WAAAYTOOO

People watching.  Probably jealous as heck remembering the old days when they used to do something similar.  
Just be glad none of them became an Alpha, Alpha, Alpha from all the excitement.  
Seriously hope when I'm in my 80's I can people watch from the a Viking Crown Lounge, or whatever equivalent venue exists in a few decades after Icon class has been crushed in a yard somewhere.  

We were in Giovanni's on lobster night and lobsters showed up at our table without us even asking for them, lol.

We also do an Allianz annual policy.
Our policy (July 21 - July 2022) cost $700 total - $623 for coverage and $77 for "assistance" whatever that is.  This policy covers all travel (not just cruising) and has a COVID rider.  Coverage $$ are below:

 
The bad news is.....we have yet to take a single trip !  So it may have been a wasted expense, but we make a point of keeping the travel policies current (they never lapse) and hopefully we will be traveling again before it has to be renewed for 2022-2023 !!

When you do self-debarkation you can go at any time.  They allow you off first but if you want to wait, you can.

Testing change...doable. We have to test for the cruise anyway.
Quarantine...the nail in the coffin. 😢

I had Ovation booked for May, 2020 - Hawaii to Vancouver. I believe I will be rebooking the same cruise for May, 2023. Woo hoo!  Excited!

We kept our luggage and left the ship around 9:30am.  We were able to eat a leisurely breakfast in the main dining room and take our time.  Actually when we first boarded and got to our room…there was a paper to fill out with the time we choose to disembark…so we picked the latest time offered.  Very simple.

When you do self-debarkation you can go at any time.  They allow you off first but if you want to wait, you can.

For my Anthem cruise, looks like we still get the following:
Early Boarding
Chops lunch in dining room
Carry on bags delivered to our room
Surf and stream internet
Priority tender boarding/activities/ and entertainment
Departure breakfast
No longer included-25% off dining and free room service.
 

When you do self-debarkation you can go at any time.  They allow you off first but if you want to wait, you can.

When you do self-debarkation you can go at any time.  They allow you off first but if you want to wait, you can.

For those who have been on the Jewel (maybe on other Radiance class ships as well), you know how the Diamond Lounge is on the deck overlooking the pool deck.
Well, I went there to get coffee and there were these two men, probably in their 80s, watching people on the pool deck. An elderly lady joins them as they point out to a couple making out in the pool.
Some of the lines I remember were:
”Don’t they have a room on the ship?”
”There are children on the pool deck, you know”… (Reply) “But the children are gonna find out about it sooner or later”
“I’m a prude, I care about private things being private”
”Look, they’re going at it again”
 
As I was leaving I said to them in jest, “Boy, I have to be careful how I behave on the pool deck”

The thing is, I’m not having any issues with the rank and file.  It‘s more with the “titled” ones.  I hope I’m wrong but I’m getting the “small ship, big boss” vibe on this ship.
With the Bar Supervisor I spoke with, I felt like he was telling me “I’m the boss, my word is canon.”  Which apparently is not, because my experience was different in the previous 10 Royal ships I’ve sailed on.  I hope I’m wrong but I felt him grumbling as he walked away from the place.  If you think about it, I’m bringing their ship revenue for coffee that the Allure will provide.

Oddly enough, my insurance actually sent me a check after we got tested for our trip... but I never got a bill from the testing place. So I actually got *paid* to take my test, unless I finally get a bill. 😆

Embarkation*: It was easy and fast! Port Canaveral is very organized!
Disembarkation*: Easy, Easy, very easy!! I was at my home at noon (Port Canaveral to Miami).
Parking: Use the Royal Caribbean parking, it worth it!
Food and Dinning:
Main Dining Room – I was there 2 nights, good food but could be better. Most of the time the food was cold… and the quality doesn’t meet my expectation (including the formal night). Lunch at Windjammer: Horrible! And when I say “horrible” it’s mean that also two tables next to us agreed that this lunch wasn’t great at all. Breakfast at Windjammer: Was ok! We did breakfast two days at Windjammer. Best dinner at the Ship: Giovanni’s table, we ended paying for this at the cruise since the Main Dining Room didn’t meet our expectation. And this dinner was amazing! Best breakfast at the Ship: Main Dining Room using The Key program breakfast on disembarkation day. Best lunch: Coco Beach Club! Some people say that doesn’t worth it (day pass) ... CocoCay – Beach Club – Land Cabana:
This was the best trip experience ever! AMAZING QUALITY FOOD! AMAZING SERVICE! 5 stars! I would say paying up to $100 for the day pass and AMAZING lunch, it worth it! And I wound't pay more than $999 for the land cabana. I was lucky, I got cabana #22 with the best view! Most of the Cabana views is the Overwater cabana... CocoCay WaterPark: We had the tickets and ended doing at "not show" this time since we feel so comfortable at the Beach Club. (Yes, royal Caribbean refunded the money for the Water Park). I'll try the water park at my next cruise this month. The Key Program:
Priority boarding is a plus for me… I was on the ship with my first drink on hand at 11:30am The Welcome Lunch – Was ok… but the Filet Mignon was great! Disembarkations Breakfast – AMAZING but would be better if the food is a bit hot… was cold… but was good! Flow Rider Private Session: It worth it, I literally had the flow rider for me only I didn’t use room service There’s NOT priority sitting at the shows (I guess it’s due COVID protocols or something) Internet work nice in the Ship and at CocoCay Lesson Learned:
I NEED to get the Unlimited Dinning Package for my next cruise, I got the three days dining package because the unlimited is sold out but I'll keep an eye, hoping to grab it! I'll always get The Key if the cost is $30.00 or less. Deluxe Drink Package: I wound't pay more than $57.00  
Ask me whatever you need, let's see if I can help you.
*I had “The Key” and it worth it. 
Sorry for any grammar issues, English is my second language.
My next Cruise is Harmony of the Seas - December 26th

