Uncwmark

Not really that big of a change given they've been running 'kids sail free' promo for a long time... this simply extends that offer to all 3rd and 4th passengers (not just kids), but reality is I'd suspect the vast majority of 3rd and 4th passengers in a cabin are kids. Holiday/blackout sailing dates still excluded. Eh..

Anybody surprised that Royal does not have plans (at least none publicly) to provide a beach experience for suite guests similar to what some other lines are doing (like MSC) or like they do at Labadee? Seems like this would be a further opportunity to differentiate their sky and star class offerings (especially for ships where there's no Coastal Kitchen)?

I suspect there's a good chance of that occurring, especially given the positive guest response to Pesky Parrot

Sky junior suite gets you all the same amenities as a grand suite... CK access (for all meals), free wi-fi, priority embarkation and disembarkation. Granted, it's a smaller room, but from an amenity standpoint you receive the same amenities as any other sky class suite.

I stand corrected... I've never noticed Wine Tastings or Whiskey Tastings listed in the cruise planner to book and never noticed them aboard in my many RCCL cruises. Guess I need to pay greater attention! I have enjoyed doing them on other lines, like Disney. I have seen the merchant shops in the promenade do liquor "tastings", but I don't *think* that's what OP was inquiring about... these are very, very small free samples (in very mini plastic "cups") of various liquors available for purchase onboard.

While these tastings are popular on some cruise lines, such as Disney, who offer them... I've never seen either offered on a RCCL ship. There has been speculation that, in the future, Royal Railway on Utopia may be used for tasting events, but nothing definitive as of yet.

We booked Utopia on the day they opened her for reservations and will be sailing on her in early August. No specialty dining options have been made available yet in the cruise planner. None. When you click on the "dining" tab you get a message stating "Amazing Experiences Coming Soon" I find this odd because we have two other cruises (one on Icon and the other on Wonder) occurring later in 2024 and 2025 that DO have dining options available to pre-book in CP. I assumed they held off on pre-booking for specialty dining because, perhaps, there is a new option/concept they haven't announced yet for Utopia (perhaps it's the ability to pre-book individual restaurants for multi-evening dining packages?). Still, it does seem strange to be within six months of sailing and not have the ability to pre-book dining!

OP specifically mentioned staying a suite and having access to suite lounge... so, no... not relevant if staying in a Jr. Suite, but that wasn't the premise of the post...

If you're diamond or higher and staying in a suite, it will never make FINANCIAL sense to purchase the DBP unless you regularly (over course of length of cruise) drink more than 15+ beverages a day. Period. Now, as mentioned above, if you prefer to look at it purely from a convenience standpoint, then... to each his/her own... but RCCL says "THANK YOU!!!"

Or... you could pre-purchase the refreshment package online through the cruise planner for your spouse.... then call and purchase the drink package for yourself only (this has to be done via phone call), and then cancel your spouse's refreshment package through the cruise planner. Works every time... (or so I hear )

It appears it was an RCL shore excursion... (at least that's what OP indicated in their initial post). Agree... one minute grace period not long enough given there was some ambiguity as to when you were supposed to return. If I was one of the stranded passengers I'd be furious!

Well, we're probably part of the "problem" here... we "won" a Royal Up from a JS to Crown Loft Suite back when Royal Up first started in 2018/2019... we enjoyed the CLS so much that we now exclusively book a Sky Class suite. We're a younger family with (hopefully) many years of travel left -- so, whether or not that played a role in us "winning" that original Royal Up bid or not, who knows... but, I do know that it's very unlikely we would be sailing in sky class if we had not won that original RU bid.

And, again, it's not a revenue driver for the cruise line. It's a deterrent.

Our last Disney cruise (this past May) in a slightly larger ocean view balcony cabin, cost more than what we paid for a CLS on both Symphony (2019) and Harmony (2022).... the entry level concierge class ("suite") cabins on Disney, which really aren't much bigger than a jr. suite on RCCL, are typically priced at $4 - $5k per person based on double occupancy for a 7 day cruise (so $8-$10k for a couple). We haven't done concierge class on Disney, but we enjoy the sky suite class on RCCL and am fine with the tradeoff of paying for popcorn (we've never done it)! Again, this isn't a revenue driver for RCCL... it's to discourage waste (and cleanup by their staff). I hate "nickel and diming", but in this case I think it makes sense!

This is 100% why they charge for popcorn, according to F&B manager. And, for what it's worth, Disney charges for popcorn too unless you're in a suite (which, as you may know, is not cheap!!)