Cile

My girlfriend just lost her aunt and 4 of her cousins are infected. In the beginning she was saying it is just like fly , and now she knows it is not a joke. But it is sad to realize how serious it is until it hit close to home. We live in Florida.

My girlfriend just lost her aunt and 4 of her cousins are infected. In the beginning she was saying it is just like fly , and now she knows it is not a joke. But it is sad to realize how serious it is until it hit close to home. We live in Florida.

I'd agree with you if only the U.S. was reacting this way (especially on the playing politics part). But the entire world is going through this and acting this way. I also feel like once you personally know someone whose either gotten seriously sick by or lost their lives over this virus. Your perception of this virus starts to change, like what happened to me. 

@Lovetocruise2002 thank you also for taking the time, trying to plan my credit card is "HOT" right now~!  We are still trying to celebrate an amazing 8th grade graduation and am trying to make it work. Sailing #1 but if not I want to put this vibrating credit card to work for something just as amazing!. I feel so bad these kids have worked so hard to have their fun crushed, to early to learn such a hard life lesson! PLUS I want to SAIL!!!!! Thanks so much, I appreciate it :) OKAY let's face it, it's all about ME!!!!!
 

I don't think that they have any intention of making the WJ space a paid-food space. I think they  just want to make it safer.  I'd be ok with the food court concept.  I might actually eat there then!

I was just speaking with my TA and this is what he just emailed me regarding the Windjammer and such. Just wanted to share what my Travel Agent told me:
I also was on a webinar with the Chairman of RCCL Richard Fein and he took some questions about the future.  BTW Royal Caribbean just announced a postponement through 31 July.
On the future relative to our discussions he didn't get too specific but the Windjammer will remain, but not with everyone using the same spoon to get their stuff, so as we suspected more of a crew operated buffet. He indicated that probably isn't just at sea but at hotels and restaurants on land as well.   He also indicated that as they begin operations it will not be a simultaneous full speed ahead but a gradual roll out, and that they would adjust crew and number of cabins occupied till they get back to full operations.  No specifics but a slow and steady process coordinated with all the necessary bodies, agencies, countries etc.
 
 

Anything that might challenge dining packages would require an investment and major construction to implement.  I don't see that happening, there is no budget for it.   Changes will need to be cheap and easy to implement with very minor capital cost if any.  
I have a great deal of respect for Michael Bayley but he has said things before that never came to fruition.  He could have been simply talking in very broad terms that people are over analysing and drawing conclusions from.   He could have been using the stage to appease the masses that they are considering all possibilities while stopping short of committing to anything to reassure the public that ships will be safe.
Something will change, at least in the near term immediately after restarting but they are not going to do a major overhaul of the space in the interim.  Implementing food courts on all ships with the variety of WJ designs, shapes and sizes is a multi-million dollar project. Whatever they do will be done with minimal demolition or construction.  
I can see them eliminating self serve and having more options from a menu like cafeTwo70 on Q class, Park cafe on O class and cafe Promenade on other ships.  A pasta section with a handful of choices, a burger section where you tell them what you want on it, a sandwich section with a handful of choices like Majesty, a salad area where they make the salad for you just like O and Q class has but now in the WJ as well as where they exist today.  
These types of changes can be easily implemented without major construction or cost.  Just like cafeTwo70 or Park cafe these won't impact dining packages.

Yikes !  We are on Symphony on August 1.  I don't know if I am so happy about perhaps being the first guinea pigs.

I'm on the Symphony of the Seas out of Miami on 8/22.  Our final payment is due this Friday and because they haven't cancelled the cruise, I have to pay it - which I'm not complaining about.  I'm hoping it will go, but I don't think it will.  It would have been our first ever cruise and I booked it at the beginning of 2019, I'm so disappointed.  We will likely reschedule but I'm thinking it may be another 2 years before we can get on anything - I've heard other folks having a lot of difficulty rescheduling because all the openings have been booked.

