Engineroom Snipe

In the back of my mind I am hearing the Futbol Announcer yelling at the top of his lungs for what seems to be forever: SSSSSCCCCCCCCCOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEE!

Yes, Royal will offer you four additional drinks each for free on top of your unlimited drinking package. This is not sarcasm. If you are sailing with those who might not be Crown & Anchor qualified, you and your significant other can offer your four drinks each to other people in your party without penalty each cruising day. This is done all of the time and you will not be penalized for your generosity. So, if you feel the package is a good deal because you drink regular drinks, special coffees and more, you can save others in your party from buying a drink package if four or less drinks are sufficient for their purposes. You could also trade in one of your vouchers for a 40% off of a bottle of wine (bottle cost under $100) and share it with multiple people again without penalty. Just a thought.

"Those were the days, my friend, we thought they would never end.." (Mary Hopkin, 1968) Not sure if we will ever see that $42 special ever again. 😉

I have been tracking a few key cruises with mock bookings and there have been interior room counts that have not been changed since the beginning of December of 2023. Similar to items in this thread, if they start cutting the cabin fares, it unleashes a discount on any cabin that has already been booked. Better to leave 20% of the cabins empty than give money back on the 80% that have been sold at a premium. Very logical business sense unless the unsold percentage starts increasing. There is a point of diminishing returns.

All, For some reason or another, Royal IT systems seem to be having a very bad day. I was completely checked in for my cruise with a confirmation email being sent and Set Sail Passes being available on my Phone App yesterday. I take Screenshots of everything in case things "change". This morning, the app stated that I "can start the check-in process" when I have confirmation emails that I completed it over eight days ago. One hour later, my original information appears stating that my "Check-In" is complete except for my health questions which can only be answered no earlier than one day before cruising. If I were not very experienced with many previous check-ins, I would doubt myself. Royal IT really seems to be having a bad moment from many posts that I have been reading. Please, take screenshots of all of your successful transactions so you have proof in case things go amiss with your dining reservations of any type.

A. Enjoy your trip! B. No matter what, it probably was not intentional, you are not the only one being affected. C. Be polite, cheerful, and make notes if you are not satisfied with the conditions that you encounter. D. Go to Guest Services later in the evening on the first night. Do not waste your time with long lines, come back later when they are shorter. By the end of the night. Guest Services will have come up with a solution or will refund your monies because you will be one of many to come to the counter. You vacation time is very important. Do not waste it in a line.

Exactly right. Unless you have an inside connection with Royal, I have seen a large ship on the east side with a smaller ship on the west side and vice-a-versa, always stern towards the island. Depending on the docking, you see the ocean, the island, or the balcony of another ship at about 100 feet from you.

"What a tangled web we weave." (Marmion, Sir Walter Scott, circa 1811). There are so many moving parts to such a decision that the bean counters do not take into consideration. Something as simple as a "baggage fee" can come with a lot of baggage in the process (pun intended). 😉

I think we will be lucky that they are at least wearing anything on the 12th day of a 14 night cruise! I can close my eyes but it is hard to stop breathing. 🫣

@firefly333 I can definitely see bean counter watering their lips and licking their chops over baggage. The numbers can be easily counted and we all see how much luggage is moved on and off the ships. The only downside would be more people lugging it onboard and off to avoid the charges. Solution: Limit the passengers carry-on items. Wait, this sounds familiar, I think other travel lines use this system already...... CA-CHING $$$$$$$$

@OCSC Mike Thanks for sharing. I am glad you took it as a light joke. That is the way I intended it to be taken. I was not aware that they were serious about booking UDP reservations online in advance. That would be great. There are always those who have some difficulties with technology, they might be hurt by this as they might get "the leftovers" on reservation slots (pun intended). What you think happened sounds plausible. Maybe they were concerned that all the prime slots would be filled creating mayhem at the service desk on boarding day as people demand a full refund since they cannot get any reservations during choice time periods.

