ConstantCruiser
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Posts posted by ConstantCruiser
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When I sail on a ship with a CK it does become my go to dinner venue for most nights. Some nights the CK menu doesn't excite me but that's personal right? Another person may declare that same menu their favorite.
The filet is must try if you are a steak person. Usually as good and most of the time better than Chops.
In general I find CK in between the MDR and specialty dining. Some nights the menu and food is on par with specialty dining and some nights the menu and food is closer to the MDR but again that's personal. Service and ambiance is always better than the MDR.
I do enjoy the CK breakfast even though the menu is the same everyday. I have my favorites I cycle through.
Lunch is more hit & miss in the CK but again that's personal. I've grown to enjoy some of the flatbreads offered at lunch more than I did a few years ago.
CK menus will be available in the app before sailing so look them over and use that to guide what nights you feel like being in the CK vs. other options. Sometimes daily menus change at the last minute so don't take what you see in the app as written in stone.
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Food is great, unique experience. Not something I feel the need to repeat but definitely something to try.
Be careful what time you book. Wonderland sits above the Royal Esplanade and is separated by a sheer curtain. All sounds from the Esplanade are heard in Wonderland. If you are eating during a PA heavy time like a t-shirt or watch sale or other Esplanade shopping extravaganza when they are making non-stop PA announcements it impacts the dining experience. Same for Izumi which also sits above the Esplanade.
During some of those shopping events they talk and talk and talk. It's near non-stop PA announcements for 20 to 30 minutes and very loud.
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2 hours ago, LizzyBee23 said:
The protocols didn't work. These *healthy* people very nearly had a vacation ruined. Even if they were PCR positive, so what?
Very nearly but didn't - because of the protocols that worked. The failed quick test was followed up by a more reliable PCR test. Those are the protocols.
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Goes to show those quick tests are less reliable. Crisis averted, protocols worked.
Good story to see.
Thanks for posting.
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32 minutes ago, 12thman said:
Matt posted this yesterday about FCC and health protocols. https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2021/07/01/royal-caribbean-will-refund-your-future-cruise-credits-if-you-dont-new-health-protocols
This is true but no protocols have been announced for August or Symphony so a refund for such a cruise is notable.
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One can hope now that some revenue is starting to flow in they can be a little less stingy on their refund policy for situations like this.
These are still extraordinary times so opening the purse just a wee bit and allowing more refunds will go along way with long term customer relationships.
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The unintended "free" iMessage loophole was available on RoyalIQ ships at the time such as Harmony and Anthem. It was a side effect of allowing push notifications through for the chat feature built into the old RoyalIQ app.
I don't recall it working on Adventure when I sailed her a few times in that era however if Matt says it worked I'm wondering if that's because he paid the $2 fee for Royal chat which relies on push notifications and therefore iMessage rode on top of that like it did in the old RoyalIQ app days.
Your feedback once aboard Adventure will be very interesting.
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With the extra delay approved by the Judge in the Florida suit against the CDC the hope for protocol relief on July 18 vanished. That left Royal in a position where they had to implement the protocols they did for Serenade.
Hopefully there will be no more delays and Royal won't need to implement the same protocols in August.
Next up for Royal will be protocols for Odyssey and it's July 31st sailing. They may need to launch her with similar "July" protocols hoping the next cruise can switch to "August" protocols.
Time will tell.
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Thinking about it... I guess the Solarium is a throughway to access the pool deck from the forward staircase and elevator lobby.
While kids can't stay in the Solarium they can walk through the Solarium.
I've also seen it when on rainy days they allow kids to use the Solarium pool for specific hours.
I guess that makes the Solarium a masked venue.
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13 minutes ago, CruiseGus said:
I would classify the Solarium Bar and Solarium as Outdoors so unless a congregate setting it would be maskless. But that is an opinion and when the first ships sail we will really see what it is.
Only outdoors if the roof is open, otherwise it's indoors. That's one of the benefits of this class in cold weather.
Probably why the Solarium made the graphic in the first place.
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21 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:
For ships with at least 95% of crew and 95% of passengers fully vaccinated, cruise ship operators, at their discretion, may advise passengers and crew that they do not have to wear a mask or maintain physical distance in any areas
Serenade guest count tops out at 2,490.
50% capacity would be 1,245.
5% of that is 62.
So... if 62 children or less book the cruise they achieve 95% vaccinated since all adults must be vaccinated.
If more than 62 kids on board, everyone must mask up.
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So working on the premise that in vaccinated only areas means you can remove your mask (if vaccinated) that means I am good in the casino and the pub, the Viking Crown Lounge and Diamond Club.
What I don't get, if everyone over 16 has to be vaccinated why is the Solarium Bar and the Solarium not a vaccine only area?
This is noted to be July only, so far, so we'll have to see what August protocols are.
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Serenade from Seattle in July - no Diamond Lounge for unvaccinated.
