twangster

Did they finish that wall barrier early?

Truth from one suite snob to another ?
That ship sailed long ago!  But he can dream...?

In about a month's time hubster doesn't stand a chance suggesting an ocean view again...

 

In about a month's time hubster doesn't stand a chance suggesting an ocean view again...

 

Take a day and go over to Cape Caveral.  Not far from Orlando.  

Radiance wraps up the regular Alaska season on August 30, 2019 Southbound, followed by a 4 night Alaska sailing Sept. 6, 2019 before heading to Hawaii and points South.

Deck 17. And the mike drops...

Alaska - Canada... climate is pretty much the same.  

Pictures speak a thousand words... Allure.

In about a month's time hubster doesn't stand a chance suggesting an ocean view again...

 

We had great weather on the 8/31/2018 sailing.  Cheaper cruise fares as well.  I was under $1k on a last minute deal.  Granted an inside cabin, but it was an awesome cruise.  
I think Royal knows fares drop in September which why they pull out - they can't capitalize on summer peak so they sail to Hawaii to minimize losses from Alaska shoulder season.  

Day 3 (Sea Day)
We woke up around 9:30 after a late night and decided on Park Cafe for breakfast. This became our go to spot most days because it was just so easy to run in and grab something. The selection isn't nearly as good as in the Windjammer or Johnny Rockets, but the convenience factor was there and the food was still good. I always got the fried egg, ham, and cheese muffin while my wife had the vegetarian options that changed each day. She would also get the fried egg one as well and switch out the ham with the vegetables occasionally. 

After that we took a few laps around the jogging track and heard some commotion coming from the Aquatheatre so we went to check it out. It was the Crown and Anchor ceremony. For those curious the top cruiser had 2,340 days and he gave a really awesome speech about his love for the crew, but also the Flowrider. Once the ceremony was over we headed over to get in a round of putt putt. One thing I noticed was that they are using some kind of foam balls, I am not sure if this has always been the case. Being a golfer I didn't love the way they felt putting but I guess I could always use an extra excuse anyways!

Next we went back to the room to get dressed to hang out on the pool deck. We said we were going to take it easy on the drinks for the day, but then the pineapple guy showed up. We are suckers for a Pina Colada in a pineapple just once on a cruise, so we paid the extra $9 to get one. It was an absolutely perfect day at sea and this is the calmest I have ever seen the ocean on all of my cruises. 


This one is for you @FlowBro Ty. We hung out on the pool deck for the majority of the afternoon before heading back to the Flowrider. I gave it a shot and it was a lot of fun, but I am not very good at it. It is hard to get practice because there is usually a 30 minute or longer wait and I don't like to spend my whole day waiting for my turn only to fall after a short time. There was a guy that was ridiculously good at it and you could always find him back there killing it. Here is a 20 second video of him doing his thing on another day. He was definitely the best of the cruisers that we saw all week. I added a picture of someone else riding just in case the video won't load for anyone.

VIDEO Flowrider-Surfer.mp4
After that it was time to head back to the room and get ready for dinner. We are going to Wonderland tonight...
 

Day 3 (Sea Night)
We had reservations at Wonderland tonight and we weren't really sure what to expect. We knew the experience was going to be really cool, but we had also heard a lot of mixed reviews about the food. We were pleasantly surprised. At first we were a little concerned that we weren't going to be able to find much for my wife to eat since she is a vegetarian but it actually turned out to be her favorite restaurant on the cruise. They modified a lot of the dishes to make them vegetarian and there were a few that already were anyways. Personally I didn't like the entrees nearly as much as the appetizers. They weren't bad, but the appetizers were just incredible in my opinion. We enjoyed the cocktails as well but forgot to get a picture.
There will be a lot of pictures here because the courses just keep on coming. In the spirit of Wonderland I won't explain any of the pictures and let your imagination do it's thing (I wouldn't be able to explain them anyways). We loved the whole experience and we had a joke that if you didn't go through the door then you didn't really eat at Wonderland. 



