WAAAYTOOO

We love cruising over the holidays. Much less stressful than trying to see all the family all at once. I’d rather visit them at different times of the year when things are not so crazy. 

We will be on Allure for Christmas and New Years in 2023. A 4 day and 7 day back to back from Orlando. This will actually be our first time on Oasis class, but we loved Spectrum over Christmas right before the pandemic so I’m sure we will enjoy Allure. 

There are a number of "us" sailing on Voyager 12-22-23 and some are staying on for the following 12-30-22 as well.  The itin isn't all that exciting but it is pretty cheap for a holiday cruise !  The Christmas cruise is 8 night and the NY cruise is 6 nights.  Come join us !
Also, I totally agree with you re: bypassing the Christmas mania.  We have cruised over Christmas pretty much consistently for the past 15 or so years (until COVID) and can't wait to get back.
 
 

There are a number of "us" sailing on Voyager 12-22-23 and some are staying on for the following 12-30-22 as well.  The itin isn't all that exciting but it is pretty cheap for a holiday cruise !  The Christmas cruise is 8 night and the NY cruise is 6 nights.  Come join us !
Also, I totally agree with you re: bypassing the Christmas mania.  We have cruised over Christmas pretty much consistently for the past 15 or so years (until COVID) and can't wait to get back.
 
 

I'm in a Facebook group for Liberty of the Seas and someone posted about a Fatality during a RC Sponsored Snuba excursion in Grand Cayman last week.  The post does not have any follow-up comments nor can I find any media reports.  It seemed legit but the fact I cannot find any other mention is suspect...
 
Any heard anything else?

Majesty holds a special place in my heart as it was my very first cruise; Oasis because it was the first cruise the our Grands; Radiance because it was our "first" bucket list trip and Hubby surviving a heart attack & stint 4 weeks before sailing and Dr gave his blessing for him to go; upcoming Jewel for our "Third" Bucket List trip to the British Isles and 65th birthday celebration.
Note: "Second" bucket list trip was a land vacation to Iceland and seeing the Northern Lights 3 nights in a row.

You can say that again!  I am convinced this has to do with OBC.  I made many, many cancel and re-bookings in cruise planner over the last month.  All went just fine, with refunds coming to my credit card right at 7 days.  Then I received the RCL shareholder OBC.  Once that hit one stateroom, the next cancel re-book (to save $32 dang dollars!!) sent everything into absolute Chaos.  But I am speculating about that of course.

