BrianB

5th day on Anthem. Among many other problems that went wrong on this trip, this is the worst one. In my stateroom, I hear this loud banging noise that seems to roll with the side-to-side movement of the ship. This has been going on since day 2.
 
Deck 9 - forward interior stateroom. Never again...

My Movie.mov

My issue is the opposite of this.
Not only do I not want to get off mid-cruise but...I hate getting off at the end of the cruise and have to drag myself, kicking and screaming, off the ship!😜

Final Wrap-Up, Random Thoughts & Observations
As with every other cruise with Royal Caribbean to date, we all had an absolutely amazing time!  😎
Airports & Cruise Port
Islip/LI MacArthur Airport (ISP) is an absolute pleasure to fly into and out of especially when you can book a non-stop early AM flight. We’re lucky that Southwest offers non-stop flights to Orlando (MCO) and Ft. Lauderdale (FLL) and that we can purchase the resident parking passes for the airport (ISP). We also now have TSA PreCheck, but with such an early flight, we didn’t need it as we flew through security (no line)! Orlando Intl. Airport was a pleasure this time around (vs. JAN 2023). The TSA PreCheck line was almost non-existent and we flew through security once again. Port Canaveral was also a pleasure to navigate overall with the Key. Our hotel shuttle bus was able to pull into Cruise Terminal 1 without traffic delays. We booked the earliest boarding window (10:30am-11:00am), but the terminal passenger traffic outside was building up already. Once we entered the terminal, we could see it was completely full and the line was growing outside! I can’t imagine that all of these people had early boarding times! 🤔 Thankfully, there was a dedicated “Key” line to the far left just inside the terminal doors and we flew through the terminal to security with little to no waiting time. Once through security, we went up the escalator and we were greeted by dedicated cruise terminal employees that expedited our check-in process. The ship had started boarding, so we just walked past the waiting area and boarded the ship… no sitting/waiting/standing in line at any time in the terminal. We were in the Royal Promenade in no time!
Hotel
We liked the Radisson Resort at the Port (Port Canaveral). Nice property with an on-site full-service restaurant (Flamingo’s 🦩) and so close to the port (we could see the top of the ship from the hotel). They offered a shuttle to the port (included for us since we booked the “Fly, Stay, and Cruise” package).
Just keep in mind that this hotel is designed like a motel. Room doors open up to the outside. The décor was also very dated and badly in need of an update or “amplification” 😆 (textured walls and old dark brown colonial furniture), but the room was clean and served its purpose.
Dining Experience
We only had dinner once in the MDR this sailing (formal evening #2 – lobster🦞tails) and the food and service was fine and as expected. On our last sailing on Wonder (JAN 2023), the MDR service was the worst we’ve experienced on Royal to date. The waiter on that sailing apologized profusely throughout the week and explained his assistant was a new trainee. We purchased the Unlimited Dining Package for the first time for this sailing. We ate primarily in specialty restaurants. Service in all of the specialty restaurants was amazing as usual. The waiters all went out of their way to ensure that we were completely satisfied with our meals. One of the folks in our party needs to follow a gluten-free diet and they were all very accommodating. Service at the Coco Beach Club restaurant, as well as the bar service, was outstanding as always! The food was delicious once again. Loved having the Starbucks machines/products in the Café Promenade. We made sure to work our DBP and ordered hot/iced coffees, cappuccinos, and Frappuccinos (I love the caramel) every day of the cruise! We usually ignore the Starbucks kiosks while onboard… the Lavazza coffee is normally good enough for us! Perfect Day CocoCay
The beach club just never disappoints us! Once again, we were thankfully the only ship in port. We purchased it at $88.99 last BF/CM cruise planner sale, so we felt it was well worth it for the private resort feel, excellent service, and upgraded lunch (Surf & Turf). Next May (Icon), we booked Hideaway Beach for a change of pace as this was our third visit to the beach club. The infinity pool temperature was perfect and never crowded. The beach was beautiful as well, but we spent most of our time in the infinity pool! This time we spent the whole day at the beach club. We normally explore the island, but decided to stay at the beach club this time. Cabin
