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After several hours in the room we all went down to a bar on the Promenade for a few more drinks and many more laughs! The founder and leader of the group took me aside to talk. We traded numbers and emails and he seriously told me that Las Vegas is a quick drive from us in Southern California and that they would love to shoot down and do the grand opening of our restaurant. And we chatted again about it as we were leaving the ship. Gracious guy!

After a little rest we hosted a small cocktail party in the suite. We had another of Jay’s guests and @Lonnie, his wife and friends who were sailing with Genie Alan up for snacks and drinks. It was a great couple of hours of stories, jokes and laughter! Jay and Alan came by for a visit also. Alan came with a tray of fireball shots. Then a room service young man came with another tray of Fireball shots. Rinse and repeat you know? I’m not saying any Genie or room service dude actually drank any of them they’re just holding those shot glasses for the photos . We all had a blast or as Alan would say, Oohh-La-La!

In our initial planning with Jay we had asked for a casual dinner in the suite for night 7. Well as you may have read my comment on the blog by @CravingaCruise, we were in for a surprise! Jay arrived with two room service guys with a BUNCH of food. And then guests that only I didn’t know about arrived. Our Headliner entertainers from earlier in the week, MO5AIC. Jay said he set it up because he thought both the group and our family would enjoy being together. And I believe he was right. We dined and drank and laughed for over an hour. I’m not sure how many filets and lobster tails were devoured!We listened to their stories, laughed as they teased each other and answered their questions about us. And then they performed in the living room of the suite. They were casual, laughing and amazing. They sang Don’t Stop Believing for Stacy and her new restaurant, Happy Birthday to Taylor and many others. For around two hours we all just hung out and enjoyed their talents. I was amazed with their interaction with us. I once served in our White House on details for four U.S. Presidents. Later I served on protective details for other high ranking government officials. During those years I had many opportunities to meet and be around many, many entertainers, actors, sports figures and other celebrities. But I have NEVER met anyone who was as down to earth, gracious and humble as these five gentlemen. They were in no hurry to leave the party and we gladly skipped the ventriloquist show to hang out with these guys. They sang and drank in the living room and they sang and drank on the balcony. After the first hour it was like we were old friends. All thanks to Jay!

Excited to be sailing this Saturday. Just sharing a little explanation about the late start for this thread. There is a fairly significant back story to this sailing and some reasons why it is starting at this time. I’ll share a portion of the story in posts below. First just the basics. We will be doing the 8 night southern Caribbean on the Allure of the Seas. It will be myself, wife and son. We have added my parents to sail with us this cruise. For anyone who chooses to follow along, I’ll try to do some brief but regular updates but as this trip is going to focus on the family time, so I’m apologizing ahead of time for any brevity or lack of updates.

Welcome to the message boards. I'm sorry you ran into this problem. A couple of suggestions to help you out next time. First and foremost, do not book a cruise directly with the cruise line. Use a travel agent to avoid these kind of issues. I highly recommend MEI Travel. Simply put, these kind of misunderstandings wouldn't have happened with a good travel agent. https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2020/06/15/top-things-you-didnt-know-travel-agents-can-do-your-cruise-vacation I can't speak for the $50 bonuses, but to be fair, you are still getting the $200 credit from Visa. You might not be able to use it on this particular sailing, but it will be available to you to redeem for another sailing.

I don't look at them as free drinks, but "earned" drinks

It's always been the policy that a solo cruiser pays for double occupancy. It's right in the FAQ that you have access to through the RoyalUp invitation. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/how-will-single-guests-be-charged-for-a-royalup-upgrade In addition, the email they send you confirming your Royal Up will show the total you would be charged if you won the upgrade. I think people don't really look at them, but it's there.

Yes they will re-route to cold Canada. When it has happened in the past some people love it as Canada/NE are often more expensive cruises while other people dislike it since change is bad. This is cruising in hurricane season. Ports can and will be changed. Some will love it and some will not. That's okay, to each their own.

Day 7 turned out to be by far the best day of the cruise. Maybe even the best day of any cruise I’ve been on. It was a relaxing, casual day at sea. We had breakfast in the room as usual. A little morning pool time for the girls while I explored. And then our first surprise of the day - an invitation to lunch at Izumi with our new best friend Jay. This guy was so fun and pleasant to be with! We spent a good hour or more eating bait and learning about his life. He may or may not have told us of some of his horror story guests. I’ll have more about him later but If you ever have a chance to meet him you’re in for a treat!

