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Most of us understand the advantages of booking excursions through Royal. They include convenience and piece of mind that the ship won't leave you behind. But I just learned the hard way about another advantage. My son was on a waterfall excursion, slipped and injured his foot. We went back to the ship and had it checked in medical. They x-rayed it and found it was broken. They put on a cast and I braced for a substantial bill. The doctor then said "no charge for this. If you injure yourself on board or on a cruise line excursion, Royal will pick up the medical bill."

I'm just going to lock this thread because there's no connection to cruising other than pure speculation. If/when a line change policies due to Omicron, feel free to start a thread. But we're not here to discuss Covid outside of the cruise industry.

Just the latest scariant

HAHA. JS a gateway drug. Be afraid. Be VERY afraid

Yeah, I was wondering about this as well. Since Mr. Speednoodles tested positive last week, he may still test positive in January. Assuming I test negative, but wouldn't have been exposed for 2 months, I wouldn't feel as though I'd be exposing anyone to anything and could just no-show him. Although going without him on the new ship with the Suite would kind of be a dick move, so I'd probably just cancel both of us. But, double-double points. (Honey, I'm dong this FOR US).

I can tell you with 100% certainty after speaking to Royal about it, that T&L is the one that did wrong here, not Royal. T&L was told about the info in advance (known as embargoed news), but they posted it early without authorization. Royal decided to pull the plug before the embargo date, and T&L didn't care. No other media outlets posted it, including this site. The unethical party is T&L for being lazy and ignoring the instructions Royal gave them to avoid any kind of situation like this.

Embarkation*: It was easy and fast! Port Canaveral is very organized! Disembarkation*: Easy, Easy, very easy!! I was at my home at noon (Port Canaveral to Miami). Parking: Use the Royal Caribbean parking, it worth it! Food and Dinning: Main Dining Room – I was there 2 nights, good food but could be better. Most of the time the food was cold… and the quality doesn’t meet my expectation (including the formal night). Lunch at Windjammer: Horrible! And when I say “horrible” it’s mean that also two tables next to us agreed that this lunch wasn’t great at all. Breakfast at Windjammer: Was ok! We did breakfast two days at Windjammer. Best dinner at the Ship: Giovanni’s table, we ended paying for this at the cruise since the Main Dining Room didn’t meet our expectation. And this dinner was amazing! Best breakfast at the Ship: Main Dining Room using The Key program breakfast on disembarkation day. Best lunch: Coco Beach Club! Some people say that doesn’t worth it (day pass) ... CocoCay – Beach Club – Land Cabana: This was the best trip experience ever! AMAZING QUALITY FOOD! AMAZING SERVICE! 5 stars! I would say paying up to $100 for the day pass and AMAZING lunch, it worth it! And I wound't pay more than $999 for the land cabana. I was lucky, I got cabana #22 with the best view! Most of the Cabana views is the Overwater cabana... CocoCay WaterPark: We had the tickets and ended doing at "not show" this time since we feel so comfortable at the Beach Club. (Yes, royal Caribbean refunded the money for the Water Park). I'll try the water park at my next cruise this month. The Key Program: Priority boarding is a plus for me… I was on the ship with my first drink on hand at 11:30am The Welcome Lunch – Was ok… but the Filet Mignon was great! Disembarkations Breakfast – AMAZING but would be better if the food is a bit hot… was cold… but was good! Flow Rider Private Session: It worth it, I literally had the flow rider for me only I didn’t use room service There’s NOT priority sitting at the shows (I guess it’s due COVID protocols or something) Internet work nice in the Ship and at CocoCay Lesson Learned: I NEED to get the Unlimited Dinning Package for my next cruise, I got the three days dining package because the unlimited is sold out but I'll keep an eye, hoping to grab it! I'll always get The Key if the cost is $30.00 or less. Deluxe Drink Package: I wound't pay more than $57.00 Ask me whatever you need, let's see if I can help you. *I had “The Key” and it worth it. Sorry for any grammar issues, English is my second language. My next Cruise is Harmony of the Seas - December 26th