We had an Oceanview balcony on this sailing (9156 – port side). My wife’s uncle had the same category cabin just down the hall (9186). We loved the location as we were just forward of the elevator tower and only one deck above our favorite neighborhood, Central Park! I love Oasis class since you can traverse the ship easily on three main decks to get to the other elevator tower and anywhere on the ship in between: Royal Promenade (5), Central Park (8), or the pool deck (15). No need to shuffle through narrow and winding stateroom hallways! Our stateroom attendant (Timothy) was absolutely amazing. Very friendly and helpful. He must have a 6th sense as every time we exited the cabin, he would mysteriously appear in the hall outside and say “Hello!”. No sneaking past him! 🥷 Entertainment/Activities
The Aqua Theater show, “inTENse: Maximum Performance!” was excellent once again. On this sailing, due to slightly rough seas at times, they had to cancel multiple performances for the performer’s safety. Thankfully, our show was rescheduled automatically to the final evening and the show went off without a hitch. “Tap Factory: Energy Machine” in the Royal Theater is worth seeing if you did not catch it on another ship (we saw it on Odyssey) or previously on Wonder. We skipped it this time since we’ve seen it twice since last year and it’s our least favorite of the main production shows on Wonder. “Voices” in the Royal Theater was excellent once again! If you love vocalists and music from different eras, then you will likely love the show. “Ice Spectacular: 365” in Studio B was excellent as usual. Another unique experience only on Royal ships that we never miss.  “The Effectors II: Crash & Burn” in the Royal Theater. Simple plot… bad guy (Crash) escapes with help from new sidekick (Burn), tries to seek revenge by capturing each of the Effectors, and eventually is captured once again. It’s mostly about the technology including the lasers, drones, and drone “vehicle” that flies above the audience (think of the plane in “Flight” from what I understand) on the lower level. Some sequences were very similar to the original ”Effectors” on Odyssey (scenes introducing the characters). This time, we skipped the Key reserved seating section (upper level) and sat dead center on the lower level. Last time, sitting in the Key section, we felt disconnected from the show as all of the action (lasers, drones, etc.) appears in front of you and in the distance. Also, on the upper level, there is a balcony railing that tends to cut off the bottom of the stage. We all enjoyed the show much more this time as we were immersed in the action as the drones flew over us, etc. We skipped the “Adult Comedy LIVE” show in The Attic this time. We were too tired to go to the 10:00 pm show. The “All Access Ship Tour” was excellent! Something everyone should try to experience at some point! Of course, this is not necessarily something you would repeat on a regular basis. The “Pickleball at Sea” beginner clinic was fun. We have never played before and I think my wife is hooked! It’s amazing that we’ve spent 15 nights on Wonder this year and we still haven’t experienced all that she has to offer!
Random Thoughts and Observations
* We spent time in the solarium almost every day, but as was the case last January, we could not access the bridge wings on either side. They were always closed/roped off.
* Photo packages:
Just an FYI, they apparently have changed the policy. Back in January, the photo packages included photos taken in specialty dining restaurants. Many of our best photos were taken during specialty dining at 150 Central Park, etc. At some point this year they must have changed the policy and now these photos are no longer included.
How did we find out? While eating in 150 Central Park, a photographer came by and took a number of photos. He returned later during the meal with printed photos presented in a nice cardboard portfolio. He explained that these photos are not included in the photo package and would cost us $29.99 for one, $39.99 for three, etc. When I showed him the photos we took at the same restaurant earlier this year on Wonder, he was very surprised. He had no explanation of course. We declined to purchase the photos out of principle. Before complaining to Guest Services, I checked the cruise planner description (we purchased the 20-photo package when it was $119.99) which now states these photos are excluded from the package.

