Berdjm Posted September 7, 2022 Report Share Posted September 7, 2022 Hi all, I have a cruise coming up in a few days on the Symphony and i'm wondering if Playmakers has a set schedule or follows ESPN broadcast times. I specifically want to watch the Formula 1 race on Sunday and just want to figure out if i can either through the stateroom TV or at Playmakers. The eastern broadcast time says it will air on ESPN2 at 8:30am and then replay again at 11:30pm. I can't help but feel like these would be outside the operation times for playmakers anyways. If anyone has some insight i would greatly appreciate it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WesKinetic Posted September 7, 2022 Report Share Posted September 7, 2022 This isn't always the case but, generally speaking, Playmakers opens at 10:30ish on sea days and 1:00 pm on port days. The bar is open until 1 am, so you might be able to catch at least some of the replay. (Be sure to eat ahead of time--the bar is open, but they stop serving food around 11 pm.) The ESPN access in the rooms on Royal Caribbean ships is always wonky (sometimes you get regular ESPN or ESPN2, sometimes just ESPN Caribbean), so even then I can't promise you'll be able to get it. I was on a cruise last spring with a friend who got an internet package for the express purpose of streaming a race he really wanted to watch. Berdjm 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jticarruthers Posted September 7, 2022 Report Share Posted September 7, 2022 Very hard to predict what will/wont be available in Playmakers. Just did Independence over the weekend and there was a lot of grumbling with the Florida game not being shown on Saturday night (despite being the ESPN game) and then the FSU/LSU game not being planned to show on Sunday night. Weekend cruises from Florida have a high % of Florida residents so there were a fair number of people expecting to see their team. They seem to be sticking with the ESPN Caribbean feed more at the moment. Berdjm, Neesa and JasonOasis 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berdjm Posted September 7, 2022 Author Report Share Posted September 7, 2022 Thanks guys, I will keep my fingers crossed. I was initially planning to stream it on a tablet using their internet, but it would of course be much better to watch it at Playmakers. Would you guys also know if they shut the TVs down at 1am? If its a clean race it would probably finish on time, but it's possible to run a bit past 1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonOasis Posted September 8, 2022 Report Share Posted September 8, 2022 They can't please everybody and play all the sports customers want to see. My suggestion is bring your own devise with you and watch Formula 1 on it. I know it isn't the same things as watching it on a large screen TV but if it is your own devise then at least you have control over what is playing. Berdjm and Neesa 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neesa Posted September 8, 2022 Report Share Posted September 8, 2022 If you really want to see it bring your own device and stream it. We were looking forward to an F1 race on our Allure sailing in May, ESPN2 even advertised it was showing. We set up our CLS for the race with snacks & such and settled in ready for a fun race while at sea. Well no, they showed tennis I think. We left the cabin and traveled around the ship to see if it was being shown else where and it was not. I would plan for it not to be shown and come prepared, if it is then it's an added bonus. It was a different ESPN2 feed then ours back in Florida, have a great sailing! Berdjm 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeachGal Posted September 8, 2022 Report Share Posted September 8, 2022 5 hours ago, Neesa said: If you really want to see it bring your own device and stream it. We were looking forward to an F1 race on our Allure sailing in May, ESPN2 even advertised it was showing. We set up our CLS for the race with snacks & such and settled in ready for a fun race while at sea. Well no, they showed tennis I think. We left the cabin and traveled around the ship to see if it was being shown else where and it was not. I would plan for it not to be shown and come prepared, if it is then it's an added bonus. It was a different ESPN2 feed then ours back in Florida, have a great sailing! Same issue on Navigator... grrr! Neesa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zacharius Posted September 8, 2022 Report Share Posted September 8, 2022 On 9/7/2022 at 10:36 AM, Berdjm said: Hi all, I have a cruise coming up in a few days on the Symphony and i'm wondering if Playmakers has a set schedule or follows ESPN broadcast times. I specifically want to watch the Formula 1 race on Sunday and just want to figure out if i can either through the stateroom TV or at Playmakers. The eastern broadcast time says it will air on ESPN2 at 8:30am and then replay again at 11:30pm. I can't help but feel like these would be outside the operation times for playmakers anyways. If anyone has some insight i would greatly appreciate it! No need to watch it, we already know the GOAT will win: Berdjm 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seafarer Posted September 8, 2022 Report Share Posted September 8, 2022 17 hours ago, JasonOasis said: They can't please everybody and play all the sports customers want to see. My suggestion is bring your own devise with you and watch Formula 1 on it. I know it isn't the same things as watching it on a large screen TV but if it is your own devise then at least you have control over what is playing. The FSU/LSU game was the only college game on last Sunday. It should have been on. If it's due to the feed, then alternatives should be evaluated for future implementation. Afterall, it's a sports bar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JC Pats Posted September 8, 2022 Report Share Posted September 8, 2022 Royal Caribbean Ships use ESPN Caribbean, Sport 24, Sky Sports News and another European sports channel that I can't remember - No US Based sports channels. It's difficult if not impossible, unless it's NFL games, or MLB/NBA Playoffs, to know what exactly they will show. Playmakers CAN change channels in the bar when they are open, but they are limited on the number of channels they have, so if they don't have it, they don't have it. Playmakers also has a schedule of what they will (can) show weekly and it should be on each table at the start of the cruise. I have seen them shut off the TV's when they close for the night. As for streaming on tablets (and smartphones), it's my understanding that unless you have a plan that allows for non-us viewing or (more likely) have a VPN that you can set to a US server, you won't be able to stream it either. I use Surfshark (VPN) and can set my location to anywhere in the US and watch ESPN, NFL Network, etc. via a streaming service (I use YouTubeTV) without issues. YMMV Neesa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berdjm Posted September 8, 2022 Author Report Share Posted September 8, 2022 3 hours ago, Zacharius said: No need to watch it, we already know the GOAT will win: 28 minutes ago, JC Pats said: Royal Caribbean Ships use ESPN Caribbean, Sport 24, Sky Sports News and another European sports channel that I can't remember - No US Based sports channels. It's difficult if not impossible, unless it's NFL games, or MLB/NBA Playoffs, to know what exactly they will show. Playmakers CAN change channels in the bar when they are open, but they are limited on the number of channels they have, so if they don't have it, they don't have it. Playmakers also has a schedule of what they will (can) show weekly and it should be on each table at the start of the cruise. I have seen them shut off the TV's when they close for the night. As for streaming on tablets (and smartphones), it's my understanding that unless you have a plan that allows for non-us viewing or (more likely) have a VPN that you can set to a US server, you won't be able to stream it either. I use Surfshark (VPN) and can set my location to anywhere in the US and watch ESPN, NFL Network, etc. via a streaming service (I use YouTubeTV) without issues. YMMV I use Surfshark as well. I was planning on watching through f1 tv app. I'm sure ill get it without trouble. Thanks for the suggestions and help everyone! JC Pats 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fliptronic Posted September 9, 2022 Report Share Posted September 9, 2022 Im also looking to watch the race on symphony this weekend! If you end up thinking you will watch on a tablet, my gf and I would enjoy hanging out and watching with other fans! I may ask around at guests services on embarkation day to see if they can put it on a screen somewhere in the morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle Porter Posted November 1, 2022 Report Share Posted November 1, 2022 Can you cast from your phone to your stateroom tv? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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