barbeyg

I thought it was interesting that he would 'admit' (if it's factual data) that 20% of people would consider other cruise lines. We are considering others because of the high pricing. And we didn't do the survey.

I agree with much of what you say. I book our cruises now thru a TA that has group rates lower than the prices on RCI. There will be a tipping point with that, as well, if they keep jacking their prices up. We have a 9 night scheduled on Celebrity (sister line) in a suite that we booked very cheap 2 years ago. The price has gone up almost $10k since we booked. Insane pricing! We won’t book Celebrity again after our cruise next year unless prices come down to a more reasonable price. That’s ok for us, there are lots of land vacations we want to take in retirement. When RCI starts pulling the benefits from C&A (which I expect to happen sometime soon with the $$ people in charge), that will mean the incentive for us to sail with RCI is ending, and we will be much more amenable to searching and sailing other lines, and investing more time at the shore rather than in the ocean. Guess we will see how this all shakes out.

After working in a corporate environment for a couple of decades, I’ve learned that those at the top have no idea of what’s going on in the ‘real world’ down below. They make decrees and expect the rest of us to work out the kinks. Sorta like politicians on both sides of the aisle do. 🙄 I agree with the ‘chill for a minute’ suggestion. 🙂

Um no. I don’t buy cardboard pizza from the grocery store. Why on earth would I buy it from RCI? 😂 C’mon, RCI. Let’s not get ridiculous over mediocre choices. Is RCI in that much financial distress?

Wow! Thanks for sharing.

What I’ve seen on the other social media site, after the initial freak-out there, are people reporting that they have contacted the shoreside concierge, and been told there would be a pool of “retreat hosts” to handle requests. No personal butler, but continued personal attention from a team, instead. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Before I do a comparison, this is my own personal opinion, and I don't expect others to agree with me. 🙂 I will compare Oasis class with Edge class. I've sailed both of those, in suites (and on RCI, balcony cabins). Food: Celebrity definitely a step up. The food, across the board, was better than RCI. Entertainment: RCI has the edge, at least for us. Celebrity has more traditional venues, with some interesting shows, though. I enjoy both. Appearances: The Edge class and the Oasis class are beautiful, each in their own way. I would give the edge to the Edge class for elegance, but RCI does a great job with the design of their ships. We sail Celebrity for a laid back more adult sailing. Absolutely love the vibe of the Martini Bar, which is in the heart of the ship. Celebrity crew are also much friendlier than RCI, even though there are great crew members on RCI, no complaints there. We sail RCI for higher energy, and a larger variety of activities to participate in. I don't think you could go wrong with either.

+1. Have a great cruise!

👏 🙌

Glad to hear someone got to! 😁

It is, but Royal has to pass $$ along now, whether they want to or not. Staggering debt, interest rates rising. No more $18 drink package mistakes being honored any time soon. 😉

Got that accountant in charge now. He will nickel and dime everyone to death, if he can. And before an accountant gets all in a tizzy, I'm one too. 😂

Agree. Most news sources are clickbait these days. It has gotten ridiculous. 🙄 It would be nice if one of the stories actually provided some additional info, wouldn’t it?

Yikes! 😳 Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for the perspective of summertime on Oasis class. We sailed Oasis in May, and had a wonderful time. I think the fact that it wasn't packed to the extreme made a difference for us. We haven't sailed in the summer yet....and really don't think we ever will. I like the variety of the larger ships (quantum class is as much a favorite as oasis class for us), but don't want to sail when they are too crowded.

We recently walked off at 7:20, were at the airport thru security by 8:15. YMMV

I get that. 🙂 Just voicing my opinion like others. Some people want a party cruise. Others don’t want to commit to a whole week. Etc. RCI will benefit very well financially with this decision. They can get a bigger premium for shorter cruises. They are sailing to the Bahamas, so spending less on fuel. There are other cost savings for them doing things this way. I have no doubt their staggering debt comes into play here. Hope it helps keep them afloat….pun intended. 😂

Even though many of us were expecting the 3 & 4 night itineraries, it was disappointing to see. An extra turnaround day in the week will keep us from sailing her. Hoping for some 7 day itineraries at some point.

I used to book all my own cruises, because of my control-freak tendencies, and poor experiences with apathetic TAs previously. I had no idea how much could be saved by booking group rates up thru balcony cabin categories with the TA we now use! I thought all TA pricing was the same as RCI, but I was definitely wrong. We have a few leftover bookings that were self-booked, but going forward, we will use this particular TA for our cruises. And I've found that all the peripheral planning (flights, hotel stays, land excursions, etc) are enough to satisfy the "TA wannabee" control-freak inside me. 😂 Especially when it saves this accountant money. I personally suggest finding a new TA if you aren't happy with the one you have. Not all TAs are created equally. Look for one that is very responsive to emails. Makes all the difference, at least to me.

We haven't sailed as much as you guys, but only got Covid on one cruise, our Alaska cruise in 2022. I figured it was because we were all inside so much. And like you, even though our bout with Covid wiped us out, the worst 'sick' we've ever been was Noro. I wouldn't wish that on anyone! Hope you both stay healthy.

I agree. We prefer longer cruises, and the vibe of those. We won't sail short cruises, no matter how good the price. We aren't into party cruises, which is what many of the shorter cruises turn out to be.

Happy cruise day! Hope you both have a restful night. 🙂

And the NY calendar (along with suggested 2025). Winter Break shows the dates:

Here are the expected dates for Yeshiva in NJ, from a school district website:

Us too. We have an espresso machine at home, a real one, not fully automatic. I prefer whole milk in my cappuccinos, and can tell that is what is in the DL coffee machine by taste. DH drinks almond milk in his at home. Sacrilege! 😂 That said, half and half was readily available when we sailed Harmony 3 weeks ago.