Stealthdog

As I mentioned yesterday, embarkation day was a snap. The facility was large enough to process a huge amount of people through at one time. Some recommendations: - You don't need your COVID Card. Keep that packed away where you keep it. When you check in, the greeters will ask if you are vaccinated and boostered, and mark you off based on your answer. - You will need your passport handy for the beginning of checkin, so make sure that is available. You will go through quicker if you don't have to search for it. - You will need your sail Pass (paper or digital) throughout checkin. We just kept the app opened on the phone so we could pull it up whenever we wanted. There are 3 different screening lines for security. We both carried 2 bottles of wine and water in our backpack and roll-on luggage. One of my water bottles was 1.5 liters. This time we even went in the same line together. The screeners did not ask any questions or look inside our carry-ons. I know the question of how much wine you can bring on is often a topic here. This is the second straight cruise we have brought on a total of 4 bottles (2 each). Once you get through security, you will go to the 2nd floor holding area and wait for your time to board. We got there as the Suite/Pinnacle guests were boarding. After them it was the Key guests, and then they board by rows, first arrive, first board. Throughout the process noone ever asked what time our boarding time was. If you want to push your luck and arrive early, you may be able to get on earlier than your time. We arrived on Deck 5 (I think). I'll verify today - it was nicely decorated with a bunch of balloons and you enter right next to a large Christmas tree and other holiday decorations.

Thanks! There were a total of 5 ships in port (that we were able to see). Odyssey of the Seas was the first to depart. 1st was Celebrity APEX, 2nd Holland American Neuw Statendam, 3rd (Sky?) Princess, 4th was us, and Emerald Princess was still in port when we left. I'm having some weird interference with using my iphone to "reply" to cruisecritic posts. So, we have to do a balancing act of 2 phones and 1 laptop sharing one Voom device internet. I'll post some photos of Wonderland dinner and Giovanni lunch from Day 1 a little later off my iphone. No issues with Voom though - we are streaming shows, videochatting on Meet, and surfing the net. The speed is great on board.

Thanks - We booked the NorthStar on Labadee day - figured we will be on and off the ship so its easier to manage times. We aren't going to try out the iFly. Both the NorthStar & iFly are available for bookings on all port days for free. Both are easy to book - you can do it off the app on your phone. If you have issues with booking on the app, there will be staff on deck 14 at the bottom of the stairs by the Lime and Coconut that will help you with your reservations.

Day 1 Daily

Entertainment schedule.

And we are onboard. Checkin time was 1130. We took an uber from NE Fort Lauderale - $15 for uber, $25 for uberxl. Little traffic at the port today even though there are several ships debarking. Odessey is port 18. We were through security by 1100 and on the ship by 1130. We both carried on 2 bottles of wine and water. First stop was dining reservations. Made all 8 dinner and 5 lunches with good times every day. There were long lines at some of the specialty restaurants to book dining. Look around until you find a small line. We booked at Wonderland - there were no line. The ony show to book on board is The Book. Everything else appears to be first come first serve. Having lunch at Giovannis. Its empty!

I'll see what I can do! 🙂

We are excited to board the Odyssey of the Seas this Saturday as part of a B2B (or side to side), with the second leg being the Celebrity Beyond Dec 11-18. This will be our 4th Royal sailing, and have also sailed Celebrity, Norwegian, and Disney. My last review of the Symphony of the Seas was mostly post-cruise. This one will be more live with daily reviews and updates. Some information in case people have specific questions about cabin, dining, status perks, etc: - We are staying in a Balcony on Deck 6 (we have some bid ups, but the ship looks almost 100% filled, so have very low hopes). - We have the UDP, so will be trying most (if not all) of the restaurants on board for dinner, all the specialty dining options for lunch, and the ala carte options. - We do not have an alcohol package and are bringing wine and water on board and will pay as we go for anything else. - We have platinum status (due to reciprocity with Celebrity). - We have Voom for one device. Itinerary for the sailing: Dec 3 - Fort Lauderdale Dec 4 - At Sea Dec 5 - Labadee Dec 6 - At Sea Dec 7 - Aruba Dec 8 - Curacao Dec 9 - At Sea Dec 10 - At Sea Dec 11 - Fort Lauderdale We have been to Aruba and Curacao multiple times each, but this is our first time to Labadee. We elected to do shore excursions for Aruba and Curacao with Royal Caribbean this sailing. Southern Caribbean sailings are our favorite Caribbean itineraries. We took the autotrain from Lorton, Virginia to Samford, Florida last week and spent Thanksgiving and this week in the Orlando area. We plan to take the autrotrain back up after the Beyond sailing, assuming there is no rail strike. If anyone has any questions on the autotrain, feel free to ask. We will drive to Fort Lauderdale Friday afternoon and spend the night with a friend, who will drop us off at the port Saturday morning enroute to a cruise he is taking out of Miami on Saturday. I'll plan to post menus, the daily, and the entertainment schedule. Ask any question and I'll try to get the answer, post the picture, or provide whatever you want. When this review is done, I'll leave a link for the review we will do for the Beyond for anyone who wants to follow along that one as well. I'd also like to give a shout out to the Roll Call members for this Odyssey sailing. This Roll Call is huge - nearing 600 posts and more than 20 pages in the thread. I expect this to be a very lively sailing!

The increase, and unreliability, of airfare has really changed our travel plans since the start of covid. We cant avoid flying on our Alaskan cruise next summer, but we the last 3 trips to florida we have driven the 14 hours or taken the autotrain. We save so much just driving down and back.

