Engineroom Snipe

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

 Should I wait (cruise is a year away)?

@TeeRick

You might want to try and wait for specials which occur before and after Thanksgiving since you are one year away. At worst, I believe you will still get a 15% discount and at best you might do better.

I have been offered the UDP 40% off with gratuities included on the Odyssey sailing this November for $270 per person for a seven day cruise non-holiday.

Please read all of the fine print. Unlimited is not truly unlimited. There are many add-on surcharges for different venues and a-la-carte pricing allowance is limited to one per day.

Lunches in specialty venues are normally available on sea days only.

Choice reservation times fill up quickly. You might not get the times of your choice if you like to be spontaneous and do same day or even next day reservations. Normally Izumi Hibachi/Teppanyaki reservations are completely filled by mid afternoon on boarding day. These reservations must be made at that particular restaurant unlike the rest where you can reserve multiple restaurants at one specialty restaurant.

Important clause: "Subject to availability."

Interesting discussion without hyperbole.

So many data points to analyze and make calculations upon with no crystal ball to look into the future.

Royal is still afloat in the sea and I will not complain about it. I am not blindly loyal to Royal but I enjoy cruising with them when I do.

Thank you to all who buy their stock. I hope you get reasonable returns.

29 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Happy that you found it worth $20. What ships were in port? Agree that the food choices were seriously lacking for a paid venue. Had we been able to find seating by the pool we might have stayed, but the chair hogs beat us to them all. If they took out half of the beach chairs and umbrellas so you could actually enjoy a view, we might have stayed. Unfortunately they don’t seem to think that way. For them it’s all about the Benjamin’s $$, not about their paying guests.

 

Only one other ship in port. I was on the Vision and I remembered looking on a port website ahead of time and figured our total capacity with the other ship was about 9000 passengers max. I believe it was the Allure of the Seas because of all of the slides. All of the Coco Cay prices were much lower, less than half, for almost anything so I guess demand was not high. This made sense because we were on Coco Cay the week AFTER Easter week when most students would be back in school.

Cannot argue about the chairs and umbrellas blocking the view if you are not in the front rows. We spent time in the regular heated pool which had a nice view OVER the umbrellas.

20 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Just a quick follow up.

 

we were at hideaway bay yesterday. Got there at 9 AM and stayed all of an hour before we gave up and went to the main pool. No loungers anywhere around the pool, but the number of loungers with towels on them more than twice the total number of people in or around the pool. Then went over to the beach area by the food outlet. So many chairs and umbrellas that you couldn’t even see the lagoon. Complete waste of time, but only wasted $26. Cancelled all our other reservations as soon as we got back on board. YMMV.

On Hideaway Bay on April 9 this month. We were one of two ships there and we were off-boarded

second.

Looked over the side until we saw passengers moving off the ship and then hit the gangway at about around 8:30am. We were seated by 9:05am and at the the time, had the pick of the entire place. Did not fill up until around 10:30am. We stayed until 4pm for a 4:30pm all aboard time.

The highlight was the heated pool since the day started windy and cool. By lunch it was very nice but not many people in the protected ocean area. The DJ seemed to study his crowd and had music that was lively but not too loud. You could have a conversation in the pool area.

The large inflatable beach balls seem to really entertain the pool crowd but you could find a quiet place in the pool away from the action easily.

Waiting lines for food and drinks were minimal all day.

The food selection was somewhat bare minimum. The coconut shrimp was the exception, freshly fried and larger than I expected served with very fresh French Fries. Nothing seemed pre-cooked as they were almost too hot to eat right away. Five of them would fill a normal person who was not extremely hungry. The shrimp dip had pineapple in it which complimented the coconut shrimp flavor.

I only paid $19 per person and except for the heated pool, I could do without it. For us it will be dependent on the time of year we go. If you are going during the warmer months, I would stick to the no charge areas and have a better food selection.

Just my humble OPINION.

The latest financial report states that they have had 107% occupancy averages. I have watched cruises at near maximum life boat capacity over the first quarter.

I cannot find information about how many three and four passengers per cabin on a specific cruise. A ship can be near total life boat capacity with many empty rooms.

Example: Vision of the Seas

1018 staterooms

2,443 maximum passenger capacity

2,036 double capacity, 100% occumpancy

Their are 407 more passenger spaces available to maximum capacity.

If 1/4 of the staterooms have four people in a cabin: (Mom, Dad, and two young children)

About 254 staterooms and 1016 passengers.

If 1/4 of the staterooms have three people in a cabin: (Friends and Family trying to split costs).

About 254 staterooms with 762 passengers.

If the rest of the staterooms are double occupancy, Only about 332 cabins are needed to obtain maximum ship capacity.

There are 178 empty staterooms because the ship cannot exceed maximum passenger capacity.

Before any one attacks me for my suppositions because the "Vision of the Seas" does not attract families like say, an Oasis class, think again.

