monorailmedic

Good answers from @arebee I'll just add two points. Regardless of how popular the MDR is the first evening, there is space for everyone. Check in to confirm your dining time as well as any preferences with regard to table arrangements (alone, with others, etc). You can absolutely order multiple starters, main courses, desserts, etc - it's all complimentary (unless specifically noted as an upcharge item, such as certain cuts from Chops available in the MDR). Enjoy!

This is standard for ships traveling through that area. Pirate activity has lessened compared to several years ago, but precautions are still taken, as they should be. Remember, the overwhelming majority of sailings passing through the Gulf of Aden are without incident, not matter how many past articles, YouTube videos, etc one finds. You can look at this similar to visiting Cozumel - yes, crime happens, yes you can find worrying stories about incidents in various parts of Mexico, but the vast majority of tourists and locals wake up each morning, go about their day, and go to sleep at night. All of that in mind, it's important to follow the advise of the crew and the carefully rehearsed procedures - in the same way muster drill is important, as is safety instruction at the beginning of a flight (as we saw with the recent SWA incident, many passengers clearly paid little attention to those announcements).

I keep seeing the iMessage thing come up as a tip, and it's a great one for iOS users - BUT - please keep in mind this is not a document "feature" or perk. It's a hole that was left open (probably because the level of effort of closing it while allowing something else through was too great at the time) but will almost certainly be closed. I'd hate for someone to plan on this and not have a backup.

This Friday Getaway will be docking there, and she is about 45 feet longer than Navigator of the Seas, and about 60 feet shorter than Freedom of the Seas.

While I don't know the intention behind Mr Bayley's comments, two things seem clear. 1) Anything he says which is, rightly or not, interpreted in away that hurts business is less than ideal for him as well as the company, and not his goal. In this way, no matter his intended interpretation of the statements, for those unhappy with his remarks, I'd bet he wished he phrased it differently. The reality is that anyone who is so frequently in the public eye, no matter how eloquent, is likely to say things they come to regret (for any number of reasons) - I can't imagine that pressure. We are all flawed individuals. 2) Traditionally, across multiple societies, generations of people speak ill about broad swaths of those who come after them. Every generation is different, and not everyone in every generation is representative of the finer or lesser qualities of their generation. Certainly some observations are more true than others, and each generation of people on this earth has excelled at some things more than generations past, and failed to rise to comparable levels of success or grace in other ways. Regardless of our ages, if we judged each other solely on what our grandparent's generation said of our parent's generation it'd be an unpleasant place. True too is the idea that if we failed to learn from the triumphs and strengths of generations that came before us, we'd fail to advance as a society. With that out of the way, let's cruise

A guarantee should never go down (barring any oversights or other complications). Now, if you've booked a guarantee category and get assigned to a higher category, but one you don't want, there's not usually anything you can do about it as they held up their end of the bargain. This article may help explain the difference between stateroom types vs categories, and what exactly it means to book a guarantee. Ultimately, if you're married to a particular location, category, etc - then don't book a guarantee. If you're like me, and you're generally not too picky with staterooms and are willing to get what they assign you, they can be a great way to save money. http://www.cruisehabit.com/difference-between-stateroom-types-categories-guarantees-demystifying-stateroom-selection

One could say the same for harbor pilots, they need years (usually decades) with an unlimited tonnage master's licence (which also takes years, if not decades just to acquire). This will be an interesting one to watch play out.

I'm quite confident all cruise lines have roughly the same tolerance for running a ship into a pier, which probably involves logic like, "If you ran into something causing significant damage, and you could have reasonably avoided running into it, you're done here." We'll see what the investigation finds. For me too it is hard to imagine someone didn't screw up big time, as the ship should have been moving so much more slowly while so much farther away that there'd have been ample time to correct even a mechanical issue. All of this in mind, I don't have an unlimited tonnage master's licence and haven't spoken to anyone there, so it's all speculative.

I'm interested in what the root cause ends up being. They generally inch toward the pier so quickly that I just don't understand the speed with which they approached. Even if currents were crazy (and yes, that's one of the things harbor pilots should help account for) the rate at which they were approaching is just bizarre to me.

