cruisestuff

The business model Royal uses in China was developed locally in that region.  Other cruise lines have failed or had limited success in China because they tried to take their standard product from another region and force it to work in China.  Royal didn't do that, they built their China business model from scratch following cultural norms and expectations for Chinese consumers.  
I had a conversation with a hotel director who spent 7 contracts working in Asia.  In China specifically it's apparently normal to charge for everything.  Chinese guests are not shocked by this practice, it's accepted.      
Expanding this successful model to include Singapore likely isn't being done blindly or out of greed.  Singapore consumers possibly track closer with some Chinese cultural norms than they do with some Western norms and expectations.   It also reduces crew confusion as ships like Quantum shift between Singapore and China home ports.
European consumers are similar to, but also different than North American consumers in some areas.  Royal and some of the other big cruise industry players take a North American product and plug it into Europe.  This works to some degree because a lot of North Americans end up on those European cruises but there is evidence of the incongruity with European consumers in areas like gratuity practices.  Contrast that with China cruises where very few Westerners end up on ships sailing from a China home port.  
The "all inclusive" mentality of the cruise market is an interesting discussion.  In the early days cruises may have been more towards all inclusive.  There was one dining room on the ship where all meals were consumed.  There was no buffet, no other smaller restaurants on board to supplement the primary dining venue like there are today.  Back in that day sometimes wine was offered at dinner but most guests in that era wouldn't binge drink at dinner simply because it was offered.  Ships held two or three hundred guests but many were from a similar cross section of society.  Cruising wasn't mass market like it is today.
Fast forward to today.  Ships hold thousands of guests representing wildly different backgrounds and areas of society.  Cruises are within reach for lower income households today when they never were in the early days of cruising.  Cruising is much more affordable today than it was in the early days of cruising.
If Royal offered complimentary wine at dinner today it would be mass chaos of chugging wine just to get another glass, and another glass.    Some guests would go overboard binge drinking just because they can.  Royal now has 26 ships with over 70,000 guests on board at any given moment.  It would cost a small fortune supplying all that wine every night to tens of thousands.  For guests that don't binge drink or don't drink at all they would have to pay higher fares to account for the cost of all that wine.  Instead of forcing all guests to pay more so that some guests can over indulge, guests who wish to indulge pay for it while guests that won't, don't have to pay for it.  This is where all inclusive begins to break down.  
The catch with all inclusive is that it isn't free.  Someone is paying it and no for-profit company is going to write it off as a loss to offer all inclusive.  Why force everyone to pay for things they don't want?  Many cruisers don't want Voom.  To make Voom included everyone would have to pay more including guests who don't want it.   Some people don't drink alcohol.  To include all alcohol cruise fares for everyone would increase.  It isn't fair for a guest to pay for something they don't want and the something one guest doesn't want is different than the something another guest doesn't want.  
All inclusive simply doesn't adapt or scale to the mass cruise market because there are too many different consumers with wildly different needs and expectations yet people hark back to the olden days when more was included.  Even people who weren't born then go back in time and draw comparisons to that all inclusive era missing that ships held a couple hundred guests who all tended to be affluent for that era.    Cruises were more all inclusive back in the day because the affluent guests who booked cruises expected it and could afford it.  It wasn't free, they paid for it.
You still see this on certain boutique or luxury cruise lines.  Ships are smaller with lower capacity and cruise fares are higher.  More is included and the guests booking these types of ships tend to be more similar from a smaller slice of society.     This is not mass market cruising.  
The same concept applies to activities.  Ships have to offer outlandish activities to differentiate themselves from the hundreds of other ships.  Many activities have to be included because of consumer expectations. These activities cost money to build and money to maintain and operate.  It's conceivable that at some point they may need to charge for some activities so that they can continue to offer inexpensive cruise fares. 
Certain activities do carry a charge.  Escape rooms for example.  Why make everyone pay for all activities when not all guests can or want to use them?  A flowrider costs money to build, maintain and operate.   Why should a person who can't or doesn't want to use a flowrider pay for it?
As I get older and stop using zip lines, ice skating, bumper cars, rock walls and so on I could make an argument for why I shouldn't have to pay for everyone else to use them.  

