IRMO12HD

A little bit late to the party, here -- but I'm wondering if Royal has added liqueurs to their name inventory?  Grand Marnier, perhaps?  (see 
Is that the Grand Marnier of the Seas?

A little bit late to the party, here -- but I'm wondering if Royal has added liqueurs to their name inventory?  Grand Marnier, perhaps?  (see 
Is that the Grand Marnier of the Seas?

Just an update, Brilliance is getting work done, but just maintenance.
 

I know it sounds rude, but to be honest they wont know what you like unless they know what you like. ?  its a relationship we are building.
Trust me... Matt let me know he doesnt like Champagne or white wine..... its been dropped in conversations we have had over the years and now I know what NOT to send him ?

Thanks for the replies as it's good to hear other perspectives and also if others feel the same.
I should note that 
we purchased the DBP when it dipped down a bit and literally it was the day before this big increase ($62 CAD sale - our cost, $65 regular, $73 current price after the increase) we are not staying in a suite nor are we Diamond i.e. We wouldn't have bought at the higher cost or if we had access to the suite or diamond lounge.
Exactly...getting to try out new things that you typically wouldn't purchase a la carte otherwise. This seems like is the biggest perk.
For us, knowing our full cost before the cruise isn't a plus since we're definitely paying more having the package.  But we are treating ourselves on this cruise.  And not sure when we'll have the opportunity to cruise again with just DH and I in the next few years.

Lots of discussions on drink packages...especially lately with the $18 "sale" / "error" and now with the crazy $$$ price.
Royal definitely made money on us with the $18 error.  We had never gotten the drink package before, but when two of our cruises next year had the $18 price (or $23 CAD for us), we jumped on it.  Typically, DH gets the soda package, we bring wine on board and the rest we purchase a la carte.  But for that price, to be able to try any drink + coffees + water + soda for DH, it's a no brainier.
But then it got us thinking...our 2 cruises next year with the $18 cost are with our kids so will definitely watch how much we drink.  But...DH and I have a 6 night cruise in Dec where it's just the 2 of us.  That would have been the perfect cruise to have gotten the $18 drink package.  We did the calculations at $62 CAD and he would break even,  but I would not.  (This was just before the recent price hike)
But kept thinking...it would be nice.  It would let us try new drinks without thinking about it.  There are so many neat cocktails, and can give different wines a try. If don't like anything, then order something else. Or if I've had half of the drink and it's enough, then no worries.  Toss the rest away.  DH also loves beer, scotch and other type alcohol.  I'm the type that would stick to the drinks that I know so would be a nice perk of the package.  And then you have the fancy coffees, etc that we typically wouldn't purchase (DH maybe, but I wouldn't).   Having said all that, I'm not a big drinker...would probably have 3-4 drinks (and fancy coffees, water) + any extras that I tried but maybe didn't love.  But...we went ahead and purchased it.  So now, all because of the $18 error, we have purchased the DBP for 3 cruises.
Anyone purchase the package more for the convenience than the savings?
P.S. - I've started a spreadsheet of great drinks to try. ?

@Biggiojr @WAAAYTOOO
For any survey related emails you get from or for Royal, make sure to at least look at them-don't delete until you check it first. I got one about Cococay. They requested that I take some pictures and describe our visit there. In return they gave a $75 Amazon gift card. My information to them was due no later than the day after we returned and I had the gift card less than 7 days after that. It was well worth the few minutes spent....and Cococay was magnificent.

All the major cruise lines have this policy.  Royal didn't for a while but then changed to follow the industry.  
In some cases there were four or more college kids sharing a package, openly, and binge drinking heavily.  People were abusing it and combined with the industry trend they decided to change.
The side benefit of that is that prices often approach what they were in 2016 when the Deluxe package first was introduced.  It went on sale for $46 back then for a 7 night cruise.  Recently 7 night cruises have seen sales down to $47 three years later despite rising costs.  If they continued to let people abuse and share the prices would not be $47 here in 2019, they would be higher across the board.  
Cruise length is still the biggest factor in the supply and demand pricing of drink packages.  You can't just say I paid X with considering cruise length, time of year, holidays and other details.  
Bottom line - the drink packages cost a certain amount for any given sailing.  If you can find value at that price then buy it without worrying about what someone on a different ship with a different itinerary paid.  If you buy it keep on eye out for price drops but be happy knowing you decided the original price had value.  If you can't justify the cost then don't buy it.  

I have never seen anyone playing a game be asked to move. AaMoF, when we first started cruising, we used to play gin rummy in the Viking Crown room (back when there was actually a Viking Crown statue there !).  We didn’t know about the Special Diamond event (we’d never even heard of a “Diamond” back then) and when they started setting up for the event, they told us just to stay put if we wanted to.  We attended our first ever Diamond event that night without even knowing what it was.  They were very kind.  We just kept playing cards and were astonished when the server came by and asked if we wanted a drink !  Heck yeah !  That was waaay back.

Our limited experience is that Next Cruise will charge you the prevailing rate on their (Royal Caribbean's) website which will include the current sale.
They usually offer onboard credit (OBC) based on length of cruise and cabin type and/or a reduced deposit to entice you to book. Sometimes as part of the Next Cruise promo they will also give you maybe 60 days or so to change the ship and/or sail date without penalty (allowing you to apply your deposit and keep the OBC for the new ship/sail date). Always read the fine print and ask questions first! The OBC amount also varies depending on non-refundable vs. refundable deposit.

