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If you haven't already, I suggest visiting cruisecritic.com and signing up for your sailing's Roll Call. You'll be connected to other people on your actual sailing. This is how my husband and I arranged all of our semi-private tours for Europe

We visited Carlisle Bay, which I believe is where Boatyard is. It was a 15 minute walk or taxi for $6pp. My husband and son rented a jetski for $45 for 30 minutes and we took a short snorkel trip to see some turtles for $15pp. the beach was beautiful and there were plenty of restaurants and bars to choose from. The people of Barbados were lovely. Enjoy your day there!

Can I ask the name of the tour or the excursion code I haven't seen a description that states a maximum of 20 people.

On our 12nt Vision sailing in Europe the drink card was available from day 4 or 5 for several days. It worked out to $8.50 a drink which is good if you're a cocktail drinker but not as a beer drinker. The beverage package was available until the last 4 days of the cruise I believe. We were also able to purchase a wine package in the MDR. I believe it was $99 for 4 bottles.

We did Southern Caribbean about 2 years ago...
St Kitts we booked Greg's Safari tour directly. His company is the one RC uses for their tour.
Barbados we walked to Carlisle Bay, rented jet ski's, did a little $5pp snorkeling excursion right from the beach and ate conch fritters (so good)
Antigua we booked the RC swim with stingray excursion then asked our driver to take us to a beach for a couple hours 

We set sail in 2 weeks and I've spent months and months planning our tours. We booked with a company called Joe Banana Limo/Italy Tour Sharing for our tours of Rome and Pompeii/Amalfi. Visit their site and you can book a tour for as many people as you like. The per person rate goes down, the more people you book.
If you find your "Roll Call" on the Cruise Critic website, you can recruit people to join your tour. We found this much cheaper than the ship's excursions and there are only 8 people in our tour groups. Many people on our Roll Call booked tours this way. At one point there was a spreadsheet with all the tours listed and web links (someone was very organized)! Now I've made "friends" with several of my fellow cruisers and we have a number of meet and greets set up. 
I can certainly share our experiences when we return!

Can I pre-purchase the bands to have them in our stateroom when we arrive?

I think you will have a great time. Sailing into Venice is a fantastic experience and the ship docks quite close to the main attractions. We took an excursion that started at the ship, and visited San Georgio, a Murano glass factory and a gondola ride. A bit cheesy, perhaps, but it had to be done and we thoroughly enjoyed it. The other, unexpected highlight was sailing into Kotor. I didn't know anything about Montenegro, but sailing into a fjord with mountains on either side made for dramatic and memorable scenery.
Sorry, you didn't ask about that; I just got a little carried away.
On this trip, we only went to Pisa from Livorno. It was a shorter trip that suited us better this time around. It was a very pleasant trip. The architecture of all buildings is impressive, but the famous leaning tower steals the show. There are lots of visitors, though, so be prepared for it to be busy. It doesn't detract too much from the experience.
Again, on this trip, we didn't go into Rome. Previously, we visited the Colosseum, the Vatican, etc. all of great interest and well worth seeing. But crowds are to be expected. An organised excursion assists greatly in avoiding the queues for entrance tickets.
Other excursions we took this time included Herculaneum (from Salerno) as an alternative to Pompeii. I had been to Pompeii before and recommend it. Herculaneum is smaller and a little less impressive but certain features have been better preserved. This includes painted columns and walls with some mosaics and even a shop advert for a wine seller.
At Ravenna (although some sailings are calling at Split rather than Ravenna) we had a relaxing excursion on a river boat, sailing into a lagoon and watching water fowl and flocks of flamingos. Not to everyone's taste, but it worked for us.
At Villefranche and Kotor, we just got off the ship (tendered at both) and walked around. Both places were fascinating in quite different ways. The walled city at Kotor was particularly interesting; we had not seen anything quite like that before.
I hope this is of some use to you and you have a fantastic time.

We used an over the door organizer for toiletries in the bathroom on Anthem. Five people in one cabin took some organizing! However, I was surprised at how much storage there actually was and probably could have fit everything in drawers.

What can I say? It's a woman's prerogative to change her mind! 9nts won me over. I figure we're not there for the beaches so much anyways and an extra sea day to enjoy Symphony is just too sweet to pass up!

What can I say? It's a woman's prerogative to change her mind! 9nts won me over. I figure we're not there for the beaches so much anyways and an extra sea day to enjoy Symphony is just too sweet to pass up!

I realize the weather can be unpredictable but can anyone comment on the weather in September vs October in the Western Mediterranean? We're trying to decide if a departure date of Sept. 23 vs Oct 7 will make a big difference. Thanks!

Can anyone tell me if it's possible to purchase a case of beer or bottle of wine for our stateroom?

I've been looking at the Best Western Plus Newark Airport. They offer a Stay and Fly (or cruise) package that includes 10 nights of parking ($8/additional day). They say they offer a shuttle service but when asked about it they said that they'll just call you a $55 taxi, Lyft estimate is half that. Some Uber options are also cheaper. Did the math, for a 12 day cruise it would be about $40 cheaper to take advantage of this package rather than stay at a hotel and then park at Cape Liberty. Of course you do loose the convenience of just getting in the car and heading home.

I understand that Dynamic Dining switched over to MyTime on Nov. 27. Does anyone have any knowledge of how the menus have been affected at the four main restaurants?

I understand parents can leave their children in the Adventure Oceans program while they take a port excursion but is there a way to be contacted if the need were to arise? If we opt to purchase a roaming pkg for our cell phone? This is even a question for sea days too, how would someone reach me even if I'm onboard? Are 2-way radios an option if our kids have one and we have the other?

Has anyone taken Royal's stingray swim in Antigua? Forgive my ignorance but don't these creatures sting?!

Do I have to pay automatic gratuities in US currency? Can I visit guest services and ask to be charged in Canadian or would I have to do the conversion math and then ask for an adjustment? I'm a firm believer in tipping and realize that to the staff it may seem I'm short-changing them but I have a hard time paying 30% more than other passengers just because I live in a country with a weaker dollar.
 
Thank goodness Royal quoted in Canadian when I booked or I might have cried!