I don't know... Probably what was said about paid dining as well.  Jane

#1: Hopefully the chat feature on the app will be working by then. Otherwise, like people have said; set designated times to check in, leave voice mails on room phones, leave notes/messages on sticky notes or white boards either in or outside of the room. 
#2: Rarely is anything cheaper on the boat. But we never get the photo package.... we take too many selfies on our own already. lol. 
#3: No kids for us... so no comment. 
#4: I usually trust the daily cruise compass more than the app. The app may get better in the future... but I have found that over the last 3 cruises with RCI in the last 2 years, the app is fairly useless for daily planning. Rarely did it even show all the activities that the CC had. And of course, when I compared... the ones I were mainly interested in, were def. NOT on the apps. schedule. 
#5: You're the parent... if you want them to dress appropriately for the dining room.... then MAKE them dress appropriately.  As others have already said, a nice pair of Khaki or dress shorts and a golf shirt will work for any of the dinning venues. 
#6; Most people really only prep for 'formal' night. Some people barely dress up, some folks go ALL-OUT!!!. But its your vacation... dress how you want. Sometimes there is a Caribbean night, and some folks will wear a tropical shirt to dinner. (But thats me EVERY night on a cruise!) ?
You can look at previous cruise compasses on Matt's site here: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/cruise-compass
That will give you a pretty good idea of what to expect each day on your cruise. Have fun!

Leave messages on stateroom phones, or buy a whiteboard to leave on your door.
Definitely not less expensive. It's the opposite. By the end of the cruise you would know if photo package is worth it. The best price is before the cruise because more of a gamble.
The majority of activities for kids and teens is part of the children programming in Adventure Ocean and Teen Club. There are some teen events listed in Cruise Planner, but if your kids want to find things to do with kids their age, the club is where it's at.
I consult both the app and compass. I tend to rely on the app more than the compass, just because I rarely carry the compass with me.
Polo shirts and khakis. It's not exactly black tie and satisfies any dress code onboard.
Consult a past Cruise Compass from a recent sailing on which theme nights to expect. https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/cruise-compass

Got the email from Concierge this morning!  @WAAAYTOOO, interesting, new Concierge, Carlington Barry? Is anyone familiar with him?  He just implemented Suite guest get lunch in Main Dining room on Embarkation day which is great, we always booked Chops and had to pay for it. So far, Everything I've requested he's already returned my emails and confirmed bookings.  We are so excited to be on this trip, hoping for no new huge issues with hubby! Our 25th Anniversary sailing into Boston Harbor where we got married!!   

Welcome to the message bards!
Arriving the day of the cruise is risky any time of year.  I missed a cruise in April when unexpected thunderstorms caused an issue.  I cruise often, many have gone perfectly.  What could go wrong?  Doh!  I missed the ship.  If you can make an arrival the day before work the cost of a hotel is well worth it.
Late October is the tail of hurricane season but stuff can happen.  I'd suggest you look into travel insurance just in case.
Having said that, the vast majority of all cruises, all year go on time and as scheduled.  
I've cruised in October many times before and enjoyed them all, hurricane free although one time a hurricane nearly impacted a cruise. Instead it hit Freeport.   Like they say with stocks, past performance is not a guarantee of future results.  

Introducing your captain and executive crew:
 

I'm so sorry!@JLMoran  ? I know this response is really late, but I just wanted to say that I tried both methods and found the Pack-It Folder more space-efficient.

In our house, I'm the cruise monster!

@Matt
At the risk of you kicking me off the boards.....?

 

It is a horrible tragedy that this child lost her life. But where was the common sense in what the grandfather did?  There is an obvious breeze from the open window. The open window was high off the ground. What in his mind made him think hanging a child out any window was acceptable?  Perhaps he should not have been entrusted with the supervision of such a small child in the 1st place. 
Royal Caribbean is at no fault here!!! 
Instead of hiring an ambulance chasing lawyer right away, you’d think planning a funeral would take priority.   

