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I just got onto Allure of the seas and connected to the internet and it says the provider is Starlink. Not sure if that is well known yet but I can confirm it's activated now.

Yes, you can. I had lunch at Giovanni's Italian (on Freedom, I think) on embarkation day. While waiting for my order, I made all my dining reservations for the entire cruise there. This is important for all who have dining packages. Make plans to go to any open restaurant on embarkation day, with a dining plan/schedule if possible, and make ALL your reservations. Popular dining times, between 6-8 PM, book pretty quickly. This is the plan/schedule I made for the Wonder. I included all the info I needed because I noticed some crew go by day of the cruise (Day 1, Day 2, etc), some go by day of the week, some go by destination. This is an old list, but I have since added the date. Another advice is don't do it over the phone; I like having a visual of the schedule they see on their screens, especially if you have to change things around in your plan.

It was crazy trying to get off this morning. Customs took so long checking through everyone details. Bonus for us was we could skip the long lines to get back on which took us 2min to board

Since there's no verification of who took the test or when, there really isn't any testing requirement.

Day 5 - At Sea As predicted by our next-door table-mates yesterday, the pool deck was heaving this morning. Since it was a beautiful sunny day this was only to be expected but there just seemed to be people everywhere. After a fair bit of hunting, we finally managed to find a single lounger in the sun to share. View from said lounger We stuck it out until 1 pm and then headed off to the Schooner Bar, as I had noticed on the Compass that there was going to be a flag trivia. I watch a LOT of international athletics and since it's pretty much a worldwide sport I'm pretty good with my flags, which I proved by winning the quiz. Go me! The prize was a $200 discount voucher for the purchase of something Effy. Sounds good? Sure, but there was a minimum purchase of $600 required to redeem it! Um, thanks but no thanks. I'll just bask in the glory and be grateful for the free little pendant that also came in the prize envelope. By the time we'd finished doing the quiz the lunch crowd at the WJ had thinned out considerably so it was fairly quiet and I managed to find a very tasty, albeit it rather large, steak and kidney pie. In the afternoon, there were plenty of open loungers in the sun. I guess by that time, all the morning sun worshipers had had their fill of golden rays (and were probably turning a nice shade of lobster pink to judge from quite a few that I noticed). This meant we were finally able to get two loungers together in a nice sunny spot and there I was, soaking up the sunshine, when suddenly a massive cloud blocked it out... except it wasn't a cloud; it was the north star doing one of its over-the-side journeys! It was quite impressive to watch. On my way back to the room after my gym session, I popped into the spa to pick up a price list since, for some unfathomable reason, we had had a $50 discount voucher delivered to us to commemorate "our special day" (no idea which special day they were talking about as we certainly weren't celebrating a special date on this cruise). And I also snapped a photo of this artwork which is at the top of stairs as you come out of the gym, just because I liked it. We were treated to a lovely sunset from our "obstructed" balcony this evening as we were getting ready for dinner. Tonight's dinner menu Artichoke and pea salad. I had this for the first time on Odyssey in May and really liked it. It didn't disappoint this time. Very nice. DH's cheese plate Lamb pot pie. Delicious but it was so BIG. I couldn't finish it; had to leave room for dessert. DH's pork shank (with a side of fries!) Chocolate souffle, one of my all-time favourites and which tends only to show up on longer cruises. I was so stuffed when we left the restaurant!

You could try messaging them directly on any of the social media platforms. They tend to answer much quicker than email. However I thought that I heard that they no longer allow this practice.

We have the big Inky and two keychain-sized Inkys. Apparently we're an Inky foster home.

ARE THERE ANY FEES FOR YOUR SERVICES INCLUDING CANCELLING A CRUISE? Do I work with the same agent all the time, or is it round robin? What should I expect realistically in terms of turn around time on questions Do you (the agent you're working with) specialize in cruises? Have you been on Royal Caribbean? If I spy a lower price, will you reprice?

Have an amazing time!

About 40 minutes from terminal to cabin.

Found the suite queue. On our way through to boarding

Appently they are turning people away who have arrived early

So are we. Excited to board this afternoon.

