec 10, at least I now know I can sleep like normal and not worry about it until 3.30pm Sydney time.

You mean, "After playing music trivia hosted by Luca our highly spirited guitar player/singer in the Pub and listening to a few songs. A few memebers of the group proceeded to the casino for a for few hands of blackjack." Isn't an accurate time-line of events?

The best way is to have a plan of when and where you would like to eat prior to boarding and when you get on board, go to a specialty restaurant and make all the bookings. This way you have something booked each night and you should be able to change your mind should your tastes change. We normally never booked lunch, but have done on occasions and it never seemed an issue. In the main we would normally get the reservations we wanted, but there have been occasions when I may have had to pick a different day and time, they were rare and I have called them and made changes as well. Another strategy is, if you are celebrating a special occasion or have a large group, you can pay for that specialty resturant via the cruise planner, securing the day and time, and when at the restuarant tell the staff you have an UDP and they will credit you the cost of what you paid separately. Do not leave telling them until the end, do this as you walk in so they can do the backend stuff.

Wow this is sad news I was looking forward to at least trying to win one.

I can confirm that cruising out of Singapore is a terrific experience. Travelling from Perth, it's just as easy for me to get to as Sydney. Be sure to spend a few nights pre or post-cruise in Singapore, there's plenty to check out.

We had a very similar scenario in Galveston. The suitcase was never recovered. Whoever took it got a bunch of dirty clothes and not much else. But I was so annoyed that Royal was only going to give me $300 (the suitcase itself was worth more than that ! I actually did have a receipt for the luggage) I just told them to shove it and cancelled the claim. I also had Allianz but never bothered to make a claim with them. We also never do the luggage-outside-the-door-the-night-before anymore, either.

pricing for deluxe bev package with wifi one device for our march cruise on symphony is cheaper per day than my Feb 2020 four day was on navigator (71 per day Symphony vs 86 on Navigator) so that's a pretty good deal. Those Florida four day prices for that package are notoriously high, I'm aware. Easier to guzzle away for four days with really just one true port day than for 7+ but I like the challenge.

Royal never advertised it. Travel & Leisure prematurely leaked it. Vent towards T&L. We have a very different perspective on Royal. I don't see any smoke and mirrors, except during The Effectors on Odyssey.

Omelets and fried eggs to order are still available. But I don't think I was super clear about the variety. What I meant was essentially all the stations remain the same for breakfast. So the same things are available each day. Unlike lunch/dinner options which change day to day.

Gobble, gobble. I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving. I got my booster on Tues and this is the first year I am not cooking. I brought a turkey breast dinner for 2 at a local restaurant that I will be heating up and sushi for my brother. I wish I was somewhere on the water with shows, drinks, and more food than I can eat.......sadly, I have another 47 days until that happens.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you. I am very thankful to be a part of this group; I have learned so much. We will be driving to Galveston tomorrow from Arkansas to sail out Friday. Hope it doesn't rain too much. I won't have pictures of Thanksgiving Dinner, but maybe I can update others on Christmas Decorations.

Gratuities are a per person/per day flat fee based on your stateroom type (in your case $14.50 is correct), not a percentage of the cost of your cruise. Suites pay more per person per day than non-suites. Other than that, they are the same whether you have an inside or a balcony, or what price you booked the cruise. You're complicating it. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/onboard-service-gratuity-expense

My wife and I are booked!!! First trip in 2 years, 4 cancelled cruises during that time.

Personally I like Samba but you can certainly find better Brazilian steakhouses on land. Same with Chops.