DDaley

We did this exact same thing for out first cruise in '09. (Same ship, Same flight path DTW/FLL direct) and thankfully had no hiccups.
As long as you don't have any fight departure issues, you shouldn't have any problems.
Just make sure you have all your documentation in order, really. (passports, set sail pass, luggage tags.) Speaking of luggage tags, I would recommend getting the easily attachable luggage tag sleeves for Royal Caribbean luggage tags from amazon. It sounds like a simple thing, but, it makes preparing and attaching them after the flight (either at baggage claim or the port) much simpler than trying to tape/staple paper to your handles. Plus they are more secure and make on ship luggage delays less likely.
And BTW, WELCOME TO THE RCBLOG BOARDS!!!

A new addition to CocoCay is the Chill Island Snack Shack.


All CocoCay dining venues now have hand washing stations.

The Snack Shack menu is complimentary.

I came back later when they were open.  Note the two windows in the middle have a platform for kids to order.

The Shack Crispy Chicken Sandwich.  Yum.

I think I found my new default snack on CocoCay.  It was really good.

This sandwich was made in the kitchen within the building.  I had a two minute wait while they prepared it since it was a slow time.  It isn't something from the ship that was cooked hours earlier, it was quite good.

Here’s hoping that Coco Cay was Practically Perfect in Every Way!

I know, I know.  I promised no more sunset pictures.
I lied.



What a way to end a wonderful day at sea.

Lol... Thank you!!   I'm not a shorts person so I wear all Target, lands end and now Zulily dresses!    The weather has been absolutely wonderful... Way less hot than the last couple weeks!!  Really hoping we don't broil in Athens!  
I took an art history class my sophomore year of college and it was amazing... It made me dream of seeing all of this!  You are right... He built the dinner with the bricks angled a different way that was revolutionary and could support weight differently than the old Gothic Churchs.  Ahhh...I need to go back already!  Jane

Loving all the pictures!! I am suddenly remembering tiny details about the Pieta and the Sistine ceiling from my years of memorizing art history test note cards. Brunelleschi's dome was buttress-free which was unheard of! haha 
Also, you have so many great summer dresses!  ?

Hi @Shawn T, welcome to the forums!
If you're having dinner in the MDR and you want a drink at the start of your meal, it's better to get it from Vintages (for wine) or one of the bars (other drinks) before you go inside. You're perfectly free to take the glass with you into the MDR. The drink service tends to be a bit slow in the MDR, especially on day 1.
You are welcome to go on the helipad for sail-away, and it's an awesome spot to enjoy that part of each day or even mid-day for some quiet time and a view of the ocean. It's very easy to get to: From deck 5 on the Royal Promenade, go all the way forward to the Star Lounge. After you walk through the entrance, immediately turn right and go through the double doors by the sound booth window, then another set of doors to get onto the outside walking track. Turn left and go all the way forward to a set of stairs, which will take you up to the helipad. You can also get there by going onto the walking track on deck 4, going all the way forward to the stairwell up to deck 5, then taking that and going forward to the helipad stairs. It will be closed off in inclement weather or high winds for safety reasons.
The helipad is sometimes also available at night, but it's up to the crew whether they leave the access gates on the walking track open. It is amazing to go there and see the stars while in you're in the middle of the ocean on a clear night. If you do go there, you must not use any flashlight on  your phone, take any flash photos, or do anything else that shines a light in the area; the captain and bridge crew need the area dark as they are using night vision glasses and other low-light tools while navigating. If they spot any lights on the helipad, they will send security down super-quick and you'll be politely but firmly escorted off the helipad, and they will close off access for the rest of the night.

To get to the helicopter pad at the front of the ship go to deck four and walk the outside all the way forward where you will find stairs leading up and forward to the helicopter pad. I remember my first couple times on that ship always wondering how people got there. The ship is awesome and you will love it. 

Day 11, Cruise 2 Day 5 - Belize
I awoke late after staying up late for the Milky Way and discovered we were at anchor in Belize.  Due to the great barrier reef system here and the lack of a pier or deep water harbor ships must anchor well away from shore (and the reefs) .  Guests use tenders to make it anywhere.
The tenders were queuing up getting ready to take guest ashore.

One of the many tenders in use today.

Today I booked Scuba Diving through Royal Caribbean in the Cruise Planner before sailing.  Catching a sale event and given the tender operations it's just easier booking through Royal especially in Belize since it's a tender port. 
Our meeting point is common on many Royal ships for ship excursions, the main theater.  Here all guests received a different sticker based on their excursion and we waited to be called.

When they were ready for us or excursion was called.  Our dive boat picked us up right at the ship.  We would never visit the Belize mainland today, we went straight to our dive boat and back.  A couple of Carnival guests were already on the dive boat since we shared anchorage with the Carnival Conquest today.

in the past sometimes these dive boats will take you their dive shop to get fitted.  In our case they came prepared with all of our gear and some extra stuff for size mismatches.  From here it was roughly a 45 minute ride to the reef we would dive today.

i had bought a new underwater housing for my RX100.  Yesterday as I was getting my stuff ready the inner gasket popped out of the track on the new housing.  I spent some time trying to get it back in but there was no way I could get it to stay.  Not willing to risk my favorite travel camera I went back to my old GoPro for underwater shots.
The reef is very beautiful here and the pictures don't do it justice.



A Green Moray eel wasn't very pleased with our presence.

Our dive master pointed out a resting stingray in the sand below.

Two Spotted Eagle Rays swam past at a safe distance to check us out.  Very majestic with their movement.

