Ampurp85 Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 Well, it’s been ages since my last cruise and the withdrawal is real. By the time I sail it will have been 217 days…….... almost as long as Oasis was broken up…….….. j/k that was more than 15 years. I had a few titles picked out. But I decided on this title because Oasis actually reunited this year. They were out of their minds with those ticket prices. Oasis is also the first ship my brother and I sailed together on and the only ship we have been on the same number of times. So the reunion idea works…right??? As usual the intro is TL; DR but let’s get into it. First the important stuff some of you want to know........................My mother is still married and living in Florida. Her husband continues to be him. He has not, imho, improved although his partially-amputated foot has healed. His stubbornness has resulted in other medical issues that continue to be ongoing and won’t get better until he faces reality. He has been back in the hospital more than three times since Jan; he was recently in the hospital on their one-year anniversary in July. He gets on her nerves but it beats actually working with the public, so it is still a win in her books . Now back to the regularly scheduled program. I have been in the longest dry/land lock of my life since I started traveling. In the past not only did I have to travel for conferences, but I had at least a couple of vacations a year. Then I caught the cruising bug and was cruising at least three times a year plus a little land vacation here and there. This year I only did my S2S and that was about half a year ago in Jan!!!!!! I am finally getting back to the high seas on a Royal ship, not as though there are other company’s ships I would be on. Though not my original plan. I am excited to spend 15 days on the Oasis. I really need a vacation because work/life has been kicking my butt. Too many changes in life, I am an x-llenial: I nest and don’t do too well with changes. “I” originally had plans to sail from L.A and had booked Navigator from Oct 24-31st This was originally a group cruise because everyone wanted to sail from “not a Florida” port. You all know how some *cough* vintages like to make grandiose plans and not have the follow through. I went along with the plan even though I wanted to sail out of Port Liberty instead. That plan included the idea to earn the 4-night Oct 20-24th sailing on Nav and the Oct 31- Nov 4th sailing of Quantum in the casino. I had made these plans after my B3B on Freedom in May of 2024. We of course know that we can make all the plans we want, and life just laughs. Right before my Sept 2024 Alaska sailing my company gave us some harsh news and I had to roll with the punches. I knew my plans were going to change just not how much my traveling style would. Also the marriage/fallout of friends that made group cruises dead, happened. I was still willing to sail from LA but Club Royale sort of put a stop to that notion. I believe it was Oct/Nov when they started doing buy one get one discounted (BOGOD) offers. I received one that had Oasis for 6 nights and inquired about the price. I love Freedom/Voyager class, but an Oasis class will always win out for the eating options alone. Plus, in all honesty after sailing Quantum to Alaska, Quantum class still holds the spot of my least favorite class of ship. Storage is on point but everything else is "mid" as the youths say. A quick call to Club Royale gave me my answers. With the discount it was under $950 with gratuity for two in a GTY interior. After you subtract the taxes, port fees and gratuity, the fare was only $563; way less than it would probably cost me to earn on a cruise. As it was an Oasis class comp and would normally be in the 2K point or plus range. I jumped on that offer and paid the balance in Dec. I decided to build my cruise around that. I had purchased two rooms for the Navigator sailing but only mine was a refundable deposit. So, I decided to change the other room to the Oasis 2-night sailing that departed on the 5th and then play for the following 7-night cruise on my Jan S3S. I was successfully able to earn the Sept 7th sailing, an OV with OBC and freeplay, on my Jan Symphony sailing. I really dislike OV rooms, so I downgraded my certificate to an aft interior on deck eight. Although I recently learned that Oasis class has OV rooms on higher floors so who knows, I may revisit that stance. Funny enough, I had booked the CLS (1724) on the 2-night Oasis sailing but after staying in a JS on Oasis in Jan, I decided I am not really a fan of the suite offering on Royal. At the time it was about $1400 for the 2night sailing and the CLS is still the only suite room I want to stay in. But I had to consider whether it was worth it and whether it wasn’t. Since it was only a 2-night sailing, my internet is free for being D+. Also the only port being PDCC means the casino is open and I have access to all day prime drinks. Lastly, I am only a fan of the CK steak menu, so it makes no sense to pay three times the price for “perks” I won’t use and a room I will barely be in. The 2 lunches and one breakfast in CK weren’t enough of a draw either. For me the value just wasn’t there. I will be honest with property taxes increases, tariffs and reduced hours/no pay increases. I am in thrift mode. I was often an in-between person: bougie on some aspects and thrifty with others. But now I cannot fathom paying the prices some cruise lines want for suites. Last I checked almost all the suites were available for the 2N cruise and they were going for an average of $1kpp, which is an insane price tag for such a short adventure. With all that being said, I applied the money off certs we won on our Jan Indy cruise to the Sept 5th sailing and all in we were looking at about $1100pp for 15 nights of cruising. Yes, that is for all interiors but still an amazing deal. In the original group cruise plans, my mother was going on all three cruises and then she got married and couldn’t make the Jan cruises due to her husband’s health. Considering his health, he has improved slightly but around every bend there is a new health issue. We knew she wouldn’t be coming along in September, so I didn’t bother planning to include her once the plans changed. Although I do talk to my mother every day, this is the longest I will have gone without seeing her in a physical capacity. His health issues and my new work schedule have made this difficult. Right now, she has plans to attend my Jan 2026 S3S, even if she must put him in a nursing home for a few weeks……. her words. TessFromFlorida, Hoppy2BHere, Lovetocruise2002 and 16 others 18 1 Quote
