FionaMG

Now to mdr for breakfast

Happened to us too in Curaçao, with people buying shopping trolley loads full of the liqueur. Infuriating. 

Yes, we have, in Rio de Janeiro. We made it but only just. However, that was mostly the fault of the stragglers in my party who were late getting down to the meeting point for the first excursion. This meant we were on the very last bus of several doing the same excursion and had to wait a bit longer yet for some more stragglers. As a result we got back to ship only with enough time to go to the toilet and grab a sandwich to eat on the way back off the ship for the next one.
So you should be ok for your double trip but make sure to get to the meeting point early to try and get on the first bus out. The earlier your bus leaves, the earlier it will be back. Enjoy!

Yes, we have, in Rio de Janeiro. We made it but only just. However, that was mostly the fault of the stragglers in my party who were late getting down to the meeting point for the first excursion. This meant we were on the very last bus of several doing the same excursion and had to wait a bit longer yet for some more stragglers. As a result we got back to ship only with enough time to go to the toilet and grab a sandwich to eat on the way back off the ship for the next one.
So you should be ok for your double trip but make sure to get to the meeting point early to try and get on the first bus out. The earlier your bus leaves, the earlier it will be back. Enjoy!

This exact same thing happened to me last year, although with euros rather than Canadian dollars. At the time I took screen shots of the page on their website showing I had paid in full but it was never an issue. Turned out to be the exchange rate working in my favour. Perhaps that's what's going on with your booking too.

Have you taken into account how much you would spend over the course of 7 nights in Orlando versus 3 nights in Miami? If you'd be going to the parks the cost adds up to large sums very quickly, so while the initial outlay may be €400 cheaper for the longer trip, it might work out a lot more expensive in the end.

If you search for cruise ship crashes it becomes apparent that it happens fairly often. Mostly with piers or docks and sometimes with other boats and rocks.
Navigating and piloting open and near shore waters  are governed by volumes of national and international marine rules and laws. Many times it simply boils down to "don't run into anything."
 
Conversation between a US naval ship and Canadian authorities off the coast of Newfoundland.
US Ship: Please divert your course 0.5 degrees to the south to avoid a collision.
CND reply: Recommend you divert your course 15 degrees to the South to avoid a collision.
US Ship: This is the Captain of a US Navy Ship. I say again, divert your course.
CND reply: No. I say again, you divert YOUR course!
US Ship: THIS IS THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS CORAL SEA*, WE ARE A LARGE WARSHIP OF THE US NAVY. DIVERT YOUR COURSE NOW!!
CND reply: This is a lighthouse. Your call.
 
PS ... it is a joke .. this did not really happen.
 
 

We like the Best Western Plus Oceanside Inn on Seabreeze. It's set just off the beach, walking distance to restaurants and shopping, and a water taxi stop as well, if that's something you'd be interested in. It's very close to the port; I think we paid 15 dollars for the taxi in December 2017, when we stayed 3 nights pre-cruise. 
There's a very decent breakfast included in the price too.
We're booked to stay there again this coming November. 

One thing for sure is that if you're going to stay awhile the Oasis class ships are the ones to do it on! ☺️
Perhaps afterwards you could come back and post your impressions? I'm sure it would be helpful for others thinking about it too.
Have a great cruise. 

Yes I will definitely do that. Super excited as we sail this Sunday. ?Thank you. 

There is a charge for the stay awhile option and while it could be a convenient option for someone flying out later the same day I would say it might be a waste of money for you. You have to vacate your cabin at around 8 am so after that you only have the public areas of the ship at your disposal.
I would suggest checking with your hotel if they will store your luggage for until check-in time. If so, it could be a better option for you to just get off the ship at the normal time and head straight to the hotel. Hotels don't usually charge for this service and once you have left your bags with them you can get out and about to explore Barcelona. 
 

There is a charge for the stay awhile option and while it could be a convenient option for someone flying out later the same day I would say it might be a waste of money for you. You have to vacate your cabin at around 8 am so after that you only have the public areas of the ship at your disposal.
I would suggest checking with your hotel if they will store your luggage for until check-in time. If so, it could be a better option for you to just get off the ship at the normal time and head straight to the hotel. Hotels don't usually charge for this service and once you have left your bags with them you can get out and about to explore Barcelona. 
 

I can't help thinking that as far as slow sales in Europe are concerned, it's less likely to be about Brexit and more likely to be about the astronomically high prices.
We are doing the Caribbean again this year because it's actually cheaper for us to fly all the way across the pond and cruise there than it is to cruise in our own back yard. 

