FionaMG

How can he eat so much and still be rake thin??? This is so unfair!!!

Hi @SV Reb and welcome to the boards. You can see the menus and theme nights by going into the app and selecting the current sailing. However, for Oasis, you need to remember that it is interporting, i.e. it has two different embarkation ports on the same itinerary, Barcelona (the main one) and Rome. This means that you don't want to be basing the menu rotation on the night number, e.g. night 3 or night 5, because it will be different depending on where you board. Looking at the app now, and based on the Barcelona departure on 12 May, Palma de Mallorca (yesterday) was formal night, today (at sea) is white night, La Spezia (tomorrow) is Caribbean night, and Naples on the 17th is Dress to Impress. As for the menu rotation, it's showing as follows: 12 May (Barcelona): Welcome Aboard; 13 May (Palma de Mallorca) French Night; 14 May (at sea) UK night; 15 May (La Spezia) Mediterranean night; 16 May (Rome) Italian night; 17 May (Naples) Bon Voyage; and 18 May (at sea) Royal Night. Another thing to bear in mind that one week in every two, there is an additional call in Marseille, which may further skew the menu rotation. Bear in mind that these things are never written in stone and you won't know 100% until you actually get on board. I hope this helps and that it doesn't all sound terribly confusing.

You don't get the $200 back as such because you don't actually pay it until you make final payment. What you can do is have your TA, or Royal if you booked direct, convert your booking to non-refundable. BUT (in capitals because it is a very big but) this means your cruise will be repriced at the prevailing rate on the day you make the switch and the chances are very good that by that time the price, even for a non-refundable deposit, will be much higher. In addition, you would lose any promotional offers, such as onboard credit, that came with your original booking. However, you can convert a refundable deposit to non-refundable at any time prior to the final payment date, so the best strategy is to keep monitoring the prices and if/when you see a decent price drop convert the booking at that time, assuming you are ready to commit.

We've done the promenade window a few times when it's just been the two of us. I like them but recently I've found they've not been such a good deal as they were in the past especially when the C&A balcony discount comes into play. The best CL I've experienced was the one on Adventure, up top with big windows and great views.

Yes but we were fussy cave dwellers and insisted on having a window which kinda limited us to the dungeon.

I wouldn't worry too much about being low down. Our first few cruises were all on decks 2, 3 or 4 because that was what the budget allowed. I don't recall finding the location inconvenient but with four of us packed into one room it was tight. That extra space you've won is a decent trade-off, I'd say. Enjoy.

We stayed at the Hotel Lancelot because we wanted to be in walking distance of the Colosseum and would happily stay again. https://www.lancelothotel.com/

When you say cable car, this would be the Loen Skylift, right? Did you book it through the ship? I ask because you can get there on your own very easily. They sell tickets right at the dock that include the round trip bus transfer to the cable car and the ticket for the cable car itself. The bus runs continuously backwards and forwards throughout the day. They also sell tickets to the Briksdal Glacier if that's something you'd like to consider as an alternative (and much cheaper than Royal, of course). If you want you can book the tickets online with Olden Adventures: https://www.oldencruise.com/shore-excursions/loen-skylift-including-transfer/ but we just waited and bought them on the day because that way, if the weather had been uncooperative, we could have done something else instead. It's very slightly more expensive to buy on the day. I cannot speak too highly of the cable car experience. There are walking paths at the top that you can do and they have information about them in the ticket office. The views are simply magnificent. There are also some small souvenir shops right by the dock with some nice stuff if you feel like browsing afterwards. We thought Haugesund was the least interesting of the stops but there is a pleasant coastal walk that will take you past Norway's national monument: https://www.fjordnorway.com/en/inspiration/day-trips/haugesund/walk-the-coastal-trail-in-haugesund It's free and you can pick up a useful map from one of the shops in the pedestriansed shopping area that you pass through to get to the trail. Also before you reach the trail you will pass a cupcake shop that's worth stopping at either on the way out or the way back. https://www.jaablombakst.com/ A couple of pictures along the way: The national monument: This inlet with the horse statues was as far as we went. I can't remember if the trail continues past it but you'd probably not want to go any farther on anyway. The scenery is pleasant enough but it can't compare to everything you'll have seen beforehand in your other stops. Hope it helps.

Have a great cruise @Traveler. I did this same itinerary last July on a mum and daughter cruise and it was amazing. I expect you've already planned out your port days but I'll be more than happy to share what we did if you're still looking for ideas.

This is the official ETIAS website. You can keep checking back for updates. Note where it says that ETIAS is not yet in operation and that no applications can be made as yet. When it does come online the information will be posted on the official website. Watch out for scam websites that may try to charge additional fees. https://travel-europe.europa.eu/etias_en

I don't know if any of you on the roll call are still going on this cruise on 7 December but if you are you might want to check your prices. There's been a huge price drop for balcony cabins. I just managed to switch my OV cabin to a specified spacious balcony cabin and still made a saving of about $25. What a deal! I'm so pleased I'm practically dancing around the room!

Yes, I'm seeing that now too.

Back in the day when speciality restaurants charged $25 I used to think that was a lot but the prices they're charging now are just plain bonkers. And yet someone must be paying them. You can't help but wonder how much longer it will be till common sense returns and with it more sensible prices.

One time DH, SIL, BIL and I watched a guy spend over half an hour at a neighbouring table in the WJ trying to talk the people there into booking specialty. They probably did it in the end just to get rid of him. He must have thought we looked like cheapskates though as he never even glanced at us.

They probably only had one to start with and nobody is daft enough to book it!

That's crazy money.

I saw a thorough write-up of this activity, with pics, from someone who has just finished a TA on Oasis and was doing a live thread on CC. She says: "We started around 11:00 and I was in my stateroom taking a picture of cookies at 12:17". "We started with the Yellowtail Jalapeño Carpacci." "Then, we had Crispy Shrimp and Futomaki." "After that came the Champagne Lobster & Creamy Lobster Tempura." "The next course was the Teppan Beef Fried Rice." "And finally, dessert was the mochi ice cream."

Very interesting @Chili. Thanks for sharing.

The first one I posted is Freedom; the second is Anthem. I have found that Q-class and O-class often have the same prices for add-ons.

Assuming grats are not included on the Chops + 1, it's cheaper to get the 3- night package on my other one too.

On one of mine it's cheaper to buy the 3-night package.

Enjoy your last evening on board. Safe travels home tomorrow and thanks again for bringing us along.

Yes, very good point, but I hate to bother my TA when I'm comparing prices on several different cruises that I most likely will end up not booking anyway (because I check way more cruises than I have the time or funds to go on. )

I have a booking on Freedom and also cannot see sushi, only hibachi. It's been that way since I booked over a year ago.

You have to do a mock booking and go all the way through the booking process until you get to the very last page prior to inputting payment details. It's on the same page where you select your dining time. This is a major gripe of mine. It shouldn't be so hard.