F1guynz

I am not entirely sure that it's a mandate. I do remember it used to be on the Royal bookings a long time ago when we first started cruising. This is a comment I found from an article on the Internet (so it must be true However, as Australians are cruising the world in ever-increasing numbers, we're discovering that the culture of tipping is embedded in many fare structures. When used to seeing the total price stated upfront, it can come as a surprise to first-timers that many cruise lines add a recommended daily gratuity charge to passengers' accounts. In fact, having gratuities automatically charged to their accounts was so unpopular with local cruisers that in 2010, Australia-based P&O Cruises decided to stop it completely. Now P&O leaves it up to each passenger to decide whether to tip for outstanding service or not … and do it personally with cash. Other cruise lines, such as Princess, Carnival, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean soon followed this no-tipping policy on their Australia-based ships.

When we book here in New Zealand or Australia the gratuities are included in the base price of the room booking, I was wondering why they don't do that in the United States after reading a thread on CC where some people are suggesting gratuities should be reduced as they only receive once a day room service. I understand that the gratuities are not just for the few people you interact with, but also many crew members you do not ever meet personally who contribute to your holiday experience, so it is not right to remove the daily charge. To me it seems far more effective to include it in the base price of the fare as we do here, the cruise line can increase the daily rate by increasing the room rate which flatulates all the time anyway whenever appropriate. It just seems fairer to me than allowing people to remove the daily charge and deprive some of the back-office crew of their fair share. Even though gratuities are included here I still tip our room steward, waiters and other crew who make our holiday an enjoyable experience. If I book a cruise sailing out of the Unites States in the New Zealand website the gratuities for the US sailing are included so it can be done. What do others think, keep them separate or include them in the base fare?

Maybe we will still get one more ship in 24/25. Once Icon and Utopia come on stream maybe they will rejig where some of their ships are currently and one will end up in Asia somewhere. That may then free up one currently in Asia to come our way. That would explain why there are currently only two ships scheduled for Australia. (Probably just wishful thinking on my part due to the underwhelming release) The main problem with the large ships is they are too big to visit a lot of ports so you end up with a very limited itinerary. These ports will need to adapt in the future as the ships being built are not getting smaller and ultimately the smaller ships will be gone altogether. I wonder if Americans feel the same about their itineraries as we do as there must only be so many times you can go to CocoCay before it starts to lose its shine, or does doing the same trips over and over not bother them. I am waiting to see what comes out in July for the Asia season but if nothing appeals we will do a land based tour next year for a nice change of pace.

We ended up booking Quantum again for Feb 2025. Originally we were going to book Ovation but Quantum is just so much cheaper for the same itinerary We have to fly from NZ so it doesn’t really matter to us whether the departure port is Sydney or Brisbane.

I can't see the Singapore to Brisbane crossing but I guess this may come out with Asian sailings later in the year.

I can see cruises for Australia/NZ for 2024/25 now. Book away.

I have generally found that Royal Caribbean will contact you via email if there are any changes to itineraries or time in port, so until you receive an email from them, I would assume you are still going.

Thats good to know. The main hassle I have is when a category sells out you can't easily see any price drops.

This is the original post @Matt wrote regarding the updated T&C in April. Royal Caribbean updates passenger cruise contract: Covid policies, legal jurisdiction and more | Royal Caribbean Blog There doesn't appear to be anything related to price drops and I don't recall seeing anything when I originally read the email.

I found this on their website which suggests the ability to reprice has ended:

I know when we booked at Next Cruise they said we could get a best price guarantee but I am not sure whether that was specific to booking on the ship.

Even if it is finally built it sounds like it will be a more swished up version of Mystery Island with some food options, cultural performances and nice sandy beaches. When originally announced in 2019 it was meant to be completed by 2022, given that timeline, once started it should take 2-3 years to complete. so maybe 2026/27 if started in the next 12 months.

No, I haven’t seen any updates and it is not on any schedule for the 2024/25 cruises so I wouldn’t expect to see anything until at least the 25/26 season.

