berkeleykel

Power adaptors. Make sure 6+ months left on passport after end of trip. Have a plan for acquiring some cash (I would typically go to an ATM once in country). I wouldn't buy the wine until you get there; can't tell if that's what you already planned to do or not.

This latest article I read seems to have more specific numbers that the earlier articles I saw. Sounds like most people were able to get off the island -- 8 people left unaccounted for and presumed dead in addition to the 5 that were rescued but later died. https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/new-zealand-volcano-eight-still-missing-after-eruption-on-white-island-which-left-five-dead-and-injured-34/ar-BBXZX7w?li=BBoPWjQ

I love Bellinis because they are quick and easy to make but feel more indulgent that a regular glass of wine.

Ugh just checked and you're right. Redirects me to https://www.royalcaribbean.com/gbr/en/cruises. The booking interface is now like the US website. Major downside for my purposes being that .co.uk website rarely would list a cabin category but then say it was unavailable when you clicked on it, whereas the US one does all the time with the suite category.

I found it really annoying not to be able to hear announcements from the room. First world problems but in a 2 bedroom GS by the time I realised there was an announcement and made it from the en suite bathroom all the way around to the door to hear the announcement, I would have already missed a decent chunk of it. It was most frustrating when it related to announcements like whether tendering was starting, whether we could disembark at a port etc. Big difference between “we are docked and anticipate you can deboard in 30 mins” vs “you can get off the boat right now”.

Thanks @KristiZ , @Joe01 !

Sorry to side track but how was your experience on a Med cruise in October? I have a deposit down for Allure next October but I'm waffling.

Lost my Set Sail Pass while at port in Corfu. Didn't realize it was missing until we went to go through security at the terminal to re-board the ship approximately 30 mins before last call. Thankfully I had my passport with me to use as an alternative ID - don't know what they would have done if I hadn't had it. But even with the passport they made me wait until they had cleared the full line of people at the terminal before letting me through. Then we were shuttled in a port vehicle directly to the ship, where the port employee confirmed my identity with Royal. Maybe we just looked like VIPs getting a special car ride direct to the ship rather than having to make the 5 min walk. But we felt embarrassed! In the rush and the stress my husband dropped our son's iPod getting out of the car and the screen completely shattered . So...keep a special eye on your Set Sail Pass while off the ship! Honestly I haven't the slightest clue what happened to mine.

@Pixie4697 I disembarked from Venice this past summer. I stayed on the ship after the normal disembarkation process since I was doing the "Stay Awhile" program, so I missed the rush off the boat, but I did get the sense that the de-boarding process was timely. They had called all the luggage tag numbers by 9:30 and made a last call to get off the ship at 9:40. When I left the ship later in the afternoon there wasn't really a process to go through customs. There seemed to be an official-looking person sitting behind a desk but we just walked by. The drive to the airport took maybe 30 mins. The airport is small and they wouldn't even let us check in to our flight more than a couple hours before the flight anyway.

It's never been an issue for me as I tend to bring my own shower poof regardless. And I do suspect you will have a better chance of finding them in London proper where hotels are more used to dealing with American guests and may stock them automatically. I just mentioned it because it does catch people unsuspecting sometimes! I think that in many parts of the world a washcloth is considered unnecessary (you can use your hands) or a personal item so you would carry around your own if you wanted it, in the vein of a handkerchief.

When is the group cruise?

I’ve usually had great experiences at Heathrow. And now US citizens can use the e-gates as long as you aren’t traveling with children, which has sped up going through passport control a lot.

True, even travelling just me, husband and son can be difficult because they'll want us to book two rooms for 2 adults + 1 small child. I think it is common in Europe in general that the default is a 2 person room rather than a 4 person room. Bring your own washcloths - that's not really a standard thing in hotels here.