At the end of the day until the investigation is complete and the full facts are known it is easy to speculate and jump to incorrect conclusions.
In New Zealand I think it would be very hard to find the cruise line negligent in this case as there is no obvious risk.
Where does negligence begin? If somebody spills a drink on the deck and I come along and slip on it and break my leg 10 minutes later, is the cruise line negligent for not cleaning it up in a timely manner even if they don't know its there.
Although people have fallen off ships in the past, this this the first I have heard to a circumstance like this so I struggle to see how a cruise line could reasonably be expected to predict this outcome. If you had to take into account every risk factor you wouldn't have stairs people could fall down, open balconies or open areas anywhere on a ship.
While tragic, I think the chance of it happening again in our lifetime is extremely remote.

Half day passes are not offered anymore.
My advice is book the water park at the price now.  You can always cancel and rebook with no penalty if the price drops. By booking now, you lock in the price and guard against a price increase.

There have been some of those on every excursion we've been on. I don't think they can be avoided, unfortunately. Punctuality is a pet peeve of mine, so stuff like that really bothers me. Admittedly too much some times. 
We fell behind on one of our excursions to Peggy's Cove in Nova Scotia because this guy on our bus just HAD to buy caramel corn at the gift shop. Really?
The world would be a better place if we all just thought about others once in awhile, more than we thought about ourselves. Just a thought.

Yes, we have, in Rio de Janeiro. We made it but only just. However, that was mostly the fault of the stragglers in my party who were late getting down to the meeting point for the first excursion. This meant we were on the very last bus of several doing the same excursion and had to wait a bit longer yet for some more stragglers. As a result we got back to ship only with enough time to go to the toilet and grab a sandwich to eat on the way back off the ship for the next one.
So you should be ok for your double trip but make sure to get to the meeting point early to try and get on the first bus out. The earlier your bus leaves, the earlier it will be back. Enjoy!

I've booked back to back RC shore excursions for St. Petersburg. Our first excursion should return to the ship at 11:45 with the second meeting at 1:30pm. I'm just wondering if the first is late will we miss the second? Or would they wait? Has anyone else done a back to back excursion day?

Please do not advocate flagrantly breaking the rules.

They are randomly assigned, but, you can go to shore excursion desk and request one.
While on Mariner last weekend, we got a letter in our room to go down and make a request.  It's first-come, first-served.

Hi Josepena12,
We will arrive Costa Maya next July 9th (Symphony Of The Seas). We have booked the Dolphin encounter and after this activity we'll go to know Mahahual. After that we'll return to Costa Maya and will spend some time in the port area (swimming pools, shopping, etc.)
We travel with two kids (14 and 10).
I tell you more in a few days.

We had a chance to visit CocoCay on TH 6/27 off of the Mariner of the Seas.
Summary
- Amazing, outstanding, a true game-changer.
- Flexible enough to meet the needs of everybody. 
- You can have a great time with excursions or without. 
- Thrill Park is great.  If that is your thing. 
- Overall, highly recommended. 
Our group
- 2 families with children (11, 8, 7 years old)
- We booked the full day Thrill Park via Cruise Planner at $47/adult as well as the kid rate (I forgot the total).
- 2nd RCCL trip (1st was Harmony)

