MaryCS62

Covid happened -- I was never extremely outgoing, although I do like to hang around people in small groups, but during Covid, home became my sanctuary, since I work in a hospital and so was around Covid all the time -- DH, on the other hand, had to work from home, take care of adult disabled DD who couldn't go to her day program, and couldn't go to the gym for several months. As soon as I got home, if the weather was okay, he'd go out for an hour for a walk around the neighborhood. I do like trivia, though, so will make the effort. Otherwise, I'm a relax by the pool or balcony with a book type of person

From Google - "The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the largest federal nutrition assistance program. SNAP provides benefits to eligible low-income individuals and families via an Electronic Benefits Transfer card. This card can be used like a debit card to purchase eligible food in authorized retail food stores." Formerly food stamps, also known in same areas as EBT

Several years ago, my mom took the entire family on a cruise (11 total, 5 cabins, 4 grandkids, 3 under 18). Only requirement she had was that we eat dinner together every night. All different reservation numbers, cabins scattered all over the ship. Her TA just sent Royal all the info & we got a table for 12 - granted, it was in the back of the dining room, but we were all together

How recently have you sailed, and were the items marked as GF on the menu ?(that's what we are used to seeing - usually the symbol of a shaft of wheat, which always amused me, as it should have a big X through it --ie, no wheat )

3 years ago on Anthem (our last cruise, 2 cancelled by RC, 1 cancelled due to (+) Covid case), we had L'occitane in Jr Suite - I liked the shampoo & conditioner, but not the body wash! Oh, well, to each his own... I'm bringing my own body wash, but was hoping to leave the shampoo & conditioner @ home, although we are in a JR suite 1st cruise, then in a balcony room on the B2B - maybe better bring shampoo & conditioner anyway

Well that's good, but I wish it was available in the app so she could plan ahead, and know what her options are ahead of time. Thank you

We do, and we've had great success, but it was a heck of a lot easier when we could see ahead of time what the GF options were.

While I am a fan of Duck a L'Orange, I'm not as concerned about that as the fact that the menu no longer lists what items are gluten free -- traveling with DD who is celiac, and while I was not surprised to see that the app didn't show the GF options, the paper menus always had them. Can anyone chime in and let me know which is the case? At the very least, the shrimp cocktail, garden salad and creme brulee have always been standard gluten free options, plus others could be made that way (ie, sub a baked potato for the potato croquettes, that sort of thing)

We have the UDP for the 2nd leg of our Oasis B2B - 1st is 9 days in a junior suite, so DH wants to hit Coastal Kitchen for dinner if we can. For the 2nd, 7 days, we thought we'd give it a whirl, figuring we can definitely hit all of them at one point or another. Definitely want to try Central Park, I love Giovanni's, DH loves Chops. He won't eat sushi, but will eat Hibachi, so we're good there. DH figures a beer & snacks at Playmakers late, El Loco Fresh & Portside BBQ for lunch, etc. I'm just afraid we won't get our money's worth - 1 DD doesn't have a huge appetite (although her favorite dessert on Royal is the cheesecake with chocolate sauce, and that ALWAYS goes down well), & my doctor started me on a new medication that has the effect of delaying gastric emptying - ie, stomach stays full longer -- and occasional side effect of nausea, meaning I can't or don't want to eat as much. It's been good in the sense that I am losing weight, which I definitely need to do, but will have to pick and choose what I actually eat. Will they just serve me sushi if the rest of my family is doing hibachi? I love hibachi, but also like sushi, so was thinking maybe just doing 1 meal just sushi instead of hibachi, but I'm probably the only one who would want that.

You might want to pack them anyway. Better to have and not need, than to need & not have..... It could change at any moment

Boy -- you make me look disorganized!! I bow before you.....

You're quite welcome!! If she is truly nervous, I would stick with the MDR unless a specialty restaurant can set her mind at ease. Only issue is that on port days, MDR is usually closed at lunch time, so we have done Windjammer, & DD asks someone for the head chef to help her pick (or cook her something fresh), unless there is a specific gluten free section (which can still be contaminated if other passengers are not careful, so getting something fresh might be best)

Oldest DD developed Celiac at age 15 - she's almost 26 now, so we've been dealing with this for a while. She's gone on 2 cruises, and had no problems with any kind of cross contamination. DH took a ship's tour, and they brought them to the kitchens & showed them the allergy prep area - completely separate from the rest of the kitchen. She will say it's a gluten allergy if people don't understand celiac, so that they take it seriously. Unfortunately, the longer she is gluten free, the worse the consequences are for accidental ingestion - her body really doesn't tolerate it well, severe stomach upset, brain fog, etc for a few days after. That being said, while she found the MDR safe, & got special help in Windjammer (buffet) some people are concerned about the specialty restaurants, as they do not have separate prep areas. We did Chops and Giovanni's on Adventure without an issue for her, but she is careful to order simple items, ones that are less likely to be contaminated. MDR waiters gave her the next days menu each night, & she told them what she wanted. Even if it wasn't labeled gluten free, most of the time it could be prepared that way. Exceptions were things like ravioli or lasagna, which did not have gluten free options. Sometimes, she got a baked potato instead of whatever the other potato option was if it had gluten in it. She never had as many options as the rest of us, but she never went hungry.

