tcneal

According to Cruisemapper, Explorer just left dry dock in Cadiz.  Looking forward to March 12th.

1 hour ago, EleventyBangBang said:

I was the only player at the table on the Independence in Europe.  The dealers told me it just wasn't a very popular game in that part of the world among the locals, just an occasional Yank such as myself.

 

 

I sailed the MSC Seaside once and it didn't have a table.  I was told that it's not very big in Europe and since MSC is more of an European company, no ships have Craps table.  Not sure if that is true, but it explains the no table.

1 hour ago, nascartony20fan1 said:

Yes. You are right. It is Prime, not Choice @ 2500 points. As a Signature, I am offered balconies with an occasional Jr Suite or ocean view in the mix. But you are right about royal up. You can always bid for something better. 

At Prime, my offers are usually Interiors and OV, with the occasional balcony.  We usually pay a small amount to upgrade directly to balcony at booking, so it's much easier than Royal Up.  If we want something beyond balcony, we usually try Royal Up.  Have only been successful once.

9 hours ago, nascartony20fan1 said:

There is no set amount of money. Once you have gambled once on a cruise and accumulate 800 points you get a free cruise, 2500 points is choice level and 25,000 points is signature, and so on upward. Works like land based casinos with yearly tier credit and status. Points add up over a year. They randomly send lists of free cruises weekly that you have to choose by a certain date. I don’t have unlimited travel time, so from the free choices, I would like to pick the best option for me. Back to your question, the $$ spent to reach 800, 2500, 25,000 etc if you don’t win at all, I think is  $5 for 1 point. Which is a ton of money to spend, but if you like gambling and spend the winnings, $100 or $1000, you quickly reach 800 for a free cruise. 2500 points gives you free drinks in the casino for the year. 25,000 points gets free internet in addition to drinks. Points add on for a year and guarantee you one free 7 day cruise a year in addition to the offers mailed/emailed throughout the year. They like to fill cruises to capacity with gamblers. If you’re smart, you can go on many cruises for way less than the cost of paying for them. 

Very good explanation.  The only update I have is the 2500 point level is Prime, not Choice.   You get Choice when you sign up for the program.   I'm currently Prime and have 1 more cruise in 2 weeks on the Explorer before the calendar resets.  They calculate your points from Apr-Apr.  If you are a gambler you can get to Prime in 1-2 cruises.  People who play Slots get there faster.  And the drinks alone make it worth it.  I haven't bought a drink package since I reached Prime for the first time.  I don't think I'll ever reach Signature, I don't cruise enough but I have met Signature players in the Casino.  And the cruises are free, usually inside cabins, but you can upgrade to any room for the difference.

6 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

I thought this was going to be a post about a failed sewer system on board.

I should have said "Casino Craps Table"! 😀

13 hours ago, itsnowjoke said:

I used to be a craps dealer in Reno a long, long time ago, I wonder if they'd let me volunteer to step in and deal?😁  Great game!

They could use your help.  It is the hardest game to deal.   That is why they have a hard time staffing craps.

I'm wondering if anyone has recent experience with the casino on Voyager class ships, specifically the Explorer?  I'm Prime and mainly a Craps player and I have been disappointed on my recent sailings.   Just got off the Radiance and they removed the Craps table all together.  Nice ship but I probably will not be sailing that class if the others in the class now have the same layout.   Another sailing on Odyssey has Craps but the table was closed most of the time because they didn't have enough dealers, which I totally get in this time.  I have seen recent walkthroughs of the Explorer and the table is there but I don't know if it is operating.   If anyone has been on recently, I would love to hear your experience.  I wish this is something they would publish, but that might be asking for too much.

Thanks,

I just got off the Radiance last week and didn't see many masks.  More on embarkation and disembarkation day but not many during the cruise.   Take it for what it is worth, but I came home with COVID.  I'm not saying the mask would have prevented it but I didn't mask.  It's really a personal choice and didn't hear anyone questioning those that did.

We were on the Radiance last week also.  We had MTD at 6:45pm every night.   The line was long each night.  It took anywhere from 15-30 minutes to be seated.  Lines looked shorter for later times.  We were always at a table for 2 but the tables are so close together it felt like we were dining with a group.

Like everything else, it depends on who is working.   We were in the same situation on the Harmony a month ago.  Our children was in a balcony room next door to our GS.  We tried to make reservations pre-cruise with the Concierge for the 4 of us, and they would not allow it.  Strange, since we hadn't had issues in the past and pointed this out.  But during the cruise, we had no problem with breakfast and lunch in CK with our children.   

5 hours ago, John&LaLa said:

 

A quarter, seriously 😳 

 

I'm sailing solo on Harmony for $700 next week

A quarter is about right.  The Christmas Symphony was at least 3 times as much as this.  Prices have adjusted to the current situation.

7 minutes ago, DevonfromAcme said:

Yes, Celebrity has had its dining venues and entertainment affected.  If you go to the Celebrity board on CC, you can get more details.

