KWofPerth

April 8th.. mark it in your calendars! 

Could be something to do with the North Star being out of service? Maybe going into dry dock for repairs and they'll add other features? I don't think Quantum has been selling well regardless, each time I do a mock booking, there's a heap of cabins still available. I have a feeling it's sayonara to Quantum in Brisbane and we'll only have one Royal ship in Australia - Ovation unless they send us Voyager
Maybe the transpacific just wasn't selling well. The thing about Brisbane is most of the ports that it sails to are the same ports that Ovation sails to in Sydney and Ovation is almost sold out on all South Pacific cruises.  I honestly don't think there's much of a cruising market in Brisbane because of this... 
Now if Quantum went to different ports than Ovation, I could see the appeal more - Moreton Island, Fraser Island, even up to PNG, the Solomon Islands, heck even Darwin.

In contrast, we really enjoyed the indoor pool. Climate control, no sunburn...Perfect!  Also, the Solarium is beautiful.
I missed, though, having a pub onboard. The Esplanade does not match up to the Promenade on other classes, but the Music Hall and 270* Theatre are great venues.
What I have realised over time is that every class has its pros and cons. There are compromises and benefits to each.
I loved sailing through Asia for the second time. I have now done the South Pacific twice and Asia twice. Each are great in their own way. Any questions, please feel free to ask 🙂 

Is anyone blogging the world cruise *not* on tiktok?

In contrast, we really enjoyed the indoor pool. Climate control, no sunburn...Perfect!  Also, the Solarium is beautiful.
I missed, though, having a pub onboard. The Esplanade does not match up to the Promenade on other classes, but the Music Hall and 270* Theatre are great venues.
What I have realised over time is that every class has its pros and cons. There are compromises and benefits to each.
I loved sailing through Asia for the second time. I have now done the South Pacific twice and Asia twice. Each are great in their own way. Any questions, please feel free to ask 🙂 

I'm on Spectrum right now. Of the 4,400 passengers, 1,100 are Aussies. That's a quarter! Next is Singaporeans with 550.
Coming from Perth, cruising from Singapore is no further than cruising out of sydney or Brisvegas. Can recomend.

I'm on Spectrum right now. Of the 4,400 passengers, 1,100 are Aussies. That's a quarter! Next is Singaporeans with 550.
Coming from Perth, cruising from Singapore is no further than cruising out of sydney or Brisvegas. Can recomend.

I LOVED Spectrum out of Singapore! The 2 main things I want on a cruise are the outdoor pool in full sun, and the specialty restaurants. On my cruise of majority Asian passengers, it seems what they wanted was indoor solarium and buffet/MDR...so I could always get a primo seat by the pool, and could get a seat at any restaurant with no booking - it was awesome!
What I didn't like was the reconfiguration of large sections of the ship which have been blocked off for suite or VIP guests.

I'm on Spectrum right now. Of the 4,400 passengers, 1,100 are Aussies. That's a quarter! Next is Singaporeans with 550.
Coming from Perth, cruising from Singapore is no further than cruising out of sydney or Brisvegas. Can recomend.

I'm on Spectrum right now. Of the 4,400 passengers, 1,100 are Aussies. That's a quarter! Next is Singaporeans with 550.
Coming from Perth, cruising from Singapore is no further than cruising out of sydney or Brisvegas. Can recomend.

I agree it doesn't make much sense.  Buy gasoline and the posted price includes tax. Buy a roast beef sandwich and you pay tax.

I was in Texas for thanksgiving and the subject come up .
You Australians don’t tip ,such cheap Charlie’s. And I went through it and why .
At the end of the day they were shaking their heads and saying ,how did we get this system.
They said it’s out of control even the self serve check out wants a donation.

I must admit I really do love being in a country that doesn't normally tip and includes tax and all other costs on the price tag. It makes a heck of a lot easier. Ocassioanlly I'll tip for absolutly exceptional service but or if I seea a servier worker is having a tough day but it is certainly enver expected). It used to be a pain when I lived the US to try and work out the cost of a meal because you had to work out tax and tips on top of the menu price. 

So hardly ever?! 😁

So hardly ever?! 😁

So hardly ever?! 😁

I have some rhetorical questions:
Can you gamble when the casino is closed?  No
Can you get your free drinks at the bar as Prime and above when the casino is closed?  No
Can you smoke in the casino when the tables and slots are closed?  Yes
I would say then that most of the Royal Caribbean ships have a smokers' lounge with limited gambling and bar service. 

We cruised with our kids and grandkids in the summer and I booked my husband in a room with our 3 granddaughters.  He joined me once on the ship and my daughter and her husband were in the room next to the girls.  Never had an issue except when we were getting off the ship in Nassau.  One of my granddaughters was with me and we were ahead of everyone else.  When they scanned her sea pass she was not permitted to leave until we could verify her parents were with us.  They actually asked her if she knew me!  LOL.  

It is definitely okay in the US.  RCL permits minors in their own room as long as it is immediately adjacent or across the hall so I cannot imagine a scenario where being in a room with a grandparent would be a problem. At absolute worst the grandparents might need a notarized letter from the parents permitting the travel (you can find the form here) but that is really only if the children are "not traveling with parents."  That is not the case here, where, as you say, you are traveling with them, they are simply in a different room.  With that said, and understanding some people look to check the wrong boxes, or there is always a risk at being separated, it might not be a horrible idea  to have the notarized letter ahead of time, just as a backup.

You should be fine if you are all together while boarding.  However, be mindful when leaving the ship at port.  I saw an incident where a grandparent was trying to take the grandchild off the boat at port and the ship security would not let them.  They had to find mommy and have her get off the boat with the child.  You may want to check with the customer service desk about what is needed if the grandparents plan on taking the little one at port without you.

In today's world, it is not uncommon for children traveling with a parent to have a different last name. The fact that you, as parents, are also traveling with the children removes the barrier of requiring extra paperwork allowing the kids to travel with adults who are not their parents. Just keep together as a group when you board.

When our son was young, he stayed with my mother in law and my wife stayed with me, so 2 rooms of two. No problem. No extra papers in US. I don't know about Australia. PS. Sounds like you may have 4  and 2, so room with kids needs to have pull down beds or sofa bed, of course.

They had cruises to Asia back in 2016-2017, they could go to Asia again. Singapore, China, Japan etc.

I'm cruising out of Singapore in January, with check-in opening today. The earliest slot was 11am, so obviously took it.  It must vary from place to place, region to region, like others have said.

I'm cruising out of Singapore in January, with check-in opening today. The earliest slot was 11am, so obviously took it.  It must vary from place to place, region to region, like others have said.