Lexster

12 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

Update from OA.  There is no longer any reference to Jazz On 4 as a performance venue.  The Jazz presentations are being advertised as being held in the Music Hall.  While I have not confirmed directly with anyone “in the know”, I think it’s pretty clear that Jazz on 4 is no more.  When I went by there today, the doors were closed and (presumably) locked.  I will pop by next week and see if there is any construction/destruction going on.

*sigh* At least they aren't getting rid of the Jazz altogether. If it moves to the Music Hall, that's better than nothing.

I too pack like three weeks early. I make sure I have all my extra accessories and things all in one place.

Honestly such BS. Oh, yeah, let's take away music to give way for MORE gambling. Great.

We're down to 61 days! That's two months! Getting pretty excited.

4 hours ago, Jonesy said:

Have you looked at flying out of IND?  They have a ton of Florida service.  It will be so much easier later this year when you can fly to MCO and take the train to Ft. Lauderdale or Miami.  MCO is usually a lot cheaper.

Yep, I checked those. Unfortunately, it's not much cheaper, especially since I'll only do non-stop flights. It's ultimately cheaper for us to rent a car that we'll have for a week and yet only use for maybe a total of two days than getting plane tickets for four people.

2 hours ago, Davnbet said:

Wow it must be where you live. Our airline tickets through AA weren't that bad. Round trip for two was approx $600. 

Yeah, might be. We fly out of CVG, but yeah two people one way was like $800. Plus I won't do layovers because I don't want to risk cancellations or delays.

We're driving back. 16 hours...but we couldn't justify paying the equivalent of another cruise to fly.

8 hours ago, Rory said:

Checking to see if anyone knows Royal's rollout plan for converting the Jazz on 4 spaces into non-smoking casino spaces like on Wonder? The only info confirmed is Harmony is starting their conversion today through March 12. I would guess they move to the next Oasis class ship on March 12-26? The first I read about this project was a post that Cory (CD on Allure) told the guest they were doing this and had hoped to complete all Oasis class ships by end of April. Has anyone received an email on an upcoming sailing (not including Harmony) about this? 

Wait WHAT? They're getting rid of the freaking jazz clubs?! Wow...good job, Royal...my favorite place on the ships. Eff me, I guess, let's go gambling!

1 hour ago, RCLblue10 said:

Hello ALL!  Just booked this cruise after sailing on Harmony in January.  Great time and crew so we are back.  Flying in to Fort Lauderdale on May 5.  Still looking at hotels.  We have never been to Mexico or Coca Cay so really excited.  Labadee was a fun and relaxing stop so I hope Coco Cay will be the same.  

Welcome! We've actually taken the....bold decision to drive 16 hours from Northern KY to Miami to avoid the insane cost of airline tickets right now. Coco Cay is definitely a blast. The beaches are nice and the huge pool is fun.

On 2/21/2023 at 12:37 PM, jordan meyers said:

We are down to just over 10 weeks left get excited. Me and my wife are going on this as our 1 year anniversary trip. We are both pretty excited as it will be both of our first cruises.

Awesome! My husband and I are treating this as our 9 year anniversary. Definitely getting excited. Starting to watch cruise videos constantly again.

14 minutes ago, Davnbet said:

I signed us up for MTD and didn't realize how soon you can reserve your time. So when I clicked to reserve the earliest time was 7 pm. I don't know what time the shows are but hoping not a conflict. I wonder if I should change to traditional once we board the ship. 

II wouldn't wait to be in the ship. it's doable, but apparently not guaranteed that you can make the change. I'd contact your travel agent (if you have one) or maybe call Royal to change it beforehand if you want to move to Traditional.

17 hours ago, Pooch said:

Frankly, I have done MTD on 2 pre and 2 post covid cruises and have always gotten the same table and waitstaff every night.  Additionally our wait times have been minimal, average none to 10 minutes.  All you gotta do is ask.  It is a misconception that only traditional dining allows you to have the same waitstaff.

Fair enough!

13 hours ago, Pooch said:

That is traditional dining.  We have My Time Dining but I’ve already made reservations for each night.  5:30 is too early for us and 8pm is too late.  MTD allows me to chose a better time for our cruise style.

Yep, I appareciate there are options. I like traditional because I like having the same wait staff every night. Makes me feel special.