Our Day (Part 1:  Thrill Park)
- RC provided a map and a 1-page fact sheet the evening before.  We felt very prepared. 
- Checked out towels and then met the gang for breakfast at 7:30am.
- Left the boat at 8:30am.  It was very fast.  No towel check-out was provided at level 1.  You will need to get towels in advance at the pool deck.
- Trams were waiting on the pier to talk folks if desired.
- Less than 5 min walk from the boat to the entrance to the island and the Thrill Park.  Live music, dancers, etc.  lots of energy.
- Easy entry to the Thrill Park, use your sea pass.  RCCL staff is onsite.
- Locker to your right after entering the park (free).
- We divided into two groups.  One group went straight to the Devil's Tower.  They rode it once and had a very small line.  Within an hour of opening the wait time was 45-60- minutes.  Key point:  Plan ahead and arrive early.  The other group secured lounger chairs under umbrellas (between the Devils Tower and the other Slide section) and headed over to the Sling Shot (the half pipe ride), Twister, and Racers.  
- Easy to find chairs.  Lots available with lots of shade. 
- Easy to find beverage (adult) and water.
- All the water slides are strong.  Fun, thrilling, scaring, high energy, etc. 
- After the slides, we hit the wave pool.  Recommended as well. Make sure you watch the young kids.  The pool is crowded and life guards can see only so much.
- We also spent time on the adventure pool.  Both adults and kids were using the attraction.  Lots of fun. 
- After about 2.5 hours on the Thrill Park we decided to go to Chill Island.  One of the reasons was the wait on the Tower Slides was getting long and we saw storms in the distance and wanted to hedge our time.
Out Day (Part 2:  Chill Island).
- Relaxing.  Laid back. Really a different vibe and energy.
- Rented snorkel equipment. My kids saw stingrays and fish.
- After about 2 hours, headed to Chill Grill for lunch. Taco bar and grilled chicken wings were strong.  We also liked the fact you can pour your own beer (w Seapass Card).  Kids loved the ice cream.
- BIG ISSUE:  TONS of birds are seagulls are onsite at Chill Grill and are very aggressive.  They are swarming on guests and attacking their plates while guests sat at picnic tables.  I saw a bird swoop down and steal a chicken wing from a guest who was about to it eat.  This needs to be fixed.  Think the movie "The Birds".
- Went to Oasis Lagoon for the rest of the day and drank our share of Miami Vice, Kracken and Diet Coke, and beer.  The Pool bar is strong and the staff are fast.  
- The pool itself is very large and can accommodate a lot of folks.  Loud music.  Party atmosphere. 
- Some lighting delays throughout our day, but no biggie.  
- Took the tram home.  
General thoughts
- Great time.  Really strong move by RCCL.  Disney will have to up its game.  Huge contrast to other cruise private islands.
- Easy to navigate and everything is pretty much 10 minutes away.  Walk or Tram.
- Totally different vibes between the water park and Chill Island. 
- Even though we only were at the water park for 2 hours, it was so fun we still feel as though we got our $$$ worth.
- Staff was great. 
- The island and layout are such that the crowded feeling is likely to be minimized.  
- Easy to get food, adult beverages, water etc.  Lockers are free.
- We did not rent a cabana.  They looked very nice.  Our hesitation is that if you rent a cabana you may feel limited to stay in the cabana and consequently miss other areas of the island.  We liked our approach of spending time at the water park, the beach, and the big pool.
- Talked to a few officer types at the island and they shared that RCCL plans on building a hotel for guests on the island and back-to-back CocoCay stays will be offered in Jan 2020. 
- The day before we stopped at Nassau and stayed until 8:30pm.  I really wish we could have stayed that long at CocoCay and shortened our time in Nassau. 
- The birds at Chill Grill are an issue.
- Other guests we were talking too on the ship felt the same about the island - it is fantastic. 
- Have a high-level plan so you can make the most of the day.  You don't have to plan every minute, but at least consider where you want "Home base" and what you want to do on the island in some order.  Hit the waterpark early to avoid lines.
Hope his helps.  Have.a blast.
Andy
 
 
 
 
 

I made Royal an offer they couldn't refuse.  

Royal is geared to appeal to families across the spectrum from the young to the young at heart.  There is always a lot going on around a Royal ship.  Royal also trends to larger ships where Celebrity operates a smaller fleet.  You won't find any Quantum or Oasis class sized ships in the Celebrity fleet.  
Celebrity is more an adult cruise line, more refined but not in the luxury high end market.  No bumper cars, zip lines, ice skating rinks, water slides, sky pads, laser tag, flowriders, iFly indoor sky diving, etc. on Celebrity.  
That's not to say kids are not welcome on Celebrity but there isn't the space and activities dedicated to them like there is on Royal so you tend to see fewer kids on Celebrity.  It won't be zero kids but not as many as Royal. 
I enjoy Royal even if I don't do all the activities because it keeps me young.  Celebrity is there for me if I ever grow up and mature.  

Celebrity has more mature clients. I love both, but when I need to unwind it's celebrity.

I thought it was that if two AI bots could converse they could reprogram each other and then hack this ship to harvest its resources.