Baked Alaska

I would argue Explorer has been amplified without the title in 2023 prior to her European season. In addition to the slides and mini golf update, there was a lot of guest facing work done on the interior so she feels amped. It may not have a Playmakers, but it has Izumi sushi. It’s pretty similar to Voyager which has been amped officially, but didn’t have a lot of significant changes. I’m sure we will see her continue to alternate the exotic Med itineraries and alternating the short/long Caribbean to entice people to go on her.
Liberty and Allure could definitely use it. Excited to see the details on Allure’s amplification in 2025.

I don't think that it's strange. You booked the room because there's a chance you need an accessible room.

Seems more than logical to hedge your bets on ensuring your cruise is as enjoyable as possible.

 

@F1guynz and @Lovetocruise2002 Here are the screenshots for Feb 2026 for Symphony (it is this way on all the 2/2-26 sailings). The devil is in the details (or lack of them). Either they've (oops) "left it off," or they're being ambiguous for a reason. Will Royal hire more concierges for these additional cabins? From my sailing last week, I can tell you that Willy and Shaun worked their arses off. Adding the additional TRULY Sky class junior suites without the additional concierge would be crazy. Also, the SKY Junior Suite says Coastal Kitchen dinner based on availability (same, that's not a Sky class amenity). Grand Suite has the usual all-day access, etc.
 

Our differences of opinion on here aside, wishing you all the best medically. 
While many of us on the boards don't agree on many fronts, we're still a community,

Debating on a message board is stress relief, so no harm done.

Take care of yourself.

These gangs have to traverse mountains, un-paved roads and forests in order to get from Port Au Prince to Labadee...it would take them a day or more of VERY rough terrain. There is no real reason for them to even bother going that far west on the island when they are already accomplishing what they want without moving far from the capital.  I'm more concerned walking to my car at 4am in Philadelphia every day than I would ever be in the secure, secluded area called Labadee. IF you don't feel safe or right about having fun on the other side of a country having issues, then you do you. But like many said, those few locals that do work in Labadee selling stuff would suffer far more if the ships stopped coming. 

We are docked in Labadee.  Not sure they are letting people off yet (I haven't heard an announcement).  No reason to believe it won’t just be another day in Labadee.  Beautiful weather today.  

First of all, this is only my experience, and my opinion...
I have pretty severe arthritis.  I have some not-so-good days, and some better days.  I don't know when or why some days are so totally different than other days.   I don't use a wheelchair or scooter, but I have to be deliberate with every step I take.  On my last Navigator cruise, I asked for a cabin 'closer'  to an elevator, and explained the reason.  The rep put us in an accessible cabin.  When I attempted to argue out of it, he insisted and said that's exactly what accessible rooms are for. 
And once in the cabin, although I did not need the extra room, I surely appreciated the absence of thresholds to step over. 
 
 

This is how I feel about the buffet...the food is prepped and out.  It's not getting put away to use tomorrow, may as well try a little of everything if you want!

Royal has software which predicts how much of each dish will be ordered based on passanger demographics. Their kitchens then make enough to cover anticipated orders plus a buffer so they don't have to tell someone they're out. While they're making extra each evening, getting passangers to order fewer dishes means less will be prepared in the future and less food for the fishes. In other words, the kitchen isn't making enough for everyone to order everything off the menu each evening, and wasn't doing so before this policy. But the policy should help reduce food waste from people who were ordering multiple dishes then barely touching either. 

Yes, this is a relatively new thing….maybe 6 months ago.  My recent experience has been that the servers have been largely ignoring the rule but it is still a “thing”.  I have found that if I tell the server that Dan and I are going to “share” the second entree, they will just bring it.

It may not always be enforced but it is a policy RC implemented a while back; not just an Anthem thing.

