S0nny

The funny thing is I tried to pull out the sofabed in the Navigator GS to see the impact when in bed mode.  It must have been the Kraken... I gave up.  

Exactly!  If you check the deck plans for Oasis (after May 2021) all the Deck 17 suites show pullmans too.  I highly doubt those are going to be put in.  That's what I told my sister too last week.  The deck plans are more than likely wrong and the reps only look at those, making them wrong too.  Imagine pullmans in all of the lofts?  Those would have to be some pretty high stairs lol.

I don't even know 5 adults with whom I'd cruise. LOL

Curios where you see that 1278 has a pullman?  The deck plans just show a sofa bed.  The deck plans are absent of the * used for pullman.  
I was in 1598 on the other side of the ship but with the same deck plan indicators.  The room doesn't lend itself to pullman. All GS on this deck indicate 4 guests.




 

One day I will be this bold... but I can barely send back something I didn't even order at a restaurant ??
 
+1 to this! We did the couples massage on our last cruise, and I almost smacked my husband when I saw the price ? (to be fair... I am the cheap one in the marriage) The massage itself was relaxing... but no different than any couples massage we've had in the past. The biggest "advantage" IMO is the ability to use the Spa waiting area to relax and decompress from the ruckus that is cruise life. I think that might include access to the Thermal Spa on-board... but I couldn't look at our cruise-planner since RCCL had the audacity to cancel our April 4th 2020 cruise out of San Juan!
My personal advice is to skip the massage onboard, and get a massage done where you can control the factors that may be important to YOU! That may be affordability, quality, variability, or quality ratings. We always arrive into the port town a day early... Why not get one done on land, skip the cruise "TAX", and get your vacation started with a "happy beginning" ? 
 

+1 to this... I would start on Facebook and Twitter. Make mention of involving the press in the post. A lot of times they will escalate the issue to someone who can actually do something. What is unfortunate in the video is the recording starting from the middle of the selection process and not the beginning (which I would encourage you to go back and replicate if possible). As others have mentioned... their website is terribly glitchy. Any use of the back button, or reload option can further compound those issues. It's no excuse since it clearly looks like you're paying for 4 people. I hope it works out for you!

One day I will be this bold... but I can barely send back something I didn't even order at a restaurant ??
 
+1 to this! We did the couples massage on our last cruise, and I almost smacked my husband when I saw the price ? (to be fair... I am the cheap one in the marriage) The massage itself was relaxing... but no different than any couples massage we've had in the past. The biggest "advantage" IMO is the ability to use the Spa waiting area to relax and decompress from the ruckus that is cruise life. I think that might include access to the Thermal Spa on-board... but I couldn't look at our cruise-planner since RCCL had the audacity to cancel our April 4th 2020 cruise out of San Juan!
My personal advice is to skip the massage onboard, and get a massage done where you can control the factors that may be important to YOU! That may be affordability, quality, variability, or quality ratings. We always arrive into the port town a day early... Why not get one done on land, skip the cruise "TAX", and get your vacation started with a "happy beginning" ? 
 

Running to the MDR right when we get onboard to book all of our specialty meals with the UDP ? 
One day I will not be so OCD or such a worry wart about not getting what I want (that's one of the BEST BENEFITS of getting the UDP). We spent a good hour right when we got onboard to make sure we got all of our dining reservations sorted for the week... Not only did I not realize there are multiple places to make those reservations, but I also forgot that cruising is a fluid vacation... not a static one! Everything ended up changing after plans messed up our first nights' reservation! And we have never had any problems making a dining reservation for specialty dining. Maybe our preferred choice wasn't available when we wanted it, but we have always been able to make it work.
UDP/UBP = Stress LESS Drink MORE!

