Jamesszy94

It's amazing how much lifeboats have improved since the days of Titanic... Titanic had 20 lifeboats that could only carry ~1200 passengers.... Wonder has what? also 18 lifeboats but can carry ~7000 passengers? I mean obviously Wonder is like 5 times the size that Titanic was and therefore her lifeboats are much bigger.... but I always like to say, if Titanic didn't sink back in 1912.... who knows what the cruise industry would be like today.

Do you know if they serve Hawaiian pizza on Royal ships? I've never been able to get pineapple on pizza!!! All that food looks so good!! I need to try out a specialty restaurant next time I cruise

Is there no lobster night on all Royal ships now? I was hoping once we got into port in Tasmania we'd have complimentary lobster or something.. I mean we had seafood soup that had lobster bits, but I wanted actual lobster!

If only Royal would send one down here to Australia All we get are Quantum and Radiance class ships

I keep saying I want to try Oasis class.... but I don't think I'd be able to deal with the crowds

I'm so jealous of your trip on Harmony!! All the food looks amazing, glad you're having a good time with the kids and extended family~!

Ah okay, I see it! I made a mock booking and the box was there, I wonder why it wasn't there for my Ovation sailing... probably because I booked it maybe like 35 days before sailing?

One of the downsides of living in Australia is that we can't use US based travel agents (well, we can, but the prices are converted from USD to AUD, so it'll be significantly higher than booking from Royal themselves), but my question is... it never gives me the option of selecting refundable deposits... it's always a non-refundable deposit... Are refundable deposits only a thing in the US or what's the catch...

Loving your blog so far!! IZUMI looks amazing. I asked my dad if he wanted to try it on my recent sailing and he asked me if it was complimentary, I said no, so he said no even after I offered to pay

Haha! Hope you're enjoying your time onboard! I'll live vicariously through this blog post and act like I'm back on a Royal ship

I guess I have to live vicariously through this blog.... to experience an Oasis-class ship since we don't get them down here in Aussie! (Please Royal.... can you send us one?) Also, is it just me or does the Aqua Theatre in your photos look kinda empty.... I'm guessing people are busy unpacking/doing other things on the first night

That's a suite on Rhapsody?! For a 28 year old ship, the cabin looks very good! Although, the shower curtain and some of the decor does look a bit outdated! Still, that comes with age, but it looks like they've kept her in good condition! Seeing all the different ports and all the food makes me wish I was back on a Royal ship right now! I do want to try one of the smaller ships one day since apparently those are the only ones that can visit the more exotic ports. Definitely going to keep up with this blog!

Hmm okay thanks guys. I know how I'm going to answer.

If I answer yes - what happens If I answer no - what also happens? There were crew members who asked me to provide positive ratings...

Just adding onto the complete sell out - bunch of kids - mile long lines point There were kids on my sailing, but most of them were in Adventure Ocean so no, we didn't really have to wait for long queue lines, and the ship is honestly big enough that you won't be waiting for long - if they're not at Adventure Ocean, they're probably on the Pool Deck. I actually didn't have a problem with long queue lines; the only really long queue line that we encountered as getting on and off the ship - but even then, it wasn't that bad. Not sure about RipCord by iFly or the Flowrider(s) as I never tried that so I don't know what the queue lines for that are like. Now on an Oasis-class ship.... that might be different with all the waterslides, carousel etc.

Hi - Hi, I'm not sure about point #1, 2 or 3, but let me try to answer the other questions I just got off an 8 Night sailing on Ovation - I purchased an internet package on Day 1 of the cruise - It will depend if Ovation gets Starlink by the time she's back in Sydney for her 2023-2024 season starting in November - she's returning to the United States in April and then she does a season of Alaska cruises, so she might get her upgrades then, don't quote me on this - but I've been reading that speeds haven't been that great, so it really just depends what happens by then - it's still 10 months away. Honestly, one device is fine imo - or it depends how much time you and your husband spend together (not sure if this is allowed to be said lol, but I purchased an internet package for 1 device and then just turned on the hotspot for my dad whenever he needed the internet - still works that way) - the internet is not so great for watching movies/streaming etc, if you're using it to browse or facebook or to send message, it's fine. If you got stuck with 8pm MTD, that's the time you'll have to dine in the MDR, you might be able to change it, I'm not sure, I was lucky and was able to get a 5:30pm MDR time. What you can try to do is either, call Royal beforehand and ask them if you can change and they might be able to accommodate you, otherwise, you'll have to wait till you get onboard and speak with the lady/man at the counter in front of the MDR Most likely, there'll be a lot of kids on your South Pacific Cruise during that time as that is the school holiday period down here in Australia. Tips and tricks for boarding are - the port is very close to Circular Quay station - if you can; try to get a train and walk to the port, parking is very limited nearby so you might not be able to get a taxi or Uber (if you do, it'll be a lot further walk to the port). Also whatever boarding time is given to you - get there at least 1.5 HOURS beforehand, because there WILL be a long line to get into the terminal + baggage drop off + showing your COVID vaccine + they need to check you in etc

I wouldn't know what Starlink speeds are like because Ovation didn't have Starlink during my sailing, she only had VOOM, the problem was, it kept cutting out all the time and the speeds were practically so slow to the point that it took almost 5 minutes to upload a 2mb photo here.... alas, I guess this is what our lives have come to that we've become so dependent on the internet. I'm hoping to take a cruise in the future, where I completely go without internet. It reminds me of what it must have been like during the times of Titanic where the only form of communication was through mail and through their wireless system. Just my two cents.

