twangster

Watching the video, the camera person walks out onto the balcony with no apparent cover. That doesn't mean there isn't a 12" overhang but certainly not very much of one if any.

Plus the deck 12 Panoramic cabins look right down into these forward balconies.

I think this is my cabin in August. Not sure how I feel about these forward balconies.

Welcome to the message boards! While Navigator support was recently added to the app, I've noticed some weirdness. One day I can access my Navigator booking and then an hour later I can't. Right now I can. Try the regular things... uninstall app, reinstall app, log out, log in, etc.

Quantum class, Harmony and Symphony cards can not be punched because they are RFID cards. For now all other ship cards can be punched.

You don't have to supply pictures, they can take them at check in. Takes about 10 seconds.

Nice!

My approach is to declare everything I have acquired. Just because a seller claims something is duty free doesn't mean that CBP will agree. I'd rather over declare and have CBP appreciate my transparency than find out I shouldn't have made an assumption that makes it appear as though I was trying to hide something. I even declare a bottle of wine I got for free as a C&A gift in my declaration (if I don't drink it and bring it home). It has a value even if I didn't pay cash for it.

Dude. Key on Vision class for $33? Royal earned that snark.

Try using a flight search engine that provides fare advice. Kayak.com does, I've heard Google will as well. Strategy differs between low cost carriers and the legacy airlines and it differs for domestic versus international. LCC's (Low Cost Carriers) tend to be cheap far in advance but only a few seats are cheap. Once they are gone, the next cheapest seats are offered. Once those are gone, the next cheapest flights are offered and so on. Legacy carriers like American, Delta and United tend to be high far away, then start adjusting rates as some point, then if sales are good the prices rise. If a hundred people suddenly search for the same flight, their computers raise the rates (supply and demand). If none of those people actually buy, prices slowly fall over the next day or two. If you go with Southwest, once you book and pay for your flights, you can check daily for price drops. If the price drops, you can get the difference in the form of a credit for a future flight within one year. Consider checked bags fees. Most US airlines charge for bags, except Southwest. Some like Sprint or Frontier can also charge for certain carry on bags. Buyer beware.

I've seen Carny do this in the Caribbean. Security had a passport in hand and handed it off to agent on the pier. Gangway goes up and away we went.

I've taken an Uber from the Hertz drop off on Astronaut Blvd to the port for this exact reason. It was ~$8. One idea is to drop family and luggage off at the terminal and then return the car. That way only one person with no luggage has to make their way to the terminal after returning the car.

They are moving the Diamond Lounge to wooden planks that will extend out from the ship on the jogging track on both sides making way for additional cabins.

Symphony features an air lubrication system that creates a cushion of air that the ship floats on. Below the equator they reverse the pumps to suck the ship down into the water to counter the reverse gravity. The only remaining challenge remains the edge of the earth. Earlier classes of ships have an easier time crossing over the flat edge of the earth. They are struggling with the additional length of Oasis class as it pertains to folding the ship over the flat edge of the earth on the way down under. You have to time reversing the air pumps in the lubrication system just right or the ship is blown off into space. Rumor has it that Song of Norway was not sold off at they claim, rather she was lost into space when crossing over the flat edge of the earth sailing towards Australia.

They offered it at $33 to see who would buy it. They took names and now target the new $100 Chops specialty dinner and $40 per day Voom plan to those 'special' individuals.

That's easier down under because gravity is reversed. Raising the Verrazano-Narrows bridge in the New York area was cost prohibitive due to gravity issues.

The difference is about 197 miles. Port Everglades is very close to Hollywood/Fort Lauderdale airport (FLL). When viewed from the air the two properties nearly touch each other. Port Canaveral can be reached from Orlando International airport (MCO) or Melbourne International airport (MLB). Neither airport is as close to the port as Port Everglades is to FLL airport. Airports for Port Canaveral are a greater distance from the port but sometimes the Orlando airport will have cheaper flights. I generally stay at a hotel near the airport and find my way to the port the morning of the cruise. Orlando has so many hotels they are often cheaper compared to staying near the port. Demographics will be nearly identical. Demographics will vary at both based on time of year more than from local influences. In both cases the terminal was built for Oasis class ships. Different design but both equal to the task.

