USCG Teacher

I'm also on an August 2021 with Coco Cay, and we've also been stuck at $79 since we booked. Looks like that may just be the going fare for an Oasis ship calling in the summer for now. Like @KJones suggested, if you're comfortable at that rate, might as well book it, you can always reprice if there's a Black Friday sale or price drop once you get closer to your sail date.

But, but, but...THE WEBSITE! ?

Can't agree with this any more if I tried. Pandemic or no, bring on the manned buffet stations. I'll gladly deal with the potential of slightly slower lines as a trade off for people with questionable hygienic practices not pawing up my food and/or befouling the serving utensils.

I'd be surprised if lobbyists aren't already pitching this over GrubHub-ed steaks from The Palm.

The Short Stop Grill - Garfield Arkansas. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g31606-d3190968-Reviews-The_Short_Stop-Garfield_Arkansas.html

https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2020/06/09/royal-caribbean-postpones-royal-amplifications-its-cruise-ships-until-further-notice

This is correct, although the 5 business includes mail delivery time to US addresses. That said, you do have a plan a bit further out for it. The other thing that I'm a fan of is that they deduct it from your account when you process it, so no outstanding checks (I HATE outstanding checks!). If they do not cash it within 90 days, it is refunded to your account.

I have a short list like this as well. Luckily, my bank's e-payment system will actually mail a check out to any vendor I add to my "Payee" list if they don't accept EFTs. They even cover the stamp!

I've been sitting steady at $61 for my 8/2021 Oasis sailing. Come on price drop! ?

Enjoying those cookies again I see. Seems prudent. ?

Yes, it's a version of year-round scheduling. When implemented, most districts prefer to start Q1 somewhere in mid-August, so summer break still ends up being six weeks (which is still a nice chunk of time!) and starts around the beginning of July. It helps reduce the summer slide, eases child-care burden on families (again, overgeneralizing, but most districts that implement this offer ESY/camp programs to cover the 15-day breaks with grants available for those in need) and allows families more flexibility to travel and enjoy social time together (remember that?). It also reduces the time spent starting the school reviewing material and re-establishing classroom norms, so more of the 180 instructional days can focus on curriculum and classroom community. There's another version or year-round schooling where summer break is even sorter (intersession and summer breaks are all 20 days, Winter break remains 15), but I think this style gives you the best of both worlds, so to speak. There's still a slightly longer summer break to look forward to and there's a bit more of a sense of closure to the school year. I get that some (many!) people still prefer their nice long 10 week summer break, and disrupting the status quo is hard, but this just makes so much more sense than the traditional school calendar to me!

This is the second time I've posted this reaction today, so I apologize for the lack of creativity, but the message remains the same:

As an educator, I've advocated for a schedule like this (although in my preferred design Winter Break 10-12 days and there is a 3-5 day Thanksgiving Break) or the "45/15" model for years. It's not so much for the vacation scheduling, but it's a nice fringe benefit.

It really gave it a sense of personalization, didn't it? ? This is an excellent idea, I wish I had thought of it 23 years ago! ?

I got one in 1997 and bought a replacement in 2014. They never ripped, snagged or failed on me. It also serves as the IDEAL laundry bag once you're there. Easy to spot on the carousel, too. Lacks some mobility features of newer models. ?

And as per usual, I'm a few moments behind @WAAAYTOOO with the relevant info. ?

While I don't know for certain if everyone does all destinations, but I do know that Kathy also does Disney, so they're not RCI exclusive...

I was randomly assigned Kathy Geiger from my inquiry and I couldn't have been happier with the service she provided! ??

Have heard anecdotal evidence of some particularly dogged TAs getting Royal to reconsider their math on split FCCs. Can neither confirm nor deny personally, but a number of recent threads have indicated some successes. Best of luck to you!

Here's what's available in Naples on Allure this September:

If you want to see a list of "typical" excursions available, you can select a sailing that's a bit closer in and see what's offered. It's not guaranteed that all of the same excursions will be available in April '21, but it should give you a decent idea.

-Masks on cruises -MDR dress codes -Passports on excursions

You can go this route, you just have to know a ship sailing an itinerary stopping in Naples: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/beforeyouboard/shoreExcursions/downloadBrochure/