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Day 3 Sea Day afternoon/evening I bought cheap star necklaces from the dollar store to wear on the 4th of July and apparently they don't mix well with sunscreen and sweat I had stars on my legs from them sitting on my lap, oops. We sat there for a few hours enjoying a drink and the view. We wanted to try lunch in the dining room so we went to check that out. It was oddly very slow and they mixed up the orders of almost everyone around us including Matt's. He isn't fussy though and just ate what they brought him he got the chicken sandwhich (he had ordered the chicken and waffles) and I got the seafood sandwhich. I only ate a small bit, it was just okay. No big deal as we clearly aren't going hungry aboard. On a whim we went to the love and marriage show thinking we could sneak out if it was lame, but it was hilarious the host did a great job and the couples of course made it fun. With being married 16 years we were eligible to try to participate (the "mid-ly wed" option was for 20-30 years) but I dk if we would be fun enough anyways ha! But it was great to watch. The couple married the longest had been married 65 years After that we grabbed some grub from Wipeout Cafe and enjoyed the view from up there. Not that we needed any more food... Took a few laps on deck 5 and ended up on the aft before getting ready for dinner. They had a special menu for the 4th of July. We split the Buffalo chicken dip and I got the baked potato soup and Matt got shrimp cocktail for apps the dip was good but my soup was delicious! Usually potato soup can be good or really bland but thankfully it had lots of flavor. In fact I told Matt I could have had a dinner bowl of it and been happy. I got the salmon dish and Matt got the honey fried chicken. My salmon was fantastic. So far between the soup and salmon, it was my favorite meal. I forgot a picture but Matt said his chicken was fine. For dessert I got the strawberry shortcake and Matt got the brownie. He really liked his brownie. Mine was fine, I'm just not a fan of super sweet light cake/whipped topping. So I could only handle a few bites. Just personal tastes, my mom loves those kinds of desserts though so she would have loved it. We finished the night walking around a bit and saw a few minutes of the aqua show again.

Hey all, Long time reader and cruiser with Royal Caribbean and reader of this blog and love every minute onboard their ships. I was getting tired of trying to compare different options available on each ship and between suites and The Key. I've been working on this for a couple of weeks which started out for just myself, but turned into something more when some friends and fellow cruisers started to want more info and it's just grown and grown. I hope the website https://rc.cruises will be helpful for everyone who cruises with Royal and needs to compare different ships, suites, The Key, etc. You can change the different suites when you want to compare The Key vs Grand Suite, or The Key vs SEA Royal Suites without seeing unnecessary information to get a true comparison (I use this more than once a week myself! ). There is also direct links to blog posts on Royal Caribbean Blog for drink packages, CocoCay, The Key, etc. (Matt said yes to using the logo which I'm very grateful to identify links to here). Love to know what everyone thinks and any feedback, and I hope you find it as helpful for your cruise planning

18 years here next month. As taught in the state sponsored class I had to take a long time ago (that coincides with the incident that caused me expenses to go into Canada to see my in-laws), non alcoholic beer still contains a tiny bit of alcohol, so if someone is on a zero tolerance drivers license (like when coming off an alcohol related suspension), non alcoholic beer could still cause you to show a minute amount of alcohol in your system. That’s why it’s treated as an alcoholic beverage and part of the deluxe package not refreshment package. Minors can’t purchase it in the States, either. Disclaimer: I’m not an expert on all things alcohol.

Sorry to be blunt but it is your fault. You are exclusively and entirely responsible to have the proper documentation. It is not the cruise line's fault you waited until April. The passport waiting game has been an issue since 2021. Every week someone has a reason (in their mind) why they should be granted an exception. You are way down a long list of people who think the contract that was accepted should now not apply to them. If they did grant an exception for a [delayed passport] (or insert something else here) it would spread like wildfire on social media... just tell them you [didn't get your passport back in time] (or something else inserted here) and you can change cruises! Suddenly thousands of people who don't like the weather forecast would claim [their passport is delayed] (or insert some other excuse here). Everyone on social media would love it! Then the cruise lines would have to buckle down and enforce the contract, just like they are doing.