After reading the information, be ready for a huge expansion of "pay onboard opportunities and shore experiences". While Royal has been increasing passenger capacity fleetwide, the Onboard and Other Revenue percentage went down from 34.5% to 32.2% (2022 and 2023 numbers). The CEO has mentioned in Quarterly discussions late last year about how the onboard and other revenue "was not meeting expectations." This explains the bombardment of emails describing Royal's latest "discounts" to be purchased through my app. Just an opinion that "pay-to-play" is going to be an ongoing trend trying to get these percentage up. Also, the new Royal shore resort area being developed at Nassau. One possible scheme which they are employing now, more port days and less sail distance per cruise. Benefits: 1. No additional cost to Royal as all new port charges (taxes) are automatically added to the passenger cost and not reflected in the advertised cabin rate. 2. Slower cruising and less fuel, less wear and tear on mechanical systems. 3. Make additional money from shore excursions. 4. Serve less food and reduce unlimited drink consumption when passengers are off ship.

@OCSC Mike, Why would you think it was an IT glitch? Royal is renowned for their IT expertise. 🤥🤣

Reading the hyperlinks of the previous two post. Everything seems to be full steam ahead but I have seen contradictions on CC from cruisers getting "price adjustments". If demand is so high because of the value, why are price adjustments going lower than the original fare which is by most accounts, "the best price for the cruise"? Shore excursion prices, unlimited dining packages, unlimited drinking packages are known to be dynamic but again trending downward from anecdotal postings. The report states how "return customers" (AKA Crown and Anchor member) are receiving more enhancements which seems to contradict CC postings of the Diamond Lounge being called the Crown Lounge with more restrictive access and other high point members being denied opportunities onboard which they previously enjoyed. I have to reread things tomorrow, the eyes are tired. As you read through it, notice how high the "union membership" is on board the ships which is a recognized threat of a strike possibility. I would have never imagined that!

Ok, since you do not have UDP, my whole conspiracy post was a complete failure 🙃 This is a good thing. I like when conspiracy theories are proven wrong. No conspiracy at all, just my imagination running completely out of control. Very interesting to say the least. Maybe Royal is steering customers to less used venues? Do you think the demand is so high that the venues are not available? You may not know until you get onboard and try an in person reservation. Since my almost conspiracy theory was sunk like a rock thrown into the ocean, lots of other theories ready to be floated.... 🤯

@Biker19 Thank you for the hyperlink and alert . Will try to digest it tomorrow time permitting. This year will be even more interesting as they will have a record breaking 2023 to improve for 2024.

I am starting to get a clearer picture about your thoughts.......... I might need new glasses..... 😬

@Jimbo Do not sugar coat it Jimbo, tell us what you really think about this....... 🤣

Wow! You were not able to even do a few specialty dining reservations of any type before boarding? They used to say "We will do first day reservations for you (as a courtesy) and you can do the rest when on board." Do you think this is another way of reducing cruisers who try to use the unlimited dining package for every lunch and dinner onboard? If so, I almost thinks this smells like a switch-n-bait sales trick. Offer unlimited dining for a certain price but limit the dining opportunities which means each cruiser does not get an unlimited opportunity to enjoy unlimited dining options. There should be no "limits" on an "unlimited" plan (Unless you are on a future Royal Cruise). Seems a bit devious to me. 🤔😉

Alternate: "NutraSea Diet System", Where seaweed and plankton meet fine dining,

The flying snatch-and-grab thieves that you rarely see coming until it is too late. I think seasoned curly fries are their favorite mission targets. 😲

I want you for my tour guide. Thanks so much for all of this information. 🫡

Times have changed since my first voyage too. As you have stated, maybe not for the better in some areas. I have toned down my expectations about food onboard. As a long time cruiser, you have many memories to compare today's reality of what is against what was. Maybe cut back the amount of cruising on Royal and try other lines or another vacation experience. That is what I am doing. The cruise lines made record breaking profits last year. I do not think they will miss us. New cruisers will fill the cabin. Occasionally, I have been able to snag a few cruises with extremely good price-points contrary to the higher prices seen on most voyages. This tends to negate some of the drawbacks. Getting a good deal is the only way I can fight the bean-counters (even then, I am sure they are not losing money on my purchase). Until the ships sail empty, nothing is going to change. Sometimes, it is hard letting go of past great memories expecting them to happen again.

Thank goodness my wife has your kind eyes. I need some attention and a make-over but she has not decided to put me in dry-dock yet! 😁

The last upgrade post I made a comment on was a fiasco. This time. 🤐😇🤣