bonsai3s

Yes.

* Would like to try a Virgin......cruise.

@SoloAlaskaagree...perhaps posting on the Royal Carribean forum can help.

@FionaMG...did a wonderful review of the Odyssey of the Seas.

* We've sailed on the Odyssey of the Seas and have sailed out of Rome (port is in Civitavecchia).

Tipping...your choice...no right or wrong answers.

Drink package...your cruise will probably be port intensive...so not worth buying it.

Shore excursions...will cost you a ton of money booking with the ship. There are many private tours available that cost less. We do mostly DIY because I am cheap and comfortable using local transportation. 

You may also want to join your "roll call"...you can meet others sailing the same week and learn about private tours others are organizing.

Websites we use for planning: Cruise Critic, whatsinport.com, YouTube, cruisemapper.com, and rometorio.com

Happy sailing! 

We tip $1 or $2 per drink. Then extra tip placed inside the "Tip-Tip Hooray" envelopes at the end of the cruise to the best bartenders.

* Tip less, tip more, don't tip,...your choice. Happy sailing.

Song of America...sigh...our first ship with Royal Caribbean.

Assigned to a Table for 8. We were joined by a wonderful British couple. One seat was taken by the Staff Captain (second in command?), and t7he 3 remaining seats were occupied by rotating singers and dancers.

The Staff Captain ordered wine(s) for the table, every night. The singers and dancers drank "liquor shots" (no hands...shot glasses grabbed with the mouth, and bottoms up.)  This was back in the day when they had sommeliers in the MDR.

There were wild stories from the dancers and the Staff Captain...we thought every cruise with RCCL was like this...it started our cruising addiction. 

2 hours ago, Crism said:

We are having this issue this cruise. Diamond Plus cannot dine in Silver, and it's practically empty. Giant oversight on behalf of onboard management, and we're trying to fight it.

If the HD is Mike Rasmussen.. speak to him...he's a nice guy...and a comedian.

59 minutes ago, cruisegirl1 said:

Thanks - forgot about that.  

M

I forget as well...but a very good friend is always happy to remind me and say "I'm Master's, you're only P".  

How's your husband? Genuinely hoping he is ok.

There's a lot to unpack and a few lessons to be learned from your incident. 

How did he fracture his leg on the sports court?...playing basketball, soccer, volleyball? Was it an accident? Was Royal Caribbean negligent?

Medical bill of $1,200. I was charged $1,702.17 for an allergy reaction.

Yes, travel insurance...there has been many discussions and a forum on this topic.

Happy to know you had support from your family and friends. Hope you get some of your money back.

@chengkp75...perhaps he can respond to your medivac question.

2 hours ago, cruisegirl1 said:

It is an option if you are in a full suite.  JS may have dinner there if space is available.  Pinnacles have dining  options depending on how many Ps are on board.  

 

It is not available to others.  

M

Coastal Kitchen access is also available to Master's Tier (casino) passengers.

7 hours ago, TeeRick said:

Update from onboard Symphony- current cruise.  The CK food and service has been outstanding.  I agree with the Filet Mignon recommendation.  It was really good!

Please let us know some of your favorites during the week. 

And how's the service at CK?

2 hours ago, little britain said:

So we decided against swimming with jellyfish and staked out on the crowded ship pool. 
 

The big screen is now not showing the usual cute kittens falling over… it is showing a programme about building trucks in Russia!  I’m not kidding! 

Have you tried the jellyfish in the gold dining room? Ate it for the first time last year.

I figured its the best way to get even if you've ever been stung by a jellyfish. 

3 hours ago, leaveitallbehind said:

We are also D+ / Elite.  When we first started cruising and our family was young, RCCL was the choice as families is their primary demographics and their mainly mega ships are well oriented towards that with very good children's club programs and activities venues.  Now that they are all adults we cruise with Celebrity for the opposite reasons as their primary demographics is adults 50+ with very few children and non of the related activities and venues. 