My first time uploading pictures, so please excuse the lack of formatting. #1 Comfort Inn from the bus stop #2. Room 801 (802 and 803 are right next door and would have the same views, I believe). It was a nice room, right around the corner from the elevator and right next to the emergency exit stairs. Rate was $87+ tax; total was about $100. Pretty reasonable, especially given the free shuttle services and the breakfast — standard Comfort Inn fare, but had hot scrambled eggs and sausage, muffins, yogurt (including Chobani!), cereal, toast, and fresh fruit. #3. Adobo Pork Sandwich with Fries from Airport Liquors and Cafe ($14) #4. View from Room 801

I think you are misunderstanding peoples replies and wrongly classing it as bullying. The 1st reply simply suggests that we should NOT judge a book by its cover! In that the person involved may have underlying issues. 2nd reply points out that we need germs to build up our immune system. 3rd reply points out that staff may also be an issue, lots of threads on here showing that cases of covid are higher in crew members on all ships. Also staff should be wearing gloves when working and dealing with any passenger Now your replies are your opinions and that this person doesnt have underlying issues, has parents who didnt educate him properly and who in your own words will catch herpes and spread it around! Yet you call others bullies and insulting when none of the replies launched any personal attacks towards you? Ps Herpes (HSV -1) can be transmitted orally simply by giving your 80 year old grannie a kiss at xmas if the bacteria is present around the mouth ( cold sores )

We are Barb & Ken, from the Smoky Mountains of TN. We have sailed with RCI since the early 1990s, and love cruising. We first sailed in an inside cabin, quickly moving to an OV on the next cruise. I remember being.so.close to the walls of the Panama Canal locks that I could see the petrified fish and barnacles on the walls from our great big window). After much cajoling and whining, I talked my husband into a balcony for the following cruise. We upgraded to JS several cruises ago, and never looked back. We sailed in a GS on Anthem to NE the fall of 2019 thanks to a RoyalUp, and this is our first cruise since sailing resumed. We have missed it so much! Who is going: Just us, Ken and Barb. I’m an accountant in a large corporate setting, so am always looking for a quality bargain. I love planning travel almost as much as actually going. Cruising is my favorite, because even though I enjoy cooking, I also enjoy a break. Ken is in logistics at a large coffee company, and is your quintessential dad, hating waste. So he finishes my meals onboard…and wonders why he gains on a cruise, turns off lights around the house all the time…even if someone is in that room. Once he turned off the oven as we ran out for several hours of errands….even though I had a turkey baking. He also has some really cool electronics all over the house to save on the cost of electricity. I’m an ‘early-adopter’ electronics geek, so love that. When: December 5, 2021, eastern Caribbean Celebration: Last year’s 35th anniversary, my birthday Cabin: CLS 1724 — our first! Logistics: We will be testing at home Friday morning, very early. If for some reason inconclusive or a test is defective for either of us, we have CVS booked as a backup. Will cancel if not needed. We then drive to Savannah, GA, which makes the trip 1 hour longer, but will have some great food along the way. We will be driving from Savannah to Ft Lauderdale the second day, staying near the interstate that night. Haven’t decided on the Buc-ee’s that we will make a pitstop at yet, but one is on the list. Our checkin time is 11:30 Sunday morning. Since we are in a suite, we will arrive between 10:30 and 11:00. When checkin first opened for our sailing, RCI assigned me 11:30 and my husband 12:00 even though I checked us in at the same time. I was fine with that, since I planned to have a drink and relax while I patiently waited for him onboard. For some reason, he wasn’t crazy about it, but sacrifices, you know? I was eventually able to change his checkin time to 11:30 too, but it sure was fun teasing him about waving buh-bye as I boarded, blowing kisses as I left. How we got here: We were first booked on Odyssey for this week, in a JS. When we saw the Covid restrictions as sailing resumed, we decided to do a ‘cheaper’ cruise, so moved to a JS on Oasis, which was half the price, albeit one night less. After toying with a few bids for GS and CLS, we found a CLS facing aft, close to one side of the ship and snatched it up for slightly more $$$ than the JS we previously had booked on Odyssey. So, cheaper it isn’t, but upgrade it is! Special plans: Dining in 150 CP for my birthday, Cococay Beach Club same day, Coastal Kitchen most nights, no plans for the ports. We are doing a similar itinerary next December on Harmony, so may not even leave the ship this time. This is our first time sailing Oasis class, so we want to check out everything onboard. Caveat: I have been wrestling with whether or not to do a live blog for several reasons: 1. I was afraid I would jinx us by starting a blog, then one of us test positive two days ahead. Now, I’m too excited to fret, and know if that happens, there is a reason for it. But, I will cry buckets. Serious buckets. 2. I am nowhere near as entertaining as other writers here. Some of you are amazing at blogging. I was a bit intimidated. 3. I could get onboard and only update sporadically, failing at live blogging. After all, we have 4 free drinks a day, plus the suite happy hour. I’m a lightweight when it comes to alcohol. I plan to do the Ultimate Abyss, even though I’m a bit claustrophobic. Who knows what could happen? Also, Cruise Life Rick and John&LaLa from CC onboard. I could be starstruck. If you have questions, I will try to find the answer to them. No promises, but will do my best, as long as it doesn’t interfere with the experience. I apologize now, before failing at this. You have been warned. Set your expectations low, and no one will be disappointed.

