DocLC

I have and I'll be there again in July. Bergen really isn't a city where you need an organized tour. The hop-on-hop-off bus works fine, provides a good overview of the city, and makes it easy to get on and get off. Unlike other cities, it wasn't overly crowded, either, which made it a more reasonable option. The views at the top of the mountain via the funicular are worth the ride. Also, the fish market is worth a stop and the fish soup is to die for.

I used a booster seat for my son as it was small enough and easy to gate check with the airline.

The bus will be just outside the terminals. It doesn't matter which one you're at as they'll route to all of them. They also prefer that you use a credit card over cash. If you have plans to go up the mountain on the finicular, make sure you buy your ticket when you pay for the bus. It will save you a lot of time standing in line later on and you won't be paying any extra for the convenience.

It shouldn't happen, but things do happen from time to time. If it does happen, I'm sure Royal would make it right by adjusting the price paid, offering some onboard credit, etc. I actually once got upgraded, but had requested no upgrades. While it took them some time to get us the room we actually booked, they eventually did so and offered some concessionary onboard credit as a result.

My first Royal Caribbean cruise was on the Viking Serenade in 1994. I was looking to go on a trip to propose to my now wife and was thinking of going to San Francisco. However, while waiting in the travel agent's office, noticed a last-minute fare offer for the upcoming cruise. Having grown up on The Love Boat, a cruise was always a form of travel that I had wanted to try. Knowing nothing about cruising, I booked the Viking Serenade and were sailing a couple of weeks later. At the time, I did not know about the different types of room, preferred locations, etc., so we ended up with a guarantee that placed us in a 90 square foot cabin that had twin bunks. While it was the smallest cabin I have ever experienced on a cruise, it was still a fabulous trip with wonderful service, wood and brass fixture, and great food. Unfortunately, the morning that we sailed was the same day as the devastating Northridge Earthquake, so I had actually thought that the cruise might be canceled. Fortunately, San Padro did not sustain significant damage nor did the freeways in the area, so the cruise departed as planned and the next day I proposed to my wife on Catalina Island. Having loved Royal Caribbean so much, we wanted to honeymoon on a cruise, too, but wanted to do so on a "mega ship" (about 80,000 GRT at the time). Unfortunately, our TA recommended a Carnival cruise for us, not listening to all of the reasons why we liked our Royal Caribbean cruise. However, it was a horrible experience and paled in comparison, bringing us back to Royal Caribbean time and time again. It was also on a Royal Caribbean cruise (Legend of the Seas out of Tampa) where we came to the decision that it was time to start a family and now my son has been on a number of Royal Caribbean cruises and we have taken twice as many cruises since having a child as we did before having a child. Kris P.S. I'm an educator with a Ph.D. (pile higher and deeper), so I don't know what "brief" means. ;)

Ironically, Carnival just released information about new complimentary late night dining options as Royal is introducing paid options. While I do believe Royal provides a better product overall, I haven't found my recent cruises on Carnival to be interior to Royal especially if you're comparing the experience to the non Freedom, Oasis, and Anthem class ships. They have better complimentary did options, better comedy club options, more affordable sushi options, and better poolside movie options. Their main theater shows are inferior thought in my opinion and I like Royal's staterooms, staff, fellow passengers, design, and choice of specialty restaurants better.

I have done land vacations to Atlantis and I must say that it is a phenomenal experience. However, when we were in Nassau last year, we skipped Atlantis largely because we could not justify the expense given the short time there. At most, you'll have four hours if you're pushing it, and that simply isn't enough to justify the expense. There are plenty of resorts and snorkeling options to consider or you could opt to stay on the ship and enjoy what it has to offer with the zipline, Flow Rider, and rock climbing wall as the ship won't be that crowded.

I'm a huge fan of 150 Central Park. Just about everything in there was good. Breakfast at Johnny Rockets is also a hidden gem, but if you have access to CK, I wouldn't bother.

Most people get off the ship. The exception might be Nassau because of a shorter stop there and the chance that many have been there before. Either way, the ship will be noticeably less occupied and port days are a great time to sleep in, enjoy the ship, book a discounted spa appointment, etc.

