shutterbug63

Yes. Most definitely. It's not only the prices, it's their deposit policy. If I want a refundable deposit on (for example) a sailing in January, 2026, on Independence of the Seas, it's an additional $2,016 tacked on to the price which makes the price for a Sunset Junior Suite over $6,000.00. I paid less for that for a full suite on Princess for a 7 day sailing on a brand new ship with only a $200 fully refundable deposit. Every time I do a mock booking on Royal, I get to the last step, and it's like, nope, that's too much money for what I'm getting.

I agree - I would never book this balcony. I mean it's huge, but zero privacy and that's not for me. I feel like there's a lot of other choices that have more privacy.

I was browsing Instagram and found this reel that appears to show a partial balcony and a better view of a premium deluxe balcony which is huge, but looks pretty exposed.

Count us out on this one for now. I think they've lost their minds. Over $10k for a grand suite in the "off season" for a 7 day sailing? Not happening.

My son and I did the "Gone Turtles" excursion with Gone Caribe on June 2, 2022. I cannot say enough good things about this. Our guide was Jessica (one half of the husband and wife team) that run Gone Caribe. She took us to Shete Boka State Park, and as she is an avid hiker/explorer herself, was able to take us to some of the spots there that were off the beaten path. Next stop was a lovely local restaurant, but unfortunately, the name escapes me, but the food was wonderful and the views were amazing. Next stop was swimming with the turtles - amazing. We saw lots of turtles and Jessica had snorkeling equipment available for us to use. Then it was back to the ship, with a bonus stop to see flamingos. We learned a lot about the history of Curacao and saw much of the island along the way. I cannot recommend Gone Caribe enough. They have other private tours available, but we had chosen the turtle tour so we could swim with them.

We'll be wearing our masks to protect ourselves and those around us. It has never been an issue for us.

You can try this page. I've had some luck with it: http://www.royalcaribbean.com/beforeyouboard/asr/buildSearch.do?componentType=shorex

I'm with you. I will also not be shocked if cases go up on ships given the much looser mask requirement on board and the lack of a mask requirement in the terminals (and other public transportation).

I'm really happy to hear that. There's a whole lot of folks (kids under 5, immunocompromised people) who are at much greater risk with the mask mandate not in place when cases are rising.