Morganno

Well, did everyone enjoy the cruise. For us it skewed very old compared to most cruises we've been on. Also it didn't feel international, very US based. People were friendly but reserved which I found strange for American folk. The ship was impeccable it was like new, I was very impressed with it and the crew. As a beer drinker I did miss the English bar a lot having no English bar or playmakers ment the selection of beers was very limited. Only 1 IPA which was a Sam Adams Halloween brew which wasn't to my taste. The entertainment was very good we enjoyed all the shows but the ship was like a ghost ship at 10pm which was very unusual for us. However the casino was rammed every night. Must have been an offer for prime members or something. I did enjoy a slot pull on the 2nd sea day. Was a whole lot of fun and we got a handpay I would definitely do it again. All in all we enjoyed the cruise but I wouldn't do that sailing again or that ship. (Due to the lack of good beers haha) Next up is Explorer in March 2025 for 11 nights with friends.

Just saw this tweet on RC Europe twitter feed

Also from the UK and our first time as diamond. I have a question though how do you get lots of $1 bills. I'm currently in Belgium and can order dollars from my bank but they said I can't choose the denominations every time I've done it the lowest was 20, one time I got 500 in $50 notes. That was fun at the cash toll in Florida hahaha. We had the drinks package for 4 cruises when it was £42 per person per night. We got this for 4 cruises in a row. Never to be seen again sadly. Didn't have to sign anything. I do find when I had the package I drunk way too much but did give extra tips to my favourite bar staff on the last evening.

Seems like every month of the year in the US has holidays. I've been on vacation to Orlando during nearly every month of the year and it's always full of US kids no matter which time I visit. Cruised in August, September and October same, cruise full of kids. Reading replies here it seems like Feb to May is also full of kids so I think only late November thru end January is safe, kid free, period. Will give that a try sometime

Well just checked in and got 11am boarding that's the earliest ever time I've got I'm usally a 1pm cruiser. Will be interesting to get on early. It's our first cruise as Diamond members.

It does I just hope they don't expect something a checkin. I'll have the link to the canadian site on my ipad just incase.

Hello fellow cruisers, We are flying to Boston to visit family, we are UK and Irish citizens, for a week then hopping on board Jewel for a round trip Canada cruise from Boston. I can't find the video but apparently someone was denied boarding a cruise because they didn't have a Canadian tourist visa. I've visited the Canadian website and it clearly states that the visa is only for air travel to Canada. But I would hate to have to argue with the cruise line at the port on travel day. https://ircc.canada.ca/english/visit/visas.asp How do you plan to travel to Canada? By air, via a Canadian airport - By car, train, bus or boat (including cruise ship) Answer: You need a valid passport or travel document to travel to Canada by car, train, bus or boat If you decide to fly to a Canadian airport instead, you'll need an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA). Has any non US resident travelled from Boston on a Canadian cruise encountered this issue?

Sad I forgot about this page I don't visit often enough. We could have met up on the ship. It was a great cruise and we did get really lucky with the weather especially the hot and sunny day in Flam Great to hear that you enjoyed the cruise and caught the bug. We started in 2017 and just hit diamond. haha We did two 14 night cruises from Southampton in 2017 and 2018 when prices were still reasonable . We also did May 2019 on Explorer from the UK to Spain and Portugal but our favourite is definitely Greek Isles. We did Explorer, Brilliance and Odyssey to there and it's always fantastic. I think Odyssey was my favourite ship of all. Although I've booked Southern Caribbean on Explorer again next year will be my 4th time sailing on her. We have Jewel from Boston this October which I'm looking forward as Radiance class is my favourite class, don't be afraid of older ships they are just as good and the views are spectacular with all the glass. Anyway soon you will be like the rest of us hunting bargains and cruising.

I’m also going on that cruise. This will be the cruise where we hit diamond status (80 nights) on RC and no double points all hard earned. The weather in Norway is showing in the 10 day forecast at 16c or 60F and raining. Keep a eye on it. We did this cruise last year and in Olden the day before the tour guide said it was 20F cooler and raining the day before. You may get some sunbathing days but probably not. Remember Norway is on the same latitude as Alaska. But its a wonderful cruise the scenery and people are lovely. Where are you coming from?

Same we just got off wonder last week just checked now and we are at 74 points. Desparately looking for a bargain 7 nights to get to 80 lol

I think 99% of people on RC reddit aren't cruisers and hate RC. I left it a long time ago it's really full of weirdos sorry anyone that posts there but it's toxic. We went wonder 10/15 - 10/22 and missed coco key. I felt the ship trying to dock 3 times (shuddering as the thrusters work) then move away. We were there a few days before in Indy so I wasn't too upset as it was windy the week before so not too pleasant. The most annoying thing was the captain coming over the room PA to say go back to sleep because we can't dock.

