twangster

The adventure begins... currently sitting in the Delta Skyclub in Salt Lake City waiting for my connection to Vancouver. The plan is settle into my hotel room and take the Canada Line into the city. I hope to catch Ovation's sail under the Lion's Gate Bridge tonight.

Nowadays they probably would have been called Voyager Plus. Take a Voyager class ship and stretch it. If you ever sail one that is exactly how they feel.

It was initially 100. It's proving to be quite popular so I suspect they are finding ways to expand beyond 100. I suspect with the new pricing that is becoming common it may be tiered now. $19.99 for the first 100, $24.99 for the next 50, $29.99 for the next 50 and so on. I've seen it as high as $38 per person per day. Seems rather crazy but if people buy it they'll keep adjusting the pricing and quantity I suspect.

Enchantment went over budget and took longer than expected to stretch. They had plans to stretch her sisters but they abandoned those plans when Enchantment didn't go as planned. Since that time Royal hasn't had the stomach for it.

I'm not sure I follow everything but it sounds like the WS guarantee is the same price as the JS category. That could change any minute, like when the very next person books one. If the WS and JS are the same price, book the JS and secure the floor or cabin you want. There may be accessible JS that you can't see in inventory that the WS will end up in.

You don't have to buy two. Solo cruisers can take advantage of this deal and pay the advertised lower rate as opposed to $63 in your example. In December I cruised with a 20 year daughter. I bought the deluxe drink package, she didn't since she was under 21. Same application of the BOGO. I assume anyone who qualifies for a medical or religious waiver would also benefit from the current approach. The SO would not have to buy it at $63, but the advertised lower rate.

Northstar reservations are available in the cruise planner.

You'll probably be okay but if they say something you are technically non-compliant. Worst case is they gate check it for free. Depending on the aircraft it may have to go in the overhead lengthwise rather than wheels in first. That is less efficient and consumes the space of two carry on bags.

Internally the ship will be "normal" temperatures but absent of the humidity of the Caribbean. If she is used to visiting the main theater in short sleeves when cruising the Caribbean she will likely be comfortable doing the same in Alaska, as long you don't have to walk outside to get there.

Thenford Grey may be different though. They may customize your tour based on numbers in your party. Contact them and ask.

When ever I have requested to be dropped off somewhere other than the ship I have been responsible to find my way to the ship.

"Seattle's Best" is a Starbucks brand (subsidiary). Some people actually prefer it. It's a personal taste/preference thing.

When Symphony was in Barcelona I arrived shortly after 10am and it was boarding.

Here is an old capture from previous years: Note how it says "Price Shown Reflects Your Discount". This also is a source of confusion since many people just see the $47 and do the math in their head "$47 for the first and half of $47 for the second one" but they've already done that math before displaying the price with the discount already applied.

You break out the emergency bee bee gun and start shooting holes in the balloon. Just kidding... The company that makes them have them in operation around the world including Disney parks. Presumably they have safety mechanisms and vents to control ascent in the unlikely event of a "rope" break. I like their version of a floating bar:

The BOGO is relative to on board pricing, not the sale price listed which includes the verbiage to the effect "discount already applied". Basically the promotion or sale that is offered this week isn't a discount from the sale price that was offered last week. All prices are relative to on board pricing. It natural to assume last week or last month's price is the "normal" price but it isn't. That was the sale price during that promotion and now the new promo or sale price is a BOGO but based on the price on board the ship, not the last sale price. In many cases the BOGO sale yields the same price as the last promo or sale price. In other cases it doesn't. Drink package pricing varies by ship, sail date and cruise length. For you maybe the BOGO results in the same end price that was last listed for your sailing. For someone else on another ship and different date the BOGO might result in a cheaper price.

I’ve been eyeing Azamara for some time but when ever I click on a deal it seems to rapidly escalate to $5k. One day. For now I’m sticking with Royal. Plus maybe Princess.

Broadway shows are complex. Someone owns the rights to a show and Royal (or anyone who wants to offer the show) must pay them. In many cases the contracts are complex to make sure two different production companies don’t offer the show in the same area and compete. A company who paid millions to offer a show in NYC wouldn’t want a cruise ship offering the same show based in NYC. Why pay hundreds to see it on Broadway when you can go on a cruise and see it plus get a cruise? Not all shows adapt to a ship. The sets can be complex and often a show doesn’t want their show compromised by modifying a set or eliminating set pieces to work on a ship. They can be very particular, right down to a can of soup on a cart that sits on stage for 10 minutes. Royal can’t just change the set, it all has to be approved by the folks who own the rights to that show. When they do find a show and set that can work on a ship, it can be a lot of work to figure out how to assemble massive set pieces that have to be stowed when something else is going on in the theater. Ship theaters are multi use versus a broadway theater that is dedicated to one show for months or years. Set pieces need to be secured in case the ship has motion. When Quantum left the US it took a month to break down the set and ready it for shipping. Royal has to carefully consider any potential show. Language, sexual references, etc. aren’t an issue on Broadway but for a ship it very well can be. To plan and cast a show and find the best talent around the globe to fill the cast is an incredible effort. They can only stay on a ship for 7 months due to maritime regulations so you need to cast two different groups of people. A year later and someone isn’t available or is injured or had a baby or... It’s a massive effort to cast hundreds of people across different ships on a constantly rotating basis. So it’s more complicated than most people realize.

Historically they have cruised year round to Cuba. Given the pending changes by the current administration with respect to travel to Cuba, it's likely Royal is not opening up additional cruises for booking beyond 2019 until the exact nature of the changes have been published. So far the word from the US government is vague and lacks details.

The normal pricing offered by Celebrity or Royal is the same as what's offered locally. That's why I've always bought it locally, in case weather is off. That's a great sale price.

He is an executive with the cruise line. Right up there with the CEO. Seems odd he would offer that European bookings are slow if they aren't.

So Royal's CFO lied to investors on it's earnings call with investors? That doesn't make sense.

That's great. Why are cruise bookings off in the UK?

It business. All businesses that operate globally with a presence in the UK are facing repercussions from Brexit, travel operators included. Faced with uncertainty people are holding on to their money and not booking vacations in the same manner they have previously.

I think Brexit is a factor, albeit maybe not the primary one this journalist decided to blame. It's the easy scapegoat but at the same time you can't dismiss Brexit completely either. Don't mean to insult you Brits, but it is wreaking havoc with money and many different companies that operate globally with a presence in the England. It's a mess. Uncertainty breeds instability. What else would one expect? It's not going to be a smooth ride through this for you folks. Have family there, wish you all the best.