bobroo

Just in time for New Years Eve !!!!

The waters around Nassau are stunning and there are several shades of blue. Using the top deck of the ship have the kids select the the most beautiful Tiffany blue water they can see. Get off the ship and search out that water for a selfie fest in that amazing water. While you are there take note that the water is uniform and stays that hue even as the water gets deeper. Yet, you pick up a handful and it is clear. HINT: Head over to the beaches next to Fish Fry. You can take a cab which will be the most expensive way to get there and back. You can take a public bus with will cost about $2.50 a head. Or, you can make it a long walk-- which is free.

It’s access to one less potential working cappuccino machine that is the most disappointing.

I think Mr Bayley and Mr D'Souza are mischaracterizing the problem. I think today's MDR service takes 60 - 75 minutes. The amount of dining time is determined in a small part by what table your are seated at; tables that are at the front of the house take longer to get the food from the galley to the table. Waitstaff at the rear of the house don't even use trolleys. But what really prolongs a meal in the MDR? The amount of conversation during the meal and that time after the meal is served. When Bayley claims that dinner can take 2 hours for a large party and an hour and a half for a party of two???? That's only because of the length of conversation afterwards, not the cooking time of the food. I think the menus of the MDR have needed to change for some time. Not because of the length of time it takes for breakfast, lunch, or dinner but because people's tastes have changed. It's not about overabundance anymore. People are watching what they eat and the amount they eat. When Mr D'Souza says "...it's not manageable anymore with the amount of special requests" I sincerely hope he recognizes that passengers are really requesting food or the preparation of food the way they normally eat. There is no need for an exit survey, these passengers have been telling Royal that the MDR has needed change for a long time now. Nobody likes when their local grocery store rearranges their shelves. This shuffling of the MDR menus is going to be a lot like that. I just wish management would come out and say it like it is: We are scaling back the menus so there will be less choices on them and we may restrict the amount we are going to serve you for free. How long you chose sit there? That's up to you.

Here is a hard at work Yorkshire terrier who spent a week of his mornings in the DL of Symphony last September. There is a loophole in the ADA Service Dog Guidelines regarding a special vest for your service dog-- a childs shirt with a screen printed ladybug will also suffice.

This was a great question, thanks for bringing it up! I'm shocked to find I've been on 23 different Royal Caribbean vessels.

Worth noting: there is a special boat that pulls along side and attaches itself to the ship. This boat forms a platform and dock for the tenders. I wish I had a picture to illustrate. Of all the tendered ports I have been to, Cabo San Lucas hands down does it the best.

Welcome to the blog! You've found the exact right spot for answers and opinions all things Royal Caribbean. The "river" tubing excursions are a wonderful way to really see the real Dominica. Being one of the very few natural islands of the Caribbean (meaning: it has never had a volcanic history like so many of the others) you are in for a real treat of the harmonic balance of earth, water, plants, and animals. River tubing, and this is true for every Royal tubing excursion; is a misnomer. They really mean Creek Tubing. While there will be some Bottoms Up! areas, the depth of the water is generally going to be about waist deep. Being natural runoff, the water will be the rainfall from the previous couple days. It will be clear and cold. Everyone gets used to it quickly and the water temp is forgotten about. Is the water fast? While that largely depends on the the rainfall of the past few days, you'll find your trip quiet, peaceful, and serene. The fast portions you might find are only fast enough to make the trip fun. Your trip will be about an hour and a half of relaxation, sorta a Lazy Boy in the jungle. There are a couple necessary things for tubing excursions. Number 1 being water shoes or a pair of old gym shoes. Shoes that fasten to your feet and have at least some type of hard sole. Flip flops and Crocs? Nah, you're likely to loose one or both on your trip. Number two, anything you bring with you like a camera or phone; has a 100% chance of getting wet and a 50% chance of being submerged. So take the right steps or make the right choices. Hint: Having some type of tether on your devices is a huge plus on tubing excursions. I think Royal needs to be more upfront about advising passengers about these absolutely necessary things BEFORE being on the excursion. Can an older person do this? ABSOLUTELY!!!! If you and your family are doing this unique, unusual activity together; you'll find grandma and grandpa along every step of the way. Here is a photo of my trip in <gulp> 2014.

Kids on formal night wear whatever their mom wants them to be wearing in the family pictures that are going to be taken before and after.

Maybe many people do not realize this but the two services a day is a way that Royal uses to keep tabs on you. It's one thing to miss a room cleaning because of a hangover, an impromptu nap, or forgetting to turn your Do Not Disturb sign around. But when you miss two consecutive servicings your stateroom attendant reports the incidents to security. Security in turn sends an officer over to do a well being check. Either the door is answered or they are coming in. You can count on security having done their research for sea pass use and facial recognition history of the occupants. In other words, if you have fallen and can't get up you won't be lying there till debarkation day. If you are sick or injured, they are going to find out about it and the medical team gets involved. Or, if something in the stateroom is damaged or missing ala a famous 1970's Keith Moon after show rampage-- there's no hiding it. The two servicings is as much a security issue as it is a nice way to leave a towel animal reading the Cruise Compass so they are not going away.

Currently on Enchantment for the past 11 nights…….Zero Diamond and above members have received a drink count quantity on their diamond drink receipts. Zero, and I mean ZERO; Diamond and above have received ANY receipt for ANY diamond drink. Our receipts are all “Duplicate Receipt” and taken away because they are Royal’s receipt. So, the story that Diamond and above members have said they have had trouble tracking their free drinks was all BS. This diamond drink receipt after every drink has been about trying to get diamond and above to sign for more Royal communal tips all along. Don’t lie to us Royal!

