mike

I think I recall this is gonna be your first time, enjoy! Bask in the awesomeness that is the first cruise :D !

This, IMHO, is a happy compomise. Rotational for those that want the same wait staff/time each night, and My Time/My Place dining for those that prefer that flexibility. A win - win for all as far as I'm concerned. Anthem/Quantum is now officially back on my To-Do list! :)

Aye, it seems they have found a good compromise. Now to wait for them reviews in a few months to see how it pans out :) .

This will be interesting indeed. Given that the MDR is in itself a different theme each night, they may have found a compromise like I spoke of in another thread that is pleasing to all. If they can make sure parties of any reasonable size can still dine together I forsee this being pretty nice.

One thing i noticed on our Navigator trip was they seemed to be enforcing tender groups as much as possible (ie tender tickets they have available the day before).

I can see both sides of this, however even being a milenial/gen x member I can appreciate the MDR. Yes DD has 'the grande', but that's formal every night. While our generation does indeed demand variety and is likely what is causing Royal to push DD, I believe you'll see as more of us get past the 20's and into mid to late 30's that more want the traditional sit down family dinner. Royal is smart to delay DD and take its time with this. If it turns out to be even a partial dud, the fix certainly wouldn't be cheap. I think the better move would be to perhaps cut the MDR down one level and put in one more free option. This would leave 2/3 of MDR capacity while giving a bit more choice which some would possibly choose. This may seem like an odd solution , but I think a big part of the problem with DD is the severe reduction/utter removal of the MDR. Leave a decent size MDR in and I forsee DD becoming ALOT more popular.

There is also one for the allure and I think Adventure at the moment. I had run across these before our Navigator cruise last year and downloaded them to see the hubbub. Talk about getting me even more excited! I consider this another digital getaway to escape the stress of work and life and just get back on that boat even if only in digital form.

For me it was Enchantment in 2009, Now with cruises later I'm headed back on her this Friday for the 6th time.

Enchantment in 2009 as well, and my first cruise ever as well. The staff just plain sold it for me, however the idea of a city at sea is attractive too.

I also believe their policy on the books is kids under xx age are supposed to be attended anyway by the guardian traveling with them. Unofficially we've all seen kids going solo around the ship. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure about the age thing.

That was back when Platinum meant something. Now it's just a lowly level on the way to Pinnacle, and I'll admit that I've been looking at ways to rack up points, like sailing in a suite on the 12 night Brilliance cruise, then reality (price) sets in.

Sounds like me with my lottery dreams on how to get to diamond+ in a few 13 day suite cruises solo. Triple points for the win!

I recommend it in general. Its fast and you can be on the way home rather than in the depressing end of cruise waiting spots :P . I strongly suggest it in Galveston as the horrid experience that is Galveston customs was far less painful first thing that morning. It also helped to not be heading through Houston during lunch hour(I hate mega city traffic lol).

I also agree that its good they recognize loyalty. Too many companies these days 'recognize' the new comers with great deals and such only to give you the cold shoulder once you're out of contract , etc etc. I think Royal Caribbean ups the ante, even if only in small ways at times, to make you feel more appreciated the longer you stay with them. On our Navigator sailing back in September there were several couples in each category recognized at the gold+ including a few with just plain insane amounts of days sailed racked up. Pro tip that I learned, they all had b2b cruises in common haha.

Don't forget those handy plastic tag holders. Man were they nice!

I think there may be some confusion here. This is the fan blog and forum, not operated by Royal Caribbean. Hopefully someone has a good link to the best official channel to voice your concern. With that said, if the guy was on camera doing that then I'm pretty sure he's holding a pink slip in that hand by now.

The Windjammer is still the buffet to go to for all meals

And a quite tasty one at that :) . Even after the Windjammer closes around 10pm, the cafe promenade is open 24/7 and has sandwiches, some sweets including cookies, and even pizza.

Edited: doh, I guess you knew about the cafe... its 7am i still need wake up juice! I imagine because of the cafe, the only special buffets I saw were on a few different days at lunch poolside.

Here's what I've gathered: Not on ships with a dedicated Starbucks in addition to Cafe Latitudes. If Starbucks is served at Cafe Latitudes and is the only coffee bar on the ship (e.g., Radiance class), then it's included.

It was also on Navigator, but I guess that would fall under 'no dedicated Starbucks'.

I think Quantum is sliding over to China when the next one (Anthem) comes out, and I assume the new one will take Quantum's place in Bayonne. As for Oasis 3 / 4 ... who knows. Not sure what ports can handle them right now (Texas? New Orleans?). Might be seeing some port upgrades soon as well.

I would LOVE to get an oasis class out of Galveston, but even with the 4 million in port facilities upgrades I highly doubt it would work. The elephany in Galvestons room is unarguably the customs. Perhaps the Houston port could handle it?

You stated my feelings exactly. Any cruises that are Dynamic Dining only won't be under consideration in this household. We have an upcoming Jewel cruise, plus I'd like to do a Freedom-class and Adventure again, but those are off the table should they go DD.

 

I have to admit, it's even caused me to look at other cruise lines...I have the feeling a Princess cruise may be in my future. Time will tell.

At this point its just the 2 newest classes, so unless it is just a HUGE hit I doubt it will roll out to freedom class or smaller.

Great review :D . A thorough review is as good as a video at getting that 'wish i was there' mojo going!

Oh geez where to get started lol. If rooms count I'd have to go with the royal loft suites. While the pictures of the lofts on the Oasis class look spectacular, these new Royal lofts on the Quantum class just look absolutely epic! Its a tough call what with how neat the new solarium looks though.

Awesome news on the trip!

I tend to agree Matt. I think i see more pro's than cons. While i would miss more personalized service. Being able to choose from 3 distinctly different venues for free is great. Well perhaps not so much if you're the type when asked by your spouse "where do you want to go for dinner?" you respond "i dunno" hehe. IMO thats a good problem to have :P .

Hope its going well - would love a review of the ship when you return, lots of interest now

that its headed to New Orleans in the Winter months

Hope the cruise is spectacular so far :) .

Also, wait... so New Orleans will not be shipless now? That's good news!

As the title suggests, I received an email from RCCL about this change coming to the whole class. Oasis class ships will no longer have MDR, and will be switching to full on Quantum style dynamic dining. There has been discussion here about the love and hate with the idea. Any thoughts on this? Personally the only thing I would miss is a more personal dining experience via the same wait staff each night, though that is hardly make or break for me. I have to wonder if they had an outpouring of support, or if they just have that much faith in dynamic dining.

So Cozumel is a tender, same as Coco Cay?

 

No, sorry for the confusion. I meant Grand Cayman was the tender. Cozumel and Falmouth are both docked.

I concur with pretty much everything Matt said. If you're more or less interested in getting out and seeing things, Cozumel is the place on that itenerary to get your bang for your buck. I much more preferred Grand Cayman from an aesthetic point of view but man you couldn't beat the 3rd party beach excursion prices in Cozumel :D . As far as the tender process... i thought it somewhat interesting to see how aggravated the crew got at the cruise director. He just kept calling more and more groups while those already in the snaking line had yet to get halfway around to the STAIRS haha. Do yourself a favor and take Matts advice. Go very early the day before so you can try and get a early tender ticket group #. The beauty of Grand Cayman is well worth it imo.