So, the wife and I just returned from our second cruise aboard Spectrum OTS, this time it was a shorter 3-night sailing visiting Penang with one Sea Day. Compared to our previous experience a few months ago (despite the loosened restrictions) - the ship still feels very different than a typical European or North American sailing. A few things of note which I never mentioned in my previous post (which have remained status quo): so for anyone considering a Spectrum OTS out of Singapore - the market is a bit different based on the below: Unlike our previous cruise, the Windjammer is now fully self-serve (and for the North American's on this board) - the WIndjammer on North American ships will typically have 'theme nights' featuring a cuisine of a particular country, look no further as on the Spectrum's Windjammer has dedicated sections for Indian and Chinese cuisine. * Like my previous cruise on Spectrum earlier in the year... the pool decks remain largely 'empty' - hot tubs generally empty and of the people on the pool deck - the demographic on board including families tends to over dress aka pants and sweatshirts on the pool decks (as though it was Alaska) and hardly anyone in the pools as its just not part of the Singapore market. ***no 'chair hogs that we witnessed on this sailing, as most people in this market tend to prefer shade over sun and to avoid spending time at pools or on the outdoor decks generally - so if one is looking for a lounger, even on a Sea Day - there was a ton available... in fact the crew was removing loungers since they weren't even really being used*** * The Casino was extremely crowded (as per usual on sailings from this market) - as was the Windjammer (hard getting a table at any given time). * The solarium remained largely empty and the bartenders were generally 'bored' along with the bartenders at the 'Schooner' Bar. In fact on the occasions we were in both venues... we were able to chat up the bartenders for 30 minutes average before anyone else showed up... and we were advised that drinking and bars are not very 'popular' in this market. * The Flowrider was basically empty for the first two days of the sailing... in fact the Flowrider Instructors were the ones doing all the 'flowriding' for the first two days while people watched - basically 'performing' various stunts (this is something one would never see stateside as the Flowrider fills up on embarkation day). Only on the final day of the sailing did it 'fill up' and even then its nothing like out of Florida or California. Mind you something else you'd never see out of the US market is people waiting for the Flowrider carrying Umbrella's to shade themselves from the sun... and there were A LOT of umbrella holding people in the queue; though luckily no one attempted to flowride with an umbrella . * Masks like the North America market are now 'optional' however the majority of crew about 95 % are still masked as again it makes the people in this market more comfortable, and for the guests... about 90 - 95% masked as well indoors and outdoors despite it being optional. The only ones who went unmasked were those visiting Singapore for this cruise and it was quite obvious who the guests were. * Beverage packages are not very popular according to the F&B staff we interacted with since in this market... people tend to either a la carte beverages or just go with the free options ... in fact the drink of choice was typically hot drinks which the bars don't serve - again different market. * NextCruise was quite a popular spot with many people booking future cruises... though when the wife and I enquired about potentially putting down a deposit for a cruise from Florida or from Seattle, we were met with 'those markets not being very common in Asia' since most people who booked future cruises on board were only booking in the Asian market. * The Cafe270 was a nice upgrade from Cafe Promenade on the other ships, it serves a wide variety of things but closes at 1700 daily. Also Sorrento's is located in the Windjammer rather than on the Esplanade. Speaking to the Hotel Director at a public Q&A, the Hotel Director advised that the vast majority of the 5000 onboard are from Singapore with about 600 Indian Nationals and only 53 from North America (US / Canada) making this the smallest minority of guests on board. This is also the reason why the hotel director further clarified that in Asia... the North Star, Rock Climbing Wall, iFly Skydiving Simulator are chargeable (around $40 and up) in order to 'control crowds' while on US Based ships, these three things are typically non-chargeable at least at on Port Days. Even the sports staff on board knew this though most passengers are not aware of this. When this was also raised in the public Q&A - the Captain also re-iterated that the above are 'novelty attractions' but stateside their 'common'. The Captain of this sailing was Captain Wu Huimin who is from China - though the main speaker at the Q&A was the Australian Hotel Director. * Also there's a big hope that China will open again by late 2023 and 2024 and the plan is for Spectrum to offer cruises from Shanghai again - per the Hotel Director. Was also advised that if the ship does end up returning to China by then... everything would be in Mandarin only (in Singapore everything is still in English). Overall this sailing was pretty much like our previous sailing except masks were 'optional'. It was still a relaxing experience and it was great to interact with the bored bartenders who were standing around, many staff on board have mentioned they prefer this market since its a lot less work at the bars however the Windjammer does have its work cut out since non-stop eating is a big thing in this market. Didn't attend the Art shows this time around, and the SPA was also empty the times we went by as was the fitness center (even on the Sea Day). If anyone has any questions feel free to ask, also let the forum know if you're taking a cruise from Singapore soon, lots of useful tips including the revamped check in process at Marina Bay Cruise Center which is much to be desired.

