RCIDreamer96

I have not been on Empress myself, but most RC ships allow smoking on the upper decks. The link below is the smoking policy and should be able to help more than I can. My last cruise was on Navigator and there were people smoking on the top deck.
https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/onboard-smoking-policy

I've been in a similar situation- taking the red eye out from Washington (I live on the east coast). My suggestion is to take a nap, get breakfast in the airport or nearby, and then take your time getting to the terminal. Miami opens at 10am so you'll have plenty of time to get there. Maybe a silver lining here: I often find myself rushing around and scrambling to get to the terminal because I am so anxious to get on the boat and want to stick to the schedule, but having those extra hours, you can take your time- it is vacation after all!

Not sure what you mean. I see 18 sailings to Mexico on Harmony from PC
 

We have stayed at a number of hotels in Baltimore but have decided that our best experience is with Best Western Plus, 5625 O'Donnell Street, Baltimore, MD  21224 (410-633-9500).  It is an old hotel and there is nothing fancy about it at all.  If you're looking for something stylish and in a hot part of town, choose something else.  But it has a "cruise and stay" package where you can stay there the night before the cruise and leave your car there.  They have an enormous parking lot and we have never had a problem with security.  There is a restaurant in the restaurant that is good, not great.  The cruise and stay package includes a shuttle to and from the port, which is excellent.  We enjoy going to Fell's Point on the evening of our stay and enjoy fresh seafood.  It is a short drive from the hotel but definitely not walking distance.  Our last stay was December 2018 and the rate was $159.99 with a total cost of $184.49 with taxes, etc.  This was Christmas week so I don't imagine it gets any higher than that.
There are plenty of hotels to choose from.  We have stayed downtown, at the waterfront, and everywhere in between and just feel that being able to leave our car at the hotel and the price meet our needs the best.

Unfortunately, no one really knows. It's a decision made by RC and thus far, I've had no way of knowing what to expect.
The only indicator out there that gives a hint of what to expect is if one of the other major cruise lines (Carnival or NCL) cancels more sailings before Royal Caribbean does. Usually, the big three match each other one way or another.

There's an interesting discussion in the Rumors section talking about hiring experienced crew members. I'm thinking, Royal may be hard pressed to get experienced crew members back on board. I mean, how long does it take to train these fantastic employees? 

This is the 2 bedroom panoramic suite.  Category VT.

Was supposed to be road-tripping to Florida in 13 days for our Indy cruise, now I'm getting extra sad but also antsy to get back on a ship! I'm sure most of us are in the same boat (cheesy pun intended). Anyone else already rebooked or reminiscing about a past favorite cruise? If so, post it below! Would love to hear everyone's favorite ships, excursions, drinks, memories, or anything else they miss about RCI.  

I miss the water the most! Can't wait to be back on the beach

The only thing I want coming out of the other side of this: 
A free drink package on my December cruise. Hopefully that one doesn't get cancelled too! Haven't taken a day off (other than Christmas) in almost a year.  One cruise cancelled, I hope they don't take my other one ? 

I miss the water the most! Can't wait to be back on the beach

Was supposed to be road-tripping to Florida in 13 days for our Indy cruise, now I'm getting extra sad but also antsy to get back on a ship! I'm sure most of us are in the same boat (cheesy pun intended). Anyone else already rebooked or reminiscing about a past favorite cruise? If so, post it below! Would love to hear everyone's favorite ships, excursions, drinks, memories, or anything else they miss about RCI.  

I miss the water the most! Can't wait to be back on the beach

Was supposed to be road-tripping to Florida in 13 days for our Indy cruise, now I'm getting extra sad but also antsy to get back on a ship! I'm sure most of us are in the same boat (cheesy pun intended). Anyone else already rebooked or reminiscing about a past favorite cruise? If so, post it below! Would love to hear everyone's favorite ships, excursions, drinks, memories, or anything else they miss about RCI.  

The only thing I want coming out of the other side of this: 
A free drink package on my December cruise. Hopefully that one doesn't get cancelled too! Haven't taken a day off (other than Christmas) in almost a year.  One cruise cancelled, I hope they don't take my other one ? 

Was supposed to be road-tripping to Florida in 13 days for our Indy cruise, now I'm getting extra sad but also antsy to get back on a ship! I'm sure most of us are in the same boat (cheesy pun intended). Anyone else already rebooked or reminiscing about a past favorite cruise? If so, post it below! Would love to hear everyone's favorite ships, excursions, drinks, memories, or anything else they miss about RCI.  

Cruising it what you make of it...You can be like some of my friends when they cruise and dwell on every little problem or focus on others (i'll never be cruising with them again), OR you can have a good time even if the people around you are being negative. This is your honeymoon: it'll be a great time because it's you two together! I'm not sure if you've ever been on a RC cruise before, but in case you haven't, a little peace of mind may be that I have NEVER been on a cruise that felt unsanitary, unclean, or dirty with them. The ships are pretty spotless and as long as you bring some extra sanitizer you should be good to go!
 
Safe cruising

If it were me I’d keep it.  Even if by chance they closed a port you’re still on a great ship with lots to do.  Ultimately, only you can decide but I’ve got friends on multiple different ships right now and they’re still having a great time.

Embassy Suites 17th street is our go to. Or any others ones in that area depending on your brand loyalty.  Publix shopping center and multiple restaurants right there too. 5 -10 minutes to port if parking there.

I heard this as well since more people were confirmed to have COVID-19 ni Miami over the weekend. I wonder what precautions are being taken at terminals in terms of cleaning and sanitizing....

Isn’t there a rule requiring at least 1 person in the room to be 18 ?  I’m surprised they allowed the booking to process with the children’s ages.

I called to see if RCL would issue OBC As an incentive not to cancel. And they’re not following suit with CCL. I tried. 

Was there a virus outbreak situation when you sailed on those other cruise lines?  If not, it would be unfair to compare your previous cruising experiences with what is going on right now.  The situation is very fluid and the travel industry is being impacted negatively in a big way.  We’ve known Royal to take care of its customers' welfare but it might be overwhelmed by the challenges  of this virus at the moment. A little understanding goes a long way.

Agree with you 150% on the excited to cruise part.   CocoCay is just icing on the cake no matter which part of the island we visit.

I'm aware, it just wasn't something I was interested enough in. I prefer CocoCay without any excursions anyway. So excited to cruise