I forgot to post theses photos on day1. I have a laser at home that I use to make goodies sold at a couple local businesses. I made each of the Genies one as a small gift. Had I known what I know now I would have filled Jay’s and Alan’s with Fireball. Just saying

This is a bunch of randomness.... I will not sail out of LA again, nor will I do sailings under 5N. The clientele is not for me. Tons of banana hammocks and thongs. Several women had see-through or unsupported bras/tops....nope those can't be tops. So many busty women in strips of fabric shocked when they "fall" out or have to keep adjusting. Lots of men in heels that I was afraid for because they were drunk and unable to maintain balance. Men in drag who don't have the right friends because they often had the wrong makeup for their skin tone. Lots of bloggers who had fifty eleven wardrobe changes. They needed to take a pic of this or film that. "Ugh get out the shot even though you were there first." Lots of people smoking inside bars either by vape or actual cigarettes. The family that changed the baby's diaper in Jamie's followed us to almost every restaurant. They fed, changed and just did random things with the baby until the wee hours. So many babies and children out past midnight and it blew my mind. Five year olds playing pool in Playmakers that shoot those hard billiard balls across the room, because they have no idea what they are doing. Also no concept of the pool stick as it almost takes your eye out while they root around for the ball. Lots of assault in a sense. I believe on the first sailing a couple went to jail for fighting in the MDR and the staff saw them physically get into. Couples arguing random places and shouting. Drunks getting overly animated and scaring others. Last is the full circle story. As stated I love to people watch. There was a ....I guess handsome in a basic way......guy who was dressed like an airline pilot. Nice dress shoes, white crisp shirt, dark slacks and what looked like a cashmere sport coat. He always had on sunglasses and screamed douche because he liked to do the model walk. That is......a long strut and the comically animated removal of his sunglasses. I had seen him do this several times around the ship and he always inserted a dirty joke into my conversations. I was never talking to him. But I would smile or laugh so he would do his model exit. The last night he comes up to our table in Schooner's, shook his hair in a very Justin Bieber way, removed said sunglasses with all the flamboyance of a twink in a Gucci fashion show and said. " Ugh I can finally take these off. This is the only place that doesn't give me a raging migraine. " He pleated his pants to sit at the bar and then just inserted himself in our conversation with innuendo. We were talking about how dolphins will run up on you but sea loins will just play around you. He then took his jacket off, slung it over his shoulder and walked off, putting his sunglasses in as he strode up the steps. Well 10min pass by and he goes "I found my mother, she is passed out in a chair after taking a Valium." We laughed so hard because I think he was narcissistic enough to believe we were wondering were he went. Where this story takes an interesting turn is his mother was the lady I had met earlier in the diamond lounge. This lady told me she was a former hard-core drug user and cruising changed her life. She had been clean and sober almost 15 years. She was upset they wouldn't do cake and a candle for her son in the MDR. She said all the crew sucked except for the diamond concierge Francisco. I thought she was clearly on something in the lounge but when I saw her later.....she was slurring her words. It was an odd juxtaposition she looked like she lived under a freeway and he was crisp to the letter. I saw him later on my way to the room and he was desperate for a woman to come back to his room as it was his birthday on this sailing. He was telling all the women, his mom was dead to the world. I don't know what was going on with people but I side eye them short cruises now.

You cannot reserve shows prior to boarding. You could check out previous Cruise Compasses, as the schedules don't vary all that much from sailing to sailing. https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/cruise-compass

On the last formal night, I will put away as much of the Baked Alaska as they will bring me. And I will second @CrimsonCruiser on the love for the French Onion soup. I've had it lots of other places, but it just hits different on a cruise.

I certainly wouldn’t cancel a B2B for anyone’s comments. You would be better off experiencing this for yourself and forming your own opinions.

ME: Since you eliminated the cookies, I enjoy the raisin bread (toasted) for breakfast. Never even considered it until I saw it mentioned by a ton of people online. Crepe station in WJ with your choice of filling and whipped cream is one dessert that comes to mind. Desserts are actually my least favorite thing onboard... and this is coming from a guy who gains 10+ lbs. per 7 night cruise, lol, so I'm not complaining. I wind up trying a bunch of stuff and something is usually good though. And of course there are always the cookies. WIFE: Mississippi Mudpie in the MDR if by far her favorite. We don't eat in the MDR much and last cruise on Indy in July, she went down there during late seating and asked if they could get her a couple slices to go. 5 mins later she walked out with a covered plate. Very accommodating as usual. She also loves the chocolate croissants served for breakfast (sometimes square but basically the same thing) when they have them. P.S. True #1 answer for both of us is the funnel cake on Cococay.