Spoken like a true stubborn Canadian.

Is that OA hater still in my thread?

More likely Suez like Quantum class have done. I think it's Suez compatible. Cape Horn would be an ugly transit. The challenge with Australia is the super restrictive agriculture regulations. Central Park would need to be stripped bare before entering Australia and replaced with fake plants. That's only a couple million so not insurmountable. Oasis capable ports down under is another matter. Alaska is currently out of the question until Victoria port expansion is complete, even then I'm not sure it will be Oasis capable. That's a problem for the PVSA and keeping cruises legal. Vancouver is out of the question due to the Lions Gate Bridge. Oasis is really an Atlantic basin ship.

New Panamax max beam is 160'. Oasis is 198'.

Not that easy to move a ship of that size from the Atlantic to the Pacific. That would be one heck of a repositioning cruise though.

No problem with newbie questions, ask away! When you first enter the terminal to check in for your cruise you will have to walk through a metal detector and all other 'stuff' has to go through an x-ray machine. It's similar to airport security screening but not as intense. You don't have to remove your shoes for example. Some people mistakenly think it's TSA but it's not. As you could imagine a large suitcase won't fit through the x-ray machine and the waiting areas and walkways are not designed for people with large suitcases. Imagine what the gate area at an airport would look like if everyone had to drag their big suitcases right to the gate before a flight. Not pretty. When you pull up to a terminal in a bus, car, taxi or Uber there will be porters with large carts to take your checked luggage. As you get closer to sailing, luggage tags will be available for you to print at home and attach to your checked luggage, or porters can hand write a luggage tag on the spot. Everyone's large suitcases are checked in this fashion, even suite guests and top elites. Carts of luggage are lifted onto the ship by forklifts and once on board the crew manually distribute luggage to various decks based on the luggage tags. Valuables, documentation including passports, medication and anything you will need before seeing your luggage again should go into carry on bags that you carry with you. Sunscreen and a bathing suit are common items people bring in carry on so they can use the pool before luggage is delivered on the ship. At some point your checked luggage will be delivered outside your cabin in the hall. It can take hours for luggage to arrive so don't worry if your luggage isn't there when cabins are made available. Arriving at the terminal goes like this... Take luggage from car/bus/taxi/uber and give to the porters. A small tip is customary, after all these people see that your bags will get loaded onto the ship. With your carry on bags with you, head to the terminal entrance. Terminal employees will ask to see SetSail pass and ID to enter the terminal. Once inside security is next. Keys, cell phones, loose change etc go through x-ray with your carry on bags. You walk through metal detector. Grab your carry on and head towards check in. Signs will direct you, repeat cruisers who have status in the Crown and Anchor society will be directed into queues for them, everyone else goes into the general queue. Staff will point you into the right queue since you have the Key. Wait in line until its your turn at the check in counter. Present documents and get checked in. Once checked in if the ship isn't boarding yet, wait in the designated areas. Boarding will be announced starting with Suite and Pinnacles (top elite) followed other levels of the C&A program, then general boarding. Key boarding is called somewhere after Suites and Pinnacles but before general boarding. Once the ship is boarding and it's your turn follow the crowds onto the ship. Somewhere along the way they will scan your SetSail pass or SeaPass card which is how they know you are on the ship.

Probably IT issues. I've seen this happen. Make sure you use private or incognito mode, clear cache and try again in an hour.

Looks at your times in port. They are typically much longer than a Caribbean port. If you do a morning whale watching excursion you can eat lunch on the ship and go to Mendenhall in the afternoon. It will make for a long day though. Many ports have whale watching. Not all ports have a glacier that close. Just to set expectations, you can't touch or walk on the glacier unless you take a helicopter ride. Still it's a great experience and operated by the USDA: https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/tongass/about-forest/offices/?cid=stelprdb5400800