I hate that they treated you this way, I'm not sure but our return to the Oasis last week exposed us to more then a few pretty miserable staff.  Rough start I guess, maybe in their (RCCL) haste to get going the crew are being neglected in addition to the workload, not allowed to leave the ship, mask requirements etc. Seriously, when I saw the servers and life guards at Coco Cay with masks on outside I thought now this is simply ridiculous. I understand the litigation protection/limiting exposure, limiting monetary pay outs but all I kept thinking was these are human beings who are outside in the sunshine and warm weather...let them breathe, please? Have an enjoyable rest of your sailing. 

My hubby (Mr. RUB Cabash man) hates sauces of any kind so we went to the podium in CK after breakfast the morning of lobster night and advised the man in charge we would be dining at the MDR that evening for MDR lobster so please free up our reservations so someone else could enjoy the restaurant. The man in charge said NO! He said I will bring you MDR lobsters here, tonight feel free to keep your reservation. Hubby was brought 4 (four) yes & daughter  was given 2, seriously almost fell out of my chair. 
What a nice surprise and the waiter Jonathon (he was our favorite) was just wonderful, he actually said he would bring another. Just wow! (we stopped him)
* As an aside maybe they observed that we had cancelled Thanksgiving night and went down to MDR, our friends were there and were in balcony cabins, so we went downstairs to dine with them for Thanksgiving knowing CK was not afforded to them at that time. 
We went to Next Cruise & she booked a Grand for our summer Harmony sailing though, I'm going to ruin them!

Maybe you were seated in the "no happy thoughts" section of the MDR.

Ironically, I was wearing a shirt I made that says “Happy Return to Royal”

From experience, I have never had a problem using a coffee card on several ships until it is used up. I bought one on the Allure and used the remaining slots on the Freedom and Odyssey.  I bought a new one on the Odyssey to use on this  S2S2S I’m doing right now.
Today on the Jewel, I decided to purchase four coffee cards to give as gifts to my friends who are going on a pre-Christmas cruise on the Allure.  Someone at Café Latte-tudes told me that coffee cards can only be used on the ship on which they were purchased.  When I told him about my experience with coffee cards, I was given the “I am the Bar Supervisor speech.”
Has anyone had a problem using coffee cards across several sailings?
 
OFF-TOPIC:  I seem to be having issues with authorities on the Jewel.  On Day 1, I was approached by two different MDR managers in the middle of dinner demanding to see my SeaPass card and telling me I was at the wrong table. I have not set foot on the MDR since.  With all these brushes with TPTB, I’m afraid I will be put in detention or something.
 
Now back to the coffee card issue…

For B2B cruisers they typically use an antigen test, depending on the ship, but that doesn't make it the "standard".
There is no such thing as a "standard" test.  They will use whatever test is required for the situation which will vary.    
I recently required a second test when a country where I had to permanently leave the ship for a family emergency changed the rules on the morning I was getting off.  In addition to a PCR test within 72 hours they decided on the spot to require an antigen test within 3 hours of debarking.  This new requirement was introduced literally as I was waiting to walk off the ship, they had already cleared me from an immigration perspective. 
The ship didn't have rapid antigen tests to satisfy what was essentially less than a one hour window to produce a test letter.  They had ID NOW rapid NAAT/PCR tests that could produce results within an hour so that's what they used.  PCR is better than antigen so they used it to satisfy the antigen requirement that was the minimum requirement but not the absolute requirement.  
The ship used what fit my needs as long as it met or exceeded the requirement for that situation.  

Not going to happen.

This article was updated this morning, confirming what others have said about anticipated changes to testing protocols and more. Ugh
https://globalnews.ca/news/8415501/us-covid-travel-rules-omicron-variant/

https://www.portofgalveston.com/80/Cruise-Lines-Schedules
The port posted their new schedules for 2022.  It looks like the first (planned) use of Terminal 3 will be Allure on Nov 13 and then Adventure on Nov 14.  
Terminal 2 will be then used by Disney for their winter season and Carnival on Saturdays (as they have already been doing).  

I'd be shocked if the quarantine part was included just due to how impossible it'd be to enforce.