LuCruise

Your review popped out to me as Grandeur was my very first cruise (my dad took me when I graduated university). So excited to follow along and see hear about your cruise. Am sorry your travel is so stressful. Weather certainly has gotten more drastic over the years and it's one thing out of our control. Sending you good vibes for your travels.

It's too bad. Never tried it but my kids did on Mariner and loved it. They were looking forward to it on Odyssey, so now that's one less thing for them to do when we go end of the year.

That could backfire for Royal. Many reasons why someone may not cruise for a few years. An 18 year for example may go to university, focus on career . Then with their own family may start think about cruising with their family. If they have their status, they are more likely to pick Royal. Same for any adult who either doesn't travel for a few years or selects other vacations and then returns for a cruise.

Great review. We were on the cruise right after yours. First time on Oasis and loved it! Guess it's a bit late now, but wondering when you booked Laser Tag? I only noticed when looking at the activities for that day and of course it was all sold out. We did see the standby line (which was empty at the time) but sadly my kids didn't want to wait (i.e. I would have loved to try it as I think it's different from Navigator and Symphony's version). I'm with you in the minority and really enjoyed Cats. Even saw it 1.5 times (had to leave early for second unplanned show to get ready for dinner). Thought it was an amazing performance. Sat upfront and the cats even interact with you. And agree...Grizella's performance was emotional. The whole cast was so talented. For Aqua show...this is the definitely my favorite one so far. And I agree...the sand artist was a nice surprise. Think I liked that part better than the skating..lol. Great video at Labadee. That's on our next cruise on Odyssey (and good to hear you loved that ship too). Think our kids may want to try the coaster. Looks like you had fun too parasailing! Thanks for sharing your review. Seems like a great cruise for you!

Yeah, was a bit annoyed as was hoping to use the card for Frappuccino's for our kids. The description on the app didn't list it though so I had no way to fight it. So we just paid out of pocket.

My husband had is drinks with almond milk on Oasis a few weeks ago. No additional punches. Not sure about double expresso, but I do know that a small was 1 punch and a medium was 2 punches. We like having the coffee card if we don't have the a drink package. I'd get a small each morning and then an iced coffee in the afternoon (2 punches). DH would get a medium (or large?) each morning. This was good for the week. Only thing we found on Oasis is that we couldn't use it on a Frappuccino. I could have sworn I did use the card for one on Liberty.

Symphony for me. The shows, decor, activities....all wow! We just got off Oasis and it was fantastic too. So many areas to walk and explore on both. And Oasis has the best Aqua show. Next is Anthem. It's different and enjoyed North Star, Sea Plex is great for kids, 270 is nice space for outside views, and We Will Rock You is best show (favorite is also Mamma Mia on Allure). DH prefers Mariner ... not too big and not too small. Everyone has different perspectives.

Ah ok. It's the first time I've seen a sign advertising that they do have veggie burgers upon request....and I've always looked and was surprised that they didn't have veggie burgers in this time and age (just assumed they didn't)

Yeah. You might get the same (original) response as me with having to finish your lobster first...or hopefully you'll be lucky and they will just bring you both at once.

Just got off Oasis and I tried this on lobster night as one of the main meals was the cheese tortellini and that's one of my favorites, but also wanted the lobster (figured I'd have it on the side instead of rice) . Our waiter commented the above that he can only bring it out when I'm done the lobster. I was disappointed but said never mind then... but low and behold, he brought out both for us anyways (shared tortellini with DH), so probably at their discretion. Was fine with the new menu. The warm chocolate cookie is the best dessert! For the other items...DH ordered the vegetarian Indian dish on many nights and enjoyed it. I liked many of the dishes...old classics were really good...mushroom risotto, garlic shrimp, Caesar salad, French onion soup offered on a few nights (DD's favorite), and some new ones were tasty too....some tofu taco thing was tasty, DS loved enchilada, salmon was ok. Only complaint is that one night was very salty (DD didn't eat her meal) and other nights the food wasn't always warm. All in all, we were fine with the new menu. P.S. - I don't eat beef or chicken and was happy to see that for the first time, you could get a veggie burger in the WIndjammer. Don't remember seeing that before.

