Cruising89143
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Icon prices out of control
Cruising89143 replied to runner2013's topic in Royal Caribbean International
We loved the Oasis and Allure right after they entered service. Cruised on the Symphony last year and it felt so much more crowded. We have decided that the O class ships are too large for us. We love the size of the Voyager class of RCI and Celebrityβs Solstice class. The Icon looks amazing for someone wanting that type experience. I donβt see us cruising on it. Weβre currently booked on a TA and our first river cruise doing the Christmas markets. Being fully retired we now book most of our cruises closer in. -
Hope X will not follow Royal C with mega mega
Cruising89143 replied to hcat's topic in Celebrity Cruises
The Icon is not much larger than the Wonder. More staterooms that hold three and four guests versus the Oasis class. Personally, I no longer have an interest in the larger ships but we found the best entertainment hands down on the Oasis class and it looks as though Icon is turning up the volume in this area as well. We enjoy the Voyager class on RCI and the Solstice class on X. RCI is rumored to be working on Project Discovery which will be around the 130-140,000 ton size to replace the older ships in the fleet such as the Vision and Radiance class. RCI will never build the smaller ships in those classes again and we can expect the same from most of the Carnival brands. Princess is going larger with their new Sun Princess. Recent rumor has Carnival Corp. new buildings exceeding the 200,000 ton range. Of course their new Excel class is already packing them in like sardines. Even NCL found out that the new Leonardo class was too small and continues to upsize. I wonβt be surprised to see X go a little larger with their next class. -
Icon of the Seas Blocks Are In The House!
Cruising89143 replied to Lloyd555's topic in Royal Caribbean International
I think that the Haven experience is much better than that of what Royal offers but once outside of the Haven, it was a complete zoo. We cruised on the Bliss and enjoyed everything the Haven had to offer but again once we left that area the rest of the ship felt tight and busy. The Icon doesnβt interest us at all. We enjoyed the Oasis class when the Oasis and Allure first entered service. Last year on the SYM cured that. Our tastes have changed over the years. We now prefer the size of the Voyager and Solstice class. I think the Icon will be great for cruisers who are looking for a more active cruise but thatβs no longer us. π -
Grandeur of the Seas Be Wary 12/17-12/27
Cruising89143 replied to BigPapi21's topic in Royal Caribbean International
I have been cruising with RCI for over twenty years and I have never witnessed a ship in as bad shape as the photos are showing and I cruise on ships older than three or four years old. At one RCI cared about ongoing ship maintenance. Right now itβs paying back those loans. We cruised on the NV just after the Covid restart. The large pool side screen was distorted with a green hue. I spoke with one of the officers and he said that corporate would not approve the funds to replace. It took a year to get the screen replaced. -
Did Avalon change their gratuity policy?
Cruising89143 replied to AtlantaCruiser72's topic in River Cruising
When I was planning our cruise the option to prepay was there. On the day that we booked it wasnβt. Itβs now back. -
Grandeur of the Seas Be Wary 12/17-12/27
Cruising89143 replied to BigPapi21's topic in Royal Caribbean International
The photos show me that this is a ship that either needs to be refurbished or retired from the fleet. I recall a number of years ago Richard Fain stating on an earnings call the Vision class of ships days in the fleet was numbered. Of course Pullmanturβs demise and Covid happened and RCI needs to pay off loans so they stay in the fleet. Itβs a shame that this ship is in this condition. -
Virgin Voyages email shows Celebrity missteps!
Cruising89143 replied to Bejay219's topic in Celebrity Cruises
I just read that Virgin has once again pushed delivery of their fourth vessel out until 2025/26. This is not the first time that they have pushed this vessel back for delivery. I donβt think the demand is there. IMHO they are going to need to allow kids on some of their vessels if they want to fill them on a consistent basis. Personally, I have cruised enough over the last 37 years to know that Virgin holds little appeal to us. Especially their standard balcony staterooms. Looks like they went shopping at IKEA. https://www.seatrade-cruise.com/ship-operations/when-brilliant-lady-joining-virgin-voyages-it-will-be-while -
I remember this topic and the photo well. This was a good number of years ago. A heated thread to say the least.
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Sounds just like my first cruise back in 1986 except there was no buffet. All meals were taken in the MDR. All three meals had set times and if you were more than fifteen minutes late, too bad. The doors were shut. No such thing as room service. We did have a midnight buffet but we were not ones who wanted to dine again at midnight. The majority of our entertainment was a few dancers and the cruise director singing. Glad to see that cruising has changed/progressed. π
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Should I be worried about overbooking?
Cruising89143 replied to drkellik's topic in Celebrity Cruises
OP, glad that you received your room assignment. Enjoy your cruise. The Quantum situation is the first time that I have heard of guests showing up and not having a stateroom assignment. There was a thread on the RCI board about this. Seems to be that guest staterooms were needed at the last minute for crew with Covid that need to be quarantined. Not sure if that was the case but I have always known the cruise lines to extend guests generous offers to move to a different sail date in order to take care of the overbooking situation. -
AMEX Royal Caribbean points offer
Cruising89143 replied to barbeyg's topic in Royal Caribbean International
Not a myth at all. Have received this offer on both RCI and Celebrity. -
Tampa it is. https://cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/2023/12/margaritaville-at-sea-adds-second-ship-to-sail-from-tampa/
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Denied Boarding at Port, with PITIFUL Compensation
Cruising89143 replied to SG65CB's topic in Royal Caribbean International
Good Morning America just had a piece on this story. They interviewed the one couple that was not allowed to board. Also, named the cruise line and ship. Not the kind of attention that any cruise line would want. -
Diamond (Crown Lounge) Access
Cruising89143 replied to Slidell_Cruiser's topic in Royal Caribbean International
I think our D+ pins ended up in the same place as our previous pins. The trash. -
Diamond (Crown Lounge) Access
Cruising89143 replied to Slidell_Cruiser's topic in Royal Caribbean International
I have never found the reserved seating that great in the main theater. Ice skating was much better. -
Diamond (Crown Lounge) Access
Cruising89143 replied to Slidell_Cruiser's topic in Royal Caribbean International
We retired at ages 56 and 59. This was during the beginning of Covid. Once things settled down we cruised a total of ten times in 2022. We found out that was too much. Became boring to us. π This year we only cruised twice. Right now we only have two booked for 2024 but one cruise is a 14 night TA. We have been trying to get back to Europe for three plus years. Unfortunately Covid caused us to put things on hold. We go back and forth between Celebrity and RCI. We enjoy each for different reasons but both are great cruise lines. We donβt care about reaching a certain status or we would have stayed strictly with RCI to reach their top tier years ago. So in the end, we thought that we would end up cruising more in retirement years but this year was a normal cruise year. Will be interesting to see where we end up next year. π -
Independence OTS - Grand Suite
Cruising89143 replied to Twenty2020's topic in Royal Caribbean International
IMHO on any class lower than an Oasis or Quantum a JS is the highest that we usually go. Suite perks lack compared to price. No Coastal Kitchen or WiFi. -
Just dropped today from Peter Knego.
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It has been reported that the ship was sold. New owners are unknown but itβs being reported in multiple places that she is heading to a yard to be recycled. The ship is now 41 years of age. She has served well.