Frogfanatic

That's me too!
I also take so many photos at every port and just stare at the ship for a few moments before moving on for the day. Sometimes it drives my wife a little crazy, but she of course knows me! LOL!
 

Cruising is by far my favorite way to vacation.  I will miss the build up/anticipation that builds as the time grows near.  I will miss the vision of the ship for the first time as we pull into port and be in awe of its size.  I will miss the first steps on the ship and the feeling of vacation.  My wife makes fun of me, but I really will miss waking up early and watching the sunrise with a coffee at the back of the ship on the top deck then head to the gym.  I could go on and on, but even though my sailing (May 24 on HOS) hasn't been canceled yet, and I'm sure it will, I am switching my sights to our April 2021 sailing on OOS.  

Cruising is by far my favorite way to vacation.  I will miss the build up/anticipation that builds as the time grows near.  I will miss the vision of the ship for the first time as we pull into port and be in awe of its size.  I will miss the first steps on the ship and the feeling of vacation.  My wife makes fun of me, but I really will miss waking up early and watching the sunrise with a coffee at the back of the ship on the top deck then head to the gym.  I could go on and on, but even though my sailing (May 24 on HOS) hasn't been canceled yet, and I'm sure it will, I am switching my sights to our April 2021 sailing on OOS.  

Cruising is by far my favorite way to vacation.  I will miss the build up/anticipation that builds as the time grows near.  I will miss the vision of the ship for the first time as we pull into port and be in awe of its size.  I will miss the first steps on the ship and the feeling of vacation.  My wife makes fun of me, but I really will miss waking up early and watching the sunrise with a coffee at the back of the ship on the top deck then head to the gym.  I could go on and on, but even though my sailing (May 24 on HOS) hasn't been canceled yet, and I'm sure it will, I am switching my sights to our April 2021 sailing on OOS.  

Will anyone use their stimulus check to book a cruise? Or maybe splurge for something like a cabana?

I would be thinking about those splurge purchases IF the prices were budging at ALL...but they’re not. It will be interesting to see prices (fares and CP purchases) come down to entice existing and loyal customers or if they go the route of maximizing prices.  I would think that #2 would be a mistake but I’m often wrong about such things !

I miss everything.   The excitement of embarkation day, the first drink by the pool, getting to see our room for the first time, first night in the dining room, and so on.
But one thing that particularly stands out for me is watching the sun go down, the stars come out, smelling the clean ocean air, and watching the wake drift lazily behind the ship.  Such a calm and peaceful experience (for me anyway).

Thanks Steve!
 

Very happy that it all worked out, but I feel for you and the disappointment.  I wish you a very quick recovery and happy hunting on the Cruise Planner.  I can personally attest to the incredible guidance and service of @michelle.  She is da BOMB! 

Very happy that it all worked out, but I feel for you and the disappointment.  I wish you a very quick recovery and happy hunting on the Cruise Planner.  I can personally attest to the incredible guidance and service of @michelle.  She is da BOMB! 

It's just like ex-girlfriends. Nothing gets you over the last one, like the next one!

thank you @mworkman!!!

@wllm1969 this is a great analysis of the drink package.  Thank you. 

On our Symphony cruise back in May, we had the WOW bands.  They are very convenient as others have said, but what was not convenient was having to take it off every time we ordered a drink anywhere on the ship.  I hope in the future RC offers the staff mobile scanning devices for the WOW bands.  Then they would be a perfect accessory for the cruise. 

My family and I just did a 7-night cruise on Symphony March 30-April 6.  It was our first time with RC and all we could expect was what I researched and read.  Let me tell you that this blog got us more than prepared for what to expect.  We LOVED the ship, the size, the activities, the food, the drink, all of it.  I know you will too.  We have two girls (7 and 9 years) and they really did like Adventure Ocean.  It appeared that the staff there really kept the kids busy having fun.  You will definitely get your steps in...haha... We were in an ocean balcony 10310 and 10312 (connecting roooms) and we felt that these cabins were very well laid out and comfortable.  As I type this it brings me back to our sailing and I get a little sad that its over and we have to wait till May 2020 to do it again.   Have a blast and be in the moment. 
Oh, one thing our girls loved doing was ordering drinks from the IPad at the Bionic Bar.  Go during the middle of the day as it gets quite busy at night. 

