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ScooterScott22

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Everything posted by ScooterScott22

  1. Love that you had the Lavazza coffee machine at the hotel. Since that is also in the suite, hopefully you got to practice with it before boarding.
  2. First, I would not believe everything I heard someone say in a casino. Second, when someone says they “only play “X” amount in the casino” that can mean different things. They can mean once they play that amount they are done, that amount per day, or that amount per hand/spin. There is also the difference between points and amount. The initial amount you place into the machine may not correlate directly to the points you play through the machine. For example, I put in $100 once on the last cruise and cashed out $80 a little later. Due to a few wins instead of accruing only $20 worth of points, I actually played long enough, or had enough spins/bets to get $105 worth of points.
  3. Fixed a sentence in my earlier post. The change is an update from “table” to “Italian kitchen”. Though most people still use the old terms. https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/category/category/giovannis-italian-kitchen Expect a standard menu at Giovanni’s. The new places have lighter tile and more family style look.
  4. @Aron_Ross I don’t think you shared if you had previously tried any of the venues on other ships but you did mention that you have not tried Wonderland. Wonderland is usually pretty decent (3 different ships) from our view, but you typically have to be a little open to new experiences. FWIW, We liked the Hibachi on Harmony. 150 was one of our favorites on Wonder but was more average to us on Harmony . (Another couple from the SF area said it disappointed.). Jamie’s has been one of our favorites on every ship that we have been on that has one. Your plan looks good but I think as long as you go into each with an open mind you will be pleased. Once you start setting expectations you might not be as happy. Happy planning and enjoy your cruise.
  5. Toll by plate is going to be the standard. There was an article in the local paper that the exact change machines are mostly gone and the rest are scheduled for removal. If you have a automatic toll pass from one of many states that partner with Sunpass you can use that instead.
  6. Fair warning, checked baggage is pretty slow at MCO compared to lots of other airports. If you arrive at 10:30, with the hour or so drive, it is pretty likely you will not be to the hotel until after midnight.
  7. We did the Wonder in March and had the UDP so we did all of the specialty at least once (did Izumi for sushi but did not make it for habachi). We have done most of the specialty restaurants on other ships at some point or another. Couple of notes from our experience. - They were all pretty good and with the UDP, didn’t find any real issues. Mostly they seemed to be pretty close to what you find on other ships. - Wonderland was also like others in the fleet as far as food goes. They did bring a few extras for the table. The standout was the Hatter, fun and entertaining. Only you can decide if you might be interested in the experience. - 150 Central Park, seemed better than on other ships. I really enjoyed the cheese cart. The server rolled it over, explained about each cheese as he sliced. So much better than just getting a plate of cheeses and the options we far better too. - Mason Jar was a nice change. We will opt to go again if on the Wonder but mainly because it provides some variety. We live in the south and I travel a lot for work. There are so many better places on land for southern cooking and barbecue.
  8. We will be on Allure in about a month in Star and have tentatively only planned one - two dinners in CK at the moment. We will be happy to report back since we are planning hitting all the specialty restaurants at least once, and feel that they all are not equal across the fleet. We did UDP on our last four cruises (Freedom, Wonder, Navigator and Harmony) and the last was in a CLS and we still only did one dinner in CK. We did a couple lunches and breakfast, which was enough. Izumi (both sides) and the Samba Grill are pretty unique and probably can't really be replicated by the MDR or CK. There are positives and negatives to each, CK and UDP so to me there is a better question... ...Which one do you think you would regret missing more, the variety and options provided by the UDP or the chance to dine exclusively in CK?
  9. I have a friend that could be coerced to book Star Class based simply on this!!!!! Might have to tease him over WhatsApp, if we can get some on our upcoming Star Sailing.
  10. @Templecruiser did you mean Crown Loft Suite (or maybe the Star Loft Suite) on Harmony? Sky loft would be on the Quantum class ships. I’m thinking you meant CLS but don’t want to assume. If you would stay with the same room category you could switch with no charge, but once you change categories (especially if jumping from Sky to Star class with the Star Loft Suite, expect there would be a repricing.