First let me share a little bit about how we got here. Sorry some of this maybe a little long. This all starts back in May 2019 aboard the inaugural Alaska sailing of the Ovation. We were sailing in a grand loft suite and did enjoy the experience. While onboard the opportunity to book the Tokyo to Seattle sailing a couple years out came up and we took advantage. Fast forward to when things went off the rails, that infamous spring of 2020. With everything going on we lift and shifted to a later cruise sailing from Sydney to Honolulu. We were very excited to book into 8734 grand loft suite with some guidance from @WAAAYTOOO That sailing seemed good for a a little while and then magically the whole cruise disappeared. Through some work by my wife, she tracked down that they cancelled that whole cruise and scheduled the ship out of Brisbane. She was able to get things worked out so that we would be in the same room from Brisbane to Honolulu. Really should have been a no-brainer on Royal’s part to reach out and offer the move but it took quite a bit of effort from DW. We really thought Royal dropped the ball with managing the change/cancellation but this was happening all over the place and not just to a sigle sailing so they will get a little bit of leeway for now. All looked settled once again, until Australia cruises were cancelled and did not have a viable re-start date. At least with everything shut down , it was really just a wait and see thing. Finally as things started to re-open we looked into sailings that might be interesting. Having never done the Southern Caribbean/ABC islands the itinerary looked good and with the credits we just had all we needed to do was settle on a stateroom. We really were looking forward to the 8734 grand loft suite but since we had switched from the Quantum class to the Oasis class it would not be an option. Since were had always been booked into Star Class, we were thinking that the Star Loft suite would be the best fit for the three of us. But…. …The option of the Royal Loft 1740 was there, so why not, right??? Of course, so it was settled, Royal Loft suite it is. Looks like it was finally set, now just a waiting game.

I did but it didn't bother me. apparently it didn't bother him enough to go ask. I checked us in yesterday for our next cruise and he wanted a 1:00 check in so the room would be ready. I picked 10:30 because, for me, vacation starts the minute I step on the boat!

y'all we're famous!! our name in lights!! https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2022/09/15/25-times-royal-caribbean-crew-members-wowed-cruise-ship-passengers-excellent-service

I am also from LI and love cruising out of Bayonne. I have a cruise in October and December. Park at the Port. Get there earlier than your check-in time. Wear whatever is appropriate for the weather for the day you leave. I usually wear that same outfit on the last morning getting off the ship. Easy walk to your vehicle and bam, on the way home. Novembers have been pretty mild last few years here, so I wouldn't stress too much over it. Once the ship leaves port and goes South, the weather will increasingly get warmer. But for the trip itself, pack normal vacation clothes. The Pool might be too chilly for day one, but you can always head to the hot tubs. So pack a carry-on bag if you want to change into a bathing suit for Day 1. You won't be able to get into your room until after 1pm-2pm. Maybe a light windbreaker for the sea days on the first day and the last day going back for outside decks. Hope this helps! (DM me if you have other questions)

He didn't even try since we didn't have the room card. He waited not so patiently until our room was ready. Lol

Day 4 was at sea. Breakfast in the room and some pool time for the girls. We were scheduled for lunch at Chops but canceled early because it sounded like too much. Plus Jay kept up the never ending “snacks” in the room. I used some quiet time for photos of our amazing room. Dinner was at Giovanni’s followed by Mama Mia. The show was even better than last October!

