Srp431

So don't do like a friend did and added a tip with each drink he bought, unless you're very generous.  He didn't find out until day 4 that he was basically double or triple tipping. And he wondered why he got such good service from the bartenders.?

The current combination of a loft suite and grand suite will be more space but as you know only sky class.  
With everyone in a ATS 2 bedroom the living area will be shared.  Your daughter would have to sleep on the sofa in the living room.  If she is a late sleeper or someone who likes to go to bed early that could be impactful to everyone else using the shared living room space.  
If you are all a close knit family it could work but on the other hand if your son and his wife or you, your spouse and daughter would appreciate some alone time away from each other then your current setup might work better.  
Star class would be awesome though and includes dining and drink packages.

Following looking forward to your report on the ABC islands, we're going on Freedom in March 2020

My first ever cruise and we are going all out! Me, my best friend and her sister are going on Symphony of the seas on October 12/ 2019! We are staying in a 2 Bedroom Aquatheatre Suite and are so excited to see what this trip has to offer! I will be keeping everyone up to date here! 

The family was very quick to demand justice, justice has been properly served!

Agreed , great photos. Looking forward to visiting Coco Cay very soon

Welcome to the boards!
1.  You will most likely have 1 dress your best evening.  You don't have to be formal anymore and you will see a variety of attire.
2.  I personally don't think the Key is worth it but it depends on the cost and if you can buy it for around the internet price.  That being said 2 device internet would be cheaper.  You could probably use whatever money you save on the Key for a specialty lunch or dinner.
3.  Lots of suggestions for Cozumel if you search Matt's blog posts or the excursion board.  Many people like Nachi Cocum.
 

The beds can separated into twin beds or pushed together to make a Royal kind bed. 

And smoking, if that's a factor for you.

Welcome to the message boards!
A cruise from Singapore is one thing but a cruise from Shanghai is another matter.  
Cruises in China are distinctly targeted at the Chinese consumer.  They won't deny a Westerner from booking such a cruise but it won't be the same experience you have on a Royal ship outside of Asia and that's on purpose.  
Royal is growing their Asia cruise market by embracing the local culture on these cruises.  While other lines are struggling in that region Royal is actually growing and starting to see signs that their Asian guests are now starting to book cruises in other regions.  
I would expect a cruise from Shanghai to be fully immersive in all respects.  Food, menus, signage, entertainment, announcements, etc... 

Agreed , great photos. Looking forward to visiting Coco Cay very soon

Your Coco Cay photos are amazing! (even the overexposed! haha) Thanks so much for the island reconnaissance. I can't wait to hear your thoughts on Pearl Island as it's at the top of my Nassau excursion options list. 

Day 4, Perfect Day at Coco Cay
Apologies for taking so long to get more posted, it has been some busy times since returning home.
The good news is that by taking some time to post more photos it allows me to relive the trip.
 
I will begin by saying that the first glimpse of Coco Cay post renovation was very exciting.  We have been here several times before and only missed it a couple due to weather but the renovated island is seriously impressive!  Due to our aft balcony we had a fantastic view!

I will also state for the record that I forgot to change the ISO setting on my camera from the sunset photos the night before (NEWB move!) and the sun was so bright it took me a while before I was able to review them on the camera to see the error of my ways.  As a result things may be a little grainy and overexposed.  The saving grace is that a few days later I will be back at Coco Cay to do it all over again!
When we exited the ship there were carts at the ready to whisk us down the pier to the island proper.  This is something we greatly appreciate due to the fact that my wife has very bad knees.  It allowed us to save some time and energy.  I will also note that some of the carts have ramps and space for strollers and wheelchairs which is an incredible plus for those who need such special accommodation.

Signs abound on the island to help you find your way and the paths are paved with specifically colored pave stone to aid in navigation.

From this point we elected to walk becuase there were no shuttles waiting and we were impatient to get to Oasis Lagoon.  In hindsight we could have waited to again save some time.  IT was hot already before 8AM for this Canadian.
Along our walk was the entry to the Thrill Waterpark

and our path was along Sandy Lane which was paved in red.

This took us past Splashaway Bay

and to Oasis Lagoon where Up, Up and Away loomed large over the chairs.

We were looking for the Oasis Lagoon Cabanas which were over the bridge and past the Swim Up Bar which at this hour was pretty quiet.


In fact, the whole pool area was very quiet still.

