FloatyBoaty

I won a Royal Up too - my first ever bid! (Now I'll never get another one, I'm sure ) I was notified yesterday evening for tomorrow's sailing. The luggage tags updated overnight. Heading to the airport now!

We watched and enjoyed all of the production shows in the Royal Theater (Effectors II, Voices, Tap Factory) both times we sailed on Wonder last year. I would just add that in our experience, if you want to be in the front couple of rows, you do need to get there pretty early. We were always surprised that people came in a few minutes before showtime and seemed to be upset that the front rows were full when many in the audience had already been seated for 20 minutes or longer. There is plenty for a 5 year old to watch on stage in Voices that he probably would not even have a chance to notice the video backdrop.

I only started cruising in 2022, but don't think I've ever had the menus in covers or attached to a board. I have gotten them printed on nice card stock, not flimsy copier paper. I'm fine with that, myself - it has not seemed or occurred to me that it's "cheap". Setting sail on Anthem Friday (hooray!) and we do dine out quite a bit at home.

It looks like Nick Weir may be the one you want to contact based on a couple of his recent tweets - @NickWeirShowbiz SVP/Creator-in-Chief at RCI Entertainment: Broadway/W’End/Ice/Aqua/Aerial/Headliners/Comedy/LiveMusic/AO/Sports/Robotics/ARVR/Holo/Drones/PGA/ Muster 2.0 Patent

The Key breakfast when I was on Allure in October was anytime between 6:30 and 8 am in a "Key only" section of the MDR deck 4. It was very peaceful and an enjoyable way to start the day before the craziness of disembarking. Enjoy!

Same for my upcoming cruise. When I booked there were actually zero rooms available - not even GTY - in the category I wanted. I booked a lesser category and went back every single day to see if the other category became available. Sometimes got the same message as you, MJ, sometimes it just said "sold out". I don't want a GTY cabin, especially at the prices this cruise got to, so I'm sticking with the lesser category unless my RoyalUp comes through (not holding me breath).

On my Allure cruise a few months ago, I did have reservations and arrived about a half hour early. There was already a line of at least a dozen people "on standby" when I got there - don't know how long the no reservations line eventually got. They did bring people in a couple at a time as we got close to showtime - maybe 10-12 people total filling in spaces. It was a predictable but still pretty funny show.

I just walked up to the counter and asked for a milkshake with the DBP. Took my milkshake and left - no food, no questions, no problem. Enjoy!

Parents who don't supervise their kids. I'm not anti-kid, I have them, it's a family cruise line. I get it, it's your vacation too - but it's my vacation as well. Thinking specifically of a recent cruise where kids were with parent in Solarium Bistro (allowed). BUT when kids got bored, parents allowed them to climb through the divider into the pool area (not allowed) and jump on all of the loungers and chairs while shrieking loudly as we tried to enjoy the beautiful view with our morning coffee. We gave up and left before they did. Most of the time I enjoy watching the kids have just so much fun...with parents nearby.

The one time I flew in day of cruise last year I did first flight of day and first class so that I'd have "priority" if anything happened - but still spent weeks before stressing about it. Not worth it even though nothing went wrong that time. We flew In 4 days early to Barcelona last summer and enjoyed exploring the city - even in the unusual heat! We stayed over one additional night at the end of the cruise so that we wouldn't stress about missing the daily non-stop to O'Hare - and were so glad we did. There were people, crew included, on our flight that had been trying to get out of Barcelona for 2 days due to weather, equipment problems etc. They were thankful to sit anywhere at all just to be on the way home. You just can't plan on easy travel any more - when it happens, it's a bonus!

I don't check my onboard account everyday, so that's probably why I didn't notice it each time - I feel like there was only one time where it was still there on the last day before the final accounting. I do like that it's an unusual number, 99.75, that they use that sticks in my head to watch for - so maybe it just fell back off before you saw it? Or maybe because they have more history with you and it just gets flagged to do on newer cruisers? I just started cruising last year. Who knows - as long as it falls back off my account, I'm fine with it.

I am not in my 20's, or 30's or 40's and have had this temporary charge appear on a couple of cruises at least. It is a policy. It is printed in the Cruise Compass on Day 1 at minimum:

It's also generally important to note that you should track the actual price (and not the stated % off) of the items & excursions that you are interested in - the % off can be completely meaningless as the base prices often also change.

