CamaCama

4 minutes ago, Newcruiser215 said:

Click the 3 dots in the bottom right corner of the video and you can change the playback speed. 

Yes I did that!  Was hoping for a longer video that showed the bunks at the end!

@Panda Monium is there a slower version of the video of the family infinite veranda (first one on the video)?  So exciting to see it complete!

We booked the inaugural 1/27/2024!   Family Infinite Balcony room, looks sweet!!!  Booked this morning at 7am est and prices have already increase over $2k since then.  Crazy.

Yes, we were on Freedom a few weekends ago and went to watch the Dolphins game at 1pm on nassau day.  Playmakers was already packed at 12:45, but we luckily got 2 seats at the bar at 1:05!  Place was jammed the entire time especially towards the end, such a good game and fun crowd.  Definitely get there early, i'd say 30 mins + if you want a seat for a popular game.

15 hours ago, TheHawk1 said:

When Oasis and Allure first debuted, there wasn't a water slide in sight.  Or the giant purple monstrosity that showed up on Harmony. Or when Royal ditched their association with Universal, so we didn't have to endure Shrek character parades anymore.  So yes, I had hoped there was going to be more of a balance of activities for young and old.  But I can't help that you're confused.

Yes they have realized families sail/spend more lol.  There will of course be activities for everyone, relaxing areas, central park, adult pools, trivia, etc.  They are just focusing on the family areas because that is what sells.

4 minutes ago, TheHawk1 said:

I've actually been on all five Oasis class ships and usually have no problems finding areas where you can avoid all the rugrats onboard. I'm reserving judgement on the Icon until I actually see it, but the previews don't have me as excited as I had hoped.  It is also a shame that Royal appears to want to take on Disney for the "family" market, at the expense of their other loyal, older customers... you know, the ones with all the money!

Did you really think it would not be geared towards young families?  I'm so confused by your responses here.

1 hour ago, TheHawk1 said:

Not major focus, but singular focus on kids, if all the leaked plans are true.  As much as I like Royal and especially Oasis class, this will have a lot of us seriously looking at more Celebrity Edge class cruises in the future.

This is VERY exciting for us young families with kids and who like to have a lot to do/different spaces, etc.  Royal is really stepping it up with this ship!  It's obvious this is a family oriented cruise line/ship so definitely go elsewhere if you want a peaceful cruise I guess.

Looks like an awesome family-friendly ship, wow!! Can't wait to see when it sails from Miami. 🙂 

On 10/7/2022 at 1:42 AM, Spurschick said:

Honestly I’d save the money and go with the cheapest option. 
have taken DD to Alaska twice, fist time in 2006 way before the big fancy let’s put bumper cars on ships, and neither time did she have an issue enjoying the ship. Why  - because when we were not in port she was hanging out with other kids she met in Adventure Ocean. Neither ship we did in Alaska was a new ship and she thoroughly enjoyed herself. (Fwiw she just turned 21 and has sailed on RC since she was 8months old and never complained about a ship)

We're still debating Ovation vs Brilliance.  We will be with family/cousins for the kids so it won't be a big issue if there ship has less to keep them entertained.

On 10/7/2022 at 12:19 AM, T-2 said:

CamaCama, I'm a little late answering you, its been one of those weeks... but for his favorite excursions, this is over 4 Alaska cruises, the first and 4th cruise he did the Deadliest Catch crab boat in Ketchikan.  It was even better the 2nd time and we thought it was amazing the first.  An easy 5 min walk from the ship which gave us the morning free for shopping and exploring Ketchican, one of our favorite ports. 

We have done the helicopter dog sledding on a glacier out of Skagway and tried to do it again our 2nd trip but weather makes that extremely ify- it is good to have a backup- first cruise it was spectacular, 3rd cruise it was canceled the first week of Aug because the weather was already too warm.  It has a super short season.  But Awesome. 

We did the train in Skagway our 2nd trip and loved it but didn't repeat it this time because they had to shorten it due to the damage to the train tracks, if they get it fixed that is a nice trip but better when he was younger and thrilled with trains. 

