Engineroom Snipe

I have been reticent to talk about this issue since their are experts far superior than me who have commented.

I can say I am a licensed electronic and electrical authority on land but not at sea.

Transformers can be rated for "dry", "damp", and "wet" conditions. The testing requirements on land are very specific.

Consider a substation oil cooled transformer that operates at voltages in excess of 10,000 volts AC year long exposed to the elements with a projected life span of twenty some years without failure.

That transformer is not concerned about weather conditions, humidity, or rain. What does affect it is heat.

If a transformer is subjected to conditions that was not listed and approved for usage, it will fail. I would hope that any transformers used on a ship would be rated for wet service and not fail due to condensation or moisture. Most transformers are not rated for "flood" service which would completely immerse them is water. Flooded transformers are very costly but are available.

Breakers are a whole different situation. There are inrush calculations, maximum surge calculations, environmental calculations as well as manufacturer cut-sheets for "exercise".

All breakers can oxidize due to environmental conditions affecting the physical contact surfaces and material. A breaker designed for aluminum wiring and copper wiring will have completely different ratings at different temperatures according to their listing and labeling.

There is so much more investigation necessary to come up with a conclusive finding.

Original approved design specifications..

Expected lifetime of original design.

Modification of original design.

Exercise of breakers.

What the hell, "Did you just say exercise of breakers?"

Not many people know that the manufacturer of most breakers installed in their homes "recommend" that the breakers be turned off and on once per year to "refresh" the physical electrical surfaces.

Reading the listing and labeled official cut-sheets of electrical equipment is critical to design, installation, maintenance and inspection of such items.

When I do inspections, I ask the contractor for the cut-sheets. If they do not have them, it is a huge red flag.

There are so many variables.

3 minutes ago, nferr said:

 

Try other lines and see if the quality more meets your expectations. 

I would rather stay with Royal because I like their service. There are some meals which are done very well.

My mantra, "I just wish they would be reasonable." I do not need a Grand Slam or Home Run every meal. Just give me a solid base hit on every meal and maybe a home run every other day.

Walks can get you through one inning but too many strike-outs will get you removed to the minors and looking for another team to try-out.

Let's "Play Ball!"

🤣

On my two most recent cruises:

Staff service was excellent.

First cruise, almost all MDR meals were good cuts of beef, the salmon was very good, with a few VERY good dishes.

Second cruise, my excellent waiter gently steered us away from dishes which he thought "were not the best" on the menu (after I asked him what was not being consumed after service on the first dining MDR). He so politely understood my question without denigrating the kitchen or the chef.

The food in MDR still seems to be hit or miss. I enjoy the hits and I try to "miss" the "misses".  Smile, work with your waiter, and make the best of what is offered.

😁

1 hour ago, SUESEABE said:

I too am concerned parking my PA licensed vehicle in public parking garage in Norfolk.  Where did you end up parking?

Asphalt Lots, Chesapeake, VA. They are on Facebook. They had not done cruise parking before and were on a learning curve. Very secure, price was less than normal cruise parking with shuttle included. I liked the ability to reserve and prepay which enured a spot. I would use them again compared to the cruise recommended parking sites.

5 minutes ago, Hutcha said:

I did Icon in March. The UDP credit was per venue / per day. I was traveling with a D+ couple that thought it was just $20 per day, and had to confirm it with the staff. 

 

• For venues with a la carte pricing, you’ll receive a $20 food credit — with the exception of Izumi in the Park, where you’ll receive a $10 food credit. Credits can only be used once a day.

 

The way I read this, and the way it was implemented on my last cruise, each venue has a $20 food credit, and it can be used daily. I also came to these boards to clarify this question before our cruise.

Good clarification from real world experience. I would have mistakenly read it as one credit use per day instead of one credit use per day at the same venue.

Thanks.

Very interesting discussion. I doubt I would ever make Pinnacle in my lifetime. I do enjoy my present Loyalty Perks but there is so much more to see outside of cruises. If I had a cruise point for every time I have camped in a forest, I would be double Pinnacle.

Again, a very lively discussion as I sail away on a future cruise, be it Royal or other.

I am sure that each cruise line has a similar discussion regarding their loyalty program.

Regards to all.

1 minute ago, cruisegus said:

So tired of this, just set a level, 1050, 1400, 1750 2800. Just make it a known.

Option: Allow at least each Pinnacle's BOGO at "All Specialty Resuturants" any day of cruise and extend $25 dining voucher to all ships.  You can then keep CK and Suite lounge for Suite Guests.

