WAAAYTOOO

Royal never officially announced an odyssey test sailing contrary to what one source, cruise critic, reported. It’s no surprise that July 3rd wasn’t sailing even without the new development 

With all these cancellations and schedule changes, do you think the Royal reservation system can handle it?    I'm afraid there will be missing reservations, double bookings, room assignment issues, etc.  

They were never going to sail on July 3rd to begin with. let’s be honest. Now we know why there was never a confirmed test sailing announced of the odyssey from royal 
 

She just needs that champagne smashed across her bow and exorcise these demons! 
Seriously will she ever sail? 

My October out of Rome was cancelled months ago. I moved us to October 2022 Holy Land. This ship needs some divine intervention! 

They are !! 

Yep.  We just lost B2B 7-17 and 7-25.  At first glance it seems that their options to move this cruise are very generous.  It seems to me (without indepth evaluation) that you can shift any 2021 or 2022 sailing.  I assume it would have to be on OY.
This is particularly awesome for us as these are both upgraded casino comps which ordinarily cannot be moved at all.  I'm secretly a bit relieved as I was dreading what the boarding and onboard protocols would be for us (unvaxxed).  This will give us a little more time to see how things go.
I AM beginning to think that OY is cursed, however...?

This is why you never saw any confirmed test sailings. 
I didnt think they were ever going to sail on July 3rd to begin with. 

Odyssey just got canceled through July 25 due to 8 covid cases on board.

waaytoo...mine were3 casino comps, fine print says those arent transferrable...i read it as 25th sailing also canceled...3rd,11th,18th and 25th departures. maybe not??
 

Oh phudge! Now I counted them and ten are in ink with 2 more in pencil. Royal's "lift & shift " made me do it ?‍♂️

We've been planning our family cruise since 2019 and with COVID it has had many changes.  The first thing i told the other families involved was that "ports are not guaranteed" and can be changed at any time, even on the ship.  I'm sure that the cruise lines are doing the best they can with the ever changing environment and they are in a non win situation.  If they cancel it, people are mad, if they change it, people are mad.  
 
We even had a November 2021 cruise where both the ship and the ports changed.  Sure it was disappointing, but until everything is back to normal, there was no need to fret over it.  I'm sure we will still have a great trip.

Our very first (and second) rooms on the Oasis class were in a Boardwalk balcony.  We loved those rooms.  Some are concerned about privacy since you can see straight across to your Boardwalk neighbors but that never concerned us.  We were always looking either down or out the aft (something just doesn't sound right about that last part...LOL).  The balconies on those rooms are very small but they're adequate for people watching and getting some fresh air.
We always tried to stay as far aft as we could so that we had the best chance of having some ocean views.  Unfortunately, since you are on Oasis, you will have the great purple monstrosity to deal with which obstructs your view to the ocean....but being further aft will help with that.  It's a long walk all the way to the back but that's the trade-off for having the better view (IMO).
Of course, there's nothing like an oceanview balcony....but there's nothing particularly unique about it like there is with the BW or CP balcony.  If you do decide to go with the OV balcony, I recommend staying closer to midship as you don't have to deal with the walk.
You really can't go wrong either way !  That's the good part.

Pretty typical of Royal in my opinion. The left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing.  These changes get made and it's like they don't fully think out all of the different places they need to make the changes, or the timing is taking too long for the changes to be updated across all the different areas.  
You for sure won't be able to get an answer from the front line customer service reps. They really can't see more than we can on the consumer website and I don't think they get these updates pushed out to them.  A lot of the times you will know of a change before they are even aware of it.

Don’t think anyone is saying he is WRONG to be upset, I think we’d all be upset.  But in the grand scheme of the last 15 months, a cruise is a cruise is a cruise is a cruise.  No doubt in the “normal” world this would be an outrageous itinerary change but we still aren’t back to whatever normal is.  Perspective is everything.