Ampurp85 Posted August 4 Author Report Posted August 4 We will be staying on Oasis for 3 sailings and a total of 15 nights. We have chosen a room for the September 7th sailing, on deck 8, and GTYs for the 2/6 night ones. I am okay with GTY sailing and don’t check often for the room to be assigned. I am also okay with moving for each leg because at least I am not moving off the ship. Not that the ports matter but the 2-night sailing goes to PDCC. The 7-night sailing is Eastern Caribbean sailing, and the 6-night sailing is western Caribbean. Both go to Labadee, which I am sure, and hoping gladly, that they will cancel. The eastern hits PR, which was cancelled on us in Jan due to the pier damage. We would love to go back because the food was really good. But if we don’t it is no big deal as the ports on any Caribbean cruise rarely matter. The original plan was to fly in that Thurs and once again the flight shenanigans happened. I booked the flight early, in Dec of 2024 and it was later changed to a connecting flight. I did find another flight, but it was a pretty late flight and we would get in after midnight, which sort of makes a pre-cruise hotel a moot point. My brother told me he doesn’t understand why I bothered looking for flights the day before; something always happens and/or every pre-cruise hotel stay has been a nightmare. This is true. He prefers not to do a pre-cruise hotel anyway since it costs us a lot of money to feed him. Also for us, at least, there is an added level of travel anxiety that I prefer not to have. After cancelling those flights, I booked round-trip through Spirit since they had an early flight going and coming home and rumors of improved service/offerings. Then they changed their flight load, and the return flight was going to be at 7pm. I took the refund for that one as well. I prefer to fly into FLL since we are sailing out of PE and American had almost no early-ish nonstop flights. United had one but considering we would be checking bags, I felt like it would cut it too close. So, we are flying out on Spirit and home on American. Spirit recently “revamped” their offering, and we are flying premium economy and will see how that works out. We always do Main Cabin plus/select on AA. Because of the two cancelled flights I was actually able to save about $300 in total. I was paying $500pp originally with United, then $419 R/T with Spirit and now I am paying $356 for the mix airline flights. It will be the first flight out on Friday the morning of embarkation. I have insurance. Unlike in the past, we aren’t sharing luggage. I will have my checked bag, my travel duffel and a backpack. My brother is currently deciding on whether he will take his large luggage or his large duffel. Since we are on Oasis for a long time, I have booked the UDP for the last leg and some specialty lunches and dinners in between. Royal had that 50 percent off birthday sale and I was tempted to get the UDP for two legs. I knew 13 days might be too long for that type of food coma, so it was going to be the UDP for the 2/6-night cruises. It was $75 with grats for the 2n, and I had it booked for a while but thought about how I was going to snack shack for PDCC and my brother like the WJ on that day. So, the value wasn’t going to be there. I will say that I really lucked up because the 6-night UDP ended up being only $209 with grats. We have embarkation day lunch at GT for the 2-night and since we are pretty sure there will be a lot of B2B’rs from the 2-night cruise, we are planning to do the consecutive cruisers lunch on the 7-night. I am still debating the UDP, if the 7-night goes back on sale I might partake. Entertainment opened on July 3rd for the 2/6 Night and the 4th for the 7-night. Imho Oasis has two crappy shows, Cats and their ice show. I didn’t bother with Cats and I only booked the ice show for one leg in case we really want to go for lack of other activities. I did book Aqua80 for all three legs; I am sure we won’t go three times, not really, but I like having the option. I did book adult comedy because we never go, and I figured with 15 days on the same ship I might need to break up the monotony. CP has been sort of insane these past couple of months, with lots of glitches and price changes. The sales have also varied. I have been seeing D+ offers, cabin offers and prime offers. Since it has been a while since I have been to PDCC, I was looking at Hideaway, although I was never going to pay more than $35. The cheapest it went was $58 and I found that it wasn’t worth it just to try 2-3 new items of which two I definitely won’t eat. It also wouldn’t let me make UDP reservations but when I repriced during b-day bash sale, I was able to make all my reservations for the 6-night. I did have to make a couple of Bezos purchases, including a new travel fan. I also had to fill up my cruise essentials. MaryS, TessFromFlorida, Jax and 10 others 13 Quote
Ampurp85 Posted August 4 Author Report Posted August 4 RUBs came really early imho. I believe it was the end of May for the 7th sailing and the middle of June for the sept 14th sailing. The bids were too high; I believe the minimum bid for a balcony was $300pp. Also, with RUB being a prayer anyway, I saw no need to bid. I am also sure that there will be a lot of windowless caves in my future. I rarely use a balcony; I prefer the VB interiors and will book those when I get a chance to. These are the starting bids and its the same price for both the 6N and 7N sailing. Oddly enough I never received an option to bid for the 2N, however if I input the reservation number I can place a bid We don’t have much in the way of plans. My brother is bringing his snorkeling gear for PDCC and we plan to get off, walk and eat at some of the ports. But the name of the game is relaxation. I do plan to spend some time in the casino, But since I can’t cruise as often as I would like, I am not too concerned with earning anything and treating it like a job. I am in the process of loading up my Kindle with as many books as I possibly can because work has stopped me from completing my kindle challenge of 50 books a year. Also not being on cruises has hindered this as well. We will only have one expense when we board and that is internet. We will be doing out D+/Prime internet discount. The last time the 2-devices went on sale during a random sale, and it was lower than the combined discount. So far there have been random sales but nothing to match what we will pay onboard. Itinerary Sept 5th-7th Day 1: FLL Day 2: PDCC Sept 7th-14th Day 1: FLL Day 2: Sea day Day 3: sea day Day 4: ST. Maarten Day 5: PR Day 6: Labadee Day 7: Sea Day Sept 14th-20th Day 1: FLL Day 2: Nassau Day 3: Sea day Day 4: Faulmouth Day 5: Labadee Day 6: Sea Day aubtfan, WAAAYTOOO, JohnK6404 and 8 others 10 1 Quote
