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Be proactive. I'm on my second consecutive side-to-side, and learning as I go. Go to Customer Service on Day 1 and ask about the complimentary transfer. They will notify the Transportation Coordinator to check on it. Go back on Day 3 if you haven't received any information. Ask for specifics: what is the transportation service used, so you can look for it. Find a pier coordinator ( the person with the clipboard). On the Oasis my luggage tag was one of the last: 75. Easy to find my luggage, too. I was off the ship by 9:30, had some issues finding the right shuttle, but was at the dock for the new ship by 10:30.

Buuuut, I have fallen in love with the Anthem, the Oasis, and the Allure, too. I guess I'm "cruise ship eclectic".

I've been cruising solo for over a year now, and I'm very happy with it. You have to like your own company, because some cruises this last 14 months I've ended up with friends for life, and others it's like "friend crickets" territory. I have had not one single minute of discomfort over my safety. I plan my pre and post-cruise time very carefully. Travel during daylight hours as much as possible, and take Uber to/from hotels/airports. Never had a problem with an Uber driver, plus I always call someone from the car to "chat" and tell them I'm on my way to xyz. I stay at hotels where I have vetted them through other travelers' reviews before I book. I find hotels with restaurants, or something nearby if I arrive early enough. I may sound like Blanche DuBois from "Streetcar Named Desire", but I have found I can indeed depend on the kindness of strangers. I think in the last 14 months I've had to put my overhead luggage up maybe 4 times. I can't figure out why, and I never ask, but I appreciate it. People in the US are generally nice if you need anything. When I used to travel with a 50 lb suitcase (no more doing that......), all I had to do was find a large man under 45 at the baggage carousel, and politely ask if he would get it off for me. Never turned down once. I've downsized considerably since then. I took Amtrak from Baltimore to Newark NJ last month, and pretty much got adopted by a conductor when I couldn't tell which train was mine. He came back and got me and my luggage off the train, too. What a nice guy! Americans, generally speaking, are usually very helpful when you need it and ask. The no-show for a cabin-mate will probably work a time or two, but if you want to cruise a lot, I'd look into getting a few credit cards with statement bonuses and bonus points when you sign up.

I ended up on the Grandeur for the exact dates I needed to stay in FL until 3/10/23. Then, I'm on the Vision for 10 nights.

No, the Grandeur is a "bridge cruise" to get me to 3/10 and Port Everglades for a cruise with my sister for my birthday. It's the only one I could find. I'm quite happy on this cruise, but being back to the MDR, I'm again experiencing some food quality issues. I am NOT picky, but the snow peas and asparagus risotto, was cold risotto, lukewarm asparagus, and not a single snow pea: they gave me cold pea soup on top of the risotto. A HUGE, HUGE difference from the same exact dish in the CK last week. But, I actually like my cabin better on this ship than the Oasis. Much more storage space than my inside cabin on the Oasis.

Glad to hear there are other RCCL ships that go to KW. I'll look into that.

Interesting move, huh? Like most would think it was "feast to famine", but I was very pleasantly surprised. I loved the Oasis, loved it! Food in the Coastal Kitchen amazing, especially with my waiter, Joaquim. He "adopted" me, and started reciting my order to me before I ordered. He usually got it right. We might have had several, "You want baked Alaska"; "No, I'm not fond of Baked Alaska; I want cheesecake"; "but, you will like the Baked Alaska, too. I will bring you both"; "Nooo, too MUCH!!". Then he would look at me like I was crazy and go to the kitchen.......... The dock was a zoo yesterday. It took walking up and down, asking multiple port staff, bus drivers, RCCL pier coordinators, until I finally found the little group of side-to-side passengers. I remember some comedy show, maybe "LaVerne and Shirley" where they would shuffle in lockstep. That was us: "Oh, it's the red bus over there". Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle. Nope, not the red bus. "Oh, it's the white van that literally looks like a US Postal van with a luggage trailer (seriously)". Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle. It was the right one. At the Grandeur, I adopted Miguel and Karen, after they told me the last time they did this they sat in the hot Miami sun for over an hour because they weren't allowed in the terminal yet. I said, "You are now my travel companions; what are your names?" We went in the Suites/Pinnacle entrance and were on the ship in 12 minutes. They were a little dazed. Miguel grabbed my little "tower of luggage", and would NOT release it to me until we arrived at my cabin 3+ hours later. Lunch in the Windjammer was good. This sweet, little ship is as good as you can get for being an elderly lady. Well maintained, SUPER crew, and unbelievably efficient. I got to my cabin, and I wish I had a revolving door on it. A parade of cabin attendant and room service for 45 minutes. It's like you open the door and some kind of Bat Signal goes out, and the water, wine, fruit and cheese, cabin attendant start knocking on the door. I have one more delivery, because I finally put the DND sign out. But, they tried.............. Comfy mattress: a big plus. Dinner in MTD was very good, AND there was not a mob of people waiting in line to get in at 6:55, which was 10 minutes after they opened. If there was a mob waiting until opening, they were whisked in and seated by the time I got there. THAT surprised me. I have been on 6 ships in the last year and this is the first without the mob scene at the door to MTD. Walking through the Centrum after dinner, the RCCL band were slaying the old Big Band song, "Sing, Sing, Sing", complete with a topnotch drum solo. I don't care what kind of music you may like, NO ONE doesn't enjoy that old song, or seeing "In the Mood" played well live. And, the small band were having a VERY fun time playing Sing, too. I missed the open promenade deck when I was on the Anthem, Allure, and Oasis. The deck with loungers and chairs, where you can sit and watch the ocean, the sail-away, the dock runners late for the ship. I like that deck and was happy to see it again. I LOVED the Anthem, Allure, and Oasis; but, I really like that quieter outside deck . And, the BEST is today: Key West!! I think (???) the Grandeur is the only RCCL ship that can still dock in Key West. Looking forward to the frozen Key Lime pie on a stick today...............I have to send pictures as I eat to my friend who loves it, too.