It sails out of Baltimore on a 9 day cruise this August with a "Kids Sail Free" tag. Its price is significantly lower than Oasis class during the same time period from Bayonne.

Families can drive to Baltimore from a very large geographic area and avoid flight costs, security  hassles, and baggage costs.

So a ship can easily sail at maximum capacity and have a significant amount of cabins empty.

11 hours ago, zanydoc said:

Huh? You mean Central Park, girlfriend?😅

On all of the deck plans available for the Vision of the Seas, it is listed as "Park Cafe."

9 hours ago, zanydoc said:

Huh? You mean Central Park, girlfriend?😅

I stand corrected, the Solarium Cafe on the port side aft, deck 9, of the Vision.

"Girlfriend"?

🤔

1 minute ago, 3CatsInMA said:

 

 

There's nothing worse than a steak you can't edit. 😠

He was trying to "delete" the experience.

😁

2 minutes ago, alfaeric said:

Reviving this thread as there's going to be a limited access channel opening on Thursday.  

 

 

So it's quite possible the channel will be totally back open when the Vision returns to service.

@alfaeric,

This post is in reference, tongue-in-cheek (and maybe biting it!) to an earlier post where I would I bet my house on this being impossible

Thanks, just when I thought this thread would disappear.

On the advice of the shadiest lawyer I could find, who just happens to list on his resume that he worked in Casino Bankruptcies in Atlantic City, NJ, in the early 1990s with some famous clients:

I have used my house as collateral against a loan. My house is only valued at $500,000 but I believe that they do not have any appreciation for the unique value my name brings to the property and will value it at about 10, maybe 20 times what they say it is worth.

There could be about $100,000 equity left (of $10,000,000) but after the lawyers, taxmen, and real estate people get finished chewing on the carcass, I believe that the posters who have challenged me will get at least $17.00 each to buy you one drink with gratuities included on your next cruise.

You may now dance on my grave.

I am going to be so happy I was wrong and have to eat crow.

I still have a great vacation home in the Cayman Islands.

🤣

5 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

RC never stopped due to safety concerns. They stopped due to PR concerns.

Plus since the ship wouldn't have been cleared for passengers to disembark, the ship technically was never there. 

Madagascar Penguins, "You did not see anything."

3 minutes ago, Pratique said:

We don't cruise for the salads lol.

That is so ironic as I really enjoyed the huge salad offerings in the Windjammer before the shut-down.

To each their own.

"Have it your way..., have it your way." (Jingle from Burger King, 1974) which seems very appropriate for this thread.

Everyone has their favorites and not so much favorites.

😉

Everyone has an opinion on food and I can agree that there were some meals on my 2023 cruises I could have done without.

There has been improvement. My recent Vision of the Seas in April had a very good beef tenderloin on the first sea day. My wife is a baker/cook and she said the Tiramisu on the third night was VERY good. This was unusual for her to make such a compliment as she is not a huge fan of Royal desserts.

On the last sea day at MDR Lunch, we both had a very good salmon, nice proportion, texture, cooked well and not dried out. One of the highlights of the week and it was at lunch!

I have been one of many to complain when the meals were lacking but I have been noticing a definite improvement.

Still seems a bit of hit or miss.

I did have a disappointing NY Strip steak twice in the same cruise. The cocktail shrimp, I just stopped ordering it. They were very small, a bit dry, and served with a water-downed "cocktail" sauce which seemed like ketchup and some hot sauce. It was very runny and had no horseradish kick in it at all.

Breakfast was more than adequate and we skipped many lunches just because we were not that hungry.

I did have the best sandwich yet from Park Cafe in the Solarium on the first day. Jelo shaved the roast beef into fine strips and slathered the roll with the perfect amount of horseradish. No tug with an excellent chew and flavor. I made sure to mention it in my cruise feedback. For such a young crew member, he made an impression on me the whole week whenever I checked the Cafe for a mid afternoon snack instead of lunch.

Escargot was fabulous every time we were able to order it.

Definitely not our worst cruise food compared to other times.

MDR service was great. We gave 10s for service but an 8 for food as some of the meat quality just was not there the week we went.

Food is SO subjective.

13 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

And I would say the 12 month targets are higher than pre covid when they had a lot less debt, though prices sure are higher.

 

Some of these beats on earnings I hear from various companies are beating top and bottom line, then you listen and it's because they raised prices, not because they sold more widgets, or whatever, it's based on higher prices which people are now pushing back against. 

 

I personally know these rcl price hikes cant continue at this rate, so they year over year and growth will die back as comparisons become harder year over year and yes I do look at year over year. 

@firefly333

Starting to see definite price weakness this September out of Bayonne. September 8, 7 day cruise is going for half the price of its all time high since it was listed after discounts. Was as high as $1,200 per person including tax and is now about $670 (interior, I was able to select the room and it was a virtual balcony on the 8th deck forward) today.

Not as low as the first year post Covid but not able to sustain the 250% increases I have seen over the past 14 months.

