WannaCruise

Thanks for the note!  We cancelled the evening before yesterday (i.e. Tues ).  Our cruise was supposed to be this Sunday so the deadline is tonight so we wanted to ensure it actually got cancelled.  My husband did give them a call (after almost 1.5 hr wait) and Royal did say that they see it cancelled on their side.  

Thanks for the note!  We cancelled the evening before yesterday (i.e. Tues ).  Our cruise was supposed to be this Sunday so the deadline is tonight so we wanted to ensure it actually got cancelled.  My husband did give them a call (after almost 1.5 hr wait) and Royal did say that they see it cancelled on their side.  

Sabrina, I saw your post and am really sorry for the end result. As you know, we went through the same dilemma...and came to the same conclusion.  Exact same reasons as you with the worry of being quarantined  back on a military base back here.
That's great that Delta waived the change fees (no luck for us with porter)...and good you have one coming up that is even more exciting for you.
My hope is that Royal keeps doing what they are doing, and then the longer things go smooth, the sooner things will get back to normal (or a new normal).
Hope you still have a wonderful March break with whatever you end up doing.

Sabrina, I saw your post and am really sorry for the end result. As you know, we went through the same dilemma...and came to the same conclusion.  Exact same reasons as you with the worry of being quarantined  back on a military base back here.
That's great that Delta waived the change fees (no luck for us with porter)...and good you have one coming up that is even more exciting for you.
My hope is that Royal keeps doing what they are doing, and then the longer things go smooth, the sooner things will get back to normal (or a new normal).
Hope you still have a wonderful March break with whatever you end up doing.

@Jaymac Radio great videos. Thanks for sharing.

Still on the fence but the packing has begun. You all know that on top of being a “suite snob” I am also a “tea snob” right? And it’s good to be prepared in case of quarantine. ?

This is a good thing, and guess the new norm.  Thanks for reporting back.  Hope you are having a wonderful cruise so far. So much to see and do on Symphony!

Washie washie you’ll be fine! Kennedy Center is awesome .... enjoy! 

I, myself, would not be worried about the Orlando area.  I think keeping clean and sanitized is a good precaution even without the virus.  But we all have to make our own decisions about level of risk.  My son is on a cruise as we speak that just left Miami...I enjoyed my visit to KSC.

As long as you don't get distracted and head straight over to the line for the bus you should be fine.  Others tend to stop at other places.  It is not a straight walk but kind of a curve.  Ask someone and head right over there.

Just got the email for our Anthem cruise on 03/15

Great.  Thanks so much.  Really appreciate all the info!

I've cruised out of Bayone in February. I don't mind the cold, and felt comfortable in just a sweatshirt the first night while up on the top decks. You will be fine without boots

I know weather is unpredictable but it's supposed to be upper 40s and 50s the next 10 days in Bayonne area. We've been pretty spoiled by a mild winter, so I'm waiting for a turn for the worse but as of now no major snowstorms in sight. Happy cruising!

Day 2:  We woke up right before 10am just in time to have breakfast delivered.  After breakfast, we went to the 2 for $20 t-shirt sale.  I thought I pretty much had every shirt Royal offers, but to my surprise, I found a few new shirts.  We spent some time in the arcade and grabbed Windjammer for lunch.  I am a Starbucks addict, so I decided to try a latte from the espresso machine in the concierge lounge, and while it was definitely not Starbucks, but it was actually pretty good.  In fact, I went back later for another one.  We had hoped to take the kids to the pool today, but it was still too cool for us to want to swim, so we went to the arcade instead.  The two older kids went to Adventure Ocean, while we did free play in the nursery with the babies.  We had dinner in our suite.  At which time, we realized how much of a drama queen our 7 year old is.  She was eating on the balcony, when our son decided to do the same.  She came back inside complaining that she needed her peace and quite and that she wants to enjoy relaxing to the sound of the waves in solitude. Talk about high maintenance!  We dropped the babies off at the nursery and the kids at Adventure Ocean at 7pm and went to the concierge lounge.  It was a lot less stuffy in there today, and the staff was very friendly as always.  We also went to Next Cruise to inquire about a 7 day on Rhapsody.  We have yet to go to Belize and have been wanting to check that block on our travel list.  There was a pretty good deal on the Oceanview Suite (no balcony), but I was really surprised when he told us the next cruise OBC would only be $100.  Although it is considered in the grand suite or above category for suite perks, it only gets the same next cruise credit of $100 that a balcony gets rather than the $300 that grand suite and above gets.  He said this also applies to the Panoramic Oceanview Suites.  If anyone else has booked either of these categories through next cruise, I would love to hear if you got the balcony/junior suite OBC or the grand suite OBC.  We picked up the kids and went to the Windjammer for snacks.  We have ate way too much and are telling ourselves that tomorrow we are going to eat way less, but I feel like that is probably not going to be the case.

