Ogalthorpe Haywood

I've heard from a number of people that a TA can't get more discounts than the cruiseline itself offers. Is this true? I've also heard more horror stories than good about booking with a TA. I wouldn't even know where to begin.

Or you can go with the thought that you’ll never see any of those people again. 

Or you can go with the thought that you’ll never see any of those people again. 

And I wonder if it will cease once Symphony comes back here to the States. Now THAT's what I remember about cruising in the "old days"  People would just take pictures of the ice sculptures and carved fruit etc. It really is/was an art!

I’m sure he will look fine, some people wear T-shirts on formal night. I wouldn’t worry about it especially if it’s not something he would much in the future. 

To each their own.  Just cause you think or feel a certain way about something doesn't mean everyone else does. So as much as it may bother or offend you.....it doesn't for many others.
 
If people cant speak up or make a comment or view their opinions for worrying about offending someone out there, then I don't want to be a part of that group or society......and maybe I will jump over the side of the ship to deal with it......
 
Get my point? if you don't that's ok too and I wont tell you to go post on the "other" board and  I wont be offended either..its a free world...

I was thinking the same - that it has to be pretty much the same across the fleet.  
I don't know about Virgin drinks.  I like all of mine with a kick!  LOL

I would have to disagree, I enjoy doing the tinkering myself and when using a TA just adds an extra step. I check prices of rooms, drink packages and excursions regularly, I then have to call my TA and hope they have time to help me. Also, calling Royal directly never takes more than a few minutes and they are always a joy to deal with.  I can certainly see why many would prefer using a TA as their are benefits but I don’t think “always” is necessarily the rule. 

I rarely go into the MDR without a drink already in hand as well
 

Well they only guarantee the category of stateroom, that’s it if you booked an ocean view that’s all they are obligated to give you. You are at their mercy and get assigned what’s left. Luck of the draw imo. You roll the dice to save a few bucks.

I agree, if you end up doing the upgrade and don’t get the double points I would call a few weeks after the cruise and say you didn’t get the points. I wouldn’t mention the upgrade just the cabin number and that you were in a suite.

I was able to link reservations with one phone call. We were unable to request a specific location of the mdr but was told we would be given the same table. It was my parents reservation I was linking so maybe since we have the same last name it wasn’t a big deal. We’ve also went the first day to ask in the past and they were able to accommodate us with no issue. They usually bend over backwards to fill reasonable requests.

We booked the May 18th sailing out of NJ on adventure and we got an spacious ocean view balcony GTY. We were assigned room 1670, pretty far aft directly under the WJ. I’m not too worried about the noise from the wj, I am however a little worried about being that far aft as I’ve heard we may feel vibrations and any potential rocking is worse in the back of the ship. We rolled the dice to save (which was around $300 total for our family of 4) so we’ll see if we’re happy or not. We did receive our room assignment about 2 months in advance. Also this is my first cruise as Emerald so I’m excited for that too.

We booked the May 18th sailing out of NJ on adventure and we got an spacious ocean view balcony GTY. We were assigned room 1670, pretty far aft directly under the WJ. I’m not too worried about the noise from the wj, I am however a little worried about being that far aft as I’ve heard we may feel vibrations and any potential rocking is worse in the back of the ship. We rolled the dice to save (which was around $300 total for our family of 4) so we’ll see if we’re happy or not. We did receive our room assignment about 2 months in advance. Also this is my first cruise as Emerald so I’m excited for that too.

Don’t beat yourself up, a nice pair of shorts are acceptable in my book. After all you are on vacation 

I would have to disagree, I enjoy doing the tinkering myself and when using a TA just adds an extra step. I check prices of rooms, drink packages and excursions regularly, I then have to call my TA and hope they have time to help me. Also, calling Royal directly never takes more than a few minutes and they are always a joy to deal with.  I can certainly see why many would prefer using a TA as their are benefits but I don’t think “always” is necessarily the rule. 

Did you get a chance to try the robot bar? We found it to be a cool experience but the quality of the drinks were poor imo (really syrupy). Also, we weren’t happy with the pool area for the kids. Not much to do for them so we didn’t do much swimming either. Great blog, I really enjoyed following 

I’ve never gone to coco cay without also having Nassau as part of the  itinerary. I doubt this will offer as much as Atlantis does and probably somewhat similar in price give or take.  The thing I liked the most about coco cay was a nice relaxing “cheap” day 

Just saw the details and had much the same reaction.
We did CocoCay twice last year and actually booked the second trip because we had such a great time just relaxing on the nice quiet beach and enjoying the peace and quiet on the first trip.
Liked the pier idea but concerned that this is too much ... but we shall see.

Doesn't make me excited at all....if anything kinda sad. I liked Coco Cay for what it was...a nice relaxing private island beach in the ocean..
 
 
All the noise and theme park feeling and upcharge and cost for everything....can get that anywhere/everywhere else....why cant they leave one place just to relax.....Labadee is busy already..whynot add all this crap there?

Sabrina, enjoy We Will Rock You tonight. I’m not a big show guy but that was awesome and really well done 

Sorry to hear that... the RC private islands are always some of my favorite destinations, a nice beach with no one constantly trying to sell you stuff. Plus the  hollowed out pineapple of frozen drink perfection. Just a great relaxing family day for us. 

Sabrina, enjoy We Will Rock You tonight. I’m not a big show guy but that was awesome and really well done 

On the contrary - I prepare for the increased opportunities to eat by upping my caloric intake leading up to the trip. Stretch the stomach a little ahead of time so that it doesn't rebel at the sudden significant increase in volume.

Sorry to hear that... the RC private islands are always some of my favorite destinations, a nice beach with no one constantly trying to sell you stuff. Plus the  hollowed out pineapple of frozen drink perfection. Just a great relaxing family day for us.