CrznTxn

We sail on August 14th and it would have been welcome to not test the now three days before but understand the small steps necessary to return to normal. Hopefully the testing will be dropped for our next 7 day cruise in October but suspect it will not happen until the end of the year. Still need the Vax card submission for some of the ports of call so that will not go away in the near future but opening it up for unVax passengers will go a long way.

On the app there are no restrictions as you cannot buy anything from it. For the Sea Pass card, if you want to restrict them from purchases such as arcade credits then you need to set that up on the website prior to sailing or with guest services. We saw a kid rack up over $1000 in arcade charges and had his parents restrict it after the damage was done. Funny though, they did not restrict the other son's charge privileges and the first son used it to rack up more charges.

Last week they checked our Sea Pass upon entry and were turning folks away. Guess it depends on the ship. The refreshment was champagne and a non-alcoholic fruity beverage. As @AshleyDillo stated, they recognized the top cruisers and various officers gave talks. Lasted 30 minutes.

They will check your Sea Pass when you enter to make sure of your status level. So, the answer is no.

If you embark and disembark within the US you do not need a passport, only your birth certificate and a photo ID (drivers license). The passport is nice if for some reason you have to return to the US from one of the foreign ports and you need it to fly but is not required at port stops. We have folks on each of our cruises who do not have passports and it is not a problem. If you are going out of Galveston we saw this on our last cruise that ended this past Monday. They just put you in a different disembarkation line for customs but is not an issue.

After sailing started after the shutdown the Cruise Compass was issued in the staterooms on an "as requested" basis due to the release of the Royal App. The wife likes to look at the printed version as there is information that is not available on the app but she schedules everything on the app. We request it from our stateroom attendant as soon as we get to our room and there has never been an issue. Lately we have not seen any copies out at Guest Services.

We have inflatable spring hammock floats. The outside ring inflates easily and the valves allow for easy deflation. They twist when finished to a small diameter and the ones we have come with a carrier. Makes for a easier and more enjoyable time at the beach that does not supply floats.

There are several parking options in Galveston that include the Port of Galveston open air parking for Royal ships and private open and enclosed parking. There is a Port of Galveston covered parking across the street from the other guys terminal that is within walking distance to the Royal terminal if you do not mind about a 300 yard walk. When the new terminal is open later this year the Port of Galveston will have open air parking next to the terminal. Prepayment is highly recommended for the private parking and is available for the Port of Galveston parking but the website usually has trouble but you can pay as you arrive. Private parking across the street from the terminal you have to walk and the other private parking have shuttles for drop-off/pick-up.

Not sure on Mariner but on Liberty last week they had liquor tasting for 21+ guests by the shops as one of the activities. You had to sign up and they gave you a sheet describing each one but they gave the wife a couple of "samples" after they were through and the crowd was gone. Even let her come back for seconds .... or was it thirds.

The last couple of sailings we have seen large groups seated in Chops and Sabors on Liberty so they can accommodate the larger groups. They were celebrating an onboard wedding this past week.

Bailey's Banana Colada! Only had to ask for a BBC on Liberty couple weeks ago and they served it right up, and they were also serving the frozen Mojitos.

We have had this bug going around with friends and wife getting it. Not COVID but still stinks. Hope you feel better soon.

All of the pre-cruise testing hinges on whether the ports of call require it. There are several Caribbean destinations that do require negative test results to enter so the question will be if they allow the ship to dock without test results for all passengers, not just those who indicate they will be getting off. Once the destinations drop the test requirements to enter then I see all the cruise lines doing the same. It could be ship specific but it is easier corporate wise to require everyone to still have the tests if sailing in that region.

I do the remote work onboard all the time with secure laptop and secondary code authentication. The TOTP Authentication app we use can work without the internet and generates the codes on its own. Was not sure until I tried it but it works disconnected from the network. Not sure about DUO. The only issue I have is slow internet speeds but I am accessing my workstation at the office and my laptop is only serving as a remote terminal so it is not too bad but hopefully will be better when StarLink is installed on all the ships.

From an old Tom Hanks movie: Luggage Salesman : Have you thought much about luggage, Mr. Banks? Joe Banks : No. Luggage Salesman : It's the central preoccupation of my life. I do not think you need the size or massive construction of those steamer trunks in that movie (or even pelican cases which I use every day) but there are some items on our luggage that we do look for. We have found that the wheels need to roll and swivel easily and the wife's newest case has double tires at each wheel location that roll easily upright or leaned. It is a name brand item that was on sale at a local big box store. We wanted to try out the way they moved, opened and other features so we shopped there. We have used soft and hard sided cases and found it generally a personal preference, ours are hard sided. Other than that, look and search you can never satisfy every detail so pick the ones you feel the strongest toward and make sure you check those off.

Let the staff know that you will be including your child early and they will make accommodations for them too with high chair or whatever is needed. We have found them very flexible on including the kids.

Depends on which ship. If it is a newer one with tap door sensors and the same on purchasing and casino you might be good. Unfortunately most of the ships do not have this option so you need to make sure you can remove it easily to insert your card to get into cabin, etc. Only shore exit and entry on the older ships use hand scanners that will read the bar codes on older cards without RFID chips that you could use the clear case.

Definitely saw that this past week on our Caribbean cruise. I spent hours behind dark shades admiring all the "unique" things that folks wore and they probably thought the same about me. I will say that on Halloween day last year I did wear a large T-Rex head to board and all day to the delight of passengers and staff alike. Later that evening many other guests joined in and there was a great party that the ship threw.

No reason whatsoever to avoid a ship that just re-positioned, especially Harmony. With the new terminal opening later this year, leaving out of Galveston will be easy and nice. We leave out of there several times a year and even now it is easy, although living several hours away does make it easier on us. The Galveston hotels do not lend themselves to the cruise industry as the vast majority of the people that visit the island are not there to get on a ship. With the new additional terminal and additional ships leaving from the port that may change in the future.

Congrats! Actually we have rarely had the long wait times everyone else seems to have. I think our longest time was 5 minutes.

It is hit or miss depending on the crew at the time. We have had them point out the alcohol on some trips and on others not say a word and let you go to the "hold" table to turn it in.

Not sure if it is an out of stock issue. Our last cruise on Liberty from Galveston had the same cups. Looks like the way of the future.

The higher speeds would be a big plus for me. Our corporate secure connection takes so much bandwidth that logging in and sustaining connection, needed for my intensive CAD programs and downloading large files, is a hit or miss on the current "high speed" Surf and Stream. I can work fine when in port and most folks are off the ship but during the sea days it struggles and only my Teams connection on my phone works for conference calls. Would make it a whole lot easier to remote work and go on more cruises.

I take my dive bag with equipment on our Western Caribbean cruises and I zip tie the top draw string and put a luggage tag (the plastic ones with a steel cable) and have never had an issue. I have seen them take duffel bags, soft sided roller bags and cases of water with a luggage tag taped to it. So they will take almost anything.

Wow, I never have found one on Liberty by the night stand. I always had to ask for an extension cord. I’m onboard and I’ll have to look when I get back to the cabin. I need it for my laptop for which I have a European cord cord set.