Last sea day.... Lunch was at Izumi. On Nav it is located on deck 14 by the escape room, Viking lounge and suite lounge. The space it seems bigger and more inviting, maybe because they don't have hibachi tables. Lunch was not full up, they acted like it was but it was maybe 5 or 6 parties. The server asked if we wanted to do prefix or a la carte. Prefix is the way to go as if you do the $35 you don't get as much. I got 2 bowls; udon with chicken and the beef teriyaki. Plus the chicken kaarage as my app, mochi balls were going to be for dessert. I ordered 2 Japanese strawberry with my diamond drink and was only charged for 1. I got the mochi balls but they were melted and pretty much inedible. The one difference with the prefix is apps are cut in half. Which is fine because with prefix it is 1 small plate, 2 large and a dessert. I had 4 pieces of the chicken thighs for my app. In the tempura app it was 3 veggies and 2 shrimp. I also believe it was like 4-5 gyoza. Technically my total was like $50. It was my first time trying the udon noodles and they were so good. I left lunch satisfied but not overly full. My new cruise friends had done the ship tour and needed to head back the room. We made plans to meet at Schooners in 20ish minutes but I got distracted. I met them more than an hour later and general knowledge trivia was getting ready to happen. We got a 13 out of 15, we would have gotten a 14 if they listened to me about China and KFCs. We chatted and people watched until dinner. I really wanted Playmakers wings, but one wanted to try a particular pasta at Jamie's. We had a very lite dinner, garlic bread and Ceasars salad for me, and no dessert. Our service at lunch on embarkation day was miles better. We went back to Schooners because they loved a couple of bartenders there. A few hours later we hit Playmakers. It was just after 11pm and the 80s party had just ended. It took awhile for staff to clean us a table. Then we waited a while for service. I don't know if it had been a madhouse during the 80s party but nobody came and acknowledged us for a good while. A server actually came to remove the connect four game and the was like "oh you guys wanna order?" He tried to make our food to go by saying "to go" after everything we ordered. But he got it after awhile. The food came out hot and fast. However not only did they still not have burgers but no campfire cookie either. We "settled" on the sundae.....which was ridiculous. I let them keep the souvenir helmet as I will be on Odyssey in November. They prefer the smaller ships so who knows if they will get to another Playmakers. It was a little close to 1am when I went back to room. Hallway smelled so bad and was full of dishes and people's stomach. Hated to see crew members on knees cleaning up like that.

Smoking really needs to be in a designated outdoor area, if not outright done away with.

In defense of those who don't always use a TA and go directly through RC...I have never had an issue with customer service and fixing issues. I've either received a refund or got a good resolution to my problem. I've found the online prices can be good with certain discounts and promos and sometimes the agent on the phone doesn't align with what you found. I would fight with the credit card company if they did not honor the promotion but like someone else said, always read the fine print on these things. But if you're canceling everything then I guess good luck to you.

It's a big problem on the Oasis-class ships (not that Adventure is one of those.) It's a design flaw. The casino empties right out into the MDR lobby and it reeks of cigarette smoke all along the entrance and spreading into the MDR, as well as up the nearby staircase. It's pretty awful if you're walking anywhere nearby, or if you're trying to eat dinner and you have a table near the entrance.

Oasis 2 weeks ago, deck 5 dining room. It smelled like cigarette smoke. Thankfully not as bad as the casino.

As stated by other members, it depends upon the room type. For an interior room, we try to stick to about $100 per person/night, $150 if balcony (before taxes). But summer cruises in Europe are premium prices so a little more would be expected, even on a smaller ship. (We are sailing Vision next month and pre-tax price was $180/night/person for a junior suite, booked over a year ago.) And since you are less than a year out, I doubt the prices will get any better. For NRD I would make sure I had travel insurance in place shortly after booking. You can shop around for the carrier, but there is a time requirement if you want coverage for pre-existing conditions. You may want to consider arriving a couple days early if you intend to fly to the embarkation port. We always had a bit of a scramble cruising on the same day we arrived - airlines can't be trusted as much these days. With taxes you are paying just under $800 per person for 7 nights, which seems like a fair price for an interior room and a great price for anything beyond that. We had fun in Europe in the summer, but you'll want plenty of sunscreen and bottled water when the time comes!! Have a great trip....

We are going to the Adriatic in Oct ‘23 for a very similar price….two of us in a aft balcony cabin. We booked the morning the itinerary came out, and the price has only gone up since. If you’re not 100% certain, and you can afford it, you can pay the refundable deposit, that way you can get your money back if plans change.

Not on Adventure, but Allure - I was a little stunned at how strong the smell of smoke was. Obviously it was worse on deck 4 by the dining room because the casino opens up right there. But it was also wafted down to deck 3 elevator banks, up to deck 5, and would get into elevators if they needed to stop on those floors. I personally DESPISE the reek of smoke and thought the no-smoking in the casino during the restart was one of the things that should have stayed in place...but, alas...it didn't. Honestly, it felt like people were just so happy they *could* smoke in the casino that they did it simply because it was available to them.

Generally, cruises get more expensive as they get closer to sailing. I try to book mine the day they are released (usually almost 2 years out). There are some exceptions but Mediterranean cruises are usually sold out so I would definitely book now.

Transfers would always be day of sailing. You could take a taxi/Uber to the airport and just get dropped off at baggage claim. It would probably be easier to just Taxi/Uber directly to the port. You don't say which port so it would be hard to give more specific advice.