I second the Premier Inns recommendation. But depends on how long you are staying in London, what you plan to do while you are there, and what you consider moderately priced. Personally I love my neighborhood so would also recommend the Hilton London Tower Bridge. Walking distance to Tower Bridge, Tower of London, the Shard, Borough Market. Close to the Jubilee line which takes you quickly to Westminster and Waterloo (near London Eye, trains to Southampton, trains to Windsor if you wanted a day trip there). For trains from London to Southamption, which is what I would do personally, look at South Western Railway. Direct trains run regularly from London Waterloo to Southampton Central and take around 1 hr 20 mins.

I can't compare to other RCL ships as Rhapsody is the only one I've been on, but here are my thoughts on our 7 night trip from this past September: Ship is older but well maintained. Smaller ship with not many activities. I thought it could have used one more family activity like mini golf or something. However, the activities staff is top notch and makes up for it with excellent activities. We had a lot of fun at the trivia events, game shows, etc. We would go back just for the activities staff. We only had one sea day though. Maybe we would have felt the lack of activities more if we had more sea days. MDR was excellent. We loved our meals and service. Same for Chops. My husband loved his food at Giovanni's but my stuffed chicken entree was nearly inedible. We had some issues with Guest Services not knowing what they were doing, giving out incorrect information, being generally incompetent. Loved the bar staff for the most part; Schooners was our fave. Spa was mediocre. Long waits despite having appointments booked. Food in Windjammer was good and generally kept well stocked. There were issues with getting seating sometimes, especially at breakfast. Our room was in the forward part of deck 8. There were some nights where the noise from dancing on the pool deck was kind of ridiculous--constant, loud thumping on our ceiling until 1 am. Would avoid a cabin in that area. We were pleasantly surprised by how entertained we were the whole time. I had been wanting to try an Oasis class ship but after our experience on Rhapsody I started thinking that it might be too much for us to jump up to such a big ship. It was nice seeing the same groups of people over and over again. The cruise felt like a true shared experience and we were all in it together.

The Adventure sailings are listed in the blog as going to St. Petersburg, Russia and I would assume that's the St. Petersburg that the OP wants to go since they called it a bucket list destination!

I didn't know such a thing existed! I'm worried the vibe would feel weird with people coming and going in the middle. BTW - looks like the UK site has caught up to the US site's listings.

So the Harmony itineraries departing from Barcelona and departing from Rome overlap - it looks like the idea is that in any 7 given days guests may be embarking/disembarking at either Barcelona or Rome. Either that, or a major glitch. Has this been done before? Seems like a logistical nightmare .

Ends in Venice. Pretty awesome itinerary really if you add a few days land vacation on either side. But looking more closely there's only one stop in Greece, so not really a Greek isles cruise.

There is one Rhapsody cruise up that leaves from Rome. It must just be a matter of not being posted yet, because Royal's website says Odyssey will be doing med cruises from Rome. Interestingly, Harmony is doing a few western Med cruises departing from Rome.

But the one Anthem sailing that is showing up does list all of the suites as options. Where is the banging head against the wall emoji?

Am I the only one unable to see anything above Junior Suite level on the Anthem sailings?

I did not see many tuxes or full gowns on my Greek isles cruise a couple months ago. I would not stress.

Part of my problem with the response though was that it should lack of consideration for future guests. Royal should have wanted to look into the issue to solve it, if not for the person who already left then at least for the next one. Instead they are taking the easy way out. If they don't have effective communications between their land-based people and their ship-based people, whose fault is that? The issue was Royal's to begin with for providing a crappy room. I'm not super sympathetic to them. I completely understand that if this kind of stuff happens and the goal is to get it fixed or get compensation, as a practical matter you need to complain on board. I'm just saying that does not mean Royal is objectively in the right and I think frustration with them throwing their hands up because they don't feel like dealing is reasonable.

Disagree completely. Why can't they do something now? It's their choice how to respond. These complaints are easily verifiable. It's not like complaining after the fact that the food was served cold in the MDR or something. I think it's reasonable not to want to further negatively affect a vacation by wasting time and stress by logging complaints while on board. I also don't see a tantrum here and comments like that are unnecessary.