IRMO12HD

Check a recent cruise compass for your ship and see what the times have been to help  you make your decision.
https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/cruise-compass

The Windjammer is for everyone. They request you use the app to make reservations but walk-ins are welcome if space is available. Very strict on ‘washy-washy’ at the sinks. They scan your card when you enter and when you leave so they can keep track of how many guests are inside. They will stop guests from entering if they reach the limit. Everyone must wear a mask while moving around but once seated with your party, you can unmask. When you’re finished and get up to leave, mask on. Tables are also spaced further apart and when that’s not possible, they put a ‘Reserved for Physical Distancing’ card on the table. And, of course, everything is served by crew members. They even have someone who hands you the plate and utensils when you walk in. The drinks are pre-poured so you only have to grab a glass. The condiment station is also manned by a crew member so you touch nothing. When you sit at a table, they turn over a sign that showed the table had been sanitized to the other side showing the table must remain empty after you leave until they sanitize it and turn the card over again. Very crew intensive. 

Got off FOTS this past Friday Oct 29th and windjammer was open for dinner every night. 

I was looking around for a COVID test for an upcoming cruise.  I checked my local Kroger grocery store and found they do have testing. It can be reserved 14 days in advance, but costs $25 USD.  They appeared to have many locations that offered the testing and plenty of openings. In fact, I could have had my choice of appointments for this afternoon!
I paid extra close attention, and they did not ask for my insurance, home address or citizenship information. Therefore I think it would work for both US residents and foreigners.
Please note that Kroger operates under several brands throughout the United States.  Depending on the port you may have to book with a different sub brand.  Their brands include: Kroger, Harris Teeter, Dillons, Food 4 Less, Fred Meyer, Fry's, King Shoppers, QFC, Ralphs, Roundry's and Smiths.
Please note: I only checked on my local Kroger branded store.  YMMV, especially if you are using one of the sub-brands.
If anyone else knows of testing locations that will accept foreign residents, I'm sure our Canadian European and other foreign friends would appreciate it if you would leave that in the comments.

@SpeedNoodlesI will when we head that way later, im currently on the suite deck enjoying the views and a Mai Tai.
@WAAAYTOOO  The first timers have fatigue. They tried so much food and drinks the first night, I said to pace yourself, that they are feeling it today. I'm the only person that made it to breakfast.

So I decided I will add any pictures when I get home. I am beyond happy to be back on a cruise. The first day was amazing.
After going back to the rooms, we put away our belongings and met our stateroom attendant Arturo. He was so happy to meet us and knew us by name. My party members found this to be amazing, I hated to burst their bubbles and inform them about the check-in. You know, where they take your picture, so the crew can easily identify you. We told him about the sleeping arrangements and I gave him a gift to get us off on the right foot.... well that was already happening as crew all throughout have been amazing.
We are in a 2br suite on deck 9, and I can confirm the sofa bed is a nice sleeping situation. Sky class have beautiful royal purple cards. My brother quickly messed up and figured out how to make an espresso, while many of us showered and got dressed. We met Cory the CD and he told us not miss anything, I told him we already failed, he laughed out of courtesy. I had a tequila sunrise and a lemon drop, plus so much sparkling wine. We explored the ship until our 8pm standing reservations at CK. Many children and adults were dressed for Halloween, I had on a festive headband and a black dress to look like a witch. I just loved that on our floor there was a group of upper aged women dressed like 1920s hookers and loving it...flapper dresses and fishnet stockings. Later in the night they rung our doorbell several times in confusion, they had a great Halloween and first night on the ship.
Sail away was prompt at 7pm and we couldn't even feel the ship move, if we hadn't been watching, we wouldn't have know we had left. Soon as we sat for dinner, we started to feel everything, ship has been doing 20/23 knots so maybe that is why. We did pop into the Halloween party and it was a little meh, I heard the parade is a lot better. They say we have a little over 3000 on board but other than a bit of a traffic jam trying to capture the promenade Halloween decorations, I don't feel it.
Everyone of you who loves CK is right!!!!
The staff were amazing. We had the filet, cauliflower, branzino and grilled chicken. Nothing was disappointing. We ended up taking dessert back to the room because we were stuffed. Since our time was at 8pm, it wasn't full at all and we had a wonderful table, with an amazing view. After checking out the Halloween Bash and getting a drink at Beloros, we retired to the room and sat on the balcony until we decide it was bed time.
Suite lounge has the 11-11pm and if you are like my party who tips well, they allow you to take the drinks to go. They knew us and our room number the second time we came in for dinner. I can't say too much how amazing the crew have been. You can see genuine smiles in their eyes even with the mask. They will make great recommendations and they are beyond helpful if you need it.
We are getting ready for breakfast. Today's only plans are the Headliner and casino. I will post more later.

