Jasukkie

I won my first two bids when it first started and never again so I don't bother now. I did ask a "winner" in a social media group how much they bid to go from OV to balcony on my last royal cruise and it was way more money than I would have spent. I just book what I'm happy with and leave it at that, easier and sometimes cheaper.

I urge anyone looking for kid-free space to try Virgin Voyages. Make sure you compare bottom line pricing as VV includes gratuities and wifi in their cruise price. 

I enjoy Royal but it's all about the kids and families. It's almost never the kids that bother me as much as the parents. Kids need a lot of attention and engagement from their parents on a cruise ship. Lock the phones in the safe and spend time together. If that's playing go fish in a bar I'm totally fine with that. I don't expect it to be kid free on Royal, but I do expect people to make sure their kids are occupied and reasonably behaved. 

What's next, a clean plate club certificate before you can have dessert?

I take it you and your husband each hold one room and are bringing a guest? You will face the same package rules onboard and the price is significantly higher. It never goes down.

I recently called to cancel a cruise and moved my deposit to another cruise. I had not made any cruise planner purchases but the agent asked if we had because those would be refundable. I suggest calling back.

2 hours ago, BND said:

On small ships such as Vision class, it's a place to get a snack before dinner (late seating for us).  There are plenty of people who do like the lounges.  We've met a lot of great people in them.  The great thing about it is, you don't have to go, but if others want to, then that's great.  We haven't experienced the "seating domination".   On some sailings there are groups that know each other and why shouldn't they sit together?  We have seen less of that in the last few years, but it's never kept us from finding a seat.

I'm glad you enjoy them. I'm sure Royal will keep them around another couple of years for old time's sake, but I don't think the concept will survive long term. 

As for the seating situation, the last time I got snacks in the lounge was on Jewel, which is a tiny partitioned space. One large group had arranged the majority of chairs in an oval, they were loud and it just wasn't a relaxing vibe. I say this not as a complaint, they are absolutely free to do that, but just sharing that it can be a reason why people prefer to be elsewhere. I can use my vouchers anywhere. They also let you walk out with the snacks which is nice if it is too crowded. As I said, I usually check it out at least once per cruise, it's by no means a deal-breaker for us. That's prime hot tub time when everyone else is at dinner.

I'm D+ and I just don't see the appeal of these spaces. The ones without the views are about as appealing as a doctor's waiting room, and the ones with a view are divided into a tiny little space that always has that one group dominating the seating. The snacks have gone downhill too. I pop in once or twice per cruise, or not. Love those vouchers!

Every situation is unique. There may be coverage under their regular insurance. If the wife was the planner, perhaps someone needs to access her email and search for a travel insurance purchase. Or it could have been obtained with the original booking. 

Who did the evacuating to Miami? Did they ask for a credit card? 

Woohoo, laundry perks! I'm not kidding, that means a lot to me. Especially when you have to fly and are trying to be a packing minimalist.

I have yet to try Celebrity, but it's definitely on my radar. 

Just like any other crowded place or event where people gather together, some people go home with a souvenir Covid infection. It's very common to see this discussed in social media groups for a given sailing. There are usually a few people onboard wearing masks but the vast majority don't. Hand sanitizer dispensers aren't refilled as well as one might hope. Bring your own, more about GI illnesses than Covid, but better safe than sorry on that stuff.

Cruising has become more popular than ever. Things can feel crowded sometimes. I'd say on the whole there are more younger people than ever. Meals have been sped up but as I see it, the service improved with the new menus. I prefer the once a day cleaning and haven't had problems requesting late day service. It eliminates feeling like you have to get up and out of the room in the morning. 

If you are Diamond and above, you get free drink vouchers instead of unlimited happy hour in the Diamond Club. This has been a fantastic change!

Great review! This is such a resource for people with food allergies. Hopefully people will find it when they search because I've never read such a thorough account of the process.

I so agree with you about the volume issue. I'm forever in search of quiet places. I frequently end up back on my balcony for this reason. I put this on every survey, obviously has had no effect though. 

3 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

How familiar are you with the exact compensation provided by the insurance company?

 

Most travel insurance "evacuation" coverage will get you to the nearest medical facility capable of providing support. It does not fly you anywhere you want to go. Trip interruption insurance will get you a flight home. But travel interruption insurance has a very small limit which may/may not cover commercial coach travel and will not provide a private air charter or first class travel because "you want to be comfortable". 

I've only had the one experience but I have to say I was impressed with how much they did cover when all was said and done. Two of us accompanied our family member off the ship. I was reimbursed for the unused portion of my cruise, and my hotel and meals. I have flight benefits so I was able to get home using them but they would have paid my airfare. 