Welcome! 1 - For Voom daily pricing, I'll rely on someone else to check in here as I think it recently changed, but it's quite a bit more than the daily rate you pay if you commit to the week (perhaps $29?). 2 - This one is easy: put your phone in Airplane Mode and then turn on WiFi (to use Royal IQ or Voom for that matter). Being in Airplane Mode prevents your device from connecting to the cellular network on the ship, which is what you really want to avoid. For anyone using Voom, provided their device and carrier allow it (most do now), WiFi calling will continue to work once on Voom, allow your phone to be used as normal without any additional charges from your carrier. You can read more about that in the below two posts: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2016/07/27/how-stay-touch-someone-your-royal-caribbean-cruise http://www.cruisehabit.com/wifi 3 - Can you check in and then leave? The answer here is "I'm pretty sure" but honestly, it's going to be quite a bit of hassle, just because embarkation day is a madhouse on larger ships (I don't just mean Oasis class, such as Harmony - pretty much any modern ship from Carnival, Royal, or NCL). The time you'd lose would be tricky, especially since the port entrance itself can back up, so leaving the ship and coming back could result in a lost hour or more *just in logistics* if you include the time it takes to enter and exit the port itself. You'd need to meet with anyone you want to hand things off to, as there is no baggage hold or will call. 4 - Unless I am forgetting something (totally possible), the Solarium doesn't have any reserved seating (and no clam shells or cabanas at all). The good news is that it's generally quite easy to find space in the solarium on Oasis class ships, it's one of my favorite favorite spaces on that class - I spent a ton of time there on Harmony in September and will do it again on Symphony in a few months. There are clam shells and cabanas at Labadee - is that the point of confusion? 5 - Yes, your kids will be able to charge things to the room unless you specifically restrict those cards from making purchases. We don't have kids so I'm not sure if you can assign limits, but there would be workarounds, like having those cards assigned to a cash account with limited funds, whereas adults can have theirs on a credit card. Kids will do this with their room keys/SeaPass cards or Wow Bands (if you are in a suite, or choose to purchase them for a couple dollars). 6 - In the main dining room there will always be at least one vegetarian option - though I can tell you from experience (my wife and I are vegetarian) that there are usually more than just those which are marked - sometime requiring only minor modification. The same is true in other complimentary venues. You can also make special requests in advance, and see the next day's menu to make modifications. If you're lacto/ovo you'll find this of little challenge at all, with far more than pasta and salad options. That in mind, I highly encourage you to read the below article as it will provide some tips I've found useful to anyone in your party with any dietary restrictions at all: http://www.cruisehabit.com/how-request-vegan-vegatarian-gluten-free-or-kosher-meals-your-next-cruise Hopefully others will fill some gaps that I've left, but I and everyone else welcomes any additional questions you might have. Depending on timing, I may be out watching your sail-away and broadcasting it live to friends and fam who aren't sailing with you: http://cruisehabit.com/periscope Lastly, if you don't already list to the Royal Caribbean Blog podcast, check it out! Many episodes are helpful, but you'll find some Harmony specific content leading up to and just following the Royal Caribbean Blog Group Cruise on Harmony of the Seas last September. Enjoy!

WiFi calling, on all carriers I'm aware of, also allows for SMS over WiFi. I have mentioned before though that while pricey, for very occasional use, texting over Cellular-at-Sea isn't terrible if you're not going to be purchasing a data package - perhaps that was the confusion?

Everything is relative. I never sailed Windward, but did sail the Southward and Seaward as a kid (to name just a few NCL ships). Seaward was 16.7k GT, and while I love what so many modern ships have to offer - including ceilings that are greater than 7 feet, and bathrooms which are usable (people complaining about today's ship bathrooms can't imagine) - I do love the classic look and smaller vessels.

Yup. The Windward and the Dreamward, sister ships, were actually designed in a way that made their lengthening easier. In 1998 they were both lengthened from 623 feet long to 754 feet long, bringing their GRT from 39k to 51.3k GT. Others have done it as well, though I'm not sure who the first was. It's also worth noting that several ships have been built in two pieces so that construction can begin simultaneously at two different shipyards. One section is then floated to the other and they're attached.

I use Uber or Lyft every time I go to/from the airports or cruiseports in South Florida (I'm local, but parking is pricey). Uber and Lyft are both authorized at the ports and airports, and in my opinion, much nicer than most South Florida cabs. This article has shuttle, Uber, and cab cost estimates between various S FL destinations as well as some additional info you may find helpful. http://www.cruisehabit.com/uber-lyft-cabs-shuttles-how-get-and-your-cruise-easily-cheaply

This is most likely because an agency is holding a block of rooms. As such, RCI (nor anyone but that agency) doesn't have access to those exact rooms. If they have all remaining rooms in a given cat, or at least enough of them at RCI doesn't want to sell individually those which remain (a calculated business decision often based on lowest advertised price), then this would be the result.