* The Key:
Our first experience with the Key was back in May 2019 on Allure. What an amazing experience! We paid just $19.99 pp/day and it was worth every single penny! The embarkation day lunch was hosted in Chops Grille. The reserved seating sections were prime seating in the middle of the lower level in every venue. We were always just behind the suite guest reserved section. When we disembarked the ship on the last morning, we were personally escorted off the ship (in groups) to the dedicated customs line shared with Star class guests.
Following that experience, we purchased the Key for 3 of the next 4 sailings, but on each subsequent sailing, the cost increased and the benefits started to erode (currently $41.99 pp/day for our May Icon sailing – more than doubled!).
First, the Key embarkation day lunch was moved to the MDR. Our first experience with the Key lunch in the MDR was excellent, but the last few have not been nearly as good! The service has been progressively worse and it’s clear that they are utilizing trainees or newer crew members to help work these lunches. The temperature of the food is not consistent as well. Secondly, they moved the Key reserved sections to less than desirable locations IMHO in each venue. In the Aqua Theater and Studio B, the reserved section has been to the far left of the venue. In the Royal Theater, the reserved section is in the upper level. The problem with the upper level… sit too close to the railing and the bottom of the stage is cut off… sit too far back and the top of the stage area is blocked. Plus, with the more interactive shows like the Effectors, all of the action is over your head when you’re seated in the lower level. Finally, not as big a deal, you exit the ship on your own along with everyone else. No expedited debarkation process.
We still enjoy the carry-on drop off service on embarkation day and the debarkation day breakfast, but we really never took advantage of some of the other benefits. The dedicated reserved times for activities (Zipline, Ultimate Abyss, Rock Climbing Wall, etc.) often conflicted with port excursions so we’ve never been able to take advantage of this perk. Priority departure at ports has never really been necessary. I haven’t sailed an itinerary with the need to tender in over a decade (at the old Coco Cay last time in 2010! 😆) and whenever we go down to the gangway to depart the ship, there is little to no wait.
I think we’re probably going to pass on the Key next time and for the foreseeable future…
* Dining:
What is it with Royal constantly changing the MDR Traditional Dining times? We originally booked Early Traditional Dining at 5:30 pm. The cruise docs then moved it to 5:00 pm. OK, not a big deal… the same thing happened to us on Odyssey in 2022 and on Wonder this past January.
We board the ship, collect our Sea Passes which now all state My Time Dining? Thankfully, we only wanted to make one MDR reservation for Day 6 (Formal evening #2). We explained the situation and they booked us a table for four for 5:30 pm.
* Final observation/recommendation:
Always check your onboard account activity at least daily! We were probably just lucky in the past, but we’ve never had to correct charges to our account. On this sailing, we had numerous incorrect charges to our account. One erroneous charge involved the application of the C&A 50% off any glass of wine/beer benefit… we had the DBP! There should be no additional charge of course. I went to Guest Services and they apologized and removed the charge. The next erroneous charge was at Playmakers. I had ordered the chicken tenders appetizer and a soda. The appetizer was less than $10, well below the $20 credit from the UDP, and the soda is included in the DBP. Somehow, the waitress charged me for a $15 chicken sandwich? I noticed it while we were still there and I went directly to the bar and they removed the charge. We had a couple of other small charges which were removed. I wonder if they get confused with the UDP and DBP. Just remember there is always the potential for human error. You don’t want to notice these issues on the last day (nightmare lines at Guest Services) or after you return home when it’s often too late to do anything about it.
 
Bottom line, we had an amazing time and will continue to be loyal to Royal!
Having another cruise booked always makes disembarking the ship much less painful! Our next sailing will be in 6 months on Icon (5/11/24). Can’t wait to see what she has to offer! We’ll finally reach Diamond after that sailing (77 points now). I wish we lived in Florida so we could jump on a 3-nighter! 😎 🌴 🌞
Thanks so much for following along!

