teddy

Without getting into specifics of the invasion, I feel like not making a stop in a warring nation is a good call on Royal’s part.

Thanks for sharing!! I'm glad you guys had a good time. Interestingly enough, I have 21 nights on Adventure and am going on Liberty in August. I've been wanting to try the Flowrider, but am worried about getting injured. I broke a vertebrae in 2010, and while I'm technically fixed and have no restrictions, I still am wary about doing things that can cause funky wipe-outs....for example, I don't ski or snowboard anymore. That being said, I can't wait to be able to dive again. My thoughts are with you.

Damn C&A emails....but it's hard to beat the prices so far out, and since Aruba/Bonaire are on our bucket list...yolo. We just booked Voyager for March 1, 2024 Is there a prize for currently having the two furthest out cruises?

We don't use a credit card except when traveling, and we pay it off in full as soon as we return home. Doing this requires discipline in order to only spend what you have budgeted for vacation. We feel using a credit card rather than a debit card protects us...not only for the pending charges or "holds", but in the unlikely event that our card gets compromised. Random incident that happened last month in Miami....when we checked into our pre cruise hotel, the hold for incidentals was actually applied twice. Since we used our credit card rather than our debit card, we didn't worry about it too much (yes, it went away when we checked out the next morning).

Thank you for all the updating you do here @Lovetocruise2002

There has been some interesting spam posted in the past.

My biggest pet peeve with the Windjammer is the lack of any comprehension about how lines and waiting your turn work. I hate it when someone walks up and reaches in front of me to be served when I'm next in line. I mean seriously, I get it....the chances of me confronting the person are pretty much nil since there are no consequences and a confrontation will just end poorly. Sure, I could say something to the offenders, but the last thing I want is get into a argument and have a scene when all I want is a cheeseburger. When we were on Oasis last month, it was more widespread than the other two cruises we've been on since the restart.....and it seemed like all the people who were rude and entitled were older than us (we're in our 50s).

Not every booking on every cruise qualifies for the Royal Up bidding process.

Our Feb 2023 Independence sailings were canceled due to extended dry dock. We were changed to Mariner for the same dates. Feb 3 and Feb 6 2023 on Mariner of the Seas.

Souvenirs maybe?

Anyone can book a cruise. It’s dealing with any issues that come up after booking where having a travel agent is priceless. We are also lucky to have Michelle as our travel agent. She has been awesome to have in our corner.

We've decided to stay with Royal Caribbean. I don't think we will find a better value for our money at the cabin level we cruise. Our first cruise ever was on Mariner in Jan 2019. We enjoyed it so much that we booked another at Next Cruise for Jan 2020. Then we got home and booked another because a year was a long time to go without cruising.....then we added to the Jan 2020 one by making it a back to back......and....well....now we're basically out of control. At this point, we'll be Diamond in a little less than a year, so that influences our decision to stay with Royal Caribbean too.

We bring a usb charging hub on cruises so we can charge our phones/tablets/etc at the same time. We also bring a usb powered fan that works very well.

A well-deserved vacation. And she is the best.

We’ve felt like we should stay out of the way until our number is called. Since the restart we’ve booked Balcony cabins instead of Interiors, so we hang out in the balcony and watch the port wake up. It’s a self-imposed thing though. We’ve never been made to feel like we were in the way or shouldn’t be out and about on disembarkation morning.

Pre-covid we went to the Main Dining Room. Since the restart we’ve been grabbing a couple plates from the Windjammer and going back to our cabin.

When my wife and I recently had to check out at 11am with a 1pm check in time, we hung out in the lobby and read for a while. Here’s another idea…not knowing the Tampa area…they could leave their bags with the hotel and grab a bite, then come back to get their bags and go to the port.

Copy and paste of the first couple paragraphs of the email. “Dear Travel Partner, Independence of the Seas will need some extra time during its scheduled dry dock next year and regrettably, this means our January 6th, 2023 through February 13th, 2023 sailings have been cancelled. We know this news is disappointing and apologize for the impact to your clients' cruise. However, the good news is, our sister ship, Mariner of the Seas, will now take its place - offering similar features and itineraries! So, starting February 16th, 2022, we'll automatically move them to the Mariner of the Seas sailing departing on the same day as their original Independence of the Seas cruise.”

Hmmm We received an email saying our February sailings on Independence were canceled because of an extended dry dock. One of the options (which we took) was to be moved to Mariner for the same dates/itineraries. When I log into our account, I see February 3-6 Independence sailing as canceled and February 6-10 already moved to Mariner.

We've been using the home/proctored ones as backups for drive through testing at CVS and Walgreens. Up here, we swab ourselves in our vehicle while the person at the window watches, so very minimal exposure. We've never had to pay for either testing at either chain. I agree that the home ones make things simple, but out of the four we've opened, two had problems....in one, the solution bottle was empty, and in the other, literally all that was in the package was the solution bottle. In both cases, we were able to get replacements shipped to us, but not in time for the cruises we were going on.....and that's how we learned to buy the six pack of tests for the two of us.

Bummed for you but we’ll be in her in October 2023 so that’s good. We just got a similar email about Independence in Feb 2023.

Yes. I’ve used a Walgreens rapid antigen test to cruise three times since September.

We have 4 cruises booked….5 if you count the one we booked for our oldest son and his fiancé. None of them have dropped.

I might be interpreting the first post incorrectly, but it sounds like you are inquiring of Royal Caribbean whether they will have any excursions. If I am wrong, please forgive me. This site is not an official Royal Caribbean site, but rather a fan site, so no one who works for Royal Caribbean will answer. What you will most likely get for responses are ideas and suggestions from people who have cruised from Ravenna.

...and those silly countdowns in your Royal Caribbean "upcoming cruises" section (yes, I still look at them). 194 days 353 days 614 days