Looks great! Feedback: 1. You should probably split up Giovanni's Table and Giovanni's Kitchen into two separate venues as they're pretty different (despite the name). 2. You typoed "Costal" in the Coastal Kitchen heading. 3. Allure has "Wipe Out Cafe featuring El Loco Fresh" as a complimentary dining venue. 4. The 3rd column in the suite class section should be "Star", you listed it as "Sea." NOTE: I think you know, but just to be clear, I'm just playing editor to help, not picking on tiny inaccuracies. I think this could be a big help to many cruisers, especially newer ones.

These are the same people that call me for refills with only 1 pill left. Why wait until the last minute to get these things done? It is not Royal's fault or issue. It is not State Dept's fault. I am sorry but you waited way to long to ask for help.

@Neesa I really enjoyed following along. I just now finished reading your last few days onboard. As others have already noted, an accurate experience is always welcome. I am sorry there were areas that fell short for you but you handled them and didn’t let them consume your week. Hoping it was an off week and @Lovetocruise2002 has a great week.

I have never heard of them, but as someone who travels for a living and has seen a million scams, this sounds...sketchy as hell. I can picture any legit way this actually works.

Perhaps you can cruise with your birth certificate and driver's license instead of the passport? You don't say where you are cruising out of - if it is a closed loop cruise out of US port, that might be your only option. I imagine you sent a copy of your birth certificate to the passport office, can you order another one online and pick it up?

HI, If I were you, I would go to the main page and fill out the form to the right for MEI travel and work with one of their experts. It will never cost you more and often there are savings. Plus you get the benefit of their skill set to manage the folks at Royal.

I just got off Wonder last Sunday, and am one of those geeky kind of guys that measures everything. I was curious as to the dimensions of all sorts of things in the room (looking to calculate the actual square footage, etc.). We had a typical ocean view balcony room. I believe the bathroom is fairly standard in size among the interior / oceanview / balcony cabins. I actually measured the bathroom interior (and particularly the shower), and the inside shower height floor to ceiling was 6'8" high and was 2'8" wide by 3'1" long with a curved arch of the door taking a portion of that area. The shower controls and shower head are then on an angled wall portion, with the show head being adjustable from mid-height clear to the top of the shower stall. Hope this helps!

There's no reason to do an excursion on Coco Cay - it's great on its own. For Nassau, I like either Blue Lagoon or (usually) just stay on the ship. Snorkeling in that area, in my experience, isn't overwhelmingly great. Others may feel differently.

Hi there, First time cruiser and will be on the ship with my husband and toddler. A bit nervous but trying my best to prepare by watching a bunch of stuff and get advise. Watched the youtube and was recommended to chat here to make friends but I saw that our sail date didn't have a roll call so I created one.