Haha just took a test yesterday for our 10/31 cruise! First COVID test ever! Excited to finally be back to cruising, I had hoped Royal would drop the testing like everyone else by now...but I'm going to laugh when that happens on Halloween! Just very psyched to return to the sea!

There was no show for us tonight because it was We Will Rock You and while I would have liked to see it (DH could not have cared less) the timing meant that the performance went right across our dinner time. In fact BOTH evening performances were held at exactly the same time 7.45 pm, which was completely useless for anyone with traditional late dining or who would normally eat later. The only other performance was the very first one, which was at 2 pm and people were already lining up for it at 1 pm while we were in the Schooner Bar doing the flag trivia. The CD had suggested the evening before that they should do this. I was incredulous. I don't care how good a show is, there is no way I would spend an hour waiting in line to get in. Anyway, with two more cruises already booked on Anthem for next year, maybe I'll get the chance to see it then. Instead, we decided to head over to Two70, where the Big Music Game Show was going to take place. We were not planning on participating, just spectating, so we had intended on getting seats near the door to make a discreet exit if it was rubbish. Fat chance! We got there 25 minutes before and it was already packed, so we ended up in the middle of a row on the balcony about as far from the door as was physically possible and still be in the same room. Anyway it was quite entertaining and we lasted until the end of round two, by which time some other people had already left so we didn't have too many legs to clamber over. I think, in total, we recognised about three songs between us while we were there! In retrospect, if we had realised what a great entertainer Perry Grant in the Schooner Bar was we would probably have gone there instead. We really only discovered him by accident one evening as we were heading back to our room and stopped to watch him for a few minutes, so I don't have any pics of him in action but he is definitely worth watching. I also took the opportunity to snap a few more pics of the artwork. I particularly liked these ones at the entrance to the Via: This sculpture outside Two70: And these colourful pieces which were lurking in a corner with a sign above it saying "Art Gallery" and which I think was an optimistic name for the place where they keep the artwork that will (potentially) be sold at the art auction:

Just be aware that items put into your shopping cart may or may not be available at the same price, once you come back to purchase them. It seems to have been a mixed bag, lately.

If you're refering to items in the cruise planner (drinks, excursions etc) you can add them to your basket and leave them there when you log off, they should be there when you log back in.

The blanket is 30" wide by 38" long. The octopus is 10" high and about 15" from tentacle to tentacle.

I'll chime in since we had the GLS on the starboard side (10720) for an Alaska sailing (Ovation) a few years ago. We really enjoyed the stateroom. Granted we had not done one of the larger GLS before so we did not have any perspective one how much space we could have had with the middle versions. Space was never an issue for our party of three, since we would most commonly cruise in a regular veranda stateroom this room was nicer. Our son did have to use the downstairs and the closet down there. As far as noise, the was some noise from the Owners Loft Suite below just after boarding as the group opened their champagne to toast. Otherwise it was really quiet the while time. What we did like was having the extra veranda's for Alaska. Being able to get outside to look at wildlife or the scenery from the side or back and even the upstairs bedroom was nice. With that sailing there is almost always something to see out there and you neve know when something interesting might show up (whales, seals and eagles) that you want to get outside quickly for. We did have one of the center GLS on deck 8 booked for sailing that was cancelled so can't give a direct comparison. Have fun, no matter where you end up!