Enjoy! We can't wait to go back. Reach out with any additional questions. I have some more tips around currency, documentation, and more at www.CruiseHabit.com/CruisingCuba

The capacities of ships are posted online, but it's not always clear if they're talking about double-occupancy max, or total/all berths max. Lines of course want to load up as many people as they can. Lifeboat capacities are required to exceed the total capacity of the ship (for various reasons), and remember you don't see many of the life boats as a number of them are rigid-inflatables which can be manually deployed, but are required to automatically deploy if in salt-water, and can even deploy if the ship is heavily listing. As far as the size of a person, I know each seat on a lifeboat must be able to accommodate at least a 220lb person so I'd assume that's the calculation they use but I'm not sure. If so, that would give some "breathing room" since that's above average. Ultimately however, you can fit waaaay more people in a crowded space when the other option is swimming home. This explains lifeboat requirements and the history. The article on muster drills (linked in that article) may also be of interest. http://www.cruisehabit.com/safety-sea-lifeboat-history-requirements

The people couldn't have been more welcoming. Remember, the people of Cuba have no issue at all with Americans, it's all a government tiff. As far as food we had very little as we wanted to explore the city, and when we did stop our options were a tad limited as we're vegetarians, and Cuban cuisine puts lard in just about everything (some that, as South Floridians we were very aware of before). What we did have (some cake, fries, and a couple local beers), was quite good. You dock in Havana Vieja, the old part of the city with beautiful and impressive Spanish architecture. We opted for a walking tour through the city, and next time will probably get a dedicated guide to take us a bit farther out - not b/c Havana Vieja wasn't amazing, but just for a change. There are many squares, parks, and great sites, plus forts and such. This blog post covers the day we spent in Havana, including pics, and tour details: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2017/05/23/empress-of-the-seas-live-blog-day-3-havana-cuba

If the electronics you're looking to plug in are dual voltage you can use the european outlet with a cheap adapter and get an extra outlet or two that way. You can also use a USB charger with multiple ports if looking to charge phones, tablets, watches, etc (this can reduce how much you need to pack, too). This may help explain your options and the reasoning: http://www.cruisehabit.com/power-strips-why-theyre-not-allowed-ships-and-how-safely-gain-some-extra-outlets

We had a great time sailing to Cuba on Empress last May and we look forward to going back. Personally, I found Empress to be fantastic - far better service and less hassle than the larger ships. That in mind, if you're looking for the bells and whistles (flow rider, etc) of the larger ships, you won't find those. You can read about my cruise here, along with links to other Cuba sailings taken by Michael Poole: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2017/05/21/empress-of-the-seas-live-blog-day-1-embarkation-day

You can resize photos with sites like this: http://www.simpleimageresizer.com/ Just upload your photo, set the new dimensions, and download the resized photo, which you'll then use for the site. If you have any trouble let us know the exact errors or other messages you're getting.

We've done it a number of times. So far we've not run into an issue with crowding at all. Old Town Trolley isn't air-conditioned but is well ventilated and plenty comfortable. We figure that for what we'd pay for a few cab rides to get to the different parts of the island we get as much transportation as we want along with some background info/history - the drivers have always been interesting and entertaining guides. For Old Town and Conch Train you start off at Mallory Square, so either a 1 min walk from the gangway or from where the shuttle drops you off if you dock at the Navy pier. I've also noticed that the price is usually a couple dollars cheaper if you buy the tickets through RCI/X - which is one of the reasons I always tell folks to check before they assume that excursions through the cruise line are more expensive.

I'm a vegetarian (actually, I don't like the label - I just love vegetables and end up eating sushi once in a while) but have a nunber of vegan friends and am sympathetic with the mission. I can tell you on RCI they've always been eager to please, the key is communication (and this is honestly the key on any cruise line). Your friend will want to have his/her reservation annotated and get in touch with someone in the MDR on embarkation day as well. Each evening the next day's menu is available so that it can be reviewed to see if there is anything of interest, something that can be modified to be made vegan, or if nothing else, a special request can be made. I personally love Indian food, which is easily made vegan, so this is just one option - but ultimately it comes down to making requests and not trusting signage. Check out the below article to get some additional tips - and to understand why I say not to trust signage. http://www.cruisehabit.com/how-request-vegan-vegatarian-gluten-free-or-kosher-meals-your-next-cruise

Once you have Voom (there's no 'r" in Voom - this is not important, but will help the nerd in me from noticing every time ) you're connected to the internet - just like if you'd connected at home, a local coffee shop, or anywhere else. If you want to use applications like Facebook Messenger, Voxer, WhatsApp, etc to keep in touch with people on land or on the ship (provided they also have Voom), then go for it - it will work just like if you were on land. If your phones and calling plan support WiFi calling (and most newer phones and major carriers do - just make sure it's enabled) then once connected to the internet you can also call and text just like on land without any additional charges. What you want to be sure you do either way, is keep your phone in Airplane Mode. Why? If not, you could connect to the ship's cellular network, which carries absurd roaming charges - so staying in roaming mode will keep that from happening. I hope this clears things up. Let us know if you have any additional questions.

Not sure about the tourist area map - will look when back. For the water taxi map you can find one at he below address (and their mobile app is very helpful, too). I'll warn you that with regard to their prices, they call it Water Taxi, but it's more of a tour and priced like it - this isn't the Venetian vaporetto. http://watertaxi.com/schedule/