foxrunner

Other things seem to have come down in price too - the Thrill Water Park pre-discount price used to be well over $200 for my cruise, but now $173, and then another 20% off that, for example .... maybe finding pricing was too high/not selling enough
 

yeah, I have cancelled and rebooked 3 times now - at this price saved ~$250 for the two of us vs the first time booked, so will definitely take it!

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

There are 4 little balconies overlooking Central Park on deck 9 that we love. You can grab a snack or a drink from Park Cafe and then pop up one level - each one has a little table and 2 chairs. They have shade when the rest of Central Park is really sunny and hot.

+1. This was my son's absolute favorite spot to hang out with me on Allure.

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

I didn't visit it on Allure, but did on Harmony, and I really liked the Trellis Bar and the seating in Central Park. I got a drink from the bar and went over to the little bronze tables they have in the area and just enjoyed the ambiance by myself. I liked it because I could enjoy my fruity drink in peace while people watching or catching up on my phone.
Allure specific - the Champagne Bar is one of the only ones left in the fleet so it's probably a good idea to swing by before it's shut down for good (it's set to be replaced with the Bionic Bar when Allure gets her amplification).
Views - there are apparently great aft views behind the aqua theater. Ben and David (@cruisewithbenanddavid) visited. It doesn't have any seating though, from what I hear, so it's nice for a lean or a stand Lol

For views I love the wake view from the outdoor promenade deck!
 

Actually as you're going around towards the back of the aqua theater there are stairs there that will take you down to the jogging track level. There are often Adirondak chairs there to sit and take in those wake views. Pretty quiet spot for sitting and reading, except in the morning and late afternoon when people are likely to be getting their jog or walk in. Even then it's not that noisy, just a passing pedestrian. 

Nothing beats the outside tables at Sabor eating chips, drinking whatever, and watching water past the Aqua Theater.  Also a fun spot to people watch as it is right on the boardwalk.

Thank you both! I'm looking forward to this sailing. It will be my first on an Oasis class ship. The Rising Tide bar looks cool and well as the Central Park area. 

He actually answered this question in one of his youtube videos a few weeks back, but I don't see it available anymore.  The summary is that there are multiple assistant casino host positions per ship while there is only one main host.  Therefore he has more control of which ships/itineraries he can choose from as an assistant than as the main host which is more important as a content creator.

Final thoughts - 
Liberty is starting to show her age in a few places, especially in hard to reach parts like the superstructure. I probably would be too after 16 years in the water, and we could look past the few blemishes. The crew was out painting throughout the sailing. The sports court was closed for the entire 6 days of the first leg because they were resurfacing it. All of the aft balconies need the same TLC - I believe they are covered in the same material, and there are major pock marks in the floor from the chairs.
Laundry - We sent out 2 Wash and Fold service bags the first leg since it was more than 5 days, but we had to specifically ask for the right forms. DH also sent out a couple of things on the second leg. Our D discounts were applied without us having to ask. Everything came back just fine except for our socks. They had all shrunk. None of the other items - t shirts, polos, undies, pants... just the socks. They stretched back out and fit fine, but it was comical just how much smaller they were.😆
  
 
Jayson, our concierge was amazing. We mentioned to him in passing that we elected to get an Uber and not wait on the turnaround day excursion bus to go to Miami airport before dropping us off. He casually asked how much our Uber was - $11 and change. The next day we had a $20 credit to our account. It certainly wasn't necessary, and it was a nice gesture. I don't think I have ever had anyone smile at me so much and it feel genuine. I hope we can sail with him again in the future.
Crown Lounge - I poked my head in a few times, and never did see the concierge. 🤷‍♀️
Flowrider lessons - worth it. To us anyway. My kids are at that age where Splashaway Bay isn't quite as cool, and they are ready for the next big(ger) thing. We have done the Flowrider in the past, but it was very nice to have dedicated instruction. We plan on taking what we learned and practicing here at home before our next sailing as we have access to one about 45 minutes away. 
Perfect Day - My kids continue to surprise me, especially DD who is on the spectrum. Before this trip Thrill Waterpark would have felt like a waste as they would have spent most of their time in the wave or adventure pools. We bought it on last year's Black Friday sale for just under $50 per person. Both kids went on multiple slides, some way outside of their comfort zones. For the right price, we would definitely go again. DS and I think they should add a few Flowriders to the island, but outside of the waterpark. It was nice to have 2 full days there so we could experience things outside of the waterpark.
Ship size - I still think the Freedom/Voyager class is the sweet spot for our family, but with only one experience on an Oasis class, and that being in Star class, it's hard to say that for sure. Our next cruise is on Harmony, so we will get a better idea then. 
Drink package - I think we are going to try to go with no drink package at all this next time. We dropped to only the refreshment package when we hit diamond and it has worked out fine for us, but DH and I are starting to drink less and less  as we get older so our Diamond vouchers are pretty much covering us. Instead, we'll get the 24 water package for the next one and save $600 on pre-cruise purchases. Well, maybe not save... I have my eye on an excursion or two in the spring.
Photo package - I will continue to pre-purchase a package. I use the images we get plus the pictures we take and make photo books. I have no baby albums for my kids, but cruise books, you betcha!😆 I usually get the 100 images so I don't have to think. The past several years it has been on sale for about $125 on Black Friday. This year's sale though has it over $200. I think I'm going to get the 50 image package instead which is $179 right now.
Crystal block - Jason had one waiting for us on day one, it was the old design. Brought it home in my carry one and it was not flagged at FLL as anything weird that needed inspection. 
Overall, our family loves to cruise, and we have 3 more on the books - one every 6 months or so. I don't see this changing anytime soon, especially now that we are expanding our itineraries. The three we have booked are all connecting balconies which will be different for us as we have only sailed in the 2 bedroom suites with the kids. I think current pricing is going to keep us to balconies instead of suites unless we drop to 1 a year, and right now I think we want to keep our current pace. We will turn D+ on the last night of our fall '24 cruise. 🥳
Thanks for following along!

