JBC

I hate trying to get a good spot by the pool on sea days.  The chair saving is ridiculous.

I hate trying to get a good spot by the pool on sea days.  The chair saving is ridiculous.

Think of it as having breakfast in the main dining room with an expanded menu but before you eat you get a tour of a large commercial kitchen.  Some parts of it are interesting, but I think kids would get bored quickly.  They do have some nicer food items though, like cheeses, shrimp, etc.  Kids attending would be totally fine, it's not adults only.  My wife and I did it on our last cruise, it was just ok for us.  We wouldn't do it again.    

Think of it as having breakfast in the main dining room with an expanded menu but before you eat you get a tour of a large commercial kitchen.  Some parts of it are interesting, but I think kids would get bored quickly.  They do have some nicer food items though, like cheeses, shrimp, etc.  Kids attending would be totally fine, it's not adults only.  My wife and I did it on our last cruise, it was just ok for us.  We wouldn't do it again.    

Think of it as having breakfast in the main dining room with an expanded menu but before you eat you get a tour of a large commercial kitchen.  Some parts of it are interesting, but I think kids would get bored quickly.  They do have some nicer food items though, like cheeses, shrimp, etc.  Kids attending would be totally fine, it's not adults only.  My wife and I did it on our last cruise, it was just ok for us.  We wouldn't do it again.    

I have sailed both Disney and Royal, balcony rooms on both, and even after paying for the extras on Royal (beverage packages and internet package), the Royal cruise was just just about half the price of the Disney cruise.  I haven't researched a Disney cruise in a while, and maybe my memory is foggy, but other than soda I don't remember anything else being included in the fare on the Disney cruise.  It is all personal opinion, but we are Royal converts now because we feel it is a much better value for us, plus we feel Royal offers more for adults.  Disney is great for kids, don't get me wrong, but their cruises are very heavily geared towards kids, and at some point on the vacation, the wife and I like to enjoy adult stuff.  Royal offers a great mix for adults and kids at a better price.  Again, purely personal opinion.       

I agree with Floski on the MDR.  Before going on my first RC cruise, I had read mixed opinions on the MDR, and having already sailed Disney, with their great food, I was sort of mentally prepared for a let down.  Well, I was not let down.  I thought the MDR was great, both the standard items and the items that changed each night.  Throw in all the specialty dining options, plus the Windjammer that you can go to whenever you want, and I would argue the food and dining options are better on RC.  On Disney, you are assigned a specific restaurant each night, one of which is their buffett and depending on the length of your cruise, they will repeat.  They are all great, but outside of that, the specialty options are only one or two places.  Again, not to bash Disney, but considering the thousands more that the overall trip costs, I will stick with Royal.  Like someone else said, it is more a la carting rather than nickel and diming.         

I agree with Floski on the MDR.  Before going on my first RC cruise, I had read mixed opinions on the MDR, and having already sailed Disney, with their great food, I was sort of mentally prepared for a let down.  Well, I was not let down.  I thought the MDR was great, both the standard items and the items that changed each night.  Throw in all the specialty dining options, plus the Windjammer that you can go to whenever you want, and I would argue the food and dining options are better on RC.  On Disney, you are assigned a specific restaurant each night, one of which is their buffett and depending on the length of your cruise, they will repeat.  They are all great, but outside of that, the specialty options are only one or two places.  Again, not to bash Disney, but considering the thousands more that the overall trip costs, I will stick with Royal.  Like someone else said, it is more a la carting rather than nickel and diming.         

I have sailed both Disney and Royal, balcony rooms on both, and even after paying for the extras on Royal (beverage packages and internet package), the Royal cruise was just just about half the price of the Disney cruise.  I haven't researched a Disney cruise in a while, and maybe my memory is foggy, but other than soda I don't remember anything else being included in the fare on the Disney cruise.  It is all personal opinion, but we are Royal converts now because we feel it is a much better value for us, plus we feel Royal offers more for adults.  Disney is great for kids, don't get me wrong, but their cruises are very heavily geared towards kids, and at some point on the vacation, the wife and I like to enjoy adult stuff.  Royal offers a great mix for adults and kids at a better price.  Again, purely personal opinion.       

