Rags1

Exactly

Thanks for the great, entertaining trip! I’m so glad you had an amazing time.

Entertainment: The entire group enjoyed everything we saw. (Almost). The singers, dancers, skaters, divers and other performers displayed amazing talent! The athletic ability of some of them will blow you away. Aqua 80’s was the best water show I have seen. I think the music and me being old helped make it that way😂. The headliners were good. I think I’ve already mentioned that Kaitlyn, Taylor and I returned for Stephanie Parker’s 2nd show the night she performed. Jeff Tracta has been around for awhile but we enjoyed his talent again. Jack Daniels and I returned for his 2nd show as well. 😁🥃. Interesting story on that. JD and I sent an email to Allan after the first show asking if he could reserve the front row seats for us at the 2nd show. I usually send the emails myself but that evening I let Jack assist in sending it - and he sent it to the Genie on the Allure instead of to Allan. Allan later told me the the Allure Genie immediately contacted him to see if he had some crazy elderly dude who wanted to see the headliner again! It all ended well. I’m known across the fleet. Jack is no longer allowed to send emails. We loved the ice skating as usual. So entertaining and such incredible talent. The comedians were ok, one much better than the other. The Escape Room was an amazing afternoon of entertainment. Having actually watched a Space Shuttle launch from the real Mission Control, I enjoyed the creativity and realistic “ Mission.” CATS: None of us really wanted to see it. We skipped it the first time on the Oasis. But this year our merry little group decided it was a “must see” just to see what all the fuss is about. I will say that the performers are extremely talented. We learned during our backstage tour that the kitties each do their own makeup! The singing and dancing is top notch. But that sucker seemed like 8 hours long with 15 minute stretches of complete silence thrown in! And speaking of stretches, those cats can, and do, stretch and slither right up to the edge of the stage - where they look right into the eyes of the unrefined Star Class folks who obviously do not appreciate theater. Your eyes lock with those of the felines as they are laying on the stage at eye level and only about three feet in front of you! I kept whispering to Stacy, “ Don’t yawn....”. It was the longest 90 minutes of my life since I used to watch Dora the Explorer with toddler Taylor😂

This is the first time I’ve seen it.

Yay 28 days! I think we ate more this year in Coastal Kitchen than we did on Harmony. But we just found the food to be more to our liking this year. We haven’t been on the Anthem. Yet. I have no clue where those little apple pie flowers come from. I just found them in the suite. Everyday. Sometimes twice. When I had the apple pie in a dining venue it was a slice. Allan just made it happen😀

The tortilla and egg things were Huevos Rancheros and the other is Crabcakes Benedict. Both ordered through the Genie for breakfast

I apologize for the delay in finishing this. Hardly belongs on the “live blog” page now! It’s been a very busy return to work. Food: The ladies are the food experts, but I didn’t hear many complaints. All, or some of us, ate at Coastal Kitchen, Chops, 150, Giovanni, Izumi, Playmakers, Portside, Loco Fresh, Solarium Bistro, Sorrentos and even the Windjammer. I found all of the food to be good. 150 was not the favorite for any of us. Ive already described some of the meals so I’ll just hit some random thoughts. I still think the best food item ever served on a Royal Ship, or any other ship, is the Mushroom Soup. I fell in love with it 4 years ago and enjoyed it many times. Kaitlyn doesn’t like mushrooms.. She tried it on the last night and was sorry she hadn’t discovered it earlier! Our Chops meal on our balcony was good. Temperature was fine. The seafood tower was missing the tower but still awesome. The filet in CK is the best on the ship I think. Playmakers has awesome food and it’s a great place to hang out and watch everything on the boardwalk. Portside BBQ was very good but almost always empty. I wonder how long that will last since it takes up so much space. We all like Loco Fresh. It’s great fun to make your own creation with all of the ingredients. The ladies loved the Sushi in Izumi. The Hibachi experience was really fun and the food very good – but it’s a lot of food! We all thought the food in the CK was better than the Harmony last year. I think we somehow managed to eat most offerings on the ship. But for the 4th cruise in a row I have missed the doghouse! It’s on my list for August!! The food delivered to the suite was always good, but the room service operation did manage to miss or forget some things. An afternoon snack of shrimp cocktails came with no cocktail sauce. The Chops dinner we had on the balcony was missing several things. No butter for the seafood tower, no topping fo the baked potato and other small things. It was all corrected when we asked. The overall food experience was more than good!