43 minutes ago, Davnbet said:

Speaking of calories and eating, did all of you choose traditional or my dining?

I'm Traditional, the early seating. We'll also be doing Chops and Wonderland.

Calories don't count on a cruise ship!

1 hour ago, Jonesy said:

What I am booking is an executive car service/limo service.  They are more expensive but I love the service 

Ooh fancy!

10 hours ago, Davnbet said:

We are flying into Miami the day before.  Does anyone have a recommendation on a hotel that has good transport from the airport to the hotel and maybe from the hotel to the cruise port?  I have seen a few but of course they all have mixed reviews.  Or do many of you just use Uber or Lyft?  I'm mainly interested in clean, safe area, and the transport at a cheaper price for one night.  

We're staying at the RADISSON Red near the airport. It's supposed to have a free shuttle from the airport to the hotel. Me, personally, I don't use ride sharing. I prefer taxis, but I'm sure a ride sharing service could get you to the port, too. I think Radission RED has a stay-and-cruise booking where they'll provide a shuttle to the cruise port, but I didn't book that. i prefer getting my own ride and not having to wait for the hotel to provide.

On 1/24/2023 at 11:44 AM, twangster said:

I think in general he is correct.  So many return guests don't leave the ship.  Why is that?  They are near the bottom in surveys just above Freeport.  That's doesn't say much about how Nassau is received by the cruising public.

If you are into drugs there is a beach you walk to be and you'll be offered a choice of drugs.  That's not a good look and a pretty poor family experience.

Royal is building their beach club next door to establish a place that can be something to do and somewhere to go because without it there is little point getting off the ship. 

Nassau needs to be honest with itself if it wants to change.  Griping about cruise ships guests not leaving the ship won't accomplish anything.  Someone needed to say it.  

Hell, my husband and I were offered "lines" a mere block from the cruise port just after we passed a police officer. There is definitely no shame by some in the area near the port.

12 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

It wasn't on the new lunch menu on Grandeur or Oasis, that's why I assumed the new lunch menu.....wait how many sea days? I only had 2 lunch menus but both were different so maybe if you have 3 lunches/brunch they have it on there.

I only have two sea days, but it shows on my Day 4 Lunch menu. Mexican night is the dinner menu that day. Not sure if that makes a difference.

18 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

It could be that Enchantment hasn't transitioned to the new menu. But good if it stays.

Actually, no, I looked at my menu for my upcoming Harmony cruise. The app shows the new menu for dinner, but if I look at lunch, the Apple Blossom a la Mode is there!

19 hours ago, JohnK6404 said:

Same ones listed for our 5/11 sailing... they are holding back obviously. Curious if there will be a 150 CP with the redesign of Central Park... I guess they would have to rename it because of the story behind the name.

For sure, they no doubt have at least one new restaurant if not more. I'm really hoping for something out of the ordinary like they did with Wonderland. I'd like to have something I can't normally get on land. Like, I have decent Italian, Mexican, and steak places around me on land, so I'm hoping they try something unique. I think I mentioned it somewhere, but with the aqua theater being a large enclosed neighborhood now, I hope they have a dinner show or something like other lines have. That would be pretty cool.

Hey all, haven't seen this anywhere, so figured I'd post something interesting I saw on the cruise planner for the inaugural Icon cruise. They have some restaurants listed now. No new ones that haven't existed, but you can see some regular favorites now.

I too prefer the paper copies. There's just something to be said about the tangible nature of holding it. I prefer that over reading it on my phone screen which is not as big as the paper version. Give people the option like how many companies do with their bills. They ask if you want paperless or not. RC should do this as well, in my opinion.

My only gripe is the cup doesn't hold much soda, especially if you put ice in it. I know it's unlimited, but there's usually a line at the freestyle machines, so it's not convenient to just keep refilling.

3 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

The new cup is much smaller, it holds the same amount of soda as the blue plastic cups now. I have seen staff refilling the freestyle machines on Oasis, it is a bit of an ordeal. It also appears that staff in general are very green and new, the casino host on Oasis couldn't tell me basic information. I imagine that for the crew who stocked up the machines they probably haven't gotten a routine down.

Yeah, had a friend who worked at a restaurant that had the Freestyle machines. He hated working on them. Some aspects are simple and others are difficult. The flavors are like ink cartridges in a printer, but there are still like four or five steps to changing out just a single flavor.