teddy

I’m not normally a nervous Nellie, but watching the diving and the person up on the tightrope kinda made me uneasy.   They are extremely impressive athletes.  

1 hour ago, VillainsGin said:

I never considered them sailing in suites so that would make sense, although how do people normally afford suites? Are they really paying out of pocket because the price seems absurd especially if sailing alone or do people sail in suites via comps/discounts? I sailed in a suite once when I got extremely lucky with a royal bid.

Everyone spends their money the way they see fit.  There will always be someone wealthier and always someone poorer.  
 

Here’s a non-cruise personal example: A long time friend of mine (48 years) just bought a top of the line GMC pickup with the Duramax diesel engine.   I can’t fathom spending that much on a vehicle, but he’s happy.  He and his wife can’t imagine paying for 3-5 cruises a year, but we’re happy.

We reached Diamond earlier than expected thanks to the double points promotion during the pandemic.  We mostly stay in Inside Cabins.   People thought we were insane for cruising during that time, but we were happy.  

I can’t think of any instance where moving (or touching) someone else’s belongings would result in a positive encounter, whether they were a “chair hog” or not. 

I’m gonna be honest, I can tear an engine down to its individual parts and rebuild it, but this thread has me scratching my head. I’m very impressed (and confused) with the calculations and….well….math that’s in it.   
 

We do nrd because it’s always been cheaper overall, especially when booking onboard. The third party annual travel insurance plan we buy will reimburse our non refundable deposits, payments , etc for the covered reasons up to our limit.  

Just now, RCIfan1912 said:

To get back on cruising. The people on the ship that do receive tips, they do get a base salary right like a waiter/waitress? They get a small salary/hourly rate and then tips make majority of their pay. 

I’ve often wondered this.  I’m curious to see any info people share. 

To stir the pot a teeny bit….

The people I personally know who are waiters/waitresses would absolutely rather not be subject to minimum wage and just keep their lower wages and tips. 

A long time friend of ours has been waiting tables for decades.  The cash tips she gets just during hunting season pays for their vacation in St. Maarten every year. 
 

To be upfront, I’ve never worked for tips, so I have no dog in this fight.  

We’ve always gotten calls before coffee is delivered to our cabin, most recently on Anthem back in February. 

4 hours ago, Neesa said:

@Lovetocruise2002 Yes, just for clothes, toiletries are now pretty simple, I am an Eminence girl myself. If I need anything kiddo has an entire array to choose from. 

Also I love that D15 is crocheting, it calms the mind. Sometimes I forget this world is so different and to calm the mind is a necessity. My kiddo loves this activity, she volunteers at our local library assisting the teaching class, where she learned it and fell in love. She even chose to cancel X Box! She was mesmerized by that MineCraft thing. 

She is working on her big final paper for graduation, she chose to focus on the positives and future of nuclear energy, sometimes she is as her desk in thought with her crocheting in her lap, fingers working. 

I encourage such an amazing skill, she insists it helps her stay focused. I was so happy to read that, good for D15! Those clothes will jump in that suitcase in no time. I'm so excited for this trip!

Our 23 year old has picked up knitting and crocheting from his girlfriend.  He says it helps calm him down when he feels anxious, and as his parents, my wife and I have noticed he's been on a more even keel since he started.....although lately they've been knitting hats for their cats

We looked for a northern European itinerary on Royal for a while and ended up booking a Northern Europe cruise out of Southampton on   MSC.      

Southampton, Hamburg, Rotterdam, Zeebrugge, Le Havre, Southampton.

1 hour ago, whitsmom said:

We will be flying into Newark (October 2023) and staying at Springhill Suites Newark Airport the night before.  When I called them to see if they have a shuttle to the port, they said no and we should have them schedule us a taxi when we arrive for the next day.  How are you planning to getting to the port?

We are going with our two young granddaughters and our son + dil, so we are going to use a car service.  I don’t know which one…my wife has been dealing with that.   I’ll try to remember to find out. 