In the past they were part of Royal's sports staff. It's possible that in more recent years the responsibility could have been passed on to the company that runs the spa; I honestly don't know. But either way, for a cruise line that constantly emphasises the importance of guest safety, the current level of gym staffing leaves a lot to be desired. 

I have been able to book excursions at 25% off prices previously advertised in the cruise planner (not on your sailing). Prices go up and down like a yoyo. However, since Royal practises creative maths, the trick is to book your excursions as soon as you see them at a price you're comfortable with. That way, you lock in your places at an acceptable price but can still cancel and rebook if you see it cheaper during a subsequent sale. Being somewhat obsessive in checking your cruise planner can definitely pay off.

Oooh, that's a nice itinerary. I would love to do that one. 

take a look in the news and rumours topic area :)
 
but heres the link
 
https://help.royalcaribbean.co.uk/hc/en-gb/sections/360004499552-Independence-of-the-Seas-2020-changes-to-sailings

Absolutely! We were really keen to sail Anthem this year while she's over on this side of the pond but the prices were just stupidly high (which seems to be a general trend anyway for their sailings from the UK, regardless of ship).
And when you factor in the European lines, particularly MSC and Costa, stepping up the quality of their service, with exciting new ships at comparably much more reasonable prices,  it's easy to see that Royal are simply pricing themselves out of the European market.
Not to mention the fact that they have some of their oldest, smallest ships doing some of the itineraries. I think they forget that while the ship may be less important to cruisers coming over from the US who understandably want to spend every possible minute visiting the ports of call, that is not necessarily the case for us here in Europe, since we can jump on a low-cost flight and spend several days in those cities for peanuts. We would really like to do the Greek Isles and/or Croatia but there's no way we're going to do it on a ship like Rhapsody, however much we like the Royal product.
I really think Royal needs to rethink its strategy for Europe.

I can't help thinking that as far as slow sales in Europe are concerned, it's less likely to be about Brexit and more likely to be about the astronomically high prices.
We are doing the Caribbean again this year because it's actually cheaper for us to fly all the way across the pond and cruise there than it is to cruise in our own back yard. 

I can't help thinking that as far as slow sales in Europe are concerned, it's less likely to be about Brexit and more likely to be about the astronomically high prices.
We are doing the Caribbean again this year because it's actually cheaper for us to fly all the way across the pond and cruise there than it is to cruise in our own back yard. 

The Passenger Vessel Services Act or PVSA does not allow a foreign ship to transport guests between different US ports without stopping at a "distant foreign port".  As far as US law is considered, a cruise ship registered in the Bahamas or Panama is a foreign ship even if the company operating that ship has it's headquarters in Miami.  
Many countries have such maritime laws and air carriers have the same restrictions which is why you can't fly Air Canada from Los Angles to New York but you can fly them from a US city to a Canadian city.  You don't hear about the maritime laws in other countries as much because few countries have the cruise market that the US does.  
In the case of Oasis, moving from Florida to New York with guests would violate the PVSA.  A common "distant foreign port" is the ABC islands but for Oasis to head that far South and turn around to go that far North just doesn't make sense so they'll have to reposition without guests.
This occurred this past weekend for Harmony, Allure and Mariner.   Harmony moved from Ft. Lauderdale to Canaveral, Allure moved from Miami to Ft. Lauderdale and Mariner moved from Miami to Canaveral.  In all cases they had to drop their existing guests from the previous cruise in the same port where they picked them up, then they had to sail empty to their new home port later in the day.
Puerto Rico has a special waiver in place that allows cruise ships to carry guests when repositioning between the US mainland and Puerto Rico.  

Now that it is officially single digits until sail away, I figure it is not unreasonable for me to get this live blog started! (though I AM endlessly amused by the people who have recently started their posts far in advance of their sailings. *cough @StayFrosty @Lovetocruise2002 @Matt cough*)  I will be transparent in that, since this is my first live blog, I can't guarantee I will be able to stay on top of it the way I might like, but I will be doing my level best to share with all of you for multiple reasons. First and foremost, I have gotten so much out of other's live blogs and genuinely want to give back to this community in any way I might be able to. But it isn't ALL altruistic. I think, if I'm able to stay on top of a live blog, it will make a great memory in a bottle of my trip to allow me to revisit wistfully on extra stressful days. I think I will start with a bit of background organized in a format that I'm shamelessly stealing from one of  @Lovetocruise2002's blogs. 
Pre-cruise report:

Sailing:  May 12-19, 2019, Allure of the Seas, 7 Night Eastern Caribbean cruise
Sailing with:   Me (32), and my parents (not my age to tell)
Flying from: PHL to FLL on Southwest and returning on American (boo baggage fees, yay nonstop flights at reasonable times)
Pre-cruise hotel:  Ended up with   Holiday Inn Express Ft. Lauderdale Cruise-Airport (the one on 17th Street) 
We cycled through many different hotels before we ended up with this one. Like the sane person I am, I would check on hotel prices about once every 2 weeks starting 8 months in advance and if I saw a great price at a hotel that looked convenient or interesting I booked it just to guarantee the price. At one point I had 4 hotels booked at the same time. You may be starting to get the impression that I take as much enjoyment from planning my vacation as actually taking it. You would be correct. And thank you kindly for enabling that! Other hotels that were considered and discarded: 
Drift Hotel - liked that it was close to the beach, disliked that it didn't seem to have as many amenities as other hotels, such as having someone there to hold our luggage if we got there far before check-in.  Holiday Inn Express & Suites Ft. Lauderdale Airport/Cruise - liked that it had 2 queen beds (not doubles) for a good price. Disliked that it didn't seem very walkable Hampton Inn Ft. Lauderdale Airport North Cruise Port - this was the #1 hotel until the price recently came down for the Holiday Inn on 17th Street. I liked that it had the normal things like a free airport shuttle, concierge, pool, but it also was across a smaller side street from a shopping center that has restaurants, a Big Lot & a liquor store where my dad could grab some wine. But you just can't beat the convenience (from what I hear) of hotels in that 17th Street strip so while this hotel was walkable...the Holiday Inn Express won out.    
The itinerary is as follows:
Day 1 – Fort Lauderdale
Day 2 and 3 – At Sea
Day 4 – Basseterre, St. Kitt's
Day 5 – Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas San Juan, PR
Day 6 – At Sea
Day 7 – Nassau, Bahamas
Day 8 – Fort Lauderdale

We have booked a third party excursion on St. Kitt's through Thenford Grey. I've heard good things about him on here and elsewhere so I'm excited for this tour. We were originally slated for St. Thomas as a stop, but as many of you have probably already seen, Allure is having some propulsion issues and we will now be stopping in San Juan. There are many people in my sailing's FB group who are devastated by this news. While I respect that reaction, I don't want to start letting negativity seep into my vacation before it has even started. So goodbye trip to Secret Sands beach we had through Royal and hello to last minute research into self guided walking tours through San Juan. I'm actually legit excited about this change as I would prefer getting to know the history and culture of a place than simply laying around on the beach all day. And that FOOD. So time to dust off my super rusty 14 year old spanish lessons and go with the flow. WEPA!  And for Nassau, we have been before and my parents have no desire to get off the off again. With a ship like Allure to explore and relax on instead, I will not be arguing with that. 
Cabin:  We have a hump balcony Junior Suite on the 8th floor. Very much looking forward to "having" to walk through Central Park to get back to the room. ~*~WOE~*~
Pre-purchases: Besides the excursions which I covered above, we will be trying out The Key (I see it as a great little upgrade to Sea Class) and my mother and I have the refreshment package. Since my mom doesn’t drink, my dad gets the 2 bottle of wine allotment to himself and will supplement that with the occasional beer here and there. Nowhere enough to warrant a drink package for himself. The last time we were on a cruise, he would decant half of his bottle of wine into an empty (clear) water bottle from the room. The moment he proceeded to do this with his bottle of red as well was the moment I was mentally buying him a portable wine tumbler for this trip. None of the crew members said anything, but seeing him walk into the MDR with a clear water bottle full of dark red wine was not our proudest hour. Though if you asked him, he would quip that Jesus paid him a visit and turned that water into wine. *facepalm*
Random Pre-cruise thoughts:
I am going to take as many pictures as I can remember to, though it’s not ingrained. Please let me know if there is anything in particular you would like me to check out or take pictures of for you. I am open to requests.  I will make sure to detail how easy or difficult it was for me to get reservations in Coastal Kitchen as a Junior Suite. That is something that seems to have very mixed results so I’m curious how it will work out. Ideally we would have reservations there every night except for the night we have Giovanni’s reserved. If all goes according to plan, I shall be running a completely unofficial and entirely arbitrary “Allure’s Best Steak” competition since I plan to have steak in Chops (Key lunch), Coastal Kitchen, Giovanni’s, and the MDR (Key breakfast). I will be sure to let you know my thoughts. I will also make sure to note how I am liking the Key since that’s such a new feature and it seems to vary wildly from ship to ship. I have reached the point in trip antsyness where I’m overthinking my packing and buying unnecessary things from Amazon to help. Because buying a toiletry bag is the most important thing in the world right now! I promise future posts will have more pictures!   

They will change them for you in the casino.

I have. I can't remember whether it was Harmony or Adventure or possibly both and on at least one of those they had a Spanish language version of it as well.