 

Remember, however, it is going to be an issue of clientele and scale.  The Celebrity ships are generally one third the size as the Symphony and her sisters, and they don't advertise themselves as amusement parks at sea.  RCI caters to families, with shows, entertainment, rides and slides, so when Covid hits, it's going to hit on a different scale with activities and venues shut down.

 

 

Agree.  Issues are going to shine brighter when you are on the largest cruise ship at sea that has been increasing capacity.  I have followed both the Celebrity and NCL boards and although I have read of issues, I have not read of every major production show not running for the entire cruise on a single ship.  For me, I think it goes back to expectations and also the premium to be on Symphony.  If I were on Jewel or Mariner, I don't know if it would have been as big of an issue.  I know the comparison of cost vs what I paid.

8 minutes ago, DevonfromAcme said:

 

 

The tone between all the boards IS interesting.  I am shortly to be on a sailing with a port-heavy Southern Caribbean itinerary, and so I have been actively tracking what ships have been kicked from what ports and (to the extent possible) what percentage of Covid positives are on board.  It has suddenly become a minor hobby! 😁😁😁

 

With all the screaming and hollering, you'd never know that any other ships had gotten kicked from ports or had Covid positives on board.  Celebrity and NCL have both had their larger and more recent sailings kicked, Princess has been kicked from a few ports, and even exclusive lines like Oceania have had a ship kicked.

 

The tone on this board regarding the Covid cases is like no other, however.  Take that as you will.

 

 

 

I don't think most complaints have been on the number of cases or being denied San Juan.  I personally didn't miss it that much.  I think the Entertainment (virtually non-existent) has been the biggest complaint, with no communication.  I don't know if that is happening on other Lines.  If it is and no one is complaining, maybe we are bunch of whiners.

6 minutes ago, DevonfromAcme said:

Celebrity has had a MESS of Covid cases on board, and they've been kicked from several ports over the last couple of weeks for being over the 1% positive limit.

 

Their CC board just doesn't seem to be screaming about it quite like this one is, however.

 

 

I know other lines have COVID cases.  That is unavoidable.  And they might get denied ports.  What I haven't heard is other lines canceling as many shows and venues as this cruise in particular and Royal in general.  I'm asking because I don't know.  Has Celebrity cancelled most of its Production shows?  Are Bars/Clubs closed?

34 minutes ago, crewsweeper said:

1) The majority of infected people o  board these ships has been the crew.  The crews on ships only got the J&J single shot and it's not as effective against Omicron as the other two double shots.  Crews need to get boosters, ASAP.

2) Maybe a clean on crews quarters could be necessary, but as far as I'm aware, in the past 2+ years of COVID there hasn't been a single case traced back to touching anything. Unless cleaning crews and housekeeping on board aren't doing their required sanitizing,  there's no need to extra sanitize ships.  Even with NORO ships get cleaned without delaying cruises except for a few hours on initial embarkation day.

I don't think we actually know the true number of infected people.  The crew are the only people being tested and since most people are asymptomatic, I would bet that just as many passengers are infected.  I posted earlier of the craps table of being opened for 1 night and the rumor was a couple of dealers on that table later tested positive.  I'm pretty sure others that were on that table were probably infected also but passengers were not tested.  The only real numbers we are getting is from the crew and passengers with symptoms.

9 hours ago, Jasukkie said:

I have no idea if a shutdown will happen but I would love to see changes made. Test at the pier. 100% vaxxed, no exceptions. Enforced masking in inside public areas. Grab and go dining boxes and drop off stations so people can eat outside or in their rooms more easily. Actual social distancing in dining areas. Some of the people canceling now might not if they felt like the cruise line was actually going to help them stay safe. Royal gambled on expanding capacity and lost. From my first cruise in June it was clear no enforcement of masking was going to happen. It's easy to bob and weave and take the steps when there are only 900 onboard, much harder with 4000. 

 

 

I agree completely.   Biggest issue is capacity.   The mask situation is a no win situation for them.  There is no way for enforcement of this policy.  People who are against wearing them are going to take every opportunity to violate the policy.  I don't know how many times over the week I walked into an elevator and the person (mainly kids but some adults) was not wearing the mask.  Most of the time they put it on after we entered but sometimes not.

What I think the biggest change needed is 100% vaxxed.  I think the unvaxxed children were one the biggest problems on the ship.  It might be an unpopular opinion but if they are not vaccinated, they shouldn't be on.  That was the issue with the holiday cruises, there were so many kids running around and I would say most were unmasked.  We sat in venues where kids directly around us were coughing on everything, unmasked.  Windjammer was the same.  This policy needs to change.

4 hours ago, mek said:

Prices are lower right now - just look at Jan and Feb sailings.  Anyone cruising over the next few months can get a really good deal if they are willing to gamble on exactly what type of cruise they will end up with.

 

If I lived in Florida or could drive to the port, I might be willing to hop on a ship, but we have to fly and there are just too many hoops to jump through  for us to do that.

