Ret MP

I'm here to tell ya, you are 100% right-on. One example: I post links to facts and people read that I'm trying to tell them what to do. It is actually amusing to me. But, I play along.

The $800.00 is a U.S. Government Duty-Free Allotment/allowable, not the State of Texas. A funny experience I had at Port Everglades, a long time ago. We did have a couple of bottles of Tequila each and we tried to declare it at the kiosk. The officer asked, two times, with a strange grin on his face after I told him that we had two bottles, twice. I finally caught on and told him, "No, nothing". He smiled and said, thanks, you are free to go. Sometimes, especially if it's busy or getting close to the end of the shift, they just don't want to deal with the process that it involves.

I figured that the "Mindreading" comment was a hint! And I seriously don't believe that people would think I was serious about requiring a 20-year-old to wear a bracelet that advertised that they were not 21 years old. I know I wouldn't when I was 20. Hell, I would wear one when I was 14. But, point well taken. I probably won't do it, but well taken. I actually don't like emojis. That's not to say I haven't used 'em and won't use then in certain situations.

That's good news.

That's not what the FAQ, and no I don't love the FAQ a bit, says. But please stamp this on your forehead, I'm not saying they enforce it, but it's there if they want it. And yes, it is the passenger's responsibility to have proper documentation that THEY and the governments involved require. I'll end that there as I'm not sure you understand the whole contract/policy relationship thing.

LOL, it probably costs more to staff the kiosk or whatever it is than what they take in. I believe it is a waste of time and money. But, like any Government agency, they will bragg at the end of their fiscal year that they took in $XX,XXX.XX. But, they will not show how much they spent doing it.

Ovation of the Seas doesn't have one, at least not back in May 2022. Which Ships Have A Johnny Rockets Restaurant? Adventure of the Seas Allure of the Seas Anthem of the Seas Explorer of the Seas Freedom of the Seas Harmony of the Seas Independence of the Seas Liberty of the Seas Mariner of the Seas Navigator of the Seas Oasis of the Seas Symphony of the Seas Wonder of the Seas

Ya guys. It was a poor attempt to mix in a little humor, I guess.

I haven't been through the new terminal, yet, so I don't know how they handle that there. Is what you described at the new terminal? But, the old terminal that Rust Bucket Cruise Lines used had exactly what you described, a table and a sign. When I saw it, I didn't bring any alcohol back, so honest or not, it didn't apply to me. I think, however, I would be honest. Spending my youth career in the Law Enforcement field, including criminal investigation, I don't think I could sleep at night knowing what I did if I didn't declare what I had, even if it is only a State thing.

Our version of "Meet and Mingles" are usually arranged "Slot Pulls" that are arranged on the Roll Calls.

My experience is that all of the bars that are in open public spaces/places are open. Bars like the one in the main theater, specialty restaurants, and a very few others that aren't open are not. I have also experienced being in Port Everglades, Port of Miami, and Port of Canaveral, and there was state tax added to the bill when I didn't cruise Star until the ship was in international waters. I've cruised out of Galveston a couple of times but don't remember the situation with drinks and taxes on embarkation day there. I think I got too drunk to remember as I got drunk while I was driving to the port, getting a headstart. LOL, just kidding. However, Texas wants to tax any alcohol you purchase while on the cruise and are taking home (the duty-free stuff), at least back in the day when I used to cruise out of there. I'll know for sure in January when we cruise out of there.

Yep. Also, a Certificate of Naturalization or a Report of Citizen Born Abroad can be used in lieu of a passport.

From the "GUEST CONDUCT POLICY": "FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THIS POLICY, ANY OTHER OF OUR POLICIES, OR ANY INSTRUCTION COMMUNICATED BY US (INCLUDING OUR CREW) AT ANY TIME IN ANY FORM, WRITTEN OR ORAL, WILL BE CONSIDERED A BREACH OF THIS POLICY AND MAY RESULT IN ONE OR MORE ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS" Again, and again, and again. I'm not saying they enforce the policy. But, it's there if they want it. AND, the FAQ is a reflection/reader's digest/clarifications/expansions of their policies. And from the Contract: "b. Passengers are solely responsible to maintain in their possession all passports, visas and other travel documents required for embarkation, travel and disembarkation at all ports of call. Passengers assume full responsibility to determine through their travel agent or the appropriate government authority the necessary documents. Passenger agrees to provide to Carrier (at Carrier’s reasonable request) any travel documents. Carrier shall return such travel documents to Passenger by no later than the end of the Cruise". And, if you read the contract you'd see that they discuss policies throughout the Contract. A contract is a contract, policies are policies and not part of the contract. For example: 9. PASSENGER’S OBLIGATION TO COMPLY WITH AGREEMENT, APPLICABLE LAWS, AND RULES OF CARRIER; QUARANTINE; INDEMNIFICATION:a. Compliance Obligation Generally. Passenger shall at all times comply with the provisions of this Agreement, all applicable laws, and rules, policies and regulations of the Carrier, the Vessel and the Transport (as the same may be changed from time to time with or without notice), Go ahead and show up with a passport without 6 months remaining on it. You'll probably NOT have a problem. But, there is a small, very small chance that you might.