Long term cruisers are still booking immediately but they are not filling in the last 30% of cabins in the shoulder season. RCI did not have any shoulder seasons in 2023 and looks strong until the end of summer this year. The Fall is starting to look more traditional with reduced prices.

I think this will definitely affect stock growth as opposed to the recent gains.

There is no 'joy' when the 'yoy' is negative.

😟

12 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

I saw what you did there.

 

Glad you enjoyed the cruise, in spite of all the uncertainly leading up to it.

Yes, thanks to some great CC members like yourself.

In the end, we make decisions to make the best of any situation we are given.

On a vacations, I expect the best but prepare for the worst scenarios.

Quite the opposite of being in the military on any given mission.

Thank you.

4 minutes ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

I hope you were able to describe what he did in the survey.  That is so far above and beyond.  He should get praise for this. 🙂

Yes. I did. As much as possible. My CC review is an extension of trying to give him gratitude and celebrate his efforts.

Some people could care less about the art of towel animals. I wanted to show appreciation for the effort.

How many hotels have a critter in clean towel cotton fur waiting to welcome you into your room?

4 minutes ago, bradpole said:

Thank you for sharing!  That was wonderful!

Again, it was Bryan who made this such a great time. He brought game, big time.

@Sunshine3601, good eye on the extended towel teeter tot.

That is why I had to make it into a story.

A bit of appreciation for a staff member who did a great job.

8 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

They are all good but I especially liked the teeter tot slide - adorable

Very special because any normal towel would not support the load.

You have a keen eye.

Bryan placed a wiper like blade with a plastic bag to stiffen the board.

Genius.

"Defying Gravity".

😁

19 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Looks like everyone had a fun cruise.  Love it!!

Thank you😊

We had a great cruise until we had to say, "Au revoir."

Parting is such sweet sorrow.

I am going to study some towel animal techniques between now and my next cruise in November.

Imagine surprising the cabin attendant on the first day with towel animal staring him in the face on the bed.

😮

12 minutes ago, cruiselvr04 said:

Super cute.  Our last cruise we didn’t get a single towel animal and I missed it!

Bryan threw down the towel gauntlet and we were game on!

I had a few cruises that had no towel animals.

We were both thinking all day long about how we were going to take it to the next level.

My wife and I were howling in laughter with his responses to our our presentations.

Just fun.

7 minutes ago, CruisinNole said:

I logged into the website this morning with my password. No problem. I installed the app this afternoon on my Android phone and logged in with the same password. No problem.

My wife has had no problems with her app sign-in just like you.

No rhyme or reason....

🤔

3 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

My old password met that criteria and didn't work

Maybe Royal has had a "problem" and is requiring everyone to create a new password?

🤔

10 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

I cant sign in online so it's not just a app problem. I'm waiting for rcl to fix the sign in problem.

@firefly333

Heads up. Royal changed the password requirements. My password worked flawlessly for years until today. I had to reset my password to include a "number". I had capital, lower case letters and a special character but no "number". All I can guess is that they are implementing new password requirements.

Reset your password and Royal has three mandatory requirements, more than 8 characters, a numeric character, and a letter character.

My recent voyage on the Vision was a hoot because Bryan, our Cabin Steward, brought some great towels to life and I appreciated his efforts.

On the first sea day morning, Bryan left us "Mister T." watching some TV.

I made him comfortable in his own custom bed.

Life was as good as it gets with unlimited beverages and snacks.

He even has his own perch in order to get a higher perspective on life.

But as with so many things in life, too much of anything can be a source of stomach and head aches.

And then Bryan created Miss T.

They hit it off immediately and a special dinner and show led to romance.

The next day, along came Baby T. and then there were three.

Family fun arrived on the Royal Caribbean Slides.

Bryan created a unique Teeter Tot Slide. SO COOL!

Every family needs a loyal pet and along comes Pet T. from Bryan.

Baby T  and Pet T get along famously. Pet T gives Baby T a waterfall at his bath time.

At the very end, they want to Stowaway with us but I ask them to stay so they can give joy and happiness to the next cabin visitors.

Bryan, of the Vision of the Seas, April 4th, 2024, embarkation,  THANK YOU FOR THE MEMORIES!

We had so much fun challenging each other. I will bring a higher game next year.

3 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

 Of course It also helps if you love the included food there as much as I do.

The fixings bar for toppings is sooooo goood.  The tacos toppings are the absolute best except for the "sour cream" which seems to have separated into water and 'something'. Someone did not tell the preparers to smooth the sour cream so that the water would not separate from the solids and placed it back into the refrigerator.

The guacamole, cheese, salsa, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, jalapeno peppers, and everything is soooooo gooooood.

Cuban sandwiches are extremely good.

I have stated, "Why can't the ship not make this stuff as good as Coco Cay."

I would eat that stuff, "Everyday,"

No question, the highlight of my trip for dining.