S.A.M.J.R.

Totally agree. That's why I think IF a system is going to be put in place, it needs to be one that's easy and not time consuming. Well, the entire issue is whether Royal wants to risk upsetting the "hogs" vs upsetting the "non-hogs"(?). The only way a "hog" is going to know the name tag of the crew member who took their stuff is if someone is hogging multiple chairs and the crew member "clears" the chairs that aren't in use. Maybe the policy could even be you can save ONE additional chair. So, for example, DW and I go to the pool deck and snag two chairs. She sits down in hers, I go to the hot tub, the bar, whatever. The crew member comes by and DW says "he'll be right back". Maybe they allow that, but not multiple chairs? Just a thought.

That's why I don't think lockers are the answer... CUBBIES are. A locker can be "hogged" even with nothing in it. Sure, a cubbie can be hogged, but at least there are things in it. Why exactly that makes a difference, I don't know, but it does in my head. There needs to be an easy way for crew to KNOW who has been gone from the pool deck for a while, without requiring adding something (anything RCI adds will require an increase in fees after all). That's why I lean toward arranging the towels a specific way (that wouldn't be some way a random passenger might do). And simply checking once an hour. If the towel is still arranged the same way, it means no one has disturbed it in an hour. If no one has disturbed it in an hour, the towel, along with anything else on the chair, gets taken to the towel station. IMO, this is simple, easy to see, and easy to implement.

Then what do you do during those 30 minutes? That's one thing I've never understood. People will say "notify crew so they can start a clock" (or similar). I personally am not interested enough to stick around for 30 minutes to see see if loungers get cleared. I'm going to do something else/find someplace to stash my stuff.

Go to the dining room entrance and start talking to crew members. They'll direct you to who can make the change. However, I wouldn't hold my breath.

Some of us prefer to have type written room numbers to make it easier to read vs whatever scrawl the mafioso porters have. 😛

Yes. I am. Readily admit it. Compared to assuming everyone will only use a locker when they need it, and won't "hog" it, I think it's the safer option.

Well, we can all ASSUME how things will work. But please, why would you ASSUME that, if lockers were provided, that NO ONE would simply keep their key for the entire cruise?

Based on how people react with chairs, I think it's a safe assumption.

But you're assuming that people are in the pool, that there are no people standing between the pool and the chair, and that you might not be able to see the chair. Again, self-serve lockers would just encourage people to "hog" the locker. Find the locker on day 1, put your stuff in, lock it, and take the key. Go back, unlock it, get your stuff, lock it, and take the key with you. Then you know you have a locker for the rest of the cruise.

Never purchase internet package. Will use cell phone during sail away to talk to my mom about watching the sail away, after that, airplane mode. Join the wifi for the app. I like being able to disconnect from the "world". No, have never purchased internet for the kids. Their friends will survive (as will they) being out of contact for a week. If it was month long cruise, then I might consider it.

I just logged in with no issue.

Maybe the annual inspection takes so long they split it into two days?

You know, I just thought about how the cubbies might backfire... Let's say I go up to the pool deck. I put my towel and t-shirt in the cubby, and proceed to the pool/hot tub. While I'm enjoying myself, @LobsterStalker, finishes his time in the pool. He goes to the cubby, but doesn't remember/pay attention to where he stored his towel. Being the self entitled bore he is (just making a joke, don't really believe it😛) he grabs MY towel and walks off. I finish at the pool, go to the cubby, find my t-shirt (so I know it's cubby I used), but there's no towel. Now what?

ALL of that is totally available via smart phones. You can see prices, reviews, locations, and even book... just like you do at home sitting in front of your computer. Now, for those who want to say "We're stopping at 'x' place.", that's fine. I'm just trying to point out there are other ways to travel.

Again, not what I was arguing. The OP said nothing about needing to split up because of the alcohol policy. They just said they were REQUIRED to, and that is flat out false. Even IF they wanted to split up because of the drink package, that still doesn't mean they're REQUIRED to. They can pay a la carte, they can call and get the refreshment package, or they can get deluxe packages for both. I don't understand why so many people are OK with flat out WRONG information being posted.

Right. And that's totally fine. But OP said they were REQUIRED to book an adult in each room. That is flat out false and keeps getting posted. Another hint is you CAN have one adult purchase the deluxe drink package and the second adult not. You just need to call and say the second person doesn't drink alcohol (there are reports of this all through the board). Assuming the cruise is at least a couple weeks away, if it was me, I'd be contacting the TA who booked me and tell them to arrange the sleeping arrangements the way I want. If they insist you have to have an adult in each room, I would look into transferring to a different TA or Royal itself. Here's the FAQ from Royal Caribbean's website:

Sorry, doesn't make sense. What are people doing with their phones NOW? If they're leaving them on chairs, they're not locked up. So why would they need to be locked up in cubbies? And, if you did it for "lockers", what's to keep someone from "hogging" the locker? All they have to do is keep the key with them all the time, even if there's nothing in the locker. There are "cubbies" at the base of the drop tower on Coco Cay for people to put shoes, hats, coverups, etc that they don't/can't take on the slides. Same principle applies.

As some have said, the outlet maybe near the bed or it may be across the room (as it was on our last cruise). I had brought a couple magnet hooks (like these): I was able to stick them (I only had two) on the ceiling, drape the extension cord on them, and use twist ties to attach the cord to other in room places (vents, drape holders) so we didn't have to worry about stepping over the cord the entire week.

Surge protector won't be allowed and shouldn't be needed.

You've got a poor travel planner then. We've been on three cruises with our "under age" kids. They've always been able to be beside us.

They did on Mariner in July. Basically "Hawaiian" shirts, and dare I say shorts?

Correlation without causation. You have no idea how many of those people lined up for the 6:45p opening actually wanted to eat EARLIER, but couldn't (at least in the MDR).

I agree it's a numbers game. And I'd say if the dining room can take 6100 in two seatings, that leaves ~600 for OTHER (doesn't have to be specialty) dining. Surely Royal has math on how many eat at WJ, specialty, and "other". I wonder if they're trying to make "everyone" happy, instead of capping traditional early at 60-75% of capacity, they're trying to accommodate as many as possible. However, that's backfiring. MTD now can't start until 6:45, even though there are probably empty tables every night (but not necessarily the same ones) in traditional.

What's probably happening (as others have indicated) is SO many cruisers are choosing "Early Traditional", they're filling all the tables on all three levels, meaning they can't start MTD until 645, THEN some people with Early Traditional aren't showing up, but MTD can't start seating until they know those tables are empty...

Not sure how accurate this is (https://www.travelagewest.com/Cruise/Royal-Caribbean-International/Oasis-of-the-Seas), but it lists the Opus Dining Room for Oasis as seating 3056 and passengers of 6780. So the dining room should be able to seat 45% of guests.