I print the luggage tags and the SetSail Pass. I also print just two pages of the booklet…I think it’s page 4 and 5…with my reservation/ship/cabin information and itinerary. I also bring my printed ‘paid in full’ cruise receipt and the page showing how much onboard credit I have.

Yeah, when you join 30 minutes ago, you miss some of the threads that happened in real time. The original post in this thread is a link to a cruise blogger video on it so I'm not sure what your gripe is?  It was discussed here by a first hand person on the ship along with any who wanted to comment and then a video from a blog.
If this became as regular as fights and such on Carnival, you would hear just as much about it.  The 2 are reputationally different at this point so Carnival needs to have more clean months to shed their rep and RCI has to have more occurrences like this to move theirs.
Put in a little effort and you'll see that the "crickets" are actually singing a song.

I cruise solo and do mostly back to backs.
I love having the same cabin. When I get into my cabin on day one…I sanitize it with anti-bacterial wipes. I use Hydrogen Peroxide based wipes because they kill Norovirus along with all the other nasty viruses, including Covid.
After putting my stuff away as I want it…then I’m done! No need to pack everything up the night before turnaround day. Granted, it’s not so bad when I can leave the clothes hanging in the closet because my attendant will use a rolling garment rack to transfer them to the closet in the new cabin…but it’s still annoying having to move.
Then, of course, I’ll have to sanitize the new cabin.
But, the best part is I can go right back to my cabin after I re-board the ship on turnaround day. I like to put my passport back in my safe and just have everything as it was. I always tell my cabin attendant that he/she can skip servicing my cabin on turnaround day. He will change the bed linen and give me extra towels the day before and I can make my own bed that day. They really appreciate having one less cabin to turn over.
For me…the $400 is worth it.

We crossed the triple digit mark. 
 
it’s the little things that amuse us I guess  

I always get the early dining in the MDR every cruise. I like eating early and at the same table with the same waiters. 
In the past, I always purchased a three night dining package on the Cruise Planner and had to rush onboard to make sure I would get my preferred reservations in before they booked up. So, I like the idea of having the ability to make my reservations before boarding. The way it is now, if I really want a specific date and time at a specialty restaurant, especially with a group, it’s always best to pay the more expensive price online and be able to make the reservation. It was worth the extra cost to lock in the reservation and not have to worry about missing out.
But…the thing I don’t like about purchasing the dining package on the Cruise Planner…it seems every time I do, the ship defaults my Early Seating dining in the MDR to My Time Dining. If I call Royal as soon as I notice I was changed to My Time, I’m always waitlisted. Then, when I get onboard…not only do I have to rush to make my specialty restaurant reservations, but I also have to get into the line for the MDR host and hope he can switch me back to Early Seating.
It became so annoying and pressured that I don’t buy dining packages anymore. I’ll pay more by booking a specialty after I board if I really want it. Plus, I’m one of those who really like the new menus in the MDR.

If this actually comes to pass, it will be one of the GOOD changes that Royal has made.  Fingers crossed that they follow through without any "cruise enhancement" fees.

No that was deliberate.  🤪
That's the gin and tonic typing.......🤩

@WAAAYTOOO Congratulations on reaching Pinnacle!
I like the paper copy of the Compass too. I like to scan it rather than scrolling through my phone…although I’ll check my phone occasionally to see if anything changed since the compass was printed. That happens sometimes.
On day one when I meet my cabin attendant I advise him/her of my preferences. I like the early cabin service…I let him know that my used towels that I would like replaced are folded neatly and on the shelf (I think throwing them on the floor is rude…but that’s just me)…I let him know that I don’t need service on crew drill day (saves him time) and also on turnaround day when I do b2bs. He will change the bed linen the night before…less work for him and I can access my cabin after CBP.
I also let him know that I would like a printed Cruise Compass each day. He will put it on my bed each evening for the next day. I hope this doesn’t change, but who knows…

