endofturn

11 minutes ago, jbrinkm said:

Two questions-

Do you have to specifically ask to use the coupon when you want it to apply?

and

Is hard seltzer in the same category as wine & beer? Had anyone had luck getting a C&A discount on hard seltzer?

Yes, I was ordering wine and they were charging me normal. One dinner I asked to use my 50% off coupon on my seapass card and they did it. I don't think they would have said anything about it unless I asked.

Liberty's deck screen was broke and has been for months. A quarter of the elevators next to our room was for the entire cruise. 

Just gotta move on with your life. These things can happen. 

I haven't stayed in Galveston since 2016. Do you have recommendations for a place to stay Saturday night that offers parking for a week and a shuttle back and forth?

38 minutes ago, teddy said:

For what it’s worth, my wife and I did the Blue Water Beach excursion the first week of this month.   We didn’t do the all inclusive, just the beach transfer.  
 

We had a good time and will go back if we end up in Falmouth again. It was relaxing for us. 

That's reassuring. Was it too crowded?

https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2022/09/17/5-cruise-ship-shore-excursions-i-tried-and-instantly-regretted

We've been to Falmouth twice, soon to be three times. First time we did the falls. That was fine, good for the first time but I don't want to do it again. Long bus rides, and constantly hassled by people peddling trinkets and drugs.

Second we stayed on the ship.

Years later we are going and have kids. My original thought was just to go to Margaritaville. Close, inexpensive, and can leave when we want.

We ended up booking the Blue Water beach excursion instead.

Now I read this post and both options were terrible. 

Here's hoping!

I pre booked dinner for 4 at chops. I want to change to Giovanni's. I know I can cancel and rebook in the planner. Is there a phone number to try and get them moved and get a refund? I can't rebook and wait for the full amount to refund, I'd rather move it now without repaying right now of that makes sense.

9 minutes ago, Cakemeister said:

I'm on the Liberty now (9/6/22) and there is no sushi at the Windjammer.

Terrible. We literally ate it daily the last two times we were on that ship. Thanks.

There's a $37 bottle of Moscato in the gift catalog. We are bringing 2 more expensive bottles for our room, figured we could just buy Moscato on board.

We won't have liquor packages, but isn't there a crown and anchor discount on bottles of wine? We are platinum. I was looking for that current crown and anchor thread on here but I couldn't find it.

What I'm trying to math out is should I buy two bottles of Moscato now in the gift catalog, or wait and buy on board with a CnA discount?

14 minutes ago, need2cruz said:

They weren't looking for sushi.  Actually, the 16 year old said, "they could of had it, but I wasn't looking for it".  Sorry, I wish I could be of more help.  I do have to say, if they have it available,ask the head waiter to bring it to the MDR.  The head waiter brought us a big selection of Indian food to sample while at dinner.  We absolutely loved our experience on Liberty.  If for some reason there wasn't sushi available, I'm pretty sure they'd make it special for you.

We would go to the WJ as soon as it opened, have sushi, then MDR, then WJ again before it closed every night. It was a big part of what we look forward to on our cruises. (This will be our 6th)

Hearing it isn't a thing anymore legitimately affects how I feel about cruising next month. I still haven't heard a definitive no so I'll keep asking. Thanks for your help.

13 hours ago, RCIfan1912 said:

I didn't see sushi on Oasis this week if that helps any. It would be awesome if they did. They have Izumi though but it's pay of course. 

Liberty and Oasis are two different ships. Liberty doesn't have Izumi.

6 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

Haven't seen sushi in a WJ in a long time.

Back in the day I remember getting sushi there every night (even if we were eating elsewhere). IIRC, some ships had an Asian looking side to the WJ (possibly Voyager class in the 2000's?) and that's where the sushi could be found.

Last time I was on Liberty was 2016. Immediately as you entered the WJ, on the right side the first thing was a sushi section. We had it every night. I think it was part of their Jade section. It wasn't a nightly theme at the time, it was always available.

6 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

I recall reading that certain ships had a sushi section, but I think it was 2 and none of them were Oasis class.

Liberty isn't an Oasis class ship.

3 hours ago, Ryan79 said:

Buffet sushi…..no thanks! 

Helpful.

3 hours ago, Cakemeister said:

Sailing on her in a couple of weeks, I can check. 

Thank you, please let me know. I go in October.

3 hours ago, HeWhoWaits said:

I don't recall seeing sushi available in the Windjammer on any recent voyage, even on the Asian-themed dinner night.

On the Liberty?

1 hour ago, need2cruz said:

I was on Liberty a few weeks ago.  Although I only ate at the Windjammer for breakfast, my 3 teen sons went to the Windjammer each night after working out in the gym.  None of them saw any sushi there.

Well that isn't promising. Did they not see it or were they actively looking for it?

I'm getting conflicting reports. Does the windjammer have a sushi section every day, or not. 

Thanks

I know people go on RCI for different reasons. Just was curious what the least popular amenities and features are.

For the specialty dining option, imagine if all the paid options were closed and free spots didn't take their place, just MDR/Sorrento's/windjammer/Cafe promenade/El loco fresh, etc remained.