It’s 3:30 am the day we leave for our cruise. Don’t check for the time I posted this. I wrote it early killing time. No, we don’t have an early flight. We are taking a leisurely 7 hour drive to Savannah today. But, I’m like a 5 year old when it comes to travel. I get so excited that I can’t sleep. Thank God for eye cream, because I’m going to have some serious bags this afternoon. I’ve always been this way about travel. Ever since my first long trip with Grandma and my cousin Mary when we were both 13 years old. Grandma took us to visit family in Baltimore. Grandma loved travel too, and she booked the 3 of us on the Amtrak train round trip. I remember the excitement of being on the train…and wanting to seriously hurt Mary because she cried every day for her Momma. I was worried that Grandma would cut our trip short, but obviously I get my travel attitude from Grandma, because she wasn’t budging on our schedule. Mary was allowed to call her Momma every day, but there was no going home early, thank goodness. That trip was when the travel bug bit, and I have been sold out ever since. I’m sitting here in the living room, dressed and trying to figure out how to wake my husband without being obvious about it. I would bounce on the bed, but we have a memory foam mattress. I realize now that was a poor choice. If I am “accidentally” a bit noisy, like when I was unloading the dishwasher a bit ago, he sleeps right thru it. And he gets annoyed when I cheerfully lift one of his eyes to “see” if he is awake. I don’t understand how he can be so blasé. We haven’t cruised in 802 days…not that Im counting. He knows how I am about travel, but does he accommodate this infantile behavior? No!!! Whatever. We will be taking our Covid tests as soon as I wake him…I mean, as soon as he wakes up. And he wants to pick up his new reading glasses on the way out, like it’s that important for him to see. Whatever.

Kids tested negative! Made it on the ship. Genie escorted us to our room. It is awesome! Fridge full of beer. Fruit and wine on table. Very impressed with Star Class experience. I recommend to all.

Covid is the new flu at this point. We will be doing yearly boosters for the rest of our life and in a few years the media will drop the circus parade amd move on to something else. Even if we had 100% worldwide vaccination this would still stick around unless extreme measures were put into place like a multi month quarantine on top of vaccination and a few other things. Could I be wrong. Sure. If so I have an old shoe to eat. But at this point these topics are beating a horse that had been dead for 6 months. Let's just bury it here and now...

Two negative Covid tests. Thank you e-Med! Getting Ken dressed to go out and test would have been more than he could endure after I finally woke him at 6 am. I may have pillaged his wallet for his ID, and had his phone, the test kit, and ID all set up for him, as he staggered out to the table. What a great wife! I talked him into not worrying about his hair all askew, because this person at eMed will never see him again, right? Unless they are on the cruise, or that person has a website like the “People of Walmart”. Ssshhh. Don’t put thoughts in his head. If you are sailing with us, come up and introduce yourself if you see me, please. How will you know who I am? I’m not a bot like Twangster, but I don’t take pics because…well, I take awful photos. Seriously bad ones. My best photos have a ‘deer in the headlights of a semi’ look. I avoid the front of a lens when at all possible. I prefer to be behind the camera. But, I will be wearing these at some point, because I like my t-shirts with a bit of snark.

Welcome to the message boards. No one knows what, if any, impact omicron or any variant will have on cruises. In order to avoid the kind of discussions that go outside the purview of what's allowed here (i.e. debating Covid), I'm going to lock this thread and just let you know no one knows of any changes yet. If/when there are changes in policy, I will post about it on RoyalCaribbeanBlog.com.

Friends of Bill relate to all recovery oriented 12 step style meetings, not just AA.