Ahhhh... The good ole' Spring "sale" that turns into the same Summer "sale", and so on... ?
As others have stated, learn to trust your own search history and pay no attention to advertising. You're keeping a spreadsheet... I'd say you're one step ahead of your average cruisers.
One thing I didn't see stressed, is your ability to reprice your cruise if there has been a fare drop (What is the Best Price Guarantee Program? | Royal Caribbean Cruises), and the ability to cancel/reprice onboard activities up to 24 hours prior to the activity. So even if you're seeing a better price now, just look on the bright side that you can get it for less than you originally paid!! What a DEAL!
And if you don't have a Travel Agent... now is the time for a shameless plug. They DO still exist, they should be FREE, and a good one should be able to help you navigate all these reprices!
 

?? Touche! 
But the sad reality is... large enterprises only respond to large statements. I worked in customer service over the phone (selling auto/home insurance for one the largest in the business)... trust me... even if UKFamily were able to get a hold of someone who cared about their circumstance... the sad thing is they probably can do nothing to fix it. Companies this large have policies in place, and they will only get attention when it's escalated to a higher authority. And nowadays, what gets an immediate response is social media (we had a policy to give people who posted to social media almost anything they wanted... sooooo ... you call it being a Karen... I call it knowing the system ?‍♀️)

Ahhhh... The good ole' Spring "sale" that turns into the same Summer "sale", and so on... ?
As others have stated, learn to trust your own search history and pay no attention to advertising. You're keeping a spreadsheet... I'd say you're one step ahead of your average cruisers.
One thing I didn't see stressed, is your ability to reprice your cruise if there has been a fare drop (What is the Best Price Guarantee Program? | Royal Caribbean Cruises), and the ability to cancel/reprice onboard activities up to 24 hours prior to the activity. So even if you're seeing a better price now, just look on the bright side that you can get it for less than you originally paid!! What a DEAL!
And if you don't have a Travel Agent... now is the time for a shameless plug. They DO still exist, they should be FREE, and a good one should be able to help you navigate all these reprices!
 

We call it...Royal's Fuzzy Math!  We have learned a long time ago to not believe in their so called sales.  We constantly check on the items we are interested in from the day we book till we cruise...We learn what the basic price is.  If we find it at a lower price, we know if it's a good deal and we buy it.  If we find it lower again...We cancel the first one and re-buy.  Takes a bit of work on our part to check our cruise planner several times a week but it has payed off in the end.  

This is well known about Royal....most here seem to turn a blind eye to it and justify it one way or another or just tell you that's just the way it is.
 
I agree, it is VERY shady and unethical in my opinion..by NEVER setting a base/starting price there is no way to legitimately hold them accountable or fairly compare or explain their  "sales" and "discounts"......

Welcome to the blog !
Right now, nobody knows if the rules or amenities are going to change. I suspect it is inevitable that some will. I guess we will all just have to wait and see.  Bottom line - it is my opinion that being Star Class will be more important than ever. If dining and entertainment venues are restricted in density, having someone (your Genie) helping secure space and reservations will be an even bigger help. 

Ravenna, Italy is an 8.5 hr drive to Vienna, Austria. I doubt it very much anyone will go on an excursion considering they will miss the boat leaving. Now, Ravenna, Italy is 2.5 hr drive to Venice, Italy.  ???????

Anthem because it was our first and only with Royal so far! Loved the aft deck and activities like flow rider and I fly.  Honestly, I think Oasis will take top spot; deck 17, proximity to CK, the aqua theatre, Portside BBQ and everything else! Since April 2021 is a bust, only 459 days to go. ?

Regarding the "hard sell" that inevitably comes at the end of the session....  I have found that I can cut them off at the pass by telling them before they even start that I am not interested in purchasing any products or services and please do not waste either of our time.  You can do that in a way that isn't offensive and it saves a lot of time and pressure at the end.  Once, I had them try and do their "schpeel" on me anyway (even after I had told them not to) and I just walked out.  I didn't feel bad doing that as they had already been warned.

We tried it on our honeymoon, but it seemed overpriced for the "privilege" of being in same room as my wife to get a massage. You're not holding hands or looking deeply into each other's eyes...you're both face down on a table with eyes closed getting a massage. 
I think there's better value (and wider variety of massage choices) if you both book spa massages at the same time, but in different rooms.

