Scatmanjack

After having a few days for reflection... What bugs me most about this 'substitution' is that they took the unique Royal Caribbean aspect out of this cruise... I was born in Florida and have numerous relatives/friends there... I can drive/fly to Miami... I can fly/drive to Key West... I can fly to Nassau... but I can only visit CocoCay on a RCCL ship and they've taken that away... My free beach day (with free snorkeling - have own gear) and use of my drink package in the sand has been taken away... Now we face... Cab Ride to and from beach $$$ Chairs/Umbrellas $$$ Doubtful any underwater attractions/reef for snorkeling... Drinks $$$ Food $$$

Looking to see what Miami options they might offer... Get a listing of CocoCay options under Miami... Salt in the wound...

So they are screwing the people only on the smallest ship??? Nice...

Sorry to break the bad news to you...

Well take some of your amazing photos to show us what we missed... ? What ship has the 1/5 stop?

Vision of the SeasDecember 29,2018 sailing out of New OrleansWas scheduled for January 1 at CocoCay, January 2 at Nassau, and January 3 at Key West...Just got e-mail from RCCL stating CocoCay stop in cancelled due to construction and is being replaced with a wonderful stop in Miami...Our relaxing beach day is gone... I'm sure the Miami excursions with be wonderful and the tour guides will be completely sober at 8am on New Year's Day...Any other affected sailings at this point???

When the refreshment package (the non-alcoholic one) hits $18/day that is the cheapest it will be... buy it!!! Order a drink and a bottle of water at every occasion and stock up...

I would vote for Independence of the Seas. Recently had a dry dock with many new features. Teens will love Flowrider, Water Slide, Rock Climbing, Basketball Court, Mini Golf, Escape Room, Laser Tag, Trampoline Park, etc... The ~4200 passenger size doesn't feel that large and getting on/off ship flows smoother than 6000+ passenger ships. The 5 night itinerary is a selling point- not trapped for 7 nights if unhappy after 2 days... Smaller Bars with nice live music combos. Food is Food. Windjammer works and Pizza/Sandwiches available in Central Promenade. We've been on two Freedom Class ships and loved them. Independence is on our 'to do' list.... You can certainly request, and receive, a private table in the main dining room. We are a party of 3 and get our own table >80% of the time...

World Cup games being broadcast on board? Pool Screen or Sports Bar?

If any interest in Classical Music, the cello, or even World Peace, I would highly recommend the Pablo Casals museum as a stop. Nice collection of his artifacts on display... He played at the Kennedy White House and the UN. It was free last time we were there... On the walk to/from the Forts...

We've been on multiple snorkeling excursions in Mexico and Grand Cayman and seen multiple other parties have family members stay on board the excursion vessel while people snorkel in the water. Shouldn't be an issue to stay onboard... However, if she wants to get in water, they will probably not let her. Waivers strictly mention diabetes and they tend to go strictly by the book and say you can't snorkel/scuba. It's a shame they lump everyone into a single category and assume you will get low blood sugar and pass out from kicking your swim fins too hard...

Is this event only potentially effecting larger class ships at this point or all traffic to Roatan? Considering Liberty itinerary in August 2018 with Roatan stop... If it gets dropped that would probably drop this cruise for us as well...

They are very strict. In 2014, daughter was maybe 1/4-1/2 inch too short for flowrider. We had her in beach shoes to make up the difference so she could ride. They made her remove the shoes for official measurement and denied her the appropriate wristband. The next cruise we had to fight to get her off the flowrider... (and every one since...) :)

In this week's podcast (01/31/2018), Matt mentioned that Chops Grille is rolling out a new menu and the Red Velvet Cake is gone. Say it isn't so.... That was our favorite and the only peanut-allergy safe dessert at Chops/Giovanni's... What replaced it? The daughter is going to be so disappointed if this is true...

We ate there for lunch on our first sea day on Vision of the Seas, 12/2017. We had the entire place to ourselves the entire time! Daughter had the dry-aged steak-burger and it was incredible. Wife and I each had the filet. The tater tots were a bit disappointing, but the asparagus and mac & cheese were delicious. We had all 4 appetizers and they were all enjoyed. Red Velvet cake for dessert. A steal for only $19 a person... Great way to try specialty dining before committing to an entire evening of it...

Did they announce if the pier will handle multiple ships on same day? Have they done this before with tendering and I just missed it? Easy way to check ship schedule for CocoCay? Paul

Going to be sailing 12/31/2018 on Vision... Specialty Dining is not released for this date in cruise planner (other days of the cruise are already listed and available for booking...) 1) any Idea when they might release reservations for Chops, Giovanni's, etc..? Will Pinnacle, Diamond Plus, Diamond, etc... get first crack at reservations? How much will the upcharge be? 2) I assume they will make New Year's Eve a formal night regardless of the normal 7-night dining rotation schedule (i.e. Day 2 and Day 6 Formal) 3) Will Main Dining Room menu get an upgrade that night? Thanks, Paul

In terms of 2018 and CocoCay, it has been announced about the new pier construction currently slated for mid-2018 opening. Has anything else been formally announced by RCCL for CocoCay? There are many rumors floating around and they are probably true, but I'd love to get what 'facts' have been released. Headed to CocoCay on 01/01/2019 and would like to know what improvements might be open at that time... If I could get one addition to the island, it would be a bike trail and bike rental similar to Castaway Cay with Disney... Paul Dallas, TX

Vision still had all the harnesses and hardware for the show as of 12/23/2017. I was thinking there wasn't an aerial show due to holiday decorations creating hazards- Christmas Tree, all the greenery/balls on the railings, etc... Will see what happens in January 2018... Paul

Stanley Cup Finals were nowhere to be found on Liberty of the Seas in June 2017... (Fox had USA Broadcast rights if I remember...)

I think it's just the craziness of the boarding process with all the lines and knowing that you have to be at restaurant by time X... (lugging around your carry-on's too...) One computer glitch, customs officer with an attitude, or similar and all you plans could have a wrench thrown in them...

Was playing with the cruise planner for upcoming 5-nighter on Vision of the Seas and noticed they offered lunch at Chops Grille on Embarkation Day starting at 12pm. I'd never heard this option before. Has anyone ever done this? Paul

Vision of the Seas is coming to Galveston in a week. We are booked for a 5-night cruise in December. Short of waiting for someone to e-mail Matt their cruise compass stash for a November cruise, is there any way to guess about Dining Menu Schedule for these 5-Night cruises? Specifically interested in Lobster night in MDR... Would hate to book Specialty for that night and miss it... Probably only one formal night as well? Paul

I have a GoPro Hero4 Silver that I use for underwater and biking videos. For underwater filming I would highly recommend that you invest in Red/Magenta Corrective Filters. I offer these two shots, one with a corrective filter and one without. The filter balances out the color spectrum giving you a more natural looking photo. I purchased PolarPro filters from Amazon. You can find all sorts of informational videos on youtube regarding underwater filters. (I am still looking for the best solution for preventing water spots on your lens as you go from underwater to above water filming...) Without filter With Filter

Another Raw Video...