Not sure the ships test will work with the new 2 day requirement. If they tested you on Friday you would be OK but they will test you on Thursday...so you will not qualify unless they have a special exemption for B2B. (Maybe you will be able to get a test that morning before you disembark...but I would doubt it....)
We leave the Oasis on Dec 12th and fly to LA to board the Navigator on the 13th...but because our first cruise on the Navigator is only 3 days I think they don't require a Covid test to board....I think we will ask to a test on Oasis just in case.

It has been cooler in the evenings (south Florida) but is still very warm during the day.  I believe it was in the high 60's/low 70's last night.  Of course, it will most likely be cooler on the water.  The weather has actually been perfect, IMO.

Welcome to the world of sailing in 2021.  The cruise lines are between a rock and a hard place.  That's why everything is so challenging and changing so frequently.  
I've averaged one cruise per month since June.  I can assure you it is a great experience to sail with such empty ships.  However, it is very stressful to actually get on a ship! (The first two were real nail biters)
The best I can say is you have two choices: Put up with the stress and jump through the hoops, or wait an unknown amount of time until cruising returns to normal.
I'm sure that's not the answer you want, but it is reality in 2021.

@DDaleyI'll be following your account with extreme interest -- as I'll be doing its (almost) mirror image in late November.  4-Night Freedom followed by a day in Miami and then a 7-Night on Oasis.  Freedom was the first cruise ship I ever experienced -- eight years ago, so I'm looking forward to seeing all of the changes!  Was supposed to go on Oasis in 2018 (I think it was), but unfortunately an errant crane in Freeport, Bahamas put an end to that experience.

Seems the waived room service fee and 25% off dinning is not available with The Key on all ships/cruises. After the announcements, I went to our Nov 28/21 reservation and looked, no free room service or dinning discount. Too bad, I would have clicked 'buy'.

It's a fair question, and the only answer I have is you could buy it and hope that email a few days before you sail.  Make a reminder to cancel 2-3 days before your cruise in case you don't get it or don't like the email.

In my opinion…One of the best customer service perks allowed by Royal is the ability to make a Cruise Planner Purchase and then change it, cancel it, or re-purchase it at a lower price. So many times I have locked in a purchase to make sure I had what I really wanted…and then later re-booked it at a lower price. Apparently the price drops if there isn’t much demand (simple Econ) and Royal allows me to take advantage of the new price. Or if I decide another item became more affordable, I can cancel what I already purchased for a quick refund to my credit card…and make the new purchase. Very user friendly.

Hahaha, I love this statement because it's so true. My husband states every. single. time. I speak about or check my Royal Up bids.....YOU ARE NOT WINNING ANYTHING! He is such a funny guy, I know he is secretly in the background willing the cabash on my bids, but my will is stronger, I will WIN one day!!

I bid $105 /pp for a balcony from a virtual balcony. Minimum bid was $100 /pp. This was a 7 day Alaska cruise in October '21. Didn't "win" it, but got it.

I'm not certain, but I'd have a back up plan.  Either an at-home test you bring with you to do use at the hotel, or schedule CVS appointment 13 days before you need it. 
Also, Royal Caribbean offers terminal testing as a backup option if you book it 24 hours in advance

I'm with you on the traveling solo. I know what I'm getting into when I travel with a group and I just resign myself to the fact that I'm on someone else's time schedule. I won't even agree to be the ringleader or make the decisions because it will frustrate me when no one sticks to the plans anyways.
For me, it's all about maximizing my time and getting the most out of the day, especially at the theme parks. I've really only encountered a handful of others who have the same mindset.

Day 5....
I received my email from the concierge on Sunday. I let them know that we would like dinner at CK around 8 and all the shows booked after that. I have not heard back from  but hopefully I won't have to book anything when I board.
Now pre-travel...
Let me say I am never traveling Spirit again, if we vacation together again, I will make sure we fly a real airline. The flight was 40min delayed, they changed terminals 15min before boarding and they had us line up to board before the plan had disembarked. We had checked bags and they were 45min delayed in getting them on the baggage terminal. So in total two hours and forty-five minutes after we were supposed to land, we were in an Uber to our resort. So it was a fully wasted day because by the time we got to the resort, unpacked and ate it was 6pm so no WDW. I was pretty bummed but it is, what it is.
Today we are heading to WDW, going to try out the new LL(Lighting Lanes) and the Genie service.