Ogilthorpe Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 All Labadee stops have been cancelled through October. For the Sep 14th sailing, Falmouth and Labadee have been replaced with Cozumel and Costa Maya. A bit of a dissappointment for us, we were just there in late May. The 7 day Eastern Caribbean has Labadee replaced with St. Kitts and the schedule shifted a bit. PPPJJ-GCVAB 1 Quote
InmyElement Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 What a wonderful read! Some blogs lose me in the mix, but yours was engaging, informative, and a great update on your life. I truly appreciate your honesty and candor..especially when it comes to sharing all the details, including prices. I'm looking forward to following along. I have so many thoughts, but for now, I’ll just let it sit and enjoy the story... MaryS, Ampurp85, aubtfan and 4 others 6 1 Quote
OCSC Mike Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 6 hours ago, Ampurp85 said: By the time I sail it will have been 217 days Sadly, that's slightly below my usual yearly dry dock (if we don't sneak in a fall cruise). It's painful. 6 hours ago, Ampurp85 said: I had a few titles picked out. But I decided on this title because Oasis actually reunited this year. They were out of their minds with those ticket prices. Oasis is also the first ship my brother and I sailed together on and the only ship we have been on the same number of times. So the reunion idea works…right??? You know I'm here for any 90's music reference. Now if Royal would just make an Aqua90 show for the next Oasis class ship. 6 hours ago, Ampurp85 said: I really need a vacation because work/life has been kicking my butt. Too many changes in life, I am an x-llenial: I nest and don’t do too well with changes. 110% relate to this too. Work/life issues come and go (not to discount them, they seriously messed with some of my cruise enjoyment this spring/summer) but the change part is permanent for me. I sincerely hope you get some relief/improvement in the work/life area. 6 hours ago, Ampurp85 said: I applied the money off certs we won on our Jan Indy cruise to the Sept 5th sailing and all in we were looking at about $1100pp for 15 nights of cruising. Yes, that is for all interiors but still an amazing deal. It most definitely is! I have my own preferences/reasons but even with group rates and OBC that's less than I pay for 7N. I'll stop quoting. I appreciate all the dining thoughts & planning you went through given that I went through it myself with the big UDP sale we had for last month and all I was deciding between was 4N vs. 7N. I could have done 7 but was happy we just did 4 between our habits, the seafood on Utopia, etc. I'm looking forward to having it for all 7 days in March though. 5 hours ago, InmyElement said: What a wonderful read! Some blogs lose me in the mix, but yours was engaging, informative, and a great update on your life. I truly appreciate your honesty and candor..especially when it comes to sharing all the details, including prices. I'm looking forward to following along. I have so many thoughts, but for now, I’ll just let it sit and enjoy the story... +1 to this except I had already typed up my post before I read it so I'm going to leave my thoughts, lol. I know I include bits and pieces of life stuff in my blogs (and post-blog ramblings) even if they're somewhat vague and I love that many in our little live blog community are comfortable sharing more than just strictly cruise-related info. aubtfan, PPPJJ-GCVAB, Ampurp85 and 2 others 4 1 Quote
Lovetocruise2002 Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said: We will be staying on Oasis for 3 sailings and a total of 15 nights. Ah….wish I could do this! This blog will be a good distraction since I go back to work after Labour Day. Ampurp85, WAAAYTOOO, MaryS and 2 others 1 3 1 Quote
AshleyDillo Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 I'm so bummed that you are sailing one month too early Take good care of her for all the group cruisers! Ampurp85 and WAAAYTOOO 1 1 Quote
smokeybandit Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 Good to see the Gallagher brothers getting back together. Oh wait, wrong Oasis reunion tour. Ampurp85, Ogilthorpe, Cactus527 and 2 others 1 4 Quote
lovetheplaya Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 YAYYYY FINALLLYYYYYYYYYY! 15 nights, how awesome! Ampurp85 and WAAAYTOOO 1 1 Quote
PPPJJ-GCVAB Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 Thanks for the full update on life via @Ampurp85. This B2B2B cruise sounds awesome…perhaps sad about Labadee replacements but yours sound decent…. I am looking forward to all the typical reports and of course any “antics or shenanigans “ that come your way! Ampurp85 and WAAAYTOOO 1 1 Quote
asquared17 Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 I AM READY AND I AM HERE FOR THIS InmyElement and Ampurp85 1 1 Quote
Ampurp85 Posted August 4 Author Report Posted August 4 32 days to go...... So all of the intro stuff was written a few weeks ago when I had the time, actually right around the time I cheeked in for the 7N cruise. Since then, there has been some changes. First I checked in for the 2N cruise and the earliest time for PE was 11:30!!! I thought maybe it was a glitch so I kept checking but then I remembered the time was the same last time I sailed Oasis out of PE. I recall being allowed to board much earlier even though an earlier boarding time never opened up. Subsequent check-ins for the remainder of the cruises yielded the same results, 11:30 was the earliest check-in time listed. When it was time to check in for the last cruise, Royal finally sent out the update itineraries since Labadee was cancelled. I know a lot of people love/like Labadee and I was indifferent until I sailed solo and had a creeper corner me. That experience gave me a trauma because if you have been to Labadee, then you know there are quite a few areas where people can be taken and assaulted. Even my brother told me one path just gave him scary vibes. It was cancelled on my last cruise