We reached the cabana area and our attendant gave us wristbands and led us to our cabana.


The cabana amenities are fantastic.  We found several chairs,

a sofa with towels, a table with an unlocked and lockable cubby in it


as well as  cooler filled with ice cold water.


The view from the cabana was rather nice but no direct line of sight to the pool.

On the table were menus for food and drink



as well as a call button to page your cabana attendant.  I pressed this before it was explained to me and I was surprised just how fast they responded.

We preceded to relax for a while and take advantage of the pool area.
We did press the button intentionally to order the island specialty Coco Loco as well as lunch which was prepared at the Snack Shack and delivered to us.

I will add that the food was incredible and certainly lived up to the hype from those we had spoken to who had visited the island before.
After a very satisfying lunch, I set out on a little photo safari around the island to see some of the other changes while my wife took full advantage our our shady cabana to relax and read.
By this time the pool was much busier but not what I would consider crowded.  I will also add that a DJ plays poolside and you could definitely hear that in the cabana area.


The beach areas were fairly populated and the floating bar was too.

The Beach Beds were along the Tram Route near where the construction was ongoing for the Coco Beach Club and looked quite comfortable as well.

Chill Grill received some attention too since we were here last with fresh awnings paint and food selections.

I made my way around the island and found a great view of Mariner at the pier 

as well as a pretty gazebo where weddings are held.


Daredevil Tower in the water park is certainly what I consider on of the defining landmarks of the island

There are ample locations to get wonderful photos of the ship


and I managed to grab a quick shot of some people on the Zip Line

That pretty much ended my photos for the day.   I returned to the Cabana and we visited the pool a couple more times before heading back to the ship around 4:00.
This blog will pick up with a brief description of our experience with turnaround on the Back to Back before I return with more photos from our second day in Nassau and an excursion to Pearl Island.

Verizon offers Travel Pass which extends your service plan to foreign countries for a daily charge of $5-10 depending on the location.  The first time you attempt to use phone/text/data in a foreign country, they send a free text stating the cost and asking you to approve.  If you reply yes, then you have 24 hours of service from that point even if you change locations.  So we would accept service on one island in the afternoon and have service on a different island in the morning after cruising there overnight.  My parents are currently using this in Europe.  You do have to contact Verizon and setup Travel Pass before your first trip.  If you want service every day, there might be a cheaper option but for contacting home once in awhile, I think Travel Pass is great.  Note:  this will only provide service on the islands.  While at sea, your only options are Cellular At Sea which is very expensive or you pay for Royal's Wifi plan (Voom) and use Wifi Calling or Messenger or any other app that will route your calls through Wifi.

All the specialty dining restaurants offer a kids menu.  Bon Appetit!

After The Sailaway And Some Runs On The Flowrider I Went To The Royal Promenade.
 
They Were Filming The Moring Show Then.

After Diner I Went To The Top Deck To Do A Night Photo Session.

Also We Passed The Carnival Liberty.

 
 
Todays Radom Thoughts.
You Get A Wow Band For Free If You Get A Jr. Suite Or Anything Above That.

Also If You Are In Star Class You Can Cut The Line For The Flowrider.

Ok Here We Go!! 
We Left The House At 9:45 And Saw Our Home At 11:00?

Got To The Terminal At 11:20

And Was On Board By 11:30

I’ve never seen a bug at all in a cruise room. Because of the small environment they are usually meticulous about cleaning rooms as things spread fast. 

Welcome @LuciaYSL!
To really over simplify it... how do YOU value the perks? Everyone has their own opinion and perspective... I can tell you that we, along with our friends, absolutely loved the Key on Allure back in May. I can only speak from experience from an Oasis class ship perspective. We are also just Platinum members in C&A and have not booked a suite, so there is no other way for us to experience VIP treatment.
If you plan on purchasing the VOOM Surf & Stream package for each person anyway and you can get the Key for say $24.99 or less, then in my opinion it's a very easy decision. We got it on Allure for $19.99, just purchased it yesterday for Oasis for $21.99 for MAY 2020 (hope it drops to $19.99 again ), and plan on purchasing it for Symphony for APR 2021.
In our case after crunching the numbers, effectively for the cost of ONE glass of wine per day, both my wife and I can get all of the other Key meals/benefits (over the VOOM package cost for 2 devices). Remember, like with the Deluxe Beverage Package, that everyone in your cabin must also purchase the Key.
If you do not plan on purchasing the VOOM package for everyone in your cabin, then the Key may not make sense for you... 