We enjoyed two dives with a surface interval in between.  This is all done with a plan to respect dive tables and how your body absorbs gases under pressure at depth.
Both were enjoyable dives but I was disappointed I couldn't use a better camera compared to my aging GoPro.
After the dive was over they served a box lunch and we headed back for the 45 minute ride to the ships.


We stopped first to drop off the Carnival guests at the Conquest.  The Conquest class was my first introduction to Carnival when I used to sail with them a number of years ago before switching to Royal.  It really struck me how badly the Conquest needed a paint job.

Finally we were off to our home around the corner.


Big difference that some routine maintenance can make.

I'm sure they would be happy to charge you for a color copy if you'd like one.

Today has been a simply relaxing day. We got off the ship for a bit so that Hubby could check out the buffet at Barefoot beach. He really enjoys it whenever we have access there. 



Labadee is so pretty, and natural. I really hope that they leave it instead of turning it into a theme park atmosphere like Coco Cay.  Here are a few pics from our time out and about today. 



Not a fan of the heat and buffet myself, I came back to the ship to enjoy this again.

Regarding Fast Track Boarding, the white flag was out today, no signage, and again, there was no difference which gangway people used. Oh well...lost cause.
The rest of our afternoon was spent laying out on the balcony with drinks. There was a nice breeze, our balcony faced Labadee, I did some reading and Hubby napped.  Perfect. ?
 

I had clicked through to see the PDF versions Matt posted on the blog and was impressed with the full bleed/color design! I see it's not that way in practice though. B/W even for a Sky Class guest?! Cheapskates.

One word of advise, specify the brand of alcohol you want in your drinks rather than getting whatever is considered "well"
For example: Getting something with vodka? Ask specifically for Tito's, Grey Goose, etc.
Also, check out the PDF on this post for an AMAZING list of drinks.
 

I'm thinking maybe yours is that way since it was already custom! I don't see this option under Basic Info for regular-ol' users. 

@Lovetocruise2002 hope your going to get off for a pina colada and mofungo at least!

I'm pretty sure it's offered every evening and there is a very small time window where they serve it, like from 6:00 to 7:30 or something close to that.  If I find the exact times I'll update my post.

I've heard an unverified rumour (from a reliable source) that Royal has plans for a private island in Mexican Riviera and a new home on the west coast for Liberty once the new Oasis sized terminal is built in Galveston. Fingers crossed.

With our fabulous dinner over around 10pm I was too full to retire so I changed into shorts and went for a walk outside on deck 6.  Venturing forward we were sailing into some sea mist from the warm waters yet cooling air and there were some clouds in the sky but I also glimpsed what I thought was something I've photographed before in the night sky.  So I went back to grab my camera and mini tripod.
I've often sailed into the sunset but tonight we were sailing into the milky way.

Capturing the milky way requires long exposures but on a moving ship in the ocean it took some playing around to find some settings that worked.  With the 10 to 15 second exposures I was using I managed to catch some lighting in a distant storm on the horizon.
The bow is dark at night so the bridge crew can keep watch.  The long exposures captured enough light to make the bow look like it's illuminated but it isn't, that's just low levels of ambient light 

The sea mist, clouds and moving ship didn't make for the best astrophotography conditions but I'm pleased with the results.  More lightning:

On land the stars would be more precise and clear, that's the problem with shooting from a moving platform, but I'll take the results.

Shaming Jane because she had 3 drinks or because she ONLY had 3 drinks? 

Yes, you can access the source in this cabin. That likely is not standard across all cabins.  We could not access it in our Grand suite on Harmony back in 2017.

After eating in the WJ, we wandered onto the pool deck.  It was busy but there were still chairs available if you looked.

Continuing on, we made our way to the Suite sun deck.  Even on a sea day, no crowds up there. 


The minor differences here compared to Harmony are the missing cabanas that Harmony has. Instead, there is this wide open, unshaded area if you are looking for full sun. Many have complained about this on periscope and other forums. I thought it was really windy here and in port this area is likely going to get really hot. Hubby liked it. He thinks it is great to have this wide open space. 

This here is another area where the suite sun decks on OA class beats out Quantum class.  The suite sun deck bar. And note, there are always chips here ?

Miami Sail Away
The Crown and Anchor Loyalty Ambassador hosts a Diamond and up sail away behind Boleros on deck 6 outside.  Since Empress doesn't have a Diamond Lounge this event is offered.
Louis our LA is there to greet us

It's a great covered location to take in the sail away from.

Several officers drop by to greet guests.  This included the Hotel Director, Revenue Manager, Marketing Manager and a few others I forget to note their positions.

Oh that Miami traffic.  You know it's bad when a cruise ship is going faster than the traffic.

We passed Symphony of the Seas as we departed.
The not so little, biggest ship as seen from the biggest, little ship.   



Cheers and Happy Anniversary to @Lovetocruise2002 and hubster who embarked Symphony today. 

You can read her live blog from Symphony here:
https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/14288-“symphony-no-17-celebration-relaxation-exploration-reflection”-–-072719-–-080319/
Miami beach was pretty popular today.

So our room is very cool!  I just scoped it but unlike @Lovetocruise2002 I have no idea how to link it here!  We are in a spacious family oceanview or something like that ..4032!    What I hear is that we were fortunate because we only have 3 people and they often make you have 4 or 5.  We booked the week after the rooms opened up and it is going to be so nice to have all that room!! Here are a few pics!






For sure the paintings have been refreshed since 2015.  Everything seems very neat and clean so far on the ship.  I may need to nap in my solarium chair ...    Jane

Bon Voyage ???

Nice sunset tonight.  Best place to take it in was deck 6 aft behind Boleros.