and I think we have only ported there once(didn't get off) since my experience in 2023, which is to say losing it is a big win for me. The new itineraries are: Sept 7th-14th Day 1: FLL Day 2: Sea day Day 3: PR Day 4: ST. Maarten Day 5: St. Kitts Day 6: Sea Day Day 7: Sea Day Sept 14th-20th Day 1: FLL Day 2: Nassau Day 3: Sea day Day 4: Cozumel Day 5: Costa Maya Day 6: Sea Day I am personally pretty happy with the outcome because we had B2B of the same ports in Jan and we have not been to St. Kitts. With the new itinerary, none of the ports repeat and there is some variety. I am even more happy because when the updated invoice came, it list my GTY assignment for the 6N. On the 7N I chose room #8679 which is an aft interior in the middle of everything I frequent (a few flights of stairs to the casino, a small walk to Central Park, and an achievable number of flights to the WJ/ELF. The invoice list my room as #14273 which is also aft and right off an elevator. It has not been officially assigned. I feel like it will come due right when the luggage tags become available at 30 days. The plan when it does become official is to call and see if I could possible have the same room for both legs. The only true glitch in the matrix is the swapping of sea days on the 7N. I had booked a specialty lunch for day 3, which is still viable because now we are in port from 2-9. However we always had plans of eating in PR, so when I board I will have the switch the lunch to day 5. You can modify a package but individual ones have to be cancelled. The price was too good for that. Speaking of specialty dining I have a plan. I want to say with the current "100M pax" sale the UDP is only $64.90 for the 2N, $10 cheaper than the Bday sale but it is still unjustifiable. I got embarkation day lunch for GT. I caught the best sale and paid $12.99+grat, which was a total of $30 for two people. We also plan to hit Portside a la carte for night one. I hate welcome aboard and Portside is an underrated gem. I have learned my lesson and will do a kids meal . Night one of the second cruise we are planning room service, unless the WJ is on point. I booked Izumi for night 2. I caught a great deal of $24.99pp plus grats. The GT lunch that was scheduled for day 3 was $14.99 plus grats. We have plans to eat in 2/3 ports and then MTD for the remainder of the nights. I actually didn't schedule MTD across the board like I normally do. I think I booked 3 nights: Caribbean night, Royal and Bon Voyage. We shall hit up ELF as well. For the final cruise I have the UDP. My brother already said he will make use of the credits, so I doubt we will be in the MDR or WJ at all. I booked hibachi as a lunch but that may change with our mood. I like hibachi as a break-up but I don't know if I want to necessarily pay an extra $30 to sit at a table with other humans and make awkward talks. It is always awkward because my brother eats.......and just shenanigans follow us. I do have the soda package for one leg, only because they added cans in the mix. I used to get the soda package all the time but then the Freestyle machines stopped being stocked as often and I had whole cruises where I got maybe 2 sodas a day. I may cancel it because we have done pretty well with prime and D+, it just would be nice not to have to hoard sodas in the room . JohnK6404, Jax, TessFromFlorida and 8 others 10 1 Quote
Ampurp85 Posted August 4 Author Report Posted August 4 10 hours ago, AshleyDillo said: I'm so bummed that you are sailing one month too early Take good care of her for all the group cruisers! I really wish the group cruise had worked for me. We shall sail together again someday........probably when we are both pinnacle AshleyDillo and WAAAYTOOO 1 1 Quote
OCSC Mike Posted August 4 Report Posted August 4 27 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said: Speaking of specialty dining I have a plan. I love all that planning. So many permutations between the venues, prices, and ports for 15 days. WAAAYTOOO, InmyElement, Ampurp85 and 1 other 2 2 Quote
asquared17 Posted August 5 Report Posted August 5 2 hours ago, Ampurp85 said: We also plan to hit Portside a la carte for night one. I hate welcome aboard and Portside is an underrated gem. I have learned my lesson and will do a kids meal . these are my TOP TWO portside tips. 15/10 co-sign this!!!! Ampurp85, WAAAYTOOO and ScottD 2 1 Quote
ScottD Posted August 5 Report Posted August 5 49 minutes ago, asquared17 said: these are my TOP TWO portside tips. 15/10 co-sign this!!!! I got my cousin and his wife to take a cruise finally, they're on Oasis right now. I told them, make sure you try Portside, I'm 0 for 2 and still mad about it. OCSC Mike, MaryS, Ogilthorpe and 4 others 6 1 Quote
asquared17 Posted August 5 Report Posted August 5 1 hour ago, ScottD said: I got my cousin and his wife to take a cruise finally, they're on Oasis right now. I told them, make sure you try Portside, I'm 0 for 2 and still mad about it. this remains, to date, one of the saddest stories ever told. 0 for 2, i’m…… InmyElement, Jamesszy94, OCSC Mike and 4 others 7 Quote
SweetPea Posted August 7 Report Posted August 7 On 8/4/2025 at 6:52 AM, Ampurp85 said: First the important stuff some of you want to know........................My mother is still married and living in Florida. Her husband continues to be him. He has not, imho, improved although his partially-amputated foot has healed. His stubbornness has resulted in other medical issues that continue to be ongoing and won’t get better until he faces reality. He has been back in the hospital more than three times since Jan; he was recently in the hospital on their one-year anniversary in July. He gets on her nerves but it beats actually working with the public, so it is still a win in her books Thank you for not making me ask.. On 8/4/2025 at 6:52 AM, Ampurp85 said: You all know how some *cough* vintages like to make grandiose plans and not have the follow through. Oh we know. We know .... Also, sorry about your sucky work issues. Never fun. ScottD, Ampurp85 and InmyElement 2 1 Quote
SweetPea Posted August 13 Report Posted August 13 On 8/4/2025 at 6:57 AM, Ampurp85 said: CP has been sort of insane these past couple of months, with lots of glitches and price changes. The sales have also varied. I have been seeing D+ offers, cabin offers and prime offers. Since it has been a while since I have been to PDCC, I was looking at Hideaway, although I was never going to pay more than $35. Definitely check the CP today if you have patience for their pathetic website. With the Black Friday preview, I just saved a ton at PDCC. Good luck! OCSC Mike, WAAAYTOOO, Ampurp85 and 1 other 3 1 Quote
