h20skibum

When we were on Symphony last month, Royal was selling ducks for $3. I guess that was for those parents that had kids unable to find one. They could just buy and hide it where they could find it. Wonder if this is going to be a new item on all the ships

You are bound to hit some setbacks, Greg. That is what happened when my mom had hers done. Just keep working at it, and it will get better.

I am looking for a recommendation from some of our friends here. Our plans for Summer of Fun 4.0 continue, and part of that is to take the grandkids and our daughter and SIL on the Utopia. I just booked all of our flights to Orlando MCO). Has anyone used a car service they can recommend. Since there will be seven of us, plus luggage, I would like to keep all of us in one vehicle like a van or stretch limo, instead of using a couple Ubers. We would be going to our hotel at Port Canaveral, since we arrive the day before the cruise. If anyone has someone they could recommend, I would appreciate it.

Harry, I know you mentioned about not getting the cruise compass on some of the days of your cruise. For those who don’t know, the Compass was a paper schedule of events for the day. In some ways, it was much easier to look at it, instead of the app. But Royal Caribbean went digital with it to save paper. (Hmm, wonder if there is a way to make digital luggage tags and save my paper?) Something many people overlook is the little card they leave in your cabin with a QR code on it. All you have to do is scan the QR code while you are logged on to the ship WiFi while onboard (this can be the free WiFi). It will open up a browser window with the compass for the day in digital format. If you can’t find that card, you can enter this (once again, this only works onboard). https://minio.rccl.com/compass/cruisecompass.pdf That should give you the daily Cruise Compass in PDF form. If you keep this browser window open, all you have to do is refresh it each day to get the new compass. Of course, you could scan the card again or enter the above address again each day. Once I had the compass in the browser, I would save it each day to my iPhone. Some may ask, How do you do that. As someone who uses an iPhone and iPad, this is how to save it. (Note, since I am no longer on a ship, I am using a pdf from our PA tax website and my iPad to demonstrate) Click the square box at the top of the browser with the arrow pointing up, and choose Save to Files. In the next screen, I would just append the day number to the file name (here I just added Save1), and choose Save at the top of this screen. That’s all there is to it to save it to your device (if using an Apple product). Maybe you have something similar on your Samsung. I always found it handy to have the compass on my phone, and these are much clearer than taking photos of the cruise compass.

Log in to Royal Caribbean on a computer. Open up your profile and click on My Loyalty. Edit your C&A number by erasing the last digit, then put it back in and click Save. Click Back, and it should update you to D+

Last time we were there, the captain took the ship right up to the Pitons, and spun the ship around. We were on the helipad, which gave some nice views. Your weather has looked great, All we have had here is snow, then rain through today. You picked a good week.

I have had a hard time keeping up here the last couple days. I have been taking care of patient 3225, otherwise known as my wife. Everything turned out well, and we are back to normal. Lunch today was at a new Thai restaurant. We have been there a couple of times, and haven’t found anything bad. You get a couple spring rolls with your meal, but we ordered some extras. Susan had shrimp fried rice. I had Pad Thai I was hesitant to order it, because I got violently ill on some I had at Universal Studios last year. Much better outcome today. Off to work a funeral dinner at our church tonight.

Not saying that this will work, but it may be worth a try. I had something similar happen on Royal Caribbean, when I moved from Diamond tier to Diamond Plus. Both the website and their app listed the correct points, but it wouldn’t update from D to D+. I opened my profile on the website where the loyalty number is stored. I edited the loyalty number by removing the last digit, then adding it back and saving it. It immediately updated to the correct tier on both the website and the app. Who knows, maybe they hired the same people to develop these databases. Not sure why that would have initiated an update, but it did.

OP’s sailing is the Med from Southampton, not the Caribbean Not many of the ports are close to things you want to see. As their first cruise, I would recommend sticking with ship excursions from those ports. The exception would be Gibraltar, if that is one of their stops. We hired a taxi to take us to the top of the Rock.

Not knowing your ports, some of them may be tender ports, and some the ship may be docked. As others have said, excursion pricing can vary, depending on what day you look at it. I did a live review of our Mediterranean sailing from Southampton on the Independence. Here is a link to that review. It may answer some of your questions if you have any of the same ports. Enjoy your cruise.

Answers 5 and 7 just mean they do not know. Stay tuned.

Sad news, indeed. This maybe explains the lack of updates recently. From the photos during the sea trials, it appeared there was still a lot of work to be done.

They did the same thing for Odyssey. I know I have several photos of them filming onboard. We were on one of the first sailings after the inaugural.

That’s why I always check before leaving the ship, and reconcile with what was put on my CC. Never got one emailed after we got of the last cruise, 16 days ago.

Yeah, hard for the cruise lines to keep up with technology. From the photos of the new Sun Princess, it looks like they will have plenty of the usb Type C plugs. I have one of these things I bring along. It has five of the Type C, and two of the Type A ports. Works well, because we have an iPad, two iPhones, two Apple Watches, and a GoPro to charge. It seems the ships stage that luggage in the hallways now. If we spy ours sitting there, we will drag them to our cabin and unpack. We always like to get that out of the way. Maybe that is their plan. People see their suitcases and take them. That way they have fewer to deliver. And on the tag holders, never did buy the wider ones to fit Princess tags. If you trim a little from each side, they fit the narrow Royal tag holders.

But by the time the hoopla about Icon dies down, they will Sun will already be into the first revenue sailing. I find it odd that they haven’t even updated the deck plans yet. And on that 1,150 crew number, my bet is they just have a typo on that page that hasn’t been corrected. Since many sites list a crew complement of 1,550, that seems like a more realistic number.