The themes are pretty standard on most Caribbean cruises.  While they are making some changes to the ship, most of the changes won't have a direct impact on activities or themes on the ship.  I would look at a current Compass from a Harmony or Symphony 7-night Caribbean sailing to get an idea of what themes there might be.  Usually I've only see things such as Caribbean or a white theme and then there's usually a 70's or 80's night or both.
I will be on that Oasis sailing as well so I'm pumped to get to see the all the new changes!

Unfortunately we can only speculate.  The cruise director can change many things on board including theme nights.  If the CD has a lot of time on Oasis class in the Caribbean it's possible they will rely on that knowledge of what works and what doesn't.  If the CD has never been in the Caribbean on Oasis class that may influence on board themes.  
For things like when the Windjammer or pools are open historical data is likely helpful.  Trying looking at Symphony's Med compasses and compare them to Caribbean compasses once she reached America.    
https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/cruise-compass?ship=1167
That won't yield perfect results but it may give you some insight of the types of things that can change between regions.

We always stay the the Hyatt Regency inside of MCO.  They have a great restaurant on site, you still have access to the food area and stores inside the terminal, makes for a great overnight stay.  In the morning, we either catch a transfer to the port from the ground transportation area in the terminal or grab an Uber/Lyft.  I have looked at the hotels in Port Canaveral many times but they always seem a bit more run down to me...

Final Takeaways: 
Dress Code: I sweat this WAY too much. People were wearing swimsuits in Windjammer (I think as long as men wear shirts and women cover their bottoms it was allowed), shorts and polo shirts in MDR, and on formal night it looked like at least 1/3 of the MDR skipped it altogether. For formal night I was going to bring a fancy dress that I wore to a few weddings this year, but it wrinkles easily and I didn't want to fret about getting it pressed. Instead, I brought my trusty little black dress which is actually from Eastern Mountain Sports and is made of yoga pant material. Accessorized with a large scarf and bangin' shoes, it fit right in. The maxidresses I left home because I thought they would be seen as sloppy were just right for all of the other events.  As far as swimsuits go, I wore a 2-piece tankini and a strappy-cute one-piece and STILL felt like Hester Prynne at times. 
Room: A large Ocean View cabin is completely fine for 2 people. I didn't even open up the package of magnetic hooks - everything we brought fit in the closet and drawers without a problem. My only quibble was with the shower, because no matter how I tried I ended up wetting the floor. I didn't use the drybags for our phones because at Coco Cay our chairs were right near the waterline. We also had the concierge nearby so I never felt unsafe leaving my stuff there. 
Food and Drink: The drink package would have been a waste of money for me. Even with a mimosa, glass of wine, and drink of the day specials, I was under the daily amount, and with the new rules in place that make both roommates buy the drink package it would have been a HUGE waste. My favorite specialty drink: Coco Loco. Least favorite: Royal Lemonade. The food in Windjammer and MDR was fantastic and I don't feel like I missed out on anything by skipping Chops.
The cane: Everyone was very accommodating to Mom, pulling us to the front of lines, letting us take elevators for muster and immigration lines, etc. When elevators were crowded, our fellow passengers were kind enough to wait and let her on first. (I kept taking the stairs to work off the drinks and breads.) The kindness wasn't exclusive to RCI -- TSA agents, airport employees, immigration & customs agents all went out of their way to make her trip easier and I am ever thankful. 
Enchantment of the Seas: What a great ship! I think it was just the right size for us, and frankly the pictures I've seen of the larger ships are intimidating! Yes, she's showing a little wear, but no worse than any hotel would after a few years. Our dresser drawers were stiff, and the public restrooms have seen better days. We are definitely going to take another RCI cruise, but I don't know when it'll fit into my schedule. I already have a non-cruise vacation with my husband planned for next October, and I really need to visit my father (in FL, not a hardship) after the new year.
Familial status: Thanks to this cruise, I think I'm solidly the favorite child until my sister-in-law brings Mom's second grandchild into the world next year. It's good to be Queen!

(Mom and me. I'm on the left.)
And one more time: Thank you for the encouragement and kind words. They will buoy me through this bout of post-cruise, mimosa-free depression. 

This was truly one of the funniest pieces of writing I have read in a long time. Kudos to you! I look forward to hearing about future adventures.