  11. I’ll expand a little bit on @twangster comment that ships will sail at full capacity. I’m pretty sure that he means cabin capacity, not necessarily ship capacity. We have the flexibility as a family to sail when we want and not stuck to family vacation times. Because of that we do notice small variations in total capacity. There are small variations if you use that perspective. A ship may be totally occupied according to cabin capacity, and that is where the sales and comps help. But there HAD BEEN some trends prior to the shutdown. This was mostly due to less family trips and more singles and couples, which means cabins that could sleep more than two only had two. Running through the prior peaks and valleys that we trended based on season starting at the winter holidays - - post holidays there was usually a few weeks with a drop in total capacity. - presidents week and/or maradi gras (LA) would typically start the more unpredictable winter/spring/Easter breaks with the schools. Therefore depending on where some of those holidays fell and which schools had time off capacity typically increased but exact demand was a little harder to predict on a specific week. - after Easter before Memorial Day was another pretty reliable waning period. - summer demand usually started right at the end of May and went right up to Labor Day. - September to Thanksgiving was the next easing of demand. As more schools have recently added a fall break we have noticed a little variety week to week but it is still less families as opposed to summer. - Thanksgiving is the next big increase - post Thanksgiving there was a pretty reliable drop up to the Christmas and New Year holidays. That was all pre-COVID and as mentioned there are quite a few factors that are shifting demand. Remember that I am referring to total capacity, so many times every room may still be full but every room may not be full to it’s individual capacity. There are other factors that can also influence total capacity. I know the OP was referring to the Oasis class but ship can make a small difference, newer or amped ships might draw more than others, but some of the smaller ships might also have less families. Itineraries are another thing that will create fluctuations in total capacity, with round trips usually having more demand than repositioning. (Pretty sure that the cruise lines know the demands I mentioned and that is why more TA’s and other repositioning cruises happen in May, October, and December across the different lines). Just a different perspective, and this is not going to be reliable at this time. Things might start to fall back into these patterns sometime into the future but my crystal ball is not telling me when or if, LOL.
  12. FLL is definitely an option and traffic should not be too bad at the time you described, but anything can happen with Miami traffic. Sorry I can’t comment on prices or options since I usually have a car. Will add that FLL is probably my least favorite airport out of some 200+ or so I have been to over the years. Think of it as a mini - LAX, with all of the headaches, but no break for being smaller. It Is doable but may not be the easiest. Personally I would factor in some of the hiccups and frustration for FLL into the equation but I am biased.
  13. I know there is a recent second thread going about the FLL area hotels but this one was first and the one I have been following. I think I stated have been in the area for work and at a number of different hotels. The Marriott Harbor Beach Resort & Spa is not one I am not familiar with, and really haven't seen much feedback. Does anyone have anything they can share? We found a decent rate so it is under consideration.
  14. There are quite a few options and most are fine but would depend on your preferences. How much do you want to spend, how long are you staying (when does your flight arrive, is it a short overnight), and do you belong to any loyalty programs are just a few thing to consider. I have stayed at quite a few places there for work and once for a cruise so I’ll share a few thoughts. If you are doing just an overnight, and especially with a later arrival, the blue lagoon area mentioned above is a pretty good option. It should be a little less $ than downtown, convenient to get to from the airport and has a few things like dining and shops nearby. In the morning taxi or Uber down the expressway to the port. The Hampton mentioned above is really decent and probably the best value compared to the others in the area. Downtown is a better option if you have a full day or even maybe up to two days. It is usually a little more but closer to the port and there are a few more things to do. Bayside marketplace and the park are a very easy walk and there are some other options for sightseeing. Most of the hotels in the downtown area have been around for a while. They have been kept up pretty well but most are definitely not brand new builds. More to the south of the port area, the intercontinental is probably the best choice, the Hyatt is a few blocks back and is another option as well as the JW. North of the port area is a Hilton, Doubletree and Marriott. Those three are actually all connected via a little mall (and a walkway from the Hilton). They overlook the port and that little mall area has some dining and shops if you don’t want or need to venture out too far. if you have more time or plan to stay for a while then Miami Beach or other areas might be more interesting and have more entertainment and dining options. Happy planning.