Day 4 - Roatan We started the day with coffee (shocker ) and watching us pull into the Roatan port. We were able to walk right off the shop around 8:50 even though they had said 9:30. There was the expected chaos as we exited the secured port and found the Daniel Johnson people. It was very easy but I can see how it could cause a bit of anxiety in people as there were people hollering everywhere about taxis and excursions and it was packed. You can see here that the road was lined with venders as we drove away. They got us checked in an introduced us to our driver for the day. I can't remember her name but it was something like Shantia she was awesome! This was at the end when she dropped us off at the port, I was looking rather rough after snorkeling I was so nervous it would be awkward. That there would be weird silences, and when that happens my husband talks a lot because he hates awkward silence thankfully it was very easy conversation. Any time we weren't asking questions she was talking all about her life on the island. She drove us by the Roatan sign, showed us some local schools and talked about them, pointed out her house, we learned all about her family and the relationship and often disconnect with the mainland. It was so good! We definitely felt like we saw the Honduran island instead of just some gimmicky tourist version. Lots of rugged dirt roads but we even enjoyed that. Half way through our tour we stopped at the Daniel Johnson Hangout for some time with the sloths and monkeys and then snorkeling. We were placed with a group of about 12 with 8ish of them being one family. We didn't really think anything of us, they were fine, but as soon as we finished with the sloths a man asked if it was just the two of us and when we said yes he said to follow him to one of the monkey cages. He introduced himself as Daniel Johnson and said he noticed we were with a large group and since it was just the two of us wanted to give us a smaller experience. Here he is chatting with us. It was great! He spent about 10 minutes with us with a mama and baby monkey. He told us all about how his sanctuary came to be. He grew up in the house where the sanctuary is. He was very nice and it felt like a treat getting to hang out with him. I was surprised at how incredibly clean the whole place was. The animals themselves were also incredibly clean. Afterwards he took us and a few others out snorkeling. The snorkeling was fine, but we definitely saw more fish in Hawaii. But the water was clear and nice. I was a bone head and forgot to sunscreen my back and the back of my legs so I'm white from the front and red from the back lol We went to the beach area for a little bit and had a beer that Daniel suggested and afterwards our guide met us at Daniel Johnson. She was able to drop us off right at the ship once we flashed security our sea passes.

Thanks! I'll work on collecting which ship has each. Thank you, will be fixed shortly. Interesting... I've been on Allure and completely missed this in putting all the data together. Fixed shortly too. After looking over it day in day out it becomes a blur. I definitely appreciate it. Thanks!

Some Oasis-class interiors have both layouts (Wonder for sure because we have several 4V's booked/on hold and I watched some YouTube videos to get an idea of which layouts are where). It could be unique to Wonder, but some aft interiors seem to have the bed on the back wall and don't even have the small couch/love seat, just a chair. We've booked forward mostly b/c we're not picky but I do like to at least have the love seat. You didn't mention which ship you're sailing but have you tried www.cruisedeckplans.com? Good site to use to find cabin videos.

I have nothing against Allegiant, but I am always hesitant to book an airline like Allegiant, Frontier or Spirit in the case of a time sensitive event like a cruise, wedding, or business trip. Their limited schedule and general lack of being able to re-route/re-accommodate you can cause serious issues. I've taken Spirit and Allegiant to, for example, a guys weekend in Vegas...if I am late or flat out miss it, it stinks but isn't a big deal. I wouldn't risk it to something like a cruise where, if I miss it, I'm in a lot bigger trouble. In that case, an airline like AA, DL, UA, or WN can offer a myriad of re-routing options with a better chance of getting you there.

My understanding is you can apparently rebook (for a fee and differences), but given the cruise is tomorrow that window could be closed. Royal does specify their policies on your cruise contract. As some have said you might be able to cruise on a birth certificate and photo id. In the end it's not Royal's fault if somebody doesn't have the proper documentation.

That baked potato soup is my favorite thing Royal does. When it is actually available, I have been fooled by the smoked version which is disgusting imho, I get two bowls and bread as my main meal. It is also weird how some desserts that shouldn't be too sweet are and the ones that should, are not.

My plan this sailing, lounge and balcony. I thought only 4 nights, I'm going to give this location a try. While we loved the beach club at Coco Cay this price is a hard no. We are going to just wing it this trip on Coco cay, the prices are super high trying to take advantage of the euphoria of the first sailing. We paid enough for the cabin so I feel good just "roughing it"

I think OP is trying to plan a wedding which might not be something a TA would be able to do. I thought there was some sort of specialized department for that .

Are you sailing on a closed loop cruise from the US and are you a US Citizen? If so, you can sail with your Birth Certificate and Photo ID. Did you check the Post Office Informed Delivery to see if it is scheduled to be delivered today? If it is, it sounds like you're in business with the passport. https://www.usps.com/manage/informed-delivery.htm It seems like there are more things humanly possible for you to try before giving up on your trip.