No, not to Villa. We were on the Transpacific and on now to the NZ

Yes 1pm but they were running late today as Customs wanted to do a full inspection of everyone’s passport and immigration documents. People were still getting off at 12:30. On the plus side our cabin was ready as soon as we got on.

Long line to start boarding at 1pm.

While we were having breakfast, the ship was on her final approach into Lisbon so we headed off up to the top deck to watch our arrival. It felt rather strange to be arriving by cruise ship into a place that we can drive to from home in under 3 hours! Welcome to Lisbon. The ship docks close to the centre, about a 20 minute walk, half of which is on the zigzagging ramps between the ship and the terminal exit. There is not much in the terminal itself but you can get hoho bus and tuk-tuk tour tickets there. The hoho bus was 25 euros pp and someone I was speaking to while we were manoeuvring to the dock said the ship price was 60 dollars so it's definitely better to wait and buy on land. We enjoyed our wander around Lisbon. We had a typical quick, cheap and tasty Portuguese lunch of freshly-made vegetable soup and bifanas (pork steak in a roll) and DH had a custard tart. He bought a couple more to take back to the ship. I always recommend visitors try them out and they are pretty much a trademark of the country. Note that you don't have to go all the way to the Belém area of Lisbon to get them (this is where the original recipe is supposed to come from); as you wander around the city centre you will see numerous cake shops that make them on their premises. Look for the places with big piles of them in the window. They are just as good as the "originals". On the way back to the ship, there was a small but nicely laid out shop in the terminal selling souvenirs, food and drinks. Sailaway from Lisbon is pretty spectacular as you have to sail under the 25th of April road and railway bridge, and you feel sure the top of the ship is going to hit the underside of the bridge. We got ourselves a good spot on one of the little outdoor sections of the solarium. We were literally sailing into the sunset at this point, which unfortunately resulted in some lens flare in my pics as we headed towards the bridge. (I had never heard of this before that little green dot turned up in my beautiful sunset pics!) However, after we had gone under the bridge and were heading out to sea I managed to get a great one of it behind us.

Me.

Soft Octopus was my nickname in high school.

The weather has definitely caused the inside areas to be more crowded than we’ve experienced on Caribbean cruises. Today was the first decent day weather wise. I’m glad we didn’t spend the money for a balcony. On the flip side, pool chair hogs are non existent

Who is on this ICONIC sailing? @Matt @PG Cruiser @AshleyDillo @Lovetocruise2002 +hubby @TeresaMc @Salty Law Dog @JC Pats @sk8erguy1978 TBD @Mark_A @twangster @Dlove707 @Lexster @SpeedNoodles @Cruising With JT

Boss and I are signed up for this one - looking forward to our first trip on the Harmony of the Seas!

I thought that rule applied to actually disembarking (never to return) at a port prior to the final disembarkation port, which would potentially involve the need for customs and immigration, hence the additional charge to do so in the past. But what happens if someone misses the ship? Are they not allowed to catch up with it under their own steam and reboard anymore? In the OP's case, they're planning on driving from one Schengen Zone country to another so there would be no involvement of authorities. Fir the sake of argument, what if they called the port agent in Vigo and said they'd got themselves lost and no way were they going to make it back in time for sailaway (thus avoiding the scenario of inconveniencing the entire ship potentially waiting for them)? Would they be denied boarding if they turned up at Lisbon having not reboarded in Vigo? Of course, it's a huge risk anyway because if for any reason the ship didn’t make its scheduled call in Lisbon then they would be stuck playing catch up at the next port after that.

The difference is that if you have one device for each of 4 passengers they each get their own unique log in and password. If you do one person with 4 devices, it's one login/password that can be shared among any 4 devices. My husband and I do the one person/two device option, because it's cheaper. But because we often switch back and forth between a cell phone and tablet, we sometimes knock the other person offline (as we can only have 2 devices). If we remember to log out of one device before logging in on the 2nd it goes fine. It's only a small hassle for the cost savings.