  15. @Dods you did not mention which ship/class. Oasis class ship might be easier, on the Wonder it was at the Aquatheater. I dropped by a little late and no one was checking. If it is held at one of the indoor locations on any ship they will probably be more careful.
  16. Come on @Vancity Cruiser even us in Florida have to get out of the cold in January. Seriously though, the cruise lines go there year round since the weather is pretty nice most all the time. Depending on which port you might have a cool to cold day. It is not unusual to have a front that brings cool weather even down at Port Canaveral, if you are using one of the more southern ports there are still cool fronts but usually not as bad. Once out closer to the islands typically it will be warmer.
  17. It is pretty simple - Order food, eat food YMMV but the staff at the Jamie’s (we have been at three different ones) usually allow a little variety with desserts and apps but typically will keep you to one entree. We did get offered a chance to taste another that we were interested in, but that was while sailing star class so may not have been the norm. Likely you will find one app, one entrée and one dessert should fill you so to best experience multiple things either a group and sharing or more than one visit seems like the best strategy. Enjoy!
  18. Just because it went into a pocket doesn’t mean it wasn’t pooled. At the casino bar on Harmony the pooled tips were in a bucket, in a cabinet under the back counter. Saw the bartender put some tips in there when he had a moment. My guess was since it didn’t appear to be easy to access he pocketed tips until a lull. When I asked to break a 20 at one point they brought out the bucket and made the switch.
  19. Worked from the ship, with varying degrees of success. With regards to the multiple devices question. It is possible to switch devices pretty easily as mentioned before. The issue might be timing. If you are solo that might be an issue if the timeframe for the code entry is really short. But if you are traveling with someone you can use their device access for a short switch. Just make sure that “borrowed” code is not the one you plan on utilizing for the actual meeting, because when they log back in it will kick you off. As far as real success to do everything it might be a little tricky. Slow speeds were felt at times. I found it was easier to do as much as possible off-line and wait to sign in and then link and do everything that requires a connection. You can connect and let the outbox work while you go get lunch or a drink, LOL. On Teams if you can do without sharing your camera, that also helps. I found that Teams on the phone (iPhone) actually did better compared to the laptop.
  20. We enjoyed the CLS on Harmony about a month ago. Personally can not think of any issues really other than if you have issues with steps. Got it via Royal Up so didn’t get to pick the location and we had one overlooking the sports court/boardwalk. We would typically pick a side/ocean view. While we still would have preferred the side, the aft facing suites were not that bad. Probably did decrease some of the time relaxing out on the deck. Time out there was a little more people watching and we could sort of see the Aqua show. May want to factor that (suite location) into your consideration points since you may not have as much freedom to choose.
  21. I’ll be following this since we will be bringing my parents down from the Midwest for our September cruise. We have not stayed in the area for a cruise but I have been at a number of the hotels for work stays. Since it was mentioned so just adding that I have been to the restaurant at Bass Pro on a couple of occasions. It was decent, more of a convenient thing on the second and third times. If you are in the area or shopping there it is an acceptable option but there are some better options if you want a fancier meal. It seems to be on par with a little bit nicer chain restaurant. There was a dish or two, I think it was a smoked fish dip app that was pretty tasty, but don’t quote me on that. edit: Yes to the Rustic Inn. If I recall the food was good but parking seemed to be an issue around there.
  22. @dustfsu the situation you described sounds closer to the description of the Ovation more than the Quantum. We were on the Ovation’s inaugural Alaska sailing in 2019 (and so was the member above) and there were no issues with signage even though Ovation had been predominantly sailing Asia based itineraries prior. The only item that was noticeable was they were still working on changing one of the quick counter services near the pool to the fish and chips restaurant.
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