We have these (or something similar) in different colors so we know whose is whose -- and will be using them. I usually have a folder with the set sail passes & the passports all together, as well as printouts from anything we pre-purchased - just will add the negative tests (stapled to the set sail passes & held inside each case seems like a good idea) & we'll be good to go! Can't wait for August!!

As long as you have an adult listed in each room, should be fine. I know you are allowed to put under 18's in a connecting room with the parents in the other room, but since you are in one & your spouse in the other (officially, according to the paperwork), should be able to bring 2 per stateroom. I'm doing something similar on my upcoming cruise. DH & younger DD want DBP, but I don't & older DD can't (health reasons). We're in connecting rooms also, so we just switched me & younger DD so that we didn't have to call about getting the refreshment packages with the DBP for just one person in each cabin. Plus, I may want one or 2 drinks or glasses of wine, which I will pay for, but would not get my money's worth on the bigger package. Didn't want to say I couldn't drink for health reasons, then get caught drinking. Probably unlikely that I would be, but don't want to mess with the system.

Anthem is a Q class ship, and from what I recall, it did not have such a curtain. (3.5 years ago, FWIW)

They should be, but it probably won't happen automatically. You probably won't get a genie email, especially if you get notified only a few days prior to boarding. We would have found this out in January (booked in a Jr Suite, successfully bid on a Grand 2 BR), but unfortunately had to cancel last minute due to a (+) Covid test for one of our party. Once onboard, hopefully the Genie will help you, or you could go to Customer service. And, Good Luck!!!

nope - continental breakfrast (cold cereal, pastries, tea, coffee, juices) is free delivery. Hot breakfast & anything ordered any other time of the day includes a charge per order (not per person, per the entire order placed at that one time). And having the DBP also doesn't matter - if you order a drink to your room, you pay full price.

I would love to go, but am sadly likely over the weight limit (working on that), and mobility challenged to boot. However, I do remember a time when oldest DD (now 32) was about 4 yo, and we brought her to Sesame Place, & wanted to go down one of the water slides. Options were single rider in a round tube (which she was too small for), or 2 riders in a figure eight shaped tube (2 holes to sit in). She was in front, and couldn't quite reach all the way around my leg for the hand hold, so she just grabbed my leg. Well, we go down, all twists & turns, and riding up & down the sides of the tube as you go, when on one of the "up the side" times, the weight differential between us made the inner tube fly out from under us, and we continued through the chute without it. I grabbed the top of her bathing suit, and held on til we got to the bottom, when she flew away from me & into the pool at the end. Keep in mind, DH had gone ahead of us in a single tube, and was waiting at the pool for us to come out, and saw our inner tube come flying out without us. Then we came out, lifeguards were there, and one of them grabs for me, who is sitting upright in about 3 feet of water, & and of course I'm yelling at him to find my daughter, as she is the one who went under!! We all survived, and she was fine afterwards, but I've been a bit leery of really long slides since that time

Me, too -- drives my DH crazy!! Problem is, by nature I am not a very organized person, so I need those lists to make sure everything is done. I, too, am of the school of - better to have and not need, than to need and not have!

C& A was able to add the points my DH & I earned back in 1988, from our honeymoon cruise -- as long as we could give them documentation. As it happened, I had our receipts (or whatever it was we had that let us on the ship) saved in our honeymoon photo album -- back when you took pics & saved the actual prints like that

As long as he has documentation that he has 2 cruises booked, he can bring 4 bottles - 2 will be taken away and delivered to his cabin for the 2nd cruise. Hopefully, they won't notice if there are already some being held for your cabin for the 2nd one.

I would love the first available time (1030 or 11 am, I believe). But, I travel with a disabled daughter who has multiple problems, and sometimes it just takes longer to do everything. We'll probably pick 12 or so, to make sure we can get out of the house on time - 1030 would mean leaving 930-945, & that just might not be possible, especially if she had a bad night or morning.

Right now, "fully vaccinated", according to Royal is the single J&J shot, or the 2 shot Moderna or Pfizer (for US clients, don't know what the international equivalent is). Since they are eligible for a booster, that means their initial series is more than 2 weeks prior to sailing, so you should be fine. Hopefully the booster will give them even more protection while you are cruising

If you're not sure how accurate the scale in the gym is, weigh yourself & the beginning, so even if it's 10 lbs off from your "home" weight, it should still be internally accurate to itself. So if you gain 5 lb on the cruise, it should show no matter what the starting wt was on either machine