tonyfsu21

I think the space to insert another level would be between emerald and diamond from the perspective of RC. The pandemic cruise points promotions backfired and saturated the diamond level.

Eagle beach is pretty epic

It’s not insane to consider that the MDR may disappear in the next 5-10 years as cruising evolves. IMHO the MDR has lost its appeal and could be replaced by a new concept as the next generation cruiser wants quality, efficiency and won’t be deterred by excessive up charges (aka the new cruise experience). Personally I think it’s time to either wipe the MDR slate clean and start over (again) or axe the entire program. This is going gen up the legacy cruisers who don’t want to spend much beyond the ticket price but will most likely appease the actual targeted cash cow cruisers that RC markets to.

I second this^^^ I think the dog house is one of the better no fee options for a quick bite. Obviously nothing is going to be as good as a Chicago dog in Chicago or a Sonoran dog in AZ or the epic capitol lunch hot dog in Connecticut. IMHO, I will take a mediocre “free” hotdog with a Caribbean view on a cruise any day over any other option!

Haha, I have to bribe my kids to go to AO! They have recently discovered roaming the ship on their own and there’s no going back. I can normally find them in Sorrentos, Starbucks or the arcade.

I bet the current leadership would like to add a tier between Emerald and Diamond and cut back on the saturation of Diamond level members.

We need to reserve 2 kids at adventure ocean for the week and fit lunch in there so noon would be too late. I’m usually ready to leave my house in Fort Lauderdale at 8am but I need plenty of buffer to get the rest of my family moving.

Shhhh. This is still a dirty little secret.

The check in times are total BS. If they can snag a few suckers that actually follow the rules then maybe it’s more controlled chaos on boarding day. This is literally day 1 of a vacation and to arrive anytime after 11am is throwing away your money.

It’s actually sad that you have to state the obvious but clearly this world is filled with plenty of stupid people buying drugs in Jamaica and venturing off to unsafe areas w/o an organized tour. I would venture to guess if they knew what a Jamaican jail looked like, the decisions would be different!

Open air bus to Megan’s Bay is the way to go. This is a great ride and very scenic. I understand Megan’s Bay has been rated up there with the nicest beaches in the Caribbean.

We always book early dinner because the majority of people (especially on the Miami based sailings) eat late. The casino is quieter, the bars and most other venues are not as busy and it’s overall more peaceful. The thought of eating a full meal at any point after 6pm makes me sick to the stomach.

Not bad at all considering they are free. IMHO the Doghouse is an excellent option for a quick and satisfying bite to eat (especially on boarding day). The location on the boardwalk is great! The Red Stripe is just icing on the cake. As for the chili dogs, head over to Johnny rockets.

Right here:

Certainly the casino bar could have restocked something as simple and plentiful as Grey Goose, Tito’s or Belvedere from another bar?

Ocean facing is best IMHO. Enjoy deck 17! (pictured ocean facing CLS, Harmony)

@Matt I think a sub forum on complaints/price increase and the long awaited (and anticipated) casino royale sub forum would be excellent about now!

I am going to pay more attention to this next month on Icon because I’ve never really noticed a trend. I do tend to go full force on night one which I’m sure most people do and then level off a bit towards the middle & end. Regardless, I always fast spin every machine I play, every single spin so things happen very quickly!

IMHO, enjoy it while you can because the cruise experience of the past will be phased out.

It sounds like you enjoyed the smaller ship but I don’t think the company agrees with you re: first time cruiser/smaller ship. Based on the marketing and the deployment of Oasis Class ships for weekend sailings it appears the next generation cruiser is hooked on the biggest ships. The days of bargain cruising are pretty much over and the “free” options are being cut to make room for the millennials who will pay the price for an elevated experience. The cruiser of the past will be phased out and replaced with a generation of family cruisers who will be the new cash cow for Royal Caribbean.

I follow the Casino Royale Facebook group and there were nothing but complaints about how “tight” the machines were during the inaugural. Obviously it only represented a few complainers (and probably not devoted gamblers) out of thousands but still didn’t read much about how “loose” the machines were.

I’m sure there is a math wizard on here that could take this photo and get the %. Photo taken on Wonder of the seas while the casino was closed (3/2023).

If you really want to dig deep into this conspiracy theory, I have been told that the slot machine payouts on Royal Caribbean ships are controlled by the aliens. Full government disclosure is being withheld until the aliens can recoup the money they have lost when their spacecraft crash landed in Roswell! If any of the above is true and the payout on a slot machine can arbitrarily be adjusted w/o regulation then the casino patrons are getting hosed. It’s one thing to gamble with the understanding that the house always has an advantage and another to gamble when the casino has absolute control and manipulation of the payout. I would imagine the alien scenario is more likely.

As I mentioned before, the options in mid/late February are scarce even for 2025. The Embassy Suites and every Hilton property in East Fort Lauderdale has already sold out. Hopefully you are sailing early in February but if not, try the suburbs of Plantation or Sunrise and stay away from the beach. Don’t be too concerned about staying outside Fort Lauderdale proper because everything is still within a 15-30 min Uber ride on a weekend. Miami will be the situation above but amplified so try to look North or West of the city (Dania Point to the South will be sold out or pricy at best). Good luck.

Yes, there will be plenty of newly minted Prime members that will be really angry with this change. I personally welcome any change regarding this program because it certainly needs some work. RC has arguably the best loyalty and suite program in the business but the absolute worst casino players program. I hate to reference the “C” word, however, Carnival has a superior Casino program that RC should model and potentially up their game a bit.