It was so nice to read this, Dani. Glad you were able to get away for some family time. Nice photos of the family.

Looks a little like my dinner tonight, except baby back ribs instead of chicken. You need to add some bacon, cheese and sour cream to those potatoes.

From their press release last month ————————————— In a first-of-its-kind collaboration, Princess Cruises today announced it is joining with Romero Britto, the world-renowned artist known for his bold, colorful, and joyful style, and a global advocate for happiness, to create Love by Britto, an artistic-inspired dining experience celebrating the essence of “Love” aboard Sun Princess. Located on deck 17 at the aft of the spectacular new ship, Love by Britto is a groundbreaking addition to the Sun Princess experience portfolio. The new dining experience serves as an exquisite showcase of the artist’s iconic and joyful designs against the backdrop of a boutique restaurant venue designed to immerse couples in a world of vivid colors, bold patterns, and heartfelt emotions, and create an ambiance of extraordinary service immersion. Love and art converge with taste in an immersive culinary journey, showcasing a meticulously curated menu by culinary virtuoso Rudi Sodamin. With Sodamin’s ingenious touch, Love by Britto transcends into a multisensory exploration, offering extraordinary dishes that embody profound passion, exquisite flavor, and boundless creativity. “Love by Britto on the Sun Princess celebrates the universal language of love, expressed through Britto’s vibrant art and design and promises to be uplifting and transformative for our guests," said John Padgett, president of Princess Cruises. "With a perfect blend of art, beauty, and soul, Love by Britto is destined to leave a lasting impression.” Set to debut when the newest ship from The Love Boat launches in early 2024, all elements of the innovative new concept - the setting, the artwork, the menu – have been uniquely designed to create an unparalleled dining destination. Love by Britto is a testament to Princess Cruises' unwavering commitment to creating exceptional experiences that transcend the ordinary. “With Love by Britto, we’ve created a one-of-a-kind experience that showcases the harmony between food, art, and the universal language of love, to create an experience that’s meant to be savored,” said Britto. “On the amazing Sun Princess, we’re going to celebrate love for life every evening by pairing an incredibly unique vibe along with exceptional cuisine to create a setting for everyone to indulge their senses and emotions.” “Considered the most licensed artist in history, Britto is the founder of the Happy Art Movement and has created an iconic visual language of happiness, fun, love, and hope all its own inspiring millions worldwide,” added Lucas Vidal, CEO of the BRITTO brand and organization. Brazilian-born and Miami-made, Britto’s work has been exhibited in the most prestigious galleries and museums in over 120 countries, including the Carrousel Du Louvre and he was the first living visual artist to present his work at the Soumaya Museum. He also has created innumerous public and private art installations, not to mention the largest in the history of London’s Hyde Park. He did the opening of the Super Bowl XLI in collaboration with the Cirque Du Soleil, was the official artist for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa, ambassador to the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil, honorary torch bearer and ambassador for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Love by Britto will feature a seven-course, prix fixe menu ($149 per person) beginning with a flute of Champagne upon arrival and features luxury ingredients including lobster, caviar and truffles, and dessert options that always include chocolate fondue. Specifically featured across the seven-course meal are dishes highlighted by delectable and intoxicating aphrodisiacs, like Oysters with Champagne Pearls or Grilled Fig with Prosciutto and Roquefort as featured starters, followed by savory soups like Asparagus and Watermelon Cocktail with Vodka. Also on the menu are savory salad options that feature quail eggs, pomegranate and avocado. Fish dishes like Lobster Thermidor with Clams and Wild Rice, and Honey-Basted Wild Salmon. Meats like Wagyu Chateaubriand Rossini and Roast Quail Farci with Truffles. Champagne flavored sorbet with Rose Petals to cleanse the palate. And heavenly dessert options in addition to chocolate fondue that range from Iced Soufflé Tahiti Vanilla and White Valrhona Chocolate with Hot Raspberries, to Hot Chocolate Soufflé with Hot Bing Cherries. “Food is the international language of love,” said Rudi Sodamin, head of culinary arts for Princess Cruises. “It could not be more perfect for Princess, home of The Love Boat!” Love by Britto headlines a delectable assortment of expanded restaurant options aboard the highly anticipated Sun Princess, the next generation ship from Princess.

Looks like the high price winner so far. Don’t know if Beach Club is capacity controlled, but it said sold out if someone was looking to book onboard. Yet all but two of those OWB’s were open, as were many of the loungers and most all of the beach cabanas.

Cute cake. It must be something about boys, and their 5th birthdays. My California grandson had a truck cake for his 5th. I may have posted these before. The lady who did this, did a lot of special baked, decorated items for George Lucas. Very talented. Everything was edible, including the checkerboard base and tires My job was to balance that, as we drove 10 miles from the baker to the birthday venue. Not an easy task.

Ok, so somewhat of a pro tip here. If you do need to access the internet for a short period, without paying the daily rate, do this…. It will give you about 15 minutes of access. When you log in to the WiFi, it gives you a couple choices. One is to purchase or sign in to the paid WiFi that gives you Internet access. The second option is to use the free WiFi onboard the ship, which is what you are using. The third option is to download or update the app for free. As soon as you click that, it will take you to the App Store, but more importantly, since that is done over the internet, it will give you internet access for about 15 minutes. It will only work once or twice, then it will tell you to visit the voom desk for help. If you just need it briefly, it is an option.

The White House did them for 50th anniversary and for 80th birthdays. My parents got both.