WAAAYTOOO

When the WOW envelopes were first introduced (maybe 4 years ago ??) you could only leave them at Guest Services in special receptacles made for that purpose.  I recall that once, we had forgotten to drop ours off and we tried to hand them to a staff member as we were leaving the ship and they held up their hands and backed away, shaking their heads, as if it the envelope might contain a nerve agent or something !  They said, "Oh, I'm sorry.  We cannot even touch those !".  What ??  Whatever.  We just kept walking.  No WOW for those crew member that day !
I don't think the WOW envelopes are quite that sensitive these days.  As a matter of fact, I didn't even know they were still using them.  I would say,  try and find the drop-off containers near Guest Services, first.  If you cannot find one then ask at GS where to deposit them.
The WOW envelopes are not (or at least, did not USED to be) for tips/gratuities. They are to "write up" any crew member that deserves special praise for good service or attitude.  I guess you COULD use them for tips, but that was not their original purpose.
On the issue of tips...we always just give cash to anyone we want to reward.  I don't bother with envelopes of any kind.  Just hand them some dough and be done with it.

Deal alert for Military, Police & Fire. 7 night Southern Caribbean on Freedom Sept 29, 2018.
2D Balcony for $313 per person if you are Diamond or higher!!! $450 per person if you are not eligible for balcony discount. These are refundable rates.

YOLO. Booked it for $767 total for two.

Airfare is the main killer for us, it's usually higher than the cruise fare.

That Windjammer dessert display is no joke!

One of the questions in the post-cruise survey is if anyone asked you to provide a high rating

Thank you everyone for answering !!!

Obviously, I have not been on Symphony, but in general:
1.  Depending upon your stateroom category, there will be SOME kind of shampoo and soap.  In most room categories they have a shower dispenser that contains a mystery substance that most use for both soap and shampoo.  I've used it many many times and my hair has not fallen out - yet.
2.  Yes, you will be able to find something to eat.  The Windjammer will probably open up by 11:30.  The Park Café, in Central Park, will most likely be open.  The promenade area restaurants will probably open up shortly after boarding begins.  On the other O class ships, there will be a couple of specialty restaurants open (Chops and/or Jaimie's) but those will cost extra, of course.  Otherwise, you WILL be able to find something to eat that will not cost you anything extra.
3.  Depending upon your dining time and your dining preference (traditional or my time dining) the MDR will generally be pretty busy the first night.  Most people will be eating there just b/c it's the easiest option.  The BEST news of all...you can order as much of anything you want from the menu in the MDR.  Order 3 starters, 3 main courses and 3 desserts if you want !  No extra charge !
Enjoy your cruise on Symphony.  I am very envious.

1. Will there be Somekind of soap/shampoo in bathroom
2. When you get onboard (even before the rooms are ready) can you go get something to eat example. Cafe Promenade
3. Is the main Dining room gonna be full on 1st evening (asking because i was looking the menus and there was good dishes) And id it possible to order 2 starters (for free? ) in MDR 
 
Im so hyped, +/- 48 hours and i will be onboard Symphony of the seas 

Well, there goes my good drunk I had been working on....
 
Says the guy who hasn't moved from the Schooner Bar in hours...

That's why I never use a curbside checkin.

It's always a good day when this happens !  YIPPEE  !
I had 1 straight flush last week on Allure.

It's always a good day when this happens !  YIPPEE  !
I had 1 straight flush last week on Allure.

I did the same exact thing - twice !

Well, you certainly deserve it.  They completely ruined your Majesty cruise.  I hope this all comes through.  Glad you were able to find someone to help you and I hope the Casino host on the Majesty is gone b/c of this.

The initial rating period was 18 months (from July 1 2016 - Dec. 31, 2017) but the subsequent evaluation periods will be 1 year, beginning on April 1 of one year and ending on March 31 of the next year.
Please remember that this is information coming from a single casino hostess (although I have heard this information from other sources as well) so please do not take it as gospel.  I have yet to hear a WORD about this from any official source.
Stephanie, she did not say anything about when they would be able to provide the tier information at CR.  I find it impossible to believe that they do not have this information already.  Where would the casino hostess (on Allure) have gotten my exact points count and tier level, otherwise ?  My guess is that they simply have not made it "public" yet so that the CS reps can access it or have been told not to release the information yet.  My guess is that the CS reps cannot see it otherwise, SOMEone would have slipped and released it by now.
While I'm thinking of it, I will say one more thing on this matter.  This is the second cruise in a row where I have had my certificate upgraded AFTER it was originally given to me.  I recommend to EVERYone that you go to the casino host desk after you have completed ALL of your play for the cruise and ask for a final points count.  She issued a new certificate right then and there.  It was actually quite a significant difference. My points went from 2012 to 2512, which is a 25% increase.  This makes me think that they are cutting off the points count at LEAST a full day early for the purpose of awarding certificates.  I'm sure most people don't even think to go back and check to see if their certificate can be upgraded.  I was originally awarded one for $300 and the new one was for $500.  Now, as I have said in the past, the certificates are pretty much useless to me but I still want it to be accurate !  I have decided that at least for the first year of the new program, I am going to track my points closely.  I have absolutely lost confidence that the program has any of this under control.  According to what I THINK are the new rules, I should have already qualified for Tier 2 for 2019-2020 (I believe that threshold is 2500 points) and we have 4 more cruises booked so I shouldn't have any problem keeping my Tier 2 status but I simply do not have confidence in them - AT ALL.  I plan on keeping track myself.