HAL to Alaska on our honeymoon ~7 years ago was one of my first and only non-RCL cruises. It was partially paid for by Carnival loyalists, who actually went with us on Ovation last year. HAL to Alaska was absolutely amazing. The ship didn't have anywhere near the amenities as Ovation, but the experienced crew, and dedication to the Alaska experience, was just top notch. There were also enough amenities to satisfy our needs, and the fact that we were younger and out and about in the evening meant we could form closer relationships with the crew. Additionally, the family that tried out RCL for the first time with us in AK this year are actually getting on another cruise right now, a Carnival ship in Port Canaveral. While they were gracious about how awful the experience was on Ovation, they all privately said they wouldn't be booking on another RCL cruise. An AK cruise is just such a massive expense for most of us (mitigated a bit if you're a west coaster or Canadian). If I could do it again, I'd stick to HAL even though what drove us to Ovation were some of the things I think may influencing your thought process (we took both of our kids on Ovation). Personally, I'd book for the ship for itineraries in the Caribbean where you'll be able to use the shiny amenities more fully. For AK, I'd book the one that has a better track record of getting you a truly spectacular experience of the ports and the scenery. HAL is a clear winner. Also, if you can swing it, do the one way itinerary, and personally I preferred sailing out of Victoria (versus the RT sailing out of Seattle).

I don’t by any means consider RC a step up from Carnival. I would say Carnival, NCL and RC are all budget level cruise lines that provide excellent value for a family vacation in different ways. If you are referring to atmosphere and overall vibe though, I would say NCL and RC are much more laid back then Carnival which tends to be more of a party boat. Also, Guys Burger Joint is the absolute best and the location on the pool deck is prime time after a few beers and a swim. I am loyal to RC but I don’t count out sailing other brands every now & then. Hopefully things work out for you on Voyager.

I agree, and I believe its to simply expedite Malaysian passport control so when we disembarked in Penang, all we needed was the Seapass card - otherwise nothing else was really needed. Also we had the impression that only USD was accepted at the port though we were in for a surprise as in Penang, they prefer taking Singapore Dollars (SGD) over their ringits (Malaysian currency) and no on seemed to take USD so that was a relief as the conversion rate would have been a bit steep. Also at the port in Penang, credit cards are not widely accepted either. For anyone who does go to Penang, be prepared to be accosted and harassed by sign waving taxi drivers who will stop at nothing to get in your face to offer their taxi services... it really was an experience to even leave the terminal. Once outside the terminal it was fine, but taxi drivers really act in your face in Penang. Can't speak for Port Klang (Kuala Lumpur) but I'd imagine its the same. One thing we did encounter at a few places in Penang especially outside of restaurants was a 'fee' to use the lavatory.

Get on a bigger and newer ship for starters. You went out on the low end of RC ships. The ships do have a change of service and new ships will always get better than the older ones.. Plus the crowds are starting to come back now, no more empty ships...

You could ask for a full refund and book something else to your liking, if you want!

Sample menu is to show food offerings, not prices.

There was an even mix of multi-generational cruisers; families made up the bulk but of course these aren't typical North American families who are into the pools and thrills and so on, most of the families we saw were content with walking around and trying to 'avoid' the sun at all costs. I will say that eating is a big thing... the Windjammer is constantly busy even near the end of the food service hours. Also due to the Indian Nationals on board every sailing, half the Windjammer is dedicated to Vegetarian Indian cuisines - its a bit mind boggling but for those who like Indian food on a daily basis, then this is for you. Same with the Chinese options as well. Western Options were only half of the Windjammer... and there was no traditional meat carving but there was a lot of BBQ Pork and Dim Sum options in the Windjammer. Entertainment wise, there were two headliner shows, one of which being ShowGirls and the other being The Effectors. Both were well done by North American standards and were well attended to the point there was standing room only. If anything, we learnt that the indoor Casino, the buffet and the shows are the main stays for this cruise market, not the outdoor attractions. Fun fact...we tried ordering a 'Coco Loco and Labadoozie' at several bars... and only half the bar tenders knew what those were, as the vast majority have never visited Coco Cay and NextCruise was equally as surprised we were talking about Coco Cay considering it was on the other side of the world

The best thing to do is to relay your experience through the survey that you will get emailed to you after your cruise is over. This way they can try to improve on this ship. But don't give up on it just yet.