If you don't have a valid birth certificate, a valid passport can be used in place of a birth certificate. Royal's policy states, as evidenced by their policy, which has been copied and pasted on this board many times, that passports must have a 6-month validity period. No one has stated, at least not from what I have read, that RCCL enforces the policy or even requires a passport for "closed loop" cruises. Royal (and federal law/policy/treaties) offers an option that a valid passport can be used in lieu of a birth certificate AND vice versa <(and government pictured ID). But, if Royal wanted to, by their own policy, they can require everyone that wants to board their property to have a passport regardless of other country's laws and treaties. Like it or not, it's their ball, they make the rules to board their property. AGAIN, no one is saying that ROYAL enforces its own policies. I believe, meaning that it is my opinion, Royal has many unenforced, by choice, rules/policies to be enforced only in certain situations. You give an employee a hard time at the terminal, they check your passport and it doesn't have 6 months remaining on it, their excuse: You don't have 6 months remaining on your passport and our policy requires it, you're not boarding our ship, bye!. It's a policy, among many, of convenience for them! It's like that in Law Enforcement a lot, we used a lot of unused laws as a basis (probable cause) to achieve certain other goals.

Possibilities: 1. Security Cameras all over the ship with facial recognition software linked to their security system 2. I believe those under 21 have a special bracelet that is required to be worn 3. Someone suspected what was going on and called security ("If you see something, say something"/brown shirts at work) 4. A bartender remembered the kid and father from previous attempts 5. Some Security Personnel have mindreading capabilities

Hit the wrong button, disregard.

At the risk of offending some people, I offer: While ON the ship, it's the company's policy that matters, it doesn't matter if the local laws allow drinking at age 2, or 12, or 18, if the ship restricts sales and consumption of alcohol to those who are 21 and over, end of discussion. What they, the cruise line, enforces is a different story! https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/legal-drinking-age-onboard-policy Q What is the legal drinking age onboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship? A Effective immediatly on all sailings, the minimum drinking age for all alcoholic beverages on all Royal Caribbean International is as follows. The minimum age to consume alcohol on Royal Caribbean International ships on sailings originating from North America or the Caribbean is twenty-one (21). The minimum age to consume alcohol on Royal Caribbean International ships on sailings originating in Dubai, United Arab Emirates is twenty-one (21). The minimum age to consume alcohol on Royal Caribbean International ships on sailings from South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand is eighteen (18). The minimum age to consume alcohol at all private destinations remains twenty-one (21) without regard to where the sailing originated. The Company retains the right, on rare occasions, to raise the minimum age of alcohol consumption on any sailing when local laws require or permit such a modification.

Also, as long as the cruise line requires the minimum that a country(ies) is cruising to wants/requires, the cruise line has the final say, if they require a 6-month validity, that's the rule. If they don't, they don't. If they want to enforce their policy, that's up to them, not any country, not the country(ies) sailing to, it is the cruise line that will either allow you to embark or not to embark, not the country(ies) sailing to.

Many years ago, we had an issue with the "Big Box TA" that I've talked about a few times on this board. I called RCCL to have them take over my booking and I was told that if I wanted to fire (my term, not theirs) the TA, I would have to contact them and get them to release the booking back to RCCL. The problem with that is I had $1,800.00 in OBCs and other perks through the TA and I didn't want to lose it/them. So, I called the TA and told her again about the issue (I always try to talk to the same person at the "Big Box TA" office. She was more than willing to release the booking but I wasn't, so I got another OBC of $100.00, which was not my goal but it worked and my original issue was taken care of, we kissed and made up LOL. I'll continue to use the "Big Box TA" and the lady that has been taking care of us for years. The moral of the story - issues can come up with TAs but they CAN be worked out and sometimes to your benefit.

And I'm happy to perform that public service, it's what I do. Ignorance of the rules and laws is no excuse. I'd hate for someone to show up at a terminal and be turned away because they heard from someone on the Internet that they can get away with something when the experiences of others aren't necessarily what they may experience. You'll note that I always provide a link to the policy/FAQ. So, there is no debate if the policy/FAQ exists or not. Can you or anybody deny that there is a rule that only one bottle of wine per person ...... exists? Can you or anybody deny that Royal has a 6-month passport validity time frame? You or anybody else can "what if" or "I did it" or this or that or the other thing all you want, the rules/policies exist, regardless. For example: If I know about the wine policy but wanted to take a chance, I wouldn't take expensive bottles. Last word: I have never told anybody not to do anything because of a rule/policy but I do have lots of opinions though. I only make the policy/rule known and only with the best of intentions so they can decide for themselves what to do or not do. Sorry, you find fault in that. Oh, one more thing. I don't claim to be an expert in RCCL's policies, I've been wrong here once or twice. But, I only involve myself in subjects of fact that I have either looked up in the past, for my own benefit or look up as the conversation is being conducted. I find many people come to social media sites like this and ask questions before trying to look it up themselves. So, I provide the info and link in an effort to show them that the information is there if a little effort is put forth, subliminally.

My wife would take virtually "free", every time. I like what I like and I like balconies. Glad it isn't us facing that decision/dilemma, we'd be debating it for weeks and one or the other would lose. That's not to say I wouldn't take a free cruise in an interior cabin. But, it would be an addition to or not one or the other. If I had a cruise booked, I'd go on it and take the "free" cruise earlier or later. We're retired, so time off for two cruises isn't an issue.

And, the one and only time I was on CocoCay, I felt like I was in a Sardine Can. Labadee is so much bigger or at least laid out better, I never felt crowded. Now, CocoCay has more snack options (with long lines) and I'm sure young families will enjoy it much better, for sure. I'm old and enjoy peace and quiet and I'm not a big sun worshiper, more of a people watcher.

Barefoot Beach is nice but it is exclusive for Suite Guests unless you purchase a cabana or whatever they are called there. I've been there twice and it was calm, clear water, and no noise that I remember. The only distraction was the employees chasing down those that jumped the wall to get into the beach area. I much prefer Labadee over CocoCay. Side note: Barefoot Beach has a great photo opportunity of the ship tied up at the pier.

I trust the soldiers. Not the Pentagon. However, to go further with that subject would violate this social media's rules.