I have mine booked for August 29, 2022 on Quantum.  Originally it was booked for August 30, 2021 but that cruise on Quantum was cancelled.  I did a lift and shift to the 2022 cruise.  My wife knows that this cruise is for our anniversary so it won't be a surprise.    What she doesn't know is that I used a sizable FCC from another cancelled cruise and splurged on our first ever Grand Suite.
We did an Alaskan cruise several years ago.  Alaska was great but that cruise happened in May so it was somewhat cold and was snowing in places.  I'm hoping it won't be so cold in August.  If it is, I'm thinking any Quantum class ship will be ideal.
We have never been to Sitka, or Icy Strait Point but our future cruise will do Sitka this time.  
I think you will enjoy either cruise.

Our very first (and second) rooms on the Oasis class were in a Boardwalk balcony.  We loved those rooms.  Some are concerned about privacy since you can see straight across to your Boardwalk neighbors but that never concerned us.  We were always looking either down or out the aft (something just doesn't sound right about that last part...LOL).  The balconies on those rooms are very small but they're adequate for people watching and getting some fresh air.
We always tried to stay as far aft as we could so that we had the best chance of having some ocean views.  Unfortunately, since you are on Oasis, you will have the great purple monstrosity to deal with which obstructs your view to the ocean....but being further aft will help with that.  It's a long walk all the way to the back but that's the trade-off for having the better view (IMO).
Of course, there's nothing like an oceanview balcony....but there's nothing particularly unique about it like there is with the BW or CP balcony.  If you do decide to go with the OV balcony, I recommend staying closer to midship as you don't have to deal with the walk.
You really can't go wrong either way !  That's the good part.

Testing an animated image file to see how it works in this older thread.

 
 
 

Please add the following cruises: Mariner of the seas december 1st, 2022, Independence of the seas February 25th, 2022, Allure of the seas May 1st, 2022, Brilliance of the seas March 23rd, 2023 & Carnival Mardi Gras May 21st, 2023.

1.  I agree with @12thman.  I would NOT depend on RoyalUp if you really want a full suite.  Those chances are extremely remote.
2.  GS - I am a huge fan of Grand Suites on all of the Royal Caribbean ship classes EXCEPT for the Quantum class (of which, Anthem is one).  Since you mentioned your mom uses a scooter, I would scratch this one off your list immediately.  The half wall where the TV is mounted in the Q class GS makes that suite VERY cramped and I would think that she would have a big problem with a scooter.  Frankly, I think you would have more room in your JS than you would in a GS on Anthem.  I will never EVER pay for a GS again on a Q class ship.
3.  I have never stayed (or even seen) a 2 BR GS on the Q class ship so I really have no opinion about this one.  As long as the living area is not designed the same as it is in the 1 BR (with that half wall for the TV) you would probably be fine.  This might actually provide you with the most comfortable situation as you would each have a regular bed.
4.  While I have never stayed in an OS on a Q class ship, I feel confident that you would have plenty of room for your mom's scooter in an OS.  Not only would you have plenty of room, but you would have a dining table and regular chairs in your suite so that you could enjoy a comfortable room service meal if you decided to try that.  With a full suite, room service is complimentary so you could have breakfast, lunch or dinner (or all 3 !!!) delivered if you chose to do that.  It's a very nice treat.
Honestly, if you are going to spend additional money, I would NOT waste it on a GS on Anthem.  I am fairly sure that you would have to completely remove the coffee table in the living room to be able to get to the bedroom with a scooter.

Thank you for everyone’s help! I bit the bullet, booked the Owner’s Suite! I’m super excited. ? I just really hope it goes ahead now! ?

My TA places the hold, and gives me 6-7 days to put down a deposit.

A Travel Agent can execute a hold on a cruise without deposit.  The length of the hold varies but usually it is for around 48 hours.  It does freeze the price.

Thanks! That's not too far away now. I'll just chew my nails down to the cuticles praying nothing changes. A successful test cruise is the last thing I want done before I really feel some kind of confidence in my cruise sailing.

My friend in the Philippines who’s worked as a waiter for RCL for over 20 years, cleared his medical exams the other day and was given a 6 month contract on Harmony……. He will meet her in Cyprus on July 16.