Hi guys! First of all: I LOVE this community! I know many of you are going on a RC blog cruise that will visit my country Norway next year (I am also British/Welsh, but Norway is where I am born,raised and currently live). So I wanted to give you all some general advice and tips for Norway whether you are going on the group event or another cruise that passes by here.
 
 
1. Tipping - Norwegians dont really give or receive tip. It is not frowned upon, but our wages are high and Tipping is not necessary (but ofcourse should you receive excellent service you could definitely tip them, however a good review on tripadvisor or Google f.i. would make a stronger impact) 
2. Asking for directions and so on. You will mostly get help from us Norwegians, but it is not only our country that is perceived as cold by foreigners. Many Norwegians are reserved, but when we warm up to you you got a friend for life. So try not to take it to hard if a Norwegian person avoids you.. 
3. Food. First of all Norway is definitely a Potato country.
We have 3 "national dishes" all contain potatoes 
 Kjøttkaker (mince meat pattys served with potatoes,brown sauce,mashed peas and lingonb3rry jam)
Fårikål (mutton,kale, and whole black peppers) served with potatoes and rutabaga
Kompe/Komle/Raspeball (potato balls) served with rutabaga, salt meat and melted butter
(If you go to Oslo "Bondeheimen/Kaffistova" is the place to go for traditional food)
Our most curious food for foreigners is probably brown cheese which is sweet with a caramelly taste (made from biproduct of cheese production). Also our chocolate is world famous, people usually bring with them Freia milk chocolate abroad, I however prefer Stratos (tell me if you like it!)
Also ofcourse Norway is the biggest exporter of Salmon, so if you like Sushi you will get the real deal in Norway (yes in Japan you get Norwegian salmon at the best Sushi restaurants!)
4. Culture. We have a lot of traditional culture in music, clothes and agriculture. You can see some of it on national holidays,otherwise in museums. Norway is also a liberal country and for instance same sex marriages are allowed, we even have a ordinated priest who is non-binary
5. Religion - which brings me to this. We have around 48% Christians, 40% Atheists/Agnostics and 12% other religions. 
 
Excursion ideas:
Whether you find a rc excursion, third party or organize yourself, here are some ideas.  
Stavanger:
Kongeparken (Theme park with a farm theme).
Lysefjorden/Prekestolen (beautiful scenery)
Jæren (Beautiful landscape and farms, also the homeplace of Erling Haaland the world famous footballer) 
Sandnes garn - a Greta place to buy yarn and knitting equipment
Figgjo - Porcelaine of all sorts
 
 
Kristiansand:
 
Dyreparken (Norways biggest zoo)
Aquarama (aquapark in case you go on a ship without it)
Bystranda/Hamresanden/Høllesanden - 3 great beaches (Kristiansand is the best summer spot in Norway, and it is like a mini Barcelona, disclaimer: I am from Kristiansand city.) 
Odderøya - small Island comnected to city centre (right by cruise terminal) 
Kilden - theatre and opera house (right by cruise terminal)
kunstsilo (opens may 2024!) - art museum with the largest european collection of contemporary art! (Right by cruise terminal)
fiskebrygga - fish market (right by cruise terminal)
Ravnedalen - Beautiful park
Myren Gaard - Another beautiful park
Kristiansand Festning - fortress that was crucial during ww2
Kanonmuseet - ww2 canon museum
Arendal/Arendelle - if you travel with kids the city from the Frozen movies (yes they sre set in Norway) is 45 minute drive from Kristiansand.
Vennesla bibliotek - world famous Library
( if you are going to Kristiansand, msg me, I could give you SO many more ideas 😅) 
 
Bergen:
Akvariet (aquarium),
Bergen Urban zoo (reptiles) - urban zoo is right next to cruise terminal
 
 
Oslo:
Freia (chocolate factory where you get to make and taste loads of lovely chocolate). Feel free to ask mote about specific ports and so on when you know your ports of call. 
Munch museum art museum
The castle - we have a King and he has a castle! 
The Opera - amazing building
 
Trondheim:
Nidarosdomen - (world famous Church)
Rockheim - (rock museum)
 
North Norway:
I have not been here much, but Lofoten is well worth a visit, so is the Polar circle
 
Other places:
General the west coast is great, I always reccomend western or northern Norway as opposed to eastern Norway (in the summer the south is amazing!) 
 