Please tell him that Stacy, Taylor, Kaitlyn, Shari and Jim send our best and we miss him!

Three words: Royal. Loft. Suite. They send someone up to dry your hair. 😂🤣🤣

Absolutely not! I told him you would be a wonderful family😁

It’s getting real! Glad you made it safely. Can’t wait for you to meet Allan tomorrow. (We talked about you last week😁).

So, @Lovetocruise2002, I have worked everyday since I departed the Oasis last Sunday. Finally I get a day off today and sat down to wrap up my blog. Then I see this, which of course I HAD to read😂. I’m looking forward to following along.

Can’t wait to read more😀

One more Star Class tip for tonight. I sat in the front row aisle seat 5 times in the main theater. It was great. But if you sit there while you are seeing Cats, be rested and don’t yawn - because you will be eye to eye with a Cat. Or two. 😂

Forgot the photos!

I said in the last post I would write about food next but I looked at my list and saw that Genie/Star Class was next on my list. Star Class: From the moment you check in at the purple banner until the moment you are abandoned curbside to find your own way home, this method of travel is simply the best. As I compare the 3 Star experiences there are differences by ship and of course by Genie. The differences by ship are, in my opinion, minor. Some allow lunch in the suite on day 1 and others don’t. Some take your luggage at night, others in the morning. Some will let you rent the Rising Tide Bar, others won’t. Some send a custom drink cart to the suites in the afternoon, on another ship you almost die of thirst. But overall the perks are the same. It all depends on what you ask for, who your genie is and what your expectations are. I enjoy all the standard things provided: The escort on and off the ship. The front row seating at the shows. The dining, drinks, laundry, internet, room service, and the suite stocked with drinks and snacks. (Even M&M’s). We happen to be a family who really enjoys the suite itself. I wrote most of this blog from 3 places on the ship. In the suite lounge, on the loft desk but most out on the massive balcony. There is just a really a great feeling being in that suite and knowing I can pick up the phone and most, if not all, of my requests will be provided for. We asked for the backstage tour. Think about this, there are 6000 guests on this ship. And here are the five of us with the Production Manager, in a totally empty main theater, being shown the technology they use, the dressing rooms, costumes and the props used during the productions. That’s amazing to me - that’s Star Class. Sending laundry out everyday and returning home with a suitcase of clean clothing. Dining in a restaurant and having the staff just bring you everything even if you don’t ask for it. Having someone show up everyday just to make sure you are ok and have everything you need! That’s all Star Class. I love watching my hard working, fun loving, undemanding ladies be spoiled for the week. That alone is worth the price of admission. We didn’t get one thing that we asked for. I had asked for a brief tour of the medical facility for the two nurses. That request was initially granted but then changed because there was on the last day “a lot going on down there.” Evidently they had a good number of ill patients. The two nurses readily agreed they didn’t want to go under those circumstances. I have to say we have been pampered and spoiled on all 3 Star. Class trips. And I need to put that in perspective. I think I mentioned earlier that I had the honor to serve in our White House for several years. I have been blessed to ride around on AF-1, meet foreign leaders and once even dined with a King. So my attitude has always been “ I’m easily pleased, but not easily impressed.” But vacationing on Royal, in Star Class, has impressed me. It’s something I hope to do do many more times. The Genie. I’ll just cut to the chase on this one. If you are fortunate enough to to travel with Allan...it doesn’t get any better. This guy is amazing in so many ways. I personally have really, really enjoyed all 3 Genies we have sailed with. Dave Mac provided us with a great experience. The next time Ariceli convinced me that nobody could come within the same zip code as her level of service. But Allan did. He is a personable, knowledgeable, creative, fun, funny, genuine, this is who I am kind of guy. I know much more about him than I know of the others because we spent time together and shared our life. We had Champagne, caviar, strawberry’s and other treats in our room the last night because of him. We all laughed together and enjoyed each other’s company. This guy was made for this job. I can see both Ariceli and Dave doing other things. But Allan is....he’s made for being the perfect Royal Genie. If you sail with him you’ll be happy. I still want to adopt Ariceli and I would cruise with her again in a heartbeat. But Allan really hit a home run. So tomorrow night, or as soon as I can, will be food. A spoiler alert here @Lovetocruise2002, I had the filet in the CK, Chops x2, 150, Izumi and Giovanni’s. I’m a meat eater. I’m the newest member of team CK! It was the best.

I’m loving this blog. Thanks for all the great detail!

