jbrinkm

Béchamel?

14 hours ago, Cactus527 said:

The Lyft driver I had noted that many drivers will cancel pickups at the cruise terminals because of how long it is taking them to get there versus how much they are going to make.

This cinched it for me - I just booked Blacklane for our post cruise trip to the airport. My last two trips with Uber have been bad and I was worried since we're flying earlier post-cruise than we ever have before. I had tickets somewhere - we should have had plenty of time - but the person who picked it up took 20 minutes to get to us when the ETA was 3 minutes. I don't know how/why that can happen (the little car going further away from us ), but I'm also seeing a decline in the vehicle quality as well and don't want to even chance it. 

14 hours ago, Cactus527 said:

Finding weird hairs in your bathroom is unpleasant. Trying not to think too hard about what they are or where they're from.

14 hours ago, Cactus527 said:

Johnny Rockets shakes feel smaller than they were on Allure. Maybe I'm just crazy.

Maybe that is why they are less expensive?

13 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

I tried Carnival 20 years ago and hated it, vowed to never sail it again.

Me too - super thin walls, gross dirty carpet, no sophistication at all... But like you, I hear much better things now but it is a hard hurdle for me to overcome.

I don't know if it is the same cake, but I bought a birthday package for the first time & we'll be eating the cake on March 23, so I can report back then as to how it is. I really hope that it is not disgusting.

1 hour ago, Jill said:

you can also go into the app and find a sailing on your ship that  has your same itinerary. Look at those menus. 

On 3/6/2024 at 6:34 PM, jbrinkm said:

The latest cruises on my ship have ports and sea days in a different order

There are no sailings similar to mine - we have a totally different order, different sea days and different port days. I know the tricks but I'm less than 2 weeks out and the menus aren't right. 

11 hours ago, Cactus527 said:

WELCOME TO MIAMI!!!!

I will now be singing that song for the rest of the day 

3 hours ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

Regarding Your Tile app…is that for an Android or Apple app?  I have Android and am looking for this to track luggage, etc.

I'll be testing out the Samsung version on my cruise at the end of the month for the first time and can report back about those too.

1 hour ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

 Hubby was off to a shaky start. 

This does not look like a shaky flow rider-er!

1 hour ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Happy to report that both freeloaders are awake now.

Ooops 

Is this it?

https://santorini-island-tour.com/culinary-tours/spirits-of-santorini

Royal does partner with local vendors for some of their tours, so this could be the same offering.

It looks like there is a link to their TripAdvisor page so if you go to it, you might see answers in some of the reviews (which look great) or you can ask a question that someone might be able to answer if you don't get a response here.

If you are open to doing a non-ship excursion, taxis are easily available, have prices posted (usually only cash accepted), and it is very easy to go to Chankanaab on your own. Then you can stay as long as you want and have them call a taxi when you are ready to go back. You can buy tickets directly on their website: https://cozumelparks.com/en/chankanaab/ (probably at the entrance as well, although it would most likely be more expensive). 

I have read reports that the included buffet is not great if you buy the ship's package. There is other food available that might be better a la carte. 

2 hours ago, MaBunny73 said:

Seems like you have to pay to get in different areas of the resort.

I'm not sure which resort you are referring to here, but there are a few add ons at Chankanaab, like animal experiences. And the cabanas are separate (Cabana Beach), although if you rent a Cabana, you get admission to the park included with your ticket - they are right next to each other. The per-person fee also includes snorkel gear and towels. It looks like the Cabana cost is around $125 now with an additional $19 per person extra. If you just want good food, drinks and snorkeling, you might want to check out Money Bar which is pay as you go. 

If you don't want snorkeling, you can check out the All Inclusive resorts which you probably want to reserve ahead of time. Also very easy to take a taxi to and from. Some popular ones are Paradise Beach, Mr. Sanchos and Nachi Cocom. One or more of those might have kayaks.

3 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

you can at least do the bar code trick to find your cabin before it is officially assigned (usually)

I'll also throw in that I found out my parents' room when I went to purchase specialty dining in the app because we were linked. If you are linked with another party, you can see their room number (once assigned), and vice versa. Even if it is just a mock booking, you'll either still see GTY by their names or their room number. 

