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twangster

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Everything posted by twangster

  1. twangster
    On top of $212 in OBC for this being a cancelled Cuba cruise I discovered another $50 in OBC on my account that must be from my TA. I'm actually having trouble spending it all. On CocoCay I bought a shirt at a Royal Shop kiosk where they take SeaPass cards (the straw market is cash). On CocoCay they don't apply the logo shop C&A discount plus since it is the Bahamas there is a 12% VAT on any purchase. Last night I ate more Ben & Jerry's and had an iced coffee to burn up some OBC. I asked at guest services and they tell me my non-refundable TA OBC should be consumed first and any of the refundable OBC left over should be applied to my credit card as a credit after the cruise.
  2. twangster
    Formal nights on Empress are not unlike most ships in the fleet but with fewer guests the ones that wear a tux or gown will stand out in the crowd more. I've seen pictures of the Hotel Director's table where a pinnacle was wearing short sleeve polo type shirt standing beside another guest in a tux. As long as you don't mind being "that guy" you are fine, just know there will be people more formal than you in the MDR.
  3. twangster
    There is a lot of engineering behind the height and weights limits, for a reason. Despite her objections, stick with the rules for her sake. If something ever happened you would never get over it.
  4. twangster
    Labadee? What's that? Is that a new private destination?
  5. twangster
    Don't rule out Oasis or Allure. They are getting AMPED and soon will be all of that and possibly more. #NotYourGrandfathersOasisClassShip
  6. twangster
    Same CBP process occurs in Bar Harbor on some itineraries. Typically they have several CBP officers and multiple locations. Other muster stations go to a different lounge. Non-US citizens have a different location for processing that is typically more involved. I'm assuming it will be like Bar Harbor.
  7. twangster
    Fernando my cabin attendant dropped off a letter this morning. We have to be processed by CBP tomorrow morning in Key West. A disadvantage of not having Key West as our first stop like I had on Empress recently is that this marks our return to the U.S. after being out of the country at foreign ports so the whole ship has to be processed. Based on our muster stations we all have a designated lounge to visit to see a CBP agent. Mine is the Spectrum Lounge at 8:15am.
  8. twangster
    Day 4 - Sea Day On our way to Key West tomorrow. First an Ocean View sunrise. Bridge tour this morning. Bridge wing. Not a bad break room. Best view on the ship.
  9. twangster
    On my way to my cabin after taking the stargazing pictures I came in off of deck 7 and saw... So which way is the exit? Maybe it's just me in my happy hour induced state that found this humorous. Speaking of drinking, they're multiplying. Jorge the GSM who followed me over from Empress sent me a bottle of wine. Combined with the two from Crown and Anchor I've got a lot of drinking to do starting tomorrow, day 4 of a 5 night cruise.
  10. twangster
    Great ship for a first cruise! Check out this blog post on her: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2017/01/31/first-time-cruisers-guide-royal-caribbeans-oasis-of-the-seas Also this link from the very top menu on this page "Getting Started" https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/getting-started Enjoy your cruise!
  11. twangster
    There is a lot going on around the ship but I'll be back soon enough so I'm not doing the ship's entertainment staff justice. I'll post the Cruise Compasses once I get home to scan them in properly. Outside for a walk on the Promenade deck there were a lot of stars visible. That made me pull out my night sky photography app and see where the Milky Way might be tonight. Sure enough... Majesty has these shelves along the forward section of the Promenade deck that worked great for my little tripod. While we were well past sunset the long exposure catches enough light coming over the horizon to make it look like a sunset. The lights of a city were on the horizon to starboard. The big dipper was very prominent tonight. It stood out more with the naked eye compared to this 10 second exposure. In this one I caught a passing airplane with it's strobe light flashing every second. For this one I setup on the floor of the deck trying to get into the shade of those Windjammer lights. In the darkness of the forward deck I got some strange looks as random guests walking past were wondering what I was doing crouched down low in the dark. Oh well, all in the name of taking a picture. All in all not bad. Majesty like Empress is also a good ship for stargazing with it's dark forward Promenade deck.
  12. twangster
    Here is the aft section of the Viking Crown Lounge that's open to the public while the forward half is used for Diamond happy hour. A rain storm was just moving off so the ship and any guests who didn't see it coming while on CocoCay had the salt washed off them. Navigator arrived first and left first to the two ships following along on their whistles. Shortly after it was our turn to depart. Having been sitting for a while enjoying bottomless drinks at the Diamond event I was motivated to get up and move. I saw a hint of a sunset so decided to check it out. Again not much of a sunset but there is always tomorrow.
