Rackham

2 hours ago, jodie harold said:

My 40th birthday is 8th feb day 2 of cruise. I, my travel agent and directly have been trying for 9 months to book my group into wonderland restaurant . it seats 52 and we have had to book 19 at staggered times can we please organise the same seating for group of 19

Welcome to the boards. This is an unofficial fan forum which Royal, while I'm confident they're monitoring in some capacity, doesn't respond to.

I haven't tried this, and maybe you're not wanting to pay for it, but I expect the only way you're getting the same seating for your party of 19 at Wonderland (if Royal is saying they can't accommodate) is to either buy out the restaurant or see if Royal wouldn't be able to have a subset of the Wonderland menu served at another location onboard as a catered experience. Either way, I anticipate the quote starting around $4,000 USD.

Edit: The $4k is based on 52 * $59.99 * 1.18 = $3,680. I wouldn't be shocked to learn a minimum alcohol spend too when doing this.

1 hour ago, Xaa said:

Izumi Hibachi is taken off of the cruise planner for my Icon sailing now.  Maybe it filled up or they are price correcting.  Glad I got in what I did.  Thanks for the thread @Rackham

You're welcome. Checking my Allure sailing and the pricing for Hibachi is back where it should be, $59.99 marked 15% off to $50.99.

I'll be aboard.

On 1/17/2023 at 10:36 PM, Sarastep said:

The Alcohol Policy you’ve posted also references non-alcoholic beverages and says guests are not allowed to bring them onboard for personal consumption. This is our first RC cruise and from looking at their website I thought we could bring on twelve 17oz. bottles/cans/cartons of non-alcoholic beverages. Is this not allowed? 

That's allowed. Listed under the food/bev policy.

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/food-drink-onboard-policy

Looks like they've got an intern pricing again. Other people are reporting Izumi Hibachi at $28.99 too. Here's a shot from my planner for Allure this coming summer. If you're interested, looks like it's time to book.

Maya Key apparently has continuous transportation to/from the pier throughout the day. https://www.mayakey.com/

Should/will be available in the Cruise Planner if you want to book through Royal.

6 hours ago, zjennk said:

We are going on a New England/Canada cruise on the Vision in October. Has anyone done Acadia on their own? We like to hike and would like to spend about 5 hours there. Can you walk from the cruise port to Acadia?  

You can, but it's about an hour each way from the town pier to an area you're probably thinking of hiking (and longer if you're looking for something deeper inside the park). I haven't seen what Royal is offering, but I'd investigate local pick-up/drop-off options instead of trying to hoof it on foot.

5 hours ago, TexanTwoStep said:

I saw them yesterday on my cruise too and I think they're new!

 

I also noticed that they changed "the Key" tab to VIP Passes.  I wonder if RCL has something up their sleeve with offering different tiers/kinds of packages similar to The Key.

I'm seriously debating getting one of those coolers though.  They look fairly nice, but 54 for a 6 pack of beer and a cooler is pretty steep haha

I've ordered the beer one for my cruise next month. If you divide the cost of the bundle by 6, it's basically buying 6 beers at on-board pricing (with gratuity) and getting the bag for free. It used to be that if you bought the bag of beers (BoB), Royal would replenish the beer at a discounted rate, but Royal apparently stopped that offer a while back. Since they're re-introducing the BoB, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they'll also bring back the replenishment special. Not holding my breath though.

1 hour ago, FloatyBoaty said:

Onboard Anthem right now:

 

Did they mention how many people are aboard? Or a percentage of capacity?

If Royal does do anything to the points required for a particular level, they'll probably reduce the number of points required, not increase it. A number of years ago Royal changed from points earned from sailing on a cruise (1 point per cruise) to points earned per night sailed (1 point per night) to align themselves with what the other mass market cruise lines were doing. And Royal's point requirements are similar to the other lines as well.

Here's Carnival's loyalty chart (click on the "What you get" tab): https://www.carnival.com/vifp

And here's NCL's, which Royal's somewhat mirrors: https://www.ncl.com/latitudes-rewards-program#tier_benefits

The equivalent for Diamond in C&A with Carnival or NCL is at 75 points, not 80. And Diamond+ equivalent with NCL happens at 150 points, not 175.

Something I could see Royal introducing from NCL's benefits, assuming their computers could handle it, is being able to pre-book a DBP with a standing discount based on loyalty tier instead of purchasing once aboard to take advantage of it. 

1 hour ago, USFFrank said:

 I don't see them changing what you can get with each tier, but it wouldn't surprise me if they made it more difficult to achieve new tier status. Like raising how many points you would need in order to get into each tier. For example, diamond status is currently 80 points. Royal raises the point requirement for diamond status to let's say 100 points effective, let's say on any cruise booked starting March 1. Now what about those who are currently between 80-99 points. I'm at 82 points currently, I would be grandfathered into diamond. Or let's say someone is at 75 points and booked a 5 day (or more) cruise before March 1. After their cruise is complete they too would be grandfathered into diamond status. But only from the points achieved from that cruise. Anything booked after March 1 (even if that cruise were to occur before the cruise booked before March 1) would fall under the new points and tier status requirements. There would be other scenarios that may come into play as well. It could get rather complicated. I would just hope if something like this were to happen that Royal's computer system is up to the task.

