AandD

Congratulations on your Anniversary. I know its old fashion but stop and play shuffleboard on deck with somebody. Something a little different, but we have had fun playing a game with other couples. 

38 minutes ago, Adriana said:

Hi again! I am sorry for all of the questions! Does anyone have knowledge or experience with Catholic services while on board? I will be on Anthem over two weekends and All Saints Day. I do not want to miss Mass. When I booked, I asked about services and was told that they do have Mass and to check the Compass. I have not cruised in four years (yikes, hoping to get back in the groove), but I do not recall there being a Catholic Mass. I will also put a message on the cruise message board on board (if they even still do that) to see if there is a priest sailing who will be celebrating his own Mass. 

     I think I remember a chapel or general service, but not a Catholic one. Thank you!

We have cruised with our Priest 4 times in the last 5 years. From our experience they will let people know of a Mass by putting a message on the message board. But I have not seen a message board in the last year. The last time we had 8 people in our group. 2 married couples and 4 priests. There was as many as 40 people during daily Mass.

I guess it depends on what you like to do. If you like going to shows, relaxing by the pool with a book, going to the casino, etc. Then maybe. We have been on enough cruises that sometimes we just stay on the ship and dont do an excursion. Less people. 

Thanks for the blog. We will be on that cruise in less than 2 weeks.

We have never had a problem with our metal hooks. 13 cruises last one was on Symphony in May.

We started booking with Royal. Didn't really have any problems but switched to a travel agent on a friends recommendation just before Covid started. He has taken care of us. I don't worry to much about the price because the service is great.

On 8/14/2022 at 8:42 AM, Bryan S said:

We typically will tip $50 to our cabin steward for a 7 day cruise on top of prepaid tips. We often will greet and give half on the first day as this insures excellent service. We typically tip our wait staff much lower do to inconsistent service. However, we received excellent service during our July cruise on Allure so tipped $40 to the waiter and $30 to the assistant. 

We’re not convinced prepaid tips are allocated accurately for the way we cruise so we like to share a bit extra.

My mother as always tipped extra on drinks and had the similar experience of extra attentiveness.

I agree with you about giving some to the cabin steward on the first day. Then the rest towards the end of the cruise. I have been doing this on the last 3 cruises since the restart. I feet the service has been better. I give the steward between $5 and $15 a day depending on the type of cabin.

We have been on 12 cruises. Our last cruise was on Symphony of the Seas. We picked this ship and a 7 day cruise to experience the ship. We got off at the destinations and did excursions but also wanted to see all the shows and eat at all the restaurants on the ship. 

We had to ask on our last cruise. First as Diamond . She had a whole drawer full. Gave us all the pins to catch us up. Now hoping to get our first glass block on the Odyssey next spring. I am glad I talked my wife into a few extra cruises under the double points offer last year.

We sailed Symphony in May out of Miami. We had a 10:30 boarding time and the people in front of us had a 1 pm. At 11  we were on the ship. It was quick and orderly. enjoy your cruise. It was our first time on an Oasis class and it was great. 

We booked thru Royal the first two cruises. No problems. Then we started booking thru an agent suggested by a co worker. About the only thing thing I expect is a reply to an email or phone call. With that being said he has texted from Antarctica and called from South America. I could call him right now, 6:30am on Saturday, and he would probably answer.  He usually has cookies or strawberries and wine sent  to our room. He has also called with good deals we might be interested in. That is good enough for us.  So we stay with the one agent.

12 minutes ago, Dad2Cue said:

We reached Diamond level on the second cruise of a B2B this past January 2022.  With luck we should reach Diamond+ on the B2B next January 2023. We didn't notice any difference being Diamond but we didn't know what to expect.  We got the Diamond pins though.  

Our upcoming cruise schedule is a 7-Night Alaska cruise starting August 29th in a Grand suite.  We have never been in a suite before and Diamond level so we aren't sure how to act.  With double points, the cruise should net us 28 points.

On October 2nd we will embark on a 13-night Panama Canal crossing in an ocean view balcony so no suite perks on that cruise.   The cruise should net us another 26 points.

Two days after the Panama cruise will get on a 4-night Perfect Day cruise in a junior suite so 16 more points.

We currently have 97 points + 28 + 26 + 16 = 167 points.  The first cruise of the B2B in January 2023 is 8 nights so that should be 175 points to make us Diamond+.

We need a crash course on being Diamond level and in a suite for the Alaska cruse before moving up to Diamond+.

Enjoy the free drinks. And don't forget the free pictures.

They would not punch holes on the Symphony in May.

Some clips to clip your towels to your chairs. Bring some $1s, $10s and $20s. $1s for the porters at the dock and its nice to tip a for a drink. And we have started tipping our cabin steward some cash at the start and end of the trip. This is on top of the 18% charged to you by the ship for the gratuity. Also you might want a lanyard with something on the end to hold your Seapass card. They use to punch a hole in the card but wont anymore. You can buy these on board also.

Nice pair of pants and button down shirt. 

Crew and shows. I cant sing or dance so I enjoy about any show on stage or ice.

8 hours ago, Jolly Ogre said:

That is a whole different class that I will never be a part of...just the Jr suite for me on a splurge. 

Enjoy!! 

Same here. Crown Loft sounds nice but a Jr suite on a 10 day cruise is about all we do. Of course if I pick the right numbers on power ball that will change.

Thanks wordell1. We have Royal Excursions booked for Belize and Honduras.

We will be stopping at Belize and Honduras on our cruise in September. I believe at least Belize is a tender port. My question is how does disembarkation work ? Does it go pretty fast or if you want to get off early do you get in line and wait ?

Yes we have. Not on our last cruise but 3 or 4 years ago. We caught the bus at a station just across from where you exit the pier.  It seems like it was $5 round trip to palm or eagle beach. No problems.

We got caught out in Hurricane Maria. Left San Juan the day before it hit. Royal adjusted our itinerary from eastern Caribbean to Aruba. Ended up returning to Ft. Lauderdale. Royal setup phone lines so we could make free calls to the airlines. Also let us stay on board for an extra night. I have no problem sailing during hurricane season.

7 hours ago, whitsmom said:

Majesty holds a special place in my heart as it was my very first cruise; Oasis because it was the first cruise the our Grands; Radiance because it was our "first" bucket list trip and Hubby surviving a heart attack & stint 4 weeks before sailing and Dr gave his blessing for him to go; upcoming Jewel for our "Third" Bucket List trip to the British Isles and 65th birthday celebration.

Note: "Second" bucket list trip was a land vacation to Iceland and seeing the Northern Lights 3 nights in a row.

Same here. Majesty was our first cruise. And 4 of our first dozen cruises. I liked that ship. But our most recent cruise was on Symphony. And wow. I was told I wont be able to go smaller again. 

When you first board go to one of the restaurants and talk to them. I think most restaurants can see reservations for other restaurants. I don't know what ship you are on but when we boarded Symphony last month they had people on the promenade helping with dinning reservations. 

I was watching the sexist man contest one time. They asked the lady next to me to be a judge. She replied along the lines of she had no interest in men. Then watching all those guys dance and do their thing in front of her trying to get a vote.