A consequence of having so much trouble with demand for the app and causing outages……. People who sail tomorrow can not do the online muster, confirm their health status, or access their set sail pass. Happy Saturday Sailings!

Royal really stepped in it today.....:0(

If Royal wanted to increase their muster station response rate I suggest they make hot tubs muster stations. Drink package + Hot Tub Muster Station= 100% compliance

I really like the throwback Royal Magazine!! Super cool!

Thanks for sharing SB! We all here owe you a debt of gratitude for your ear to the ground of breaking news before it is officially released. We all appreciate your efforts!

On a recent 7 nighter of mine, it was Garlic Tiger Shrimp on formal night. Lobster night was on night 7. This was on Voyager and by the time nights 5-6-7 rolled around I was so used to bizzarroville that the strange Lobster offering on the last night of the cruise was just a drop in the bucket of strangeness. Check the menu for night 7, many people do specialty dining on the last night; maybe lobster on night 7 is a way of cutting costs???

Royal Caribbean is obsessed with overindulgence and just can't wrap their head around healthy, mindful eating. I don't think they ever will embrace it, it's just not who they are. :0(

I like to call exiting the Diamond Lounge the “secret handshake” of being Diamond and above. Skillful operation of the coffee machine? That’s like a PhD in Diamond Lounge-ology. Anyway….on both models of machines Royal uses, there is the starting screen on the machine with a bunch of drink selections. Many people don’t know that the starting screen is just page one. Going to page two you’ll find decaf selections and also things like hot water or hot milk. I’m sure the DL machine in question offers decaf coffee, it’s just found on the seldom used page two of the starting screen. If the little hopper on top of the machine does not indicate decaf beans, it’s very likely that the decaf name plate has been scrubbed off due to frequent washing. There are many things in the DL that have been washed so many times important instructions have been lost. Mainly: whether to push or pull the DL door to exit. Or, the label for the button to deactivate the magnetic latch. Thusly making the secret handshake a little more of a mystery.

Just my two cents: Royal has made nearly zero claims that Starlink will improve a passengers internet experience. Therefore it is only perception that Starlink will be better for the passengers; it in fact may not; it may be slightly better; or it could be substantially better...who knows? I am not jumping to conclusions about a huge improvement though. Here's why: I believe that the change to Starlink is primarily for the pursers office to record transactions instantaneously with shoreside, just like every other big, corporate point of sale system. There is substantial monetary gain to record sales as soon as possible. The next priority is communications to/from the bridge. Third priority? Remote monitoring of the engine room, just like the airlines do with every engine, on every plane in the air. Fourth...I'm sure every security camera onboard can now be monitored shoreside and also video archived and stored remotely shoreside as well. What is the priority tree on now? Fifth??? Yeah, that's for the passengers who pay $25 per day/ per device. In addition to negligible claims or promises of better performance, please notice that the Voom pricing on Starlink enabled ships is unchanged and still about $25 a day/ per device. I think we are all surprised an increase in the cost of internet somehow was ignored once it got a Starlink label put on it. Believe it or not there is even a lower internet usage priority! You think Voom sucks in the pool or at the Schooner Bar? It's easily just as bad on Deck 0 for the crew and their segregated network. BTW, the crew are paying customers too but not nearly as much as the well heeled passengers. Who you would have thought to receive Starlink first? Coco Cay and Labadee. Installing Starlink on land would be comparatively simple, no? Also, 1050 Caribbean Way. I am sure those in the corporate office do not suffer from the same excruciating Voom experience we do otherwise they'd be jumping out of the windows daily just trying to get the afternoon Starbucks delivered.

This is an actual in-use photo. I'm conducting research to make a recommendation for a portable solar panel that folks can use to recharge their devices while they are in a lounger at the pool or solarium. To recharge things on their balcony while they are away. Folks here are overwhelmingly beach obsessed at every port they stop at they stop at, what's something portable that they can recharge their electronic devices that they have already brought along; conveniently charging them for free? What is something that folks might buy INSTEAD of a power plug/ outlet adapter/ power strip because teaching the fundamentals of electricity just don't seem to sink in. This particular solar panel is a definite step in the right direction. It has a lot going for itself but there are some shortcomings. So in two weeks I'll be back onboard conducting more research with a new candidate. Fingers crossed.....

Cabo San Lucas has it’s own set of rules and culture different than the rest of Mexico. Think of Cabo as an upscale outdoor shopping mall.

This is the only power strip/outlet adapter approved 100% of the time by every cruise line:

“While it’s a little more work for our teams….” Everything is ALWAYS easier when someone else does it. Our bartenders and servers already have enough to do. More paper and more crappy white pens does not help service, it congests it.

There are many circumstances why someone might pay for their cruise expenses in cash. Jumping to conclusions; yes, they might be a drug dealer and have large amounts of cash just lying around. But a better answer is that a parent or grand parent is paying for the vacation. Since a linked credit card has to be to an actual passenger onboard and the parent or grandparent is not present; they just use cash. I have no references for actual data, but today in the US many, many people would be surprised by the number of parents and grandparents financially funding their children and grandchildren on a day to day basis. Even though the recipients are grown adults with college educations. There is a just plain crazy amount of wealth in the US.