JennaRCB

I went on a similar itinerary last summer! I wrote a blog every day about what I did which may be helpful: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/category/category/rhapsody-of-the-seas-live-blog

That would be amazing! I can't see Royal doing that type of itinerary either. NCL has some awesome itineraries in South Africa, Namibia, and Madagascar

I would not recommend this excursion over spending time on the island! I'm pretty sure the pigs are treated well BUT I don't really agree with animal tourism like this. I think it's better to just spend the day doing other activities at CocoCay, and if I were going to spend extra $ on an excursion I would do the Coco Beach Club or Thrill Waterpark over the swimming pigs tour.

LOL I also thought this design was bad!! On some menus, the Chef's Recommendations are only at the top and on others it's on the top and bottom. The new menu looks good to me, but my only complaint is that they grouped vegetarian and vegan together on several nights, leaving only 1 non-meat option for main courses. I'm vegetarian (occasionally pescatarian) but that doesn't mean I only want vegan entrees! Most of the vegan main courses on the previous menu were not that good. However there's definitely something I'll eat every night on the menu.

Izumi and Giovanni's are easy for vegetarian options. I always get tofu udon noodles at Izumi or vegetable fried rice. They are both super good! I prefer the udon noodles as it is more of a full meal. Chops isn't the best restaurant for vegetarians, but all the sides and some appetizers are vegetarian. I would suggest getting a goat cheese salad for the main instead of for an appetizer (it's amazing) and having one of the soups (butternut squash or mushroom) for the appetizer.

Bring back Brazil cruises!!!

I would stay in London and take the train directly to Southampton on embarkation morning! It runs frequently and is extremely convenient.

14! Mariner Odyssey Ovation Navigator Independence Harmony Wonder Oasis Freedom Anthem Rhapsody Radiance Allure Liberty

I went here in September and loved it! I liked how it was in the middle of Mahahual so you could walk around the town for a bit during the day.

If you're cruising to Greece, the ship doesn't really matter at all to be honest! Explorer will have more than enough to keep you busy after port days. On my Greece cruise, we were so tired after being in port all day, every day that we usually just ate dinner and hung out in the Solarium a bit before bed.

This should help: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2022/11/21/the-ultimate-guide-royal-caribbeans-unlimited-dining-package

I always reserve lunches instead of dinners when I don't have a dining package! $~20-25 instead of $50 per meal means I can have two specialty meals for the price of one. Plus it's a great way to break up a sea day. I would recommend this!

I would go to Chacchoben ruins in Costa Maya and make Cozumel a beach day. I visited the Tulum ruins when I was in Cozumel, but I thought the ferry ride over was terrible (many people were puking). The ruins in Costa Maya just require a 1 hour bus ride each way and are still really impressive! Here's my review on the Chacchoben ruins: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2021/09/16/excursion-focus-chacchoben-ruins-costa-maya Tulum ruins review: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2022/09/30/excursion-focus-tulum-ruins-mayan-cenote-tour-cozumel

What a great idea!!!! @Matt

BOOKED MY FIRST AUSTRALIA CRUISE AND SOUTH PACIFIC CRUISE!!!! Royal Caribbean Blog will finally have a live blog and content from Australia! One year away. The excitement is high. Any tips or advice?! On a side note, this will be my 6th continent. I think it's time to start planning a cruise to Antarctica. Going to Adelaide, Melbourne, Eden, Kangaroo Island, Noumea, Lifou, Mare, Isle of Pines, and Mystery Island

I would recommend Jaime's Blue Reef!

Here is a list of shore excursions on Royal's website, although I can't guarantee these will all be on your same cruise! It's just their overall list: http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/destinations/shoreExcursions/subGateWayByPort/search.do?LocationCode=JTR

I think the design is great at keeping most kids activities to 2 areas of the ship: the Surfside neighborhood and the waterpark. I expect most kids onboard to congregate in these areas during the day which should make the pool deck area outside of the waterpark more adult-focused.

I could see it becoming some sort of complimentary venue akin to Solarium Bistro, Two70, etc. This would be a nice area to break up crowds and offer breakfast, lunch, and dinner options outside of the Windjammer/MDR?

Jamie's: eggplant parmesan, truffle arancini, garlic bread Izumi: I don't eat sushi but they have a lot of non-seafood options! The udon noodles with choice of beef, chicken, or tofu are super good. And the fried rice is amazing too Chops: goat cheese salad and key lime pie

I wouldn't say the specialty coffee at Cafe Promenade is as fancy as you'll find at some independently owned coffee shops, but the quality has definitely gone up since they started using Starbucks coffee! I bought the Cafe Select Coffee Card twice before to use on my cruises and I thought it was worth it. I think it was around $30 for 15 espresso-based drinks so it worked out to $2 or so a drink. That was cheaper than paying $5+ each time. However there didn't seem to be any real rules when it came to how many punches came out of the card per drink. Sometimes I would order a larger drink and they would count it as 2 espresso drinks and sometimes only 1.

I really enjoyed Nachi Cocom! We have a full review of it on the Royal Caribbean Blog YouTube channel: I would AVOID excursions that visit mainland Mexico (Puerto de Vallarta, Tulum, etc.) The ferry ride from Cozumel to the mainland was terrible when I went and multiple people were puking! Therefore I'd stick to the island of Cozumel only.

I would do the 8AM so you can relax after the excursion, walk around town, get lunch, etc. If you do the 12PM one but want to walk around town in the morning, you'll spend the whole morning checking your watch to make sure you don't miss the train.

The best thing you can do is disembark the ship ASAP in the morning. Whenever I do this and head immediately to the beach, there are barely any people there for at least a little while! Go to South Beach for the most quiet spot in the morning.

Nice! I wonder if this means they will end up dropping the vaccine requirement for cruises visiting Canada.