This sounds like an over aggressive piece of software on your computer is trying to enforce a policy to prevent you from visiting the RC site. Usually indicative of an antivirus

We get a very similar policy with Allianz and also don't necessarily endorse them; just their service is very good. If you get insurance for each cruise, the annual policy is a better deal then insuring three separate cruises. So, even if you go on 2 per 12 months, it's a good idea since it will cover any trip that's at least 100 miles from your home. With one child in NY and another in Chicago, it's a no-brainer (we live in Maryland).

You can bring wrapped snacks off and on the ship.... so if you have anything in packages.. you can bring it with you off the ship. I haven't been to Nassau in a few years, so can't help you with that, but I would bring some snacks from home and save them for excursions and whatnot.

On our last cruise, we had the opposite experience. Magnets started arriving on our door the first night and they just kept multiplying. By the final night, we had a menagerie of colorful creatures. Absent any clue as to who left them or why, we simply enjoyed the display and hoped someone would retrieve their items before debarking.

They can’t all be angels like you were when you were a teenager.

In Galveston they do not even ask your arrival time. You just go up and they put you in one of the dozen lines to check in. Two weeks ago I had an 11:00am boarding time, arrived at 10:30 and there was almost no line as they had started boarding early. Was onboard by 10:45.

Their investors and debtors look at it differently. If you loaned $100k to a family member who lost their job during the pandemic and was unemployed for a year and half, would you okay with them finally getting a job and using that money to renovate the kitchen instead of paying you back? They might as well buy a Tesla too, it's only $35k after rebates. What's another $35k when they are already in debt to you?

The Live Blog was *slightly* delayed due to a small child that had no interest in falling asleep Love and Marriage was pretty good. As always, you need both good contestants and a good cruise director. I thought we had a phenomenal host, but just decent contestants. Plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, but not an all-timer. It ran a little long, so we didn’t have much time for activities before we needed to get ready for Formal night. In recent years my wife has let me dress down on Formal night, but it was time to get the suit back out now that our daughter is aboard. Dinner was a “special” 4th of July menu, which turned out just to be the Taste of USA menu, but with less offerings. My meal (Shrimp cocktail, salmon, ice cream) was actually pretty good. Everyone else’s was disappointing (some much more than others). I posted pictures in the Royal Caribbean Dining Facebook page that Matt runs, which you can view here - https://m.facebook.com/groups/royalcaribbeandining/permalink/3451117285151807/ Lots of commentary about people’s opinions, which you may or may not find interesting. FWIW, we provided feedback on the negative aspects of the meal to the Head Waiter when he visited our table and also to the Windjammer manager this morning when he stopped by our table and asked if we would like to take a survey. Also, my brother and his fiancée began getting sea sick yesterday afternoon, so that added to the experience. So after dinner we took some time taking pictures. Lines were long, as it was Formal Night. As an aside - long story short, my father never formally proposed to my mother, so he was hoping to take this cruise as an opportunity to do so. He asked me how he should do so, I suggest formal night pictures would be a good opportunity. So we waited in line for photos on the stairs, everyone around us cheered, good times were had. As ANOTHER aside, we woke up this morning to $50 off coupons to the Spa to “celebrate our special day”. They were addressed to us, I presume, because we gave them our stateroom cabin number for the photos. We quickly changed into casual clothing and made it just a bit late to Voices. This actually worked out perfectly, as we were able to stumble upon a fairly private seating area on the very far edge of the upper level. A private box, of sorts, with 4 seats that let our daughter sit right up against the glass. Turned out to be perfect, as she could freely move around and make a little bit of noise without disturbing anyone else. We didn’t get to stay for the whole show once she become too rambunctious; so to get out some energy we decided to stop by the indoor play place in AO. She really enjoyed that, especially since there was only one other family there with another girl around her same age. We ended the night walking around Central Park - our daughter especially liked looking down into the Promenade - and we took some great selfies at the Trellis Bar. Her putting her arms around both my wife and me will be something I hope I ever forget As I alluded to earlier, my daughter had no interest in going to bed, so when she was still awake when it was time for the 4th of July Balloon drop, we figured what the heck. The director said it was the most people they have ever had on the promenade, not sure that’s the truth or not but it sure felt like it. We had already signed her up for a 9am session in AO Babies, so that was a quick turnaround. We enjoyed the Windjammer for breakfast (not crowded yet at 8am) - I had firsts and secones of avacado toast with salmon, eggs Benedict, and pancakes. After dropping off at AO we went to the Schooner Bar for more trivia, but the host was MIA and never arrived. So instead we went shopping and bought 5 (!!!) shirts from the logo store (they were having a sale, and we are suckers). We’re relaxing in the shade on the pool deck and plan to pick our daughter up a little early so that we can take her to the Anchors Away Parade, which I think she will enjoy. Wonderland (our first time) and the 365 Ice Show tonight. Very excited! Photo Dump:

@FionaMG posted this June 27 - I thought it was pretty interesting: Posted a couple of hours ago over on CC (credit: Jumping Cruiser) "Just from Captains Corner on Anthem about her repositioning. It looks like she is going on quite the world tour! Summer 24 - Southampton, UK Winter 24/25 - Singapore March 25 - Dry Dock Summer 25 - Alaska Winter 25/26 - Australia"

I have been told by those closest to me to “watch my face” from time to time.

This! All of the doors look the same.

Agreed! Fun to do and very helpful late night…

Absolutely! It’s fun to do and helps you find your room after a few drinks! On our last cruise our friends hung up a magnetic board with an outline of the US States. There were very tiny sticky dots in a baggie next to it and people stuck the dots on the state they came from. By the end of the cruise there were over 75 dots which filled at least 60% of the 50 states! Of course, it helped that our rooms were near the top of the hallway so there was lots of traffic to stop by!

You can't. The activities like trivia won't be in the app and accurate until very close to your sail date and sometimes even update on embarkation day. You can always try to switch your show reservations once onboard or just use the standby line if you don't like your original reservation day/time. Don't stress about stuff like trivia, there are different types of trivia run several times everyday from morning until early evening. You can only do your best to fit in everything you want to do and see but inevitably something may conflict. It won't ruin your cruise though, trust me.

Royal will certainly allow a rebooking (with the change fee and any difference in cruise fare) for an open spot on the same or another ship.

Yeah MSC website is a mess. I find Celebrities website is kinda of a pain to use and understand.

@New_CA_Cruiser I think rotating in and out is fine. The beds are pretty close together and anything other than four would be a problem. You can go on YouTube and see videos showing how the beds are set up at each of the locations…Breezy Bay, Chill Island and South Beach. Enjoy!

Haha! I know her too...but there is another name for her...I have perfected the look when necessary

Another update from Explorer.....well i think of myself a combo between a suite snob and diva. I work hard to play and when corners are being cut like perks and just nonsense of others not being respectful of everyone then i become a witch with evil eyes. It's as if before people sail, they need to pass cruise etiquette 101. Found out while in lounge this morning, this sailing has more kids than even a holiday Xmas one.... . I told him this is the safe haven of the ship at this point since no kids have been in there at all. Last night attempted casino to have a lady plop her baby stroller by the craps table...... Today pool deck turned into a circus real fast. 1st lady was told by lifeguard, child in diapers can't be in pool. She didn't like that so next ripped his diaper off and bare naked child was in pool..... Couple threw tantrum of their chairs being taken and stuff was at guest services but they hadn't been there in hours Kids were outta control that each pool has 2 lifeguards to control the zoo and even it's a challenge. How many times do you tell people NO ice cream cones in the pool?? I might need another vacation just to recover from this craziness this week

Our honeymoon in 1992 was on the 13th voyage of the Monarch of the Seas in an inside gty room. Deck 2 forward with the anchor right next to us. We saved and now can enjoy the suite life the past 15 years or so. Some STAR as well. Now that I am Pinnacle, I find that the suite perks are no longer that enticing. We are doing Alaska next month in a balcony. I do like the larger rooms and balcony of the suite, but the prices they are charging are ridiculous with amenities being reduced including my last Star sailing last month. Royal still has a good program,but it's suite program is suffering.

