Linda R

You need to pick your own rooms to get them across from one another.   

Cocktails approx $14,  beer and wine $8 and up.  There will be specials and drinks of the day at lower price.  Any liquor you buy at liquor store cannot be consumed on the cruise.  They will deliver it to your room the night before you disembark to take home with you.

Room has been changed!  Special thanks to @recogneyes for giving us a simple solution!  Thanks all that answered, truly appreciated!

I just did a mock booking and there are still 4 JS's on deck 14 and 2 on dec 10 (they are category J4).  One suggestion if for your BIL to contact Royal without any back story and just ask for his room to be switched to deck 14 - as of now the cabins available are 14236, 14248, 14626 and 14650.  Alternatively, you could call and ask to be moved to deck 10 - either cabin 10230 or 10236.  This works assuming that's the category of room you originally booked.  Otherwise you would have to pay the fare difference which likely won't make it worthwhile.  Good luck.

@Pattycruise Thank you! 
And thank you to all of you that commented.  He's also Diamond level, not that it should make a difference.  Yes, I understand different decks aren't going to make a difference, but it's more the principle of the matter.  No, he didn't use a TA this time but plans to use ours next time.   

In this case, Using a good travel advisor would have made this much easier as they would have been able to switch the rooms and ensure the correct room was changed.  I don’t think much can be done at this point , but wanted give you hope that not being on the same deck will not affect your cruise enjoyment.  I understand the desire to be close to other travelers, but we book inside GTY cabins for the cost savings, even when traveling with others and we’ve always had a great time.  We just pick a time and place to meet and go.
 
have a great time. 

One of our party found out that she couldn't go on the cruise, which leaves in seven days. We were able to call RC and change the guest name without any problem at all. It even updated all of our reservations for the new guest. Really excellent service. 

I average between 5-8 cruises a year. Which would make me a frequent cruiser and I don't live near a port. It is a combination of the casino, being remote for over 75% of schedule and when I can take vacation. I get three weeks in Jan and two in October. So I usually do between 4-6 cruises during that time. I am big on S2S and occasionally a B2B. Plus I take a couple of 4/5N casino comps.
I used to do Vegas around 3 times a year but now I just gamble on the cruises. So even with the gambling I am doing those 6-8 cruises under $10k for the year with flights, hotels and packages included. It will be any combination of interiors, balconies and suites. This year I will only have 5 cruises but my expenses aren't high,so you don't have to be retired or rich to cruise frequently. I am middle class and a couple of years shy of 40, but I budget well and prefer cruises. I use to take a big foreign vacation in October and easily shell out $10k for Italy, Egypt,  etc. But now I get more vacation by cruising.

I'd say living near the cruise ports is the big #1.  When we lived in VA we had to fly to every port except for Bayonne.  Not only was it expensive but these days I think it would be extremely stressful and somewhat unreliable.  We moved to FL specifically so that we could cruise more often without flying.  It's working !!!

I've heard a number of people express confusion about "The Gift", an original Royal Caribbean production that runs on Anthem of the Seas.
On board Anthem on channel 14 they run a series of short clips about various things Royal Caribbean.  One of those short clips talks to The Gift and explains the story line.
The Gift is about a family.  The father is a simple man who runs a tug boat.  He and his wife created a beautiful little life with their two children.  The mother passes away leaving the family lost and torn apart.   
The father has lost his way and becomes detached from life and his children.  
The daughter is an adventure seeker.  A young lady looking to live her life but with her father having become disengaged from his children she is left to only dream of her adventures through books and in her mind, detached from her family.
The son is a tinkerer who loves mechanical things and taking things apart.  In the face of losing his mother who gave him direction but now with only his father who is vacant he too is detached from life and from his the family.
The Gift is a story about this family, alive but not living, stuck in their way having lost their matriarch and their journey on stage starting at this point in the story.
The mother in the spirit world sees her family struggling, torn and detached.  She sends her family a gift in the material world.  There is nothing in the gift but it turns the family's life upside down and leads to a series of events that play out on stage in the spirit world.  
The rest of the cast of The Gift live in the spirit world.  Looking closely you will see their makeup is pale and ghost like compared to the father and his children.  They are storytellers in the spirit world helping each member of the family through a series of journeys to find themselves, playing out their dreams, waking them up and re-engaging them with life and back into a family.
Once you understand the plot of the story it makes a lot of sense watching The Gift as it is presented on stage.  It's actually a pretty interesting production with good music and strong production talent.  