For those who have been on the Jewel (maybe on other Radiance class ships as well), you know how the Diamond Lounge is on the deck overlooking the pool deck. Well, I went there to get coffee and there were these two men, probably in their 80s, watching people on the pool deck. An elderly lady joins them as they point out to a couple making out in the pool. Some of the lines I remember were: ”Don’t they have a room on the ship?” ”There are children on the pool deck, you know”… (Reply) “But the children are gonna find out about it sooner or later” “I’m a prude, I care about private things being private” ”Look, they’re going at it again” As I was leaving I said to them in jest, “Boy, I have to be careful how I behave on the pool deck”

An abject lesson in taking any OTC meds you might need. I have a small pharmacy I bring with pain relievers, cold meds, pepto, Imodium, bandaids, mole skin, sunburn cream. Ok you get the idea. You can’t rely on any of this being readily available. Not to mention the outrageous prices!

Hello All I wanted to just share my experience as my just returned the Anthem OTS sailing from Bayonne with a multi generational family group with one family member in a wheel chair and unvaccinated kids. The first thing I suggest is even if you have a set embarkation time is give yourself 30 minutes to an hour leeway. This is really for unplanned things that occur on any family trip (eg grandparents or kids needing to stop to use the restroom etc). To build upon this if you have unvaccinated kids build in at least 45 minutes as test results will not come out for about 30-45 minutes. You will not be allowed to board till the kiddos test negative. Plan on bringing a snack or drinks in your carry on. I saw many hangry children including my own as the Bayonne cruise terminal only had a single snack machine available. Also be aware that as you are waiting for your test results, you will need to be escorted to the restroom if you need to use it as the only restrooms available are in the general embarkation area. Another thing I saw many parents complain about is that the service inside cruise terminal maybe spotty. I have T-moblie and I was not able to get cell phone service where I was sitting. This was a issue because my kids test results are sent via text msg and email. Luckily I was able to walk around the waiting area, found a spot with good reception forwarded the results to my wife who had another carrier with better reception. I saw other families distraught as some had to repeat testing as the first set of results were invalid meaning they had to wait even longer to board the ship. Also keep in mind that only parents are allowed to wait with their children in the waiting area. So those traveling in a larger group should have grandparents or other travelers without kids get on board first. My embarkation time was at 1pm. I got to the terminal around 12:30 unloaded and parked. I waiting in the testing line with the kids from about 12:45 till they were finally tested at around 2 ish. We got test results in about an hour later and boarded little after 3pm. I would say that if you want to board at your embarkation time to plan for at least 1 to 2 hours of waiting around. The second thing I noticed on board is to plan a head as much as you can. I know this is annoying as you want to just be able to not plan when you are on vacation, but if you wanted to participate in the activities that require a reservation, plan it out as early as possible. My older one wanted to do the complimentary Ifly. However by the time I got on board and got the app working, every complimentary ifly was booked. I think next time I may try to get those that went on board first to try and book for my kids. Reservations right now for shows and activities are must. I did not mind going through the app to make reservations, but I don't think the app was designed in the most user friendly manner and there were many glitches with the app while I was on board. There were also some times onboard where I made a reservation for the whole party as all the staterooms were linked but there were other times where I could not make a reservation for some members of the party. Also I would state for parents with unvaccinated children that you maybe asked to split your part as the unvaccinated area became full. This occurred a few times on my cruise so I sent some vaccinated members of the party down to the lower level of the royal theater and stayed with the kids upstairs. I think if the app was better equipped i.e stating how many guests are vaccinated/unvaccinated, perhaps RCL could done a better job of ensuring that if you had a reservation that you could enter the show. I did see some very angry family as they were turned away even though they did have a reservation for the showtime due to capacity and seating. Maybe what they need to is actually have the ability to pick seats in the app itself and have assigned seating. Another takeaway came from the perspective of my disabled family member who travelled in his electric wheelchair. Overall there were always wheelchair spots available and accessibility with in the ship was never a problem. Also having the accessible stateroom allowed him plenty of space to maneuver his wheelchair around the room. The only times where accessibility was a small issue was during my time dining for breakfast at the main dining room. The tables that were available for the large party where more towards the interior of the MDR which was alittle annoying as the wheelchair did have a hard time getting to the table we were given for breakfast. But almost all the time the waiters helped moved chairs and even tables out of the way to ensure a clear path to where we were sitting. Overall this was another great cruise that was fun for my multigenerational family. I think with all the things I observed I will have a different approach the next time I sail out of Bayonne. I am already planning an even larger family trip on the Oasis. I hope this helps out parents and others on future sailings.

