PRC

Careful DocLC.... you're aging yourself with that flashback. Lol

I've always felt that if you are simple enough to need only one name, then you're not complex enough to be interesting.  :D
 

I'll be honest, I don't follow your math, but in our example (I'm Diamond) the three free drinks a day for my wife and I (at $12+tax per drink) is worth $594.72 on a seven day cruise.  And by going to the Diamond lounge you are not quite limited to just three (thank you staff on Rhapsody!) ...
The Diamond lounge also gives my kids free Shirley Temples and other gifts, and frankly they make them feel like they are the Kings and Queens of the World, and that means a lot to me personally.
The loyalty program weighs on me heavily when I think about trying other cruise lines.  So clearly it's effective since I'm normally a cynical bastard. :)

Actually RCCL used to be this way too.  
Tier levels were determined not by points (# of total nights at sea) but simply by number of cruises.  A 3 night trip to the Bahamas in an inside cabin and a 15 night transatlantic in a Royal suite were worth the same!
 
Glad it changed!
 
 

I've been Diamond Plus for quite a while now.  I enjoy the perks, although I do not take advantage of all of them (I don't alter my plans to use a perk that didn't fit in my plans to begin with).  I think RCCL has one of the better programs out there and as you go farther up the benefits do factor in to the overall cost and enjoyment but I wold never be a slave to a loyalty program "just because".  
 
Bottom line:  Select a Line/sailing based on what you are getting for your dollars.  For me, thats always been RCCL
 
 

Asking who is Michael Poole is like asking what is a Jarel   :D
(I'll show myself out now...)
 
I'm sure he will show up here soon!
 
 
 

I would never do such a thing!!! Stella or bust!! 

Hi!  I'm Michael Poole! I'm just a cruise nerd, who enjoys Stella beer! 

Asking who is Michael Poole is like asking what is a Jarel   :D
(I'll show myself out now...)
 
I'm sure he will show up here soon!
 
 
 

This has become a bit of an issue for Auckland.... there are two issues at play (1) environmentally it means extending into the sea. Our Resource Management Act while allowing this means the extension has to be weighed up against impact to environment, cultural concerns and concerns of other users etc. (2) as suggested there is a genuine feeling that local government needs to be careful building infrastructure that benefits a commercial entity (foreign at that) without clear commitments which would see a return on investment (Especially as the Port itself is a company, though ironically partly owned by Auckland City). IT is easy to say 'but the city benefits from tourism, while true the reality is that benefit in the case of cruise ships (due to their one day stay ) is normally limited to small groups of residents. It certainly is a huge positve benefit... but hard to argue that that benefit which is not highly distributed should not be paid for by those that benefit the most (The port who gets the port fees, the cruise company or the tourism operators etc). I cna argue it either way.
The good news it looks like Auckland will be getting an extension maybe a bit later than it should have. It's funny to think that far small cities in New Zealand (my home of Dunedin with a population of $128k v Auckland 1.4m for example) has a port able to doc Quantum or Oasis class (in our case 2 at once if the need is ever there) ships but Auckland doesn't.

If there's a Crown and Anchor on the side, there is no wrong choice!
 
have a great honeymoon!
 
 

If there's a Crown and Anchor on the side, there is no wrong choice!
 
have a great honeymoon!
 
 

If there's a Crown and Anchor on the side, there is no wrong choice!
 
have a great honeymoon!
 
 

Teens are a fickle bunch.  
On my first cruise my daughter was 16.  By all appearances she was having a terrible time and anything we did to try and "fix" that issue invariably was NOT welcome.  We ended up just letting her alone to choose what she did or did not want to do. 
 
I found out later that she had a blast!  It was just not "socially acceptable" to let your parents know you were happy!
 
She's now a 32yo mom of 2 girls, cruised the honeymoon, and a few since.  Would be onboard constantly if "life" would stop getting in the way! ;)
 

Yes.  Royal never can make up its mind about NOLA.  They're in, then they're out.  back and forth.
 

Yes.  Royal never can make up its mind about NOLA.  They're in, then they're out.  back and forth.
 

You two are my new best friends

That would surely be the case if they were sailing out of San Francisco!

My last Freedom sailing was 11 months ago (end of May, '16).  As I recall it was usable, but nothing you could stream with.  Email, a quick news check, or Facebook as long as you don't go crazy uploading tons of photos were fine.
 
 

Hell for a 3 night Enchantment I'd be tempted to do Chops all 3!
 

PRC, I agree, at worst a bad cruise is still better to being land locked on any day.
I read these bad reviews from people and I'm wondering sometimes what their expectations were, were they expecting the Ritz and felt like they got the Holiday Inn? I don't know, there is just to much information out on the web right now that you can read and review, if you manage your expectations and know what you want going in I don't see how a cruise can be a bad thing.
On my last cruise, Harmony-Mediterranean-2016, Our cabin flooded on the last day of the cruise, which my wife and i were really looking forward to because it was a sea day, the cruise had been a full itinerary, we hit a port on every day, we woke to water squishing between our toes when we walked on the carpet, RC did everything in their power to make everything all right, they eventually moved us to a different suit and compensated us for our trouble, but our expectations for the day, were to lay by the pool and read a good book, so we didn't let a little water in our room ruin that, we still had a great day.

I have a difficult time ranking them against each other.  
 
Some have been great because its a new ship for me or a port or two I've never been to.
Some are great because its a different region (Alaska vs Caribbean).
Some are great simply because its nothing new: its a familiar ship, familiar ports, and I don't feel the need to "not waste a second" and can just enjoy "being there".
 
knock on wood I've never had a bad one, and hope i never do!
 
 

I have a difficult time ranking them against each other.  
 
Some have been great because its a new ship for me or a port or two I've never been to.
Some are great because its a different region (Alaska vs Caribbean).
Some are great simply because its nothing new: its a familiar ship, familiar ports, and I don't feel the need to "not waste a second" and can just enjoy "being there".
 
knock on wood I've never had a bad one, and hope i never do!
 
 

I sent a Facebook message to Royal Caribbean and this was their response.  I'm going to print it out in case I have issues onboard. 

What a bunch of double talk !  That guy must be a Democrat !  Sorry...couldn't resist.