Last2Know

Thanks. We have a cruise in last Jan '24. Hoping it will be open by then.

I've never seen a line at Ben & Jerry's on the Promenade like I do for the free soft serve line on the pool deck. Can't get much cheaper than free.

Nope!

We love Giovanni's, especially when we cruise with the whole family. The menu selections have something for everyone and many options for our vegetarian daughter-in-law. We order the bigger portions and go "family-style" with the appetizers and pastas.

Tough call. The MDR usually does a special meal for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays that is different from their standard menu. Unfortunately, you probably won't know what the special meal is until you're onboard.

Dollar for dollar, I would eat at Playmakers or Izumi over Jaimie's on the Mariner.

We will be there! We're doing the crossing then B2B on the May 11th and May 18th cruises.

We're staying B2B after the crossing. See you onboard.

Leaving from Miami and heading to the Med. First crossing for us.

Just seeing who’s going

@steverk good eye. We are a D+ couple that used both our free laundry benefits, especially if we were B2B. That's how we were able to pack lighter. Certainly seems like a reduction in benefit if we're restricted to only using is on the day of the wash & fold promotion.

I cruised last month on Liberty and did not have the paper form to fill out about the crystal block for reaching 420 nights in the room when we arrived. I asked the Diamond Concierge and he very discretely pulled one from his desk, place it into a plain business envelope, and handed it to me. I find it interesting that some ship have the block readily available and others don't. I just received the block from my Indy cruise in Sept 2022. It's the newer style with the blue case and block font. The older crystal blocks, like I just received from Liberty, had the cursive font and black box.

There are definitely some curious expressions in the DL from longtime cruisers that "earned it the hard way" when my 20-somethings show up. It's good to have parents that were loyal to Royal. No one has ever been as confrontational as OP's situation. A quick conversation with the Concierge would have cleared that right up too. We also have acquaintances that took full advantage of the double point promotion that RCL was running during the restart. They were able to reach Diamond status in just four cruises in JS and above staterooms. 5 nights x 4 points x 4 cruises = 80 points & Diamond status. They took full advantage of the opportunity to cruise in spite of the vax and mask mandates. Fortes fortuna iuvat.

We're also doing the ABC's again in Sept on the Serenade. It's a 12 night repositioning from Tampa to Boston. Just in case I miss anything in May...

We always use Cozumel H2O when we visit. They offer scuba and/or snorkel depending on your desired experience. It's a short taxi ride from the port. http://www.cozumelh2o.com/

We used it in June 2022. No issues with the Valet Service. It allowed us to do a little freestyle touring prior to heading to SEATAC for our flight. Highly recommended.

Corkage fees used to be enforced at the MDR. However, I have not seen that since the wine packages went away.

Enchantment is finally leaving Port of Baltimore. Plenty of seats in the Solarium with interior temps in the 40’s. Weather station at the inner harbor is showing +9F. There are still a few spots in the hot tubs if you’re brave enough.

Enchantment is finally leaving Port of Baltimore. Plenty of seats in the Solarium with interior temps in the 40’s. Weather station at the inner harbor is showing +9F.

We did this tour as a couple earlier this year. The tour vendor paired us up with another couple. We were able to swap drivers along the route so anyone who wanted to drive was able to get the full experience.

We knew about the formal nights and used the opportunity to teach our children the importance of "dressing for the occasion".

First world problems...

WJ and MDR coffee is my preferred caffeine delivery system when I'm onboard. Just like Navy coffee, its hot, strong, and plentiful.

There goes another benefit hack. This change means no more late night partying with additional drink coupons after midnight. Of course, this hack only applied to the last night before returning to homeport.

We use the option of bringing bottled soda or water on longer cruises along with the allotted 2 bottles of wine per stateroom. This branch of the National Bank of Dad also stopped funding drink packages once the price was above $55 per day.