Hi all!
After having our flight home cancelled twice and spending two additional days in Seattle, we are back home.  Here is my report on the Alaskan cruise and the Ovation!
Embarkation
Our check in time was 11am and we showed up at 9:20 am to find at least 30 people in front of us.  After listening in on conversations, it was apparent that most of the people in front and back of us were not entirely prepared to check in.  Oh well, their loss.  Thanks to this Forum, we were prepared and when the gates opened, we were on the ship by 11:10 am.  Easy peezy.  MY SUGGESTION for easier boarding....just print everything and have them in order. Set Sail, vaccine records, covid test, just have physical documents ready.  Internet was intermittent and people trying to check in with screen shots were having trouble.
FOOD!
I start with food because that is our thing and the first thing we did other than making reservations was eating at the Windjammer!  Food was overall a 9 out of 10.  
Windjammer - only ate there for one lunch and 5 breakfasts.  Breakfast could use some variation but food was hot, looked good, and filled our tummies with overall joy.
Izumi's - ate lunch and dinner there.  Rolls were overwhelming.  Sashimi plate was excellent for cruise sushi!  Fried chicken appetizer was yummy. I though 2 times was enough for Izumi though.
Wonderland - food was overall imaginative, fun, and tasty.  Some stand out dishes included desserts and the liquid lobster.  Would not go more than once per cruise, but would definitely go every cruise.
Chops - Solid steakhouse.  Good wine selection.  Bone-in ribeye is outstanding.  Lobster bisque and mushroom soup were outstanding! Ate there twice.
Jaime's Italian - OUR FAVORITE.  I am a classically trained chef turned lawyer.  Fresh made pasta was exactly what sold us here!  The sauces were tasty and in the correct proportion to pasta unlike Americanized Italian places.  Funny, Jaime's is British-Italian, but the food here tasted closer to what we have eaten in Italy than most places.  Stand out dishes included Pavlova dessert, ALL pastas, Meat plank, and burrata cheese!
MDR - This is the only place where I experienced service issues but I will address those later.  Food was overall okay.  Above average.  Nothing stood out, nothing was bad.  Oh...order the Baked Alaska! Last time I had Baked Alaska and Cherries Jubilee was in 1984 LOL.
Room Service - prompt, hot, edible.  
Hot Dog Stand - good enough to satisfy cravings.
Sorrentos - Not bad at all.
Fish and Ships - fried to order and worth at least one trip.  By the way, I am not sure this works for all ships, but UDP worked here for fried lobster tails and premium items.
Cafe Two70 - Nice change of breakfast pace and quiet place to enjoy breakfast, enjoy incredible views, and play some card games or board games with the kids after breakfast.
La Patisserie - Not quite Starbucks, but got me going in the right direction every morning and every evening.
Solarium Bistro - It was okay.  I was happy.
DRINKS!
Since I watched many bartenders open new bottles of liquor and paid attention to them making my drinks, I can say that the drinks were not watered down, but not exactly super strong, except for limoncello!!!  Wine selections were nice considering this was a cruise ship.  Cocktails were tasty.  We loved the Bahama Mama and anything with KRAKEN! 
Service
Guest services lines were a little long at times.  I am always up at 4am and go to sleep at 11:00 pm so this was not an issue for me.  The ONLY issue we had was that the pre-purchased Arcade credits were not properly applied to our kids' sea passes and there is no way to figure out arcade balances other than stopping by Guest Services or manual computations.
Service at all specialty restaurants and bars was excellent.  MDR service wasn't bad.  It was slower than I would expect, but I am not one to eat in 45 minutes and run off.  A 90 minute full service meal is more than acceptable.
Ship Condition
Did I mention that the Princess Ruby ship in front of us was rust stained and looked dilapidated?  Ovation was immaculate!  Enough said.
Activities and Entertainment
Enjoyed all of the shows and trivia.  We did Flowrider, Ripcord, Bumper cars, Northstar....pretty much did everything.  I highly recommend Northstar at a port and not at sea.  We did it twice, once at port in Seattle and once at sea.  Nothing much to see at sea.  Ripcord by iFly was simply AMAZING.  Do it.  All ages.  Do it.
Internet
We had one surf and stream and one basic.  Get basic.  Either way, internet is slightly better than DSL from 2005.  
Complaints
A. Stupid people.
B. Dumb people.
C. Some public toilets did not flush automatically and were inconvenient when I forced my kids to poop outside the room in the public restrooms.
D. Nothing to do from 4am to 6am.  
E. Too much to do from 8am to 11pm.
F. Either Pixels has two different versions, or I fell asleep at the first one.  My friends showed me pictures of the second showing and it looked quite different than ours.
G. Make Solarium pools aged 25 plus please!  Too many teenagers and college kids.  It was gross.  Spent more time in the indoor pool with little kids and enjoyed it more.
HIGHLIGHTS, KEY TAKEWAYS and TIPS
1. Got to meet Chris Wong.  Nice guy.
2. Stop gambling while you are ahead.  I made out with winnings of about $370 from penny slots.  Not bad.
3. Take advantage of the trivia games in between activities and meals.  It is a waste of time to go back to your room for 30 minutes and come back out.
4. If you get the Food packages, RESERVE AS SOON AS YOU BOARD!  We saw too many people complain about wait lists because no reservations.
5. If you are unsure of the Deluxe Beverage Package....I drink one glass of wine or beer a month.  Period.  On the cruise, I had at least 4 cocktails, one beer, one glass of wine, and 3 specialty Americano or Lattes each day.  On top of that, I had one soda a day and took back 4 bottles of water to the room each day.  It is worth the money to get a package.
6. Find the secret spots early.  The outside seating at Windjammer ALWAYS had seating, and we spent breakfast there while the ship's back was turned facing Dawes Glacier.  Trust me.  Also, Deck 5 next the the Art Gallery, but aways from the smoking section...chairs facing the ocean and unusually warmer than most places on the ship considering its outside seating.  Grab a glass of wine from the Wine bar and sit here to relax.  Quiet and peaceful.
7. READ THIS ONE. Finding whales and other sea life....Watch the TV channel that tells you where you are and shows the ship's front camera.  While watching, you will often see streaks of water (wake) left behind by dolphins, orcas, or whale....then grab your binoculars and look outside, you will see them passing!  Great way to find sea life.
8. BIGGEST TIP FOR ALASKA RIGHT NOW! DO NOT OVER PACK.  We each had one carry one rolling suit case and a back pack.  Wore suits and dresses on formal nights.  You do not need all of that clothing.  You simply do not.  Pay $35 to have underwear and T-shirts washed.  Its cheaper than checking in suitcases on the plane.  Plus, our flights home were cancelled twice and we were lugging around our luggage alot of that time.  Thank God we packed light.  You do not need all of that clothing.  
HUGE THANKS TO ALL OF YOU AND MATT for making this trip so amazing despite Covid, anxiety, the long wait, staffing shortages (which we experienced none), and despite raining the entire 13 days we were in Alaska or Seattle.  Thank you!