You are so loyal to Royal. I understand this. If Royal is not loyal to those have cruised to get more than 1000+ points, why would anyone want to follow in your footsteps?

I am so many cruise points much lower than you.

Is it worth it to be loyal to Royal?

Each sea day is so much more expensive than in the past.

Oh, to only have the problem of getting Pinnacle access perks........

I do not have to lose any sleep over that thought!

🤣

1 minute ago, Nebr.cruiser said:

As a former lifeguard I am often appalled at the number of parents who stick a life jacket, or worse, arm floaties on a child and figure they are safe and can be ignored watched casually. This is especially true for any child under 5 and/or Non swimmers.  

 

Even approved life jackets cannot prevent some awful accidents.  Parents should always be right with their children within an arm's reach with eyes on the child. Children can drown with almost no noise--often just slip beneath the surface.

 

Also, swim diapers don't keep everything out of the water!

Well stated.

Floaties and Class Three life jackets are not "self righting". This means the person will float on top of the water but their face will not be self righting and they will drown floating on the water face-down.

You are very experienced and I appreciate your comments on this matter.

I have gone to the Loyal Ambassador with specific complaints about my cruise. Not to make noise, not to get credits, just to first person report my observations.

The most I was offered later that evening was a bottle of wine which I refused.

My critique was not to get something more, it was just feedback.

Two days later, I was offered much more than a bottle of wine which I refused again.

I sensed during the last day of the cruise, panic started to ensue. I was directly contacted by my cabin attendant that it was urgent to contact the food service director about my concerns.

That was in April, 2022, during the opening after covid.

Crickets ever since. The ships are sailing full at record pricing.

I doubt anyone is getting any type of this compensation in the current cruise environment.

Cruises are running at 107% capacity.

Money talks, and the rest of us can walk if we do not want to pay the current fares.

I was on the Vision of the Seas this past April and the ONE pool available for all ages was shutdown due to a similar incident late morning on a sea day.

Imagine this on an August Cruise where kids sail free only having ONE pool area. When that pool area gets shut down for any reason, game over. Too many young people with so much pent-up energy with nothing else to do except a rock climbing wall (which may not be available at that specific time).

Nothing else for children to do onboard but shuffleboard and the rock climbing wall.

As anyone could imagine, the four general public hot tubs were packed during this time. Literally, if someone lowered a body into the tubs, someone would be forced out by displacement.

On the Vision, I would much rather do the free steam and sauna rooms multiple times a day before using the pools. I enjoy swimming and being in the water, but I could not move or turn around without trying to avoid children and adults. I was not trying to swim at the time. I was just trying to walk slowly from end to end for a bit of water exercise.

I find a good place in the shade and just chill, watch the ocean go by, sip a cold drink, maybe do some word puzzles, and appreciate not having to do anything at all.

Pools and hot tubs can be fun under the right circumstances but these were heavily overloaded.

26 minutes ago, shipgeeks said:

 I think they had a touch of diamond dust glued on, but I'm not sure.

You are being very generous and kind with this comment as we get back on topic (which I am guilty of driving off into a tangent with my drag racer remark).

I am going to end the discussion as quickly as I can regarding all of the brief comments:

Drag racers are not the only ones leaving skid marks on this thread.

🤣

10 minutes ago, doghog said:

D+ and Pinnacle laundry perk, so why not. Pictures to follow. 🤣

Sounds like the name of a new detergent:

D+P Laundry Detergent, take you dirty clothes to another level of clean.

😁

8 hours ago, Biker19 said:

It might be worth a few $ on eBay.

The old adage, "If you've got it, flaunt it."

This expression originates in the 1967 movie The Producers, written and directed by Mel Brooks. The phrase was shouted out the window by Max Bialystock (played by Zero Mostel): "That's it, baby, when you've got it, flaunt it! Flaunt it!"

"That's Entertainment" (1974).

7 minutes ago, leaveitallbehind said:

Thanks for the update.  To be fair, while I lumped them altogether in my response, I was referring primarily to the resident and 55+ as they are the two we are eligible for.  If what you indicate is now the direction, in particular with the military discount, that is indeed unfortunate.  Especially since the refundable fare option carries a measurable premium to begin with.

 

Thank you for your service.

In general, my travel agent's group rates (where I get to pick my cabin for no extra cost) have been lower than the best Royal pricing including any discounts at any time from announcement to cruise.

I only used military discounts when they were available in 2022 for one cruise in 2022 and two cruises in 2023 that I booked in 2022. This occurred when the cruise lines were trying to fill rooms during their recovery from shut-down.