If you know that you want to do the hibachi grill, I suggest that you let the Genie know as soon as he contacts you.  This is probably the one restaurant where the Genie has the least flexibility due to the fact that there are limited seats.  I will say that I saw empty seats at the hibachi tables nearly every time I went by there so it's almost a certainty that the Genie will be able to schedule this SOME time during your cruise.  I will also mention that the hibachi side is open for lunch on sea days.  We did not do it this time b/c we have "been there, done that" but the kids usually love this event so go for it !
On Allure this week the ice cream and cupcakes were included but we didn't get any of that.  We never had any request denied but we also pretty much knew what we could and could not do beforehand.
Not sure which thread it was in, but someone asked whether or not the Genie could reserve loungers by the pool.  I asked Charlie and he said that he would not try and do that.  There is a suites lounge area up on deck 17 and this area is exclusive to suites and pinnacles so he would expect you go to there.  While there is no pool up there (a shortcoming that I hope they fix one day) there are plenty of loungers and also cabanas (which were so hot you couldn't stay up there more than a few minutes !!) so this is the reserved area for suites.  He said he could reserve one of the cabanas if you wanted one but not individual loungers.

Just thought I would pop in here and let everyone know that I was wrong about needing to earn 1000 points on your last cruise to get the free drinks and fee waiver.  According to the Allure hostess, the ability to get free drinks and fee waiver is solely dependent upon you tier level.  If you are tier 2, which is the minimum level to get these 2 perks, you keep that level and all of the perks associated with it, for the entire evaluation period.  So if you only aspire to be level 2 then you can attain that level and stop earning points if you want to.  This will be an advantage for people who have a slow cruise every once in a while or choose just not to gamble for whatever reason. So according to her, there is no more “ you’re only as good as your last cruise”.  That’s a good thing IMO.

On Allure,  they have moved filet night from night 1 to night 4. Apparently the word has gotten out about filet night on night 1 and they were overwhelmed. Tonite is night 4 so we will be going there tonite. 
So much depends on whether you have children traveling with you or not. Star Class has “access” privileges to some of the activities (zip line, flow rider, etc.) on sea days during certain hours so this would very useful if you have people in your party that would enjoy those things.
There is so much to do on Allure it’s hard to choose which ones are “not to miss”. The Aqua Theate shows are fun and the ice shows are fun.  We have seen Mama Mia enough times that we skipped that one this trip.  The Blue Planet is a show I like seeing over and over so I wouldn’t miss that one. 

You’ll be fine. Having the Genie clear the way makes all the difference.

No, there is $0 charge for anything at Izumi whether it’s on the sushi side or the hibachi side.  Even all of the upgraded menu items for hibachi are included.  You can add sushi to your hibachi order if you want. There’s virtually no way to have a charge from eating at Izumi unless you were to order some super premium liquor and I’m not even sure they have such an option at Izumi. Dan ate there about 4 times this week. Twice was enough for me. 

The MSC "Bring Your Kids to Work" program has also been terminated.

Queen of shopping is more like it ?
But that is now on hold cause hubby and I made a deal. I have to chip in for Star class. So @Boston Babe...lesson #2...you have to negotiate deals and make sacrifices ?

I don’t think you have to accumulate all the points in 1 cruise.  I think it’s a cumulative deal where you keep adding up your points throughout the evaluation period.  So you may start out at level 1 or 2 but once you accumulate 25k points you graduate to level 3 etc.  that’s the way I understand it anyway.  During the last evaluation period (18 months as I recall), I accumulated 11,667 points which puts me right in the middle of level 2.  I have already qualified for level 2 for the new evaluation period which started April 1. This new evaluation period will run from now until March 31, 2019 and then it all starts over again.  I never expect to get above level 2. I don’t wager enough but I’m ok with that.

Yes, I think the earliest time for luggage valet is 11:59.....basically, noon.

No Carnival for us, wife had 3 bad experiences and is absolutely adamant about not giving them a penny more.  If RCCL comes to Norfolk it’s all over for us, we would work just to cruise!!!?