I have probably forgot LOADS! Feel free to comment with your ports of call in Norway and I will give you nore ideas.
 
-Chris-

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/royal-caribbean-cruise-ship-worker-allegedly-admits-filming-young-passengers-even-hiding-under-beds/ar-BB1jms8K

A quick read of the Internet & Wikipedia last night revealed that political situation in Haiti has indeed disrupted port calls to Labadee. 20004 due to a coup and Freedom of the Seas called off a visit in 2016 when boats occupied by citizens blockaded the the entrance to the harbor.

Oh boy...I am most confused now. I think you guys are all correct, it is full Sky on Utopia, Icon, Star.
My conclusion? I will not be booking a Sky Junior on any ship. Forget the shady "is it full Sky" "is it not" nonsense, I don't even want to be on Deck 6! lol

After being tipped off and spending too much time diving into the benefits, you are correct. As per the fine print, it looks like the SKY JS on Utopia is a true SKY class suite with all expected amenities that come with the SKY label. Of course, logically, it doesn't follow since you'd think that Sky JS on the Oasis class Utopia would match the same benefits on Wonder and below. But to make it more confusing it does not. Per @Ampurp85 they probably had it in mind to make the Sky JS on the utopia, true SKY suites, which is why we are sitting here splitting hairs. To alleviate confusion it would be superbly simple to not call anything without full SKY benefits "SKY". 
It's unfortunate that we have to have this conversation though. Very deceptive on Royal Caribbean's part. Most disappointed I've been with them since discriminating against passengers for personal medical decisions. 

They let prisoners out and are trying to take over the airport. Can trying to take over a ship be far behind? 

How are the workers/vendors making the trip in?

I thought the Sky JS on Utopia WAS full Sky benefits.  No ?  I have one booked on Utopia in Sept.

This is phenomenally deceptive. AT best IT hasn't caught up with the amenities change for the junior suite, at worst this is deliberately misleading. It would be easy for seasoned suite cruisers to see "SKY" and assume full benefits included. The room itself is not worth the upcharge above a normal junior suite and it's on deck 6 to boot (don't get me wrong I love the Boardwalk, but still). It's almost as if Royal is deliberately trying to trick its most loyal customers into dropping a deposit before they realize what the "SKY" junior suite really includes. It doesn't even include access to Suite sun deck, all day CK, VOOM (which was horrible on our Feb 2025 wonder cruise)...etc. Wow!!! Maybe a few drops on social media pointing out deceptive nature of these so called sky class amenity suites is in order. I'm extra salty because I have two on hold and if not for @Lovetocruise2002 heads-up, I might have been dropping an August 2025 wonder deposit on these rooms. Very disappointing. 

This is very disappointing.  How in the world are you supposed to know what the fare/cost will be BEFORE you make a booking ?  Completely unsat.

I’ve never booked GTY as I would be fearful of being assigned a Forward room.  Motion does not bother me but really affects my husband, so, if I want to continue cruising with him…I need to keep him liking it 😜.  Yes he wears the patch for motion and yes we have experienced some rockiness here and there.  However, having to sleep in a room that typically feels the most motion would certainly not help!
That being said…there is no right or wrong way of booking your stateroom.  Everyone has their own preference and way of doing it.  I would probably like the mystery of “what room will I get”…maybe someday!!!

Yes, thanks. I booked the cruise last week. I didn't see it on the booking.
 
Edit: I found it! Thank you @Ampurp85!

Yes, thanks. I booked the cruise last week. I didn't see it on the booking.
 
Edit: I found it! Thank you @Ampurp85!