He posted it immediately.  https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2020/05/20/royal-caribbean-will-cancel-all-sailings-through-july-31-due-coronavirus

Why do so many people here have a difficult time for Royal being exposed for doing something obviously wrong? 
It's clear these crew members feel marginalized. Royal has promised to send them back home and has not done so. Their feelings and concerns are valid and true; Royal is very, very wrong. Why attack the poster or the news source?
 
As a lover of Royal Caribbean, how can you not feel sympathetic for these crew members? Or, do we only appreciate them when they make us a towel animal or bring another drink?
 

I don’t like buffets as a general rule, mostly because I don’t like the idea of those who practice substandard hand washing being able to be in contact with my food or the utensil I use to serve it. 
 
That said, I appreciate the variety WJ offers and the immediate availability. I don’t see how having the food crew served instead of self serve would impact guest satisfaction, and seems a rather easy change. 

I think its coming soon, but let's face it, they have not caught up with all the cancellations from the first round.  I know there has been a huge push to get those done and speed up the process (which seems to have created more errors) but i would think if they could wait until they at least had the first round done, it might make more sense for the skeleton crew that is working right now.  I know a lot of people think they are holding money for cash flow, but I honestly think the FCC and cancel process that they put in place that doesn't work with their system is the biggest issue.  Again - just my opinion.  I wish they could just rip the band-aid off and pull them all, but with the unknown of when they can actually start to sail, i don't see that happening.

So it's very obvious from yesterdays briefing by Michael Bayley that we're not going to start sailing in the next month, and certainly not from a European port, so please just get on and announce the next phase of cancellations. I appreciate they are trying to manage their cash flow (or hold onto our money depending on your viewpoint) but they are just increasing the frustration with their loyal customers. Long term no one will thank them for building up our hopes only to then cancel at the last minute.

Glad to see some people are getting their credits. Not me. March 16th cruise cancellation and still no credit, no update email, nothing.
Guess I will have to call. This has taken entirely too long.
 

So so so frustrated with Royal Caribbean International!!!
1) We book a cruise for April 8th using a gift certificate for the majority of the stateroom reservation $1685 of which only $185 was not covered by our gift certificate
2) In Aug of 2019 the April 8th cruise is canceled, we rebook for a cruise April 12 for $1526, the balance is applied to on board credit
3) Nov 2019 we buy additional onboard purchases such as the unlimited dining, and beverage packages as well as a short excursion $1334.58
4) March 23 the April 12th cruise is canceled. We are offered a refund or 125% Future Cruise Credit (FCC) for the stateroom reservation and on board extras.
5) April 5th we call royal caribbean and after speaking it through with the representative select 125%. We expect a FCC of $4,529.69 which is 125% of total amount spent.
6) April 23 we call to follow up on our FCC and we are told we will not be receiving 125% for our stateroom reservation b/c we paid for it with a gift certificate. I tell the resolution manager that had I initially been told this info, i would have wanted a refund. He tells me he understands and will process the refund instead of the FCC. So i now expect $1500 gift certificate and $1334.98 refund to my card
7) May 8th I call to follow up on the refund. I'm now told that it doesn't matter that i wasn't given the correct info on April 5th, or that i was promised a refund on April 23rd. I will be only be given the 125% on the additional onboard purchases. I will be given the gift certificate back at the original amount. In no uncertain terms, i will NOT get any refund back beyond an FCC credit. The customer service then casually mentions seeing a FCC being processed in the system for roughly half of the amount i paid for the additional onboard purchases. I ask to speak to a manager who will give me a detailed itemized summary of my FCC, and who can point out the language that was provided to me excluding gift certificate purchases from the 125% promotion (b/c i've reread the emails and can find no mention). I'm promised a resolution manager will call me back with this info within 24 hours. So the new information sounds like i will only be getting the $1500 gift certificate and $1,899.74 FCC
8)May 8th i get an email with no explanation with a FCC credit of $818, which make zero sense in any context. 
9) May 11th, I call and am on hold for 1 hour 21 min before speaking to someone, who then puts me on hold to get a manager, 35 additional minutes later i'm hung up on without explanation, I call that afternoon and am hung up on after about 40 min. I am on hold for a 3rd time today currently at 1 hour 30 min and counting. I have also tried emailing the royal caribbean vacation planner who originally helped us book the trip. She just told me she forwarded it to customer service. I also submitted a complaint through the website webform. On my 3rd attempt and after another 2 hours of hold I finally get to speak to someone again. She agrees that she can't find it in writing anywhere that the 125% does not apply towards purchases make with a gift certificate, but that its just a "known policy internally" and that basically I'm SOL and there is nothing to be done. They are aware of the FCC issues and are working to fix them, although she didn't want to give me a date since all the dates and information they'd given me in the past have been incorrect. 
I know you're having issues. We all are. I postponed my wedding and my husband hasn't been working for ~ 2 months. I get it. But be upfront, be honest, be consistent, and honor your words. 
 