27 minutes ago, leaveitallbehind said:

This is not accurate.  While 55+, military, resident, etc., discounts are not applied on every sailing, when they are they are applied to both refundable and NRD fares in our experience.  They also are initiated when bookings are released and applied at anytime during the booking cycle and not just added to boost bookings.

The two times I used the military discount in the past, my booking went to non-refundable. I am not saying that you are not correct. Your experience obviously was different from mine.

This change was emphasized by my travel agent when we went for the discount. That is why remember it so well.

I agree with all of the posters.

Military, Senior, Police, and "State" discounts are normally only offered when bookings are not meeting expectations.

In most cases, they come with "non-refundable" deposit clauses.

They also allow a price to go lower without having previous bookings requesting a price adjustment if they occur before final payments.

47 minutes ago, The Fun Researcher said:

I will say that there are a few things that have been removed or scaled back on recently that bother me in particular.  The sandwiches in Café Promenade used to have more quality/costly fillings like roast beef, salmon, etc... on the last two cruises on Anthem and Quantum if was either veggies,  bologna, or tuna salad.  ...and I do miss the lamb chops in the MDR.

 

It is the little things around the edges, as you mention that I miss.

Does it ruin my cruise or cause me to want to stop cruising? No.

It was these little items that I used to look forward to that have disappeared.

There used to be multiple carving stations at the Windjammer and now I have to search to find the one if it is there at all.

1 hour ago, Nobbi said:

Complete RCCL newbie here. I was checking on a 2025 June cruise and the unlimited dining came out to $55 per night. Given that the individual charges are not much higher, what is the advantage of the package, even if you went every night? I think I'm missing something important. If this is covered somewhere else, please forgive and refer me there.

 

Thanks

In so many words, you must compare how many nights and sea days you have during your cruise. Compare them to just buying them out right without any package.

You arrive on your embarkation day to make reservations without your discount and find only four nights of special dining package are available at the times of your choice. It might be cheaper to do that then settle for seven nights and say three sea days at times that are not convenient for you.

The unlimited dining plan can be like an unlimited drinking plan where you indulge more and at times that you do not want but feel that you must "get your monies' worth."

It may be better to pay full price for a meal that you want when you want it than settle for a meal at a specialty restaurant that happens to be available just to get your "monies' worth."

I have constantly weighed the unlimited dining plan against the cost but have been disappointed that reservations cannot be made until onboard which can severely limit my choices.

Nothing "unlimited" about their unlimited dining plan.

LOTS of limitations placed on trying to use it.

52 minutes ago, nferr said:

 

Drinks aren't watered down. It's just a matter of how many shots the bartender is putting in. From watching most of the bartenders they're putting in a shot and a half or so. 

European shot (1 fluid ounce), American shot (1 1/2 fluid ounce), American 'double shot' (2 ounces), from my observations, they are using European shot measuring devices (a jigger has two ends for measurement, one ounce and one and one-half ounce, I see the small one being used onboard ship).

When I see them using a pourer, it takes a full four second count for 1.5 ounces. I have never seen a four second pour onboard. Four seconds is an eternity when you are a proficient bartender which is why Royal hires them in the first place.

I do not think they intentionally pour "weak drinks", I think this is the way they are instructed to pour them.

I have cut back my drinking for many years for health reasons but I still am quite observant when they make a drink for my wife. I find my favorite bartender and make sure they get "appreciation" when I see them make a proper drink. 

21 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

 A year ago there were still a lot of left over really low prices which are gone now so year over year looks terrific but many many companies are saying price increases are running into resistance. Stagnation is being mentioned. Right now looks terrific, a year from now doesnt look so good. 

I tend to agree with your supposition with what I can see concerning prices at multiple websites. Many more fall cabins available this year than last as prices have been kept elevated after  banner seasons last fall and this winter. I did three cruises in 2023 booked in 2022 at very low prices. Doing two this year after booking them last year at half of their current listed prices on Royal's website last year. I am avoiding "add-ons" concerning dining, excursion, drinking, etc. as those prices have more than doubled (in some cases, asking 250% more). I got some very good deals through a TA at half the prices for two cruises next year. 

Even if frequent cruises just do one cruise less per year or try another line, that can lead to significant stagnation. If I cannot get a cruise for what I think is a good price-point, I will just hold onto the cash or try something else. I like Royal, understand supply and demand, and I think demand is leveling off starting October of this year where prices will not be constantly raised without resistance.

2 minutes ago, A&L_Ont said:

 

Maybe the increase is their portion of the tip pooling.😉😂

OMG, you had to mention the "T" word.

🫢😮🤣

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.