9 minutes ago, Carlos A. said:

She not only hates cruising, she hates traveling. Everything about travel upsets/annoys her. It's ironic considering she's a travel blogger.   

Could be good if done correctly. I'd read/watch a movie reviewer who hates movies.

A new one, enjoy! 

https://www.insider.com/what-is-a-cruise-like-reality-vs-expectation-disappointing-photos-2022-7

I puked in the sand in Cozumel. I didn't think it was particularly funny at the time, but maybe it gave someone a chuckle.

On 6/10/2022 at 12:58 PM, Audrey V. said:

More than once we went to Windjammer following our MDR dinner.  Sometimes their concept of veggies is 2 spears of asparagus. Come to think of it, eating beforehand may be good, so as to stay away from the breads and starches.  

Our normal routine is Sorrento's before Windjammer opens. Then windjammer for sushi. Then MDR. Then windjammer before it closes. Then Sorrento's before bed.

You've already paid for it. They are offering all you can eat food. Time to make them pay for it.

70's theme night. The old stage shows that haven't been changed in a decade.

16 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

This person has gotten a lot of milage off of her Wonder sailing. I have seen at least 4 articles written by her about her solo sailing. The room, the food, how big the ship is...etc. She goes back and forth between loving the ship and not.

There's 16 articles about it, just counted.

12 minutes ago, FireFishII said:

I read the same article and I thought the author was an idiot.  I would think that any journalist worth their salt would thoroughly investigate their topic (or in this case a cruise) prior to experiencing it. And I am sorry but if you get motion sickness, getting a room in the middle of the ship and near the bottom is NOT going to help you.  After all, restaurants, venues, pools are not in your room.  Plus you can still feel the motion of the ship - just maybe not as severe. Idiot! 

I probably wouldn't call someone an idiot but we book mid ship rooms as low as we can get. I get bad motion sickness. I use prescription patches, ginger capsules, ginger ale, looking at the horizon, floating in the pool, getting in a big room, drinking sprite, taking Dramamine... All simultaneously and I still feel sick.

I still love cruising though.

I read this and had some thoughts about it. This is why letting someone know about the included food is so important.

https://www.insider.com/royal-caribbean-first-cruise-what-to-know-photos-2022-6?amp

Never being on a cruise before they booked specialty restaurants for every meal at $40-60 each. Didn't even buy the unlimited dining plan from what I can tell.

 I know people like to look down their noses at anything that isn't coastal kitchen but the windjammer isn't that bad, folks.

They also brought only a carry on for a 7 night cruise. I thought I was a light packer but that's expert mode.

1 hour ago, CrimsonCruiser said:

Usually there are door hangers in your room that you fill out and put on the outside of your stateroom door by 3 AM.

In there are all your options. You just check off what you want and how many. It's the left side of the door hanger, I believe.

And if they aren't already in the room, you should be able to ask for them from your room attendant.

To add on to this, this is how we always did our wake up call when we had an excursion that day. You have time slots you pick from as well on this card so they know when to bring it. They'll knock and show up, wake you up, and then you can eat in room while you get ready for the day.

Checking off what you want for room service breakfast the night before was one of my favorite parts of the cruise.

It's a hotel that has unlimited food and lots of activities to do that randomly stops in different countries. 

I don't cruise to learn anything, I don't cruise to do stuff like read or browse Facebook that I can do at home for free.

I cruise to unplug, eat like a pig, hang out in a pool, and have a great time while someone else makes the bed all week.

I've been on Liberty, Navigator, and Independence prior to any sort of revamp. You end up with 3 upcharge restaurants, and a Johnny Rockets. I've never been on an Oasis or Quantum ship, but I see the push for stuff like the solarium bistro or el loco fresh or the hot dog one as an additional fast casual option for people to enjoy.

Johnny's cover charge was $5 the last time I was on a ship, and now it is $10 so obviously they are making money from it. And when something is making money, why change. But short of a revamp to add an El Loco Fresh or other fast casual options, what do you think the possibility is of ditching the Johnny Rockets license and converting the locations to a complementary location on the smaller ships?

Are they in too tight of a squeeze right now trying to make up for lost money that losing out on that $10 burger cover is too much to bear or would it allow them to give additional value to some of the older ships without an expensive makeover? I assume they're playing JR for the license and portion of the cover and not the other way around so if it was The Burger Hut or something, would it cost as much to license and operate?

...I'm probably just hungry looking at Shaq's Big Chicken and Guy's Burgers and wishing for more similar locations on the smaller RC ships.

2 hours ago, Safemike1 said:

I purchased the soda package and found that other than getting a few bottles of water, it was not worth it. Ice tea, lemonade, and fruit juices are free. Also, I bought some packages of water flavorings from Walmart ($1.60) that were 10 to a pack and used them most of the time. There are places on the ship you can refill your water bottles and get ice, so that would not be a problem.

Yeah, if you buy a soda package and don't drink soda it isn't going to be a very good value.

7 minutes ago, WAYNO said:

We've done drinks and snacks at Margaritaville in Falmouth.  Popular spot, but I never noticed there was a shortage of tables or seating.

And it is a very good choice for a place to sit, take it all in, and do mostly nothing.

Sitting and doing mostly nothing is what I'm about on vacation. That's good that it hasn't seemed packed.