I would drink an entire bottle of DayQuil, take lots of decongestant meds, speak slowly and keep answers short, and hold back every cough and sneeze possible.
#gettingonthatship

I'm more afraid if being denied boarding because one of us caught a cold right before the cruise (not Asia).
But yes, personally we wouldn't book a cruise in that part of the world for awhile.

Dinner time. For fun we got all matchy matchy. Here are some pictures of the fam. 



This time I remembered to take some food pictures. 
 
Appetizers consisted of, escargot, Roasted Poblano Soup, and the Arugula and Radicchio Salad with Goat Cheese. 



For entree’s we had the braised beef short ribs, creamy wild mushroom risotto, and the lasagna. I’m still trying to figure out why Heather ordered the lasagna. I’m Italian, and MDR lasagna doesn’t stand a chance against my homemade lasagna. As expected, she didn’t like it. Oh well.



For dessert, there was some cheesecake, chocolate cake, and a warm apple fritter that Lydia had.



Following dinner, there were some more beverages and adult time while the kids went to adventure ocean. 
Later that evening was the 80’s music trivia face party which we held on the promenade and was a blast. The cruise director Cory was all decked out in 80’s wear complete with big hair and the promenade was rocking. I pity the people who have those rooms. It’s got to be loud in them when all these parties happen.

So back to yesterday. Following the trivia, we let the kids hit the pools before dinner. The kids really like the splash away bay and would stay there the entire day. 
 
Earlier, Lydia did the cupcake class. She said she had a lot of fun doing that. Here are some pictures of that. We originally did not sign up for this, but got cornered while at breakfast the other day. Lydia promptly exclaimed she wanted to do that as soon as the crew member asked about it. How can you say no after that. We did get it for 30% off at least.
 

I haven't done Oasis yet, but have done Allure and Symphony (which are Oasis class), and we've been on Adventure.
I'll start with both ships are great, but ship for ship, I'd vote Oasis.
On Adventure, you'll have the waterslides, Flowrider, sports court, rock wall, pool, mini golf, plus all the activities and teen clubs if they attend.  We had great headliners (which changes cruise to cruise), but main stage show and ice show were just ok.  (We only saw one production show...I think there is another that you would see on a 9 nighter).
On Oasis, you have waterslides, Flowrider, sports court, rock wall, pool, mini golf, plus Abyss, zipline, laser tag, plus activities and teen club.  Many more food options and neighborhoods.  Can't talk specific for Oasis (and many complain of the Broadway show Cats), but the Oasis class shows are amazing....Aqua show, ice show, another production show, plus the broadway.
Having said that, I see your dilemma as you get 2 additional nights for $550 cheaper.  Also I personally love the bigger ships but they aren't for everyone. DH for example, prefers the Voyager class as it's easier to get around.

Many updates coming tonight!! For now, I will leave you with a little teaser of how the day went today!

It's not that the half day passes get sold out.  They don't sell them anymore.  Guessing it was hard to manage half day vs full day....which is why I was wondering  (hoping) if they get treated as a full day pass.

Be one of the first to disembark, enter the water-park, store whatever you have in the lockers, secure loungers and head straight to their highest water-slide "Daredevil’s Peak". You will be able to do this about 3-4 times before the lines begin to queue up from 45-60 minutes initially and longer as the day progresses. The "smaller" slides and wave pool will just be icing on the cake.
When we were there, the waves were choppy and the winds hit 60 mi/hr that day so we were recalled to the ship within the hour. Not too bad considering that we did the highest water-slide and were refunded the price of admission.
Can't emphasize enough that if the water-park is in your plan, disembark early.

Awesome, I was wondering this myself!   

I haven't done Oasis yet, but have done Allure and Symphony (which are Oasis class), and we've been on Adventure.
I'll start with both ships are great, but ship for ship, I'd vote Oasis.
On Adventure, you'll have the waterslides, Flowrider, sports court, rock wall, pool, mini golf, plus all the activities and teen clubs if they attend.  We had great headliners (which changes cruise to cruise), but main stage show and ice show were just ok.  (We only saw one production show...I think there is another that you would see on a 9 nighter).
On Oasis, you have waterslides, Flowrider, sports court, rock wall, pool, mini golf, plus Abyss, zipline, laser tag, plus activities and teen club.  Many more food options and neighborhoods.  Can't talk specific for Oasis (and many complain of the Broadway show Cats), but the Oasis class shows are amazing....Aqua show, ice show, another production show, plus the broadway.
Having said that, I see your dilemma as you get 2 additional nights for $550 cheaper.  Also I personally love the bigger ships but they aren't for everyone. DH for example, prefers the Voyager class as it's easier to get around.