Ampurp85 Posted August 13 Author Report Posted August 13 23 days to go I think I have lots of updates. Work/life has kept me busy and continues to. For those of you intertwined with my mother's saga. The husband has been refusing to do his PT. My mother leaves him in the living room to do it and he just sits there watching FOX/MSNBC news. So he got an infection, bad, and was in the hospital and had to take antibiotics for 2weeks. She had to administer them through his PICT line and it was a time . He went in for a check-up yesterday, as his last dose was on Sat.The antibiotics did okay but not enough and now for 2 more weeks my mother has to drive him every day to get them. He is highly upset about this but mother said at least he will actually get up and walk.......so silver lining. So at day 30 when the documents became available for the 2N cruise I was officially assigned a room. It is a forward interior on deck 9, #9443, which holds 3 guest. I was sort of hoping to change the rooms so they are either the same for all the sailings or close together. But it seems like so many interiors have been sold out while CP interiors, neighborhood balconies, and suites remain. In fact the neighborhood balconies have been reduced on the RU site. There are a ton of suites available for all three sailings, but especially the 2N. Since I book through the casino, there is no way of knowing if the prices have gone down. But I was thinking of calling to see if maybe what I paid is now the current cost of a balcony. I haven't had the time but I will be off this weekend and will try. J3N, OCSC Mike, SweetPea and 10 others 13 Quote
Ampurp85 Posted August 14 Author Report Posted August 14 The "pre" BF sale is amazing but also a time!!!!!! On the 7n sailing the UDP went to $219pp with grats and the 6n $188 with grats. I really had to stalk the site, going in and out, refreshing and with much patience. I wasn't able to make any reservation but I got the deals and booked them, so that is all that matters. I was also able to save on internet and other deals for a few future cruises. I want to talk about Spirit for a minute. So when I originally booked my R/T flight with them they had 4-tiers of service. I booked Go Comfy which came with a blocked middle seat closed to the front of the plane, a carry-on, priority boarding and something else that really didn't matter. Some time in June they changed the flights and their offering. Which had only 3 tiers: value, premium economy and first. Now I have only flown with them a couple of times and I believe both times I wasted money on their "Big Seat." There big seat is usually only 8-12 seats at the very front of the plane. In the past this seat got nothing in the way of amenities other than priority boarding. Since I had Go Comfy I was being transfer to premium economy which listed all the perks mentioned plus a snack. However like two weeks later they changed the free snack to 25% off of snacks but they were supposed to honor it for flights booked before July15th or 20th. Instead they only honored it to that date and boy was people upset. I mean given that the fares aren't as cheap as they once were, does a $4 snack/drink matter in the overall scheme of things.........YES, to Spirit. Why you say, well they just by the skin of their teeth escaped bankruptcy.......bankruptcy. So with all this tomfoolery I decide to look up Spirit and they are COLLAPSING. They only have enough funds to last until Dec 2025 and so they need to nickle and dime the hell out of everyone to survive. Which is a long way of saying I believe this will be my last flight with them. Ogilthorpe, asquared17, perfect match and 8 others 2 9 Quote
SweetPea Posted August 14 Report Posted August 14 12 hours ago, Ampurp85 said: For those of you intertwined with my mother's saga. The husband has been refusing to do his PT. My mother leaves him in the living room to do it and he just sits there watching FOX/MSNBC news. So he got an infection, bad, and was in the hospital and had to take antibiotics for 2weeks. She had to administer them through his PICT line and it was a time . He went in for a check-up yesterday, as his last dose was on Sat.The antibiotics did okay but not enough and now for 2 more weeks my mother has to drive him every day to get them. He is highly upset about this but mother said at least he will actually get up and walk.......so silver lining. Hi. My name is SweetPea and I'm addicted to any and all mom and new hubby updates. I think your mom may secretly like the drama of caring for a stubborn man? Regardless, I'm glad his antibiotics provided some relief and he's at least walking again. 10 hours ago, Ampurp85 said: The "pre" BF sale is amazing but also a time!!!!!! Yes, my friend, yes it was. I watched prices fluctuate repeatedly. Sometimes they would display as 40% off but when you'd click to reserve, it was suddenly 30% off instead. When it finally went back to 40% off, the "Reserve" button was grayed out and I couldn't add it to my cart. It was an exercise in determination. I eventually won, but thankfully had the time to make sure i did. Cactus527, Ampurp85 and InmyElement 2 1 Quote
asquared17 Posted August 14 Report Posted August 14 oh my gosh i was laughing at the spirit ordeal even though it’s not funny as much as it is insane!!!!! why do shenanigans follow you around???? InmyElement, MaryS, OCSC Mike and 1 other 4 Quote
