AspiringCruisePlanner

I listened to the RCI earnings call for Q4 2021 and heard an interesting response from Michael Bayley regarding protocols and a return to normal. I'm wondering whether Bayley and Royal Caribbean are actually determining people's anxiety about cruising off of the traffic on their Health Sail Center page? Or am I interpreting this statement wrong and he's merely saying that lower overall website traffic indicates more anxiety about cruising. If they are basing anxiety levels off of traffic to the Healthy Sail Center page, I think they are drawing a false conclusion. IMO, a high level of traffic to the protocols page indicate people are concerned about understanding and adhering to the protocols so that they can get on the ship rather than verifying whether appropriate protocols exist i.e. "I'm worried that they might not require masking on the ship". Certainly both scenarios exist, but trying to use the Healthy Sail Center page traffic as a measure of how concerned people are about protocols/safe cruising is not the best indication. Mr. Bayley said this as color commentary to a question and I know that they have other measures of gauging people's confidence in cruising and the existing protocols. The title of this topic is very tongue-in-cheek, but Bayley's comments have me concerned about the conclusions they are trying to draw from the site traffic. I'll keep following Matt's blog posts for up-to-date information on protocols

I wonder if the crew are able to see at a quick glance whether a guest they are serving removed their automatic gratuities. This could affect the level of service that they provide to their guests, even if that guest had full intent on tipping cash as they go.

I've seen suggestions for mesh network solutions like this. I'm skeptical of the practical range in a cruise ship between floors. The most practical/promising one I've found online is this bear tooth device. https://beartooth.com/ It has a similar line-of-sight range of 10 miles, and only one device can be hooked up to it at a time. It does double as a walkie talkie which I'm aware is not appreciated onboard in public settings. There's another one called goTenna that's similar but has a lower claimed range. Some guy shared his experience with them on a cruise ship in a forum. https://community.gotennamesh.com/t/cruise-ship-project-and-test/2831 What's really interesting to me is mesh messaging using an app like Briar or Bridgify (Android examples). I'd guess if even 20% of people on the ship had the app active, you'd be able to communicate no matter how far you were away from them, no extra device or internet plan needed. It'd actually be a big move by Apple or Google to introduce this into their platforms. I have hopes for this tech to make progress in the coming years, but my take is that it still needs some traction to really take off.

I believe @WAAAYTOOO was not interpreting the rules, rather stating hypothetically that she'd rather deal with mask requirements than vaccination and testing requirements.

I know it would probably never happen, but if they would allow you to select the deck(s) in addition to the stateroom category, people who are worried about being placed on less desirable decks would likely be more privy to bidding. Maybe the minimum bid would be increased when opting for the specific deck option? Also, the upgrade conditions seem lame for the 2BR staterooms. In most scenarios, people wanting to bid on those rooms have two rooms booked already. It would be great if you could do a bid that links the two staterooms into one bid for these types of rooms. IMO, especially with the cruise with confidence program in place at the moment, watching for price drops and taking advantage of a higher stateroom category by adjusting your booking directly (not with RoyalUp) seems like a much better way to go about seeking a stateroom upgrade. This especially applies if you're looking into upgrading to a suite as you actually earn the double C&A points.

Did NCL opt in already? On the dashboard it shows their ships as opting into the program: https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/cruise/cruise-ship-color-status.html

and boosted when eligible

Got ours today in MN

Just refreshed $100 OBC available.

We're on the sailing right before you on Allure. I was wondering this myself. My long shot guess is that Icon will take the itineraries from her in Galveston in 2023 for the debut. Allure would then go to Europe to get refurbished. She's definitely due refurbished, but still has nearly all the oasis class offerings.

I'm there with you. 750k LP and about 3 weeks since I started. No reason to spend $ on chips as the LP gain is entirely dependent on time spent in the app for Android users. Looking forward to the next round of released cruises.

Is this going to be a daily refresh reward like the free slot play rewards?

