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They've invested a ton into TV advertising, including during sporting events, over the past several months. They probably decided the repetition was better than a one-off. Super Bowl ads were going for $7 million for 30 seconds. Strategically, Super Bowl ads are more conducive to high-production, specialized, one-off ads vs. what Royal tends to do. Don't know about you, but their recent marketing seems to be doing a good job of creating awareness. A lot of non-cruisers have been mentioning Icon whereas I don't remember that ever being the case with a new Royal ship.

I love the look of it more than its functionality. It's a cool-looking feature on the Promenade, but its primary issue is its size. With the space taken by the bar, there's really only room for a half dozen or so tables and maybe 15 people on it. Usually when I've tried to get a spot on it there hasn't been one. And even if you do it's pretty compact. It's best for parties of 2. As far as how often it moves, on Wonder there's actually a list of "departure" times, which I don't think is on the other Oasis ships, but I could be wrong. The Bionic Bar is what it is. Kids like it for obvious reasons. I was surprised it was actually relatively busy in the evenings when we were on Wonder last year over Spring Break. Not adding it to Icon is a clear indication they decided that space is better used another way. Icon devoted more space along the Promenade to retail. In the coming years when the Oasis ships are due for a refresh, I wouldn't be surprised to see them replace Bionic Bar with one of those Royal-themes merch stores.

It seems like the past few years Phoenix has spent more and more time on Royal ships. They're clearly a draw people enjoy, especially with the Music Club venue on more of the ships. On shore, a band playing 70s & 80s rock covers like that would never be something I'd go out of my way to see [and I certainly wouldn't pay for it!], but it's a fun way to spend a couple hours on the boat in the evening. You kind of wonder if at some point Royal will just start hiring full-time rock cover bands that will go from ship to ship.

Every ship we've been on they supply climbing shoes. You actually take your shoes off, to put on theirs but you do need socks.

I don't know that I'd quite equate it to Waffle House vs. a good steak house. Royal is a step up from Carnival, but I wouldn't call it that much of a step up. Maybe more like Walmart vs. Target I also have heard really great things about the newest Carnival ships. The newest (particularly Mardi Gras, Celebration, Jubilee) I've heard are super nice and a massive step up for the brand and much more in line with Royal (with comparatively more complementary dining options as well). If it weren't for building loyalty points on Royal (which, tbh, I don't even get much for and won't for the foreseeable future), I'd definitely consider trying one out, particularly with the price comparison.

Yeah I always have the same reaction when these quarterly reports come out. Are we supposed to be happy that a massive corporation we support is expecting record profits? I mean, I'm not rooting against them. I don't want them to go under or cut quality due to budget problems or have to lay a bunch of people off. But at the same time, corporations boasting record profits isn't necessarily a great thing for Joe Citizen. Don't believe what Reagan said -- they're not passing the savings onto us!

There is zero question that Royal is very purposefully raising prices as part of a push to establish a 'new normal' that's more in line with other family vacation options. There have been a lot of talking points being pushed by Royal for a while now about how cruise vacations cost significantly less than other vacations. They're making sure everyone is well aware of this so it's met with minimal pushback when they raise baseline pricing. So now they've increased prices across the board and have been met with post-COVID increased demand, which only makes it easier to justify. They've also spent a TON on marketing lately. They're advertising the hell out of Icon, grabbing newcomers with the shiny new toy and then, for those with sticker shock, booking people into Oasis Class ships after they price out Icon. The goal, I believe, is to reinvent the perception of the industry as a major player in the family vacation space, but to do it at a price point that's more in line with competitive options. All this marketing is a push to bring in new customers who don't have the comparison of the prior era when it was comparatively cheap. Meanwhile, people like us will likely stick around and pay more because they know from their data that cruisers are incredibly loyal to their preferred vacationing method. We used to be a Disney family. We went to Disney World basically every year, but when Disney went berserk on pricing and turned it from financially manageable to only enjoyable at a luxury price, we switched over to Royal. I fear Royal is going a similar direction. Carnival may continue to be the cheaper option, but I would anticipate they'll follow industry trends and increase pricing. Why charge 30% less when you can charge 15% less and still be the less expensive option?