In Juno there are some incredible whale watching trips but we skip it because we love seeing them down in Puerto Vallarta- but have heard great things if you don't already live near an active whale area. 

Besides the flowrider and the bumper cars, especially teen/tween takeover :0)  he also loved the indoor pool, IFly and the North Star.  Plus the rare chance of being on a Quantum class as they normally were not on our west coast. super glad we went, next we are taking on the Wonder of the Seas, he wants to do All the Oasis class... insatiable cruise lover.  But I love Royal for all the things they have for family memories- irreplacable.   Just know port excursions can run into snags, the ship is the destination too.  Have a great cruise

Thank you so much!!! That is one thing I'm afraid of, this will probably be a one time cruise location for us (alaska) since we live in FL and I hope the excursions we want to do don't get cancelled.  I probably won't tell the kids in advance in case of cancellations.  Have you gone early/mid June?  Is that a good time to go?

Read it wrong. Giovanni's for sure.

5 hours ago, thrifty99 said:

Got it - I’m definitely an Oasis Class person too. Love the big ships with so much to do and unique spaces like Boardwalk and Central Park. 
 

I think spending the $$$ on some unique Alaska excursions is the way to go. If you think a helicopter excursion onto a glacier would be fun, book it early. Those were all filled by the time we booked our cruise. 

Not sure I could ever get in a helicopter lol but definitely want to do dog sledding, glacier hiking, train ride, local restaurants, etc.

1 hour ago, thrifty99 said:

That’s a tough one.  $2,500 pays for a lot of excursions and may allow you to do an extra special excursion.  Maybe a family helicopter ride to a glacier you couldn’t afford if paying more for Ovation. 
 

Since you sailed on Odyssey and didn’t like it then maybe take the savings and try Brilliance. You are out on excursions a lot with Alaska sailings.  Out of curiosity, what didn’t you like about Odyssey?  Did your kids not like it?  Smaller ships like Brilliance usually not favored by kids. 
 

In summary, if $$ not an issue and won’t hold you back from doing any excursions I’d still choose Ovation as more to do and a great cold weather ship. If the $$ savings will allow you to do a “once in a lifetime” family excursion in Alaska, that will be more memorable in 5 years than bumper cars and shows. 

That's what I'm thinking, take that money and do awesome excursions at all 3 ports. 

We were on odyssey in Nov 2021 to mexico.  It's a very indoor focused ship which is why I think they would enjoy Ovation in alaska but in warm weather there were no water slides, not enough pools, splash pad area was small/boring, no mini golf, and we missed the boardwalk on that type of sailing.

25 minutes ago, tpcwags said:

I booked a 5 day, sailing 11/13 for that very reason. I had 75 points after Wonder Transatlantic in April-May and will be Diamond on all cruises after this one.

I booked 11/11 but wish I was diamond for that one as it's a girls trip!

4 minutes ago, TravelGirlinDallas said:

Our cruise was in mid-July, right in the middle of the summer, so I was really surprised when I was able to get that deal. You never know!

Oh wow! Nice! The current kids sail free that started today doesn't include it but i'll be sure to check.  

3 minutes ago, TravelGirlinDallas said:

I'm partial to Ovation. However, be sure to continue to price your cruise online between now and your final payment date. Royal had a "kids sail free" sale (12 and under) right before our final payment, and we were able to call and reprice our cruise with our son's fare removed, which saved us $$$$.

It's mid-June so I doubt it but I always check daily for price changes once we book! 🙂 

Radiance is out just so we go in/out of same port for convenience.  Just priced Brilliance and Ovation. We save $2,500 with Brilliance.  Worth it?

25 minutes ago, moposh said:

I think I need about 4 more cruises to get to Diamond.  

get on it!

1 minute ago, MandyMooToo said:

We had 54pts before the (extended) Mariner cruise last week.  It was booked during double points and we got a great deal on a JS so we should have at least 76pts when updated.  The Capt. sent out a letter stating we would receive points for the extra nights so I guess if they honor the same points for each night (4 pts per night) we will have 82pts and skip over Emerald status straight to Diamond, but that was never specified so we shall see...

oh wow! I wonder if they do add the promos to those extra points or if you'll just get one extra point per night.