If you don't have enough users to cover her on Internet, she could still log in as one of the adults/parents and use the free messaging (which has to be checked last I heard - probably won't give you a notification for a new message). We had a 4 line Voom package when my son was 12 so I just logged him in as me - we could both be logged in at the same time on different devices - so he could see the daily schedule and the built in map. I just told him to be careful not to change anything in my account!

5 hours ago, Fastfaller said:

Haha... The point of me getting them for my kids is so they won't drop and lose their cards. Would be ironic if they lost their wow band.

You can buy "magic band locks" that can help hold them on more securely if you want that peace of mind. Or some of those little elastic hair bands to wrap around a few times. 

56 minutes ago, Cactus527 said:

Also, found a list of amazing mocktails that can be ordered with the Refreshment Package

Ooooo - share please?

6 hours ago, loki007 said:

you should be able to view menus on the app well ahead of time

There are menus on there, but I am fairly sure they are not correct for my sailing. 

On 3/3/2024 at 11:58 AM, SpeedNoodles said:

You can take all cards with you to collect coffee for your group at Pearl Cafe.

This has been recommended by cruisers here on this board before:

https://a.co/d/3yKZ89J

And if that doesn't work, or they don't get back to you, go talk to the head waiter when you board. 

Our sailing is almost sold out - there are only interiors left when I check on the site. Ocean view, balconies and suites are gone.

Is white night usually also Italian menu? 

Caribbean = Caribbean (LOL)

French = Formal?

Dress Your Best = Royal Night

The rest on my cruise are all casual nights so not sure there's any way to anticipate those. Just wondering if they coordinate most of the time, with exceptions for special cruises, special events, etc.

I know why I booked night two - because in @FionaMG's blog, I saw that Italian night was on night two, but when I read closer, she said that their menus were shifted a bit because it was a Superbowl cruise - and the Superbowl was on night 2. Since they had two sea days at the beginning, they moved the formal night to night 3 instead. We have two sea days at the end. So I did go ahead and cancel that reservation for night 2. I still have night 5 (white night), night 6 (Caribbean), and night 7 (dress your best) still reserved, although I could probably cancel night 7 as well since it will most likely be the menu with lobster - Royal Night. I'm really, really hoping that it is night 5 because we're in Aruba until 9 or 10pm so we can stay on the island a bit longer and then enjoy Wonderland when we get back.

P.S. When I first read your post title, I immediately thought - WHICH CELEBRITY IS DOING A BLOG?? I got very excited to hear who it might be.

13 hours ago, ScottD said:

Not nearly as specific and not always as friendly as this page

7 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

But definitely a different vibe over there

They can be VERY prickly over there! I feel like every thread has a few people that are there just to argue, no matter what topic. Which works everyone up and threads devolve...

@judgen I see you did already find the sub forum for Celebrity on this board. I've also noticed several people lately in our live blog space that have gone on Celebrity and shared info.

We're really lucky that @Matt started this blog!

Those of you who are getting them assigned really early - did you use a TA? My parents did a GTY through our TA and their room was assigned very quickly after booking, 5 months before sailing (then upgraded room category during a sale to a higher category, and it again was assigned within a few days, four months before the sailing). It made me wonder if GTYs booked through TAs are getting assigned sooner than GTYs booked directly. 

1 hour ago, Sara O said:

We have the 11:30am check in time, too. The cruise is getting so close now! I'm sure the next 16 days are going to take FOREVER to go by!

YAY another cruiser!!!!! 

2 hours ago, Jax said:

This^^^^^^ I offered to take the tub

All y'all offering to go in tubs (looking at you too @OCSC Mike) are going to get Royal to start charging for tubs next. 

1 hour ago, Cactus527 said:

Bookworm was SO excited for the box the suitcase came in yesterday. She apparently has to make a cardboard canoe in engineering this semester, and the bigger pieces of cardboard were exactly what she needed. They will race against the engineering students at a nearby high school at the aquatic center at the end of the school year. I definitely want to see this.  

That is very cool. If she needs more, you could check if you have a local Buy Nothing or Freecycle group - people are always giving away boxes there (or you can ask).