@WAAAYTOOO Congratulations on reaching Pinnacle!
I like the paper copy of the Compass too. I like to scan it rather than scrolling through my phone…although I’ll check my phone occasionally to see if anything changed since the compass was printed. That happens sometimes.
On day one when I meet my cabin attendant I advise him/her of my preferences. I like the early cabin service…I let him know that my used towels that I would like replaced are folded neatly and on the shelf (I think throwing them on the floor is rude…but that’s just me)…I let him know that I don’t need service on crew drill day (saves him time) and also on turnaround day when I do b2bs. He will change the bed linen the night before…less work for him and I can access my cabin after CBP.
I also let him know that I would like a printed Cruise Compass each day. He will put it on my bed each evening for the next day. I hope this doesn’t change, but who knows…

Congratulations!!!  That's a heck of a milestone!!

Last week on Mariner, we were in one of the new far forward Panoramic ocean view cabins (1L) which is NOT one of the suites but just categorized as an ocean view.  I am assuming that, since we had just made Pinnacle, the room attendant brought us a paper Compass every night.  I was really surprised but very happy to get it.  As most know, I despise the app and having the paper Compass was so nice.  It'll be interesting to see if we continue to get the paper Compass on future non-Suite cruises,  I'm sure that if I ask, we could get one...it was just very nice to get one without having to ask.

We don't carry gobs of change on board with us.  We do have some (maybe 10, $1 bills and other assorted change, each).  We bring larger bills and then make change as we go along at Guest Services.  This is pretty easy for us to do since we are in and out of the casino all the time and always have cash around....but I think it will work for anyone, TBH.  I agree with @Bob_KY that it is wise to have some change tucked away in a couple of places but we never have uber amounts of change at any one time.

I am D+ and I figure there's little chance of us making Pinnacle.  We got a very late start into the cruising lifestyle, and  we lost some momentum during the Covid cruise curtailments.  
I cruised extra heavy to make D and D+, but now I'm just gonna cruise to cruise.😎  And knowing I probably wont make Pinnacle, I can spend more time trying the other cruise lines. 

Good man for not mentioning the wife 😉 

Excellent question !  currently I will be retiring in 2 months but unfortunately my wife doesn't want to retire for two more years so at the risk of being bored I have decided to spend 200 days aboard a Cruise ship (Not all 200 at once but all within the year).  The first reason is to determine if I would like staying on a ship for extended periods of time so that when my wife does retire we can do the same for her.  We have only taken one B2B cruise because of my wife's dedication to her job. Me....  Not so much. The second reason is that I am not in great health and have always wanted to try "Living on a cruise ship."  I may never get the chance if I don't start soon.
I am not actually "Chasing" pinnacle per se but it will be a bonus when my wife does retire as she will enjoy the added Perks as well. After 40 years of work I am convincing myself that I deserve this while I can still enjoy it and am healthy enough to do it. Also, I live close to the pier in Los Angeles and it is a minimal cost to get to the Cruise ship. After calculating everything I will be spending less than 30K for B2B2B2B2B2B...  (You get the idea) cruising.  I will be out nothing if I do not choose to continue and will not be disheartened if I do not or can not reach my dream of spending my retirement years on a Cruise ship. Pinnacle is just a milestone and not a goal I am reaching for in this endeavor. I am hoping that I will enjoy it as much as I have been wanting to do this for over 40 years since my first Royal Cruise in 1983.

Sailing solo leaving your wife, grown kids, family and dogs home…to reach Pinnacle Club status quicker.
Depriving yourself of your loving family and pets just so your wife can enjoy the privileges of Pinnacle with you sooner than if you did it together is an enormously selfless sacrifice.
You, sir, are a hero! I salute you!🫡

This is for one of the sailings in November. On one they skip Nassau…on another they skip Port Canaveral. I received an email for each of my November sailings…but nothing yet for the December sailings.

