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A few years ago we were on Oasis during the Women's World Cup Soccer. The Finals were on Fox and were not being shown on a station that Oasis could show. So, I set up a streaming app to view it on my laptop. Oasis even helped us out with a conference room and projector so that others who were interested in viewing the game could join in. It all worked out great! Certainly streaming a live broadcast is subject to problems, but work with Guest Services or a concierge for any help they might provide.

Our favorite in St. Maarten by far is Captain Bob's Soualiga Destinations snorkel day trip (https://www.soualigadestinations.com/) -- even if you don't snorkel it's a wonderful day! They are just a 5-10 minute walk from the cruise port. They are independent from RCCL but they will get you back on time.

Hey, @twangster ==> we gotta get you on a ship asap !! ? !! You've apparently got too much time on your hands, finding and sharing all these corny jokes. If you're writing them from scratch, then you've got another career to pursue ?. I do enjoy the jokes. Thanks.

Agree with many others on September 1 -- going to get some 3 and 4-night sailings for Labor Day weekend ?

We prefer deck 14 forward -- quickest access to Solarium and Solarium Bistro (beats the Windjammer for breakfast because it's smaller)

Maybe it is closer to 30 minutes -- the time goes pretty fast. We didn't see a whole lot of fish while on the scooter, except when the divers line you up and attract dozens of fish around you by spreading some chum around. That is a really cool thing to see. If you have a camera, the divers will take some good pictures of your group while the fish swim by. I never saw a turtle on this excursion. You ride the scooters in a little cove that has some rocks and coral, but nothing great. They want you in a fairly safe area so that you don't go out to sea and the divers can keep the group under control. They also don't want you crashing into rocks and coral as each scooter costs about $20,000, according to the captain. Yes, when your group is not on a scooter, you can jump in the water and snorkel or swim on your own. We didn't do that, but some people did. I don't know if the tour provided the masks and flippers or not.

We did this last year and all 5 of us really enjoyed it, because it is such a unique experience. You only get about 15-20 minutes in the scooter because they can only take about 15 people at a time. It was surprisingly a little hot and humid while in the scooter, but once you get used to that, you can just breathe normally. The divers take good care of you and try to ensure you're comfortable and having a good time. If you have your own underwater camera, it makes it even better. Another good thing, was that I was able to wear my glasses while on the scooter, so I could actually see things clearly, unlike when I go snorkeling. You do have to be able to swim a few feet out to your assigned scooter, so you still must be able to swim.

It still all depends on the on-board experience. I won't go if we have to wear a mask ?.

From wikipedia: Lay Berth (Layberth) A berth used for idle (lay-up status) vessels.[3] Vessels being put on the hook can use these as intermediate points between operational use and mothballing at an off shore mooring. These berths will feature very little land side access or equipment except what is needed to secure the vessel.

Actually, I think that I would be cursing for 1-2 weeks! ?

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On St. Maarten, our favorite excursion is Capt. Bob at Soualiga Destinations (https://www.soualigadestinations.com/). We've gone with Capt. Bob our last 3 times in St. Maarten. He is a very reliable independent excursion and just a short walk from the cruise port. You go to a couple of snorkeling sites, stop at an island that has lots of iguanas, stop near the airport to see a plane land close over your head, and beer, drinks, and lunch are provided. The kids will really like the speedboats when they open it up and go fast -- be sure to sit up front! Can't recommend him enough.

On St. Maarten, our favorite excursion is Capt. Bob at Soualiga Destinations (https://www.soualigadestinations.com/). We've gone with Capt. Bob our last 3 times in St. Maarten. He is a very reliable independent excursion and just a short walk from the cruise port. You go to a couple of snorkeling sites, stop at an island that has lots of iguanas, stop near the airport to see a plane land close over your head, and beer, drinks, and lunch are provided. The kids will really like the speedboats when they open it up and go fast -- be sure to sit up front! Can't recommend him enough.

For a 1st timer to San Juan, I would recommend just walking to the fort El Morro -- about 30 minutes. It is well worth it, even for the kids. There is a walkway that goes along the water to get to or from the fort that is very cool. You should be able to locate the walkway on the maps. For St. Maarten, I highly recommend Capt. Bob at Soualiga Destinations. We've done Capt. Bob 3 different times and have always had a blast. The kids will really love the speed boat, esp. if they sit up front ?. You snorkel at a couple of different places, go to an island with lots of iguanas, and see a jet land over your head. He is very reliable and only a 10 minute walk from the ship.