Unless you booked last minute, don't pay in full when you book. Also credit card sign up bonuses always have fine print details like that

I was slowly accumulating stock (10 per quarter), when it crashed over the summer I bought enough to get me to 100. My excuse now is the more the we cruise, the more money RCL makes, the more the stock price will go up

Yep I can hit a golf ball across the Niagara River into Buffalo, but if I want to go over for some wings and beef on weck I have to fill out that form. Funny part is I can fill it out a couple of days before I go over (which kind of defeats the original purpose of it). There is a marathon in Detroit where part of it crosses over into Windsor for like 5 minutes and they expect the runners to fill it out. It'll be here until there is a change up top

Vanuatu is back in business with trial cruises. https://www.dailypost.vu/news/trial-return-of-cruise-ships-in-vanuatu-to-start-on-november-9/article_2aeaa851-56a3-5345-ba2a-bb8798df08e9.html

FWIW, if you royalup to a suite from any other cabin level you will only receive the C&A points for the original booking and not the double you get for a suite.

The bid is for the cabin and priced for 2 people. For example, if you bid $200 and it is accepted, you will be billed $400 regardless of how many people are in the room.

Also from LI and love the convenience of Bayonne! I misjudged an October cruise. I know the weather and figure I'd be fine with what I had and I would have been if there weren't issues at the port on the way home. I had to wait an extra hour outside and it was a cold morning. My mistake was not having a warmer jacket/sweatshirt. Weather in the 50's is fine but not when you're standing around not moving. This time i'll have a sweatshirt in my carry on bag just in case.

Chicken and waffles....who am I kidding...ALL THE FOOD

We have been watching the storm and as of yesterday figured it was likely going to impact the sailing. We are expecting some route changes and maybe skipping Labadee but who knows. There was a rumor posted that the genies heard pretty good odds of changes. Yesterday it was said the big decision/update would be tomorrow, so hopefully someone will hear something and pass it along. And now we will return you back to the regular blog posts.

Oh wow! It's back to 2019 prices! a.k.a. - if we jack up the rates for a year then lower them no one will notice it's the same price as before. SMH

Air handling system are not updated, ever. Sorry. Smoking is a problem on Royal. Much less noticeable on Celebrity who has smoke free casinos. My leading but unproven theory is that Michael Bayley (CEO) is or was a smoker. I've got nothing to back that up. If your condition is that sever avoid Carnival, NCL and Royal. They are all the same with respect to smoking.

I stated in another post that I have a cord that is standard USB on one end and then a pig tail of 4 cords at the other end. It has a micro-USB port for my Samsung Android phone, 2 fire wire ends for Mrs Fan's iPhone 13 Pro and a USB-C plug that will charge my headphones. $14 bucks on Amazon and it is a 2-pack. You get a 4 to 1 charge setup. AmazonSmile: Multi Charging Cable USAMS 2Pack 4FT 4 in 1 Nylon Braided Multiple USB Fast Charging Cord Adapter Type C Micro USB Port Connectors Compatible Cell Phones Tablets and More : Electronics Add that to the plug that @dmattinson was talking about (or just use the usb port in the cabin) and Boom! you are done. Amazon sells several versions so if you need say 2 micro-usb ports, just search for that one.

Day 6. Breakfast on the balcony as we pulled into Curaçao. Taylor and I were the only ones who went ashore. Jay walked us off and negotiated a great rate for a cab to stay with us and take us on a tour. We first went to Mambo Beach. I know I told you we went there in Aruba but we didn’t. Because Mambo Beach isn’t in Aruba. I might have been drinking that day. Or now. Whatever, we we went there this day! Then it was off to the Queen Emma Bridge. It’s a pretty cool floating bridge with propellers so it can be rotated to allow boats to pass. When Taylor was only 5 we visited on a Disney Cruise and she must have ran across that bridge 15 times with me in pursuit! Thank God she’s calmed down and we only walked across once! Then a little shopping and back to ship. I got off again later and walked to the port shopping area to buy a gift for sweet Lusi in the ice cream shop. Then had a couple, maybe more, Jack Daniels to prepare for Chef’s Table. I have no idea why I went. I’m not a wine person. And I’m not a foodie. I’m a simple steak or hot dog kind of guy. So when you bring me a saucer filled with something that looks like snot and you call it scallops I don’t get too excited. And folks who have enjoyed this event know it’s not a quick meal. But this one…this sucker was four, I say four, hours long! I was nearly ready to swim back to Ft Lauderdale. To add to the excitement I was seated next to some blow hole that just never took a breath but yacked about everything under the sun. I didn’t take pictures of the food but from my description of the scallops was enough. Four hours. The only good thing about the evening was sharing it with @Lonnieand his group.

