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Around Memorial Day it was all about rain and parkas, less about cold and winter coats. You need clothes that dry quickly. At formal night I wore a nice sweater and tie rather than a sport coat. Most scenery or animal sightings were before reaching port. Windjammer was a good place to see the sights.

And we found the fixed price gift shop very pleasant.

Isn't  it up to the vendors who now require tickets? So unless vendors have a list of names from Royal to check off, I'm not sure how a Seapass would work off the ship. I wouldn't want a vendor to be able to extract personal data electronically. Since we need ID, vendor should just check name on it.

PS. It's  not cyber safe for a vendor to be anywhere near your smart phone. I've seen too many Leverage reruns.

If they are still using punch card, it depends whether ship name is written on the card. In the past you could if not ship specific. Stand by for recent users.

39 minutes ago, wordell1 said:

Do you have any examples of a green card holder being denied reentry to the US?  

Yes, it's  been in the news. But you probably won't find it on the entertainment channel. Try BBC, AP, and others.

3 hours ago, CruiseRoyalDad said:

It would be good to know what the elevated cruising risk is. As my fellow North Carolinian can you elaborate? It would help keep us the RC blog community safe. 

For Americans abroad, anti-American sentiment has increased, and some ports have had an uptick in crime. For foreigners coming to US, the border issues have been documented. I have felt safest transiting locations with facial rec. If I were a green card holder, I would be careful about leaving the US to cruise. In general, geopolitics have raised travel risk some undetermined amount. We just need to pay attention to what is going rather than deny it. Many hope for clarity in the months to come.

There is elevated cruising risk for everyone right now, although it's difficult to quantify as media reports don't represent a random sample. To discount the risk is naive. We continue to cruise but are more vigilant. I encourage others to do the same.

Our shis stopped at Villefranche in the past, near Nice. We tendered. 

$59 on my upcoming cruise, but that may be a Diamond rate.

Fall 2027 cruises won't be out until October  to November. Did you check April to May 2027 schedule? 

Most of my cruises have been on Vision or Radiance class, so Voyager is large, just not a mega ship. I started cruising on Voyager and am looking forward to Adventure in February. Other comments are on the mark. 

We have such a sophisticated palate that we embrace the complimentary Crown and Anchor wine, which is provided in screw-top bottles! No fighting the cork or the fees. As stated, we drink in the stateroom.

It's been awhile, but my wife loved a short rib appetizer. I don't believe it's available now.

PS. Oops. That was CP 150.

Your TA had access to the same prices at time of booking. Additionally, some travel agencies can provide group rates at discount for particular cruises. But the real benefit of a TA is the help he or she gives to solve problems and answer questions. Some agents are better than others. MEI sponsors this site. Remember that Royal's ads don't mean much. You need to do a mock booking to compare prices. Stateroom prices vary. Have a great cruise!

I honestly don't think Royal will adopt Carnival's policy. But as we age, our bucket list (itinerary) is more important than cruise line. We have booked cruises twice the cost of Royal for that reason, as others do. Booze vouchers really aren't that important to us. Younger travelers likely would be affected adversely by royalty program dilution.

Another reason to sell Carnival stock now!

Self-assist luggage is recommended whenever you are pressed for time. Day and time of arrival are important, too.

1 hour ago, Icon vaccation said:

 

P.s can my boys wear bathing suits to the windjammer? This would be swim shorts and a swim shirt.

Thank you!!!!

No bathing suits in Windjammer, so they'd want to change into something dry. I have shorts designed for swimming, but they must be dry for indoor seating. Now women wear coverups, and they are welcome in the WJ. Need decent footwear, no bare feet. Guys need shirts, which your kids are already wearing.. As an aside, Carnival has a video on what Not to wear at their buffet. Same idea applies here.

On my cruise in May there were announcements by Cruise Director day 7 to get photos and redeem casino points or chips. The lead paragraph of the Compass stated last day to buy photos. The App likely showed the photo department opening at 10 or so. 

Our take is that the lobster is still a special cruise ritual although it isn't fantastic. I am disappointed in the prime rib, which is either too small a slice, too large, or too rare. Will skip that next cruise. On the plus side we continue to enjoy lamb shank night 7, a real surprise. While service in specialty restaurants is good, we've given up on the filet mignon, which lacks something. Bottom line is that the MDR is good enough for us, but not perfect, so we explore new choices. Miss the duck in the old menu.

By acquire I meant build or purchase. I wouldn't sell leadership short. They will do whatever makes business sense.

On 6/23/2025 at 4:28 PM, Jeanne L said:

Hi Cindy,

Did you end up doing the downtown sights and beach break excursion in St. Thomas? If so, was curious what you thought of it?
We are sailing in 2 weeks and am trying to decide what to do.
Thank you,

Jeanne

We are doing a Magens Bay combo excursion which is given good reviews by vloggers.

I expect older ships to last and itinerary changes to optimize the fleet as ships are replaced.  If Royal continues to grow, I believe they will acquire the vessels they need, even if pre-owned.

3 hours ago, USFFrank said:

This happens on lots of cruises for diamonds and above

Remember, starting at diamond your first 4 drinks of choice (I believe up to $15.00?) are free each day.

They want to get more money out of the diamonds and above.

On the Serenade it was still $14 for wine.

I am more impressed that my TA knows more than I, even if she doesn't know everything. Example: Agent advised paying more for direct flight to London a day early, but I insisted on a cheaper arrangement to save $1000. Wouldn't you know, the flight was delayed, the train we were booked, broke down, and we barely made our connection (only because of connecting flight delay). I regret not following our TA's advice. This was a TA we met in person and with whom we had a good relationship. She wasn't perfect, but she was very good.