SPS

If you choose to bid on a Royal Up, you may have to option to bid on several categories of Stateroom on the same webpage; Oceanview, Spacious Oceanview, Balcony, Obstructed View Balcony, Suites, etc.
If a cabin in one of your chosen categories is available and your bid is "right", only one of the bids will be accepted.

Back in Auguest, @JennaRCB wrote a good article on the Royal Up program:  https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2022/08/02/royal-caribbeans-royalup-guide-tips-and-tricks

Something I think worth mentioning is that you will not be given the option to bid on every single cabin type that is above yours.  It depends on the cabin type you originally booked. 
 
For example, booking an Inside on Anthem, the options we were given were Outside View, Larger Outside View, Obstructed Balcony, Ocean View Balcony,  and Ocean View With larger balcony.  
 
We’ve never seen the option to bid on suites unless we’ve originally booked an Oceanview Balcony (or higher). 
 
Something else I think is worth mentioning… be aware that if your bid is accepted, you could get a cabin (in that category) anywhere on the ship.  If you don’t want to be in a certain area, and will be unhappy if you’re put there, don’t bid  
 
Something something else that is important to mention…. Sometimes it’s cheaper to just upgrade than put a high bid in for the same potential upgrade   
 

They have a lot of items that are very difficult to find in the US.  They had 4 different kinds of Blanton's bourbon as an example.

After months of reading blogs and FB posts leading up to my cruise,it's finally come and gone and I thought I'd share a few things. Just got off Oasis this past Sunday...3 of us, 2 adults and an 11 yr old. 
1. Don't overpack. I read it a million times, I swore we wouldn't, yet..here we were with a large suitcase,a large duffel bag and three back packs. Packing up on our last night, cursing as I packed tons of unworn clothes,  unnecessary footwear and clothes for "cold nights". Next time it WILL be one suitcase and maybe a backpack. 
2. Magnetic hooks. Maybe they are helpful on older ships but our basic (boardwalk balcony) room had hooks on the bathroom wall, bathroom door, inside the shower, next to the front door and next to the vanity/ mirror on the desk. Plenty of hooks. We put a few on the balcony walls just because we brought them..but definitely not needed.  
3. Plug extender. This one came in handy..not needed,though. again would have had enough plugs between the ones behind the bed and the ones on the desk. We never needed to have more than one or two chargers in at any time. And all of our Android devices,including lap top and tablet all use the same charger. 
4. Take some adult time. I love my kid...I do. But after day 3 I needed some daddy time,once the wife and kid were down for the night..I strolled around on my own. Hit the casino, walked the pool deck, just sat on the balcony. I did this early in the morning sometimes also, since I am a very early riser and they are not. 
5.Maybe we missed something,but after all the reviews,we thought for sure we would have loved coco cay more. But we did chill beach, ate at a few stands, checked out the straw market, hung out in the pool for a bit...then were all ready to get back to the ship by maybe 1:30.  I don't know..maybe we will explore the other beaches next time,but we took advantage of the empty ship and enjoyed that more. 
6. Planned for the worst and got yhe opposite. Read so much about crowds,lines and food issues. We experienced none of this. The ship never felt over crowded, food was fine,service was amazing, shows were fantastic (no amount of reading or watching videos can compare with how amazing aqua 80 was in person). The only time we ever felt a little crowded was Windjammer. 
 
Edited to Add one more. 
Tipping/dining (I'll combine them):
We are over tippers. We are both former service workers,so we tip more than necessary.  I saw so many people posting how,besides the pre-paid tips, they tip additionally on every drink. I think I saw maybe 2 other people put cash on the bar the whole trip. I'm not shaming anyone..it's totally your choice since the drink price includes tip, just surprised how many people say they do it compared to the amount we actually saw. Also...dining at MDR,we did it 3 nights, and it never took longer than maybe 75-80 minutes. 
Overall it was an amazing trip on a beatiful ship.  I played way more mini golf than I could imagine, ate way more pizza and drank way too many mocktails. We can't wait to book our next one..already dropped the deposit at next cruise..just gotta pick the date!

Buffalo trace is very popular here in Texas so I would think it should be available from the start of cruise. It really depends on whether RC has purchased it from a local distributor or not. I've sailed so many times from Galveston but can't remember what was available last time we cruised. We're sailing March 18,  I'll repost here when I can and let you know. Not that it will be the same in 2024.

Looks like they’ve decided to have a little fun with the mishap!

Looks like they’ve decided to have a little fun with the mishap!

Seeing the account page read "You have 0 upcoming cruises" was making us sad. We had to do something about it.

Last time I sailed out of Galveston, the "best" whiskey was Jack Daniels.
 
 

This conversation reminds me of the wine glass lovingly known as "Big Joe" on Cougar Town! 😄 Capable of holding MORE THAN a whole bottle of wine!

 

Maybe yes, maybe no.
Oddly enough, I've noticed during our last two check-ins that not all times have become available right away.
In 2022, I had checked in right away for both cruises at 45 days out. Over the days that followed, more times became available, some a good deal earlier than my original choice. Fortunately, the app allows you to update to another arrival time if they are available.
Hope this is helpful!

WE'VE GOT ANOTHER ONE HOOKED, EVERYBODY!!! 😆
Welcome to your new obsession! Now you are one of us!

I have made it onboard Symphony and have settled into my new home for the next 7 months.
 
Once again, I am very excited to share with you guys my adventures over the course of this contract. It was a tough decision for me to come back to work, some of you may know that I went through some difficult circumstances back home, but I am happy to be back!
 
 

Just Booked! 361 Days to go!
Harmony of the Seas - January 28, 2024

WE'VE GOT ANOTHER ONE HOOKED, EVERYBODY!!! 😆
Welcome to your new obsession! Now you are one of us!

Who's Ms Carlson? 

Looks like they’ve decided to have a little fun with the mishap!

WE'VE GOT ANOTHER ONE HOOKED, EVERYBODY!!! 😆
Welcome to your new obsession! Now you are one of us!

Looks like they’ve decided to have a little fun with the mishap!

WE'VE GOT ANOTHER ONE HOOKED, EVERYBODY!!! 😆
Welcome to your new obsession! Now you are one of us!

Looks like they’ve decided to have a little fun with the mishap!

Looks like they’ve decided to have a little fun with the mishap!

Looks like they’ve decided to have a little fun with the mishap!

WE'VE GOT ANOTHER ONE HOOKED, EVERYBODY!!! 😆
Welcome to your new obsession! Now you are one of us!

WE'VE GOT ANOTHER ONE HOOKED, EVERYBODY!!! 😆
Welcome to your new obsession! Now you are one of us!