drb116

So, about last October, Royal Caribbean said they were going to start handing out receipts that you needed to sign for each time you used your Diamond drinks. The reason they gave was that they wanted to print the number of drinks you had remaining. Many people were skeptical that it was just a way to get more tips. Well, I am just curious what others are seeing. I have been on a couple of different boats (Harmony and Independence) for a total of about 15 nights since then and used most of my drinks each day, so maybe 50 drinks since the policy change (more if you count my kids drinks I signed for them). I have seen the number of drinks remaining printed on my receipt exactly 1 time. So are others seeing the number of drinks printed on their receipts? Maybe it is just the boats I have been on, but I am starting to think the skeptics were right.

I believe it is referring to the fact that kids get the same perk as their parents. At Emerald, you get 15% off, so your kids would get 15% off. This is funny wording compared to other perks and I am guessing they do it for Pinnacles. At every other level, your kids level match the parents, but this is not the case for Pinnacle. I believe what they are trying to do with that wording is to say that if the parents are Pinnacle (and the kids are only D+), then the kids will still get unlimited internet. So if kids are D+ and parents are D+, they get 2 days free, but if kids are D+ and parents are Pinnacle, they get the whole cruise free.

I also see PDCC for November 2023, but not for my March 2024 Allure cruises.

We were on 3 different boats this past summer and each had different flow rider policies as far as who can ride standup and how long you got to go. The group lessons are decent, but Royal will not run them with less than 4 people and we have found it challenging to find a session that they are actually running.

Interesting question. As Matt said, you don't need it for embarkation, but if you had to visit the medical center and they tested you, a LOR could keep you out of quarantine. For a 3 night cruise, it is probably not worth it, but if you are cruising often or have a 5 night cruise, it might still be handy to have.

Keep in mind that the medical facilities on a cruise ship are no where near what you find onshore. While the policies may not keep you from getting covid, I am sure they ar e helping in reducing the risk of a major outbreak that will overwhelm the medical center. Most people that report getting covid are getting sick either after the cruise or at the very end of the cruise. That said, I can't wait to get rid of testing.

Royal Caribbean is rolling out new protocols this week. This could easily be something that changes since their app is already set to ask for booster shot information. I would make sure you check again later in the week.

We sail a lot on both Disney and Royal Caribbean and my first bit of advice is don't spend your time trying to compare them. IMHO, I think both are great cruise lines, but with different strengths. So don't harp on some of the things Disney does better, but rather find some of the things that Royal may do better. Make sure you see the shows on the boat. Grease is very good and things like the ice show are much different than Disney.

I would order free tests from the government and then use something like Rapid Test & Trace or OnPoint as they tend to be cheaper than the Royal Caribbean tests. The advantage of this is that you can also wait until the last minute in case Royal Caribbean changes their policy.

I know the chances are pretty small to get anything other than a Junior Suite when you book a suite guarantee, but I have heard it happens from time to time. If you do get placed in something like a Grand Suite, do you get any of the Grand Suite benefits? I am thinking things like Suite Lounge, breakfast restaurant, reception, etc. on Freedom/Voyager class ships. I know you don't get these with Royal Up, but. I wasn't sure if the Suite GTY was the same thing.

My younger son loved wearing his pins on his lanyard, but I don't think the rest of us have any of the others that we received.

I am surprised Casinos are not on the list. I know they make a lot of money for the boats, but I bet many of us could live without them.

You will buy 4 tests, then you should be able to schedule all of them at one time. The 4 tests can be purchased through one OnPoint account. After scheduling, they will send you link to a 3rd party site where you register. You will do this for each family member (ie. 4 registrations). After registering, you will each get a code. When you have your appointment, you will share the codes and your IDs with the person online and they will then use that site to report out the results.

Whether is is worth your time and money is really a decision only you can make. It is about an hour each way by Uber and you can easily go in and spend 4 hours having a great time walking around the Food and Wine Festival and still make it back comfortably. 4 hours is enough time to enjoy the Food and Wine Festival and an Uber is still cheaper than a flight to Orlando.

The Oasis of the Seas use to have their Platinum event as a sailaway on the helipad. I am not sure if they still do that. It was by far my favorite Platinum event.