sammy79

IMHO Grandeur , while beautiful, isn't worth more than a max of $100/N......and I am being generous given inflation and all that. 
But wow those prices are insane, like I thought Europe was bad but.......😱😳

I don't know but I was looking at Tampa sailings for July 2025. Almost $8000 total for 2 people in an Owner's suite. On Grandeur? No way!

That is my exact feeling! You're options at the moment for 7 nighters or more are pretty much HM, OA, the ultra expensive Icon and soon Star, or you sail an older ship. Speaking of older ships, I was not surprised by the hefty price tag on the Oasis/Icon class ship, however, I would never pay some of those prices for Grandeur or Indy. I think I am actually going to pause and hold out till February. I have not done this in a very long time....

I only closely follow PC and I know those 7N's are likely missing b/c (I'm assuming) Wonder will stick around for a couple months to do them before Star takes over.
I glanced at Ft. Lauderdale and was kinda wondering why Oasis was doing 6/8's and there were no 7N's.
As for the prices... that's another issue.
At this rate I'm going to wind up on Grandeur out of Tampa just for the price... and I hate small ships.

Wondering were those 4 chairs in the Solarium actually being used or just hogged off already?

I like the prices but I cannot book when the Cruise is $1,400 and the flight is $5,000 for economy class.

Gratuities should be part of the base fare, leaving guests to tip in cash for truly good service

Most people in the service industry don't want better wages- they make more on tips. 

Yep. It’s very obvious. I 100% consider the loyalty program to be the best in the industry but that doesn’t necessarily mean legacy cruisers are actually valued. I do not believe Mr Liberty considers Pinnacle Grandma the long term gameplan as she rolls through the promenade like she owns the place (and gets everything for free). Mr Liberty wants money to feed the Royal Caribbean beast and that money is not coming from Pinnacle Grandmas 30 cruises per year in an inside cabin sipping her free rose with the captain. 

I don’t think long term success should be a concern considering the record number of people willing to pay these prices. I hate to say it but RC doesn’t care about loyalty or the legacy cruisers. The market caters to the new money cruisers and the families willing to spend exponentially more then the legacy cruisers complaining about the MDR or the $2 increase in gratuities. The new cruisers will buy the drink packages, pay for the overwater cabanas and spend tons of money in the casino. The gameplan is laid out and it’s pretty black & white. 

Carribean will be released in 2 phases. 1 phase, probably the 2nd one, will be Star of the Seas. 
Once you see pricing on that, you all would think why Alaska so cheap... 😂
Pretty soon enough it would be, sell your car, take a cruise. If it's a good car, maybe even two weeks cruise. 

Well we'll have to grovel over prices for another week until the European schedule comes out and we can decide if that's worth groveling over, too.

The real fun comes in two weeks when the Caribbean stuff starts to come out.

I earned my B2B Alaskan sailing on Quantum through the casino. Quantum had Interior VB, so I didn't upgrade to a balcony I would not be using, so it was only port taxes fees and gratuities. However, I have a larger group going and their rooms were expensive, at least I thought it was before seeing the 2025 prices. They paid $3500 for two people in a balcony. Then $2200 for solo in an Interior. The prices for 2025 are 29-35% higher and this is when they are first released. 
Alaska is a different beast because of the excursions. Just doing one or two excursions can tack on another $1k. It is not like the Caribbean, where the most expensive thing might be a cabana. So, an expensive cabin on top of everything else makes it seem out of reach financially. But there is someone who will pay. 

Well, this is a hot topic because the drip drip drip is now a regular flow. I wrote a post earlier that may not have posted, so here is a summary:
It's definitely irritating in an environment where they are taking away services and perks while waiters still make the "give me a ten" pitch. I noticed the recent survey I completed didn't ask about it...I always lied and gave a 10 anyway if an 8 was warranted and I liked the waiter. No more...I won't go to the last night in the MDR any longer so I don't have to hear it...the song and dance is a little old too I would like to see more choice or no choice More choice -- let guests pick how much service they want in their rooms...example 2-5 night sailings can get 1X service, 6-9 night can get 2X service, etc...all in exchange for lower gratuities -- I say this knowing that it's wise for company employee eyes to make sure everything is cool in the staterooms Less choice -- work it into the cruise fare and be done with it RCI is posting record on board sales and this doesn't sit well They may need to re-work the MDR concept or eliminate it entirely and just go for buffet plus more choice with specialty dining I share the sentiment of many with 🤬
...and to those who are ok with it's only another $28 for a 7 night cruise...ordinarily, I would be with you, but I am drawing the line here, not because I can't afford it, but because the company's timing with and positioning on this is so poor.