Tomorrow I’ll write about everyone’s favorite, the food. And although I’ll write more about the crew later, this picture i think sums up the attitude of the Oasis crew. (With the exception of the pool bartenders. 😁) When we returned to the ship in Falmouth this was the crew from the photo department. It wasn’t crowded at the time so they were chatting among themselves. As we walked by I turned my camera toward them and within a second they reacted like this. Not a word was spoken. This was a fun, classic moment.

The Suite: I can’t say enough good things about the the tiny, cramped, barely inhabitable space they call the Royal Loft Suite😃 I have only cruised on Oasis Class in a Crown Loft and the Royal Loft. I spent time in.a 2BR Auqua Suite last year with Shari and her family. I have “toured” the Star Loft and Panoramic suites on the Harmony. I guess it all depends on what kind of price you can find, how many in your party and just personal preference, but after 3 in a row in the RLS it would tough to do anything else. I know how spoiled that sounds, but it’s true. I have had several crew on different ships tell me “You’re in the biggest, most expensive, one of a kind suite on the ship - so just ask for what you want.” The suite is amazing. So much space. Dining tables for 8 both inside and on the balcony. The outside jacuzzi. The master shower in the loft is just really a cool life experience😂 It has two shower heads and a rain dome. Turn them all on at once and you get lost in there! Showering while watching the ocean go by just cant be duplicated. I tried to remodel at home, but I could only see the goats..The loft bed is very comfortable. The downstairs bedroom and bath are a suite by themselves. The living area is a great gathering area. Last year on the Harmony there were 10 of us and we all hung out there at times. The Oasis actually has real books on all those shelves. Taylor was an avid reader this year. There is a mini refrigerator both in the dining area and up in the loft. Some call them coolers but I can tell you that the sodas, waters, juices and beers stocked in them were cold and ready to drink. We had two issues with the suite this year. The loft television which i already mentioned and the electric drapes. We had maintenance in the room half a dozen times sorting it all out. Will we sail in this room again? Yes. On August 30th. If you have a chance to snag an Oasis Class RLS, do it. You will have the cruise experience of your life. But also beware...you’ll be hooked. Trust me.

So to begin to wrap this up I thought I would just summarize my thoughts on certain areas. My plan is to break it down to: Embarkation/Debarkation The Suite The Genie/Star Class Food Entertainment Room Attendants/Crew Ports If there is anything else you would like my opinion on just ask. I’ll not finish them all tonight. I went back to work early this morning and now feel like I fell on the FlowRider and it tossed me to the helipad. But I’ll begin. Embarkation/Debarkation: Very smooth both ways. Straight to the Star Class Banner on day one. We were in the Suite waiting area in minutes. You really do feel pretty special when they whisk you to your private elevator to take you to the lounge. The new terminal is beautiful. The staff was professional and welcoming. Plenty of snacks and drinks available. Allan took us and one other family on right after Super Mario boarded - probably cant beat that. I found it amusing that one of your first sights upon stepping into the promenade is the Next Cruise sign😂 The whole process was very quick. I don’t know the couple in the cool shirts but I asked if I could include them in the blog. Debarkation: A difference between last year on the Harmony with luggage. Last year it was taken the night before. This year they came to get it at 7:30 am. Allan met us in the suite at around 930 with the magic elevator key and about 5 minutes later we were outside calling an Uber. Just this perk alone is a major draw of Star Class. It was probably the easiest on and off of any of the last three.

Made it home safely. Goats, cats and dogs are all happy. Happier than we are! Lots of turbulence on both flights. I’ll gather my final thoughts on this trip and post. But for now some sleep. Will head to work in 11 hours.

Greetings from the Miami Airport! You all can insert your own “Where’s my Genie” jokes. But the pain is real! I hear the ship was cleared about 30-40 minutes late this morning but we really didn’t pay attention since we were meeting Allan at 930. Our luggage was picked up this morning at 730 and was waiting for us as soon as we stepped out of the elevator. Took an Uber to the airport. My fears of Super Bowl Sunday traffic were unfounded. It was actually extremely light. We should be boarding in just a few minutes. One stop in Dallas and then home.

Thanks for reading! Next cruise is 210 days. Same ship, same genie. Same room😁

Just got off of the Oasis this morning and sitting in the Miami airport. You will love it!,

Miami has never looked this bad!😂. I have more pictures and some thoughts to share. I might do some at the airport but will post more when I’m home. Breakfast in CK and then off to deal with Super Bowl Sunday in Miami!