No idea if it's allowed, but honey is honey (one ingredient), right? Why do you need to bring your own rather than use that's available on the ship? Not being judgmental here. Just curious.

I thought about this as well (even though it's not really of interest to me either way.) If you look at the ship deck plans and walkthrough videos, the Deck 17 / Cloud 17 area is a small, separate deck very separated from everything else. There's not really much reason to walk through that area unless you're specifically going there. The only other things up there are the suite exclusive area and the sports court (but that's way on the other side). I think that area will have a lot of seating and should be pretty quiet. Overall, there seems to be a TON of seating on the ship, so finding an area that's not especially crowded or loud shouldn't be too difficult. It's important to remember that Royal is a family cruise line -- and Icon particularly is no-holds-barred designed to appeal to families. There will be quiet areas on Icon to relax, but if quiet adult time is one of the primary reasons you're going on the cruise, you should consider Celebrity or Virgin.

I'm thinking about doing this for a cruise this March. We leave out of FLL but the flights are just enormously expensive, and they're considerably less to MCO (albeit still expensive). I worry about the logistics (timing flights so that I either have to stay in Orlando if I get in too late to take the train that day, and vice versa), asking my kids to sit through two long train rides on either end of the trip, and just the general having to lug our luggage around on another leg of the journey. For those who have used it flying into one airport and sailing out of another city, how has your experience been?

These TikTok feeds, etc., are absolutely not for us. They play specifically to every negative stereotype of the cruise industry: it's dirty, it's cramped, the food is bad, etc. The internet is an echo chamber, and this stuff plays perfectly into the type of stuff casual social media users love devouring online ("My trip is a disaster!") Overall, I wonder if Royal didn't see this coming. The World Cruise was clearly something that they promoted (outside of simply being being ON it) to being attention to the cruising industry and Royal specifically but it seems to be having the opposite effect.

Packing towels is definitely a big waste of space when you're trying to be conservative with luggage anyway, but I will say getting and returning towels is one of the most annoying parts of cruising Royal. It just seems ridiculous with these massive cruise ships that there be only one desk in one place to get and return beach towels. It would be nice if there were multiple places (perhaps a second desk on the other end of the massive pool decks), or that there was another way to return towels that didn't involve having to physically go up to the pool deck and hand them to someone.

You say that like the drink package is $14.99 per day. It is a significant upsell and many of can't afford to tack on $1k to an already $5k+ cruise just for alcohol. I don't personally sneak alcohol onto cruises, but there's such a thing in the world as a victimless crime. Haven't you ever snuck a drink or candy into a movie theater so you wouldn't have to be a victim of their price gouging?

Suddenly everyone here is Mr. Rogers. My goodness. Why do people need to be so hard on someone asking a question that we've all heard many times and that hundreds of people on every cruise think about when they buy the drink package? Get off your high horse, people. Here's what I'll say about the drink package: If you and your partner want to drink regularly throughout the cruise or you want to have drinks included during meals, both of you should get the drink package. If your goal is to drink consistently, trying to game the system isn't worth it. However, if you simply want an occasional drink by the pool, in a bar etc., you can almost definitely have your partner get one for you. I don't get the drink package. I don't drink enough consistently to make it worth it. However, I've been on cruises with friends who have gone to the bar to get me a drink here and there. If people want to judge me for getting a free drink from a company charging $18 for a Bloody Mary, who I also happen to patronize heavily and give a substantial portion of my income every year, fine. I feel no guilt or shame about that. "Those who live in glass houses..." All that said, your original question was whether they'll let you get a drink with your partner's card. I'd say it depends on the bartender. Your best bet is to have them get the drink for you. But I wouldn't do it a ton. These bartenders just want everyone to have a good time. They aren't the ATF.

Wasn't there talk of them removing them from some ships for this exact reason? Or maybe just not including them in the new (non-Oasis Class) ships? I swear I read something a while back...? Important to remember that "waste of space" is a term that, to us, means something more fun or interesting could be there, but to Royal, every square foot of bar space is all about $. For that much prime real estate to be generating so little revenue is easily enough for them to make a change.

