Bob_KY

All of the above, but we put our cash in multiple places.  No single point for a total  loss.  

Excursions booked.  One excursion that we are looking forward to is the "Sunset Schooner Cruise" in Aruba. 

My wife and I broke from tradition this year with a Celebrity cruise.  We are back to Royal. We are looking forward to a few "firsts" with this cruise: Quantum Class and new islands. We welcome any excursion recommendations or ship "secrets."

Early.

Like.

Totally agree with previous posts about what RCL could do concerning border security.  Unlike Delta Airlines, Cruiselines offer experiences by docking at different countries.  My expectation is monitoring trends that may interfere with that paid  experience.  If common problems at particular Ports were trending, I would try to manage expectations and see if there could be a preventable measure (maybe a simple warning or do/don't list for Customs at a particular port).  Another benefit from trend monitoring could be the drafting future port support agreements.  Making great memories during a RCL cruise means higher profits.  

One reinforcing comment to @Swar and @OCSC Mike - Girdwood was fantastic.  A must is dinner at 7 Glaciers Restaurant.  Did landtour out of Anchorage combined with the southbound on the Radiance.  @AshleyDillo, same cruise? (July 4, 2014)

BTW, get reservations for 7 Glaciers early.  

Apex:  18-25 March 2023.

First Celebrity Cruise.  We are looking forward to the new experience. 

Beyond ship obvious differences, we are curious about Diamond versus Elite status.  Also, Sky Suite versus Celebrity Suite perks.  We like the  "Celebrity Suite" layout which seems very similar to an Oasis class Grand Suite.  

We like the itinerary: Belize, Cozumel,  Key West, and Grand Cayman. 

A little bit different approach.  Room attendant at the beginning and if exceptional - an additional tip at the end.  Just like the suite lounge, I do a good tip on the first visit and service quality and speed increase on subsequent visits.  Concierge at the end with the amount being based on the number of times we use them, effort required, and quality.

I am a believer for both.  I also carry some tip money, if needed.

For my first Celebrity Cruise, [email protected] booked me on the Equinox in a Sky Suite.  Totally happy. Great deal. Then I received the Move Up email.  I let it sit in my inbox for a while..  The next week, flash backs of Royal Up victories.  At a weak moment, I succumbed and bid on a Celebrity Suite.  Wondering about any experiences with Move Up.

Ref. Negative comments.  Alaska's beauty is breathtaking.   Born there and was stationed there while in the Army.  And did the cruise with land tour in 2014. That was our best cruise, ever. I am excited for you.  

Print maps of ports, pack, repack, get deet for mosquitoes, review spreadsheet (this could be me only), find port restaurants,  review ship deck plans for at least 15 times, no matter how tempted- do not buy uli knives, review glacier ice colors to know what it means, study lyrics of wash your hands, discipline yourself to sit by windows along the inner passage (whales), learn Alaska jokes like: while hiking put a small bell on your backpack to alert bears.  Also study up on bear scat.  Easy to ID.  It is the one with a small bell in it.....

Agree with melmar02.  It becomes easy after check in at the hotel lobby.  Our main tour guide was the one that checked us in.  Our luggage handling was a breeze throughout the cruisetour and getting it to the ship at Seward.   You will love it.  Our best cruise...

We did a 5day cruisetour southbound on the Radiance (2014).  We flew into Anchorage the day before and booked our own hotel.  We explored the city. Two recommendations to eat.  Dinner - Jen's Restaurant.  Breakfast - Snow City Cafe. 

As mentioned above, our mid-July Celebrity cruise had a 90 day final payment due date.  I paid it on 24 Feb, and my paid-in-full booking still had the 90 day suspense.

I've done Chill Island Cabana and over-the water Cabana.  Loved the chill island Cabana; quiet area and serve as a base for our party to meet, eat and drink. Very affordable with another couple.  The over-the-water Cabana was phenomenal especially for our anniversary celebration.  In both cases, prices dropped significantly.  [$499 (5 Jan 2020) and $699 (31 Oct 2021)]   Just keep looking at the price.  

Win the audition by playing to the audience.  You have less than a minute.  Be creative.  Being "funny" won the auditions we were in.

Diamond equates to Elite level.

On 9/5/2021 at 12:16 PM, WAAAYTOOO said:

What were the masking requirements ?

We did a 5day Freedom OTS cruise to get our "cruise legs" back.  Donning the Mask on the ship was very tolerable.  A great vacation (thanks [email protected])! What kicked us was the long periods of wearing the mask at the airports and flights.

We did the Radiance and rate this cruise as our #1, primarily because it was Alaska. Recommend a hard look at the itineraries versus the ship.  What kicked it up a notch was the land tour.

Lanyard with several pockets for us; additional tip $ and maybe $ for a "quick" stop at the casino.  

Update.  Notified around noon today that our Royal Up Bid was accepted.  Happy Dance Time.  JS to OS..  

Like others, I go from Credit Card, to Royal website, to "...booked/cruise-room-upgrade" link at least twice a day.  Attempting to go from a JS to OS.  Currently,  my bid is not editable.  Frozen.. I emailed (no response) and called.  The answer was; bid is still valid, but wait.  Hmmm... I thought any bid could be modified until 3 hrs before scheduled boarding.  I do "find a cruise" and know OS are available.   We have 7 more days to go.  I guess I will let my bid play out.

My 18 Days til cruise benchmarks .. 

1 - Cruise with glee upon hearing

Wash your hands it's the right thing to do...

2- Black Friday sale on deluxe drink package

3- Royal Up goes from pending to accepted

4- Broadway Show is one you haven't seen before

5- Winning at Love and Marriage with the prize being a key chain

Web site (chrome) and app (android phone) are working for me.