While there are many charges (e.g., room service) that I am completely opposed to, most of the charges that you're complaining about are the same charges every major cruise line charges for unless you go ultra-premium, which runs about twice what Royal charges.
Although I do believe Royal's soda package is overpriced compared to some of their competitors, their internet is well priced for the quality, speed, and the fact that it is unlimited.  Other cruise lines charge by the amount of data used and offer a much slower connection.  I do wish Royal had a cheaper, social media package, though.
I used to cruise Disney.  And as of late, they're about 40-50% higher, so I would expect them to include more with that fare.  However, outside of soda, what does Disney include from your list.  They charge for internet and it's less affordable if you look at the amount charged per Mb.  And while the Oasis does not have a "smart app" for communication, you can always use texting which is only a few cents to send and often free depending on your carrier.  I doubt you would run up a $350 texting bill.

This is like conversations I have with people about all inclusive resorts who think their drinks are free. With RC, if you want it, there's a usually service for that. As opposed to paying for it and get it whether like it or not...'included soda' you're paying for it, it's just not a specific line item on your bill. Six or one half dozen, call it whatever. I hate paying for over inflated fares including things I don't use. 
Internet and such...there were days not that long ago where there was no such thing on a cruise ship...any cruise ship. They only way to keep in touch...ship-to-shore phone at about $8+/minute. New technology and services come out all the time...it's not possible to replace or swap out to the newest and latest thing every six months. On an all metal ship it's a massive and expensive undertaking to design and implement a wireless service. I've been on RC ships that have 'okay' internet service that didn't have any internet service previously...or the internet was accessed via PCs in a specific lounge that always seemed to be full. An interesting concept, however, that texting has become a top line critical item on a vacation...worthy of a Sociology Graduate Thesis.
RC's soda package is a joke. We order 18 cans of soda at the beginning of a cruise for my wife, it costs far less than a "fountain soda" package and is of far better quality.
We know several people who cruise Disney...we don't see the attraction to pay that much...for a bunch of things we won't use. To each their own, and it's good to see what else is out there.

Normally you have to be out of your rooms by 9 am and the last groups are debarking around 1030 or so.  On our last cruise we had a late afternoon flight and our group got off around 10:15 or so.  We were one of the last groups but they seemed to be ahead of schedule.  I believe the Windjammer closes on debarkation day at 830 or 9.  They definitely want you off of the ship.  Debarkation day is awful anyways, so I would rather just get up early and get it over with instead of waiting around.   

I'll echo those saying good pizza.  Sorrento's barely qualifies as pizza, the cheese is god awful.  There are many frozen varieties that are better.  Along with that topic, a place for quick late night eats would be nice, other than Sorrento's.  Something with quick bar type food, chicken fingers, fries, burgers, etc. After a few alcohol infused hours in the various bars on the ship, come midnight or 1 am something to soak it up on the way back to my room would be good.
 
I can't believe I am complaining about lack of food availability on a cruise.  

I'll echo those saying good pizza.  Sorrento's barely qualifies as pizza, the cheese is god awful.  There are many frozen varieties that are better.  Along with that topic, a place for quick late night eats would be nice, other than Sorrento's.  Something with quick bar type food, chicken fingers, fries, burgers, etc. After a few alcohol infused hours in the various bars on the ship, come midnight or 1 am something to soak it up on the way back to my room would be good.
 
I can't believe I am complaining about lack of food availability on a cruise.  

I'll echo those saying good pizza.  Sorrento's barely qualifies as pizza, the cheese is god awful.  There are many frozen varieties that are better.  Along with that topic, a place for quick late night eats would be nice, other than Sorrento's.  Something with quick bar type food, chicken fingers, fries, burgers, etc. After a few alcohol infused hours in the various bars on the ship, come midnight or 1 am something to soak it up on the way back to my room would be good.
 
I can't believe I am complaining about lack of food availability on a cruise.  

