Moonarino

I had mine in my wallet on Nov 7 when boarding Celebrity Silhouette, but never even thought about it. And of course I didn't need it. I hope I'll never have need to think about it again.

I'd say that wraps it all up. Too much pressure to pressure (annoy) guests, and if management is too dumb to see how negative a thing that is, one does have to wonder if will ever change for the better. I probably won't sail Royal until next fall, but I'm sure I'll think about this thread as we make our way to the MDR on our first night.

Adventure was refurbished in 2018, which I think was part of Royal's "Amplified" refit. In 2019 I sailed Independence OTS, which I believe is a rough equivalent, a little larger & newer -- but not "brand" new. I enjoyed that cruise. I doubt you'll really notice that Adventure is an older ship, although you might notice "something" (one thing or another) if you look close enough. Something to consider: I just got off Celebrity Silhouette a week ago, 10 years newer than Adventure. One of the first things I noticed (beyond the fact that Silhouette is a positively gorgeous ship and the DJ was slinging a deeelicious playlist in the Atrium) was a big rusty seam in the metal deck of our larger balcony. In various spots the rust was lifting up the metal at the edges of the seam. About 10 years ago I also found heavy rust on the aft end of Carnival Destiny. Not that I go out looking for it, but you just never know what you might find. I wondered how X could have overlooked something like that on the recently renovated Silhouette, being (supposedly) one of the classier cruise lines in the world. I'd say go ahead and check out Adventure OTS, enjoy whatever is to be enjoyed and don't be surprised (or too alarmed) if you find an imperfection here and there.

On my bold #1, I've had that happen too. And here's the thing: You've either got the personality (and good sense) to pull it off, or you don't. Probably 99% just ain't got it. Bold #2, you should shout that from a mountain top. Like any profession, one either knows it/can learn it, or not. If you don't know it/can't learn it, find something else.

FYI, that would annoy me too. "1 min after" isn't time to even begin to rate a restaurant meal, unless it's really bad. MUCH better, just make sure you can see us if we're waving to you for some reason. Big thumbs up there. "Bizzare" is a word I might've also used when I've encountered insecure wait staff and so on. I've mostly just been interested in reading here how most have reacted or would react to overly intrusive wait staff (yes "intrusive" when they can't get the message the first two or three times they ask). I'm posting now because "fuddy duddies" finally sent me over the edge. Come on. Some (or many) of us just want to be left alone as much as possible to enjoy our dinner in the quiet pleasure of each other's company in the ambience of a cruise ship. I have certainly enjoyed certain wait staff on past cruises but I enjoyed them because (among other things) they showed the good sense of when to "be there" or when to just leave us alone. Waiters that interrupt every 5 minutes or more don't do a thing for my/our mood. Is that selfish? With what I'm paying for the cruise and amenities, yeah you can call me selfish if you still want to be (rude and) judgemental of somebody else's preferences while on vacation.

As @molly361says, no they won't be lower. TBH, I haven't found prices any lower than they were 2-4 weeks ago, at least for the fall 2023 sailings I'm interested in. But maybe that's because they're still so far out. Going-Going-Gone sales might have something new/better by tomorrow, if you're interested in near-last-minute bookings, 90-day sales, whatever else they might be called.

I was commenting @ "Cruise Capital of the World" in general. As for Tampa, the last couple of weeks is just the last couple of weeks. I look at Tampa's offerings occasionally just because I love sailing out of there. Used to anyway.

Miami, FLL, Port Canaveral, Tampa and Jax. Hard to keep up with that kind of action.

For daily use or anywhere close to that, buying the most basic wifi package at pre-cruise discount pricing is definitely the best way to go. And as @Sunshine3601mentioned, it can be shared, one device logged in at a time. Any device, yours or hers on an internet lounge desktop, whatever.

As I commented elsewhere today, I've never seen any real fare sales from Royal. In fact 2 days ago I priced a holiday sale from a TA (one that has never lived up to its advertising) and was shocked to get a final cost of more than $800 above Royal's website pricing. Nuts. My favorite TA (also advertising "sale") has the same total price as Royal does -- same as it was a month ago when I checked. (I keep a spreadsheet for my next-cruise shopping.) As @latebuyermentioned, maybe pre-cruise discounts for excursions and such, but never on the cruise fare itself.

This can be true but not always. Sometimes a "special" really is special. My last cruise on Celebrity (booked thru my favorite TA) originally included a "surprise" package of specials that did not inflate my total cost. I say "originally" because I covid-cancelled that one, rebooked later with the FCCs and managed to keep the full package, which included premium WiFi for 2, classic drinks package for 2, and "free" gratuities. My total cost for that 10-day cruise in a balcony stateroom (with "refundable deposit") was a tad over $2800. I checked that TA's pricing sometime later for the same cruise I booked, with the same category of stateroom. The "AI" package that I paid nothing extra for was selling at a rate of $1600+ pp, while the "basic" fare that I booked under was still there. I'm sure my timing was perfect to get the package I got. But it does happen, at least on other cruise lines. I've also gotten some good deals on Carnival too -- sometimes a nice military rate, at other times something else.