Stay away from the bamboo sticks option.  ?

If you have experience with land based massage venues it's pretty similar but they will do a hard sell at the end trying to push a range of products.  It's more expensive compared to a massage on land but if its a special occasion perhaps it's worth it.  They outsource the spa to a 3rd party that does many different cruise lines.

Just wanted to share a couple things I found interesting follow a Lift n Switch.  We were supposed to be on the Freedom out of San Juan this coming April, well with final payment days away we decide to reschedule a year in the future.  We had a crazy good deal on a balcony room that we didn't want to loose the rate on, unfortunately there was nothing we could switch to out of San Juan that would fit my crazy work schedule. 
We did find a sailing on Symphony though out of Miami that would work in April 2022 so figured we would see if they would do the switch.  Sure enough it was on the approved list even though it wasn't the same original port and triple the cost.  Very cool it was so easy, as we expected to have to call a few times to get this done.
Second was the even though we had a guaranteed room rate (they pick) for our first booking, when I received the invoice for the re-book I now had an assigned room number.  Not sure if this is normal or maybe was by accident but worked out well.
Now the bad part, another 467 days to wait.  But who is counting!

Hope so. That, or they simply don't want to spend Winter in jolly old England

When we hit the actual open water in San Juan, I had a hard time with neutral buoyancy.  The local instructor told the ship instructor that he'd help me and she could stay with the other two students.  I know the small number of students we had was random luck, but getting that one on one time was awesome.  I don't think I would have had that in a larger, local class.
From talking with our ship instructor, it seems like most cruise classes are small, so there is a very good chance to get that one on one time if you need it.

This defines EXACTLY what is needed. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/qualifications-special-pricing
To qualify for a military rate, an individual must be classified as one of the following: 
Active personnel currently serving in the Canadian National Defense; United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, National Guard or Reserves. Proper identification in the form of a United States Uniformed Services WHITE Identification Card for U.S. military personnel, and a WHITE N.D.21 Identification Card with a Red Canadian Flag displayed for Canadian National Defense personnel, must be presented at time of check-in. Retired from any of the divisions listed directly above. "Retired" is defined as A) enlisted personnel or officers with a minimum of 20 years of service, B) medically retired, or C) 100% disabled. Proper identification for those classified in category A or B must be in the form of a United States Uniformed RED (Reserve retired personnel) or BLUE (Active Duty retired personnel) Identification Card. Proper identification for those classified in category C is a United States Uniformed TAN Identification Card. Retired Canadian National Defense personnel are eligible and must possess a green NDI-75 card (retired personnel). All forms of identification must be presented at time of check-in. Veterans with an Honorable Discharge serving a minimum of 2 years, or 6-months in an active war zone, in any of the United States service divisions listed above. Proper identification in the form of a DD 214, plus a current photo must be presented at time of check-in. Spouses of actively deployed military personnel are eligible to book one stateroom as long as the eligible spouse is occupying the stateroom. This rate also applies to all other guests traveling in the same stateroom. Spouses of deceased military personnel are also eligible for the military rate. As proof of eligibility, spouses must present the Pink or Tan Dependent Military ID upon check-in. All guests traveling in the same stateroom are eligible to receive the military rate. No additional staterooms, other than the one that is occupied by the military person is eligible for the military rate. Spouses, parents, in-laws, children or other family members or friends are not eligible for the military rate without the eligible military person occupying the stateroom. 

Oh no!! We must've gotten a dud. Cause our last Chops Embarkation lunch in the MDR with The Key was TERRIBLE ? That steak was dryyyyyy
With regards to buying The Key... it really depends on how they handle the different classes and the new rules. We have a group cruise booked for April '21 on Freedom and I plan on writing a Live Blog about the whole thing. Could you possibly buy The Key now at the "cheaper" price with the notion that you can always get a refund/CC before the cruise if things aren't being handled to your comfort?