Day 12......
Technically I am 5 days away from vacation. But 12 from sailing away. Possibly 7 days away from getting our concierge email.
We uploaded our Vax cards into the app. I keep checking the menus, the Windjammer doesn't show for dinner, so it looks like our sailing is still under 50%. I was hoping to do two whole weeks with just a backpack and carry-on luggage. I don't know why I thought that was happening. Maybe I was a bit delusional and hopeful. I had a recent physical and I have lost of 50lbs since this whole covid thing started. I figured since all my clothes are smaller, I could fit more in the luggage.....then I remember I was going on a cruise. The appropriate amount of compression capris and summer dresses start to add up. So I now have a luggage(carry-on), a weekender, and a backpack. Still pretty light packing, if I do say so myself.
All the apps are downloaded and ready, luggage tags and set sail passes are printed. My sweet baby Senator Meowkin's left today to be with her babysitter. I sent her there early, so that she could get used to her while we are still here in case problems arise. Everyone but mother, last day was this past Monday, has to work in some capacity until we fly out. Appointments for mani's and pedi's are scheduled for Friday. We will be some of the first people, regular none vlogger types, to try Disney's new Genie+  and Lightning Lane experience. The app has all my suggestions and when we step into the park on Mon the 25th, they will have "planned" our day. I think Disney stole RCG idea. 

Day 32.......
Well technically it is only 25 days to vacation as we start are Disney World vacation on the 25th of October......
October protocols were released and there were no changes. New boarding times did open up and I was finally able to snag a noon boarding time. BFF and BFF's mother have finally received their passports and I was able to update their check-in. Just a note: they made an appointment with the post office, paid for not only expedited service but also next day delivery and it took 8 weeks start to finish. Each one was over $200, which considering it took a while still, wasn't worth it IMHO. BFF was upset because his coworker applied in early Aug and received passport Sept 25th without paying extra. So as far as passports go YMMV. Some of our party decided they would like to pee their pants and be chased by maniacs so they purchased tickets to Halloween Horror Nights at Universal on Oct 29th. I love Halloween and will be dressing up when we board the ship, my go-to for Halloween has always been Harley Quinn....not the new movie version with the pink and blue hair and general craziness. But the black and red jester from the late 90s and early 2000s cartoon and comics. However that requires make-up and in the FL humidity.....nope. So I am going to keep it simple and go as a witch, while BFF with be a Day of the Dead witch. My brother is vacillating between Jesus and his go-to, nice ghost. If you are wondering what a nice ghost is, it is a ghost that sings showtunes and talks in a Broadway-style voice. My mother will be a 1940s nurse and BFF mother is an actual nurse, so she is wearing her scrubs. Eagerly awaiting the passage of time until I actually step foot on my first RCG cruise ship in over two years.

103 days to go....
I should forewarn all of you reading this that I will be putting prices, math and numbers in my blog. I personally like knowing what something cost, it helps in my planning.
I contacted my TA at MEI to put final payment through this week. It won't be due until Aug 2nd but I don't like to push things off to the deadline. My travel companions and I are getting together for dinner this week. The plan is to try to get them to agree on some CP items, so I can purchase early and save.
Our pre-crusie, all theme park stay will be at Floriday's Resort Orlando. My plan was to stay at the Hyatt House across from Universal Orlando Resort, since there were only 3 of us. When we added the 2 extra people, they wanted to stay together and do an AirBnB...I didn't want to have to cook and clean, etc on vacation. I went about looking for something that would make all of us happy. It just so happen I was searching for this during black Friday and came across Floriday's. We are staying in a 3-bedroom, 2 bathroom suite with all the fixins'.  At 1,300 square feet we will have plenty of space to be free, while enjoying hotel-like amenities. I was able to score a deal of $221/N with early check in, late check out and free breakfast for 2 adults. I really wanted early/late check in and out because of how our plane arrives and because I knew it was a possibility we might not be able to check in early for the cruise. With RCG pushing departure back to 7pm on Allure and the earliest check-in time possibly being at 1pm, this really worked out in my favor. Score one for being overly cautious. Original plan was to rent a car, but at over $800 before fees, gas and insurance we decided nobody really wanted to drive in Florida traffic. The resort offers a shuttle to Disney and other attractions but we plan to use Uber and Lyft, I don't like waiting for other people on shuttles. Our plan is to be at the parks all day. The resort is located at 12562 International Dr Orlando and if anybody has any suggestions for good restaurants, I would definitely appreciate them. ?

2 Days.....
So I took my Covid test and my results are negative. I had an appointment for CVS but they cancelled. Thankfully I had eMed test. I am just waiting on the rest of my party to get their results. Some did a free testing site and are waiting on their results.

Everyone has negative test and we are ready, its after 9pm so 1 more day to go.

I fully understand and actually purchased 6 tests for us. We were heading down to Houston a couple days early and didn't see a reason to pay for a room if we tested positive. We tested before leaving home and at our hotel room.  Plus I actually have 2 tests on board with us even though a test is provided in case there was a false positive at any point along the way. Hopefully this go well for you though,  pushing things back even more is a major PITA...

@DDaleyI'll be following your account with extreme interest -- as I'll be doing its (almost) mirror image in late November.  4-Night Freedom followed by a day in Miami and then a 7-Night on Oasis.  Freedom was the first cruise ship I ever experienced -- eight years ago, so I'm looking forward to seeing all of the changes!  Was supposed to go on Oasis in 2018 (I think it was), but unfortunately an errant crane in Freeport, Bahamas put an end to that experience.