Mrs. RoyalMoyal

Sharla (MEI) took care of it! I did not pester her until yesterday afternoon, this morning it was all done. Like magic.

I think we'll quickly learn what is changing once cruising restarts.  
For a number of cruises I went with the Ultimate Dining Plan when it was on sale recently since it's possible the Windjammer might be closed for dinner.  
It's easy enough to cancel cruise planner purchases a few days before the cruise so I'm covering myself until we know more.

I've been following along with him every day, I like his nice quick videos while I'm having my coffee in the morning.  

It has been almost a year without cruising.  I expect considerable mass retraining is in order for new and old crew on both old and new SOP's as well as the ships to be used at the re-start.  
Under normal operations ships of all kinds are in near continuous operation.  Crew members are trained OJT as crew members that leave service are replaced.   Prior to restart the whole service side of the cruise industry must be trained and retrained.  I can see this taking a month or more on land and then time at sea and then CDC fake cruises and then re-start. 
Don't forget quarantine for two weeks and 3 weeks between vaccinations.  
If July/August is the goal to re-start, I think late April may not be too soon.
 

I love Royal vacations when there, but I would say the booking process.  When you search on their website, they only show you a select number of available rooms.  I'd like to be able to see all rooms from which I can select.  Another pet peeve is if I want to book a 5+ non-suite room ....meaning one with a Pullman and a sofa bed so our kids don't have to share a bed, the site sometimes hides these. A little while ago, I assumed that all Oasis balcony rooms like this were sold out so we selected a Central Park one with this configuration, but this wasn't my first choice.  Then they released the next set of cruises and I saw the same thing...and so realized that they were just hiding them.  I used to use the UK Royal site for this issue as a workaround but they have since changed the UK site to be the same as the US site. 

Here’s a great tip but don’t tell everyone ??
Use Facebook messenger to either their actual Facebook page or the Crown and Anchor Facebook page. I’ve used it twice and gotten what I need in under 2 hours. 

Much of the redundancy that has been stated...i.e the fact that their IT doesn't keep track of much, bad search results, etc. The whole thing when you don't drink and share a room.
My biggest is the lack of solo options. As a childless, widowed, cat lady I want to enjoy things too. I don't want to be forced into tables with strangers judging my life choices if I eat in the main dining room.

Okay number 2.
Having to re-enter my details over and over again when searching for a cruise.  CAS #, age, state of residence, etc.
I should be able to enter that once per session or login and it already knows my state, my age, my CAS#, etc.  

And if we are talking about FCCs, If i pay for my family, I wish they would give a total FCC and not individual FCCs per family member.

FCC reinstatement and the fact that there is no central place to look up FCCs based on C&A numbers or your name.

1- escorting a group
2- free cruise. 
No shame here, I like other cruise lines. Not all of them, but some. ?
 

I was not able to pick seats... I'll ask Sharla for help. On Monday. I don't have to bother her with this on a Friday night!! It's a December flight, there is no hurry.

We purchased the Coco Beach Club for $79, today its $106 with the sale.   Early seems to work best.  

The kind that’s trying not to make people lose their lunch. Or get me banned. ??

Great news about the Battleship. She's currently a "stone's throw" from my house (maybe 8 miles as the crow flies), but I'm glad they are moving her to a location that will see more traffic. They need the funds to repair her and more visitors will help with that. 
If you choose to visit the Battleship once she's there or the offshore museum, I highly recommend Katie's Seafood House at Pier 19. The location used to be Hill's at Pier 19 for OG Galveston people. Katie's is super fresh, delicious seafood (like caught within hours of being on your plate.) They are attached to Katie's Seafood Market and they supply many of the non-chain restaurants in Galveston. http://www.katiesseafoodhouse.com/

Here's an update from this month's Port of Galveston Trustees meeting...
CLIA held a conference call with the Mayor of Galveston, Galveston's U.S. Congressional Representative, the head of the Longshoremen's Union, and the Port.  CLIA is meeting with all of the cruise ports in this manner to ask them to put pressure on the CDC to allow cruising to restart. Project representatives from Royal Caribbean have been holding bi-weekly project update meetings with the Port to coordinate the new cruise terminal construction. Next thing to happen for the new terminal: Royal Caribbean will have test piles installed to confirm the load bearing capacity to be used for the new terminal foundations. Representatives from the Battleship USS Texas, currently moored as a museum near the ship channel in Houston, are working to get agreement on moving the ship to Pier 20 in Galveston (adjacent to the Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Museum).  If everything falls in line, this would be excellent news for Galveston and for the USS Texas and would be another centerpiece of history near the cruise terminals.  The USS Texas fought at Normandy, North Africa, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. She has a fascinating history, including a visit to the Port of Galveston in 1914, and in 1915 joined 3 other battleships to rescue 230 passengers off the damaged Holland America Ryndam.

