F1guynz

On our Anthem sailing in March next year Royal is offering a 10 night dining package which I have not seen before. It is only slightly cheaper than the unlimited dining package so the pricing does not quite make sense. In NZD unlimited is $665pp. Sticking with the unlimited dining.

I am not sure what is the maximum size of cruise ship that could visit Fiji. I know Princess and Carnival both go there as well as Celebrity. My soft spot is for Independence class as it is slightly bigger than Voyager and has a good mix of amenities on the ship. The main reason I think Quantum is overrated is because when you dig a little deeper the attractions are more flashy than substantive. Once you have North Star there is no compulsion to do it again, the bumper cars are okay, the iFly was okay but I don’t bother doing it anymore. Apart from Wonderland the other restaurants also okay but Izumi feels like you are sitting in a corridor. I miss the ice shows and mini golf. I realise this is all subjective as others may love the iFly. Having stayed in the RLS suite twice on Quantum I will say this was a highlight.

@twangster i was hoping maybe they would do one or two cruises to Fiji or Samoa as Celebrity goes there but it does make the cruise slightly longer. Also to be fair that does sail from NZ which Royal has not done for many years. Not sure if it would be viable from Brisbane. I think there was also some hope there might be Lepepa on the itinerary but that is more likely for the 27/28 season if the construction gets under way.

I thought the pricing looked pretty good on Quantum but I am interested in seeing Singapore also. Its really hard to get away from Quantum class ships which are my least favourite.

New cruises for Australia out now. Usual ports of call on Quantum and Anthem with no new ports that I can see.

One issue is they never tender Oasis ships because of their size so that would severely limit the itineraries.

Oasis of the Seas is 15 years old. I would take that one.

We have cruised lots of different Royal ship classes and sailed on Quantum 3x and Ovation 2x, and to be honest I really dislike Quantum class compared to the others. I think Freedom class offers great value for money, especially as it is unlikely we will see an Oasis class. The main reason I dislike Q class is when you break down what you can do on the ship, they just not as satisfying as other classes, no ice show, no mini golf and the North Star and and IFly are underwhelming and pricey on non port days. On our last cruise in February the iFly was out of order and it didn’t sound like it would be fixed until it returns to the U.S. The Flow Rider was also fault and only one side could be used. The main positive for Q are the dining venues and the amazing staff. I was hoping Navigator would be based out of Brisbane as it would be a refreshing change.

Most machines in the casino seem to be high volatility but I did find one Top Dollar slot which was low to medium volatility and picked up $80. People are enticed by the flashy machines and high jackpots so games like Top Dollar are usually free and you can play them for a long time without damaging the bankroll too much. I do like my DD as I did quite well on Harmony when I first played it. That is why I sought it out on Quantum. (Thanks Harmony)

I won the Grand jackpot on DD playing .88 cent bets so it can be done. i tried Rakin Bacon but that was not very friendly at all, clearly the pig does not like to be popped.

I won a bit with them on Harmony so I seeked them out on Quantum. There are only 4 on the ship and they are popular so was lucky to get a seat.

After tonight, Dancing Drums is my favourite slot in the casino. On Quantum tonight and won the grand jackpot, my first ever jackpot win in any casino. @CHRIS WONG is the casino host on this trip, so I think I will have to cruise with him more often for good luck.

I’m on Quantum now and it is full. The port staff have said it has been sailing full, maybe they are discounting to fill it. The iFly is out of service this cruise as there is a mechanical issue and one side of the flow rider is not working. It was replaced in dry dock but the new one is not functioning as expected.

I think it is Anthem and Navigator for us in 26/27

I haven’t tried because now that my two devices are switchable I don’t get the option to enter the code on the second device. Same with Anita’s because hers is switchable on her account. I need a 3rd device to test against lol.

There is also an option to share the code which creates a digit pin that can be entered on another device.

I must say kudos to Royal for the way they have improved connecting to the Internet via the app. We are currently on Quantum in the RLS, and the last time we sailed, you had to go through the hassle of creating a login account with a PIN, etc. Now, when you connect to the internet via the app, it connects automatically if you have a pre-purchased plan. There is also a button within the app to switch devices. For example, if you are using the internet on your iPad and want to switch to your phone, simply open the app on your phone, click Switch Devices, and the access will transfer automatically. Your iPad will then switch to free on-board only mode, meaning it will still receive chat messages in the app. It took me a little while to work out how to use it for the first time, but now I think it is much improved on the old way of connecting.

We have a star class sailing in 6 weeks on Quantum but it likely be our last as the pricing has gone ballistic and the value is not there for us anymore. We have been lucky as Quantum has seen much better pricing out of Brisbane than Ovation out of Sydney with fares usually being around $13,000 - $19,000 NZD depending on the cabin (We have booked the RLS twice and GLS once) but now pricing is up around $30,000 - $50,000 for Anthem at end of 2025. Value is also reduced if you sail the same ship as the main shows don’t change so there is there is less reason to keep seeing them. Where value is enhanced is when you have family or friends sailing with you who are not in star class, as even though they are not entitled to any perks the genie will still do things for them like reserving seats for them at shows, priority at bumper cars etc.

Star class for this one.

First of two cruises in the Mediterranean.

Looking forward to this one next year

Congratulations. We are on Quantum in February so hopefully we will get to meet you then.

It’s a bit of marketing genius i think. make the 1 and 2 device WIFI plans very expensive then offer the premium access WIFI with 2 devices at a lower rate per day and include a lunch on boarding day and other perks. If you want 2 device WIFI across all passengers it is a steal. We have concierge class booked and even with duplication of amenities it still makes sense to book Premium access. $32 NZD per day pp vs $81 NZD for stand alone 2 device plan. We are still 2 years away from our cruise so the pricing should improve but $32 NZD is better than we get on Royal for 1 device and no lunch.

WE have booked our first cruise on Celebrity Edge in 2026. Looking forward to a different experience as Royal has kept getting more expensive and there is not much variety in the way of ships and itineraries, always Quantum class and/or Voyager class. I'm especially looking forward to trying their specialty dining options as Chops menu never changes.

Anita had a similar problem when we sailed on Harmony. My setsail pass was in the app but at some point hers disappeared, the check-in team spent a few minutes tapping away on a computer and it was all sorted. Like you she just had to take a photo of a barcode and then quick as a flash we were on board.