I have these and I love them.  Very supportive, pretty much like a regular sneaker.
 
https://www.amazon.com/Columbia-Supervent-Fashion-Sneaker-Charcoal/dp/B01015XQ2M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1486733829&sr=8-1&keywords=columbia+mens+supervent+ii

We try to do one "big" vacation per year.  Have only been on 1 cruise before, it was Disney Wonder and it was great.  Since then we have done the complete Disney World experience, every park, etc.  Next year's trip we decided to do another cruise and I wanted to try one of the other Disney ships, and like others, I was shocked when I looked to see how much Disney had gone up in price since we went before.  So I started looking elsewhere, and the general consensus is that RCCL is almost on par with Disney for families with kids.  Found a great itinerary, 8 nights on Freedom, half the cost of a Disney 7 night the same week, went for it.  I am not a casino person, nor is my wife, so we don't really care about that, but we do enjoy the night life stuff, and I found it to be pretty quiet on the Disney ship.  None of the adult bars were ever close to crowded, and in a way, it affected the atmosphere.  We are lucky in that my parents insist on coming on our "big" vacations, and they are not interested in doing the bars late at night, so we get connecting rooms and at least one of them, if not both, are fine with being in the room at night, sitting on the balcony while our kids are sleeping in the connected room, so the wife and I can go out.  Another plus for RCCL (for me) is that Disney does not offer any drink packages.  My drink tab for my wife and I was like $500 on the Disney cruise for 5 nights, and most of that was me.  I was never drunk at all, but damn, they add up.  A few $12 drinks at the pool, glass of wine or two at dinner, a couple of drinks at night and well, here's your $500 tab.  So I am expecting that the drink package will work out well for me, and I will just pay for the few that my wife has.  That's not a knock against Disney, I completely understand why they don't offer drink packages or have casinos on their ships.  But taking these things into consideration, along with double the price, and I don't see the benefits anymore.  
 
One point for Disney though, if you have young kids and they are into the characters and what not, all of them are on the ship, and they are way more accessible there than compared to the parks.  The ships have character photo sessions all throughout the day in the atrium of the ship, and you get the schedule before hand, so you can plan it out to have your kids see who they want.  15 minute wait tops to get their picture taken, unlike the sometimes hour waits in the parks.  When we went to the park, we didn't do any character meets, other than Mickey, because my kids had done them all the year before on the ship.  Anyways, super looking forward to Freedom in February.         

We try to do one "big" vacation per year.  Have only been on 1 cruise before, it was Disney Wonder and it was great.  Since then we have done the complete Disney World experience, every park, etc.  Next year's trip we decided to do another cruise and I wanted to try one of the other Disney ships, and like others, I was shocked when I looked to see how much Disney had gone up in price since we went before.  So I started looking elsewhere, and the general consensus is that RCCL is almost on par with Disney for families with kids.  Found a great itinerary, 8 nights on Freedom, half the cost of a Disney 7 night the same week, went for it.  I am not a casino person, nor is my wife, so we don't really care about that, but we do enjoy the night life stuff, and I found it to be pretty quiet on the Disney ship.  None of the adult bars were ever close to crowded, and in a way, it affected the atmosphere.  We are lucky in that my parents insist on coming on our "big" vacations, and they are not interested in doing the bars late at night, so we get connecting rooms and at least one of them, if not both, are fine with being in the room at night, sitting on the balcony while our kids are sleeping in the connected room, so the wife and I can go out.  Another plus for RCCL (for me) is that Disney does not offer any drink packages.  My drink tab for my wife and I was like $500 on the Disney cruise for 5 nights, and most of that was me.  I was never drunk at all, but damn, they add up.  A few $12 drinks at the pool, glass of wine or two at dinner, a couple of drinks at night and well, here's your $500 tab.  So I am expecting that the drink package will work out well for me, and I will just pay for the few that my wife has.  That's not a knock against Disney, I completely understand why they don't offer drink packages or have casinos on their ships.  But taking these things into consideration, along with double the price, and I don't see the benefits anymore.  
 
One point for Disney though, if you have young kids and they are into the characters and what not, all of them are on the ship, and they are way more accessible there than compared to the parks.  The ships have character photo sessions all throughout the day in the atrium of the ship, and you get the schedule before hand, so you can plan it out to have your kids see who they want.  15 minute wait tops to get their picture taken, unlike the sometimes hour waits in the parks.  When we went to the park, we didn't do any character meets, other than Mickey, because my kids had done them all the year before on the ship.  Anyways, super looking forward to Freedom in February.         

LOL Jeff.  We are sailing Freedom, my wife and I are both buying the premium package.  I will get my money out of it, I doubt my wife will.  Our 9 and 7 year old's will be using our souvenir cups for soda, we are not buying additional packages for them.  The cost of that fountain soda per glass is pennies, and we limit our kids intake of soda anyways, so it's not like they will be running to the machine all day.  You should do the same, and not feel the least bit guilty about it.   

