Scatmanjack

Guess we are sailing on the 1st attempt of this itinerary on July 20th...

Love being the test mouse...

Looking forward to some nice cheese...

Interested to see how show schedule and MDR Menu rotation is handled... (we do have a three night dining package to plan)

Final Payment made...

Time to sail...

Irish Music Group will be on this sailing, not sure how venue availability will be affected... (I am not booked as part of this group)

2 hours ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

Oh so there is hope for me to receive my Emerald pin when on Symphony in May?  I earned my Emerald status back in November and this upcoming cruise is my first full-fledged cruise in Emerald status!  I really do hope I get a pin! 

Based upon a post above yours, I would guess that each ship will continue to hand them out as long as they have supply on hand...  But obviously YMMV...

Was the music constant?

Same Trio of musicians entire time or did they switch out?

Just vocals or any instrumental numbers?

So my old Platinum and Emerald ones are now 'collectible'?  Ebay here I come...

Another Mayan Ruin Option out of Progresso is Mayapan Ruins.  We did a tour 5+ years ago that included a stop here and had a great time.  Lots to see and you can climb to top of pyramid.   (swimming in a cenote was second part of tour)

I have been looking for another trip that stops at Progresso but haven't found one that fits work/life schedule.

Did appear that it was 'book an excursion' port vs. walk around town...  

Had a reservation for a Pearl Island Excursion in July but when I started reading reviews I decided to cancel.   There are a lot of Youtube videos from right after COVID that seem positive but recent online written reviews are not so kind....  Disorganized, Overcrowded, Broken/Limited Equipment, Poor Food... Not sure I wanted to risk $400-500 on that possibility...

Blue Lagoon is currently offline due to fatality so Bahamas 'active' excursions seem limited in offering from RCCL.   

Stay on ship?

We have stayed at Marriott Branded Hotels in Webster, TX at least 8 times.   SpringHill Suites.  Some further south in League City but Construction on 45/Access Roads might make accessibility challenging.   There is also CostCo in Webster for Gas refill if needed...

Recently sailed on Voyager of the Seas.

This was our 10th RCCL cruise across 4 different classes.

I have observed that some classes have the 13th deck labelled as deck 13 and some skip to 14 after 12...

I get the 'superstition' reason but wondering why the inconsistency?

Ever been addressed?

Sailed on Voyager last week...

3 Person Party

Booked in 3 Person Capacity Stateroom per Deck Plans...

Cabin had two ceiling Pullman beds so it technically could have had 4 people?

But yes, as a family of three we have also had problems with website in past finding room for 3.  A lot of times it would say 'sold out' and our option would be a guarantee  reservation...

The Sports Courts on Freedom, Voyager, and Radiance Class Ships have a pony wall and a netting around the court to keep stray balls from flying out.   This setup however allows strong wind gusts to dominate the courts- particularly on Sea Days.   The Oasis Class ships I've been on have Plexiglass walls in lieu of the netting to control the out of control balls.  This greatly reduced wind gusts and allows the successful playing of small ball games like pickleball.   Having attempted Pickleball on a Voyager Class, I can personally say it is next to impossible to play on board.  The Ball is constantly blown away by strong wind gusts.   Seeing how they are now charging $75+ for a 'class' on these ships, did they retrofit some windbreakers on these smaller ships recently to make this possible?

5 hours ago, MLH said:

When it was built it was always the Crown/Diamond lounge and the comedy club is across the way.

My only Oasis Class experience has been Allure and the Comedy Club is the room that evidently is Crown Lounge on all other Oasis Class ships.  The nightclub Blaze was across the way with non-smoking casino next door to Comedy.

Thanks for the input...

Looking at Deck Plans for a future sailing on Harmony of the Seas that we're booked on...

Noticed the Comedy Club is now labeled as 'Crown Lounge'...

I know the Jazz Clubs were converted to Non-Smoking Casinos last year but I do not remember any information on Comedy Clubs going away...

Is this a real deal or just an anomaly for Harmony?

So Progreso Port cannot handle the larger vessels?

We've stopped there with smaller RCCL vessels and enjoyed it...

Agree that Galveston needs variety... 

With these prices, now I want to see what Celebrity will be offering for Alaska 2025...

We will have made Diamond by then...

2024 Listings for Alaska have multiple listings for same cruise, same ports of call, and on same ship...

One is called Alaska Adventure

One is called Alaska Experience

This are both 7 night cruises out of Seatle- no land add-ons... 

Just Marketing or am I missing something?

Doing research for a 2025 booking...

As a follow-up, Liberty of the Seas appears to be the last remaining ship with the Cigar Lounge according to published deck plans.   It is called the Connoisseur Club.   Cannot guarantee that is hasn't been converted to a Diamond Lounge or something similar at this point...

I believe the Freedom Class ships might have been the last ships to have dedicated indoor Cigar area.   It was up front by the Lounge on Deck 5.   Not sure if they have survived Amplifications and/or COVID...

Headed to Coco Cay in July 2024 and considering Beach Bed.   

Trying to decide between Chill Island area and South Beach Area.

Seems like Chill Island is close to Chill Grill and Skipper's Grill.

Is there a complimentary food option close to South Beach that I am missing?

South Beach seems like it would be more relaxing but if food is too far away...

(Cabana with server and the Beach Club will not be an option for us)

Thanks

The yellow fence railing under the covered parking was new for us.   It was not there in March 2023 but it was present last week...  

Just have to adjust your walking pattern...

Still a great parking option...

Interesting to see if 90L/Arlene changes any itineraries in a few days... 

We will sail on Sunday from Galveston but what happens after that might be up in the air...

This step is also better done on the Royal Website vs. the Royal App.  Not sure from your posting which method you had been using,,,

We stayed on Freedom several times before these rooms were added.   We stayed at the end room and it had a dead-end wall by our cabin door.  There was some sort of public or crew space (card room/RC Online) that got removed and they put additional cabins in.   Interestingly these cabins were of current cabin design for furniture and color schemes and did not match older cabins.  We talked to our stateroom attendant about it and they had different bedding and stuff for those rooms.  This was on Deck 7 but it is same concept...

Being creatures of habit we were a bit surprised the first time we turned down the hall on the post-renovation cruise and saw a new hallway with the additional cabins... We had lost our private dead-end quiet spot...

I wish they would reference where OBC is being sourced from...

I have gotten several credits randomly appearing in the past few months across different bookings...

Did you take a peak at the new non-smoking casino that was installed in Jazz Club during the prior week?