 

I doubt Royal will be mucking with points required for each tier. There are less Diamonds and up on any particular sailing than you might think by the posters with those statuses here on the Blog (based on publicly available information and comments, the average sailing has under 18% with Diamond or better), the benefits don't cost Royal much to provide, but they certainly drive bookings either to reach that status or take advantage of the perks, and Royal will be raising their rates to get within an estimated 80% of the cost of an equivalent land-based vacation over the next couple of years. On that last point, Royal was estimating they're at 60% of the cost of a land-based trip. Moving that percentage up to 80% will add hundreds, if not thousands, to the fare. They'll reduce the number of people reaching Diamond in the future simply due to pricing people out of cruising as often.

29 minutes ago, MJ_ said:

Could it be based on status? I am gold and mine is not showing.... Maybe some tiers aren't changing and some are?

I was wondering about that too. I'm at Platinum. Though it's more likely this is just Royal's legendary IT at work.

I'm seeing the same, Ampurp85. No status is listed for myself in the app either.

5 hours ago, USCG Teacher said:

Waiting for the New England crew in 3...2....

https://www.mualobster.com/blogs/news/what-is-a-chicken-lobster

I did an embarkation day lunch at Chops aboard Adventure last summer. It was worth the money to start the cruise off with premium dining and not dealing with the crowds elsewhere. Plus, by the time I was leaving Chops, the cabins were open for passengers. So swung by, grabbed my Seapass, dropped off my carry-on, and got to getting my vacation fully started.

25 minutes ago, sleepy425 said:

I have 6 cruises planned on 3 ships, and none of mine have liquor in the cruise planner.  I only have champagne and wine included.  Mine are Brilliance, Liberty, and Adventure.  I just sailed Anthem and didn't have the option either.  Maybe other classes do?

Try your sailing date and ship here: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/royalgifts/

For whatever reason, the alcohol packages (hard liquor + mixer) don't appear in the cruise planner.

Things that already haven't been mentioned,  and which might have some chance of happening? Offering the choice of either the classic soda package on the house or a discount on the DBP starting with Diamond. Percent off coupon on an upcharge menu item in the MDR or in a specialty dining restaurant. 

Another thing to keep in mind when deciding between the MDR and Windjammer is when they open. At least on Adventure and Oasis last summer, 2022, the MDR was opening late enough for breakfast that I couldn't personally see myself up for a MDR lunch after having breakfast at their available times. 

The coffee is fine, paid or included. Royal's food service is the equivalent of a land-based hotel with an attached convention center. It's decent and enjoyable. However, I rarely have any complaints, but I rarely have any raves either.

Sounds like a sensible change. I wouldn't be shocked to learn many people were thinking a day was from bars opening to closing, not 00:00 to 23:59, then customer service needed to deal with angry people who didn't read the fine print. Moving the reset time to early morning when the bars are guaranteed to be closed should alleviate any complaints they were footing about a midnight reset.

This line is interesting from a RCBlog posting earlier today (https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2022/12/14/royal-caribbean-announces-plan-build-first-carbon-neutral-cruise-ship)

"It also aims to reduce carbon intensity by double digits by 2025 compared to 2019 and the introduction of a net-zero cruise ship by 2035."

By 2035 Royal will either be looking to sunset every last Voyager, Radiance, and Vision-class ship or will be getting close to doing so based on historical patterns. Freedom-class probably won't be long in the fleet at that point either. It might be slightly easier to net-zero a smaller versus a larger vessel. 

On 12/8/2022 at 2:27 PM, Geoff P said:

I know he said Oasis, but Quantum Class can go to Bermuda, and are roughly the same age as Oasis class

That might be how Royal's leaning with future smaller ships since the class was introduced after Oasis. However, looking at ship ages vs. sizes, Royal might also decide to let it ride if Bermuda is the deciding factor. On average, Vision-class is hitting 30 years in 5 years, Radiance-class is hitting the big 3-0 in about 11, Voyager-class in 9, and Freedom-class in 15. There are multiple options that aren't Quantum when considering Bermuda for at least a decade. Still, I'm anticipating we'll hear something within that time about a smaller ship than Oasis if they're planning one. Might be another Quantum, might be an evolved Quantum-class. I'd be pleasantly surprised if it carries under 4,000 passengers. 

Sailed:

Adventure

Oasis

Upcoming:

2023: Anthem, Brilliance, Allure

2024: Rhapsody, Jewel

5 hours ago, mac66 said:

I would think that as long as CLs can continue to fill the smaller ships that will keep them in service.

  I don't know what the cost ratio is but a full 2500 passenger ship seems like it would cost less to operate and be more profitable than a 5000 passenger ship that is less than full.

We booked a 7 n western Caribbean cruise for February on the Serenade because it was significantly cheaper than the same itinerary on an Oasis class ship. No sense paying for stuff we don't use (flow rider, climbing wall etc).  We really prefer the Radiance and less than Oasis class ships to the bigger ones.

If/when they phase them out we will find another cruise line.

I don't remember the exact numbers, but Royal has said previously an Oasis-class ship requires about 40% occupancy to turn a profit while a Vision-class requires around 70% occupancy. Newer ship designs could reduce the occupancy required to cover costs, but there's still the issue of larger ships can generate more revenue due to passenger volume. So while the expenses of a smaller ship are less, the potential profit is too. 

To me, there's a lot we don't know about backend discussions and analysis at Royal. How do smaller ships fare during the off-season? How beneficial are smaller ships with retaining frequent cruisers and guest spending (due to the loyalty program and on-board accounts they know all)? How are they viewing smaller ships with various environmental regulations being put into place in parts of Europe? 

A price hike is quite possible even before Starlink is completed. If you're planning on booking Voom, like anything else in the cruise planner, it's best to do it now and reprice if it drops.