Wow I'm surprised at the response to this. I cruise in Europe on RC and tipping the bar staff on European cruises is just not done by the vast majority of cruisers. I've been curious about this so have been sitting at bars and watched the interaction on a few recent cruises in Europe and 99% of drinks are without tip. I'm on Harmony next month and I'll definitely be watching to see if I see more cash tips to bar staff, I expect to see a lot more as tipping is a larger part of US culture. As for queue jumping. I don't expect, nor want, my bar staff to skip other people for me that's not why I tip. When on a cruise I'm super chill waiting at a bar chatting to staff and other patrons while waiting for a drink is also part of the experience. I don't think I've ever seen a bar 4 deep on a cruise. Usually when bars get busy the staff phone in for more help and staff are sent from quieter bars to help out. Last thing RC want is people standing at a bar getting annoyed with each other and fighting to be served. So I'm surprised at the comments.

Mark, My wife and I will also be celebrating our 25th wedding on this cruise!

Ahoy fellow cruisers just booked this cruise last night. We are empty nesters our son is going to off to college in September and we will definitely need to cheer ourselves up after that so we are heading to the States and decided to go on this cruise. We are currently at 63 C&A points and this will take us to the 70 mark. I joined the FB groups we usually prefer smaller ships like voyager or Radiance class as we like meeting people and find the larger ships fun but impersonal and harder to make friends. This is why I'm posting here hoping this smaller group of posters might be interested in a meet up. We are Scottish / Irish but living in Belgium for the last 27 years. Anyway I hope everyone has a great cruise. It's our first time visiting St Thomas and St Maarten. So looking for any tips on these locations as well.

Spain charges tax on drinks when in port. Quite annoying. You won't pay anything when at sea.

Just take some $1 or exchange them. This was my 7th RC cruise and for most I've had the DDP. I know grats are already added but I decided after reading facebook and blogs like RCBlog to tip a few bucks when getting drinks. This was helped by winning $20 with my free slot rolls I have to say while you don't need to tip it really made a difference. I get beer mostly so it didn't impact the alcohol level but the friendliness of the staff (they were always friendly before but the level of friendliness increased) and the speed at getting served was improved. Perhaps not noticeable if you haven't tipped before but I definitely noticed it when the pool bars got busy. I will definitely be tipping bar staff in the future.

I'm surprised Matt as most of Europe can easily fly to Dubai there are daily flights it's a very popular destination with Europeans looking for Winter sun and the perfect place. I suppose you are right it might be a risk although I think MSC did a winter there this year with their new ship.

There are two ways to get down. 1) book a transfer from Venice city center with RC, busses leave at 9am and 11am day of sailing and take around 2h30min to get there. 2) take the train to Ravenna from Venice then get a transfer to the port also through RC. The bus with RC is more expensive but a safer option as you don't have to worry about train strikes or cancelled trains but the train is far cheaper.

Hi we have also booked this cruise. We did a similar cruise last year on Brilliance the Greek isles cruise is great you won't be disappointed.

We were lucky we went with GTY as it was 600€ cheaper for two inside cabins than pick your own €150pp. We got Deck 9 on explorer with virtual balcony right next to each other. I would have definitely called to see had I been given what I consider a "poor" cabin. Although I have to say any cabin on a cruise ship is better than no cruise.

Before the pandemic Royal regularly had a ship or two in the gulf visiting Oman and Dubai. Anyone heard of them going back there? I see two new ships coming on line next year. Hopefully this will free up some older ships for that part of the world.

Just looking at May June 2023 and May June 2024. Ravenna - greek isles 7 nights 28 MAY 2023 £459 Ravenna - greek isles 7 nights 11 JUNE 2023 £519 Ravenna - greek isles 7 nights 25 JUNE 2023 £549 Ravenna - greek isles 7 nights 25 MAY 2024 £864 Ravenna - greek isles 7 nights 15 JUNE 2024 £936 Ravenna - greek isles 7 nights 29 JUNE 2024 £906 I think i'll wait until March 2024 to book

Just reading on a disney forum that in Europe adults (18+) still need to get parental consent to drink and parents have to be at the bar with their adult children when ordering drinks. Is this common across all cruise lines or just Disney? I ask as my niece (19) had the drinks package on our med cruise last year on Royal. Never a question was asked and her mum didn't have to sign any waiver.

Just thinking about doing this cruise but see that Balconies and Suites are already sold out. If we book an ocean view will we actually have a view or will we just be staring at canal walls? 2nd question do you think balcony cabins or suites will be available later on? I ask this as we booked an inside on Brilliance for August in February but after April dozens of balconies and suites came online to buy. Should we already go for an inside and can we pay the difference for an upgrade later if something opens up? 3rd question is November a good time to go weather wise will we have nice warm sunny weather? Anything to pay attention to? Thanks, John

Pity it takes like boiled piss. .