I would try another class of ship. Perhaps something larger, newer. The Voyager class wasn't my fave either. Quantum class is a good choice. They will have better food options, entertainment and activities. But overall, RCL does customer service right. The crew are usually fantastic. Service is usually good to excellent. Entertainment has always been good as well. Food is always going to be subjective to one's own taste. Dining is not going to be 5 star, but it's usually very good at either MDR or Windjammer. And then there's always the specialty restaurants. So try something different on Quantum. I think the desserts on RCL are pretty awesome. Never had a bad dessert. I think RCL is your best value for what you get vs. the other lines. Don't base your experience on one ship/one cruise experience. They are each going to differ.

The martini bar seems to be the center of action. The bartenders put on a show with multi pours and custom martinis. On the Millennium and Solstice class ships, the martini bars are "ice bars". Edge class did away with the iced surface bar; however, they moved the marti bar to the center ship atrium making it a focus area with entertainment and more seating. On Edge class, the martini bartenders do their demonstrations to music and a light show. So IMO, the martini bars are the signature bars.

No..........fun fact: not all drunk people are loud, obnoxious, annoying and angry. In fact, that describes some people who have never had a drink in their life........this includes some people who aren't even old enough to drink. My godchild is 8 and doing all of that while watching Hocus Pocus 2.

I went through this a month ago. We purposely obtained official copies of our birth certificates to send so we still had back up birth certificates just in case. Our family of 3 applied back in June for passports. My wife and son got theirs back in 4 weeks. Mine did not and was still showing received and processing. Come to find out one number could not be read on my birth certificate. Prior to finding this out I already already reached out to our state senator Marco Rubio for help. While this was going on I received a letter from the passport processing then telling me this issue. But before I even sent back the letter with correcting the issue, our senator had it taken care of. My passport status changed to shipped and overnighted free of charge. Also got a letter from the senator office thank me for reaching out to help me. Plus I got the new passport where my wife and son got the old. My wife and sons birth certificates were returned about a month ago and mine was returned 2 weeks ago. The birth certificates or documentation will always be after the passport. So if I were you I would reach out to your governor or senator and also apply for another copy of birth certificate in case. VitalChek is the quickest and easiest way to get a copy of birth certificate. Most states refer you to this certified process and company. Where we got our extra ones before we applied for the passports. https://www.vitalchek.com/v/

You can ask of course. One room attendant minimized my capsules as they were limited. Paying extra for a GS and not getting coffee? The next day I simply reached into his trolly and grabbed a bunch...lol. Call me a thief,,,, go ahead. Yes the them to pass on the decaf. I go through 6 a day.

Next cruise will put us at D+. It only took us 23 years and a pandemic with double points. Don't see Pinnacle happening in this life time.

Final thoughts of Star Class on Anthem: - SC definitely paid off for activities. We had zero stress getting to the bumper cars, North Star, iFly. - Specialty food options are lacking a bit on Quantum class, compared to Oasis. We repeated most of the specialty restaurants, they were all good, but compared to our other star sailings, this one lacked variety a bit. - At the end of our 3rd cruise now on Anthem, I can definitely say that they have the best CK staff. On all our sailings on this ship, from March 2018-now, this CK remains beyond excellent compared to other CK crews. There is just something extra about them. - Leroy, our Genie is fantastic! He is so well organized, kind, great with little kids, and pay attention to small little details. Every day he sends an overview of the day, reminders along the way, follows up on orders to the room, he is beyond thorough. Every dinner he showed up to walk us in (they don’t all do that), and no request was too much for him to handle. He is very dedicated to this job and it shows in his actions each day. He is headed back home soon for vacation but if anyone gets him in the future, they are lucky and in good hands.