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We like the fixed price souvenir shop (not the barter-only vendors on the back road), swimming in the cove, and generally walking around. We had a fantastic snorkel excursion several years ago. Generally, it is a relaxing beach day. Haven't tried the zipline. That may be on my bucket list. Would like to try the roller coaster.

I don't agree with some other cruisers. Pick-pocketing is a real risk in many ports. Therefore, we follow Royal's guidance. I have known people who were robbed. I once had my passport soaked with seawater on an excursion. I haven't known anyone who was left behind and needed something the Port Agent couldn't retrieve. Normally, on a cruise you put all valuables in your stateroom safe. More and more ports want a photo ID to go with your seapass, but the cruise compass will spell it out. If you do choose to carry a passport off the ship, consider a super-secure under-the-clothing pouch. They even have some with wires sewn into the straps so they can't be "clipped and yanked."

While I echo what Twangster said about Royal's value proposition and balance, I believe the itineraries are important. I don't believe I would have ever visited the Canary Islands but for a Royal Caribbean cruise, and while many lines sail the Med, I don't think the price tag would have been in our budget. Our best cruises occurred before we made Diamond, so the free drinks weren't a factor, but the Crown and Anchor celebrations were a plus -- being welcomed back and treated like VIPs. Our only explorations (not yet booked) with other cruise lines have involved seeing French Polynesia, which Royal seldom visits. So it is a combination of the total value plus itineraries.

My advice is to be considerate to others. My son wore shorts when we lost our suitcase, no problem. Some men wear expensive designer shorts, no problem. But there are other venues that are casual, so the recommendation is always to pack something appropriate (as you would wear stateside for a nice restaurant). There is no "enforcement" as noted because everyone's situation is different and different people/cultures have different customs. but

Ajaccio (Corsica), Portofino, Palermo, in addition to the ABCs already mentioned...

On our cruise out of Tampa it was 12 noon.

When I used the Royal App to check-in earlier this month, I was prompted to select a check in time. Not sure what South Carolina has to do with it (or do you mean Southern Caribbean?).

We sailed Grandeur many times out of Baltimore, and seas weren't a problem when we had forward rooms. There was some noise, however. So I would check room location with respect to restaurants/kitchens/casino, depending upon the deck.

We break our pre-cruise diet the night before the cruise when we eat out at Coco Beach for a Port Canaveral departure. Other than that, our first dessert, usually in Windjammer spoils our "healthy" salad lunch on Day 1.

You might still find it cheaper a la carte if 2-3 drinks per day. Keep in mind there are various specials throughout the week, free Crown and Anchor drinks, sampling the booze in duty free, or even buying into a "wine tasting activity".

The primary purpose of travel insurance is to provide protection assuming your cruise does happen. It is separate from Cruise with Confidence. You could have an accident enroute, lose luggage, have an accident on the cruise, etc. If you purchase travel insurance and your trip is cancelled, you can probably transfer the coverage to your "replacement" cruise. (Allianz allows this.)

While most people are trusting, there have been occasional thefts on board or at private beaches. Therefore, I recommend a back-up plan. We have the phone sized lanyard cases previously described, and we alternate using the water so one of us can "guard" our stuff. 98% of the time you will be OK by "covering up", but be prepared for the 2%, even when on an excursion that offers "lockers". The ships are generally safe, but can be quirky. I had a wallet returned to me, but not a baseball cap I left in the MDR. Have a great cruise!

For future, there are phone sized lanyard holders with double seals. I like keeping some items close to me when walking to excursions. Then I can use backpack as suggested on small boat. When taking sunscreen, use reef safe.

Normal clothes for a nice restaurant. Outside it can be breezy and under sail.

We arrived the same day in Europe twice, largely due to my son's school schedule and the high cost of hotel rooms for a party of 3 (Spain insisted on two rooms). We survived hiccups along the way -- flight cancelled, then train broke down, then planes changed. I wouldn't do it again to Europe, but with Air2Sea and trip insurance, we really thought it would work. And it did. The time of year makes a difference (we did this in summer), and I always had a list of back-up connections. Going to NZ, we made it appoint to travel a day early, and guess what -- the airlines lost our luggage....That broke my wife's heart. All you can do is plan with the best information you have, carry insurance, and be determined to ride out the ups and downs.

I think you should try it at least once. We will try a JS on our next Mediterranean cruise in the fall. For us, the cost seemed reasonable, but that isn't always the case. With all of the Covid frustrations, I think it's OK to splurge on a special trip.

I hear what you are saying and agree that positivity rates on cruise ships aren't alarming, but we can't make the scientific comparison you suggest because of sampling issues (we didn't randomly assign subjects to each sample, and sample sizes vary, etc.). I happened to read Virginia stats this morning, and I believe the infection rate among fully vaccinated people was about 1.5%, double that for partially-vaccinated, and 4 times that for unvaccinated. There are still sampling issues, but these data and those from other states are perhaps more like apple-to-apple comparisons that show the benefit of vaccinations. Back to cruising, I don't believe it is riskier than land-based vacations, and I believe it is actually safer. I think you brought up a good point.

You might check that your cruise wasn't recently cancelled. We were cancelled by Royal the day after we received our cruise documents.

I really appreciate the update, but where can I confirm? We talked to our agent yesterday, and it was still on. Thanks! Belay that request -- my wife just found the notice others posted.

Another member recently posted his experience on this. See (from Saturday) the post: Getting off ship after cabin isolation

Congratulations on your results! Have a great cruise! I am definitely envious...

Ham and cheese crepes in Villefranche.

Your picture brought to mind a question -- are we allowed to open the cardboard box (but not the enclosed test kits) prior to the proctored test? Or is the unpacking of the cardboard box something that must be witnessed by the proctor? The video I watched showed a "kit" already removed from a box.

There are problems in your math, too, so we will need to agree to disagree. For example, when we compare the incidence of infection to a broader population (to calculate a percentage), we can't use all of the US. Many of us stay at home and don't socialize, so we aren't in the population of land-based persons from which the testing samples are drawn (biased though they may be). Yet in these samples, the percentage testing positive is very high (as in over 10% for a geographic area). Admittedly, comparing one biased sample to another is like comparing apples and oranges, but the trend is there -- land-based socializers and workers are getting infected at a high rate (over a 1-week period) relative to cruise ships (over a 1-week period). Absent a true random sample study that compares cruising to land socializing, we can't make a definitive comparison. But we do know that millions of Americans are infectious over a two-week period based on government published statistics. We also know that many of them are unvaccinated and unmasked. So we choose cruising because, when we socialize, we want to hang out with vaccinated and masked individuals. Whatever folks choose to do, we hope everyone has a safe and joyful 2022.

The last time we were in Roatan (2019) I wanted to buy some local currency for souvenirs. I noticed in a "straw market" we walked by that Honduran currency could be purchased for US dollars...