My take away from all of this:  I will take extra care when deciding what to purchase (if anything) from Cruise Planner.  Unless there is a price drop on a planner purchase I have to take advantage of, I will never cancel and re-book.  A few dollars in savings isn't worth the angst trying resolve the result of software bugs RC knows are in their system. 

We've booked this for our 30th Wedding Anniversary.

Not sure it really mitigates anything, catches a few carriers. But most likely a lot more un-confirmed +s are getting on-board.   As we've moved on to living with this bug, might as well drop it.   A zero infection case strategy is impossible.

Favorite ship so far is Symphony of the Seas. Ship has everything you need and want. A lot of places to eat, great entertainment, quiet places to relax, plenty of spots to relax in the water. Food is excellent and drinks are very good.

Thank you. I appreciate the information. Our cruise is now pricing at $370 less per person!! Going to contact my TA today. 

YIPPEE !!!!

As an Update:
The Good:
Reservations are not Cancelled at this moment Have been assured at least 4 times they will not be My Cruise Planner Purchases are still there and I printed them out The App still has my check-in information there and correct, including Vax uploads I have boarding passes for everyone printed and on my phone I have a cruise purchase receipt for one reservation showing zero balance due. But even this one now shows a balance due 'in the system'....balance due on each reservation changes daily it seems The balance due on the other reservation shows pay-by date of the 27th (the day of cruise) where I am certain before it said May 6th (the day I booked) Calling the Casino Royale number, I generally get through to someone fast. The Bad:
I am 6 days out from boarding I get e-mails every single night at about 1:00 am stating I have a balance due or risk cancellation. Not a nice way to start the day. I have to assume since I am getting these daily e-mails, something in the Royal Caribbean system is showing a balance due, and I fear at some point this will trigger a cancellation Only answer I can get at this point is 'system glitch'/resolution team is working on it and we will call you back on "xxxday" after the system updates I am not receiving those promised call-backs.  I have to call them at the end of those days While a balance due is shown on one reservation, I am actually owed ~$50.  I am not too worried about this and would gladly 'forfeit' it if it meant an end to this saga So that's where I stand as of today.  I wish they would get this resolved. 
 

Favorite - We Will Rock You on Anthem 
Least Favorite - I guess I'm not a musical theater person - I usually fall asleep during them 🙂  Embarrasses my wife quite a bit.
As a bonus, the Bon Jovi tribute band "Wanted: Dead or Alive" was also on Anthem (They are from New Jersey) and I went to 2 of the 3 shows they did, fantastic!