I would be very skeptical if a TA tells you that their price is lower than Royals.  Royal Caribbean does not permit agents to discount their prices.  The only way that a TA can have a price lower than the published rates is if they (the Agency) have group space on hold that has been negotiated with Royal.  So be very careful when an agent claims to have a lower price than Royal.  Make sure that you are comparing apples to apples.

Haven’t been on my fist cruise yet, but I am Australian and have done quite a bit of travel around the country, so I can at least comment on that! 
The commenter above mentioned Australia zoo, and I can’t reccomend it highly enough. I live in Melbourne where we have a great zoo, but Australia zoo is something else. Do not miss the midday show. It blew me away. 
North of Brisbane is where is really gets beautiful. Cairns is ok (can’t swim in the beach) but just an hour on from cairns is port Douglas and that place is beautiful! Cape tribulation, mossman gorge, the Great Barrier Reef, and the dain tree Forrest are also accessible from cairns as well and are all beautiful. A cruise up north might also include Hamilton island, from which you can see the barrier reef as well, or I’d also reccomend Hayman island which has some of the whitest sand in the world! 
I don’t know much about Sydney, but the blue mountains outside of Sydney and Bondi beach north of Sydney are pretty cool places. Melbourne is great (course I’d say that right?), but would definitely say Melbourne is more of a cultural experience than site seeing. We have art galleries and festivals and food and drink to the brim. 
Adelaide is very great for food and wine. The barossa valley is know as one of the best wine regions in the country. 
I can give more info on the west of the country as well if you like, but the east cost is most certainly where you’ll be going. 
The other commenter also mentioned beach days. And so you aren’t disappointed, I have to let you know that a ‘beach day’ here won’t be like other places that a cruise docs. You likely aren’t going to find a beach that has loungers and umbrellas that you can hire. It’s not a big thing here. We just take out towels and lay on the sand with them. Sometimes we get fancy and bring a small beach chair. I’ve never heard of resorts giving out day passes, and that’s probably because we don’t have many resorts on the beach for conservation purposes, and because they aren’t all inclusive anyway, so they can’t offer it to you in the first place. 
Having said that, the beaches on the east coast, particularly up north, and some of the best in the world! They’ll be beautiful, but if you’re expecting to enjoy a beach day ‘for the service’ you’re probably barking up the wrong tree. 

I'm going to try!  LOL!!!!!!

This was posted somewhere on Cruise Critic.  Not sure where it came from but it's awesome!!
It's drink packages explained and for those that "already know this stuff" it's noted that any changes to the RCCL Drink policies are noted in red in the article.  This document ALSO contains Harmony's Bar Menu and Drink Listing WITH prices!! 
 
LAST BUT NOT LEAST...the last 4 pages documents the names of special drinks and how they are made so you can make them at home for yourself OR you will know what to order on your next cruise.  I love this pdf and wanted to share with you all.  Enjoy!!!
 
 
Cruise News Harmony 2019 Drinking.pdf

One word of advise, specify the brand of alcohol you want in your drinks rather than getting whatever is considered "well"
For example: Getting something with vodka? Ask specifically for Tito's, Grey Goose, etc.
Also, check out the PDF on this post for an AMAZING list of drinks.
 

when the soft serve Ice cream station opens up stop by a bar first and check with one of the bartenders to ask what kind of ice cream alcoholic drink they could make for you if you bring them the ice cream.  I have had some interesting a flavorful drinks that way and it is a break from your regular frozen drinks

I no longer have the planner show up in my profile for my upcoming sailing. I have 44 days until my Sailing on Allure.

So I see a few people signed up / did the flight simulator in Nassau.  This excursion does not show up on the planner for me?  Do you sign up while on the ship?  We'll be in Nassau June 4th...

Jetline Simulations Nassau
I booked it direct before Royal offered it as an excursion.
https://jetlinesimulationbahamas.com/
Mention you are on a cruise ship for a discount.
It's a short walk from the pier area.
 

De nada!
I'm not sure if this is still the case but the booking engine on their website didn't work well.  Best to call and speak to them or email.  Super nice guy runs it.  

Just a note, this is no longer offered through RC, but you can (and should) book via their site

Some sample views from the cockpit . . .
 
 

Welcome to the forums, @CDR Benson, and thanks for your service!
Any chance your schedule would allow you to move the sailing to the prior week (Oct 11-18)? That is the late 2020 Royal Caribbean Group Cruise, and you'd have a great chance to meet a bunch of the great folks here.
Either way, you should have a fantastic time and see some great foliage. ? 

Some views from the passenger seat . . . at Jetline Simulation.  Very realistic!
 

+1 for Jetline sim.  They've gone back & forth between booking thru their own site vs. booking thru the RC excursions.  If you don't see an excursion offered in the cruise planner, contact them directly to see if they have openings.  You can have up to three people in the simulator for the cost of one booking. One person gets to act as captain with the pilot trainee, and the other two can sit in the back row and watch, take pictures, videotape, etc.  You can also easily walk there from the ship so you really don't need transportation.