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Flow Rider


JNS123

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My first cruise is the November and I am considering trying the Flow Rider along with my kids. I assume since it is a popular attraction the lines will be very long. So I have 3 things I would like cleared up. One, how long is the average wait time. Two, how long is each session. Lastly, we are in a suit, (Sky Class)so would that allow us to have priority? Thanks. 

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I don't recall the lines being crazy long whenever we went, maybe at any given time 20 people. How long you're on it maybe 1-2 minutes. Suite guests might have a time block set aside for them, but in general just get in line. They rotate amoung surfing and boggie boarding at different times, usually outlined in the cruise compass

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Oasis class ships have two flowriders. One for boogie boards and the second is for advanced stand up surfing. Royal has new guidelines for stand up surfing. If you don't know how to surf they recommend a lesson. If you have done skateboarding, snowboarding or surfing they may allow you to try but will only give you a chance or two to see if you can load yourself and surf with some control. Otherwise its boogie boarding. The lines can be long at times. Depends on the ship. November may help especially if its not a popular time that kids are out of school. The lines could be 15 minutes to as much as an hour or more. 

The sessions again depending on the ship can last all day or two 2 to 3 hour sessions. The ships with one flowrider split different time slots for advanced surf and boogie board. 

Not sure about any advantage for Sky class.

Best to look up an old cruise compass to see the typical schedules for the flowrider.

Hang loose

VideoCapture_20220430-200935.jpg

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10 minutes ago, Chris Fish said:

Oasis class ships have two flowriders. One for boogie boards and the second is for advanced stand up surfing. Royal has new guidelines for stand up surfing. If you don't know how to surf they recommend a lesson. If you have done skateboarding, snowboarding or surfing they may allow you to try but will only give you a chance or two to see if you can load yourself and surf with some control. Otherwise its boogie boarding. The lines can be long at times. Depends on the ship. November may help especially if its not a popular time that kids are out of school. The lines could be 15 minutes to as much as an hour or more. 

The sessions again depending on the ship can last all day or two 2 to 3 hour sessions. The ships with one flowrider split different time slots for advanced surf and boogie board. 

Not sure about any advantage for Sky class.

Best to look up an old cruise compass to see the typical schedules for the flowrider.

Hang loose

VideoCapture_20220430-200935.jpg

Do they offer lessons? And if so how much do they cost, and how long are they?

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They offer group lessons for up to 8 people. I believe it last an hour and I believe it cost around $70 per person. A private lesson is about $550.00 I think and you can have it for yourself or a few people. I think the lessons will be more available now that they are becoming more strict as to who can surf.

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10 minutes ago, loki007 said:

lines aren't terrible. sessions are a few minutes depending on how busy it is. I would recommend buying the private lessons. The staff will spend a lot more time with your kids and make sure they have fun. 

When are private sessions available to purchase?

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I would go to the sports desk by the flowrider the first day. The earlier in the cruise you can take the lesson the better. I think they usually host the lessons early morning or at night. Basically on times that the flowrider is not scheduled for general operation. I have never been able to sign up for a class before the cruise. It always shows a picture but never a place to sign up.

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1 hour ago, JNS123 said:

My first cruise is the November and I am considering trying the Flow Rider along with my kids. I assume since it is a popular attraction the lines will be very long. So I have 3 things I would like cleared up. One, how long is the average wait time. Two, how long is each session. Lastly, we are in a suit, (Sky Class)so would that allow us to have priority? Thanks. 

Lines - how long the lines will be depends on ship and time.  Lines on Wonder are horrendous.  Lines on Adventure to Canada in late May were extremely short. For shortest waits,  carry on your bathing suit and be there when it opens day 1.

Lessons - check with the sports desk day 1 when you sign the waivers.  Definitely don’t need a lesson for boogie boarding.  If you want to stand up surf, I suggest you do a lesson as you are only given 1 or 2 attempts.  1 hour private on Allure last week was $552, semiprivate for up to 8 people was $69?  Lessons were held before it opened and after it closed.  They did not show up in the cruise planner. No lessons were offered on Adventure in May.

sessions - on big ships, 1 flow rider is usually for stand up and 1 for boogie boarding. Wonder only has 1.  They usually open 9 or 10 in the AM and go to 6pm ish on sea days.  On port days, they usually close from 11 to 3.  On small ships, Boogie boarding is generally sandwiched between stand up with same hours.  Times will be in the cruise planner. Each turn usually lasts about 2 minutes. 

priority - there is no priority for sky class.  Star class used to have priority but that was recently replaced with 1 hour per cruise star class time.  On Allure last week, lines were shorter on stand up side than star class so star time was pretty useless.  