Hi, sorry but I never sailed it. We did have it booked during Covid but have not rebooked yet. If you haven’t sailed Ovation it is a good ship. The shows are okay but there are no broadway shows. We haven’t sailed any other cruise line but if we did Celebrity would be our choice.

2025 is Trans Pacific is coming soon but has not been announced yet.

Singapore should get Ovation we should get Anthem. Royal need to switch ships around just so we get different shows. Ovation must have been here for 6 years now, and 8 by 2025 as we did the crossing in 2017, too long for one ship. And on the other end of the spectrum Brilliance only does one season. I guess there’s a chance one of the ships could be swapped out as happened with Enchantment.

We are on the 8th November cruise with you. Of the classes we have done, Freedom is my favourite, yet to try Oasis through. Radiance was really great for Alaska and I like Quantum class for the Islands as that is more about the ship than the destination.

Hi, normally it reappears instantly as you cancel from what I have found.

Originally when we booked this it was Enchantment, so it was good news when it was changed to Brilliance.

Unfortunately, New Zealand is not supported. I think it depends on the original booking site and/or airport.

A few years ago, P&O used to have a ship home ported here but there is just not the volume of passengers here to support one. I wish Air2Sea was available here so you could do an end-to-end booking. I don't mind flying to Brisbane for cruises as we have family there and the cruises on Quantum seems cheaper than Ovation. That said we will probably book Ovation for the 2025 season as there is only so many times you can do the same three Islands. We are on Brilliance in November and I am looking forward to a different itinerary for a change. (Melbourne Adelaide and Kangaroo Island).

I wonder what will happen with Anthem then? I was hoping it would come here, if only so we could get some new shows. We Will Rock You would have been a popular show.

On Quantum, our cabin was ready when we boarded. Initially also ended up with way to much food but by the end of the cruise it was just about the right amount. we did the bridge tour and it was about 20 minutes and we could only access one side due to Covid protocols. The galley tour was about 50 minutes which was a bit too long for most people.

We just completed a sailing on Quantum and didn’t see any evidence of cut backs. We had access to the Chef’s table, iFly, North Star, bumper cars etc. i throughly recommend Star Class if you can do it.

Well, the day has arrived when we have to say goodbye to Quantum and our amazing genie, Hailey. We headed up for breakfast one last time in Coastal Kitchen. We went with my parents as I didn’t think it would be an issue for the manager on the last morning of the cruise. The wait staff were short staffed and very busy, and unfortunately Chao had already left the ship to begin his trip home. The CK manager kindly organised for one of the other Chinese waiters transfer our tip into his account for us. After breakfast we returned to the Royal Loft Suite for the last time to wait for Hailey to escort us off the ship. The rest of the family were already there waiting for us. While waiting Rohan and Reynan stopped by to wish us a safe journey home. Not long after Hailey arrived and we began the final trek between the cabin and the lifts, I have become used to this long walk and will miss it, and it certainly helped to keep my step count up. Getting off the ship was really easy and Hailey soon had us at the customs checkpoint where she would have to leave us. We gave her small gift we had brought from New Zealand of some Māori art painted on a heart. There were long hugs goodbye and promises to keep in touch. A lady from customs then escorted us through to collect our bags and out into the main terminal building. Our cruise maybe over but it has been the most wonderful experience for both us and for the rest of the family so thank you to everyone on board who made it so special, and very special thanks to Hailey, the best genie we could have hoped for. We look forward to coming back next year and doing it all again. But before that, we have Brilliance coming in in November this year. Stray Observations A couple of differences I noticed between Quantum and Ovation, Jamie’s Italian does not have an outdoor dining area like Ovation does. The second thing I noticed is on Ovation there is a place where you can buy ice cream inside the entrance of Windjammer that is not there on Quantum. Reflections on Star Class Star Class is definitely worth the extra money you pay but it works best if you are travelling with family or friends, or it your first time on a ship and you want to make the most of all it offers. It is difficult to put into words the high quality of service and pampering you receive while on board but you do feel like royalty. We have booked Star next year on Quantum, but as we have seen all the shows and we will travelling by ourselves it will be a different experience again. We have already told Hailey she will have to do the laser tag with us. Thanks to all those who followed along and taken the time to read my posts. Until next time.