foxrunner

I prefer South Beach as it has the swim up bar and the walk there is through tropical foliage. We are going to try the Hideaway next. What I wish they would put on Coco Cay was a running/walking path around the island. I know they have the shuttle roads but those drivers are rightly trying to get somewhere in a hurry. The trail would be much more peaceful.

Please factor in the fact that some people don't purchase the drink packages because of the loyalty drinks. That does cost them quite a bit. I agree with Twangster it isn't a broken system. If most cruisers on a ship are new to cruising Royal needs to find ways to retain them. The current market will change and when it does the loyal members will keep sailing. I don't gamble outside of my freeplay, so I don't know if the Casino program is problematic. I do hear a fair number of folks saying the combination of the Crown & A. drinks and Prime drinks have led them to no longer purchase the drink packages.

Check to see if the Gardens are open that late. We went in the late morning. The ride from the port to the gardens is about a half hour one way. Not sure when you have dinner and if the ship gets in late it could be tight. We really loved the Gardens but if you need a quick free activity go to see the house boats or Beacon Hill Park(walkable not for the 5 YO). As always happy to help, ask away. With a 5 YO, I'd skip the gardens and shoulder cary the precious one along the sea cliff walk to the park. Free is always great to me!

We went in late Aug. and took a Royal Caribbean Excursion. I believe we had about 2 hours at the gardens. It was a beautiful sunny day. Temps in the 70s. We did not do a tour of the gardens. just walked around. The bus driver did act as a tour guide on our drive there and we learned a lot about the woman who created the gardens. I'm sure you could do some research ahead of time to learn the history of the gardens and their creation. Pros to the RC tour, we didn't have to wait in line to get our entrance tickets. Cons: We arrived with about 5 other tour buses and it was a bit of a crush for the first 20-30 minutes or so. It sounds like you have some other plans. If you want to see the gardens quickly, you could probably move through the gardens in a little over an hour. That would mean that you would not visit the gift shops, have a snack/drink at the cafe, or have high tea, which you can do at the gardens. Our bus driver did drop us off in the city center so that we could go to High Tea at the Empress Hotel. Others on the tour also left the bus tour at the city center to explore on their own.

Victoria Go to the Butchart Gardens it is beautiful. I'm confident that the teenagers will be wowed. This is a story our busdriver told us on the ride over. A man and his wife get on the bus and the husband is in a foul mood. He yells out as getting seated "is there any beer at that stupid garden" The busdriver replied yes as a matter of fact they have a full bar. To which he replies well I'm going to have a million beers and not see a single flower. When the couple returned to the bus the driver asked "how was the beer sir" the grumpy husband said I didn't have one that place is incredible. You can take a cab and be on your schedule timewise at the garden, which we would do next time. In town you can go to high tea at the Empress. This may not interest the teens but only about an hourish long and the food was really good. We like tea as well but you do need to dress up a bit. If the teens don't want to do the high tea give them cash to window shop in the downtown shops where the Empress is located. Beacon Hill park is also a nice walk, it has the largest totem pole on Earth. We didn't get over to see the houseboats which are also supposed to be unique. We really enjoyed Victoria and had a similar outlook precruise! We are going cross country in our travel trailer Summer 2025 with good friends and we are going to stop in Victoria to show them around.

Sage advice above! I have never sailed with Virgin but I like the way the drink program works in theory. I wish Royal would presell the 10 drink card in the planner as well as offered the packages.

I have had a similar experience at brunch. On sea days they don't serve breakfast in the MDR. Brunch is just hybrid breakfast lunch menu that starts latter and goes latter in the afternoon. Some advice to everyone about service time, if you let the waiter know that you want to be finished in a certain amount of time they usually get it done. I know we all know how hard these people work and don't want to put extra demands on them. The reality is they want you in the MDR as butts in the seats are part of the matrix.

It seems like it takes folks a bit of time to find the Tw070. Go early in your cruise and it is likely to be deserted. Now I know why they have signs all over the ship directing you to the Two70. Great venue!

Got put a plug in for MDR breakfast, it is a really great start to the day. Lunch on the other hand takes too long and will leave you stuffed. Enjoy!

Well we can count that as a win as I believe B&J's was an upcharge.

Does it cost extra or complimentary?

Deluxe Beverage Package RESERVED Full Sailing - 7 Days See order history From $72.99 / per guest per day $105.00 onboard

I just saved $200 plus on the DB. I purchased originally on Black Friday. I hope this help eases the Icon pinch! Happy Holidays

Plus the best Margs in the fleet! The mix is not out of a jar...... legit!

The better excursion also sell out. Book them early and if you see something you want to do book it, keep looking and cancel as needed. Just remember to check policies on cancellation. Alaska is amazing!

I think what people are saying when they ask about your job on the next contract is more along the lines of are you going to be promoted? I see that you are now an assistant casino host. Is there a position as the casino host or casino manager and would that interest you? We will be on Icon in April and hope to meet you, a warning though we only spend the freeplay in the casino.

By looking at my list below you can see that we have primarly sailed the two newestest and largest class of ship. The exception is Freedom and we didn't feel like we were giving anything up sailing on her. Tons of free food all over the place exept late at night, which is true on the big girls as well. My preference is to choose the destination over the ship. If you really want Oasis class then book it, because you'll be comparing and second guessing the whole cruise. YOLO it you have my blessing if you need it.

124!!! Hard to believe we are alone here.

You should have plenty of time to enjoy the beach and get back for sunset. Check the the time the sunsets as it varies through out the year. Also if you return after sunset the cable car line will be very long. This will result in you walking down the donkey trail which is dark slippery and smelly. Everyone should do it once but be prepared!

The Esplanade doesn't compete with promenade. The Two70 especially in colder or super hot humid climates is a really nice space.

You are going to love it! Playmakers and the pool deck are really cool venues. We didn't really feel like the ship was any bigger than Ovation, except up on the pool deck. We eat happily in the MDR and the food was fine. Fellow Pats fan here looking forward to tonight, yeah I know they are probably going to lose. As a 55 Y.O. I've seen it all!

We have enjoyed two cruises on this class. The Alaska trip was on Ovation and it was great for a colder climate. Our Med. Sea cruise was on Odyssey and the lime coconut pool deck and Playmakers made the trip. The music hall is also a bonus. I enjoy going on different ships regardless of class! I don't like to watch cruise videos pre-cruise so it is a surprise.

We went to Black Beach (Santorini) last season it was quite nice. The sand is hot though so bring shoes. Also a slippery ledge right at the waterline makes getting in and out tricky especially in any kind of surf. At Mykonos we went to Delphi and no one is permitted for religious reasons to enter the water. We were on a motorized sailboat and they brought us to a neighboring island and we could jump in and swim to the beach. Nice beach but no amenities. We didn't go to your other destinations but had a great cruise!

How scary is the coaster? We like the coasters at ski areas, as you can control the speed. We don't enjoy Superman at Six Flags.!

To close out this thread, thank you all for your excelent responces. We did move up to the central park view, predominatly because of our fear of noise bleed from the connecting interior. I'll report back post cruise about our findings! Keep cruising!