Yeah, I figured that was going to be the case, the MDR change happened while she was still in her Sydney season, so they probably just wanted to wait till she got back to the US before putting her into drydock to implement all the changes that happened while she was down here.

Haha no I didn't unfortunately. Hopefully I see something I'm interested in in the next few months.

Not even been a day since I returned and I'm already looking at booking my next cruise.... I only wish they'd change up the itineraries for the Australia sailings - the past few years it's all been one of the following: New Zealand cruises (which are all fine and good, but it gets boring after a while) South Pacific Around Australia

On our 8 night sailing that we just did - they cleaned it once at night. I think that was the default, unless you specifically requested it be cleaned in the morning.

Yes, it was also because the activities I wanted to do, didn't start until around 10am, we were usually done with breakfast by about 8am, so I didn't really want to spend 2 hours waiting in the Schooner Bar or the Music Hall doing nothing.... one would say I could do other things, but there wasn't really much I wanted to do, I would just watch YouTube videos on my phone or chill until about 9:30am when I went out again.

The Oysters & Wine Shore Excursion is definitely not worth $129 - the Oysters were nice... but the wine wasn't that great..... My biggest regret is not doing the All Access Tour, I kept telling myself, do it, do it, but never got around to... Oh well, maybe next time

Post cruise thoughts: It was nice to get away from reality for 8 days and just relax, watch the ocean, eat whenever I wanted, and sleep whenever I wanted, I think like I said in my final day thoughts, I didn't nearly do as much this time around - I've sailed on Ovation before and she felt pretty much the same, except for like some differences here and there, but the experience was relatively the same. I did attend shows that I hadn't seen before, so that was refreshing (Spectra's Cabaret, Beautiful Dream, James Bustar and Duck Cameron)... unfortunately I missed out on Live. Love. Legs. But I also tried other things that I didn't try last time; Using NextCruise, attending the art auction, ordering room service, Fish & Ships and even the SeaPlex Hotdog House! The main dining room menus did change every night, but I don't think it was the same as how Royal had changed their other ships MDR menu's on the other ships, I'm guessing when she heads back to the United States in April - they'll put her into Dry Dock for a few weeks or something to implement all the changes.. Port Merchants was closed the entire trip - not sure what's up with that, but I think it's probably got to do with Australian law or something idk lol, I also bought a few "Ovation of the Seas" shirts.... hey, I'm on holidays - why not. But also, this time around, most of the product they sell weren't that nice (at least in the "Royal Promenade), they used to sell nice dresses, bags, hats etc, now all they sell are watches and jewelry that most people don't care about tbh - I didn't see a single person buy a watch. Not gonna lie, the Windjammer was pretty meh - it was the same thing every day; like they would have different cuisine options (every night, it would tell us on the Cruise Compass), but it would only be for like one booth and then everything else was like the classics - pasta, burgers, chips, beef, pork etc etc. I think that's why I've always preferred the MDR. They actually have different things for you to try as well as classics if you're into that, but also it's a nice feeling not needing to fight/spend 10 minutes looking for seating or feeling like we have to rush to get out of there (different people have different preferences I suppose). The MDR provides guaranteed seating every day and 90% of the time, the wait staff you get are actually very nice people who will accommodate you to the best of their abilities. I like being able to relax and enjoy a nice meal. It's definitely nice to see that she's still in very good condition despite being a 6 year old ship (I mean I guess in the grand scheme of things, compared to Royal's older ships *looking at you Vision-class* she's basically brand new). I did something that I normally don't do on cruise ships - which is buy internet; don't even get me started on the VOOM internet; it was alright at best and downright garbage at worst - it would cut out often and it was so slow that it sometimes took almost 1 hour to load a 3 minute YouTube video - luckily we were in port when Matt did his Live Q&A - so I just used my mobile data. I guess that's what happens when you have 4000+ people trying to connect at one time... as much as I disapprove of Elon and his recent shenanigans (that's a whole other can of worms that I'm not going to get into) - I really do hope that when she returns to the United States; they give her StarLink internet. I keep hearing all these horror stories about chair hogs on the pool deck and not being able to find a chair, but I walked around the pool deck (didn't swim, just walked around) and it wasn't that hard to find a chair... although, it did rain a few days, (so noone really used the outdoor pool). -that's all the post-cruise thoughts I have at the moment, just go home a couple of hours ago, so still a bit ship-lagged (is that even a thing? ) will add more thoughts if and when I have any-

I just got off the Ovation; having them clean the room once a day, wasn't that big of a deal for me at least, because, in the morning when we wake up, we'd go upstairs to Windjammer, have breakfast, then go back down, rest and maybe have a nap then be on our way again, then if we wanted to nap again after doing whatever it was we did, we'd just be able to go back to the room and the bed sheets etc would be left the same way and we wouldn't need to make it a mess again and then have them have to clean it again at night. Having them clean it once at night during dinner time was more than enough for me, I can see why it would be an inconvenience for other people though, I think we should be able to request to have our rooms cleaned twice etc but keep the default at once per day.