TJ_Shopper

I have a similar situation. We will be getting off the Adventure of the Seas on Saturday, January 28th. Our flight at Hobby Airport is at 4:55 p.m. We were thinking of dropping off our bags at The Cruise Stop and explore the Strand area which is Old Galveston. I was told that The Cruise Stop will hold our luggage for $5 a bag. It is across the street from the port. Obviously, you have more time to kill, but this is probably what we will do. We'll walk around the shops and then grab lunch before heading to the airport. Does anyone know if the Strand area is okay to walk around? Is there enough to do to kill a few hours? Thanks and sorry, I did not mean to hijack this thread but thought it might be helpful for others.

We will be on Enchantment of the Seas on Monday, May 15, 2023. Does anyone know what the earliest check-in time for our cruise will be? Is it 10:30 a.m. like the U.S. cruise ports? Also, we will be hiring a private car service to take us from Rome Center to the cruise port. I believe the drive will take around 1 hour and 15 minutes. It's on a Monday morning. Anyone know if there will be traffic and if we should plan on an earlier time to leave. We were initially thinking of pick up at 9:00 a.m. Thank you.

Thank you Twangster.

Did you get a letter? How did you find this out? Thanks.

Same here. We are on Brilliance May 15, 2023. There are a group of 40 of us - family and friends. Took a while to get this together and we've been planning excursions and everything. I really hope they don't cancel this cruise. Ugh.

We will be on Brilliance of the Seas May 15, 2023 leaving from Rome and arriving in Athens. We are having the same problem with airfare; however, I've been checking and it looks like it will open up next week for booking. Currently doing one way tickets are crazy expensive. I'm hoping that booking Multi-City will be cheaper. Crossing my fingers but it looks like it will be at least $1,300 round trip, probably more. This is Chicago to Rome, Athens to Chicago. In 2019, we flew multi-city (Chicago to Milan, Barcelona to Chicago) and our airfare was about $800. So, yea, prices have definitely gone up.

That would be fantastic if it worked - my group all have iPhones. We will have to try that. Thanks for the heads up.

I also got a response from Rapid Test and Trace regarding the approved test kits we can use. Here is her response. I clicked the link and the ones I got from the government for free is on this list. So, we're all good! You check the FDA approved devices here: https://rapidtestandtrace.com/covid19-rapid-tests-devices/ Regards, Janine

I just checked and the person I am talking to on the Royal Caribbean Information Facebook page confirmed that she used the Rapid Test & Trace proctoring service and it was fine. This is what she said: I did- it was quick and easy, used my phone, got the report while still on the phone (to verify the info was correct) and no question at all at the Port- glanced at it and waved through! She did use the iHealth test that she received from the government. I am now waiting on a chat with Rapid Test and Trace to make sure that the test I received from the government can also be used. It's not the iHealth one. I received the ones from SD Biosensor in a blue and white box. I'm pretty sure this should be accepted since it's from the government just like the iHealth one.

I've been on Cruise Critic and Facebook groups trying to find out if anyone actually used this service. So far, not yet. I believe there was one person that said he was using this proctoring service for his upcoming cruise. I'm waiting for him to come back on to say whether it was a go or not. I did chat with Rapid Test and Trace and asked what they provided in their email after you've completed your testing. This was their reply: Hello there, The certificate that we are issuing is in PDF format, which will be issued immediately after the session. Includes the following information: · Name of client · Date of birth · Id number · Date and Time of issue · Type of antigen test · Test result · Email address of Rapid Test and Trace · Name of the registered Nurse and E-signature · Letterhead Regards, Janine My cruise is June 5th on Oasis of the Seas. I did book proctoring sessions with this company for June 3rd at 7:00 a.m. for my husband, daughter and myself. I am using the government issued tests (not iHealth). I have a flight on June 3rd at 1:20 p.m., but I'm also going to schedule backup appointments at my nearby Walgreens. Unfortunately, their earliest time for testing is 9:30 a.m. and you can only book 7 days out. Hopefully, this goes well and I can cancel my Walgreens appointment. In the meantime, I will continue to check Cruise Critic and Facebook groups to see if anyone had any success using Rapid Test and Trace.