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I receive a little over 5 weeks vacation and the wife has a job that allows flexible time off (single person office in a seasonal business). In the past the workaholic in me never took time off until the kids were out of college, married and gone. Now the wife and I enjoy 3 cruises (sometimes 4) in a year as we enjoy being "unplugged" from the world. We do not go for the expensive accommodations as we are rarely in them and make sure we take advantage of all the freebie or discounted items on the ship. We closely monitor the shore excursions and have favorites we like to visit. These are some with the cruise line and some via 3rd party depending on the location. Typical bill at the end of our cruises is about $200 for the occasional drink and specials (shore excursions not included). After cruising for a while we also receive "special" offers in the mail and usually arrange our schedule to match these discounted dates. On top of that we use a travel agent who usually gives us On Board Credit so it reduces the end bill. The other benefit is we are within driving distance of two ports so we save the expense of flying unless we find a super discounted air fare (last year to LAX $325 round trip for both of us).

Last cruise had several areas closed for "private functions" for a charter group but they were limited to particular areas (Star Lounge and Studio B) and not the pool areas. Was a member of a charter cruise on NCL last year and they closed the "Adult" pool area for a private function but it was later in the evening (after dark) when the pool is not in usual use. All other private functions for that cruise were held on-shore at one of the stops.

The dynamic dining is similar to DCL where you move to a different dining room each evening. The big difference is on DCL only the decorum changes and the menu and servers are the same. Not sure why they thought that everyone would move to different food styles but apparently passengers voted with their reservations and it was dropped quickly.

The priority boarding will depend on what cabin you booked. If you have a suite there is a different, shorter line for you. If you are like the rest of us with an inside or balcony room you will go in the normal cruise line which is like the TSA lines you have at the airport except it does seem to move quicker and you do not have to remove your shoes, etc. When you do reach the higher levels (Emerald and above) on Royal you do move to the shorter line. In April they removed the Platinum status from the short line ?. All that said, if you want a short wait in the line, get there early (10:00 ~ 10:30) like we do and the line is much shorter. Any time after 11:00 in Galveston will be about a 30 minute wait.

Had this happen with an airline online. When they "re-priced" the fare I pointed out the flaw in the online system. They put me through their customer service supervisor who thanked me for pointing out the fault and honored the original price I booked plus an addition discount. Hope this can happen for you. Not saying you will get an additional discount but dissatisfied customers can go a long way in reducing future customers in today's social media world.

We use Geoblue for medical only which matches with our Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance but that is not a requirement. For a couple of old folks it is under $105 for $1m coverage. www.geobluetravelinsurance.com

I am positive they will have a kids sail free promotion for January 2021 sailings. The only issue will be the exact date. If you are planning a holiday sailing then they will probably black that date out.

Great advice. On last cruise in October there was a couple from Wyoming that left their cell phone on the chair in the lounge during disembarkation. He looked at it and set is on the seat beside him and then they got up and left. Fortunately we saw it within a minute and the staff ran and caught them before they got to customs. The sea pass on the screen would have made their job easier.

Just remember, both phones have to have the internet package.

Be careful with magnetic bottle openers as well. The wife had one on her key chain which was attached to her set sail pass. Took two trips to customer service before she realized what was causing it. She commandeered my aluminum one and no longer has that problem. Now I'm the one with a problem with no opener.

Agree on the TA at anytime. We originally booked a trip through the website (they created it so it must be the best syndrome) but through suggestions from friends and this blog switched to an MEI TA. It is now so much easier (not sure the TA agrees since she has to deal with us ?), On our upcoming cruise in January we mentioned it was my big old age birthday milestone and when we received the room found out it was one of the extra large balcony rooms. Could not be happier! Will always book through them now.

Welcome to the blog! Use it to inform yourself of the many opportunities that most people miss on their cruises. Look at the podcasts that Matt has done a terrific job on and if you have questions please feel free to post them and folks here will give you some great advice. Happy Cruising!

No better way that I have found. Does not matter what they think, you have found a reduced price and you took advantage of it.

As an FYI, you do not have to receive an email invitation to participate in the Royal Up program. You can go to their website and search for Royal Up or click on this link: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/booked/cruise-room-upgrade . Enter your name and cruise number and it will tell you if you are eligible for an upgrade and list the ones you can bid on. Enter your bid and off you go. Used it today for our cruise in December without the email invite. The cruise we have in January is still too far off to bid on.

Be careful that you do not rely entirely on the app to schedule your day. Just finished a cruise on Liberty and there were programs that appeared on the app but were not on the printed planner. We showed up for the show (jazz band) along with several others and we were disappointed when the band set up and then disappeared. When we asked the Guest Services they just shrugged and told us the app does not necessarily get updated during the cruise and to use the planner.

Definitely, all the ships will be decorated for Christmas in December. Have one this December 8th and can't wait.

No fuss about your opinion, depends on your expectations and places you typically frequent. From your comment that you are not used to the buffet, we also do not frequent buffet establishments here at home but do not turn a nose up at the Windjammer as the food is by far better than other cruise lines we have been on and is the same as the dining rooms. For the higher "level" service, opulence and accouterments that you may have been expecting, in my opinion you would like the Celebrity cruise line. We thoroughly enjoyed the main dining, upscale decorations and level of opulence of those ships but I really enjoy unplugging and being laid back at this time of my life and not worry about dressing to the "nines" for every meal. I may be one of the few who not buy the drink package, voom internet and other "connected" methods of communication to the outside world. I just returned from a cruise last week and have another scheduled in early December and another in early January for a big birthday getaway, all with Royal, and cannot wait to get there, relax and let the world go by. ?

WAAAYTOOO is correct, once final payment on a casino rate is made there is no price adjustments. We have been able to upgrade once to a larger cabin through the casino when we received a better offer in the mail but we had to give up the onshore "party" that came with the first room. They stated it was part of the smaller cabin package and not the upgraded offer. Took the bigger room. Tried again on another cruise and were denied. Depends on how nice the casino person feels that day.

You can go online or as I did to IKEA and purchased a triple USB power outlet with high output to charge our phones, cameras, tablets, power bank, etc. We bring two of them and have not had any worries. Easy enough to charge overnight and place back in the drawers during the day. Just made sure I brought enough USB to device cords. ?

On some ships the additional HDMI ports are available but the remote does not have an option to switch input ports. My son has a universal remote (Walmart special) he brings that allows him to switch the inputs so he can play his video games as the TV's are standard name brand HDTV's.

Not knowing about the Cruise Planner and WAY over packing.

Have a great trip!!

If you have 5 separate offers (We receive them all the time) then you can book 5 cruises as long as you pay the taxes and other fees. I have not seen any restrictions on how many you can book. And yes, there may be offers to royalup on these offers. We received that option on our cruise coming up in a week and a half and placed a bid. Have not heard back and do not expect to but we did receive the offer.

We've put them in our checked airline luggage for both East and West coast trips and have not had a problem. They are not listed in the "prohibited" list by TSA.

Remember, if you are using these on the wall they only hold 1/3 of the advertised holding power so for these 22 lb magnets they will typically hold only 7 pounds. Also if the wall is slick like some of the cabin walls are they will slide easily if they are fairly weak. The 40 lb magnets work well and we use them to hold our jackets, hats, etc all the time.