Pattycruise

They are not exactly shady unless it is "high noon" the sun will be coming in from the sides. You are better off using a lounge chair that is located in the shade, I know I've seen them on the pool deck in the back rows.  Port days are typically empty and easy to find those lounge chairs.
Just my opinion.
 

Board early-drag your carry on with you-if using one- until you get access to your room.  Book reservations for shows -the current process-(preCovid it was all booked online), have lunch, utilize drink package, explore ship, use pool?

Board later, put carry on to cabin, your checked  luggage MAY be in the hallway maybe even unpack it,  book reservations, later lunch (Impact dinner?) utilize drink package, maybe explore ship, use pool?
If the pier people are allowing anyone in whenever they want you might have more crowds earlier.
That point is moot if you are suite class (depending on suite and ship) or ,handicapped or The Key, in which case they have a separate line.  





 

I agree with above.
Also you might try searching your email.  When I have booked through RCL I get an email booking confirmation (check spam folder too)
Any time I make adjustments on my reservation (price drops) I ask my TA to send me a new booking confirmation reflecting changes.
 

They are out.
Select Latin America
 

You buy, I’ll fly! (And cruise!)

Board early-drag your carry on with you-if using one- until you get access to your room.  Book reservations for shows -the current process-(preCovid it was all booked online), have lunch, utilize drink package, explore ship, use pool?

Board later, put carry on to cabin, your checked  luggage MAY be in the hallway maybe even unpack it,  book reservations, later lunch (Impact dinner?) utilize drink package, maybe explore ship, use pool?
If the pier people are allowing anyone in whenever they want you might have more crowds earlier.
That point is moot if you are suite class (depending on suite and ship) or ,handicapped or The Key, in which case they have a separate line.  





 

I did a Europe cruise in 2017 definitely extend your stay on either side. I have one booked for July but Covid  testing is the risk preventing me from exploring Barcelona for a few days. Instead I’ll test here and land the day before the cruise. At the end of the cruise we’ll stay 2 days in Venice  then have our mandatory test to return to the US  I’m assuming we’ll  test positive so those “extra 10 days” will be in a hotel room, otherwise we could have allowed for more time to explore Europe.  

I agree with above.
Also you might try searching your email.  When I have booked through RCL I get an email booking confirmation (check spam folder too)
Any time I make adjustments on my reservation (price drops) I ask my TA to send me a new booking confirmation reflecting changes.
 

Can you be more specific?
You are bidding on a room category and you get a cabin within that category. 
The only time I would say "buyer beware" is the Large Ocean View Balcony, because on some ships it means a larger cabin, but on others it might mean same size cabin but a slightly larger balcony.   It would be in the bidders best interest to check on the specific ship cabin description for the category they are bidding on. This can be done by doing a mock booking for that ship and reading all the descriptions for each cabin category.  Within ocean view there are many types of ocean view, within balocny there are many types of balcony.  If a bidder is not happy with the choices they are bidding on they should keep what they have or consider paying the fare difference to move to the category they want.

For me, I did the Royal UP once.  I did not think to look at where that category was located and it turns out all the cabins int the category I bid for were the below the pool deck.  So  yes, I got the cabin category I wanted, but had I booked on my own I never would have chose a cabin below the pool deck. Had I looked before I bid I never would have bid to get that cabin.   I enjoyed the cabin, not the noise.  I typically am very thorough in regards to location when making my cabin selection.  I'll be sticking to the cabin's I choose and use the funds I may have used on a Royal Up towards other things.

Thanks for the info!! It may not be all that for us then.
In March we stayed on the ship for Coco Cay and we had the pool to ourselves. Pick of lounge chairs! 🙌🏼

If you booked it through the Royal website you can call and request a payment receipt.  If you booked through a TA then he/she will have to be the one to provide that info to you.
 

