Starry Eyes

Yes, it is easy to confuse those gifts, especially for those of us who have been receiving D+ gifts for years.

Times have changed. The welcome aboard beverages (which previously could have included Coke at D and beer at D+) are now all just water. If you want Coke, you either need to select a 6 pack of Coke as your one of you D+ amenities or use your D voucher at a bar for a can of Coke or carry up to 12 Cokes from home. I checked…the D+ amenity option is a 6 pack of soda. See link below. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/content/dam/royal/resources/pdf/cas-amenities-feb-2023.pdf

Plusgrade had no way to know if you might cancel your bid, increase your bid or just hold steady if they had waited a week or two. As you were thinking of increasing, it is just as well they are not mind readers.

For us that was not an issue, though we certainly try not to forget items in the cabin. The distance is an issue for some people. Everyone needs to make their own choices.

It was quiet. Come to think of it, that was another reason I chose 1598. An old post said 1598 was quiet and I could not find any info about my other option. Congrats on the upgrade. It sounds like you have two decent choices…an especially sweet RoyalUp win

When we had a similar choice on a sister ship, we took 1598. DH especially likes to sit in the shade, and the extended area of the balcony in 1598 tends to be shady….perfect We liked having the extra balcony space. We had no issue with the long walk to the cabin, though others might.

Not just age, I also pointed out that your circle had 10 years more travel experience…meaning 10 years more “been there, done that.” I do not know your specific circle of friends, but many people are far more excited the first (and maybe second) time they visit a destination vs the fifth or tenth time. You can say the marking does not matter, but the stuff they are putting in those Royal ships is often for younger people. Icon is built for kids and young families and young adults, not really for geezers. Not for me, either BTW. That stuff is expensive and it raises the value to the target market, but probably not to you. It might even decrease the value to you, IDK. So I’d argue that marketing does matter. It is a substantial part of the reason you don’t see the value and someone else does. (If none of you would go on a cruise on any line, even for free, it is not a matter of value. It sounds like you no longer want to go.)

People on cruise critic generally warn others away from deck 14 on Oasis class ships due to nose concerns. I have noticed that not everyone is bothered. It might be the specific location. but I think some people are more sensitive to noise (or certain noises or noises at certain times) than others. We have been reasonably content in cabins that were reportedly too noisy for other people. We have not yet been on deck 14. We book a fair number of gty cabin, so it is apt to happen sometime. If you have been unhappy under the pool deck on other ships, you might want to avoid deck 14 on Oasis Class.

I specifically cannot imagine canceling Icon cruises over the drink package price. That is a unique ship currently pulling in top price, largely because it is new and unique. If I were considering sailing Icon this year, drink prices would not be the deciding factor. (Principle…well, I could argue Icon seems overpriced in principle so it’s consistent 😉) OTOH, I could understand comparing prices of drink and internet packages if I was sailing an older ship. Then one could have a similar experience on a different cruise line

Unless it is going to mess up your credit cards or such, if you are seriously considering it I’d suggest going ahead and purchasing; with dynamic pricing one never knows when the sale price for your cruise might go “poof” do lock it in. If you decide against it, you can request a refund (you just have to know the time it takes to get that refund won’t drive you mad or cause bank card issue, etc)

Grand Geezer, to state the obvious, you and your circle of friends are now ten years older than you were then with 10 years more travel experiences satisfied and, in many cases, 10 years more health problems. It is not too surprising if they lost interest in frequent cruising. Like it or not, Royal Caribbean seems to concentrate much of its marketing attention on young cruisers.

I’m betting they will continue to pay off debt. They have a ton of debt which could be difficult to service if, heaven forbid, there were another serious downturn in the cruise business.

As you wish. As I see it I have the current price locked in if I choose to keep it. If the price drops on Black Friday, I can refund/repurchase. If we decide not to use the UDP on that cruise for the we can get a refund.

See if you or your TA can find any fine print about that rate. You may find it is a special rate for new bookings only. If so, I know it is a bummer…been there.

Well, for maybe it is more like a price roll-back for many of us. Still, if there are extras one has been thinking of purchasing, this sale is one opportunity. As the prices have risen so much, DH have not sprung for the UDP for quite a while. I purchased it during this sail for one of our Wonder cruises. It is the best price I’ve seen on that ship for a while, though admittedly the price still seems steep to me. I purchased it knowing I could ask for a refund if I wish.

When flying in, Fort Lauderdale is easier in my opinion than Port Canaveral as airport and cruise port are so close. For a pre cruise hotel, you can stay at the beach if you’d enjoy some beach time and if it makes sense with your flight times. Staying at the beach might cost a bit more in Uber/taxi fees, but waking up at the beach is worth it to some people. Or you can choose a hotel close to the airport/cruise port (they are close together. You typically can use hotel shuttle from airport to hotel. We generally choose Uber to the cruise port, but you hotels often offers shuttles (may not be much cheaper than Uber). There are tons of airport hotel reviews online and those will tell you the info you need if you just need a clean, safe place to stay overnight. After the cruise, you can get a taxi or ride share to the airport.

The price of the UDP is up substantially since the last time we had it on a Harmony cruise. Nevertheless, I did purchase it today for one of our upcoming Wonder cruises. It can be refunded if we decide against it.

For us the value of the UDP varies depending on the ship and the itinerary. We’d have more interest in the UDP on ships with more specialty restaurants. Itineraries with more sea day lunches and without evening excursions are more likely to interest us.

It is still one per couple. DH has been eight points ahead of me for years, so he tends to hit milestones 1 cruise sooner. The blocks consistently arrive on his milestone cruises and not mine.

I remember those days. Tongue in cheek: perhaps Royal simply needs to eliminate the chairs. People could stand at bar height tables to eat the snacks and mingle. No more actual lounging in the lounge😉😉

When my bids have won, the wins have come relatively close to sailing date (mostly within a week), and I have seen a lot of other people report wins close to sailing date (That makes sense if the cruiseline is hoping someone will book those cabins for full price). Certainly some wins are reported further out. Theoretically you could win shortly after submitting you bid. If you win, you will receive an actual cabin number. A few people have reported success calling and trading to another available cabin in the exact same category as the one RoyalUp assigned….but when I have received my winning bid assignments, no other cabins in those categories were available..and that seems quite common (RoyalUp wins often done close to sail date and many/all the upgrade in a certain category may be done at once, so all those cabins may suddenly disappear)

Why are you using 2nd quarter numbers rather than 3rd quarter numbers?

One of your bids (GS in your case) is “spotlighted” in the bigger box. You can modify or cancel that one. To switch to one of the other bids below, click on the stateroom name (Junior Suite, for example). Your JS bid will move to the that spotlighted position at the top where you can modify or cancel it. Your GS bid will be rotate to the bottom while you work on JS.

Of all the cut backs, a bag of chips is the least of my concerns. There are loads of chips, cheap chips and fancy chips, in grocery stores and delis near home. If you cannot live without bags of chips, pack some. I do not care a bit about bags of chips. I do care about the quality of the cooked food and the service in the restaurant.

Yes, you can bid when your gty cabin has not been assigned. Fair warning: Sometimes when your cabin is assigned, your bids will be cancelled, even if you were not assigned an upgraded cabin. If this happens, you can bid again. There is a chance the bidding ranges may have changed (up or down) since you originally bid. Sometimes your re-bids are cancelled again until the system settles. If your bids are cancelled, sometimes you receive more bidding options when your cabin is assigned.