Ampurp85 Posted August 15 Author Report Posted August 15 21 days to go I love when we got down to weeks and achievable days. I know exactly 3 Fridays from now I will be on a ship, enjoying GT lunch or people watching. Just like the 2N, my 6N GTY was assigned officially when the documents became available. So I am officially in cabin #14273 which is an almost aft interior. I got done with work early and it is the weekend before school starts, so I was able to end my workday early because some parents......or their tiny humans.......waited until the last minute to do their back-to-school shopping. I did call and see about getting the same room for all three legs and it was a struggle. CP and boardwalk balconies are only a few dollars more than what I paid for the interiors, but I don't like them. Between the noise and the fact that people can see you, I know we won't get any use out of them. Then they basically only had forward interiors and no room was available for all three legs. I could have the same room for the 2n and 6n but not the 7. The 7N only had cabins available on deck 3, which is a nope for a ship of Oasis size. Now I should point out my brother is all abut the adventure. He said changing rooms each leg will mean moving around the neighborhood and since I like the aft cabins on deck 8/14, I decided not to change. I really would hate being forward for 13 days. Also given that we are shenanigan magnets, we need to move Today was a good day, I was able to mark off something that had been stressing me. Last month I went for my teeth cleaning and a general check up because for a few months I had a sensitive tooth. Turns out a piece of popcorn cracked and got stuffed in one of my molars. I needed a root canal and crown, it was my first ever large dental work procedure type thing. According to my dentist, I take very good care of my teeth so it wasn't as bad as it could have been. Since I do take care of my teeth I didn't know that root canals and crowns are done in stages. It could take weeks for the crown to even come in!!!! But I don't play. I did all my procedures relatively back to back and was just waiting on the crown, which was technically due on 18th of Aug. Thank sweet baby Jesus it came on the 12th and I was able to get it put in today after work. I really thought I was not going to have a tooth and be cutting it close since all my work hours starting Monday(teens are back in school so pretty much straight mornings) were during the time the office was open. I think this will be a shock to those of you who follow my blog but I have TWO luggage, so does my brother. I got a checked bag and my smaller (19in) carry-on, plus my backpack. We have had two not so great experiences with the laundry service on board so I need to bring more clothing than usual. I brought this smaller carry-on like 3-4 years ago and used it once, on a B2B of Navigator that was 8 days out of LAX. I am still dealing with some CP issues as one of my previous reservations refuse to cancel. I tried for 3 days and today when I called about the rooms, asked them to cancel it. Guess what, it is stuck. Which really sucks because I may have to just get it cancelled on board. SweetPea, JohnK6404, InmyElement and 4 others 6 1 Quote
asquared17 Posted August 15 Report Posted August 15 3 hours ago, Ampurp85 said: I have TWO luggage, so does my brother. I got a checked bag and my smaller (19in) carry-on, plus my backpack THE JOY THIS BRINGS ME!!!!!! MaryS, J3N, Ampurp85 and 3 others 6 Quote
GatorCruiser Posted August 16 Report Posted August 16 Can’t wait. You’re a blog OG. Let’s do this!! Ampurp85, Sweety, Jamesszy94 and 1 other 2 2 Quote
frazer17 Posted August 17 Report Posted August 17 On 8/4/2025 at 11:52 AM, Ampurp85 said: Well, it’s been ages since my last cruise and the withdrawal is real. By the time I sail it will have been 217 days…….... almost as long as Oasis was broken up…….….. j/k that was more than 15 years. I had a few titles picked out. But I decided on this title because Oasis actually reunited this year. They were out of their minds with those ticket prices. Oasis is also the first ship my brother and I sailed together on and the only ship we have been on the same number of times. So the reunion idea works…right??? As usual the intro is TL; DR but let’s get into it. First the important stuff some of you want to know........................My mother is still married and living in Florida. Her husband continues to be him. He has not, imho, improved although his partially-amputated foot has healed. His stubbornness has resulted in other medical issues that continue to be ongoing and won’t get better until he faces reality. He has been back in the hospital more than three times since Jan; he was recently in the hospital on their one-year anniversary in July. He gets on her nerves but it beats actually working with the public, so it is still a win in her books . Now back to the regularly scheduled program. I have been in the longest dry/land lock of my life since I started traveling. In the past not only did I have to travel for conferences, but I had at least a couple of vacations a year. Then I caught the cruising bug and was cruising at least three times a year plus a little land vacation here and there. This year I only did my S2S and that was about half a year ago in Jan!!!!!! I am finally getting back to the high seas on a Royal ship, not as though there are other company’s ships I would be on. Though not my original plan. I am excited to spend 15 days on the Oasis. I really need a vacation because work/life has been kicking my butt. Too many changes in life, I am an x-llenial: I nest and don’t do too well with changes. “I” originally had plans to sail from L.A and had booked Navigator from Oct 24-31st This was originally a group cruise because everyone wanted to sail from “not a Florida” port. You all know how some *cough* vintages like to make grandiose plans and not have the follow through. I went along with the plan even though I wanted to sail out of Port Liberty instead. That plan included the idea to earn the 4-night Oct 20-24th sailing on Nav and the Oct 31- Nov 4th sailing of Quantum in the casino. I had made these plans after my B3B on Freedom in May of 2024. We of course know that we can make all the plans we want, and life just laughs. Right before my Sept 2024 Alaska sailing my company gave us some harsh news and I had to roll with the punches. I knew my plans were going to change just not how much my traveling style would. Also the marriage/fallout of friends that made group cruises dead, happened. I was still willing to sail from LA but Club Royale sort of put a stop to that notion. I believe it was Oct/Nov when they started doing buy one get one discounted (BOGOD) offers. I received one that had Oasis for 6 nights and inquired about the price. I love Freedom/Voyager class, but an Oasis class will always win out for the eating options alone. Plus, in all honesty after sailing Quantum to Alaska, Quantum class still holds the spot of my least favorite class of ship. Storage is on point but everything else is "mid" as the youths say. A quick call to Club Royale gave me my answers. With the discount it was under $950 with gratuity for two in a GTY interior. After you subtract the taxes, port fees and gratuity, the fare was only $563; way less than it would probably cost me to earn on a cruise. As it was an Oasis class comp and would normally be in the 2K point or