Following a great dinner we had reservations to see impressionist Jeff Tracta. He did impressions of people and music and he did them very well. He had a great Donald Trump impression that either side of the spectrum could get a laugh out of. He covered every genre of music and I think cruisers of all ages really enjoyed it. We are always so impressed with the types of acts that Royal Caribbean brings onboard. We really missed that when we tried out Carnival on our last cruise and they rolled out the same cast every night to just sing and dance to a different genre of music. 

After the show we headed into the Promenade and caught the 50s and 60s party. One thing we really love doing on a cruise is just standing by and watching people have a good time. There is something about being on a cruise that lets people really let loose unlike anywhere else in my opinion. 

When the party ended we decided to close out the night at the pub with our favorite entertainer Kieron. We were joined in the pub by several cast members of The Fine Line that you can see in the picture. Kieron was really popular among the crew and you could always find members of the Grease and The Fine Line in the pub when he was performing. He was really good about playing requests which is always nice. I requested Let It Be and was able to get a video of him playing it. 


Day 3-Kieron Movie.m4v No late night on a cruise is complete without a slice of Sorrento's. I also found that the quality of pizza has improved since our last cruise. I actually found it quite good but the drink package helps. It was a great sea day today and the port stops begin tomorrow morning with St. Maarten. We were very excited to check out 3 brand new ports for us.  

In my experience a man enjoying a "told you so" moment is short lived.  Recommend generous drink package utilization in hopes it purges her memory.  

Pictures speak a thousand words... Allure.

The Loft suites are truly special.  From the first time you enter to the last the two story glass windows never get old.   
The massive shower with three shower heads is very unique.   The downstairs full bathroom, even with just two of us in the suite was very convenient.  
Waking up and seeing the full glass views off the side of the ship with nothing but two stories of ocean view is like no other suite.
Conveniently located near the suite lounge and Coastal Kitchen you feel like you are in a different class.  Like flying first class on an airplane you are separated from the masses (even though Oasis class ships handle the masses quite well).  I loved being able to run down the hall to the suite lounge to grab a drink or to have a drink while waiting for someone to get ready.  Sure, any GS or above has access to the suite longe but it's an elevator ride away.  
I've done loft suites twice and a GS on Oasis class.  Closely matched in price and both Sky Class the clear winner is the Crown Loft Site.   I only sailed in a GS because the CLS were sold out.  
I've never stayed in an Owners Suite so I can't compare them to a CLS.  I think the balcony is bigger for an OS.

In my experience a man enjoying a "told you so" moment is short lived.  Recommend generous drink package utilization in hopes it purges her memory.  

Nice!  Always check for price drops frequently!

Pictures speak a thousand words... Allure.

The Loft suites are truly special.  From the first time you enter to the last the two story glass windows never get old.   
The massive shower with three shower heads is very unique.   The downstairs full bathroom, even with just two of us in the suite was very convenient.  
Waking up and seeing the full glass views off the side of the ship with nothing but two stories of ocean view is like no other suite.
Conveniently located near the suite lounge and Coastal Kitchen you feel like you are in a different class.  Like flying first class on an airplane you are separated from the masses (even though Oasis class ships handle the masses quite well).  I loved being able to run down the hall to the suite lounge to grab a drink or to have a drink while waiting for someone to get ready.  Sure, any GS or above has access to the suite longe but it's an elevator ride away.  
I've done loft suites twice and a GS on Oasis class.  Closely matched in price and both Sky Class the clear winner is the Crown Loft Site.   I only sailed in a GS because the CLS were sold out.  
I've never stayed in an Owners Suite so I can't compare them to a CLS.  I think the balcony is bigger for an OS.

In my experience a man enjoying a "told you so" moment is short lived.  Recommend generous drink package utilization in hopes it purges her memory.  

In my experience a man enjoying a "told you so" moment is short lived.  Recommend generous drink package utilization in hopes it purges her memory.  

In my experience a man enjoying a "told you so" moment is short lived.  Recommend generous drink package utilization in hopes it purges her memory.  

In my experience a man enjoying a "told you so" moment is short lived.  Recommend generous drink package utilization in hopes it purges her memory.  

Scientific proof the weather is absolutely perfect today in Tampa