I received an email a day or so ago to advertise a new partnership between Royal Caribbean and Brightline rails.  This email highlights an interesting option for getting from South Florida to Port Canaveral (and vise versa) that includes transport from the train station to Port Canaveral.  I knew of the rail option, of course, but always wondered how I would get from the train station (Orlando) to the port.  Apparently Royal/Brightline has solved that problem !  This is not an option I can use at the moment since we do not yet have a Brightline station near my home but I think it was recently announced that a Brightline station will be added at Ft Pierce, which would be close enough to Port St Lucie to make it doable for us, eventually.  At any rate, for those who could take advantage of this new option, here is what I received via email.
 
Ride Brightline
And save 15% with code
ROYAL15
Royal Caribbean® has partnered with Brightline to make your boarding experience in Port Canaveral as seamless and stress-free as possible. Brightline is the only provider of modern, eco-friendly, intercity rail in America and right now you can save 15% on SMART fares when you use the code ROYAL15 at checkout.
Select from 16 daily round trips with hourly departures between Miami and Orlando, with quick stops at West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale and Aventura. Start your vacay right and book your Brightline tickets now.
BOOK NOW   We'll shuttle you to the ship
Port Canaveral is approximately 45 minutes away from the Orlando Brightline station. Make this transfer a breeze by booking a shuttle directly with Royal Caribbean. Call us at 866-562-7625 to book today.
 

We have done Anthem multiple times and Odyssey once. Going on Ovation in May. We really enjoy this class, mainly because of the cold weather aspect, since we like to cruise in winter and prefer not to fly. 
We are the exception to the rule, we do not like Oasis class. Freedom class is as large as we like. Radiance class is probably my favorite. All that being said, any cruise is better than being home!

Turned out to be a good game to watch after all.  I’ve been around longer than you and have sat through some pretty bad seasons. 

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.  

True, Odyssey (Quantum plus) is the only 'warm weather' ship of the class.

With all the hype surrounding the Icon class it made me think how seldom the Quantum class is mentioned or even recommended to  people looking for suggestions. There are folks who are big Oasis class fans (myself included), lots of folks who prefer the size and amenities (and price point) of the Voyager/Freedom class, and even a lot who prefer the relaxed atmosphere of the Radiance class. Obviously the Quantum class fill up and lots of people still sail on them and enjoy them (myself included) but I'm not sure there are many people who profess the Quantum class to be there favorite class. 
Just my Wednesday morning musing..........

Quantum ships, by design, don't get Caribbean love like all other classes.
 
I want to get one a Quantum ship sooner rather than later, but itineraries outside of Alaska are limited. I may be stuck with a Bayonne trip

I WANT to try one, but they never seem to work with a departure port or date I'm interested in. It's definitely on my radar for '25

Personally they're my favorite class.  But they are more "niche" for colder weather environments as much more of the features are indoors than other classes.

If we're going to list what we would like, I'll order Icon 3 doing 7 night Sunday to Sunday.  A Voyager class doing 7 night Saturday to Saturday visiting other ports than Roatan, Cozumel and Costa Maya. And a third ship doing 4 &5 day cruises during the week. 
Oh! And I'd like fries with that! 

Update !  This trick works exactly the OPPOSITE way for Quantum class ships (apparently).  So the “good” orientation is the stateroom with the double arrow pointing to the left and the “bad” orientation is with the double arrow pointing to the right !  I never realized this but a TA that I trust and admire pointed this out not long ago.  I cannot personally confirm this but I trust my source.  I trust everyone is totally confused now.  😵‍💫😵‍💫