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I totally forgot about the jelly fish. Where I am we usually get in August but this year because of the many shark sightings I didn't go into the water much. I've had a ridiculous fear of jellyfish since I can remember (one of my first memories is my cousin carrying me on her shoulders because kids were taking jellyfish out of the water with buckets and burying them). I feel like I need to prepare myself so I don't have an obnoxious reaction.

Happy to hear that.

Yes. As soon as you get on board go to the MDR to speak to someone.If you can link reservations ahead of time it will help. I've done it on a cruise with 15 people and it was 5 separate parties.

I would keep trying daily until you got them.

A whole bunch of people on my 9/25 cruise didn't receive their luggage tags either so we all reached out to RC through facebook messenger and got them within the hour. They're still not loaded to the rc site but I have an email with the luggage tags as an attachment.

I feel like the tip thing is partly/mostly on royal. You can't make tip optional without this being an issue. People don't fully get tipping and others will save money wherever they can. I'll make sure I tip extra this coming cruise. I have a lot of OBC I can throw their way. What book series are you reading?

I'm on this. Good to know.

My friend calls condiments "icky stuff". It's stuck with me every time I make a sandwich. No chocolate chip cookies?! Crazy. Laughing at the dude who kept playing after the white wine was thrown on him. The casino sounds like a mini soap opera.

Lots of us solo sail! Look through the blog section for present and past blogs. I like to travel and sometimes it means not waiting for the people around me to go. Manage your expectations pre cruise. Know what makes you comfortable and where you may need to push yourself. For me I'm content being solo and bring my Kindle or a book everywhere but that's also my regular life - I read a ton and it's what makes me happiest on a trip or commuting or before sleep or a a beach. I'm not a huge fan of the MDR (I view it more as an experience) so on solo trips I get the dining package. I don't get the drink package because while I'll have a few drinks per day it's not worth it. I'll book excursions I really want to do. Whether cruising or traveling solo you will meet people if you are open to it. I border the extrovert/Introvert line and can either be super friendly or very shy depending on how comfortable I am, I know traveling solo means I may have to adjust my behavior and push through to get out of my own head. The first excursion I did I was a little nervous but people are generally friendly and it wound up being great. The only thing I hate and I've mentioned this before is when a well meaning person tells me how "brave" I am for traveling solo and then lists reasons why they would never be able to. I get the point but I find it slightly condescending. The staff may make a few comments as well. Again, everyone had good intentions.

You can upload that stuff at any time. My check in was a few weeks ago and I still haven't uploaded my pic but I was up at 12am to pick my boarding time. I picked my time and went back to sleep. In the morning I did everything else except for the picture.

I guess it's how you look at it. It's been a while but I liked the food, the wine was hit or miss for me (I'm kinda snobby about my wine and anything sweet or too fruity and i'm out) but the experience was great. I loved sitting with a small group and getting to meet people. I saw it more as an experience and fine(r) dining.

gimme that sushi.

I get being frustrated but you can't blame someone for their fears, irrational or not. If it's not his thing no amount of guilt will work in this situation. If you can, make the best of the situation and maybe in the future he will come around or you'll find a pal to sail with.

The one time I went to a solo trivia event it wasn’t clearly marked and I wound up doing trivia by myself with a bunch of couples. I’m sure other people have better experiences but mine was a dud.

It's either I read and pretend not to people watch or full on people watch and hope no one catches me, at least with a book I can keep up the pretense, or totally get into my book.

Oasis Sept 25-Oct 2? Me too. Hoping someone here could give you ideas of what to do. Because I live/work around here I'm the worst at telling people what they should visit. I go into Manhattan for work and go right back home and only do touristy things when someone from out of town comes in. I'll tell you that going back and forth from JFK is a pain in the butt so you may want to figure out how to carry your stuff or just another plan. Here's an idea though that isn't far from the airport. https://www.twahotel.com/

If it helps, I live 25 miles from the airport which I've been able to get there in about a half an hour. It's also taken over an hour to get there. Is there something in particular you'd like to see in Brooklyn? Morning Sunday traffic is minimum so you'd have a fairly easy time getting there. Also, if there is a time of year you plan on going see what events are going on at the same time. You'd want to avoid marathon days but there are a bunch of festivals you may be able to see. Best bet is figure out what time is optimal to arrive at the airport, figure out where in Brooklyn you'd like to go, the time of year - and then go from there.

Nope but also I don't love the MDR to begin with. I like it as an experience with people. It's too many people for me to want to be solo. I'm more comfortable in the specialty restaurants by myself. Personal preference. Plus I like the food better.

I commend you for being able to take the heat during summertime in Italy. I went in June and all I did was sweat.

My only piece of advice is to leave extra time to get to JFK. Traffic is nuts on the Belt Parkway.

When I cruise solo I get the UDP. I don't have the guts to join a table unless I knew they were strangers already. I'm more than happy to add to my party and in the past when people have been sat with my group it's gone well. The last time the other group wound up changing their plans so we could all hang out and it was awesome. I like the specialty restaurants solo, love getting my meal and reading at the table.

My friend is similar but after going off all meat she wanted more protein in her diet. Basically she has to "cook the s***" out of it for her to eat it. Lobster and shrimp are light. The fresher the better. Salmon is hit or miss, if you see trout it's a tad less than salmon. Everyone here has great ideas. Order an entree extra each time to try something and don't feel bad if you don't. Maybe even tell your server ahead of time. If worried about waste make whoever you're going with try the same thing!

The issue in the US with the $2 bills is that there are enough people who don't believe they're real. Hell, I know they're real and have 2 of them and have always felt weird about using them.

It’s never been worth it to me but it was 16.99 when I purchased which was less that the Voom cost so I purchased. I don’t care about the welcome lunch but my friend loved the idea so this time it was worth it.

Totally but I've never seen changes by the hour.