That video pretty much hits the nail on the head.  I have no issue with the money at all, it's mostly just the annoyance of it and a little bit the principal of it.  Just charge me the all inclusive price for the service provided and leave me alone.  Anyone in the service industry (waiter / waitress / bartender) has to deal with the general public, and a good portion of the general public are idiots, so they certainly deserve more than $7.50 per hour.  A big issue for me is what professions society deems tip worthy.  Where the line gets drawn sometimes makes no sense.  You order a beer from a bartender, he/she gets it, opens/pours it, hands it to you.  Total transaction time is about 15 seconds, they get a tip.  The fast food worker takes your order, gets your food, hands it to you, total transaction time is longer than the bartender, they get no tip.  Both likely make minimum wage.  Why is one tip worthy and one not?  Just pay them both a fair wage, remove the tipping, and let capitalism take care of the rest.
 
I stayed at a Beaches all inclusive once and we were told at check in that tipping is prohibited.  I doubted this and attempted to tip a few servers and bartenders.  Every one of them refused to take it, and all of them had the same response.  "Thank you sir, but tipping is not allowed here".  I inquired further of one of the bartenders (after a session at his bar) and he told me that accepting a tip is grounds for immediate termination.  This was the most expensive all inclusive I ever stayed at, but it truly was all inclusive, and the service I received from everyone was outstanding.  I wish it was like this everywhere.             

That video pretty much hits the nail on the head.  I have no issue with the money at all, it's mostly just the annoyance of it and a little bit the principal of it.  Just charge me the all inclusive price for the service provided and leave me alone.  Anyone in the service industry (waiter / waitress / bartender) has to deal with the general public, and a good portion of the general public are idiots, so they certainly deserve more than $7.50 per hour.  A big issue for me is what professions society deems tip worthy.  Where the line gets drawn sometimes makes no sense.  You order a beer from a bartender, he/she gets it, opens/pours it, hands it to you.  Total transaction time is about 15 seconds, they get a tip.  The fast food worker takes your order, gets your food, hands it to you, total transaction time is longer than the bartender, they get no tip.  Both likely make minimum wage.  Why is one tip worthy and one not?  Just pay them both a fair wage, remove the tipping, and let capitalism take care of the rest.
 
I stayed at a Beaches all inclusive once and we were told at check in that tipping is prohibited.  I doubted this and attempted to tip a few servers and bartenders.  Every one of them refused to take it, and all of them had the same response.  "Thank you sir, but tipping is not allowed here".  I inquired further of one of the bartenders (after a session at his bar) and he told me that accepting a tip is grounds for immediate termination.  This was the most expensive all inclusive I ever stayed at, but it truly was all inclusive, and the service I received from everyone was outstanding.  I wish it was like this everywhere.             

Sounds like Chops is going to cost me $50 then.  Can't pass up a good dry aged steak!

I had family on Anthem and their representations to me were that the media blew it way out of proportion (no surprise there) and that RC did everything they could to rectify the situation.  They claimed the bars and restaurants all were free once they turned back, and that the shows went on as scheduled the next night.  Once back In NY they ate in Chops for free and spent the night in port on the ship, the bars had bands playing all night, free alcohol and what not.  RC was not pushy at all in making people leave the ship, and that by the next morning the ship appeared completely back to normal.  All for free plus half off the next cruise - it didn't seem all that bad to me.  

I had family on Anthem and their representations to me were that the media blew it way out of proportion (no surprise there) and that RC did everything they could to rectify the situation.  They claimed the bars and restaurants all were free once they turned back, and that the shows went on as scheduled the next night.  Once back In NY they ate in Chops for free and spent the night in port on the ship, the bars had bands playing all night, free alcohol and what not.  RC was not pushy at all in making people leave the ship, and that by the next morning the ship appeared completely back to normal.  All for free plus half off the next cruise - it didn't seem all that bad to me.  

I had family on Anthem and their representations to me were that the media blew it way out of proportion (no surprise there) and that RC did everything they could to rectify the situation.  They claimed the bars and restaurants all were free once they turned back, and that the shows went on as scheduled the next night.  Once back In NY they ate in Chops for free and spent the night in port on the ship, the bars had bands playing all night, free alcohol and what not.  RC was not pushy at all in making people leave the ship, and that by the next morning the ship appeared completely back to normal.  All for free plus half off the next cruise - it didn't seem all that bad to me.