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14 minutes ago, Jkaczano said:

Lines - how long the lines will be depends on ship and time.  Lines on Wonder are horrendous.  Lines on Adventure to Canada in late May were extremely short. For shortest waits,  carry on your bathing suit and be there when it opens day 1.

Lessons - check with the sports desk day 1 when you sign the waivers.  Definitely don’t need a lesson for boogie boarding.  If you want to stand up surf, I suggest you do a lesson as you are only given 1 or 2 attempts.  1 hour private on Allure last week was $552, semiprivate for up to 8 people was $69?  Lessons were held before it opened and after it closed.  They did not show up in the cruise planner. No lessons were offered on Adventure in May.

sessions - on big ships, 1 flow rider is usually for stand up and 1 for boogie boarding. Wonder only has 1.  They usually open 9 or 10 in the AM and go to 6pm ish on sea days.  On port days, they usually close from 11 to 3.  On small ships, Boogie boarding is generally sandwiched between stand up with same hours.  Times will be in the cruise planner. Each turn usually lasts about 2 minutes. 

priority - there is no priority for sky class.  Star class used to have priority but that was recently replaced with 1 hour per cruise star class time.  On Allure last week, lines were shorter on stand up side than star class so star time was pretty useless.  

I am assuming the 70 dollars for a semi private session is per day?

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Lines are the shortest on Day 1 when everyone is busy boarding, checking out the ship, or stuffing themselves in the buffet for lunch.

If you are a newbie you likely will only get 1 try a day if you cannot stay on the board for longer than 10-15s.

My last cruise in July the lines were often more than 10 people, one of the riders I met was Sky Class and they were letting him go after every 4 people.  But he was an advanced rider so not sure if they will let you go more than once if you a newbie and can't stay on the board.

Have fun.

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Hey; i consider myself an advanced flowrider user (learned when i was younger and now its just an habbit). Here are some advices.

 

1) Due to new rules, you can only try once per day on the stand up surfing, if you can't stay up for a couple seconds you wont be able to do it again. You can bypass this by purchasing lessons and learn with an instructor, i stronlgy recommend this for at least 1 day: Day1  - This will most likely give you the basics and you'll be able to stay up by yourself, giving you the chance to stand up surf for the whole week (or weeks if you're b2b).

2) Carry your shorts/swimming suit on your backpack on day one, and once you board, go raight away to the flowrider if you want and can, this will give you something extra: No lines if you want to boogie board (which is.... usually crowded).

And literally no one at the stand up surfing. If you're new, book a group lesson -as soon as possible-, and give stand up a try. Dont get frustrated if you can't stay up, it takes time and seeing other advanced users do it makes it look easier than it is (its easy...you'll do it! -but it requires some practice). 

3) To ride it, my best tip is put most of your weigh on your back foot  - i'd say roughly 85%-. To make turns, either right or left, lean towards your ankles or your toes. Always keep your chest up. 

 

Hope these lines can help you and anyone reading, 19 days for my cruise, i can't wait, enjoy the ride!

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52 minutes ago, JNS123 said:

Are the private lessons for a group, or per person?

Private lesson (~$550) is one hour and can be for one or more people.  For example you take your family.  You are basically renting the wave for an hour with staff helping.

The group lesson ($69) is per person for one hour and you may be joined with random other group lesson people.  For example you and your child both pay 69 and join up to 6 other people in the same hour.

 

There's actually another option where you rent the wave for an hour without "lesson" from staff (they are there just for safety).  This is usually done by advanced riders who want more wave time.  I heard it's around ~350 or so.

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We were on 3 different boats this past summer and each had different flow rider policies as far as who can ride standup and how long you got to go. 

The group lessons are decent, but Royal will not run them with less than 4 people and we have found it challenging to find a session that they are actually running.

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