 

The entertainment with the Aqua Theater and Ice Show is more diverse and very good with RCCL.  Celebrity is more traditional with the ship cast and highliners but is also very good.  Eden on Apex class ships is very similar to Two70 on RCCL on Quantum class ships.

 

As @CruiserBruce mentioned, Celebrity is more upscale with smaller mid sized ships with less passengers and a more refined cruise atmosphere, very good dining, in particular with their specialty restaurants.  Their base fare is somewhat higher in our experience than RCCL, but they offer both standard fares with beverage packages and wifi separate, and all inclusive fares that include the standard beverage and wifi packages, with premium packages at an upcharge.  Gratuities are separate with both pricing programs.  Really, the two lines are polar opposites, and that difference now is the primary attraction to us.

 

Both lines IMO are equally oriented towards solo cruisers, however Celebrity's Apex class ships have dedicated veranda solo staterooms that are a little smaller than standard but are priced measurably less than the typical 100% less port fees and taxes supplement for solo passengers in standard staterooms

 

RCCL's loyalty program is the stronger of the two and their are no elite benefits that exceed that of RCCL and overall it is not as attractive. (Compare the two on each website).  As example, with RCCL at D+ you receive 5 drink's per day every day at anytime at no charge, whereas with Celebrity there is a cocktail hour that runs between 5 - 7 pm commencing on day 2 that, when they enforce it, is supposed to be limited to 3 drinks during that time.  Celebrity also does not have a dedicated loyalty lounge for elite members whereas RCCL has the Crown Lounge. 

 

These differences only impact us with regards to whether or not Celebrity's AI fares are attractive on any given cruise for the option of the beverage package. However they are the only two lines that I am aware of that offer direct reciprocity between their loyalty programs, which IMO is attractive.  In particular for Elite and higher with Celebrity sailing on RCCL.

 

Between the two, overall, while we do still cruise with RCCL, our primary choice now is Celebrity.  And our ship class preference would be Solstice or Apex classes.  Millennium class, while attractive and well maintained as smaller ships, IMO are getting a bit old and somewhat tired. (Not unlike Vision and some other RCCL ship classes).

@leaveitallbehind...you are spot on.

* We love both Celebrity and Royal Caribbean. Back in the day, we thought Celebrity had better loyalty perks...access to Michael's Club for Elites, free laundry at Elite versus D+ for Royal, served free champagne when boarding, and mimosas/bellinis/champagne for breakfast...and all the other perks. RCCL beats all of these hands down.

10 hours ago, little britain said:

Just had a delicious light buffet lunch in Silver: we are dinner in Gold last night but TBH with me being a fussy eater and the menu not changing at all perhaps we will only go back there once.. which is a shame to have something that is exclusive and not being able to fully utilise it. 
Someone told me Hotpot was only pay if you have the up charge lobster/steak. I’ll check. Or perhaps you’re a lobster/steak kinda gal!! 

Yes, that was strange and a bit disappointing that the menu did not change...they did offer a couple of special (different ) dishes every night on both our 12n sailings. 

* Our waiter told us about the specials not listed on the menu.

LB, are you eating in the Silver Dining or Gold Dining?

Curious when and why the Hot Pot restaurant became complimentary...we had to pay to eat there last year. Thanks. 

On 2/10/2024 at 10:04 AM, iKarenE said:

Does anyone know if the outside of the doors of the cabins on SOS are metal? I want to put a magnet on the outside and wondering if it will stick. I know some doors on some cruise ships are painted and might hinder the magnetic hold.  Thanks 

Yes, the doors on Symphony are magnetic.

* Our home made magnetic sandals stayed on the door on our b5b. A crew member liked it, and gave it to her.

LB, was the drone show only for CNY only? ...or is it shown again? 

How's Telegraph Hotel?

* We used Grab from airport to hotel, then hotel to cruise terminal. MTR around town.

