SpeedNoodles

I got shorter.
But that could just be an age thing.

My mistake. Valid till end April ( subject to change!)

Hello everyone,
A couple of weeks ago we received our Genie questionnaire. I am interested to see what others think about this part of the Star Class process. Do you all put a lot of thought into your answers? Do the Genies actually get much to help curate the experience for the guest? Does anyone have any experiences that they attribute directly to the genie questionnaire?
I tend to over analyze things, so I’m sure I put way more thought and effort to into answering these questions than I needed to. There were some simple questions such as names, favorite drinks, celebrations, etc. Those required no thought. But for some of the others they required some real introspection. And I will go over some of those below and how me and my family answered.
One of the questions that immediately made me question if I was doing this right was “Do you have anything in common with the other people in your party?” The obvious answer is yes; But coming up with answers that we felt would be relevant to the Genie was more difficult than I expected. We all enjoy the same sports teams, we obviously have similar values, and we have some common interests in entertainment. But how can interest in Ohio State Football or a love of baseball help our Genie “Curate our suite class experience expressly for us?” In the end, we answered that we all enjoyed “good food, good service and we love to laugh” or something like that.
Other questions, such as “what would constitute a perfect day?” or “Sum up your philosophy for life” required a lot of introspection, and we found them difficult to answer. Again, I understand that we were probably putting way too much thought into our answers, but we found it was fairly difficult to give an answer that we felt would be helpful for our Genie.
There were some fun questions, like “what is the one thing you would take on a trip to Mars?” and “who are three ppl, throughout history who you would want to have dinner with?” BTW, for me those answers were “my computer,” and “Tom Hanks, Johnny Bench, and Abraham Lincoln.”
It was also fun to answer the question about the time we laughed the hardest together. We have a fun story from a previous cruise about a member of our party tripping in a very public setting (they were fine, so it was OK to laugh.) Also, the question about our favorite movies, books, bands, sports teams, and the like, was fun to discuss and answer.  
For the group, or others who have completed this questionnaire, what were some of your answers to questions? For those who have cruised STAR class in the past, have you noticed if the Genie uses your answers to curate your experience? What are other people’s thoughts on this process?
Personally, I was not a huge fan. I understand the need for something like this, but, as I said I over analyze these things and give them more attention than they necessarily require.
Thanks for those who are reading and following along. The topic for next week will be our current plans for excursions at the three ports of call. Looking forward to interacting with everyone as I continue this exciting experience.   

Hi @Steve Wikel, welcome to the forums!!
March is a lifetime away, in pandemic time, and so much can change between now and then.  
First, regarding the test kits - I'm confident that by March they will have exhausted all of the old tests (which are the ones that people are having issues with), so I wouldn't worry too much about that.
Also it seems that Omicron passes through fairly quickly.  Whether it passes through the US as fast as it did through South Africa is anyone's guess, but I think even most epidemiologists feel that it won't be with us very long.  Will another variant raise its ugly head before March? It's anyone's guess.   But I think what we can count on is things will be different on March 6 than January 1.  How it will be different is unknown.
We're glad you joined us!

I got shorter.
But that could just be an age thing.

Jimmy Blakemore was on the Christmas Cruise.  Incredible singalongs. Our favorite end to every night. 

Brilliance Christmas Cruise was, by my best guess, 60 percent.  The only cluster “@&& was the “scheduled boarding” and the  7pm my time dining seating. That seemed to catch the MDR off guard every night.  Other than that no lines or waiting of any substance. Always a pool deck seat, always bar seating, zero wait in Windjammer, ample seats in the Pacifica Theater for all shows. Smooth and quick debarkation and reboarding at all ports. Honestly our best cruise of ten vis a vis crowds and lines. 

I got shorter.
But that could just be an age thing.

Worker or customer, a lot of people are straight up ********. 
 
One thing we noticed working retail:  The pandemic has magnified peoples personalities.  People who tended to be nice are even nicer.  People who tended to be rude are even ruder. 

