Heymarco

I live 45 minutes from Galveston and fly frequently to Florida and other places to cruise. There is more to life than that little port with its very limited itineraries. You may actually save money flying to Florida for Icon (eventually) and see some cool new places.

Make a wish (MAW) itself is great but Royal's partnership with them feels so self-serving. Royal raises money from us for MAW to give Royal a huge tax break. The they take money from MAW to put people on cruises. Come on.

I heard through social media today that Harmony diverted to Cozumel today for a medical emergency and dropped off captain James. Anyone have more info?

Don't forget that the ship shares resources. If there is a certain specialty drink that only a restaurant offers, you can likely get it from a nearby bar, especially with a little motivation $.

1 minute ago, Minuet888 said:

So wait the photos for the photo packages are all in front of fake backdrops?  The way they make it sound on the website is that they are all over the ship and it even says "ride" photos (I assuming zipline or the abyss)

Can anyone let me know so I can cancel my photo package if I need to?

Also I still can't get an answer as to whether it is just digital or if I can have any printed (on the ship) instead of digitally.

It's a combination of both. Typically when boarding or in the evenings before dinner, you can get a photo done in front of a backdrop. At ports they offer them outside in front of the ship, they also go around to dinner tables. Sometimes they will offer them in front of a staircase, sail away party, on the promenade, or other places around ship.
 

Prints or digital depends on the package you select, read the details.

If you don't have the package, you can buy them for around $20 a photo.

Are there any places online to find the original deck plans of a ship or various versions of deck plans through the years? I like to go back and look at some of the subtle (or not so subtle) changes made over the years. Would definitely love to see some old Voyager class and Radiance class plans.

3 minutes ago, Gilley said:

Thank you, not even sure what version I currently have.

Settings App > General > About 

It's normally second line down.

9 minutes ago, Gilley said:

I had same issue, apparently it's working now for those of us with older I-phones who choose not to upgrade.

Just make sure your iphone software (iOS) is still up-to-date to where it's getting the security updates (iphone software (ios) version 15 and above currently).

If it's no longer getting security updates, time to upgrade. A new phone is cheaper than working your way out of identity theft.

https://endoflife.date/ios

Royal Caribbean recently required a force password change on most of its users, I would recommend trying to log into the website and seeing if a new password doesn't fix it.

Also, if your iPhone is no longer getting Apple updates then you open to security vulnerabilities. I would highly recommend getting a new phone ASAP.

Just now, OCSC Mike said:

You shouldn't have but congrats!

Right, felt super lucky and surprised. We also received the upgrade notification about a month early if that made a difference.

Airbnb in Galveston area is the way to go for sure!

On our last cruise, we were upgraded to a Crown loft suite with Royal up from a balcony cabin and still received double points.

@Matt November and December 2024 seem to be back on the schedule and bookable. Any confirmation of changes?

12 hours ago, happy cruisers 2 said:

"It was ok" sure doesn't sound too promising.  We have always enjoyed the ice shows on other ships and look forward to BLADES on an Allure cruise.  I'd be interested in other opinions.

The team definitely has talent and it's a fun show. Not one of the best ice shows I've seen but definitely worth seeing and still lots of fun.

It was ok, lots of skating to different genres of music.

We did it with ours a few months older. Do everything @Momof4crazytocruise suggested. We also had a lighter car seat for flying. Pro tip, you can have Amazon deliver diapers, etc to the hotel you are staying at prior to the cruise. Most importantly, don't let others discourage you. Each cruise with a child is very different and we have never regretted one.

On 9/1/2023 at 3:57 AM, Xaa said:

Call it a ferry if you want, but I can certainly enjoy my cruises along with the choice to spend some pocket change on popcorn or not spend it.

What the difference between a cruise and a ferry? Again, less and less.

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/beer-and-popcorn-to-return-to-wa-ferries/

And the popcorn charges continue...

https://cruisespotlight.com/celebritys-all-included-package-now-includes-less-costing-you-more/

Royal is working on trademarking Royal Caribbean Ferry Line as we speak.

I don't think anyone is really concerned about popcorn. It's more that Royal Caribbean is slowly exiting cruise industry and becoming more of a ferry service. 
 

ie, Would I expect to be charged for popcorn on a cruise, heck no that stuff is dirt cheap. On a ferry, of course because I expect nothing more than the ship to get me from point A to B. Popcorn is one of many recent changes in that direction...

Did cabin attendants start receiving more tips when they went to one cabin cleaning a day? They received more cabins as a result and we are still paying same amount of ore-paid/auto gratitudes.

2 hours ago, Uncwmark said:

This is 100% why they charge for popcorn, according to F&B manager.  And, for what it's worth, Disney charges for popcorn too unless you're in a suite (which, as you may know, is not cheap!!)

I was in a Crown Loft and still got charged for popcorn. How much more would it be for Disney?

5 hours ago, Rackham said:

Would everyone be happier if popcorn wasn't available versus Royal charging for it?

It's not the popcorn itself, it's just the experience. It's the same reason I don't fly discount airlines. I like to pick my seat, carry on a bag, etc without being asked to swipe every 5 seconds. Just give me the full price and I'll pay.

I saw the popcorn thing on Allure, reminded me of RyanAir wanting to charge for in flight toilets. That and with all other cutbacks, would rather just pay a few extra bucks on cruise ticket than be nicked and dimed for week. Would love to hear of any other main stream cruise lines that aren't like this, have tried NCL, HA, and MSC so far. We are Diamond with Royal but open to change.

They just changed out the ice show in Allure of the Seas.