Redshoe

This was my very first Royal cruise back in 2002 (7 night Western Mediterranean out of Barcelona). 

Level 1: It's T-minus 45.  Got checked in and got my preferred time slot! I'll unnecessarily fret about how long it's taking to validate my vax card, but oh well
Level 2: T-minus 30. Holy cow my luggage tags are ready. My luggage has dust on it in the garage and I'm not touching them for another 4 weeks but gosh darnit I'm printing these luggage tag right now! Level 2 isn't much more exciting than Level 1 but those luggage tags are some physical artifact that the cruise is near.
Level 3: T-minus 2. My armpits are soaked from that 15 minutes of anticipatory hell constantly squinting and wondering "is that a second line or just an eyelash?", but the covid tests are negative. Level 3 is a Richter scale tier difference from Level 2.
Level 4: Liftoff. On board the ship. My flights made it, I got a great absolutely terrible night's sleep at the hotel like a kid on Christmas Eve, and I got through check-in with no issues. Let the fun begin.  Obviously Level 4 might as well be light years from Level 3.

I definitely agree. I would also add a level 2.5: Worrying about every time someone in the family has a cough! Praying its not Covid 

Wow, this list is exactly what I need! Downloading it to my phone now. Thanks!

If you REEEEEEALLLLLY wanna look up some drinks to try, Quite a while ago, a large list of Beer/Wine/Spirits available on RC ships and a seemingly endless list of concoctions was posted on this blog. The links have long since been inactive, but, I happened to save copies. Attached is the original PDF and a word doc I made to make the list both alphabetical and easier to read. ENJOY!
 
RC DRINKS.docx Cruise News Harmony 2019 Drinking.pdf

I don’t know if it was just bad luck for us, but most of the suite’s lounge bartenders tell us they can’t do frozen drinks. Maybe that changed very recently?

I was on Allure post-covid and no frozen drinks. I like sweeter drinks as I am a lightweight, so I often got Bellini's, the drink of the day and tequila sunrises. 

Oasis class is different since they have a permanent bar right there.

They had a bar in the suite lounge on Oasis.  If they didn't have something that you asked for they'd go to the main bar.

Post-covid they order from the main bar, so you can get anything. Pre-covid they had a mini bar set up in the lounge so options were limited.

They will be able to make most drinks, including frozen drinks.  They are free, so this is a good time to try some new ones!

I just got back from Oasis and the bartender in the suite lounge made me a drink with elderflower liquer, vodka, sour mix, club soda, and a dash of strawberry puree for color.  I don't like really sweet drinks, so I asked for it to be light on the elderflower and sour mix.  It was very tasty; you could ask for more sour mix and elderflower if you want it sweeter. THey also had other liquers to make sweeter drinks.

Tested this morning via the proctored iHealth tests.  We are all negative.  Woohoo!!!

Dedicated Movie Theater.

Include gratuities with the cruise fare

The mouse cruise line includes soda in their fare. We don’t drink a lot of soda but it was nice to just walk up to a machine and get coke. They also have a dedicated movie theater which was nice. 

Boarded Odyssey this morning at Port Everglades- all four of my family used the iHealth proctored test. Showed the negative result image file provided by iHealth and had no issues getting on board. They didn’t scan the QR code or anything, just looked at our phone screenshots.
 Hope this helps everybody considering using this test as we weren’t 100% sure if it would be accepted.
Paul

Only variable tier specific perks listed on the youth letter such as Diamond drink vouchers or Voom internet discounts will apply to youth. 
Using the Allure or Brilliance youth letters from above:

The youth letter does not mention JR milkshakes so that perk won't be available to youth.  
Having said that you can ask and maybe your ship will allow it.

Only if your cruise departs from a port on Eastern time. Just checked in overnight for an Alaska cruise from Seattle. The check in DID NOT open at midnight Eastern (that would have been convenient since I was still up after watching the NCAA Championship Game). I stirred awake at 2:20 a.m. Eastern and verified that check in was still not available (app or online). When I was awakened by a clap of thunder at 4:15 a.m. check in was available.
Midnight in the time zone of the cruise departure is a more accurate description.

My (then 5 year old) children have gotten off ship with a grandparent who was staying in a different room. No questions asked.
Our reservations were linked for dining purposes which may have influenced this. 

I think so. The system prevents minors from getting off the ship unaccompanied, but it doesnt differentiate with which adults they can leave with.

Midnight Eastern.