20 minutes ago, RG306 said:

We're looking at our next family cruise and have it narrowed to two itineraries both 8 days. We'll be in the same boat if I can't get the hubby to agree to upgrade to a junior suite, the rest of the crew will be in balconies or lower and wanting to be near each other will be the challenge. 

Don't let it happen to you! lol

I think we paid $120pp last weekend on Freedom. We did it because we sailed kid-free and it was a comped cruise.  Not worth it for us.  It was pretty empty, we were the only ship there, which was nice.  Beach mats were included. It's beautiful and quiet and the food was good but not amazing and not worth $240.  We could have done the same thing at chill beach. Nothing special IMO. 

31 minutes ago, TravelGirlinDallas said:

We sailed on Ovation to Alaska in July with our 12yo son. He loved it. There are TONS of fun things for kids to do on that ship. It's beautiful and still feels new. There were no staffing issues that we could tell. Everything was fantastic.

 

For excursions, we did the Deadliest Catch crab boat in Ketchikan, the train in Skagway (which 12yo declared was "spectacular"), and a float plane glacier flight in Juneau, which was everyone's favorite excursion. Highly recommend all of them. We also rode the tram to the top of Mt. Roberts in Juneau.

 

The morning of Endicott Arm & Dawes Glacier, we got up early, ordered room service for breakfast, and watched the scenery on our balcony in our PJs with blankets that we had checked out on the pool deck. That was the favorite memory for all of us. 

WOW! Thank you for all the info, excursions sound amazing and definitely getting a balcony!!

23 minutes ago, mil76 said:

Quantum class is not my first choice for cruises, but we did Ovation in August from Seattle and the ship was perfect for that itinerary.  Still felt like a special cruise where the focus is on the ports, the excursions are there regardless of ship, but there's more to keep the kids occupied when you are not in port.  The indoor pool also comes in handy when the weather is wet/cold.

I think you helped me make my choice, quantum class for alaska it is and cruising from Seattle just seems easier overall.  We will be going in June, I wonder how the weather differs from August.

1 hour ago, thrifty99 said:

I would pick the Quantum class over Radiance unless there is something you really like in the Radiance itinerary. We were on Ovation last month in Alaska and loved it. For the adults it has an awesome Solarium for pool & hot tub.  If you enjoy Specialty Dining - more restaurant choices. 
 

If you can choose Ovation they will really enjoy the shows & entertainment like the high tech shows in 270.  Better than the “Royal Caribbean Dancers” shows on Radiance that don’t appeal to most teens.  It also has the North Star, FlowRider, bumper cars, and iFly skydiving simulator. 
 

Yes we were on odyssey last year and did all that, ifly was awesome and kids spent time on the bumper cars. We didn't do any specialty dining on odyssey so we would maybe do that if we did quantum class for alaska, thanks!

1 hour ago, reallyitsmema said:

We have done Alaska on both Radiance and Quantum.  We preferred Radiance for the itinerary and the ability to add a land tour that went into Denali National Park.  That was a 15 day vacation that is not always a possibility.  Radiance does not have the activities and food options though and the evening entertainment was lacking.  Never sailed a ship that had a movie in the theatre most nights.  We preferred Quantum for the ship itself.  We love all the activities and food options that Quantum has to offer.  Entertainment is much better too.  Seaplex is a unique venue with lots going on all the time and we love Two70.  Sailing from Seattle is easier to fly in and out of but the one way on Radiance and sailing more of the inside passage is worth the inconvenience of flying to Anchorage.

 

I would look at what ports they each go to and consider excursions and what you must do things are, especially if this is the only time you are going to Alaska.  Excursions can be really pricy so consider that when you are trying to decide.

I'd much rather do the 7 night sailing without the land tour and spend the money we would with that on excursions and make the most of the ports.  The cruises with the land tour are so expensive! Maybe go back like you said in 10 years and do it differently.