I would have to say I have a tie on my favorite ship,  the Allure and the Radiance.  I love that the Allure has not been amplified!  I miss the Champagne bar on most of the ships now.  I love the Radiance for its elegance and my hubby loves it for the dart board LOL.  We have been on the Allure twice and now she will be at the closest port to where we live. YAY We have sailed on the Radiance twice and now have booked 2 more cruises on her.

Replying to myself 🙂  We were not able to cruise during the early days of the restart and I was jealous of those who did and got to enjoy the reduced capacity and less crowded ships.  It occurred to me that is one of the reasons we like to stay on the ship during port calls, the reduced crowds when approx 50% of the guests get off the ship. 

Critical piece of information in the article:
Yet, since the phased restart of cruise travel in July 2021, there have been no critical emergency situations where any ship has been overwhelmed with the need to evacuate guests due to a crippling outbreak of COVID-19.
Even where higher numbers of cases have been reported on vessels, the cruise line’s emergency measures, including contact tracing, isolation measures, and quarantine, have proven effective, and most passengers who do test positive have been either asymptomatic or experienced only very mild symptoms of discomfort.

Favorite - We Will Rock You
Worst - Tied - Mama Mia ! and Cats

I second this one.  It is really fun.

If you like to snorkel at all, do not miss Woodwind drift snorkel in Bonaire.  Totally awesome experience

"“CDC continues to evaluate the latest science and state of the pandemic and is currently reassessing the testing requirement for cruise ships,” 
 
Of course that line comes at the end of a statement reaffirming the CDC's position that cruising is a petri dish
https://www.cruisehive.com/the-cdc-is-reevaluating-testing-for-cruise-ships/74496

You wouldn't "rebook" but just "reprice." Key distinction there.
 
But you can only reprice after final payment if you booked prior to April 2022 for sailings prior to Oct 2022.
 
 

My 16 year old has earned the right to go to the teen club, gym, arcade because we have a standing rule just text us and let us know, curfew is 2200-2300 depending on if we are there with other friends and of course the itinerary the next morning. Well, we learned the hard way have a plan in place for the internet to go down. 
18 cruises and she is super responsible, never once had we had a problem....until we did. We were getting ready to turn in for the night last week on the Mariner and she left the cabin to go on her nightly run, we checked no messages. Okay, we get dressed and start looking all over the ship, no where & zero texts & my phone tracker says she is off line. NOT NORMAL, hubby still looking I go to security, who was amazing and I can't say enough about. With my background they did everything right. 
The internet was down, but we couldn't tell with our phones. Long story short ship wide announcement and she comes bouncing up to the guest services desk, where in the world were you and why didn't you let us know. It was windy outside so she was walking the deck hallways and doing the stairs for her cardio, she pulls out her phone and sure enough the messages she sent us were there, let's just say I lost a few years of my life that hour.
Security was great & they explained this sometimes happens. So just note, just because you buy the internet package sometimes it doesn't work. Have a system in place with feedback, if no feedback meet back at XYZ face to face to confirm plans, places etc. 
18 sailings first time, probably never happen again but I wanted to share our experience. 

I have teenagers and my wife is tech-adequate at best.  So I find it easiest to get the internet plan for us all.  Once we are on the ship and connected, the phones go into airplane mode and we communicate with each other 'normally' via text, calling, etc.  I need the internet for communication back home (older parent, house/pet sitter/to a lesser extent work/personally find it hard to disconnect/etc.), so adding the three of them to my Voom package does not cost a great deal, and it is worth the peace of mind to me that anyone that needs to get ahold of me, on the ship or back home, is able to do so as seamlessly as possible.
Will be especially important this cruise, as it is our first time with two cabins that do not connect.  If I called my kids room, I doubt they would know how to answer the desk phone.  They would probably think it was an alarm of some sort and head to the muster station.