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.

So I recently got off Mariner of the Seas on Nov 30th and was about 3 hours into the drive home when I realized that I did not have my wallet on me. While cruising I always leave my wallet in the safe and only take the cash or credit cards that I need onshore and my passport. So on debarkation morning wearing athletic shorts it fell out of my pocket in the chair in the main dining room. This was the first time I had been separated from my wallet in at least 15 years and so I was thoroughly panicked. My wife did a quick search for a Royal Caribbean lost and found and there is an email process that you go through and give them all of the details about the item and the ship and so forth. Being the pessimist that I am I thought it was a fools errand but what the heck. Thankfully for Mobile Apps and being able to turn off all of my cards immediately, and that I jokingly had given my Wife all of the cash from my casino trips telling her that she would get it from me one way or another so might as well hand it over. I was only really out the actual wallet. 2 Days post cruise and I received an email last night from Royal that the wallet has been found and it will be returned to me once the ship returns to port and they are able to process it, all I had to do was pay for shipping. So if you ever forget/lose something this might be worth a try.

I will take one for the team and go with you! You shouldn’t have to go it alone

I will board the Navigator of the Seas tomorrow morning for a short 4 day adventure. My last RCCL voyage on anything other than an Oasis Class ship was on the Song of Norway in 1992. Having forgotten everything about that ship I searched for clues about what I might expect tomorrow. And as usual the goldmine of information was found in a 2019 blog by @twangster. After his extensive review of the newly amped Navigator there is certainly no need for me to do this. Wanna know anything about Navigator just read his blog. But in the end I decided to go ahead with this hoping I can add something about the new home port, new ports of call and the overall return to the West Coast. I’ll do my best to simply put the facts out on this trip and keep my warped sense of humor in check. We booked this trip about a month ago. It began as a casino comp for two, inside cabin. Total taxes and port fees were $200 and change. Not bad for 4 nights of being back on a ship and it’s only a 2 hour drive to the Port of Los Angeles. But I chose this particular cruise because the last full day will be my bride’s birthday. So I upgraded us to a Junior Suite as a birthday gift. When I told her the exciting news she reminded me that she has a twin sister who, coincidentally, shares the same birthday. Another call to Casino Royale and now we sail in a 2 bedroom Grand Suite with the twin and her husband. We will be in suite 9394. Looks like about the same walk from the elevators as it is to the Aqua suites on Oasis class. We shall see. We received email from Jorge, the Navigator concierge, 5 days before the sail date. I asked for the entertainment schedule so we could plan our dinner schedule. He replied the same day and our evenings look like this: Day 1- Dinner at Hooked and I-Skate. Day 2- Dinner at Jamie’s and the production show Showgirls Day 3- Dinner at Izumi and the Headliner, juggler Randy Cabral Day 4- Birthday dinner at Chops and Headliner show, Kivi Rogers We again used the proctored home COVID tests from E-Med. We took them yesterday morning and printed our results. We will leave Palm Springs tomorrow morning at around 8:30. Should be a 2- 2 ½ hour ride to the port. We’ll park at the port where the daily cost is about $20 per day. Ship sails around 5 pm I believe. We have a full day at sea on Tuesday which we love but is also amusing since our first port of call is just about 26 miles from our port of departure! Those must be some awfully big, slow circles we’ll cruise in. Wednesday, day 3, we will call on Catalina Island. Beautiful little place for Southern California tourists. The twins were there as youngsters. I was actually a waterski instructor there when I was 18. That was just after islands were discovered. On Day 4 we will visit Ensenada, Mexico. We have no plans for the ports other than to take a walk around and have a drink. This isn’t a cruise we would take for the ports but I’m sure we’ll enjoy them both. We are excited to see and experience the Navigator. Looking forward to eating at Hooked, having drinks in the Bamboo Room and taking our first cruise that our Sea Pass cards will open the door of the Diamond Lounge. . This will our first cruise in 5 years without the Genie Magic – whatever will we do without the 3 tons of daily snacks? As I mentioned I sailed on the Majesty and Song of America in the early 90’s. I then took about a 10 year break from cruising after I retired from the government and opened my own business. In the early 2000’s I began sailing again but on the Disney Magic with my then toddler. I returned to Royal some years ago but then only sailed on Oasis Class. I’m looking forward to returning to the experience of a smaller ship. I hope to provide some words and pictures that may be of interest to those that will once again sail RCCL from Los Angeles. If there’s a question I can answer or a picture of something you’d like to see just let me know. And for any of you Navigator veterans, I’d love to hear your tips and suggestions. Hopefully in about 18 hours I’ll be describing the boarding process in Los Angeles!

