Austin

It’s really a non issue if you get down there early. I’ve parked in the terminal garages at 1030 with minimal to no traffic.

Looks like Caribbean itineraries are up.

I’ll give Seaplex another go when I’m on Anthem in Norway. Allure was good for us, but we were also on a COVID restart cruise so there were very few people onboard. I’d gladly vacation on any Royal ship. I’m not sure what you mean about criticisms as your initial post asked for thoughts on your criticisms of a particular ship and so you have received what you asked. Royal does a good job at having something for everyone instead of tailoring it to a particular population.

No insider info here, but I would not be surprised if Ovation moves to the Asian market since it was originally set for that. Then she can get her scheduled dry dock in 2026 in Singapore (where Anthem gets hers in 2025).

Mariner is a great ship. Good balance of size and things to do (doesn’t feel as busy as an oasis or quantum). It’s amped and refreshed. One of the few with the Tiki bar on the promenade. I chuckle when I read people concerned about having enough to do… this class was the largest in the world two decades ago.

I wouldn’t worry though. One of the officers mentioned they miss less than 5% now whereas when it was tenders it was as high as 15-20% of dates.

It’s all opinions, but since you asked… -Windjammer is bigger on Wonder for that reason (gets very busy on older oasis ships) - Specialty dining is always going to be better since you pay extra compared to MDR -if you don’t want music, go to the solarium. I’m sure some Carnival cruisers would think the music isn’t loud enough. I like Caribbean vibes if I’m sailing the Caribbean. -I never do Oasis ships in the Med, only small ships that can go to unique ports -Wonder and Oasis have lime and coconut so maybe go on those next time - I spent maybe 5 min in Seaplex on my Odyssey cruise. It’s all really dependent on the individual. Some people don’t like the fact the Quantum class has no slides. Seaplex takes up that space, but those ships are made for colder climates so it makes sense it’s closed in. Oasis is for warmer climates like the Med and Caribbean.

It’s really based on how bad the wind and waves are. It’s rare now with a dock instead of tenders. We missed a Feb date on Navigator just before COVID. The waves were crashing over the dock as we cruised by.

Belize is a tender port so you will have to hop into a tender to get shoreside. If you have a Royal excursion, you get priority to get off the ship. For Roatan, we really enjoyed the Jolly Roger Catamaran. Probably my favorite Cat trip in the Caribbean.

It’s not the size of the ship, it’s the motion of the ocean (or Caribbean)

We vary tipping greatly based on the service. Some people do the minimum (friendly and serve) and some just totally blow you away. We’ve had bartenders teach us our favorite drinks, guys dancing with drinks on their heads, and some who know us on a first name basis and queue up a favorite drink as we walk up during the cruise. Some waitstaff do some pretty amazing things as well. One of our bartenders told us towards the end of a week that he avoids European contracts since tipping is not the norm. At the end of the day, any tip will be appreciated. We try to tip in cash in a lot of instances so they don’t have to tip share.

I booked it for my 50 closest friends. See you on board

I’m gonna go against the grain and say Icon. If you want to see Hawaii, you are better off doing Hawaii as a land vacation. Icon is a destination by itself and many Caribbean islands are not places I would necessarily want to stay for an extended vacation so a cruise is perfect there.

This route is not picturesque… Flat part of Florida, some orange groves and pasture, but nothing special. I would fly into Ft Lauderdale. If you are stuck with Orlando, consider renting a car and driving. If you have any issues on this route, there are areas with minimal resources. We had a flat tire on this route once. Luckily, we changed it like a NASCAR pit crew and got to the port on time. If you have anything serious like engine trouble, it would take awhile for help.

Maybe thinking of the guacamole and margarita class? We got unlimited margaritas during it and let’s just say everyone left happy and were best friends after that.

It’s possible, but it’ll be a time crunch. You have to grab your bags and shuttle to Ravenna train station from the cruise port and catch the train. I like to add lots of fluff time with disembarking.

That storm will take all the clouds out of the Caribbean and you will have a sunny cruise with no clouds in the sky. Enjoy your sailing and bring extra sunscreen.

My picks: Any Oasis ship is great. Odyssey Freedom Navigator

Leave in the safe. We had a couple who were nearly an hour late to the ship. Security retrieved their passports and an officer walked them down the pier and gave them to the port agent. Lucky for the couple, they pulled up in a taxi literally seconds after the handoff and they ran down the peer to get on the ship. The captain emphasized being on time the rest of the week on his daily announcement.

She has the standard twin slides. They upgraded a lot of carpets and fixtures so she was really “clean” when we were onboard last month. If you are going on her in the med, she will have a better itinerary and less people than Odyssey. You’ll be spending most of your time exploring Europe anyway, so the bells and whistles won’t matter. Great crew on Explorer right now too.

It’s one of their 3-D things. They have something similar on Odyssey. You have to be on the app and point your phone towards the icons while on the boardwalk and then it appears.

Honestly, I don’t think it even needs it anymore after our cruise on her last month. So much of it looked refreshed and the crew were great. New putt putt, slides, and lots of paint/carpet/furnishings updated.

Jax would have to build a terminal east of the Dames Point bridge otherwise will be like Tampa with only Vision or Radiance class ships.

Cruise port is open and train station is closed. RC arranged bus transfers to Bologna train station, several local airports, and Ravenna city center (hotel guests I suppose). They all picked up guests to take back to the ship. They were queuing when we left the bus in Bologna.

Yes we debarked in Ravenna today. RC arranged buses to take everyone to other train Stations since Ravenna was closed. We went to Bologna which was about 1.5hrs away. When we arrived at the station, the new cruisers were there waiting to board our bus to start their cruise with a RC representative. I think they will get in touch with you a couple days before if it is not open by then.