We are booked on Odyssey in Jan 2025 and I found a room with parking at the Courtyard Newark Elizabeth that includes “transportation to the cruise port”.  We’re not sure what it exactly is, but it’s just the two of us on this cruise so it’s not a big deal. 

We’re driving down from Maine this coming February and staying at the Springhill Suites Newark Airport the night before our cruise.  They have a stay and cruise (park) option.   I found quite a few stay/park/cruise hotels via the Marriott Bonvoy app. 

2 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

I've wondered, what does the crew do with tip money, specifically cash?  Seems there could be a lot of cash sitting in their cabins until they can mail it home. Or can they "deposit" the cash somehow on board and then wire money home?

High stakes Poker?

In my mind, tipping is a very personal subject and I don't like to throw around amounts.  We only get the continental breakfast (we're too cheap thrifty to pay for breakfast when there are included options).  We do give a small tip when our coffee and snacks are delivered.

During the restart, they would leave a cart outside with the order on it, but now that the pandemic rules are no longer in play, they bring it into our room.  I'm not sure if they'd leave it in the hallway.  My gut says no, but asking never hurts.

One thing to note, we've never been able to get coffee delivered before 6 am.  Our days begin by 4 am at the latest here at home, so it's usually halfway through the cruise week before we are still in the cabin at 6. 

Coffee can be a bit difficult to source before 5 am.  On the other hand, the common areas on the ship are deserted.

I remember when Saturday Night Fever came out in theaters.  I wanted to see it but was “too young”.  I had to settle for Star Wars. 

They’re just throwing everything at the wall.  Eventually something will stick 

I use TSA approved lock more to keep the zippers together than for security purposes…although I guess a lock will thwart lazy or opportunistic thieves. 
 

20 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

Yet for some reason short races are measured in KM here... we have 5K's and 10K's.

My wife just ran a 10k a week ago.  I’m so confused

My wife and I enjoy reading your blogs.  Thanks for doing them.

56 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Portland & Boston

Oh, and I forgot to mention poutine!! 

I love poutine.  I grew up in a small Maine town close to the Quebec border.  It was closer to go shopping in Canada than stay in the States, and I would always be allowed to get a plate of poutine when we went.

My wife and I did a spur of the moment Canada cruise from Boston on Voyager last October.  It was kinda weird to make a port call in our own state (Bar Harbor)....not to mention that when we were in St John we were an hour from her parents house, and in PEI her cousin met us at the pier and we spent the day with her.  It turned out to be our favorite cruise to date though.

If you folks run into problems in Portland, we're like five miles from town....errr...8 km that is.

What do we do with all these pitchforks and torches now? 

I brought a quart of maple syrup through security in Cape Liberty.  The screener asked about it and I showed him the bottle.  I didn’t have to remove the cover to let him verify either the seal or contents. 
 

For those who are wondering about why we brought it, it was a gift for friends who live in Miami. They met us at the port when Anthem stopped there and we spent the day with them. 

Collapsible bowls for the win.

17 minutes ago, DDaley said:

I feel bad defecting

We did at first, too, but we looked high and low for a short cruise in Jan ‘24 since we have airline credits that needed to be used.  
 

We are fine in an inside cabin, but everything we found on Royal for the timeframe was more expensive than a balcony cabin on another company.   

Barring any major changes, we will always try to cruise on a Royal Caribbean ship, but money talks.  
 

I guess we’re not too big of defectors since we have Royal cruises booked out as far as January ‘25.

I guess they can charge all they want for pizza as long as the the included Sorrentos is replaced with another decent included food.

I happen to like the pizza from Sorrentos/Cafe Promenade and not having a place to grab a quick, included in my cruise fare bite to eat after the Windjammer closes would definitely make me reevaluate continuing to cruise with Royal. 
 

See, for me it’s not paying for pizza, it’s the loss of an included eating option. 

Oh

We booked directly through their website (12 Metre Racing).  The majority of people we were with booked it through Royal.  I can't remember the actual price difference, but it was cheaper booking directly.

My wife and I did this excursion through Royal, although it was pre-pandemic.

https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/11202-tulum-experience-question/&do=findComment&comment=106616