You can also use the logged in device as a hotspot, but the second (or more) devices that use the hotspot will have slower response time. The person "broadcasting" the hotspot will have a unique network name shown in their wifi settings. The second device logs into that network. I tried this with my phone and Surface Pro, and found the second device had a lag time for responses, loading web sites, etc.

Just to clarify: if you are referring to a one-device plan, you have to click on "switch device" when using a different device. Doesn't matter how many people share the plan: it's only one at a time, and you have to switch devices during the login process for the "new" device. I do this all the time between my phone and Surface Pro I travel with.

Watched a rocket launch at PC on 2/6 at 8:32pm on deck 15. Best " shore excursion EVER!!!" IMG_1768.MOV

Yes, that's a possibility. I've never understood why it's always been psuedo-discretionary.

Regardless of what the "should" is, this is not the compensation model RCCL has used for over 50 years. So, regardless of what we think individually, if we think our service staff on RCCL cruises deserve a fair compensation, then we pay the daily gratuity.

No, you volunteer your card so they have your information, and make the request. I am Pinnacle not sailing in a suite, so I had to show it anyway when I ordered. If it's a ship that doesn't allow Pinnacle in the Suite Lounge, then it's a moot point.

I spent 3 weeks on the Enchantment with Debra from TravelingWellforLess.com. She's a delight, and always looking for ways to help people enjoy their cruises. She also tested out the MDR's ability to still provide good food for food allergies. She is NOT a travel agent.

I was in the Suite Lounge on the Allure last September, and the food for HH was identical to that offered in the DL. I think you should remind the bar waiter that during HH your coupons should not be used. A few times of reminding them, and they will remember your preference.

Ummm.... a little off-topic, but I've cruised in and out of VERY cold places recently. Baltimore and Cape Liberty with the lowest with wind chill factor -1. I went on Amazon and got myself a pair of the cheapest sports leggings I could find, and wore them under my regular pants. Don't know if they were a lifesaver, but being a CA girl, I thought they were!! Side story: I was meeting up with Merion Mom to get on one of these cruise ships. I had a long puffer coat on, knit headband, gloves, and the leggings with pants over them. She got out of her car and started laughing at me!!! She yelled from the parking lot, "Look at me, I'm wearing a SWEATSHIRT!" I said, "Look at me, I'm from CALIFORNIA!!".

When uploading the photo (from a pc) sometimes it helps to crop the photo first, or resize it smaller. The online upload is finicky. You can also take a selfie and use it if you check-in with the Royal app on your mobile phone. I never print my setsail pass: I either show it from the app on my phone, take a screen shot of it and save it to my phone's photos, or send it to my phone's Wallet. The problem I've noticed, though, is when it's sent to the Wallet on my phone, the app seems to eliminate my C&A status. That's why I've started using a screenshot. If your C&A status allows for priority boarding, you want that to show for easy access to the correct line.

MPP (my personal practice): Auto tips left on my account Always give a small cash tip for every C&A drink coupon I use Extra cash tips for unusual/extra service: concierge, exceptional service in specialty restaurant or Windjammer, head waiter in the MDR who helps get my solo table settled for me Extra cash tip for my cabin steward who remembers my extra requests: ice bucket and more facecloths every day $20 for the casino cashier to get coffee when she was flying home to South Africa the next day : a 30 hour flight Half my (small) casino winnings to the Ukrainian bar staff in the DL to send home to her mother. It's not always the routine stuff, but the unusual stuff that a helpful cash tip is called for.

Also, the Café 270 has good breakfast options, and is not crowded. The "starbucky" coffee place is in the same location, and if you have any Crown and Anchor e-coupons on your card, you can use them. I love me my chai tea latte with soymilk!!

I would say out of my 8 night cruise on the Anthem, 98% of my opinion is a resounding POSITIVE. With watching the rocket launch at Cape Canaveral outside on Deck 15 a once-so-far-in-my-lifetime event!!

Hope you are as wow'd as I was!

HA!!! Sorry.

Ahhhhh.....methinks it's a guy thing. Bad aim and all of that. 😁

I have been on 7 ships with RCCL in the last year, and none of the women's restrooms had toilet seat covers. I think it's more of a supply issue than bad policy or labor shortage. If it was a great concern to me I would buy 100 / $13 on Amazon and take them with me. I find my hand sanitizer/toilet paper adaptation satisfies me. The air circulation in most, if not all, women's bathrooms on ships is poor. I always find this irritating, but not specific to the Anthem. I take my own hand sanitizer whenever I travel, so I can clean my hands after touching handrails, elevator buttons, serving utensils in the Windjammer, etc.

I also got off the Anthem on 2/12, and absolutely LOVED the ship!! It's so elegant and beautifully furnished/decorated. The Via area on the Esplanade was lovely, and reminded me of the lobby in the Bellagio in Las Vegas. I found the staff in the Windjammer wonderful, and eating al fresco in the aft was wonderful, too. Chair saving is fleetwide, and not specific to any one ship. It's been an issue for decades, and always will be. No toilet seat covers are not a big deal to me. I keep hand sanitizer in my tote bag, and put some on a little toilet paper, then wipe the seat off before I sit on it. The reduced portions are in EVERY eating venue, except those where you ask for the quantity you want, like the walk-up eateries. It will be interesting in the upcoming months to see if RCCL does anything about the tsunami of complaints they are obviously getting on this subject. I found the Cafe 270 coffee bar was less crowded than the Patisserie on the Esplanade. The woman there is very nice, too. C&A drink coupons can be used in both locations. I would love to sail on the Anthem again sometime.