All the examples are good, but just a reminder that if you bring one with a EU adapter, you get a "free" outlet by using the EU plug and leaving all the other traditional plugs open.

I am going to talk about disembarkment and then finish the last night of the cruise. This was the worst. Speaking as someone who wasn't in a rush. I woke up at 7am did all the last min stuff in preparation of being one of the last in the MDR for breakfast, because my flight was so late. Well even though we made it around 6:30ish. They didn't clear the ship until close to 8am. So there was no space in the MDR for breakfast. I knew I had a long wait and wanted to be full, so I went up to the WJ. There were actually tables. I got breakfast around 8:15 and that is when they called tags 1-25. At a little after 9am they made a call that everyone who wasn't a consecutive cruisers should be heading off the ship. I waited 15min and made my way to deck 4. The line was ridiculous. They really wanted people off because incoming guest were already waiting. I got in long line which snaked all the way around MDR 4. That line took 15min just to get our seapass card scanned. Every announcement said to have documentation ready but everyone was brand new. As of they had just been born. Once I had my seapass card scanned it was swift moving to the escalator as lots of people were waiting on the elevators. That came to a screeching halt when I made it to passport control. Again people were brand new. It was one long line that eventually branched off to passport versus everything else. I was shocked at how few people used passports on this sailing. So it was roughly 47min in total to get from deck 4 to outside the terminal. It was a little after 10 but so many people were already lined up and being dropped off for the chartered sailing. Lots of guys selling airport transportation, guy said it was $95 but he would give me discount at $45. I have Lyft Pink and got one for $35, $42 with tip. My driver was friendly and we had a good chat. I was at airport around 11:30 and at my gate at 11:39 thanks to TSA precheck. So I don't suggest any flights before noon in LA because according to crew they have delayed disembarkment more than once a month.

I can't wait to follow along. We were on Symphony in June and it was amazing. We will be Star Class again on Odyssey Transatlantic 31 October. Can't wait.

Everything is bigger and better in Texas! Texans are very proud of their state. I have traveled and lived throughout the US and there is no state that is even close. You see Texas flags everywhere in Texas.

The port area for Ensenada is ugly and uninviting. I decided to get off and see whats doing and nothing was, so I got back on. A bunch of seals were lazing about around the port making tons of noise. I was shocked at how few people actually got off. The decks and such were still crowded. I really want to know, why is it when there are more than 5 people in a hot tub the water gets all milky???? That looks so unclean. I spent an hour in the solarium on a partially wet daybed. Fun fact: they were all wet because people went straight from the water to chairs and such. This was also a problem in the WJ as I passed a sign asking people to dry off or bring a towel if they are wet. My lunch was, for the 4th day, El Loco Fresh. I did a few laps around deck 4, then spent the rest if the day reading in various places. Since dinner was after 8, I decided to see tonight's product show. It was Showgirls: the past, present and future. I went in with low expectations and came out a fan. It was actually really good, so far my favorite original on any non-Oasis class ship. The only negative for me was one of four singers voice. She was too Broadway to sing the popular songs. Her soprano was too high and didn't blend with the other woman's and 2 men. The costumes were great and the performers looked like they were having fun. Tonight was my second time dining in the MDR. The service was good; it's always a little extra when you dine solo. I had the short beef rib. It doesn't compare to the one in Wonderland or 150 CP. It wasn't bad just really fatty. I had a peach margarita with dinner and it was really good. Dessert was a delicious lemon tart. The quality of food in the MDR is good, nothing like Indy and Mariner in Jan. I was tired so I went to my room after dinner. One thing that is odd is my room steward. I asked for ice on the first night and have yet to receive a bucket. I got cookies the first day, they were stale, and they weren't removed.I had taken the cloche off to let her know and she put it back on. In fact I brought back my dessert from Chops two nights ago and it was still here. She placed it on top of the cookies as if she thought I wanted to save them. I finally took to the WJ this morning to be discarded. She makes cute towel animals though.

It doesn't apply to most of you on the site but for the minority, of which I am part, who are paying dollar amounts with cards in another currency, it's worth keeping a regular eye on the exchange rate. If it's in your favour, even if it means paying before final, it can sometimes save a decent amount.