There's no need to schedule a dining time for the MDR if you're not going to find there for dinner. If you don't have My Time Dining, it would be good to let the dining room know in advance so that they don't hold a table for you.

I could be wrong, but I thought the suites had bigger/wider doors than standard staterooms. If so, then you might not have a problem. And as you've stated, space inside the cabin won't be a problem.

I used to be the person who never dined during a port stop and would return to the ship for lunch, wouldn't spend extra for ice cream or specialty dining, but times have changed for me. In part, it's because I have more disposable income, but I also have to acknowledge that cruising is more affordable than it was when I first started cruising more than 20 years ago. As a result, if I have to spend $100 per person to have an improved dining experience, I'm willing to do so and just consider it the cost of cruising. I just wish Royal would up their game when it comes to complimentary daytime and late night snack options. For example, some lines keep their buffets open until at least 11 p.m., where others have much better pizza options, delis, or even pub-type food available 24/7.

Thanks for the info, @karl_nj . I agree with you regarding DCL's pools. My son got clocked in the head because the pool was crowded and kids were goofing around without parental supervision. One of the things I loved early on with sailing Royal was all of the wonderful salads they would offer each night each with a different house-made dressing. One of my favorites was a Vidalia Onion dressing. Sadly, I haven't seen that in quite awhile and I personally feel that the main dining room variety is slipping. However, it is possible that they're also responding to the changing demographics of cruising and/or passenger demand. Some are simply not adventurous eaters. On our last cruise, we ate exclusively at specialty dining and really enjoyed our trip, using the Windjammer for breakfast and lunch. On the cruise before that, the MDR was not cutting it nor were the menus, so we dined half of the time in specialty restaurants and ate most dinners in the Windjammer. Fortunately, the Windjammer has greatly improved for dinner over the years.

Added! Enjoy. If you decide to go to Cats, realize that the second half is much better than the first in case you decide to leave at intermission.

I like your style of cruising. Your cruises have been added to the list. That's a long wait, but it will be worth it! I'll be onboard almost a year after your. Enjoy. Should be a great cruise. Appropriate username! Enjoy your cruise! All have been updated. Radiance is the only ship in the class that I haven't sailed on. Great ship! I sailed the Baltics on the Brilliance. Enjoy your cruise.

Make sure that you book a handicap stateroom, otherwise, the scooter won't likely for through the door and you likely won't have any space to store the scooter. I'm only aware of one cruise line that doesn't allow motorized scooters onboard and that's Viking Ocean Cruises.

While I agree with the premise here, which would explain the chargers for Johnny Rockets, for instance, Carnival has Guy's Burger Joint and now his new BBQ restaurant, and they don't charge extra for it, so it can be done. Carnival also tends to be less expensive and offers a better array of included dining options during the day, in my opinion.

To the best of my knowledge, only Royal, NCL, and Carnival charge for room service. MSC does, too, if you're booked in the Bella experience, but it's included in the others.

Anything that has a charge associated with it will have a gratuity automatically applied and the cost of the items will be clearly marked if there is a charge. Outside of specialty coffee, I don't recall anything having a charge at Park Cafe unless they do fresh squeezed orange juice in the morning. If so, there would be a charge for that.

About 5:30-5:45. I don't typically make a reservation and haven't had many long waits and an usually seated with the same servers.

I guess you can't fault Royal Caribbean for being a business and trying to maximize profits. Much like Disney, they're going to raise priced until people are no longer willing to pay for the increases. While I won't stop sailing with Royal as I like the product overall and it's the best overall for my family, I won't be dining at Johnny Rockets, using room service, or dining at specialty restaurants unless I'm on a package until the fees before more reasonable for those.

This is exactly why I don't buy the excuse that the charge was levied to reduce waste. I actually think people will order more food to maximize the value of the charge. The reason I think it's a money grab is because of the amount of the increase. A 25% increase is a significant amount and likely greater than any increased costs and definitely many many times greater than the rate of inflation.

As are you. Weren't you mentioned in this week's podcast?

I went and picked up my new car today, and look what popped up on my instrument panel!

A nice change!