Jim_Iain

Many of the ships have RFID. Currently on Solstice - Not Revolutionized and they use magnetic strip still. Even the Casino you have to insert the card into a slot and leave it. Rooms you have to insert and pull out quickly. Most of the ships are RFID and you can just tap. You will need to hand it to security when leaving the ship and when you enter ports and the ship.

The Magic Carpet is not going up and down like an elevator. It only goes down occasionally when there is a tender port and sometimes moves up one floor or down to Sushi on 5 for a special dinner like the Taj dinner. On the Singapore to Sydney leg of the world cruise there was some damage and they didn't use it for tendering until it was repaired.

Had a couple spins on Wheel of Fortune and doubled my Money so cashed out. Only put in $50 Stopped by for a Cappuccino and . . . My favorites

Today has been a really relaxing day at sea. The winds are really high at about 35 knots and the ship is rocking. We had our final timezone change for this cruise last night so have been dragging a bit. I did a little gambling this morning and then just hung out in the room reading a book. We had a nice lunch at Luminae followed by a double scoop of Gelato. That of course made us drowsy and took a nice nap. I've never figured out why long sea days make one so tired. Maybe it is like being lulled to sleep in a cradle. Iain could sleep half the day and is still conked out. I may slip back down to the Casino. Hmmm... am I feeling lucky?

We had similar experience in the first year or so after resumption of cruising. I have to say I've been very impressed with them again as of late. It does help having unlimited free dining. We do not feel compelled to go all out and over eat. Instead we just have smaller (sometimes half portions) and just enjoy the incredible service. Our first visit was before they have out OBC for the mixed ports. One the first visit there were only 4 tables and of course plenty of time for the servers to socialize. After the OBC's were issued the Specialties booked out solid for the remainder of the cruise. There are still some opening at 8:30 which is our desired dining time. We were originally booked for the last night in HNL but changed it this morning to the night before.

Next up is something new for us. September 14 Oceania Cruises --- 12 night Alaska and Canada. We wanted to try and have booked two cruises with them this year.

Hitting Zenith is much easier these day depending on the category of cabin you sail Point Structure - If one happens to travel Solo then you get double points. We mostly sail in Celebrity and Royal Suites --- So Zenith would take 250 Nights - The cheapest locations are probably the Caribbean at about $750-$1,000 per night. I'm sure many others may have better costs per night. That would come to $200-250 Thousand dollars. It is really hard to tell totally because that is just the cruise fare and Business class has gone up to $4,5,000.

We take a Suitecase, an oversized suite bag, a back pack and a hand carry for Iain. The suite bag is increible and can fit two suites, 20-25 shirts on hangers, sweaters, undergarments, sweatshirts and 3 or 4 pairs of shoes. Our regular strategy is to pack for 7-8 days and then have laundry done along the way. It is easier for us as we get a Zenith perk of unlimited laundry and dry cleaning. Another advantage is that we are about the same size and can mix and match our shirts and t-shirts. Our longest trip has been 2 months and we do pick up Tshirts, hats and sweatshirts along the way

John, We had the same experience with Tuscan for many years and quit going. I've been very pleased with Tuscan in the past couple years. Iain seem to enjoy Tuscan more than Murano as of late.

As expected Immigration will be day of arrival in HNL

I’ve seen 3 posts so far but not a word from staff. While out walking have noticed at least 6 tables outside rooms to leave meals. One wrote me she gets out of quarantine this afternoon.

Safe flights. Always so excited for the next cruise. There are 300 B2B’s.

We went to Murano for the 3rd time last night. I had to share a picture of the Heirloom Tomato Salad. So fresh and beautifully presented. After 23 year finally talked Iain into the Chateaubriand for 2. It was way too large but did eat about 1/2 of it.

I've never been much of a FB person but the Roll Call for this cruise has been as active as CC in years past. There are a number of people reporting that they are confined to their cabins with Covid. Obviously there are many more that are running around and not isolation. While there is a lot of coughing all over the ship it is much less than we were on Edge in December. Right after the CDC recommended another booster for Seniors if it has been 4 months since the last injection, we got our booster a couple weeks before the cruise. Hope it keep sus well.

Solstice is still the same as before. I've been using it so much I don't think I even have to look at the buttons. I'm wondering if they have done that in all rooms or specific rooms. On Apex we had 3 different remotes --- one looked like that but was used to have the TV drop from the ceiling.