Our kids loved it last March - they were 16 and 13

Our kids really enjoyed it when we went last March. They had a ton of fun but they are teens. There is two areas of slides, an obstacle type course in water, and a big wave pool. It was great too as we were the only ship in port (Anthem) and it was 60% capacity. So no lines (except one time on the big slide for 20 minutes). We'll see this time as we are one of two ships in port, and 100% capacity. Can imagine lines will be long this time. Note too that there are some free slides (and I think a splash area) when you walk in for the little ones. It may be too small though for the ones closer to 12.

Thanks so much for the info. Very helpful. Dh and I stayed at Hyatt Place in December pre-cruise, which is why we are looking at going back. We just booked on our own through travel site as price was ok then. We like the area being near Harbor Shops, and the room would be great with our kids with the semi divider for the sofa bed and extra space. We usually just uber to the port so we are on our own schedule (and it's close), but good to know shuttle is available too.

Thanks for mentioning. That's a good point when calculating the VT price with regular booking. For us too, we are Canadian so also need to consider converting to CAD. Glad it worked for you and you were still able to save money booking through them.

Excited to see your post. We will be on Oasis in two weeks, same itinerary and we also booked Boardwalk balcony rooms (kids in connecting). You have a great view! Looking forward to following along and hearing about your vacation and what you do. Enjoy your cruise! Thanks for the update about room cleaning. Guess we'll be the first down to 1x per day.

Thank you. That helps knowing that others have used VT and it's valid and no issues.

Question - For anyone that has done this tour, are walking sandals ok to wear? I don't really have runners and my only other shoes are slip-ons. There is a comment about uneven surfaces and steep terrain.

Great. Thank you. That's great if it's refundable and not an issue to deal directly with the hotel for anything after booking.

My couple cruise have been pretty constant and quite high. We were going to skip it, but it went 50% off last Black Friday so we purchased them. Unfortunately if your cruise is June, then there isn't a Black Friday before your cruise. Just keep checking as you never know if it goes down.

Thank you. Good to know after booking, just deal with the hotel. Do you know if the booking through VT is refundable or non-refundable?

Thanks. Didn't see anything specific. Yes I see the price for the date that we need, so can see it's a good price. Wondering people's experience though, if reliable, etc, non-refundable cost (website doesn't say so I assume so), etc

Has anyone booked Hyatt Place recently using Valuetrips? We have a cruise out of FLL end of December. The rates haven't been released yet but from what I see overall (and week prior), hotel costs have gone up significantly. DH and I stayed at Hyatt Place in December and were quite pleased. The cost for Valuetrips is quite good Is Valuetrips reliable? Any issues? How long after submitting the online form do you get confirmation that you are booked? We are a family of 4 so it looks like the cost shown is for 2 people and they add $10 pp to that? I assume these rates are non-refundable? We usually either book direct or with expedia so am a little iffy unless good feedback.

We had one on Symphony and have it booked again on our upcoming cruise. We enjoy them. The pros? It's fun to stand on the balcony and see the action on the Boardwalk. Although you are not as close to the ocean as a true ocean view balcony, you can still see it in the background, and it's fresh air and additional space. Whenever I've looked, it's much cheaper than an ocean view balcony. We were deck 10 on Symphony about mid way so not close enough to watch the show the first time, but it was fun to see parts again (or see them practicing in the day if you happened to catch them). The cons? It can be noisy and I remember hearing muffled sounds when a movie was playing, but ear plugs can help with that. People complain you can see the room across but that never bothered me. I close the curtain anyways at home when changing so no different. We like these rooms, but they are not for everyone.

Everyone is different but we quite enjoyed the Boardwalk Balcony on Symphony and have it booked again in a few weeks on Oasis. Just bring ear plugs for night if end up getting it and close curtains when changing. Not a big deal.. Haven't been on these specific ships (yet) so can't comment, but I would think they are mostly similar with a few differences (no pool in solarium on Harmony, 1 flowrider on Wonder, Hairspray on Harmony, Cats on Oasis, Royal's own production show on Wonder). I'd also vote Harmony based on guarantee balcony price, unless Orlando is easier to get to vs Miami.

Thanks for the review. We were on Anthem for the first time last March and quite enjoyed it. (Was obsessed with trying her as we kept having Anthem cruises cancelled due to the pandemic). If trying again, you may want to try Oasis class or Freedom or Voyager class (Mariner or Navigator for kids) if didn't like the crowds, but sounds like overall you enjoyed.