2 Bedroom Grand Suite 9394

There's frustration coming out of the South Africa medical community about the overreaction to Omicron since the cases they've found so far have all been very mild

#1) all posts by new members are hidden until approved by admin or a moderators for a certain period of time. #2) this is a volunteer position. Some of us are on the Group Cruise, and some have other things going on in our lives. I have a sick horse and a husband home with Covid, and today was not a day that I could check for post approval every hour. It's not a personal thing, so don't make it one. 3) Mistakes on "your part"? What ever-loving mistakes are you talking about? What do you think we here have to admit to?

I really liked the poached lobster with champagne sauce! I had read nothing good about it but decided to try it, with the MDR lobster as a backup. I may be the only one, but I liked it better. We've had all our meals in CK this week on Oasis and they have all been great.

okay final update I called Ontario's Provincial Vaccine Information line 888-999-6488. I have called this number so many times to be turned away "you need to contact your public health" connected with an agent, you can tell by his voice and the manner he spoke, he knew what he was doing. Awesome, a seasoned call center agent. explained my situation and he emailed my wife's 1st dose information sheet. I thanked him profusely.. Got off the phone and review the document in detail. I spotted something... her 1st dose information sheet mentions that she had received 2 valid doses. So I replied back via email to the call center agent "David" of what i was seeing "1st & 2nd doses information sheets both says she has received 2 valid doses". He replied back explaining the 1st dose information sheet was printed as of today with today's information. (2 valid doses). So I printed the 1st dose information sheet and the email conversation with the call center agent(as backup). Let's hope it works

Day 1 Activities: After — well, no, during!— my lunch, I focused on getting logged in on my Voom account and setting up reservations for shows. I had an idea of what was available from other people’s Freedom descriptions, but had to get the hang of finding the one I wanted (I.e., Vaccinated vs. Everyone). I booked a couple of duplicates, so went back and cancelled the ones I didn’t want. That was pretty easy. I had also figured out what meals I wanted to eat in the MDR, and then made sure I wasn’t going to overtax my stomach (or scale!) by choosing more than one big meal a day. Days I had to watch out for: Day 1 — Maryland Crab Cakes in the MDR Day 2 — Sushi & Sake pairing in Izumi (I had no idea how much food it would be, but wanted to make sure I could savor it and still enjoy an evening meal — which happened to be tenderloin in the MDR!) Day 3 — Nassau, so I’ll be snorkeling — that should burn up a few extra calories Day 4 — Coco Beach Club. Filet and lobster. Need I say more? Once I had all of my reservations figured out and made (by which time I had wandered out of the MDR from my lunch, and was just kind of hanging out in the Promenade), I KNEW I had to ask Guest Services about SOMETHING — but I couldn’t for the life of me remember what it was. Hint: it was about the COVID test I wanted to get before I disembarked. By then, it was about 1:57. Why so precise a time, you may ask? Well, the Captain had just come on over the PA moments before and said the rooms would be ready at 2:00 — and it was almost 2! So I calmly walked up the two flights of stairs, down the hallway to my Interior Promenade room — and THERE WAS MY KEYCARD! Yes, I was that excited, I was thinking in all caps. Here are some pictures (I think, if I can master this silly “Drag Files Here to Attach” procedure . . . Forgive me, please, if some of them turn up sideways; they look fine in my gallery )

This is actually very common across the community. I've heard it announced in Airports, etc. My mom is in recovery and it's helpful to know that when a craving comes through, as they do at the most random times, she can request support.

Pictures from Part 1: What a beautiful sight!! Freedom’s aft;-) Seabourne Odyssey, Carnival Sunshine and Liberty Back to THE terminal! In The Key line — conveniently located next to the bathrooms

room is spaciousray near cabanasmall sharkIf food is left unattended seagulls take advantage of lunch

Well, not a price drop, but still a flex. Managed to upgrade my Standard Interior on Harmony in September 2022 to a Promenade View Interior... for a grand total of $4.

