JohnK6404

I believe they have always been there... I walked out on them on Allure a couple of times last May, but it looks like they did a nice job sprucing the balcony up! On Allure, there is no table, chairs or plants (until next year I guess!). As @twangster mentioned, they were times that the door was hidden behind fire doors and you would never know the balconies were there when you passed by. I found that they were nice spots to take photos of CP!

A slight tangent, but still related to Royal Up! Am I correct in understanding that if you win a bid to upgrade to a suite, you still will only receive 1 point per evening? That makes sense because, as you mentioned, folks that paid the full price for a suite would be more than a little annoyed!

Royal eliminated the Boardwalk and Central Park balcony perks this year (you must know if you still had them!)... I take it you selected to keep the Dine, Drink, Discover over the $50 OBC when we were given the choice. If you failed to make a choice, it defaulted to the $50 OBC option. We decided to keep the Central Park balcony perks too for our 2021 cruise... I found this flyer online which outlines the old CP balcony perks.

We all had the 6 oz. Angus Filet Mignon back in May on Allure (Key embarkation lunch when it was still served in the actual restaurant) and all four of us loved our Filets. Very tender and flavorful. Would I say it was the best Filet we ever had in our lives? No... but we all enjoyed it and had no complaints. From the Key lunch perspective, I'm a little worried the quality will suffer now that it's being served in the MDR... we'll see!

I can't speak for Anthem specifically, but I would first read the small print at the bottom of the page when you pull up the Cruise Planner... here is the last line when I look at the Coffee Card: This confirms what I've heard in the past, but knowing Royal I bet there are exceptions! Generally, it covers specialty coffees in any other restaurant or in the Cafe Promenade, Central Park Cafe, etc., but not an actual Starbuck's store onboard. Bottom line... do you know if Anthem has an actual Starbuck's store (not likely covered) or if they just serve Starbuck's in one of Royal's cafes (likely covered)?

Generally, the lunch menu is more limited... take a peek at the menu section. I believe there are both lunch and dinner menus: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/menus

Thank you! I think we’ll try it!

So close! Maybe by year-end for end of May! Is the escape room complimentary with a reservation or is there an additional fee on Oasis? Thanks!

@Pima1988 Take a look at @AshleyDillo's Oasis blog... go to the bottom of page 8 and you can see a couple of pics of the beach beds on Adrenaline Beach! I hope you don't mind Ashley! I just cropped one of your beautiful pics so you could really see the beach beds!

I really like the ABC islands, Grand Cayman and Labadee itineraries out of FLA instead of San Juan!

I know Adrenaline Beach has them... right near the floating bar... you can see the location on the map (#37). One observation we had was by mid to late afternoon, the sun is frying Adrenaline Beach and many people left those beach beds to go elsewhere (western exposure)! Somehow I did not get pics of the beds (rookie mistake), but I did get pics of the bar of course (early AM before most folks got off the ship)! The ziplines are right above Adrenaline Beach... you can just see the cables in the last pic.

Just checked Oasis (5/31/20)... DBP is $51.00... DBP & Voom One Device is $59.00... Soda is $6.50... Soda & Voom One Device is $16.00...

Me too! I remember the last time I checked, only Symphony had itineraries with both private destinations... not sure if they added another ship since then.

@Pima1988 Very nice! Once again, I like that itinerary with Labadee & Coco Cay! Plenty of opportunities to truly relax and enjoy the beach and also have all your food & beverage costs included (with that DBP)!

Take a peek at this thread... The MDR menu generally is the same based on region from what I understand (Caribbean, Europe, Asia, etc.). Formal nights vary depending on itinerary, but the same menus tend to rotate. I posted the 7 MDR menus from our May 2019 cruise on Allure in this thread which should give you a good idea of what to expect.

Hi @OzzyRookie! Welcome!

@IRMO12HD What a great cause! Thanks for sharing and have a blast!

Thanks for the tour Chris! Best of luck on Oasis!

@codyh21 Have a great time and thank you for your service! We'll be following!

Have a nice dinner. My wife and I are looking forward to trying CP150 for the first time when we're on Oasis next May.

If you pass through the casino, take a peek to see if @CHRIS WONG is there at the casino host desk... He mentioned in his recent video that this will be his assignment now that he is on Oasis.

I understood that ... I was referring to flying into PR to get on the ship (Freedom, etc.)... airfare too expensive compared to FL at least from NY. Currently, all of the Oasis class ships only sail out of FL for the Caribbean... and NY next year (woo hoo) thankfully as you know! We couldn't pass up the opportunity... will be fun to squeeze under the Verrazzano!

Exactly! Safe way to experiment and no regrets!

Gotcha! Makes sense... that is the last sailing before the drydock I'm assuming... not sure if that's a good thing! LOL! I agree about sailing out of PR... when we've looked in the past, the airfare is so much more expensive from NY. It will be nice when Odyssey sails out of FLL to the ABC Islands instead of having to go to PR for that itinerary! That is on our radar! I believe Freedom is the newest and largest ship to sail out of PR right now. I agree... we've always liked the MDR and usually sprinkle in specialty restaurants for lunch and maybe one or two dinners at most. Oooo... like that itinerary with Labadee and Coco Cay! If you get the DBP, you're all set! LOL!

Just an FYI... there are no APR 2021 Harmony sailings... she will be in her 5-year maintenance drydock all month. We had originally booked Harmony for APR 2021 a few months ago and they quickly cancelled our sailing (and all APR Harmony sailings) and moved me to Symphony in APR. We're now on the 4/24/21 sailing on Symphony... If you're set on APR 2021, then you'll have to go with Symphony (out of the two). If you're looking at another month, I would think you would get a better price on Harmony compared to Symphony around the same time since Symphony is still the newer ship with the premium price tag. Also, take a look at the entertainment and restaurant offerings to see if that sways your opinion in either direction. Other than entertainment and food offerings (and decor/art), both ships are almost identical except that Harmony does not have a pool in the solarium. Symphony has Hooked Seafood and El Loco Fresh which are not on Harmony... Harmony still has Sabor, etc. We originally booked Harmony since it was more convenient out of Port Canaveral vs. Miami (Southwest does not fly to Miami) and over $700 cheaper than the identical cabin on Symphony (for the 2 of us). As for the beaches, I can't comment on the difference between Coco Cay and Labadee. We were in Labadee last May with friends and booked a cabana so we never used the main beaches (access to water from cabana). We're going to Coco Cay for the first time since the reno next May on Oasis which doesn't help your decision! Also, remember that Oasis was just amped and Allure will be amped in 2020... so these ships will have the latest and greatest offerings too in 2021! They will have Playmaker's Sports Bar & Arcade, Portside BBQ, Lime & Coconut Bar, etc., which are not on Harmony & Symphony...