After about a week in hospital, my relative and his wife were transported home by medical jet to continue recovery in a hospital close to their home. That part took pressure from the medical staff that commercial flying would not have been appropriate. In the end, it all worked out. One word of advice I would give is to save every receipt, make copies, and save digital copies. Communicate by email so you have a record as well. It can complicated keeping track of things to be reimbursed.

I've had experience with this with a family member who became ill on a cruise and was taken off, with travel insurance. You are somewhat at the mercy of your travel insurance provider regarding evacuation back to the US. Insurance would much prefer you recover enough to fly home commercial. So you may spend a period of time in a foreign hospital. And they will want to be paid. I would not recommend being cash poor in this situation. Travel insurance did eventually reimburse for all those on the ground expenses but you have to have the space on a credit card up front. I don't care how healthy someone is, always get the insurance. This would have been well over $100K without insurance. Royal's shore side support was very helpful through this by the way. Perhaps because we had the insurance they did not ask for payment for the onboard care prior to evacuation. I believe that part was handled directly from the insurance company.

Uber or Lyft XL is probably your best bet. 

Royal dining can be very hit or miss and if you cruise a lot you know what to avoid. Thankfully there are choices in cruise brands. If food is a top priority, Virgin Voyages is the best in my experience. 

On 4/25/2024 at 11:13 PM, coloradosmom said:

Are you referring to Royal Caribbean? I can't find any images or videos showing what you described 

I hope this works, I've never posted a picture here before. This is what it looked like in fall of 2022. As far as I know it hasn't changed. I think there are six of these. 

I usually do attend happy hour hours once per cruise just to check things out and try the snacks. It's hit or miss but usually still pretty well attended so it can be hard to find a seat. Very skippable now with the vouchers which are great. Tell your server if you don't want to use a voucher if you are getting a coke or special coffee so they don't accidentally get used. Also be careful with whose card is being used if you are a couple. It could leave one partner short if you go do your own thing later in the evening. 

Yes, the spa has the heated loungers. They are tile and get nicely warm. This is a coed area of the spa. In that space, there is a super hot steam room, an aromatherapy room which I liked the best, and a larger steam room, as well as some waterfall showers that were pretty underwhelming. This is available for pay, either by session or a cruise length pass. They gave us some freebie samples and scrubs as well. 

I'd say the pass is worth it on colder itineraries or if you have a lot of sea days. It was very relaxing. There are windows to the outside too so you can see the sea which is nice.

(This was my experience 18 months ago, not sure if anything has changed)

I would choose Izumi but that's just personal preference. They have plenty of non raw fish options if that's an issue. Chops is nice too. I would put Jamie's last, not that it's bad but I don't like Italian food as much. Someone else could give opposite answers and not be wrong. I would choose based on your general food preferences. 

I would do this if there was a without alcohol option. I can do one cocktail or glass of wine with dinner but that's it for me. I do appreciate the upgraded level of service generally experienced in the specialty restaurants. The supper club atmosphere is appealing too.

There is almost always a lox and bagel station in the Windjammer, frequently on one of the smaller side stations towards the back but that will vary by ship. Often you will find they are pre-assembled with a little onion and capers.

I don't go to the main dining room for breakfast often because the service is historically slow, but I believe it's on the menu there too. 

It's hard to eat those as someone from New York, but I understand these are considered bagels in most places. The lox is also sometimes okay and sometimes not so good. 

What a great a picture is worth a thousand words example. Guess it's safe to say it depends lol.

The last ship's tour I did was on Jewel and it was so long and detailed I thought we were being onboarded as employees. People started to drop off in the third hour. Others are more superficial. So yeah, it all depends.

I consider myself a pretty strong swimmer but it can definitely be challenging getting on and off into strong currents where you are expected to walk up with a rope line to the beach. Add in sun and alcohol, yes, I'd describe it as strenuous.

I've only done a 5 nighter solo but it was enjoyable. It's nice to have real down time. Lunch in the MDR was a nice way to mix with a big table and everyone was chatty. I preferred to have dinner in the Windjammer though. I did a lot of reading which was nice. Cruising definitely attracts a lot of solo travelers so you won't be alone if you don't want to be. 

I will assume from your name you are a woman. Sorry to the decent guys out there, but pay attention to your spidey senses with men. Sometimes friendliness can be misinterpreted as an invitation. You can always make up a fictional husband who couldn't make the trip if you aren't interested in that sort of socializing.