This is all very interesting.  We've always followed the program rather strictly.  I use my BOGO on evening 1 so pay for my meal and my wife is no charge.  My wife uses her BOGO on night 2 and my meal is no charge. These alternative approaches are very interesting.

I’ve never known BOGO to be offered to D but there’s lots of things I don’t know !  😂. To my knowledge, it is just available to D+ and Pinnacle.
Our recent experience with BOGO has been mixed.  On Wonder we were required to use both of our BOGO on nights 1 and 2.  On Grandeur, we were allowed to pay for our meals on night #2 and then eat our “free” meal later in the cruise.  The second scenario is much better IMO.
When you get on the ship and go to the kiosk or restaurant to make you specialty dining reservations, tell them that you want to book a specialty restaurant on day 1 or 2 (whichever is your preference) and that you will both be paying FULL price on that first night.  Then, make another reservation later in the week and for that one, you should get a -0- balance bill. Where it can get confusing is if you pay (on night #1) for a cheaper restaurant and then go to a more expensive one on the second night, they may or may not charge you for the more expensive restaurant and refund you the money for your earlier, less expensive choice.  For this reason, we always choose Chops as our “pay” restaurant so that the second night will never be more expensive than the first, was.  There are also some who pre-purchase a reduced price meal prior to boarding and try and use that as their “paid” meal.  This is slightly scammy IMO so we never do this but I have read of those that try it.  Some get away with it, I guess…
In general, Chops+1 will run you about $90 PP (plus grats) depending upon the ship and sail date and full onboard price for a Chops dinner is approximately $65 PP (plus grats) so it will always be cheaper to do BOGO than Chops+1…at least as far as I have experienced.
 

I have sailed over Halloween and yes people dressed up.  Mostly adults, as not a lot of kids during that time.  There was a party and costume contest.  Also decorations thru out ship.  Was fun.   

Thank you for your first hand account.  Radiance is one of my favorite ships.  The one thing I'll never understand is why cruise lines aren't more forth coming when the ship has problems.  As a passenger I understand a ship is a compilation of many parts and operating systems that can fail or falter from time to time.  I would appreciate just being told openly and honestly in a timely fashion when there is a problem with the ship, arrival times or embarkation delays.  Why the secrecy, I'd rather hear from the Captain about problems than the guy with a drink package in the lounge.
Bill

We were on the Radiance when her Azipod malfunctioned.  There was a loud bang and the whole ship shuddered.  We were in our aft cabin on deck 8 at the time. We immediately turned to the TV channel that showed the the speed and watched as the ship went from 22.4 knots to 14 knots in a matter of minutes.  We also looked at the wake and saw that ther was only half of the wake compared to before.  This was at about 4pm.  We went up to the Diamond lounge and about 15 minutes later and noticed that the ship seemed to be stopped.  There were no announcements and everything went on as if nothing had happened.  A storm was coming in and the ship could not outrun it.  The ship started moving again at about 5:30.  It could only travel at about 15 knots for the rest of the way into Seward.  That night the ship rocked and rolled through the storm with closet doors and drawers banging.  It was rough enough to knock over a nightstand with the phone on it.  It wasn't until the next morning that the captain let the passengers know there was an issue and we would be a couple of hours late docking.  The captain and the crew did everything they could do in order to make the passengers enjoy their last night on board.  