They should whip Odyssey over for a summer in TX instead of sending her to the Med.

Global pandemic nearly wipes out the entire cruise industry.  Royal prioritizes the Galveston terminal project above everything else including other Perfect Day and private destination projects. 
I'll count myself lucky when I sail on Allure from Texas in whatever state of amplification or not she is in and I'm flying in to do so.  Bring. It. On. 

Spring Break will be spread across the three weeks prior to your arrival for Texas schools and colleges, so that should not impact you. I always encourage folks to stay on the island and enjoy the local restaurants and nightlife. However you might save some hotel cost if you stay near the airport if that cost difference is important to you. 

Just Remember:
If you wear your mask at work, your coworkers can't smell the Alcohol on your breath. ?

Yes, departure port. And a hunch.....
We were home this year for Christmas, not in the Diamond Lounge playing cards. We had a live tree and everything. Church, big dinners, and presents. We do that on the ship too - but less presents. I may end up heading north to Lake Placid for a few nights instead. Gotta love & embrace winter to do that!

I've seen it. I almost got out of the Flowrider line to go do it, but when I realized it wasn't arrows I stayed in the flowrider line. It was on the sports court on Oasis. It looked like the participants were having a grand time. 

Who doesn't love a balcony cabin?   It seems a lot of people do because balcony cabins are one of the most popular types of cabins offered to cruisers.  What could be better than reading a book, eating breakfast or enjoying a favorite beverage on your very own balcony overlooking the ocean?
Budget minded cruisers can't always afford the extra cost associated with a cabin that includes a dedicated balcony exclusively for that guest.   Enter the obstructed balcony.
Cabins with obstructed views are nothing new to the cruise industry.  For decades cruise ships have had oceanview and balcony cabins in places where ship equipment or superstructure ends up blocking the view.  The obstruction could be a lifeboat, window washing equipment or structural pieces that are required in various places around a ship.  
Quantum class ships feature a design where the lifeboats are stored near the level of deck 5 for quick access in the event of an emergency.  Their location while optimal for quick and easy access in an emergency it does mean they obstruct some views for select balcony cabins on deck 6.
The good news is these deck six cabins are offered as obstructed balconies at a discount perfect for budget minded cruise guests who are willing to accept an obstruction in the name of saving money. 
It's pretty clear when selecting these cabins they are obstructed so no one should be surprised the first time they walk into their cabin.

 What isn't clear when selecting a particular obstructed balcony cabin is how obstructed one cabin may be compared to another in the same category.  Not all obstructed balcony cabins are equally obstructed.
Lifeboats are supported and lowered into the water by davits.  Davits are very strong structural towers that can raise or lower a fully loaded lifeboat.  The davits that support lifeboats themselves are an obstruction that also block the views for some deck 6 balcony cabins on Quantum class ships.  Davits can block more view compared to a lifeboat since davits are taller than the lifeboats they support.  
Consider this picture of Ovation of the Seas.

The deck 6 obstructed ocean view cabins within the green area in the picture merely have to look over the lifeboat which sits close to or just below the height of the balcony railing.  A few cabins in either direction the lifeboat davits impose a much greater obstruction.  The cabins highlighted in yellow may be partially blocked by a davit towards one end of the balcony.  
For someone picking a cabin on a deck plan it isn't immediately evident which obstructed balconies have less obstruction versus cabins that have greater obstruction.
Now we get to the whole point of this post.  Here is a preliminary guide to which cabins have davits in front of them and are therefore more obstructed.  

Using various videos and photos from Odyssey of the Seas during her construction and conveyance I've estimated which balconies are more likely to have a greater obstruction.  Since no guest has actually sailed on Odyssey when this post was written this is a preliminary version until guests can begin boarding and provide feedback with respect to these obstructed balcony cabins.
Since this is a preliminary guestimate follow through with your own research to make sure you pick the best obstructed deck 6 cabin for your needs.
Note that each ship within this class has slightly different variations of lifeboats and where davits are placed.  In addition there are at least four different types of lifeboats used on each ship.  Consequently you need to be careful drawing conclusions based on guest feedback from other ships within this class.
The image above may be a little blurry from web page compression so I am also including a PDF version that should be easier to read.
Odyssey Deck 6 Obstructed Balcony Guide.pdf
Obstructed ocean view cabins are a great way to enjoy all the benefits of having your own balcony while saving money if you don't mind an obstructed view.  If you book early you can often enjoy your pick of cabins within this category all at the same price.  By selecting carefully you can enjoy a much less obstructed view while saving hundreds of dollars that can be put into beverage packages or shore excursions.  

Meanwhile your divorce papers can be served in Hawaii.

Predict the 4th wave.