Well since you asked…yup. Festivus isn’t Festivus without the pole. LOL

I am really tired of ‘the sky is falling, the sky is falling’ mentality from the press and politicians every time a new variant arises. I know the drama sells for news sites, and allows politicians to be able to be able to hold onto unreasonable control a while longer, but so far, as contagious as this is, the cases presenting are milder: https://nypost.com/2021/11/27/omicron-variant-symptoms-unusual-but-mild-says-south-african-doctor/

Exactly this whole Omicron variant is being blown out of proportion first by the WHO now by governments all across the world looking to scare people. They are still trying to use this virus as a means to control peoples lives regardless of vaccination status

Scariest thing last week was Boris Johnson's speech about Peppa Pig! Dont know what he had been smoking but it must have been strong lol If you havent seen it then i suggest you avoid its that bad

Free? Royal Caribbean?

The CDC has so far been following the science... that the virus only travels by airplane since the land border is open without any testing requirement to enter the US. Note to self. Always travel with a couple of eMed kits in my carry on just in case. I hope they continue to leave the land border alone. Pretty soon I'll need a full car office with printer, scanner, eMed kits, small kitchen to cook food and make coffee while waiting for results, etc. Maybe I should buy a motorhome. Looking down the road (pun intended) to when both sides land border require a test to enter... So what happens when you drive across a border bridge and reach the other side without a test? Can't go forward without a test and can't go back into the source country without a test. Stuck on the bridge. "Bridge People". What happens if you catch the virus while stuck on the bridge between the two countries? Hmmm. Note to self - stay well away from other Bridge People.

Early morning today. In Cozumel and we are headed to the mainland for pyramids. Luckily we called it an early night and waking up this morning was doable. Dinner last night was great.

NO...NO...NO....JS is not the gateway to being a suite snob. It has to be the higher class suites that leads one to being a suite snob for if it is not then I am in trouble. I hate it when the mouse gets possessed and just starts clicking on things. I'll really be in trouble if the wife turns into a suite snob for that means less man toys for me through out the year.

I sailed on Symphony in Oct out of Miami and took full advantage of the Suite embarkation line. Check in was scheduled for 1pm. Arrived at 12:30 and was on board in the promenade by 12:50. It was glorious!

The Key . . . So far, so good! Things I’ve enjoyed: Priority embarkation: Although my initial time was 11:30, being in The Key line meant that we went in just as the middle of the Suite Line had entered the Terminal and right before the 11:30 crowd - it looked like about 50-60 people in that line. We were directed to a separate The Key seating area — right next to the General Boarding waiting area, but separate. I have no idea where the Suite area was, or if there was a separate Pinnacle/Diamond Plus section as well. There was a restroom right next to us, but, as I typed before, no place to refill water bottles or get a drink of water. I think RCL needs to rethink that approach. The Key area was summoned before the other groups to proceed aboard. Carry On Bag Handling: Since I was carrying my two bottles of wine in my carry-on (an E-bags backpack — very comfortable, but kind of heavy when serving as a wine tote), I was very happy to hand it over to The Key staff at the entrance to the MDR prior to going in for my Chops Lunch. TBH, I was a bit concerned because it had my iPad in it too — but when I got into my room at almost exactly 2:00, there it was perched on my sofa! I felt badly that I had those concerns, as I really have a lot of faith in the RCL crew members — and they delivered their usual high degree of excellent service. Chops Lunch: My filet was really good — perfectly cooked (medium rare) and so flavorful and tender. I restrained myself and only had grilled asparagus as a side — and no dessert, much to the dismay of my server, Anna. 25% Discount on Specialty Dining — yup, it was included, and worked on my Sushi and Sake pairing on Day 2! Voom 1-Device: the daily cost for Voom onboard is $22.99 (I think), so The Key gives me the above benefits PLUS Voom for $6.00 / day less than Voom onboard. One small downside: the priority access for the shows in the Theater appear to be limited to the 4th Deck, which is the Everybody deck. I don’t want to deprive families with kids of the opportunity to see shows, so plan on sitting in the Vaccinated sections on the 3rd Deck. I guess it gives families with The Key a better chance of getting prime seats for their families which is fine.