Not at ALL what everyone else is talking about....but on our last instant casino award (earned on Wonder in August) they upgraded Dan's room from the original category that he was awarded.  I was shocked !!!  I had heard of it happening to others, rarely, but honestly, I never know whether to believe people when they say they get some kind of upgrade....so I usually just ignore it when someone writes that they got this or that upgrade...
His certificate was for an oceanview room.  When we went to book it I asked how much it would cost to upgrade to a 2J (CP balcony....since one of the double balconies was available).  She put me on hold and when she came back she said they had upgraded him to the 2J at no charge !  YIPPEE !!!  Now, I realize it wasn't a huge upgrade...but it's the first no-cost upgrade I have EVER gotten on a casino comp.  This is also the same sailing where they boned me for free play that I should have gotten  😡 .....so I guess it all works out in the end....

I agree.  Though my sadness was due to finally being eligible for a free upgrade, not a random one, and I asked when the restart happened and ships were sailing at 30% capacity and was told no, the excuse being Covid.  I tend to think that since the Royal up program was already in place that no free upgrades were allowed.  Though I have heard of a few random upgrades on one of my sailings post Covid.  Oh well, I try to pick the exact location on a sailing where I will be happy and the upgrade bids will potentially have me in a cabin location I don’t be happy with 

I started cruising with RCCL on board the Song of Norway which was a great little ship.  I've now been on 71 cruises and enjoyed all of them.  When my first wife (who I lost to breast cancer) first starting cruising in 1976 we could only afford an inside cabin on a deck with oars!  Image our glee when we got to the ship only to find we had been upgraded free of charge to a cabin with a porthole .  Wow we thought we were in tall cotton, just two young kids enjoying a cruise and being able to see the ocean from our cabin.  We then knew we'd never again sail without porthole.  Imagine our glee when we got to the ship and discovered we'd been upgraded free of charge to a cabin with a veranda!  Well you can guess we always booked veranda cabins after that.  Then we got upgraded to a Grand Suite!  You can guess our last 30 cruises have been on Grand Suites.  I find it kind of sad that current and future cruisers won't know the joy of being upgraded as better cabins today are sold to the highest bidder.  I think RCCL made more money giving out free upgrades knowing cruisers were apt to upgrade to the more costly cabins.  There is something to be said for the "way it was."
Bill

I'm sure some of you are aware that the TXDPS (Driver's license) system has been down for over a week now.
I've seen multiple posts on Facebook complaining that they cannot get on board due to their license being expired, but "they had an appointment but it got cancelled".  
Get your passport.  It's not that expensive, and makes things 100% easier.
Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

Between 2025 and 2035

Rank based on what criteria?
Productions shows?  In the main theater or aqua theater?  In Studio B? 
For kids or for adults?
Based on dining?
Based on decor?
The best suite bathrooms are on the first two.  Rank them based on that?
I like different things on different ships in this class, but having said that... I still love Allure.  Allure doesn't (yet) have the purple monster slide blocking the boardwalk views, no Bionic bar, no water slides (I don't need water slides),  I love the massive shower in the loft suites.   Love Mamma Mia! - every time.   Not the best Ice Skating or Aqua show show but still entertaining.  
The truth is all Oasis class provide a great experience.   What one person looks for means little to someone else.   One person's "must have" specialty restaurant is a hard pass for someone else.  Only one FlowRider is a big miss for some, not even noticed for others.  
If any night on an Oasis class ship is better then a day at home then try them all.
  

I would tend to agree with this order 💯 

As a person who works retail and deals with customers daily, I have some thoughts of how your conversation with the Royal Caribbean representative went…..
Anyway, fixing a misspelled name does not cost $350.  
 
 

They will take home 1.5X-2X the average annual income of their home country on each contract.  That's a pretty great wage 

There's a reason cruise ship employees work the hours they do, because it is a good living compared to other options in their home countries.