A few thoughts, will be adding some pics later that are in Cabash phone. First I know this is a fan site, so I do apologize if I offended or came across as whiny. I was just trying to report our true experience. It was very apparent when I started to report some of the short comings many, many dropped off. I think no more blogging in the future. Be that as it may I had some thoughts as I just mowed my lawn, yes I'm home. Debark was stellar, we had signed up for 0700 with Kenny, but last night he asked if we would like earlier, um yes please! 0630 we hit the lounge and he expressed us to Noreena who was standing by on 5, she walked us to the gangway where there was...ready? A separate line off for Pinnacles, Suite Guests and Keys. We were the first suite guests off I believe. Out of the parking garage by 0645 home by 0840. I can't say enough about how these two concierges worked in unison and complemented each other so well. When I was asked about I did offer how the teens area is more secure then the suite sun deck OR the "if you can find it you can use it deck" and of course the cluster that was in fact embarkation. Cabash went out early this morning 0345hrs or so (he loves to watch the ship dock) & he said there were teens in the hot tub and "sleeping together" on the round day bed nearest the ocean port side, lol! Even the last morning, they must have just met, taheeheehee. One has to separate what Royal can control and what it can't. @Geezer Of The Seas had a great point at what number is there just too many passengers for the sailing to not be enjoyable. Just because you can doesn't mean you should. Cabash always reminds me it's a business and business are there to make money. The ship & artwork are beautiful. The elevators for 6936 passengers, many with baby carriages, walkers and scooters as well as 4323 first timers inadequate. Lesser numbers I'm sure would be absolutely fine. One can never fault the Company for other passengers lack of manners OR as I think just ignorance in the nuances of sailing with others. I strongly feel most are not purposeful that just don't know.....Except, I would think it is common sense when you see someone in a wheelchair you hold the elevator door for them, don't rush around him with your party so he has to wait some more. Ugh, that one burned my butt! I actually saw this once so I stayed with him and when that elevator arrived I blocked it with my entire body & called him over to get on, then I went on my way. That still get's my goat!! OMG the water situation was comical. I tried what @asquared17 did, I could not get spring water from the restaurants. Even #CK they would try to pour the ice water and then I would ask for the bottle (sitting right there in the wine bucket) & they would come back with the Tru filtered water ALL WEEK, we took turns guessing how long it would take to get my spring water ( I like it tepid when I eat, no ice) they only gave it to me and then ran and hid the bottle, it was wild. I had the audacity to ask to bring the bottle that was opened for me back to my cabin, NO! Not allowed to leave the restaurant...okay may I please have a few clean glasses? I drained the bottle into my glasses and we brought them back to the cabin, things that make you go hummmmm. Maybe provisioning was short our week. So these were my grass mowing thoughts I may have a bit more of a wrap up later today. I'm looking forward to all you guys trips reports moving forward I hope I took the crazies off with me and your sailings are indeed amazing. Cheers to all who stuck around, thanks for joining us. Take it away @ZBrady I'm excited to follow along... Oh how I missed you!!!!

We tried CK on Harmony last year and were totally underwhelmed. Didn’t feel any of the dishes served were better than MDR, filet night one was not good nor was my son’s duck. Waiter was rather snooty. After our second meal there, we cancelled the rest of the week & went back to the MDR. I know I am in the minority here but it was our experience.

OMG ringer cookie icecream sandwhiches! I thought that was our hidden secret lol I was just telling the kids cruising with us in Sept about this trick.

We have just got off the ship and went to the laundromat at the port. I prefer to wash my own laundry as I use non-scented laundry detergent and some items I dry slightly while others not at all. The one we like in Port Canaveral is so close and it's staffed with several employees. https://capelaundryfl.com/

Have to say I feel less clueless seeing others having issues too.

That’s the current state of my phone. I scrolled up on the messages and took a screen shot of those texts at 7:00 tonight