plus range. I jumped on that offer and paid the balance in Dec. I decided to build my cruise around that. I had purchased two rooms for the Navigator sailing but only mine was a refundable deposit. So, I decided to change the other room to the Oasis 2-night sailing that departed on the 5th and then play for the following 7-night cruise on my Jan S3S. I was successfully able to earn the Sept 7th sailing, an OV with OBC and freeplay, on my Jan Symphony sailing. I really dislike OV rooms, so I downgraded my certificate to an aft interior on deck eight. Although I recently learned that Oasis class has OV rooms on higher floors so who knows, I may revisit that stance. Funny enough, I had booked the CLS (1724) on the 2-night Oasis sailing but after staying in a JS on Oasis in Jan, I decided I am not really a fan of the suite offering on Royal. At the time it was about $1400 for the 2night sailing and the CLS is still the only suite room I want to stay in. But I had to consider whether it was worth it and whether it wasn’t. Since it was only a 2-night sailing, my internet is free for being D+. Also the only port being PDCC means the casino is open and I have access to all day prime drinks. Lastly, I am only a fan of the CK steak menu, so it makes no sense to pay three times the price for “perks” I won’t use and a room I will barely be in. The 2 lunches and one breakfast in CK weren’t enough of a draw either. For me the value just wasn’t there. I will be honest with property taxes increases, tariffs and reduced hours/no pay increases. I am in thrift mode. I was often an in-between person: bougie on some aspects and thrifty with others. But now I cannot fathom paying the prices some cruise lines want for suites. Last I checked almost all the suites were available for the 2N cruise and they were going for an average of $1kpp, which is an insane price tag for such a short adventure. With all that being said, I applied the money off certs we won on our Jan Indy cruise to the Sept 5th sailing and all in we were looking at about $1100pp for 15 nights of cruising. Yes, that is for all interiors but still an amazing deal. In the original group cruise plans, my mother was going on all three cruises and then she got married and couldn’t make the Jan cruises due to her husband’s health. Considering his health, he has improved slightly but around every bend there is a new health issue. We knew she wouldn’t be coming along in September, so I didn’t bother planning to include her once the plans changed. Although I do talk to my mother every day, this is the longest I will have gone without seeing her in a physical capacity. His health issues and my new work schedule have made this difficult. Right now, she has plans to attend my Jan 2026 S3S, even if she must put him in a nursing home for a few weeks……. her words. Hi QQ, when booking where in the process do you see if the deposit is refundable or non-refundable? Quote
frazer17 Posted August 17 Report Posted August 17 6 minutes ago, frazer17 said: Hi QQ, when booking where in the process do you see if the deposit is refundable or non-refundable? feel free to ignore , found it on my booking journey Quote
Ampurp85 Posted August 22 Author Report Posted August 22 14 days to go Time is moving both fast and slow. Next week is my 6 day workweek(I do one a month), so I will have little to no time for anything. I work 4 days the week we leave(Mon-Thurs), until 6:30 the day before , so I am trying to schedule and organize things the best I can. I made my mani/pedi appoint for Mon the 1st, which is the latest and earliest time I can go for optimal results. Fur baby leaves next weekend to get fattened up . Since I am off today, I started packing my clothes. For a couple of years I was doing the flat fold method because I used compression cubes and bags. But this time I used regular packing cubes and the roll method. It really worked out as I only have 4 medium cubes for 15 days of clothes. I normally do half and half; usually half shorts and tees, half dresses/business casual. But this time I decided on only 4 dresses, 2 blouses, a skirt and a pair of pants, with all my other attire being shorts and tees. I noticed that when I brought double that for all those types of items I only ended up wearing 4 dresses and maybe one blouse and pants. Also in most cases I was a forcing myself to wear them. Don't get me wrong I like a chill dress with pockets but the wind on the ship does not. I also don't do formal or theme nights, that space can be saved for something else. My brother has begun packing as well and so far all the luggage is under 50lbs. We only have PDCC on one stop so he decided against bringing his snorkeling gear. Of course the cup clip made it into my bag shout out @asquared17 But some prime day deals have been sent back. The worst offender was the Airplane Pocket which was sent back asap Amazon.com | Airplane Pockets - Airplane Accessories - Plane Travel Essentials - Travel Organizer - Seat Storage Organizer - Air Travel Essentials - Seat Back Organizer - International Travel Must Haves | Packing Organizers We brought different airplane pockets and then when they arrived we thought the material for both wasn't optimal. We want it to hold our phones and water bottles. We also worried about having enough space because they would hang in the leg area and with the tray table down, all the items would be in our laps. Amazon.com | SO~MINE Airplane Pocket Organizer | Tray Table Cover | In Flight Seat Back Organizer Bag | Commuter Essential Travel Bag | Media Pouch For Flying | Travel Gift | Attaches To Luggage (Purple) | Luggage Carts Amazon.com | TOCCOOL Airplane Tray Table Cover with Under Desk Attachment Set, Travel Tools for Seat Back Organize & Belongings Storage, Foldable Flight Organizer with Water Bottle Holder (Black) | Packing Organizers We decided against them and will use a carabiner to attach items in pouches along the seat. I also got a new travel/cruise fan. I always travel with a fan, can't sleep without one. Plus my brother likes the room hot . I am so happy that they are catching up with the times because a carry case is a lifesaver. I normally wrap mine in some jammies but always worry that all the tomfoolery involved with checked bags would cause damage. It has happened before, twice on international flights my fans were destroyed upon arrival. Amazon.com: 20000mAh Battery Operated Camping Fan - 112Hrs Rechargeable Oscillating Table Fan with Light & Timer, 8 Speeds Portable Travel Fan for Cruise RV Trip, Hurricane Power Outage (8" with Case) : Sports & Outdoors There is currently a "sale" going on making balconies for all the cruises the same price I paid for interiors. I called and they said its a flash sale so they can't honor it . It isn't a super loss, I called twice and both rep said the same thing, because it would have been balcony GTYs and I don't really want to wait however long for them to assign the rooms. At least that is my way of looking at the silver lining. I finally got all my refunds from the BF preview sale........but that one reservation still won't cancel. I will have to get the refund onboard. Ogilthorpe, Hoppy2BHere, lovetheplaya and 5 others 5 1 2 Quote
