JBC

There's a reason cruise ship employees work the hours they do, because it is a good living compared to other options in their home countries.

I was on Mariner two weeks ago, and I echo most of your sentiments.  MDR food was ok, not great.  Portions definitely smaller.  The upcharges for the specialty restaurants are getting to the point of them not being worth it in my opinion.  Bar service was also wildly inconsistent.  If I didn't have the DBP and was actually paying $14 for a drink, I would have definitely complained at times. 
The star lounge on mariner is huge, and it seems underused at times to me.  Trivia is wildly popular at schooner, to the point that you better get there 20 minutes before it starts or you won't get a seat.  They should hold more of those trivia sessions at star lounge instead of schooner.
Gallery of Dreams is a "original royal production", and like almost all of royal's original productions, it's just singing and dancing with some costumes, and good luck trying to discern what the story actually is or what is going on.  I actually look forward to these productions just so I can walk out and say I have no idea what that actually was.  We had two different comedians, one was laughably bad.  His adult show was not adult at all, very PG.  Not a big deal other than it not being funny.  The second comedian was Drew Thomas, and both of his shows (regular and adult) were hilarious.  One of the best comedians I have seen on a royal cruise.  We had a juggler that was great, frequent royal performer "el gaucho" who was decent, and a trio of female singers that were good.  The ice show was good as usual.  Overall for not being an Oasis ship, I was pleasantly surprised by the on board entertainment.  The reggae band that played on the pool deck a few days was really good too.           

This is spot on from the first page.  Add steeply increased prices on drink packages and internet packages to the list as well.  One at a time these things don't seem like huge issues but add them up and you get to a huge issue quick.  I will be at Coco Cay this Saturday, will be my first time going there not going to the beach club.  The price is insane and I refuse to pay it.  So I will see what the "complimentary" Oasis Lagoon experience is like.  Odds are it won't be nearly equal to the beach club.  So that will lead to the line of thinking that maybe it's time to check out another cruise line, just on the principal of it. 
As everyone says, Sorrento's is bad to average pizza at best.  But at midnight after hitting the bars, it's good enough.  I will not pay a fee for it though.  Honestly that might be the nail in the coffin.  There is nothing else available late, and I don't want a cold sandwich that has been sitting out for hours.  If they take Sorrento's out of new builds, what are they replacing it with?  What hot food option could be cheaper for RC than Sorrento's?
I really hope people start speaking with their wallets.  Although Disney Cruises did this same thing (extraordinary price increases across the board) many years back and it didn't seem to slow their demand.   
      
 

No need for a middle ground.  Current ground has it free for all of the hours it is open.

This is spot on from the first page.  Add steeply increased prices on drink packages and internet packages to the list as well.  One at a time these things don't seem like huge issues but add them up and you get to a huge issue quick.  I will be at Coco Cay this Saturday, will be my first time going there not going to the beach club.  The price is insane and I refuse to pay it.  So I will see what the "complimentary" Oasis Lagoon experience is like.  Odds are it won't be nearly equal to the beach club.  So that will lead to the line of thinking that maybe it's time to check out another cruise line, just on the principal of it. 
As everyone says, Sorrento's is bad to average pizza at best.  But at midnight after hitting the bars, it's good enough.  I will not pay a fee for it though.  Honestly that might be the nail in the coffin.  There is nothing else available late, and I don't want a cold sandwich that has been sitting out for hours.  If they take Sorrento's out of new builds, what are they replacing it with?  What hot food option could be cheaper for RC than Sorrento's?
I really hope people start speaking with their wallets.  Although Disney Cruises did this same thing (extraordinary price increases across the board) many years back and it didn't seem to slow their demand.   
      
 

Scheduled for crossing to Australia on another cruise line - current requirements include Covid Cards AND testing, although photo of self-test taken within 24 hours works.  If self-test: test results, Government ID, and device (phone) with date and time showing in photo are all required to substantiate proof.

Australia is still pretty far behind the rest of the western world in moving on from covid.

NO !!!!!!!!

My rule of thumb is if someone is bringing me a drink, like a server, then I will throw them a buck each time.  I'm talking about servers at the pool, servers in the theater, servers in Schooner, etc.  If I walk up to a bar and get a drink myself then I won't tip anything additional.  If I am sitting at a bar for a while and have multiple drinks, I will leave a couple bucks when I leave.  In principle it bugs me since I already paid 18%, but at the end of the day, the dollars mean way more to them than they do to me.  An extra $50-$100 over the course of a week vacation isn't an issue. 
I will say, in my observations, I feel like I am not the norm in this regard.  I see a lot of people get drinks from servers and they just take their cards back and that is it.  No tips.  The servers don't seem bothered, honestly it happens constantly, so I think they are numb to it.  I always do receive a thank you though.     

$284 for my Feb 2024 cruise on Odyssey.  I've been there three times, never paid over $100.  It's nice, but not worth anywhere near that.  
I'm actually glad it's priced that high because I don't even have to think about it.  If it was like $150 I might be on the fence.  