By being introduced to this blog and reading/hearing about MEI Travel and how knowledgeable and accommodating they are in booking future RC cruises I would like to reach out to them and see if we can put together many more cruises on the books.  My current travel agent is alright, I guess, she is very difficult to get a hold of and is slow at returning correspondences.  With MEI Travel do you guys use a specific person? One that you work with over time and really gets to know you and your preferences?  I like having that kind of relationship.  One where I am not just a number. You know what I mean?  If this is the case, could you please recommend someone, someone you have had good experiences with? I would greatly appreciate it. 

John Blair and wife have been posting some FB video and pics from their dry dock and tour highlighting the marine maintenance under the water line in the dry dock.
https://www.facebook.com/john.blair.1401
 
 
 
 
 

Stateroom
We usually stay in an interior (most often it's a promenade room so we can at least have a window to the inside) and have also stayed in a balcony room before.  Balcony rooms are our preference, but rooms get exponentially more  expensive as you go up in category so it depends on the sailing what we book (as we need to fly to port.....and these days we are sailing 2x a year).
For this sailing, we booked a Boardwalk Balcony.
The inside is standard, although having 3 suitcases (lol), it was challenging to figure out the best way to organize our cloths.  But the room does have 2 closets with one of them having built in shelves.  There are also 4 nice size drawers on the side of the desk plus another narrow one.  There is also a good amount of room under the bed to store luggage.  The washroom has a few shelves and room underneath the sink to store things.  The shower is also a big larger than the older ship showers.
What I loved best about this room is the view.  For ocean lovers, you can see the water and land behind it, but it is further out than a standard ocean balcony room.  The balcony is lots of fun though as you can see what's going on on the Boardwalk.  They played movies which we could see from our room (and hear the songs if a musical, which was nice), and we even got a sneak peak of HIRO (the Aqua show). It's just a fun room.  My DD and I were out there whenever we got a chance.  DH, who much prefers ocean view rooms wasn't out there as much (and our son is TV obsessed, so when we were in the room, he'd turn on the tv).
Also, we had no issues of privacy.  You can't really see into the rooms, and we just closed the curtains when changing just in case.  Not a big deal at all.  If we were on our balcony, then didn't really care if someone could see us.
The room came with some perks:
Soda package for 2 .... DH loves soda.  Sometimes we'd go back to the room to grab the cup for the machines, but otherwise, he'd just order from the bar or in the MDR.  I only used it a couple times as I don't drink pop, but would try flavored water when I had the cup on me. Johnny Rockets lunch for 4 ... We had planned on using this, but we found there was so much food on the ship, and we were full most of the time, that we honestly didn't feel like a greasy heavy meal of burgers.  So, we never even used this perk. Private (?) rock wall session ... Not even sure how this worked.  Our kids went on the rock wall a couple times but the lines weren't bad so didn't even have a need for this. So the only perk that really benefited us (or DH) was the soda package.
As for noise, you could hear muffled noise when the balcony door was close.  But we were all so tired by end of day that it didn't prevent us from sleeping.  I always have ear plugs myself and with them, the noise was completely gone.
So in summary...DD and I loved this room, DH was ok, and DS is indifferent.  I would totally book it again.
PS - I'm at work now, but when home, I will post some pictures.

@michelle had done 4 cruises (2 past, 2 upcoming). Would recommend. 

I second @michelle,   she's had my first reservation with MEI for almost two years now (leaving in 41 days) and has my second which i booked with her about a year ago, leaving April 2020.   I've in the works on a few more which she will definitely handle for me as well.  Very personable and has been able to rebook my reservations to save me money and/or get me more OBC.   Many folks here on the blog us her along with others at MEI.    While I'm biased since she's the only one i've used,  I would venture to say you can't go wrong with anyone at MEI

Another +1 for @michelle.  Absolutely great to work with!!!

Make it unanimous !
Contact Michelle Cunningham at :
[email protected]
703-986-0661

Another +1 for @michelle -- we've got 3 booked through her ..... her patience with the most mundane questions we throw at her has been invaluable.  And her response time?  Considering how busy she is, it amazes me how she takes the time out of her day to take care of everyone.

@michelle makes you feel like you're the only person she's taking care of. And, yes, she's extremely patient!

2 bits, 4 bits 6 bits a dollar.....all for Michelle, jump up and HOLLER! Sorry, couldn't help doing that, but, she is great!