MoWanchuk

I am against cruelty to animals. Never sous vide a steak, unless you don't know how to grill or are time constrained. It's great for butter poaching things like lobster, or fish. A steak is not meant to be cooked in hot water. Even if it's own juices, it's still fatty water.

I've always been asked to take my watch off Not a big deal, but and IME it's usually slow enough that you can take a few more spins down the zip line while still in the gear.

Sailing on the Edge on 9/13, SEA- Alaska-Vancouver. We embark in Seattle but the cruise ends in Vancouver, so we will obviously have to clear Canadian C&I getting off the boat. We've done european cruises and since it all Schengen you just walk off, and also very familiar with how easy US customs formalities are for Caribbean trips. For flight planning out of YVR, how long does it take to get through CAD immigration and customs at the port?

Having been on Odyssey last summer for 8 nights in the Med after 4 Oasis class cruises, it was a bit of a letdown. We just returned from our 5th Oasis class cruise last night, and that just cemented that felling. Personally, I would do Wonder then Symphony OCV. DR and Labadee aren't our jam. Allure is a great ship and my sons are the same age group as yours, barring "amplification" it would be last pick of the Oasis Class ships.

So we had to use the RCCL medical evac coverage for my MIL about 6 years ago, although I cant recall the company. They were extremely responsive in facilitating the Air ambulance back to FLL for her and travel nurse and flights back home (in 1st class) after she was well enough to travel and discharged from the FLL hospital. We never saw a bill for those. As for the on ship and 3rd world hospital costs, we got most of it back. It took about 4 months between her primary insurance reimbursements and then them picking up the odds and ends. As a result of the above, as a family, we have Medjet Horizon and buy the annual plan. It gives great peace of mind for both vacations and my wife's and my business travels.

We always have make sure we have cash for the Genie. Having worked in a service role in school and not knowing how long disbursement takes from RCCL on the back end, cash is always best and appreciated IME. We also throw the cabin attendant some extra cash as well. The wages paid and standard gratuities are small and even a healthy tip to these folks is still a very small percentage of what the trip costs.

FWIW, we did a 8 night Med Cruise on Odyssey last summer. We had a 2BR suite (not star class) and concierge wasn't that helpful. We had a group of 13 and I think we did a 3 night dining package, getting tables was a nightmare. We were able to get Hibachi but for lunch. The upside was it was for our only sea day.

The wine surcharge is new, err a post-COVID "enhancement." Good info! Thank You.

So on my previous cruises, both times the Genie emailed me about 2-3 weeks in advance asking where we wished to eat and when. They arranged all of our reservations that day. Are you saying your Genie didn't contact you in advance of the cruise?

Hi CC, We have cruised a couple of times before COVID in Star Class with the Genie. I just want to confirm the Genie will still handle all dining arrangements in advance and onboard "fixing." Has anyone used theirs to make excursion arrangements? TIA