billdauterive

Yes, Explorer is the same as the rest of the fleet for craps. $10 min, 1x odds. $25+, 2x odds. $50+ 3x/4x/5x odds. I only play roulette a little but it's definitely a double zero (American) wheel.

Pretty similar to me. Those comp plus buy 1 are beyond worthless. You can usually get the 2 full price fare through your agent for cheaper than the 1 comp + casino rate.

I've only received the cheap wine once, which happened to be the first time I really played on board. I've never received anything else since even though I've earned a lot more points and/or lost a lot more on individual sailings.

This is a great summary of tips.

The free picture (per person) is a very underrated perk. I forgot about it my first couple of times but now it's a nice little souvenir to remember each cruise or port individually. Now I have pictures taken at every opportunity and then just pick the best 1 or 2 to download free on the last night.

I was on this exact same cruise as @Matt and agree with most everything he says. I know he doesn't specifically call out Sydney, but it's a good indication of what to expect from a fall New England cruise. Let's just say I enjoyed it so much, I booked it again this year (minus the Bar Harbor stop of course ) https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2023/10/30/first-new-england-cruise-what-surprised-me

The area around the port is really walk-able and very little vehicle traffic so I wouldn't be too hung up on making exact plans but be open to calling an audible as far as eating establishments go. All the little house museums near the port are interesting and don't take up much time but give a good insight into the history of the area. There are several pubs that are nice and one we went to had a fiddle player playing traditional Scottish music which was really cool. There's also a nice little cidery close by. Basically I was very surprised at how much I liked this port. It's a great one to not really have a set plan but just kind of wander around until you find something that seems interesting to do/see/eat. We were supposed to do a tour of Fort Louisborg, but it was cancelled last minute, hence our need to just wander around that day. In fact, besides Bar Harbor, I think this was my favorite port stop.

Keep us up to date how this goes. I'm curious about it too, especially since you're going to try and apply it to a cruise that will almost definitely be on a blackout date since it's over Christmas.

Good point. No need to worry too much about the private destinations, they won't leave without you there (but not for a reason you're going to like...)

And ALWAYS double check what the ship time is before getting off the ship. I always check the time in the app as well to make sure they sync. I've heard too many stories of people almost or actually missing the boat because they were on local time and not ship time.

Ditto. On non-RCL excursions I always plan to be back at the port 2 hours before and onboard 1 hour before.

Just to be clear, it's comps only. I believe dollars off or applied to a current booking doesn't count against the inventory (but I definitely could be wrong)

I don't think that matters. The casino only has a certain amount of cabin inventory available to them. So the ship can be almost empty but if the casino inventory has already been taken then you won't be able to book it on a casino comp. i.e. booking a room on an non-comp fare in hopes to "save" a cabin for yourself to book a casino comp later won't work, it's 2 different buckets of inventory.

I don't know about the zipline, but I don't think the coaster reservation time matters. I personally had the all day pass so the time definitely didn't matter, but other people with single rides checking in at the same time as me weren't asked about reservation times as far as I could tell. Now that doesn't mean it wasn't actually checked, I just didn't notice it if it was.

There's also a self guided audio tour for free from the National Parks Service app. https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/walk-the-freedom-trail.htm

I'd recommend just taking an Uber to the start/end of the Freedom Trail and just walking it if you're physically able to. There's so many sites to see along it that it can easily take up a full day and yet each stop can be just a quick picture or hours on end if you want. Most stops are free (or at least freeish) except a few that have a nominal entrance fee. The North End by Paul Reveres house also has a lot of restaurants for lunch/dinner. Cheers isn't far from the start in Boston Common so you could start there. It's really close to the port so the Uber shouldn't take more than 10-15 mins (depending on traffic of course). We enjoyed it so much last year we will probably do it again this year and just spend more time at sites we enjoyed and try different restaurants. https://www.thefreedomtrail.org/sites/default/files/content/page/hero-image/ft-map.pdf

Great observation. I completely forgot about the California requirement for shore side power.

Oasis class definitely has the best track setup for running. It's longer and covered and out of the way. Quantum class is ok-ish as long as the top deck isn't too crowded. It's longer and usually not too many people (and usually colder weather itineraries), but the front has a slight slope and can be a wind tunnel at times. Freedom and Voyager class, forget it! Too many people and too short of a track. Radiance class, definitely too small.

Freedom and Voyager class, no. Quantum, yes (and the front can also be a pretty bad wind tunnel).

Glad it's not just me that has this problem.... I'm the same way, I only run on the Oasis class track and treadmill for the other classes since only the Oasis class has the potential to not be running people over every 10 steps.

You can buy cruise planner items for other reservations as long as they're linked. I've personally done this several times in the past and for future cruises. So in your case, if login to your husband's account and then go into your husbands reservation, you can purchase a drink package for your reservation if they're linked. You can verify your reservations are linked if you see both reservations when logging into your husbands account. If you don't see the linked reservation, just add it with the "Add a cruise button" at the bottom of the page

Wikipedia has a pretty good summary https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passenger_Vessel_Services_Act_of_1886

Starting and ending in the same US city (closed loop) just requires a stop at any foreign port (like Canada). Starting and ending in DIFFERENT US cities (open jaw) requires a stop at a DISTANT foreign port (basically not anywhere in North America).

I have the same questions.

Agreed. *But I would still bring your BC and ID just in case...