My #1 complaint about Royal lately (other than rising prices) is how they've put so much time in development and refurbishment of ships adding things that are only for a certain level of passenger or for an additional fee. Overall the balance has been okay -- not enough for me to really get upset about it -- but on Oasis Class, for example, the ratio of premium dining to complimentary borders on excessive. It seems like they've found a little better of a balance with Icon by adding more complimentary options (although this also could simply be to accommodate the ~8% additional passenger count). However, on Icon they've devoted an entire 'neighborhood' of the ship just for the rich folk in suites so they've kind of added on both ends of the spectrum.

I've said this before and I'll say it again. Yes, parents should maintain a watch over their kids. A lot of parents do let their kids run free too much and those people irritate me as well. However, if you don't want to be around kids being kids, and you're going to get upset every time a child is remotely mischievous or wild, Royal Caribbean is not the cruise line for you. Celebrity and Virgin have fantastic brand new ships where you can enjoy your cruise without kids.

Whoever you were talking to was either smarter than all of us or far dumber than all of us. The Panama Canal does flow from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and the elevation does drop about 85 feet in that time. But I'm not sure if it has any effect on the ship or that the passengers would notice one way vs. the other.

I've been through it myself and when talking to friends with kids as well: There seems to be a misconception that you spend a lot of time IN THE WATER at the pool deck on cruises. The pools are small and fine to stand around and chat but at the end of the day, they're basically water tanks. You can't really enjoy them in a way you'd enjoy a pool at a resort. My kids have been on a half dozen cruises since they were 2 up to now the oldest is 11, and I'd say the time we spend IN THE WATER on cruises is pretty minimal compared to what we do when we go to a resort (when our kids spend the entire day in the water.) There so much more to do on a cruise. You stay busy. It's hard to explain, but I wouldn't be too worried about not being able to use the main pools. It's not the focus of the vacation in the same way it is at a resort.

This is something I'm curious about. Royal has always nailed ship design. Oasis Class is just perfect. But from the second I saw Icon it just seemed visually busy and loud. Now that we can see around the ship, the views of the ocean seem incredible. There seem to be so many areas within the Promenade and Aqua Dome area that provide big beautiful sea views, which I know was a major focus. But it seems like that means they've had to put all the infrastructure, walkways, stands, etc., on the interior of the ship, which makes the Aqua Dome area look busy and closed off. Similarly, the pool deck just seems like a big mess of partial levels and stairways and dozens of separated seating areas. The crazy array of pastel colors of the slats you mentioned doesn't help. Combine that with the slides and the whole thing just looks like a jumbled mess. Again, I trust Royal and I think it'll be beautiful when onboard, but from afar there definitely doesn't seem to be the elegance of prior classes.

Ben & Jerry's used to be an exciting, special thing. It hasn't been for like 15 years. Just no reason to have the partnership.

Yes, seen plenty of photos and it's definitely out of water, but that could mean anything. There may be some additional work to do under the water line.

It could be any number of things. It could be logistical, having to do with dock capabilities, labor, perhaps the location of items that need to go onto the boat, etc. If the furniture, for example, is being sourced out of an area that's easier to get to Cadiz than Finland, maybe it's easier to stop there on the way. They're in completely different areas of Europe facing different bodies of water so it may be easier to bring the boat to the appropriate people and cargo rather than the other way around. Perhaps the Finland port is more expensive and better for heavy duty construction while Cadiz is cheaper and better for putting on finishing touches, etc. Again, no evidence to support any of this, but all could be viable reasons for something like this. Doesn't seem too odd to me.

We'll be on this sailing with two other families. 6 adults and 9 kids in all! Looking forward to our first sailing on a Quantum class ship. We've done multiple on Oasis and Voyager ships. Hoping this can live up to the others!

This is what Disney has done and it's what converted our family from Disney World vacations to Royal cruises. Disney World used to be a manageable vacation where a family could choose between a budget, mid-priced, or luxury vacation -- but at the end of the day the core experience was the same for everyone. Slowly but dramatically, everything skyrocketed in price, while the focus of new construction and innovation shifted entirely to creating more luxury options. Disney stopped worrying about accommodating families on a budget and looked solely to becoming an experience where more money bought you a better experience and the baseline costs got you less and less. Royal has seen the same increase in demand and sadly appears to be going the same direction in, 1) seeing how much people will pay for the baseline experience while 2) providing more and more pressure to upgrade to the next level.