  13. twangster
    They go into a cooler to keep them at nominal temperatures. On the tour they explain there are two controlling factors, time and temperature. Everything is monitored for both. The reality is they can't make 3,000 of everything on the menu a few minutes before dinner starts. Once prepared they don't just sit out waiting for dinner, they go back into refrigerators at the appropriate temperature to keep them safe and fresh.
  14. twangster
    I didn’t know you were bilingual. You speak USD and CAD. ? I wonder if the proximity to Florida and the short cruise market which are less expensive cruises are some of the source of the supply and demand effect. Perhaps if a group is paying less to cruise they may be more likely to pool money and splurge on a Cabana. Whatever the reason, people are paying it because if they were empty the prices would drop.
  15. twangster
    Is that $CAD or "real" money?
  16. twangster
    Also this thread has some CocoCay pictures: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/14700-empress-8-night-eastern-caribbean-?-oops-i-booked-it-again-?/&do=findComment&comment=147152 Including the drink dispenser showing the choices.
  17. twangster
    Back to the ship to change and get my good camera. I tested Voom on CocoCay and once again the speeds were very good for satellite internet. Always good to avoid scaring the mermaids away. Back to the Snack Shack for a Shack Crispy Chicken Sandwich, a Greek salad and fries. The mango fruit drink is surprisingly additive. Yum. The floating bar remains popular. The pool was hopping again. Having been several times to the new CocoCay I couldn't imagine it now without the pool. One last trip back to the ship. Someone's not going to have a Perfect Day when they get charged for leaving a pool towel behind...
  18. twangster
    I thought I'd start the day with a morning snorkel. I asked about the submerged plane at the Snorkel Shack. It's "Permanently cordoned off, for now." The water was a little rough and the currents had stirred up more stuff to reduce visibility so it wasn't the best conditions today. More jellies on this visit.
  19. twangster
    Big sister, little sister, younger sister, older sister. Family ships at the pier in CocoCay. In case you haven't figured it out yet, these lights are new since my last visit. LED lighting on the pier paves the way for late night stays on CocoCay. They must be testing them. Down the pier there are cones where a few more will go so they are a work in progress.
  20. twangster
    Day 3 - Perfect Day at CocoCay Not much of a sunrise here early on the morning of day 3. We join Navigator again today after leaving her last night in Nassau. I spot a new addition to CocoCay. Can you see them? Definitely something new since my visit last week. This view never gets old.
  21. twangster
    Café Latte-tudes menus
  22. twangster
    The nightly Diamond event is hosted in the front half of the Viking Crown Lounge where Vernon our Loyalty Ambassador is there to take great care of us from 4:30pm to 8pm. Other bars also accept the three Diamond happy hour drinks loaded on SeaPass cards. In the VCL cards are not swiped and the servers are quick to find you when you arrive. They even remembered my drink from the night before. Great service. This became a great place for our sail away from Nassau on this formal night. Can't visit Nassau without a lighthouse picture. Flag of Nations today in the Centrum. With confetti falling it was time for the U.S.A. to be represented. Captain Per addressed the crowd.
  23. twangster
    Day 2 - Nassau Been there, done that and it's raining so I'm staying on the ship today. Besides I'll be back twice in as many weeks. Navigator joined us shortly after our arrival. Galley Tour at 11:30am. Despite it being in the middle of a port day there were a dozen or so participants. Here they are getting cheese plates and appetizers ready for dinner. Formal night tonight. Bacon. Yum. Beef Tenderloin and Duck getting readied for dinner. Making whipped butter for dinner. The bakery. Always the best smelling spot in the galley. Pastry chefs hard at work. Chocolate covered strawberries anyone? First noted on Empress so I inquired some more here on Majesty. Powdered or "bulk" scrambled eggs are a thing of the past. They were having trouble with the product turning black upon cooking so the fleet has standardized on fresh eggs being used for scrambled eggs, in fact for all egg purposes, only fresh eggs are used.
  24. twangster
    Please come back and let us all know!
  25. twangster
    If you step through the process there is no cruise ship check box. You are kind of forced into buying both. My visit isn’t for a few months. Sitting and waiting to see if they update it.
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