Is it okay to bring your own box of plastic straws ? ? Or will the plastic police kick you off the ship ? ?

Yeah, but I doubt if very many ships actually sail through the middle of that triangle! That's where the alien base is. ? ? Seriously, I've been through there many times and have never seen or heard of any problems.

Well, if it helps, we've done Capt. Bob 3 times ?, and highly recommend it. His boats are just a short walk from where you dock, so he's easy to get to. He always gets you back in time. I've always booked directly with him (that is, Soualiga Destinations).

A couple of years ago, I took a video of my ride down the zipline using my digital camera and a wrist strap. Perhaps, it does depend on weather conditions. Another time, when I didn't have my camera, it was so windy that they were only letting people under 200 lbs. go down the zipline. You should certainly ask about cameras when you check-in for the zipline on Labadee.

I really like the running track on Deck 5 at the very back of the ship. When you're heading east from Florida, the sunsets can be amazing. There are a few chairs back there and usually not very many people, especially after the embarkation day. The observation wings on deck 14 forward. The port side has the glass floor section that might be nice, but it will be windy and probably not private. Central Park is really nice after dark. There is an out-of-the-way path covered with a trellis that won't have much traffic. If you want a little more public, try the Rising Tide bar as it is going up or down. Or, the Pub, where I bet the entertainer would give you the mike for a minute ? . Or for something really unexpected, do it during the "Welcome Aboard" picture that they take in the port right before you get onto the ship. As the photographer tries to get you posed, drop to one knee ? . Regardless of what you choose, it will be a great moment. Congratulations.

Yes, make sure you stop by the photo kiosk to review your pictures. This way if some are missing (for example, assigned to the wrong cabin), they can try to find them. I made the mistake while on Symphony this summer of not checking with the photo desk. When I got emailed the link for the photo downloads, it turned out we were missing about 30-40 pictures, including the Welcome Aboard pictures. We ended up with less than half of the pictures we knew were taken. Once you leave the ship, they don't seem to care and won't be able to find your pictures.

Word of WARNING if you're getting the pre-paid digital photo package -- you should still review your pictures at the Picture Desk during the cruise!! Make sure they have the pictures you knew were taken. On a recent sailing on Symphony I bought the pre-paid digital photo package for our 3 cabins. I wanted to save a little money by pre-paying, and also let everyone have as many pictures taken as they wanted without thinking about it. A few days after the cruise I received an email with a link to the pictures from Cabin A, nothing for Cabin B or C. There were only 18 pictures for Cabin A, even though I knew we had taken many, many more. For the pictures that I knew of for the 3 cabins, we were missing at least 30-40 pictures, including our "Welcome Aboard" pictures. After calling RCCL Customer Support, they said that for photos I need to contact a company called Our Cruise Photos (ourcruisephotos.com). I have exchanged some emails with their customer support and they said they were contacting the people on Symphony to look for the missing pictures. I sent them pictures of the people in the cabins so they could try some facial recognition with them. Now, their customer support is no longer responding, so I'm assuming the pictures are never going to be found. This was the first time I had pre-paid for photos. If I had not pre-paid for the photos and all those photos were still missing, then I would have been disappointed, but I would not be out the money. Needless to say, I won't be pre-paying for photos again.

Agreed. Turn to the left after the entrance to CocoCay. We had a Chill Island Cabana and the snorkeling along the rock barrier was good. Also, the larger area across the way, where the lifeguard platforms are, is very good. Water was clear in the morning, but got cloudy later in the afternoon -- probably due to people stirring things up.

I have MTD on an upcoming cruise on Symphony, and in Cruise Planner, I was able to add other guests from a different reservation -- I just needed their last name and reservation number.

We've made a 10:15am flight out of FLL on our last 2 cruises with no problem. Of course, we did the self-carry for our luggage and were in line to get off the ship by 6:30. We took a taxi to the airport. We had plenty of time to eat breakfast at the airport before boarding.