rockmom

No one has said that will be the case. However, on other ships that don't have enclosed indoor pools for families, Royal has set up times for families with kids to use the solarium pool. That is how it worked when I was in Explorer in 2018 for an Alaska sailing. There was a couple of hours where kids could get in the solarium pool as it was warmer in there than out on the main pool deck. If you scroll thorough posts on this and other threads, I'm not the only one to have seen this happen on other ships.

I've seen it on both Odyssey and on Navigator. It's a look through the years at how showgirls have evolved. Things like the Roaring 20's, of course Vegas-style, current dancer/dance styles and so on. It's pretty good, or at least I enjoyed it. I have now seen it 3 times though, so I think I'm good.

and four days of sailing in the cold with no indoor pool 😛

I'm having a hard time deciding.....But I think I have it figured out. ha!

My plan had been to do a January 2025 longer sailing out of NJ when they usually have itineraries down to eastern/southern Caribbean. No longer my plan for this exact reason. I've sailed on Odyssey, and really enjoyed it, especially the solarium. I don't want to share that space with a bazillion kids. I have kids and grandkids that I love dearly, but I look forward to the solarium on pretty much every ship since it tends to be a much more peaceful place. So now I have a new plan, we'll see what shows up in the releases this week.

In one of the two outdoor pools, once you get far enough south where it's warmer? The solarium 'pool' is more of a 'stand and chat while holding a cocktail' sort of a pool'. I'm guessing they 'might' have a certain time of day when kids can go in there, like on some of the ships with only outdoor pools on an Alaska sailing. But many adults see the solarium as their space--their own 'Adventure Ocean'--and wouldn't be happy if it turned into a giant kiddie pool area.

I hope they keep the Solarium as adults (16+) only.

I think the issue is her husband is the one who tested positive. But he's not on the cruise, it's the OP and her son. She's clearly been exposed and is hoping that even though she hasn't tested positive---yet--that somehow they can get a refund since she didn't take the travel insurance.

I think a lot of people who might be new to Royal, or cruising in general, end up being the ones who get caught in something like that. But no matter what, with Royal, ignore percentages and looking at the actual, final dollar amount is always the way to go. You could do a search on these boards for the phrase 'fuzzy math' and there would be hundreds of them, lol.

Here's the info directly from Royal. One of you who is traveling needs to test positive, as verified by a test at a healthcare provider (not a home self-test). If you can do that, you'll get the refund. For now, maybe get proctored test for your husband? Maybe they will consider that as reason enough. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/if-i-test-positive-for-sars-cov-2-what-is-your-refund-policy-and-costs-covered

Don't pay attention for percentage off, BOGOHO, etc. They always play around with the base price. I have seen so many people cancel so they can buy it cheaper, only to realize that it's actually more--and there's no way to go back to the price they had before. Also, people get confused by the pricing when it says things like BOGOHO in the banner, and shows the price as something like $65.99. Be aware, that is the final sale price, but before gratuities. So many think that is the starting price and they'll get BOGOHO off of that price. Always put it into your cart, go all the way to checkout to see what the true, final cost will be. If you've already purchased, you should be able to see the price--just be aware of the things I mentioned above. Or see if someone on your roll call hasn't purchased it and can double check the final price for you.

While I'm glad that Royal recognizes that there should be vegan options, by moving the vegan menu that used to be on the app (or you could ask for the paper menu), they have pretty much made the choice to be either you eat meat/seafood or you eat vegan. For the many vegetarians out there, that become much more restrictive. A vegan menu will not have butter, dairy, eggs--and nothing that is made with any of those things. Vegetarians are sort of stuck in the middle. So many things have milk, cheese, eggs or egg whites and butter as an ingredient. Not everyone wants to be as strict as a vegan diet needs to be, but they do want to enjoy meat-free meals. And with the 'no special requests' mandate, ordering a baked potato with butter and sour cream, or add shredded cheese of some sort to one of the vegan dishes isn't an option. Seems so odd because there are far more vegetarians than true vegans, there must be a way to accommodate both.

😁🤣

Almost time--let's get this show on the road. 😛

Balcony guarantee on Harmony--know that it will likely be an 'interior' balcony facing either central park or the boardwalk.

In my experience that is arrival time--the time they dock, but not yet cleared. It can take a little bit for the ship to get clearance, the captain will make announcements, so I'm always the bonehead with my door open so I can hear any updates over the speakers in the hallway. However, sometimes they do arrive earlier, in which case, you might be able to get off the ship by then. Depending on how long of a taxi ride you need to take, you should be fine.

I sure hope that doesn't happen. We booked four side-by-side rooms.

For the 5 sailings I did last year, I had it noted in my reservation (booked through Royal) that we wanted a table for 2. We had fixed dining on all of them. But, I always head to the main dining room when I get onboard, before I even go to my cabin, and check to see where the table is located and if it truly is a table for 2. Only once was it not, but that was quickly fixed and they even used a Sharpie to change our table number on our cards when we came back at dinner time.

New ship? I'm pretty sure I don't want to sail on Anthrax of the Seas.... Chips or no chips. 😂

The bummer will be that the Jr won't have all the GS perks like no access to the suite lounge, no happy hour, etc. If you're trying to go as a group.

Pack one of these. And they are super handy to have for various things at home as well. Lightweight, folds flat, easy to take with you. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08T9NJ2RX/ref=sspa_dk_detail_3?pd_rd_i=B08T9LGFX2&pd_rd_w=Lg8dG&content-id=amzn1.sym.9f074495-da4d-4e1c-b407-69e85fa47fdb&pf_rd_p=9f074495-da4d-4e1c-b407-69e85fa47fdb&pf_rd_r=FH6Q4AJBMWP0Y54JVCMD&pd_rd_wg=LZMSS&pd_rd_r=d17f33f4-cb5b-4b7f-9753-b5890532bf57&s=furniture&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9kZXRhaWxfdGhlbWF0aWM&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExS0hKUzk2VlBUWEU0JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNjUwNDgxMVBHMUZTS1FVQUE5WCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwODk3MjY2MzE3Uk4xOVVRN1lLVyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2RldGFpbF90aGVtYXRpYyZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU&th=1

Oops, yes, you were in 1764, that's what I was thinking, but typed 1702 when looking at another comment I think. We were on the same hall, I was in 1750. I do think 1702 and 1764 are probably the same layout when it comes to balcony size.

If you carry off your own luggage, you should be able to be off by about 7 am, give or take. But it's almost 30 miles from the port of Miami to Ft. Lauderdale airport and traffic between Miami and Fort Lauderdale can be horrendous. I give you a solid, 'maybe you'll make it', at best. And that would be with having a car waiting for you because it can be a zoo when getting off the ship with everyone trying to get a taxi, Uber, etc.

I think @John&LaLawere in 1702 on a sailing I was on last year, I had a CLS along the starboard side but farther back. Maybe John can shed some light on that room, although we were on Symphony, not Harmony.

The deck plan is deceptive, here's 1702, which also has the pie shaped balcony, just like 1764.