DDaley

Awesome, that sounds promising! Definitely wouldn’t mind rolling it down the street, we’re at Terminal 3 and the only other ship in port is Serenade.

How early are porters actively accepting new luggage on embarkation day? I know passengers can’t arrive until boarding time, but can I free myself of the suitcases any earlier than that? The previous cruise should be docked at 7am. We are boarding at 11:30am and I can’t help but notice the Florida Aquarium right next door to the terminal. Would love to hand the bags off and pop over to the aquarium to waste time before boarding. Normally I would bring the bags to the Hampton Inn that’s nearby and tip the bellman handsomely for stowing them, but if I can skip this step that’d be handy!

Awesome! Which itinerary are you going on? You mentioned that it’s 5 nights but I was only aware of 3, 4 and 7 nighters available on NAV. Surely you’ll go farther south than Ensenada with those extra nights, I hope!

If you numbered these from #1-5, top to bottom - #1 is out because it only makes 3 physical stops, why stop at 3 ports when you have options that stop at 4 in the same amount of time? #5 is out because it doesn’t see a glacier while all the others do That leaves #2,3,4 which are all pretty similar. I’d go with Quantum over Ovation because it starts at $100 cheaper for the same class of ship! I personally chose the Quantum itinerary with Sitka because I wanted to do a marine life excursion and the location of Baranof Island is perfect for whales and sea lions!

I am in the same camp when it came to the thick, almost creamy pork belly “bacon” appetizer at Chops. I have this dreamy bacon in my head that we had at The Pinnacle Grill on Holland America and I went back to look and it’s not nearly as thick and impressive as I remembered. Definitely crispy though!! Can’t knock this presentation

I originally had the JS 1100 that has the mega aft balcony! Unfortunately they cancelled that date so I had to snag what I could for March, I so envy everyone facing aft, it’s still on my list. Also, we’re big pool fans so I can’t wait to try these self-leveling tables out! On Oasis, the ones in Playmakers noticeably slanted and rolled all the balls around of their own accord Thanks so much for the blog! Loved reading it.

This is amazing news as I have an Away soft sided carry on! Also! I bought two of them at the same time (second for my husband) and only 1 came, I contacted customer service and they sent TWO replacements! So now I have a backup brand new carry on waiting for me boxed up in the garage. I had no idea I could have my current one replaced if it were to be damaged! Away all the wayyy PS I was CACKLING a few posts back because my next cruise is on the Dink Dink to Cozumel in March! haaahhaha I am still excited to try a bebe RCCL ship.

Even if you’re late through no fault of your own due to a Royal excursion and there’re 30 of you, even if you’re late because of traffic, even if its your big stroller and 3 kids slowing you down, even if you’re helping your elderly mother with mobility issues.... in any of these instances you can still FEIGN a little hustle on the pier if you’re getting back past all aboard.

Phase 10 was my faaaaavorite as a kid!! (well, besides Gin Rummy) Although someone always ended up crying when they inevitably got stuck 3 phases behind everyone else, hahaha. My husband and I always leave a deck of cards in our suitcases so we never forget them but I might start packing the Phase 10, too!

There is a house in my uptight, suburban neighborhood with 4 flamingos on the lawn and I asked my husband if they knew they were broadcasting themselves as swingers! haha

Awesome! I love the Mexican Riviera itinerary. In Catalina, may I recommend a stop at Luau Larry's along the boardwalk for a wiki whacker cocktail, including free ridiculous straw hat with purchase? Sounds like you've got Cabo and Mazatlan covered but in PVR if you're anywhere in the Zona Romantica (south of the central city, across the river with the artist's island - great tchotchke shopping here) you've absolutely got to try Pancho's Takos! Best taco I've ever eaten and the line out the door daily is proof. Have so much fun!

Haha! I Photoshop for a living so you just let me knowwww if I can help get this photo to the people!

Yes please do! It's definitely my go-to breakfast choice at any buffet venue! I have waited in some truly long lines on Royal ships, there's no way it was removed from lack of demand.

Understandable to want to print it! I found it by searching for the sentence you see in the screenshot via google: https://cruisespotlight.com/ship/Royal-Caribbean/Oasis-of-the-Seas/

Is this not the list you're looking for? Or are you looking for the link to the web-version of what's shown in the picture? Seems like you've got all the information right there.

I have definitely seen this before on sailings that are selling very well. Seems like you're out of luck on picking your balcony cabin for that particular sail date. I bet if you tried another type of cabin or chose another date the ability to select the exact cabin will return!

I was at Disneyland December 26th 2004 and said exactly this!! Eighteen years later I only venture in on Wednesdays during non-holiday months I so hope you guys have a great time on HM!!

The baby blue pool towels provided on board are smaller than that, around 24" by 55" (although this estimate is from my memory + a tape measure). When I was on a chilly California sailing recently, I needed 3 of them to properly tuck in/cover my body like a blanket! haha

I have still only seen Hamilton at our touring theatre here in San Diego (although I did go 3 times) and would love to go with you! The ambience has gotta be better when they don't have to haul in and out every few days. PS Does Miami not have a Fairmont?! So sad about the Intercontinental!

Haha, I had to go look and it says it would take 44 hours ONE WAY (with no traffic) to drive from Kochi to the Taj Mahal! Maybe they're planning on helicopter rides?

This is correct!

J4 is double occupancy while the J3's can hold 3-4 guests. I loved our J4 on Freedom (9538) as it was close to the elevators and we could easily peer into the bridge to see the officers during docking!

As a fellow cruise water slide lover let me recommend she pack a bathing suit in whatever bag you carry onto the ship so she can try the on-board slides out first thing! The lines will be shortest because people say "we'll do that tomorrow" or are waiting for their luggage to arrive at their cabin to change. She'll have the slides mostly to herself for a few hours before any lines start building up.

I use my AirTag religiously too, but we only ever do carry-on luggage. Once they made me relinquish the bag on the ramp for being "too big for the overhead" (even when it had been on 4 other planes of the same exact model on the same trip) and it ended up in another state so now I have to have a way of knowing where it is even if its always with me! The funniest part to me is always the notifications of "Daryl you've left your bag behind, it was last seen in the Pacific Ocean" whenever we leave the cabin! PS. Love the luggage covers, I have a fancy Away soft-sided carry-on and I hate how banged up it's gotten on just 2 trips!

You can leave the bags at literally any reputable hotel chain in the city that's in a convenient location for drop-off and pickup on your way to the airport. I have never, in my 15+ years of doing this, been asked by the bellhop/concierge if I am actually a guest of the hotel. Only requirement is to tip handsomely upon your return!