I think alot of other cruisers would jump ship too. I have zero loyalty to a cruise line. I sail with royal because of price. If rates go up enough then its no longer value and I will look at holland, msc, ncl, princess, and celebrity. If royal prices themselves at the same point as celebrity, why sail royal?

Im looking at some more and they seem hit or miss, and big variation between ships. Ive never paid attention to galveston prices because I sail from Florida. Symphony for 2023 looks several hundred over compared to this year. Oasis looks similar. The Texas rates for 2023 look really good.

I looked at a few oasis class sailings for early Dec 2023 and the prices do seem significantly higher than this December's prices.

I'm seeing it as $40 for my cruise. We are on a B2B Royal then Celebrity cruise starting next Saturday and were going to pack for 16 days. But, I'd rather pack for fewer days and just pay the $40 for a laundry bag. Does anyone know how early on the cruise we can do it if we pre-purchase? 1st day would be awesome, with return on 2nd day.

Ive had my card in my wallet for the last year and half. My wallet is like a constanza wallet - not even sure id be able to find where it is. 🤣

We are going to decorate the doors this time. When we fly to florida we dont, when we drive down we do (since we dont have to worry about luggage and weight). One time we decorated the door to look like a christmas gift. Another we just put up happy holiday things. I think we will get creative this time.

Hope your symtoms remain mild and you have a quick recovery! There is probably no way to pinpoint when you got it, only when you start exhibiting symptoms - last day of cruise in your case. Data this year suggests the average person doesnt show symptoms until 5-6 days after exposure, with most cases ranging from 2-14 days after exposure. These dates also fluxuate by variant.

We did a private tour for Rome once (also far away port), that included the Vatican. The guide brought us right in to every spot and knew all the workers. Was expensive, but well worth it. As for Versailles, if its on your bucket list, go. Ive been to Versailles 3 times, all land travel, so defer to those on her for cruise excursion issues. Versailles is magical and I highly recommend everyone go once in their life. The palace is incredible and the gardens are beautiful. I could spend hours just walking the gardens. Versailles could easily be a half day activity if you have time.

Our first cruise was on Celebrity when we were in our 30s. There were a handful of younger couples like us. Having been on all 3 lines multiple times, Celebrity will have the oldest average age (it will be higher than 50). That doesnt bother us, but the entertainment is tailored for an older clientele. You wont find contemporary entertainment on Celebrity like you get on NCL or Oasis Class Royal ships. After learning that lesson a few times, we often just skip the shows on Celebrity and go to the Casino or do something else. The overall feel on the ship feels "classier" though, more refined. You will encounter much fewer children and it has a much more adult feel. You may find the quality of the MDR better on Celebrity (food is subjective), but the specialty dining is not as good as NCL. All things being equal (price, itinerary, etc), celebrity would be our choice. We are going on a B2B on the Odyssey of Seas then Beyond in 9 days, so will be exciting to do a comparison between Quantum Class and Edge Class ships. I think we will like Quantum Class better than Oasis Class because its more traditional design.

Im reading that differently - i read it as they can place you in any cabin code within the class of your guarentee, not that you can be placed in a cabin below your class guarentee.

The way it has been described is it is per venue, per person, once a day. Theoretically you should both be able to go Playmakers every day and both use your credit, and then be able to go to any other restaurant that has the ala carte pricing and do the same there that same day.

Just to followup (assuming you are on the 8 night Harmony on the 26th as speculated), here are some other cruise options leaving on the 26th and 27th out of Fort Lauderdale. The oceanview prices for some look very good, particularly Holland America. None go to the ABCs though. Holland America - 7 night on the 27th - Nieuw Amsterdam to Half Moon Cay, Georgetown, Falmouth, and Nassau Holland America - 7 night on the 26th - Nieus Statendam to Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, Puerto Plata, and Freeport Celebrity Reflection - 7 night on the 27th to Nassau, St Thomas, St Maarten Celebrity Apex - 7 night on the 26th to Key West, Belize City, Cozumel, and Georgetown Celebrity Beyond - 7 night on the 27th to St Maarten, St Thomas, and Puerto Plata Odyssey of Seas & Sky Princess - no oceanview showing available Miami also has a number of sailings leaving the 26th or 27th - Norwegian Encore, Symphony of Seas, Norwegian Prima, Carnival Horizen (Oasis of Seas and Carnival Celebration show no oceanview). Just some options for last minute bookings for the same timeframe if you get offered and give up your room for a refund and future free cruise.

Did you book direct or thru a TA? How you booked may change how you want to respond. Some TAs have built relationships inside the cruiseline (and private excursion group) companies that can definately help. Reading this thread, it appears that it has happened in the past and customers are often offered a 100% refund and 100% fcc. If this is an option for you, are there any other cruiselines debarking the same day as your current cruises? Often the last minute deals are great. If you want to stay on this sailing and accept the downgrade, Id assume you should get some kind of refund for moving to a lower category cabin? Id also look to get something in addition to that from them - OBC, free wifi, specialty dining, etc. Sorry this has happened to you and can totally relate to the stress you are going through. Hopefully some of the comments on this thread are helpful.

Thanks for the updates and following along with you. We will be on the Beyond in a few weeks, and really appreciate the time you are giving!

They make so much money on passengers with lower odds and worse payouts than landbased casinos, i dont think they are sweating a handful of people who discovered a loophole. Besides, id rather see some regular people like those of cruise critic get some benefit than care about what some executives in a $B company thinks. Fortunately they have zero capability to censor our speech here. 😀

Go for it - you will determine what you like and what is best for you. Cruise loyalty is #5 on our list of considerations (because of onboard perks). When we look at a cruises its normally weighted in this order: 1) Dates, 2) Itinerary, 3) Price, 4) Ship, and 5) Cruise Status Perks.