@teddy, yours is one of the best stories I have ever read regarding "plan for the worst and hope for the best".  You did an outstanding job of planning lots of cushion time and boy did you end up needing it !  In the end, once you were able to extract the stress from the unfortunate scheduling SNAFUs, you had a wonderful opportunity that you would have otherwise missed !  Talk about your silver linings !  ...and it was all due to your anticipation of "issues" which, unfortunately, came to pass.

Especially if the flow is called a lava with kraken!  

We have been on cruises where ports were missed due to hurricanes, where one of the azipods failed as ship was trying to outrun a storm, and various other stormy issues.  So my only gripe is that they kick me off at the end of the cruise when I am not ready to leave.

Awesome lead off expecting hurricane season snark from a blog full of cruisers also sailing during this time of year!
On the chairs, I think your expectation should be similar to your previous 9 cruises.  Chair hogs will be out expressing their entitlement by sequestering chairs for their possible future return.  If you can't get chairs exactly where you want, look at your second choice, then your third and so on.  No idea on if PDCC will be cancelled but I suspect not.  It absolutely won't rain the "entire time".  "So Windy" and "Too Rocky" are relative so I'll shoot you a maybe on those.
How do I go with the flow?  I use the coping skills I learned as a wee lad.  Generally I don't focus on the  few negatives in my view, but instead turn around and look at the vast number of positives.
Relax @Bridgetbien, the purpose is to unwind, not to wind yourself up tighter.  Enjoy your cruise.

My opinion…
Royal panicked (understandably so) when the unprecedented shutdown occurred.
The entire business was rocked with huge losses that had to be balanced with enormous, expensive debt in the form of long term loans with very unattractive interest rates. There was no bailout, no subsidies, no government assistance of any kind…to my knowledge. They were left adrift on their own without a paddle. Some say they had significant profits stored away for emergencies, but I don’t think anyone could have ever imagined or prepared for such a long period of zero income. They realized their industry was being demonized with everything from ‘Petri Dish Cruising’ to ‘Covid Cruises’. Public perception was at it’s worse.
So they relied on their loyal cruisers when the restart occurred. Nobody knew how many would just stay away. So they offered incentives…double points, lower pricing, cheaper extras. Anything that would help bring back the regulars and help attract new customers. We were the priming for the pump.
But I don’t think they were expecting such a huge response. For whatever reason…cruise bookings have exploded. Ships are sailing at over one hundred percent capacity. Cruise Planner purchases are at an all-time high. Onboard spending is better than ever. Loyalty levels are saturated with new upper level members.
So they do what any other business would do…they start raising prices and see if demand continues. It did. So they raise prices even more. And people are paying more. Demand keeps rising so prices keep rising. I really think they are flabbergasted (and I don’t use that word lightly) that passengers are really paying such ridiculous prices for things that were so less expensive such a short time ago.
Just as an example, CocoCay Beach Club was $88. Now…some sailings are over $300. Overwater cabanas have risen to a price where instead of renting it for a few hours, it’s more like taking out a mortgage. Yet people are paying. The demand is there.
I don’t blame the company for acting like a for-profit business. But I think they should be able to figure out better ways they can reward their most loyal cruisers who helped ‘prime the pump’. At least come up with some way to improve the perception that we are as important to them now as we were at the beginning of the restart.
For me…I really appreciate what I get with my loyalty status. I know any of the perks can be removed or changed at any time. I really don’t care about the lounge access…it’s not important to me. But, it is important to so many others. I love the new MDR menus and don’t eat in CK…even when I’m in a suite. I appreciate the drinks and…especially…the WiFi.
I don’t know what can be done…but it’s fairly apparent that reading blogs and posts show there are many who feel under appreciated. This period of huge profits may eventually slow…or even reverse. And they will once again rely on the ‘Loyal to Royals’ to prime their pumps once again. 

Or, judging by the amazing comeback, maybe they realize they don’t have to anymore…
Just my opinion.