Steph215

I'm on this sailing also! Excited and ready to start counting down! I typically just go into town and explore. None of the excursions I have done in Cozumel have been memorable ( not bad just none that I need to do again) so I prefer to explore on my own and take in the sights. 

Excited for this sailing. This will be my third time on this sailing on Anthem! Sailing out of NJ this time of year is great! 

You can just stop by for takeout ala carte, or you can make a reservation onboard to dine ala carte, rather than the fixed price deal they sell on the Cruise Planner. We always do ala carte at Izumi Sushi and always come out ahead on cost -- we just don't eat enough to justify the fixed price thing!

Personally I would not pay $160/person for just the beach club.  But that’s just me (well my husband wouldn’t either).  We paid $79/person back in November.  It was a one and done deal for us…didn’t find it spectacular enough to pay extra to use it.  The food might be more high end but nothing to write home about either.  
In April we decided to book a South Beach cabana (paid $699 for up to 8 people) and I will say that was worth it!  There were 7 of us so basically $100/person plus we each tipped the attendant at end of day.   Being able to get out of the sun whenever I wanted to was really nice.  Having food and drinks brought to us all day long was very nice.  I found the beach area perfect and restrooms were right around the corner.
Everyone has their own opinions so only you can decide if the price is worth it…of course you would need to book it in order to find out if it is for you.  Good luck.🍀 

August 8th, Independence OTS

RC site doesn't show it yet but i was able to call and book it this morning.  I called and got a very helpful RC rep.  He said he wouldn't expect 2020 to be out until Dec-Mar.  I told him I had heard RC had announced "week of November 5".  He checked and Yes! He was almost as excited as i to announce he could book it.  I don't know the full rotation but i can tell you June 19-26, 2020 is the standard south-bound route.  I did wind up paying a bit more than 2019 rates (to be expected) but got exactly what i wanted including the aft corner on deck 8.  Alaska here i come!!

Congrats to all those who are cruising this month! Have fun on the Group Cruise!
November 2018
3 - Auto (Rhapsody of the Seas)
4 - Floski (Oasis of the Seas)
4- BobNoxious (Freedom of the Seas)
5 - Renee Siao (Navigator of the Seas) Update: We won’t be visiting Boston, New York, and Port Canaveral. Instead, we’ll be visiting Bruges/Zeebrugge (Brussels), Belgium, Le Havre, France, and Gran Canaria, Canary Islands. 
9 - Matt (Symphony of the Seas)
9 - RBRSKI (Mariner of the Seas)
11 - betatke1480 (Oasis of the Seas)
11 - Dcruiser (Oasis of the Seas)
12 - davelliott (Mariner of the Seas)
16 - davelliott (Mariner of the Seas)
17 - Matt (Symphony of the Seas Royal Caribbean Blog Group Cruise)
17 - CGTLH (Symphony of the Seas Royal Caribbean Blog Group Cruise)
17 - hallyluhopper (Symphony of the Seas Royal Caribbean Blog Group Cruise)
17 - melski94 (Independence of the Seas)
17 - RBRSKI (Symphony of the Seas)
17 - Susie (Anthem of the Seas)
17- princevaliantus (Jewel of the Seas)  
18 - SouthernYankee (Adventure of the Seas)
18 - WAAAYTOOO (Navigator of the Seas)
18 - mikebarr (Liberty of the Seas)
19 - bcarney (Serenade of the Seas)
19 - RatedPG (Serenade of the Seas)
19- betatke1480 (Enchantment of the Seas) 
22- eaglesfaninfl (Brilliance of the Seas)
23 - mworkman (Navigator of the Seas)
23 - spiralqueen (Enchantment of the Seas)
24 - J_Keeble (Symphony of the Seas)
24 - henrysea13 (Adventure of the Seas)
24 - SouthernYankee (Adventure of the Seas)
25 - CruisinUngs (Anthem of the Seas)
25- Ray (Freedom of the Seas)
25 - Steph215 (Anthem of the Seas)
26 - NS8VN (Independence of the Seas)
26- Chitown Traveler (Mariner of the Seas)

This was SUPER helpful, thanks! Her cupcake looks GREAT!!!! I just might have to sign up :0)

After a few too many drinks, I think it will be very busy!

Adding onto what @CGTLH said, in my experience, you can almost always call into Izumi when they are open and place a to-go order.  I've had very good luck with this strategy.  

Brilliance's Izumi is a standalone venue. Just the branding for the bag was "Express".
My feeling is the to go option is common with the full Izumi. Just not something heavily advertised.

I see Brilliance was the Izumi Express option, so that's not surprising. AFAIK, it's all to go for that service.
Anthem is surprising, regardless of you being Star class. I'm definitely going to follow up on that now -- reminder is already set and I'll just keep hitting "Remind me again tomorrow" until the day I actually eat lunch there.

@JLMoran will be sailing Anthem soon, maybe he will have time to drop by Izumi and ask.  

This link is from 2016 and calls Izumi express that means you order for to go https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2016/05/26/review-izumi-express-sushi-the-go
Not sure still do it or not.

The "Izumi To Go" feature is something offered on ships like Freedom / Liberty / Independence that don't have an actual Izumi restaurant on board. It's a cart they wheel out onto the Royal Promenade for a couple of hours around lunch time, and it has pre-packaged sushi boxes that passengers can purchase a la carte.
We'll still need input from @Matt or someone else as to whether the actual Izumi sit-down restaurants and bar-style offering on Mariner offers actual take-out options.

@Matt --- Didn't you do a piece on the "Izumi to Go" Feature...... To answer your questions @Steph215, I believe so, but Matt would know the details better than myself.

Good point! And I do plan to stop there for lunch one day, so I'll put a reminder on my phone to ask about that and have it fire each day at lunch time so I don't forget it. ?

On Brilliance I did Izumi to go a few times with the dining package. Same limits applied with the a la carte coverage limit ($35).
Did to go on Anthem as well just by walking up. However, on that sailing I was Star class.
 
Warning: Pictures or raw fish below...
 
 
From Brilliance 

Probably.  The guy just looked out of place standing right next to the elevator.

High traffic area for greater visibility?  Izumi is somewhat tucked away on Mariner unlike Adventure where it's prime promenade real estate.

They had the take out stand on Mariner in August.  I don't have photo evidence but we saw it a few times in various places on the Promenade.  Once they were even set up near the Deck 5 elevators, which I found odd.

This is FABULOUS!!!! Thank You very Much Rick, for taking this on!!! This is very good Contribution, and Bentifical to the RC Blog Family!!!!!!

You are a brave soul for taking this on.  Thank you!!

Welcome PG!
Welcome Stephanie!

Hello,
I'm Stephanie. I'm not new to cruising but I found this podcast this summer and knew this was the place for me. Royal Caribbean is by far my favorite cruise line and I love the wealth of info everyone here has to offer. Such a friendly environment. I have to wait 52 days until my next cruise and I'm not sure I can take the wait :0)
 
Happy Cruising Everyone!