Coco cay was awesome. Really enjoyed overwater cabana 10. It is eastern group far right side when looking south. Kids loved the chicken wingswent to ice show in evening and watched Aqua show from balcony before bed.

C-0! It’s Cruise Day! I made it to Miami yesterday right on time — about 10:45 a.m. While my suitcase was not the LAST one off the plane, it was also not in the first 40! Some MIA (Miami International Airport) tips: 1. If you’re catching a Hotel Shuttle, look for and trust the “hotel shuttle” signs in the baggage area. They know where you’re supposed to go even if you don’t! The hotel shuttle stop is across the first lane of traffic, and kind of hidden. 2. It’s a bit of a longish walk from the far gate — if you’re following a 7’0” tall person, do not necessarily try to keep pace with them! On the other hand, I did get to the Baggage Claim area really quickly I stayed at the Comfort Inn & Suites on Mokena Drive; it’s not the most exclusive area, but the shuttle worked out well, and I felt perfectly safe as a solo traveler. The desk staff was very helpful; I was all set to leave my suitcase with them and go exploring until my 3:00 check in time. Fortunately, when they asked me if I cared if I had one bed or two in the room, I replied that one was fine — and they gave me my room right away! I had a great room on the 8th floor (801) looking west so I could watch planes taking off, but the soundproofing works really well and there was little noise. I did use public transportation (bus) to go into town to a Target to get a replacement “bite valve” for my water bottle; it managed to fall off somewhere between my arrival and departure gates in Atlanta. Made my 9,000 steps goal for the day! Red-Eye Flight tip: find your afternoon/evening meal early (I recommend the Airport Liquor Store and Cafe on 36th Street — had an awesome pork sandwich with adobo chiles and French fries) and be prepared to go to bed early — I made it until 8:30 pm and that was it — lights out until 5:30 this morning! I decided to catch the early (9:00 a.m.) shuttle to the Cruise Port (another nice thing about Comfort Inn & Suites — they offer a free shuttle TO the Cruise Port). I know, I know, “don’t get there too early, you’ll just have to wait.” I don’t mind waiting, though — I’ll find a porter and get rid of my suitcase pronto, and then go find a spot to sit and read. I guess my only concern is whether there are any restroom facilities available to people waiting outside, but can always ration my water intake if there aren’t. I do have The Key, so my latest instructions from RCL were to make sure I am at the Terminal around 11:00; my arrival time on my Set Sail Pass is already 11:30, so either way I’ll have about a 2 hour wait. I don’t have the DBP on this first half of my S2S, so I’ll probably have one Sailaway drink — hmm, decisions, decisions! All for now; I’ll post more once I get on Freedom — solo!

Chalk up another great job by air2sea. My #1 son made it to the airport in Birmingham AL for a flight to Puerto Rico and found that he didn't have his original vax card. Thankfully, he had the presence of mind to "miss" the flight and call air2sea. I didn't think there was much they could do as neither American nor Travelocity showed any flights that would arrive before the ship departure. However, air2sea worked a miracle and put together a flight that arrived at 3pm (sail time was 8). He made the flight and saved the cruise! I was impressed that they not only got this together. But it only cost an extra $120. Kudos to air2sea. I'll never fly to a cruise any other way.

Drink more so you dont feel so bad about paying more lol

…add a pickup truck to that line and you’ll have a great country western hit! Seriously…I wish your husband, and your horse, full and complete recoveries. Many thanks for administering these forums.

I know, so many germs!! I once saw a toddler sucking on its fingers and then it touched a door knob. So incredibly gross. Then the time the guy left the bathroom without washing his hands, heading back to the buffet - are you kidding me?! I've even caught several colds from being out there - it was terrible. I now wear rubber gloves and a respirator everywhere I go then bath in Neosporin every evening when I get back to my house. Its the only way to be safe out there. Those germs will get ya if you aren't careful. Seriously, we are by design (immune-compromised excluded), able to wade through this filth. Wash your hands frequently, exercise, eat right, and live. You can't change the world or anyone else's behavior, so if close quarters with 1,000's isn't your thing, find another place to spend your time. But I will say, the less you expose yourself to germs the less capable your immune system becomes. Think of it this way, your friend in the elevator was doing you a favor by triggering an immune response, making you stronger and more capable of fighting off the next onslaught. Cheers!!