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I've seen a couple instances where people ignore the red seat covers with "RESERVED" in large letters at a show. Then the Genie comes along and tells they have to move. At this point they freak out and claim all sorts of things. Some slink away quietly knowing they got busted, some have a full Karen moment even in the pre-Karen days.
Naturally they rant about Star Class but it's their own stupidity on display.
Lots of people do the same with the reserved rows for Sky Class. They see empty prime seating and decide to go for it only to be blocked by a crew member. Then the whining begins. I feel bad for the crew who have to police it, they've heard the same old rant every show, every cruise.
When I had the Key one time there were two us at the Flowrider during the hour reserved for Key members. We just went again and again after each other. Other non-Key guests were giving us the stink eye. Too. Friggin. Bad.
Don't like it? Buy it.
Their ship, their rules. Don't ever feel bad using the perks you paid for.
- SpeedNoodles, bryresangel, CruiseGus and 9 others
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From all reports the vaccinated on Celebrity were very eager and willing to share their vaccination status with the cruise line.
That's the crux it right there. The vast majority, an overwhelming number of people who book cruises and are vaccinated don't have an issue with showing proof of vaccination.
This discussion is mostly fueled by individuals who are not vaccinated.
For most vaccinated who book cruises there is no controversy.
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8 hours ago, CGTLH said:
Reading coverage for Royal Caribbean Travel Protection Program (RCTPP)
https://www.archinsurancesolutions.com/coverage/Royal
- Trip Interruption: up to 150% of total trip cost if you can't start or finish your cruise vacation because you're sick or hurt, there's a death in the family or another covered reason
- Trip Delay: up to $500 for catch-up expenses
- Accident Medical: up to $25,000 if you get hurt on your cruise vacation
- Sickness Medical: up to $25,000 if you get sick on your cruise vacation
- Emergency Medical Evacuation: up to $50,000 if you need emergency medical transportation
- Baggage Protection: up to $1,500 if your bags are lost, stolen, or damaged
- Bag Delay: up to $500 to buy necessary personal items if your bags are delayed
Reading the terms for RCTPP I'm wondering if the policy provider will cover being quarantined as a medial expense vs trip interruption.
“Medical Expenses” means expenses incurred only for the following:
Hospital or ambulatory medical-surgical center services (including expenses for a cruise ship cabin or hotel room, not already included in the cost of Your Trip, if recommended by Your attending Physician and approved by Us as a substitute for a hospital room for recovery from Your Injury or Sickness;
Now adding more confusion to the mix is the FAQ does not even mention the policy needs to cover quarantine.
Ref: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/will-i-require-travel-insurance-for-my-cruise
For cruises departing from Florida homeports from August 1 through December 31, 2021, as a condition of boarding, each unvaccinated guest 12 or older must provide proof of a valid travel insurance policy that has a minimum of (a) $25,000 per person in medical expense coverage and (b) $50,000 coverage for emergency medical evacuation and no COVID-19 exclusions.
vs
Ref: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/the-healthy-sail-center/getting-ready-to-cruise?dPort=florida-august
For cruises departing from Florida homeports from August 1 through December 31, 2021, as a condition of boarding, each unvaccinated guest 12 and older must provide proof of a valid insurance policy that has a minimum of (a) $25,000 per person in medical expense coverage and (b) $50,000 per person for quarantine and medical evacuation related to a positive COVID-19 test result.
Royal told TA's on a call this week the CFAR included in their coverage has been raised from 75% to 90% FCC.
Keep an eye out for that change.
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The value of the drink package exceeds merely the break even calculation.
There is a certain freedom obtained by being on vacation and not having to constantly think about it. You're on vacation after all.
"It's 4pm and I feel like a beer, I'm going to have a beer"
vs.
"I had two drinks earlier and that was $28. I know I'll want something at the show tonight, or maybe two, so that's going to take me to $42 or maybe $56. I better not have one right now even though I really want one".
Right now it's hard to predict how you'll feel on day 2 of the cruise at 1:30pm. Even if you don't break even there is vacation enjoyment to be found in "What drink is that?!? I want to try it!"
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Miami traffic can be a PITA during rush hour and sometimes on weekends too but it's still very doable, just don't book early flights out of FLL.
There are fewer people debarking due to reduce capacity but the process is uncertain since no ship has done it yet in the US during the pandemic.
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While written about FL cruises, it mentions the UK in this post:
Similarly, Anthem of the Seas is sold out from Southampton for the months of July and August.
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Like many things Royal it never hurts to ask.
I suspect they'll say that nothing impacts 2022 cruises so far (in terms of protocols) so no one is being prevented from using their FCC in 2022 at the moment but it's worth a phone call to see.
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I'm not aware of a single source for this.
I often search YouTube for ship name and cabin number. When that doesn't work a general internet search sometimes yields results but a lot of sites use generic pictures which pollute the search engine results.