Feb 2020 flew Atlanta-> Dubai for a 7-night Persian Gulf sailing on Jewel.  that's a hike.  Was originally booked on a 9-nighter Singapore to Hong Kong, so that would have been further to travel, but we cancelled it a few weeks prior to sailing as covid was starting to become a "thing" in mainland China and we got skittish.  swapped to the Dubai sailing instead during the same time frame.  
I'm glad we did it though, as Royal has since pulled out of Dubai. we are becoming more interested in more exotic destinations which means longer sailings and / or further to get to the departure ports.  it's a trade-off but the vacation bank is limited in America.  

I did a Europe cruise in 2017 definitely extend your stay on either side. I have one booked for July but Covid  testing is the risk preventing me from exploring Barcelona for a few days. Instead I’ll test here and land the day before the cruise. At the end of the cruise we’ll stay 2 days in Venice  then have our mandatory test to return to the US  I’m assuming we’ll  test positive so those “extra 10 days” will be in a hotel room, otherwise we could have allowed for more time to explore Europe.  

Slot machines have 2 ways to add $
one is to select PROMO $, which is not the same as OBC.  Everyone who has a crown and anchor number gets promo $ (free play) added to their seapass card (between $2-$8 typically) and it must be played by the end of the 2nd cruise day (midnight day 2) or you lose it. Another way to get promo$ is to earn it by casino play on slots (automatically adds $to your promo area based on money spent in machines) or table play-you must ask the casino host to convert any promo $ you earn at the tables and can choose either slot or table chips.  Note:  if you use your promo $ earned on slots you will see your points earned reset the Casino knows you have points earned, it’s you who cannot see them.  Ex. You earned 1,005 points on slot machines-and you transfer your earned promo $ from that play to a machine, your points will show as 5 but reality is you still have 1005 pts earned that cruise for casino tracking purposes. 
the other is room charge which will show as a casino charge, it will take from your OBC and if non available it will go as a charge to your room and be paid at the end by your card on file unless you go to guest services and make a cash payment -/partial or full balance-towards your room bill.
you can see your room charges and OBC daily in the app, or on the TV.  You can also go to guest services any time and request a printout.   NOTE: some OBC , like from a Travel agent, might not show on your room account until day2.  It’s wise to check your charges periodically in case of incorrect charges, so they can be fixed immediately by a visit to guest services as opposed to checking at the end of the cruise where you’ll wait on a longer line with everyone fixing issues etc. 

Pack sand toys for the beach, even a blow up float if they like that (or for you, I pack my hammock float for me, I love it)

Just show up and have a good time.
There is actually a bit of prep to have a good time, such as reading these boards!  Booking excursions ahead of time.  Knowing how to handle reservations onboard.
 

Last week I called Costco Travel and the agent told me I could not reprice and RCL would only let me reprice one time.  She would not do anything and dropped the call.  I called back knowing it was not correct.  The next agent got me a reprice that gave me $550 OBC on a $2000 cruise.  They then sent me to a supervisor that said they would follow up with the first agent and sent me a Costco card for $50 for my troubles.  So, the answer is most of the time you can reprice.

Just show up and have a good time.
There is actually a bit of prep to have a good time, such as reading these boards!  Booking excursions ahead of time.  Knowing how to handle reservations onboard.
 

Sorry I lost track of the thread!

Hallelujah! Back to normal this afternoon on all devices. Just a little glitch in the beginning…showed no cruises leaving out of Port Liberty in April and only one leaving in March. Eventually it all returned. Oh, well…now I can get back to obsessing about cruising. Good luck to everybody else. Was pretty rough there for awhile!🥴

Difference between locks? 
The new locks are wider than the old ones, 180 feet vs. 110 feet, and are deeper, too, at 60 feet vs. 42 feet.

If they all followed their check in times there would be no "insane" lines. 

Just show up and have a good time.
There is actually a bit of prep to have a good time, such as reading these boards!  Booking excursions ahead of time.  Knowing how to handle reservations onboard.
 

Yes!  They are truly entertaining and he is sincere in his answers.

A balcony is the best way to cruise.
While a balcony is nice, for the cost an interior or promenade room gets you the same cruise with access to all the same things. The saved money can be spent on anything.
Of course most of the people on cruise sites seem like money is no issue and they just do star suites every 3 months so that's what they'll keep saying.