asquared17 Posted August 22 Report Posted August 22 3 hours ago, Ampurp85 said: Of course the cup clip made it into my bag shout out @asquared17 CUP CLIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!! dougalsgirl, lovetheplaya, Ampurp85 and 1 other 2 1 1 Quote
perfect match Posted August 29 Report Posted August 29 We board Utopia 3 days after you board Oasis, but only for 4 days, so I’ll be following along. I actually nearly booked us for one of the sailings you will be on but with all of the life situations DH and I have going on we both felt that the 4 day Utopia would be the best fit for us at this time. Following our Utopia sailing it currently seems like we will be joining the group going into cruise drydock. I’m counting on following other people’s cruise blogs to keep me in touch with life on the high seas! aubtfan, OCSC Mike, Ampurp85 and 1 other 4 Quote
InmyElement Posted August 30 Report Posted August 30 On 8/14/2025 at 7:42 AM, SweetPea said: Hi. My name is SweetPea and I'm addicted to any and all mom and new hubby updates. Hi..my name is InmyElement and I'm so glad your back!!! On 8/22/2025 at 1:48 PM, Ampurp85 said: I also got a new travel/cruise fan. I always travel with a fan, can't sleep without one. Plus my brother likes the room hot I also can’t sleep without my trusty Windy McWhirlyface Thanks for the link! Always shopping for something new.. I had a roommate many moons ago who cranked the heat...straight up fanless hell! You’re a saintly sister! Getting Close!!! Ampurp85 1 Quote
smokeybandit Posted August 30 Report Posted August 30 Just be aware that a flight attendant may ask you to remove your seat back organizer during take off and landing. Ampurp85 1 Quote
Ampurp85 Posted August 31 Author Report Posted August 31 5 days to go..... We are down to the wire. I can taste that embarkation GT lunch and smell the salty sea in mind already. Weather has been weird. Our summer died very fast and we have been in the 70s since like mid-August, with some almost 40-ish lows. I can't believe I am saying this but I am looking forward to those high 80/90s I see on the weather app for Florida and the Caribbean. Fur baby was dropped off this morning and I am currently sitting with my feet in a spa tub as I type this. Last items have been packed and the luggage is sitting in the living room. Personal item just needs the snacks for the flight, which will be DD glazed donuts( I think the Dunkin at the airport opens around 3am) or an Oscar Meyers protein snack pack. I still can't believe I actually have two luggage, I didn't even have two for 12 days in Italy. I have printed out the luggage tags. I prefer to print in B&W because they get tossed after like 2hrs and I needed 12, 4 for each leg. I find that since I am changing rooms across multiple floors, its better to just put the tags on the luggage so the attendant won't have any confusion. Spirit filled for bankruptcy AGAIN!!!!! But claims to have enough to cover their current flight loads for the remainder of the year. I really hope they get it together. All of the flights from ORD have been leaving normally and on time, so they are still behaving professionally. I don't like the new merging of Club Royale with Royal's base website. I lost out on a ton of offers and now I need everyone's login info just to see if they have offers. CP has a Labor day sale but nothing was as good as the BF previews sale. The Izumi's dinner still won't cancel and I will have to do it onboard and get OBC, I was given a service code in case there are issues. I am really hoping to score express boarding. I went to the bank for starter cash and I love how there is always the same two reactions when I tell them its for a cruise. Relief that I am not getting these singles and fives for debaucherous activities and shock that I am willing to be on a cruise ship with people. So many people have ignorant views/ideas when it comes to cruises. Hoppy2BHere, Ogilthorpe, Cactus527 and 10 others 12 1 Quote
asquared17 Posted August 31 Report Posted August 31 1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said: I still can't believe I actually have two luggage, welcome to the dark side perfect match, InmyElement, OCSC Mike and 4 others 7 Quote
OCSC Mike Posted August 31 Report Posted August 31 1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said: Our summer died very fast and we have been in the 70s since like mid-August, with some almost 40-ish lows I want this. 1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said: GT lunch And this. TessFromFlorida, Lovetocruise2002, Ogilthorpe and 3 others 6 Quote
Lovetocruise2002 Posted August 31 Report Posted August 31 3 hours ago, Ampurp85 said: Our summer died very fast and we have been in the 70s since like mid-August, Our summer also died this past week since we have come home. Low 70s and dipping into the 60s and 50s overnight. But I am not going to complain at this point because most schools here have no AC, mine included, so it’s sort of a blessing seeing that we are headed back to the classroom in a few days. Hoppy2BHere, Ampurp85, WAAAYTOOO and 2 others 3 2 Quote
Ogilthorpe Posted August 31 Report Posted August 31 12 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said: Our summer also died this past week since we have come home. Low 70s and dipping into the 60s and 50s overnight. But I am not going to complain at this point because most schools here have no AC, mine included, so it’s sort of a blessing seeing that we are headed back to the classroom in a few days. We are seeing the same, 90s every day and suddenly 40 at night (about 4 Canadian ), we can't wait to get on the Oasis in less than 2 weeks and revive summer. Lovetocruise2002, WAAAYTOOO, Curt From Canada and 2 others 4 1 Quote
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