LizzyBee23

This menu is different than one I received on request with a filename MENU ENG 2022 (got the file in Nov 2022). Prices on my menu were way higher (drinks $2-4, food in some places doubled).

Little French Key has quite a bit of drama on FB... Just started looking for excursions next summer.

Huh, interesting.

That honestly sounds like they're looking for someone. Don't think it has anything to do with 8 day vs 7 day.

Subtle classism. For most of us, it's certainly not a pittance. The solarium is a huge part of the advertising for RCL... Add another pool closure on top, and then a final sweetener that this is all so that the ship can make a nice debut when it gets to Galveston, and yeah... I'd be pretty upset, too. It's not just an inconvenience. They're actively robbing their customers today for a marketing gimmick they're unwilling to break their schedule for. You all should make a mass complaint to guest services and demand to talk to the captain.

Maybe my experience in late May was an aberration, then! Glad to hear paper is still a thing.

Checking with recent cruisers to see if the main dining room has gotten a bit more flexible with paper menus at dinner. They were really pushing the app on The Ovation, which caused quite a bit of frustration for some in our party who really didn't want to have to keep their phone on them at dinner. Have an upcoming cruise on Radiance, and trying to figure out if we need to warn the other guests in our party.

HAL to Alaska on our honeymoon ~7 years ago was one of my first and only non-RCL cruises. It was partially paid for by Carnival loyalists, who actually went with us on Ovation last year. HAL to Alaska was absolutely amazing. The ship didn't have anywhere near the amenities as Ovation, but the experienced crew, and dedication to the Alaska experience, was just top notch. There were also enough amenities to satisfy our needs, and the fact that we were younger and out and about in the evening meant we could form closer relationships with the crew. Additionally, the family that tried out RCL for the first time with us in AK this year are actually getting on another cruise right now, a Carnival ship in Port Canaveral. While they were gracious about how awful the experience was on Ovation, they all privately said they wouldn't be booking on another RCL cruise. An AK cruise is just such a massive expense for most of us (mitigated a bit if you're a west coaster or Canadian). If I could do it again, I'd stick to HAL even though what drove us to Ovation were some of the things I think may influencing your thought process (we took both of our kids on Ovation). Personally, I'd book for the ship for itineraries in the Caribbean where you'll be able to use the shiny amenities more fully. For AK, I'd book the one that has a better track record of getting you a truly spectacular experience of the ports and the scenery. HAL is a clear winner. Also, if you can swing it, do the one way itinerary, and personally I preferred sailing out of Victoria (versus the RT sailing out of Seattle).

Yeesh, our Ovation disaster was Alaska. Truly do still feel bitter about how bad it was. I wish you better luck... Hopefully next year's Alaska season will be better.

It's been bad since the restart... Not much consolation since you have no comparative points. We booked on NCL last minute and had a much better experience with our cheapy, quickie cruise than our last RCL cruise on Ovation. Still running out reservations on RCL. Have a cheapie next month and then on Wonder early next year. Haven't given up hope, but at least got over the hurdle of trying out another brand.

Absolutely stoked... We were on Harmony and got moved to this sailing. We were sad when we lost Coco Cay and considered switching sailings. Glad we didn't!

@10-42, I think you've found the core of the strategy for RCL: if they advertise a venue is closed or unavailable, then a ship full of people will feel like they're missing out (and personally I think it's the right thing to do). If they don't advertise it and let it come out only once people go looking for it, only a subset of the full ship of people will feel like they're missing out. Maybe RCL is making the decision that it's essentially cheaper to buy off unhappy customers with FCC's or OBC's while hoping the majority of them remain ignorant of the scale of the problem. Foolish, in my mind, but I value honesty and transparency and am not a customer with malleable expectations.

I specifically avoided saying it was an RCL only issue. It may very well be cruising in general, but the "wrong place, wrong time" defense isn't going to convince people to get back onboard when RCL seems to be actively burying their head in the sand over the issue.

Sure, but not with Royal. We're kind of locked in for our next few reservations, but my in laws were brand hoppers before and said they'll essentially be crossing RCL off the list after our experience on Ovation. Who knows if we would have fared better on HAL or NCL, but it is what it is. We plan at least half of our vacations with them, so I suppose after our cheapy cruise in Nov on Radiance we'll just have to see. Thankfully the two after that are on refundable deposits.

Oh, and one more: daughter tested positive for COVID on day 7 (Victoria) (she's fine! Very short lived symptoms). The usual stuff there, and we found our room service requests were very responsive. Buuuut... They put all of the COVID positive parties (probably 20-30 of us) in Chops together. We were there until 10:30 or so before we were let off. Feel bad for any of the embarkation day diners in there. What's the recommendation for airborne particles to get out of the room? Like 4-6 hours?