I don't have an answer for you; just wanted to wish you well with your cancer treatment. It's so important to have something like this to look forward to. We know the crew on this blog will give you amazing feedback! All the best to you!!!

2022 was also my first year cruising: 27 days. Loved it so much that I have 47 days planned in 2023 - fingers crossed that it everything falls into place so that happens!

Keeping us in suspense - hmmm - I don't usually like surprises! Let's hope it brings something to make all of us happy. I've made it to Platinum in a year, and if all goes well will be Diamond before our Alaska cruise in September. Fingers crossed that all in my family and all of you stay healthy so we can keep on cruising. I'd love to see something in that long haul between Diamond and Diamond +, and certainly in the chasm between Diamond + and Pinnacle! Thanks for posting and highlighting this @twangster. Got the email, assumed it was the usual "thanks, you're so special" drivel, and moved it right into the trash!

I believe that Royal's Spas and those on several other cruise ship lines are run by Steiner Leisure. I hav heard that the staff have aggressive sales targets to achieve to stay employed, which may be why they might ignore your request to not upsell. Some may also earn commission, and of course your tip may be higher if they get you to spend more. That environment is too much for me on a cruise!

I think that if you have 2 small kids, then it is much easier and less stressful to set luggage out the night before - it can be a long walk/challenge negotiating the ramps, etc, with all your luggage and keeping track of the kids. Also, people can be really impatient on the way out - I've had my heels and toes run over by barely-managed luggage. Just make sure to keep things out in your carry ons for sleeping and departure day. I self carry when I cruise solo. When I cruise with my husband we put our luggage out the night before as he has some mobility issues. As far as giving you more time, it's as @smokeybandit says - there's just not a big enough difference in terms of taking up the day before your flight. As anxious as you are to get on the ship and start your vacation, that's how anxious they are to get you off so the next passengers can start theirs!

If you can't get the DBP for health reasons and your husband wants it, you do not HAVE to - call Royal and explain and they will create an exclusion for you. You will have to purchase the Refreshment package though instead

I think most will tell you that the percentages are not truly relevant as the base prices seem to switch up quite a bit. What are the actual price offerings you've got? I've got refreshment at 19.99 and Surf/Stream at 13.99 each for 2 of us for an upcoming cruise as an example - I think those are -ok-, but I'd love to see the refreshment back down to 17.99.

MEI sponsors this blog and many of us use them. There is a contact form in the yellow box on this page: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com My wonderful, very responsive MEI travel agent is @Jenn Greene

or get a travel agent to figure out your best options for you

The assistant waiter was in charge of that and she disappeared for 15 minutes or so. She said the line at the MDR bar was super long - so whether that was not staffed or what, I do not know. Either way, their order of service evidently meant I didn't get an appetizer until I got a bread basket or a beverage or something (the assistant waiter being in charge of beverages and bread baskets) - and so I just brought my own in with me after that or waited until afterwards. She really was a darling though, and once I went with lemonade with dinner and decaf/cream with dessert, just brought it without even asking (and still well over an hour for solo dinner).

My experience on Oasis and Allure this year does not jibe with your observations at all unfortunately. Traveling solo on Oasis and seated at a table of other solo travelers, our meal service took 2 hours or MORE each day. I was going batsh*t crazy. It wasn't the conversation - we had very little in common. The service was just abysmal and confused. The waitstaff at all levels seemed completely under water. Traveling solo on Allure, I requested a table to myself. The first night, I ordered a martini and it took service to almost 2 hours. Definitely not a "too much conversation" issue. I did not order a cocktail any other night to speed up service, but each night still took a good 75-85 minutes. Solo. And I am not indecisive when placing an order. The waitstaff was absolutely lovely and extremely hardworking on Allure, I thought. I don't have experience cruising in the "before times" and I do love the classic menu, but I'm up for some revisions if it helps streamline service. As a (long ago) former waitress, I can't imagine having my entire station seated at once and I do appreciate the thoughtful attention to detail the staff tries to provide. We can only move forward & let them know what we think along the way...

I have not sailed on Radiance, but believe that it is probably along the lines of the other ships, where the in-room "fridge" is just a cooler, not really cold. Some people make it colder by having ice delivered to put inside twice daily. If you have medication that needs to be kept a certain temperature, Special Needs can help you out. Here is the page that has the phone number and the form to fill out asap: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/resources/guest-special-needs Oops - looks like Ashley responded same time!