1 hour ago, Mick B said:

 

Can anyone remember when they started limiting access to the CL for D+ members when too many Pins or Suite guests were sailing that cruise. Well in the end they axed D+ members' entry to the CL full stop - so if that's anything to go by then you know what may happen soon. Really hope it doesn't come to that.

 

Mick.

 

Back in the day, they had an "exclusive section" for breakfast for Diamonds.

Who still remember the days without the Diamond Lounge? Beer, wine, and peanuts served.

* Things changed, we adapted. Genuinely love the vouchers...you can use it anytime, at any bar, mdr, wj, theater, alcoholic or non-alcoholic, at Coco Cay and Labadee...you can even share it. 

* I must admit, back in the day, when Happy Hour meant = trying to get hammered for 3 hours...it was fun just people watching. Fondest memory was of a passenger ringing a mini-cowbell every time she wanted a drink...it worked, the bartenders came. 

2 hours ago, TeeRick said:

Anybody have any favorite CK dishes - not to miss?  Or any not so good?

It's subjective...but my favorites:

Filet mignon

Lobster salad

Hamachi Crudo

Rack of Lamb

Sticky Pineaaple Ribs

Cheese Tortellini with truffle oil

* Breakfast: Flatbread (crispy) with Chorizo and 2 eggs over medium...it's like having Italian/Spanish pizza for breakfast.

* Kids menu: Cheeseburger and fries. Banana split. 

On 1/31/2024 at 3:49 AM, Honolulu Blue said:

Thanks everyone.  It seems the answer is "rare" but not "unprecedented".  I'll add it to my cruise story repertoire to impress the n00bs and fill in dead space among cruising veterans.

Last year, we were onboard the Quantum of the Seas, trans-pacific, between Tahiti and Hawaii...when "Oscar, Oscar, Oscar" was announced. (It meant man overboard)

It was at night and the Captain wanted to make sure that someone, actually jumped or had fallen, overboard. He announced and instructed all passengers to go back in their cabins...to find out if anyone was missing.

It was subsequently determined that a passenger jumped overboard...a search was conducted...the person wasn't found. Out of respect for the family, the person was not identified.

* A few days later, reports and news from Australia provided some details. Our sailing started in Brisbane.

We prefer CK on the Symphony.

IMHO, better food and outstanding service.

* Plus a nice suite lounge to have a drink (or 2) before dinner. 

2 hours ago, yyzcruising said:

From the roll call thread for Sydney to Honolulu. Haven't heard anything on our Honolulu to Vancouver.

 

Quantum will be doing the TPAC and should go live for booking after existing passengers have had a chance to make their decision (February 8th for syd-hon).

Why was it cancelled? Thanks.

LB, did you have to get a New Zealand visa? 

* I know U.S. citizens have to apply for Aussie visa...but couldn't remember if NZ visa was required when sailing out of Sydney then visiting NZ. Thank you.

1 hour ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Toby ended off the week on a high note by winning the Best of the Best competition on the Flowrider.  The first one to sign the board.  Thanks to his cheering squad of @Ozark_Kid (John and Sharon) and @FromSea2ShiningSea (Marty and Helen) ascwell as friends of mine who were also on this sailing along with a bunch of new friends he met on board.

Way to go Toby! Congratulations! 

E.

@taglovestocruise

@twangster

Just my humble observation...I have seen more single female pinnacles than men.

* Observation conducted during CWO. 

4 hours ago, Ashland said:

Yes....Regardless of what she was she started our cruise addiction. Our first few cabins on her were below the water line 😮

Our addiction with RCCL started out of San Pedro...on the Song of America. 

As an old hippie, I learned to use the Royal App and look at the CK menu.

If I see something I like for lunch or dinner at CK, we eat there. A few favorites at CK...filet, Hamaci crudo, sticky pineapple ribs, cheese tortellini with truffles, rack of lamb,...ok, I'm getting hungry.

* We love Hooked (for the fresh oysters). Disclosure: We are older and eat much less...so CK is good for us. We love the Blu and Luminae on X.