Another one? Again? Everybody at this blog knows you can't "accidently" fall overboard

The week has flown by. I can't believe tomorrow is the last day. I had a milkshake and fries for lunch at JR, something lite. Everyone did something different but I was able to almost finish my first book. I have been dealing with everyone and their fires, I haven't been able to fully relax.
Side story...... I bruise easily. Yesterday when I got off and people were being rude with walking space I got stabbed. Lol not like 🤣 🙃 😅 with a knife but more so pricked. I think it was the lady wearing spikes that I got pushed into. I got on board and my side was bleeding. I cleaned it with peroxide and then put a bandage on. The concierge saw the blood on my grey shirt and said maybe I should go to medical. The sad thing was, she had just fallen in the shower the day before and twist her ankle. Thankfully she is okay and so am I.
Stray observations....
Lots of bruised and bloody folks. Seen a group of vintages in the WJ yesterday with bloody elbows and knees. I asked if they were okay and needed bandages, I am always prepared, they said they were okay.
Watched two vintages in rascals run people over on multiple occasions. Neither were apologetic.
People don't care about stains. I keep tide packs or pens but lots of people are like🤷🏽‍♀️ oh well its there.
People love to argue in public.
So many booty cheeks on display. Men, women and the in-between.
I swear if I hear " it's so many black people on here" one more time I might lose it. Not every utterance is racist but you don't have to say everything that comes to mind.
After day two everyone at the specialty restaurants knows us. We tip well so on almost every occasion we haven't been charged for any sodas or alcoholic beverages.
My brother has the UDP hack. He eats at all the restaurants multiple times a day by getting to-go orders from places. Today he had Sabor, Izumi and dinner is going to be Giovanni's. He also hit the WJ and ELF. As long as you have the UDP or pay you are golden.
The MSC Seaside is a really nice ship. I think I might defect to try it.

Day 6 Cozumel
I had my OJ and pastries in the Crown Lounge. I was finally able to start in on my books. This is like my 6th time at Cozumel and I won't be getting off. I missed the shows last night. One I ended up chatting with a lady I met in the casino and then I was tired, so I went back to the room and conked out. The three vintage women went, they were so disappointed in the comedians😅🤣😅😆😁. The blind gentleman went to the Caribbean night festivities on Deck 5 and had the time of his life. I love how after the first couple of days people started doing things on their own.
Around 7ish there was an alpha alpha alpha call to deck 6. I hope whomever is okay.
I plan to get JR because I want a milkshake, then dinner is Giovanni's. I can't believe it is day six.
Stray observations
I have heard and seen such horrible things in the bathroom. Yesterday I heard " I'm not going to wash my hands because they gonna make me do it at the buffet,"🤮🤢 then "if you didn't poop, don't bother washing your hands. " I don't get it.
There was a group of couples wearing upside-down pineapple shirts. They tried my bother.
Speaking of my brother, he has been accosted everywhere he goes. The specialty restaurants staff women, and some men, have been all over him and begging him to visit, which makes the blind gentleman and my BFF jealous.
I heard a couple of pinnacles telling the concierge we needed OBC for Costa Maya.....as if Royal has control over the weather 🤔🙄😒.
 

You know the saying, "Desperate times call for desperate measures." 🤣
And I agree with @OCSC Mike, clearly pre-gold. The pros carry empty ziploc bags lmao, don't ask me how I know

I ALMOST FORGOT!  While walking down the gangway today, lady in front of us had one of those open top/drawstring backpacks. Sticking out of the top was a Tupperware container, full of food,I assume from Windjammer. That's not the good part. On top of that container,almost tied down with the drawstring, was two more paper bags with food, muffins or donuts would be my guess from the shape and size. These bags happened to say "sanitary napkins...p.do not flush" THESE PEOPLE USED THE TAMPON BAGS FROM THE BATHROOM TO SMUGGLE FOOD OFF!
Then we get to the luggage pickup,  find a porter to help us load em up and we hear the longshormen arguing with someone, telling a group of people they can't load and push a cart on their own (this cart was FULL,too). These people kept trying to push the cart and the dock guys were just holding it from the top,like when you hold a little kids head while he tries to hit you, not sure how that ended.  But i thought these two experiences in a matter of about a minute had to be shared. 

I would think that this kind of activity on a cruise ship would be an invitation to injury lawsuits.  You would think they would have learned from the jumping bubble...whatever it was called....

What would I have done?  If one were my kids I would have addressed them immediately and directly about the issue. 
For the case where they are other 12 yo girls throwing up the "L" gesture, I would do nothing to or about them, but I would talk about it in a passive way as a teaching moment to my own.  Something like "Do you see this?  Here's a person working hard to keep us all safe and provide for their family and these 2 have nothing better to do than try and insult them.  Who's the real loser here?"
I don't attempt to parent other people's children.  I don't believe that I have authority over them.  There was no danger created so my intervention would not be needed.  If I was offended as a guest, the course of action is the same as when an adult's behavior is intolerable.  Address it with the crew.
This could have escalated quickly and you would have bore some responsibility for that escalation.

I would never correct someone else’s kids, it can just get way too messy too fast. It is very upsetting that anyone would treat any member of the crew that way.

The apple never rots far from the tree. Unfortunately, some kids just can't be taught because their parents act the same way. It's just the reality we live in these days when things like Twitter (X), TikTok, Vaping etc exist. Best we can do is just report it and let security deal with it. 

My kids are grown (29 & 25) and we've taken them on many vacations.  If I ever caught them or heard them treating someone like that, they would have gotten a "what for".  IMO, I feel some parents don't parent as much as they should these days.  I would like to think that teaching respect isn't a thing of the past.