 

As usual, they are a little to late to respond.   I agree prices are lower now for Jan and Feb and they have sent notifications warning of disruptions.  But, I think I paid as much for the Christmas cruise as any other year.  If they wanted, they could make it right but I'm not holding my breath.

Just filled out my survey.   First time I actually had fun writing it.

36 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Dissatisfaction is a reason for disputes but for big money you need better than I didnt get to see the diving show I was promised though I was able to sleep in my cabin which was beautiful. They might give you a good will credit out of their own pocket, not the merchants. And your value for future disputes is now less. Yes they give you a dollar value. Big spenders get more credits. Its life. I worked disputes and black cards and all that. 

I do understand that and if it were me, my first complaint would be to RCL, not my credit card.  Just curious if something was there, but you are right about the payout.   There are many beautiful cabins on that ship but you still pay a premium for that location, even if it is hard to prove with their pricing structure.   I, personally prefer the Crown Lofts and they are usually less.  But I know a lot of people love the Aqua Suites.

I don't see any compensation coming our way.  But as I was sitting on the Boardwalk yesterday, I wondered if I would have a case (with my credit card) if I booked an Aqua Theater suite without an Aqua Theater show.  Its directly in the description for the room.  I would be a lot angrier than I am now.

Well I wanted to report my end to this wonderful cruise.  After all of the cancellations, crew apologies, Bars closed for unexplainable reasons, remaining activities that were packed, strange casino experience, and very odd passenger behavior (We saw a very drunk man just urinate on himself by the elevators).  I spent the last couple of hours before debarking in the infirmary after vomiting all night.   Tested negative for Covid.   Could have been Noro but the best guest was food poisoning (I had the Chicken Cordon Blu in the MDR).   So after this week long adventure, I know where this cruise will rank.

Through all of that, we tried to have fun.  Enjoyed the things that were offered.  I wonder if I were on the Jewel or Explorer (not to knock those ships), would I have felt this way.  You do have certain expectations with an Oasis class that were obviously not met.  I have debated expectations over and over here so not getting into that again.

1 hour ago, danielwje1 said:

For anyone onboard, we just noticed this afternoon that all movies are now free on the TV. This wasn’t the case when we boarded.

 

seems like a missed opportunity not to promote this to guests (unless I missed the memo?) 

Thanks.   I will take a look.  I didn't get the memo either. 

4 hours ago, bajathree said:

I agree 100%

Seeing the difference sailing Odyssey in Sept with 1100 passengers and then Allure earlier this month with 3400 passengers I saw that there were going to be issues. While protocols on Odyssey worked very well the protocols weren't working on Allure....simply too much occupancy. One venue would require a mask where you wouldn't be closer than 10 feet from anyone else and then another required nothing and you were packed in like sardines. The idea of having vaccinate and unvaccinated areas simply doesn't work with high occupancy. Raising occupancy should have required ships to be 100% vaccinated and get rid of the division of space between vaccinated and unvaccinated....crazy.

Thank you.  This is what I have been trying to say.  All the protocols break down when there are too many people.  Increasing Capacity too soon was the biggest mistake they could have made.  They will try to blame this solely on Omicron but I wonder what would have happened if they just kept capacity low.

5 hours ago, danielwje1 said:

I think the issue is that the health and safety protocols just don’t work with so many people on the ship. 
 

Take last night as an example (forgetting the fact 1977 was swapped out for iSkate at the last minute with no communication due to some of the cast having to isolate). 
 

Attached we have the line which we had to wait in for 30 minutes to get into Studio B due to capacity issues. 
 

we then enter Studio B to find half of the seats are blocked off to allow “physical distancing” with families having to sit in a non-vax area. But, we were standing in the packed line with the same families with kids for over 30 minutes. 
 

if we were going to catch Covid, we would have done so waiting in line. If they removed the blocked seats then we wouldn’t have been waiting in line and arguably more safe than the current protocols and much better customer experience. Alternatively, knowing there’s virtually no other entertainment and if they need to work with the current protocols, the cruise staff could have scheduled more ice shows to give everyone a chance to see and stay safer by avoiding the crowds. 
 

i think the current protocols work well if the ship is at low capacity, but clearly it just doesn’t work with so many people onboard. This is further compounded by lack of staff and because there’s no entertainment, when something is happening there is a massive crowd looking to be (rightfully so) entertained. 

I was at that show last night and was very confused also.  I thought I booked the wrong show.  No indication that they were changing it.  I asked afterwards and was just told they couldn't perform 1977.  Looks like from your picture we were a few rows in front of you.

I think this entire thread can be boiled down to 2 words.  Capacity and Communication. 

2 hours ago, Jarmo said:

I believe there are limits to how many hours staff can work in a week.

I think you are right that there is a limit.  And I know they are short staffed.   That's why the craps table was only open 1 night.   I'm really not blaming the crew here.  It's unfortunate all the way around.