Two stories of this: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2021/08/07/royal-caribbean-flying-passengers-home-private-jet-if-they-have-covid-19

Hi @Steve Wikel, welcome to the forums!!
March is a lifetime away, in pandemic time, and so much can change between now and then.  
First, regarding the test kits - I'm confident that by March they will have exhausted all of the old tests (which are the ones that people are having issues with), so I wouldn't worry too much about that.
Also it seems that Omicron passes through fairly quickly.  Whether it passes through the US as fast as it did through South Africa is anyone's guess, but I think even most epidemiologists feel that it won't be with us very long.  Will another variant raise its ugly head before March? It's anyone's guess.   But I think what we can count on is things will be different on March 6 than January 1.  How it will be different is unknown.
We're glad you joined us!

1) Buy TWO proctored test kits per person. 2) Keep expectations in check. 3) Commit to being flexible. YOU WILL HAVE A GREAT TIME!  Any break in one of those three legs and it won't work. That's is my advice. Currently, we are on our last day of a 7 nt. OASIS OS Western Caribbean and have had a fabulous time.

You as well!

No, this rule is for flights, not cruises.

I shared my experience with the new mask rules here: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2021/12/26/navigator-of-the-seas-live-blog-day-2-sea-day

Wow! That is an incredible bummer. I assume all the entertainment staff is in quarantine? I am on the next sailing of Symphony, hopefully they will be able to put on a show or two. My favourite thing about Oasis class ships is the amount of high quality nightly entertainment.
That being said, I understand the current cruising environment, and made the decision not to cancel. Therefore, I will not complain about lack of entertainment, port changes, protocols etc. I will not demand compensation for missed ports or lack of shows. Royal allows me to cancel up to 48 hours before the cruise and so the decision is on me, not them.

Alternate title: Thousands do exactly as millions do every day on airplanes and travel, albeit with better protocols

https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2021/12/31/thousands-reject-cdc-advice-board-cruise-ships-for-vacations-amid-rise-in-covid-cases/
BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – Cruising into the new year, thousands of passengers are rejecting the CDC’s advice not to sail as COVID-19 cases reach record numbers. The CDC issued this guidance despite every passenger 12 and older being required to be vaccinated.
“We don’t like to see even one case, but our experience is a fraction of the comparable statistics of virtually any other comparable location or industry,” Royal Caribbean Chairman Richard Fain wrote in a statement Thursday.
Royal Caribbean said since restarting in the summer, 1,700 of its 1.1 million guests have tested positive with 41 of those passengers going to the hospital and none of those 41 with the new variant.

Bill and I had our B2B covid tests done this morning about 7:00 and had the results in less than 30 minutes. We both tested negative, so we get to stay on board another week. 
We have made it to Coco Cay a couple of hours earlier than scheduled. The Independence is also here. So should be pretty busy on the island once the gangways are open. 
Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow. And wishing each of you a happy and healthy 2022. 

From our Coco Beach Club Cabana in late October.
 

Yes, if she'd reported symptoms onboard they would have tested her. 
I am not sure if, at this point, they would still  have a way to know who her close contacts were, and, honestly, contact tracing in this country has been fairly nonexistent anywhere.
How can cruising be safe?  Well, ships sail between 95-100% vaccinated and tested. A few will slip through the cracks.  My workplace is likely 60% vaccinated at best, no testing unless someone reports symptoms (and then it's up to them to find a place),  and there have been a few who have worked for 3 days before they mentioned it to anyone because they are "tough guys and don't get sick".
So which is safer?

Ok, from just this extremely small sampling it seems that Emed has a fresher batch than Optum does.
Just ordered a fresh batch, hopefully with a better expiration date.
1. Purchased:  Emed.
2. Ordered: 12/31/21
3. Approved: 1/1/22
4. Shipped: 1/6/22
5. Received:
6. Expiration date:

Check out this thread: 
 

I heard there was some misunderstanding between cruise lines and The Bahamas. Not just Royal, but DCL and MSC got affected too.
I have no idea if that's remotely true or not.

Yep. And it's good to know for sure. Especially if those tests are expired. 
 
And a thought just occurred to me. It might be a good idea to contact the Navica people directly to see if the tests are good. They have to get that information because allowing a test to slip through would be a very bad thing. I would expect the qr code to be able to provide that information.