So many unforced errors.  Such a shame.

I swear I'd better wake up from this freaking nightmare soon.

Carnival is in the same process.  I just feel like they are really planning on not having passengers for a while yet (which is really not surprising, they just aren't ready to actually say it.)

You maybe need to read what i wrote again and try and understand it better, BECAUSE AT NO TIME do i mention Covid-19 in relation to ANY country!!! WHAT  I did say was i couldnt live in US because people sue for any reason even the smallest of things, hence my joke about farting in the wrong direction......
And you are 100% correct with regards all countries not locking down completely,  it was all over our news about those gUys standing outside some Michigan building waving their guns about demanding that lockdown be done away with! We may hold house parties but we dont take to the streets with firearms 
https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2020/may/01/armed-protesters-michigan-state-capitol-demanding-end-to-coronavirus-lockdown-video

My mother will be 71 in September and has diabetes.  Under the current restrictions she would not be able to cruise with us in December.  I asked my MEI agent about these restrictions and what we should do.  She stated that these are CDC guidelines but I do not think that is accurate and can not find the age restriction on the CDC website.  
What is people above 70 doing???  Cancelling????  I can't imagine not brining her, this is a family trip that we do with my niece and her family as well.  We lost my sister to cancer almost a year ago and like to vacation together.  
Thanks!
 

We won’t know till they do it, and once they announce it just wait for CC and those Facebook groups to explode with anger. Maybe we should start the rumor now
”I heard the diamond lounge is only going to serve spam, Vienna sausages, PBR, and two buck chuck” 

We are booked on 6th Feb sailing (following the cancellation of our Oasis sailing, same itinerary and embarkation port, in what would have been 26 days from now ?).
Like others on here we will be watching developments with interest and looking to make the ultimate call as the final payment date approaches. We are hoping things will be markedly different by then (my wife is a front line NHS care worker and is starting to see the first tentative signs that things are beginning to improve, and whilst we are of course well aware of the dangers of being overly optimistic, it has got to be better than the alternative view, right? ?) Whether the change to colder weather will give the virus a new lease of life remains to be seen of course, and I guess all we can do is hope... and keep everything crossed that the vaccine will become available to the masses toward the end of this year, rather than into next one.

We caught the price drop last week and saved about 200.00, they the dropped cruise price and CoCo Cay Beach Club and Voom.  We have till late Aug for last payment so we will play it by ear.

We are booked on the Anthem Nov, 29,  we are still planning to go, we will keep track or what is going on. If they say we are ok to sail on we go.  We´re not really worried about the port or the area around it. Masks and gloves, clorox wipes, We stay overnight in Lyndhurst, we wipe down room any way, same with the cabin. I can´t believe that they will let us sail if the virus is still not under some kind of control. Just my opinion.