$284 for my Feb 2024 cruise on Odyssey.  I've been there three times, never paid over $100.  It's nice, but not worth anywhere near that.  
I'm actually glad it's priced that high because I don't even have to think about it.  If it was like $150 I might be on the fence.  

$284 for my Feb 2024 cruise on Odyssey.  I've been there three times, never paid over $100.  It's nice, but not worth anywhere near that.  
I'm actually glad it's priced that high because I don't even have to think about it.  If it was like $150 I might be on the fence.  

Agreed @JBC.  I'm sitting at $321.99.  Makes passing it by the easiest thing in the world.  It's not even close, not even really close to close.

Add another step
5.  Be prepared for the internet connection to be spotty and at some times downright unusable.  If you can climb one of the communication towers on the ship, that may help.😀     

I once made a 9:45am flight out of FLL after a cruise.  It was extremely nerve wracking and I vowed never to do it again.  10:55 would be very tempting, especially if the next alternative is 3:30 out of MIA.  I hate waiting around too long for flights after a cruise.  

I once made a 9:45am flight out of FLL after a cruise.  It was extremely nerve wracking and I vowed never to do it again.  10:55 would be very tempting, especially if the next alternative is 3:30 out of MIA.  I hate waiting around too long for flights after a cruise.  

Almost no deals exist on board, regardless of the advertising.  They are preying on you being in "vacation mode" and getting sucked into the vibe and what not.  People like shopping and buying things, and they know that.  Those watch sales are particularly ridiculous, but they continue to be on every cruise, so people are buying or they wouldn't be there.  

I have two kids and always cruise with my family. I'm as pro-kid and pro-family as you'll see on this message board. That said, while I think it's fine for kids to be in a bar area (it's no different than a restaurant), I don't think there's need for kids to sit at an actual bar top, particularly at night if there are adults who would otherwise be sitting there. There are very few bars on Royal ships where the only area to sit is the bar itself. Just sit anywhere else. 
I feel like plenty of bars on land allow kids in the bar itself but not to sit at the bar top. It just seems like a reasonable compromise, particularly on a family friendly cruise ship.
 

We have the exact same outlook on this. This is and has always been my outlook...order and walk away or hang at a table but not sitting at a bar. 

I specifically said I don't care about children being in a bar. I am not talking about bars in general, I am specifically talking about the bar top area as I said in my post. I really don't know of any bars in the states I have been to, that allow people under 21 to sit at the actual bar, not at tables in the bar but where the bartender makes drinks. That is my peeve, I don't care how well behave the children are, why are they sitting at the bar watching drinks get made??? Also ships that sail from the US and enforce the 21+ to drink rule should enforce the "you have to be of legal drinking age to sit at the bar" rule. Again, this is not children walking to the bar ordering their drinks and leaving but children sitting at the bar drinking.

I think the issue with rising tide is that there are so few seats there.  I've been on 3 different Oasis class ships, and I have never "rode" the rising tide bar.  Every time I've walked past it, there are no seats available, or only 1 or 2 seats.  I'm always with a group, 3 or 4 people.  I don't really care though if a kid is taking up a seat, whatever.  I'm sure there are adults sitting on there for hours riding it up and down, so that could be looked at in the same light, being inconsiderate to keep taking up seats.
Kids in a bar don't really bother me, but at the same time if it is later in the evening, and depending on the venue, I don't want to have to be overly cautious of doing or saying something because there are kids around in an adult setting.  Obviously on a royal caribbean cruise no one is getting too wild, but you know what I mean.  

I think the issue with rising tide is that there are so few seats there.  I've been on 3 different Oasis class ships, and I have never "rode" the rising tide bar.  Every time I've walked past it, there are no seats available, or only 1 or 2 seats.  I'm always with a group, 3 or 4 people.  I don't really care though if a kid is taking up a seat, whatever.  I'm sure there are adults sitting on there for hours riding it up and down, so that could be looked at in the same light, being inconsiderate to keep taking up seats.
Kids in a bar don't really bother me, but at the same time if it is later in the evening, and depending on the venue, I don't want to have to be overly cautious of doing or saying something because there are kids around in an adult setting.  Obviously on a royal caribbean cruise no one is getting too wild, but you know what I mean.  

Almost no deals exist on board, regardless of the advertising.  They are preying on you being in "vacation mode" and getting sucked into the vibe and what not.  People like shopping and buying things, and they know that.  Those watch sales are particularly ridiculous, but they continue to be on every cruise, so people are buying or they wouldn't be there.  

Cigars are a different world entirely from cigarettes, pot, vaping, etc.  It's a shame they are still shunned all the same, and now relegated to the same outdoor area on deck as anyone smoking anything else.  The connoisseur clubs were great, I am glad I got to experience one on Freedom before they took them away.  I am not a huge cigar smoker, only have them occasionally, but there are few better spots to enjoy a cigar than on the high seas!    

Almost no deals exist on board, regardless of the advertising.  They are preying on you being in "vacation mode" and getting sucked into the vibe and what not.  People like shopping and buying things, and they know that.  Those watch sales are particularly ridiculous, but they continue to be on every cruise, so people are buying or they wouldn't be there.