FYI, if you booked this prior to January 15th of this year the rate for balconies, oceanviews, and interiors has dropped by about 50% since then. Time to utilize the cruise with confidence price guarantee and claim that OBC. Could be around $600 per person.

Thanks for the info @Wilson and @Ampurp85! Thoughts on whether the free slot play (not OBC) would follow this within 30 days of booking and sail within 1 year unwritten rule?

When did they stop offering the OBC rewards? All I've seen is the free slot play, but I guess I've only been playing for a few weeks. Side question, have you been able to apply OBC or free slot play to an existing booking? I know the redemption rules state that it has to be for a new booking, but I'm wondering whether that is not set in stone.

Borderline deceptive advertising per FTC rules.

@Jen W What ship are we talking here?

Carnival said in the letter, “The CDC has strongly recommended that individuals obtain a COVID-19 booster vaccination, when eligible. Should the CDC definition of fully vaccinated evolve to require the booster shot, our policy will adapt accordingly.” And this from the CDC director. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings/2022/01/05/press-briefing-by-white-house-covid-19-response-team-and-public-health-officials-77/ "individuals are considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19 if they’ve received their primary series. That definition is not changing." It seems to me the CDC is being very careful not to change this definition of "fully vaccinated" as they are aware of the many implications it has to travel, government workers, and the general public. Unless they change this definition - which the director has no desire to do - I don't expect Royal, Carnival, or other larger cruise lines to adjust their vaccine mandates. Carnival does mention the possibility of port authorities modifying their own vaccine mandates. However, the fact that they've allowed unvaccinated kids go on sanctioned excursions with no problem, I don't forsee this issue coming to a head in the near future. It's not as surprising that Silversea or Azamara is mandating boosters. They somewhat cater to an older crowd and generally have longer and more remote/exotic itineraries. Imagine being in Antarctica with very little medical resources and you have even a handful of covid patients. The extra edge of protection that the booster shot provides from infection or serious symptoms may be necessary for these cruise lines.

A couple of glasses of water or a few ice creams and he would be good to go! Did they let you try re-weighing him?

You are correct

You got a decent shot at the ATS. There's 4 available right now and only a short while til your sail date. Bidding from a JS puts you in a good position too. What a cool surprise that would be for them! Good luck

Out of curiosity I read the T's & C's for this. Interestingly, there is contradictory verbiage for the RoyalUp program as it is written. Here's a quote from one of the sections (taken from https://www.royalcaribbean.com/terms-and-conditions/royalup-upgrade-program) The first sentence states that the total amount must be paid regardless of whether the guest modifies or cancels the booking. However, the last sentence states very clearly that if the guest cancels the booking, the guest will receive a refund for the total amount of the upgrade. So which is it?! My interpretation is that the Royal Up charge would be refunded if you test positive as this constitutes either (1) a canceled booking in accordance with the last sentence of the quoted terms and conditions paragraph or (2) a cancelled booking on behalf of Royal which would allow a refund of the upgrade charge according to the terms. What a mess for Royal's legal department.

Ahhh, the introvert is a curious creature.

I found this photo of a rendering of the Royal Loft Suite on Wonder of the Seas on Royal's website. Honestly, I'm less impressed by the layout than on the Quantum or other Oasis class ships. The balcony is about half the size. The triangle windows facing out the front of the ship are an interesting touch though, and it still looks like they are rocking the grand piano in the entryway.

FYI, these suites opened up for booking on the 19th it looks like. As I am always seeking the unicorn, I see a couple of Villa suites available for the following dates: 11/7/22 - 5 Night W Caribbean 1/21/23 - 8 Night E Caribbean 2/4/23 - 8 Night S Caribbean 3/4/23 - 6 Night W Caribbean 4/15/23 - 7 Night W Caribbean 4/22/23 - 7 Night E Caribbean Also noticed some REALLY good deals on various Sky and Star class rooms. Act fast!