In my experience Royal is the worst for deals. I've even had TAs tell me they've rarely seen anything "special" from Royal. I keep hoping too, but even in the middle of the current holiday "sale" season, all I've seen are empty sales pitches.

That's hard to imagine. Lol. I've always thought Royal's website was the worst in the industry (that I knew of), which is odd because Celebrity and Royal definitely share corporate IT. Apparently different teams because the differences between the two websites are remarkable -- but X and Royal apps share exactly the same email address. I've written to both. It's just odd that I like one so much better than the other.

It would also pay to remember things like Norovirus, which was a "cruise ship thing" long before covid, and Norovirus is also very contagious. About 6-8 years ago (years before covid) a cruise-friend of ours came down with something cold- or flu-like about halfway through the cruise. She was sick as a dog for several days. None of us caught it from her, which I thought was a minor miracle.

Not for most US-based cruises, with one or two exceptions. I sailed Celebrity Nov 7, no pre-cruise testing required for our 10-day eastern Caribbean route. Grant Turk (not one of our ports) still required testing at the time I believe. Just one example of possible exceptions. Here's a good start on a more complete answer, which of course can change in the next year: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/will-i-have-to-take-a-test-before-i-cruise

Problem with avoiding is that people can be carriers without showing symptoms at all. But yeah . . . I seriously wish people with symptoms would do a lot better at self-isolation, because of course coughing/sneezing make it way easier to infect others. Testing is a crap-shoot IMO. It might reduce the odds to some degree, but it's nowhere close to a guarantee of anything. This past spring, 3 days after returning home I got slammed with something flu-like, not covid. Could have picked it up on the ship, on our last island stop or on the drive home.

Yep, they do. Aren't "sale days" just wonderful.

My experience too, never a problem connecting to WiFi (that I can remember) but then sometimes waiting minutes just to connect to email. That could just be a congestion problem somewhere in stream, as opposed to a total loss of Internet connectivity, but which could also affect app performance . . . . . I guess sometimes we just don't know/can't tell for sure.

Internet down, hope that doesn't happen often. Nice to read "paper schedules" because (while sympathetic with saving paper) I missed some things on my last cruise (not on X) because there were no paper schedules and a mystery as to where certain info could be found. Anyway, following with "baited breath" as we're one the Nov 7th out of Miami and can't wait to board and explore Silhouette-renovated. Thanks for taking the time!

Odd thing, I just noticed the following in a bon-voyage email from my TA -- for a Celebrity cruise, relating to booking a next cruise onboard: "Free Onboard Credit of $150 per person." My emphasis. Another mistake? The email also doesn't specify suite or any stateroom category at all. I have never seen or received "per person" OBC on any cruise, but now this is twice in a few days that I've heard it mentioned.

Add to conflicting documentation, even when cruiseline websites say no this or that, for years we've been able to bring them onboard. I've never had a power strip confiscated, but I do always make sure it's the most basic kind, very simple in appearance. Often the biggest issue (as I posted elsewhere) is that one security agent might let something by when another one will confiscate it. Cruise before last we practically got mauled by one guy over something seen in X-Ray, but it was nothing "illegal". First time in our 14 years of cruising that we didn't breeze through security. I'm not complaining, just saying the only way to guarantee "no problem" clearing security check-in is to just leave the questionable item home. I myself will risk a short-simple-basic power strip, and also a multi-plug.

ASAP yeah, because there are a limited number. In case some readers don't catch that.

Check this particular page of a lengthy topic on power strips etc. One big key is NO surge-protected strips or plugs or anything, because those can be fire hazards on a cruise ship. One problem is that all port security people don't necessarily know what is okay for cruise ships or not, so a legitimate power basic strip might be confiscated. That's the risk we all take trying to take power-outlet-helpers onboard. Click the title or image to go to the page.

I usually take one pair of sort-of "stylish" blue jeans for evening dining. Yes jeans can be hot, but some years ago, watching an outdoor movie one night, I learned all too well that a cruise ship can get very breezy, and cool at night, expecially before, during or after major rainfall. It can also chill indoor temperatures a bit. That movie night I had to run back to our stateroom, find some long pants and a long-sleeve t-shirt. On other cruises, as others have stated, at times the A/C can chill indoors to the point of goosebumps if I'm wearing shorts. I've never found the MDR or specialty dining to be overly cool, but of course one has to move around to get there and back, plus whatever we might want to do right after dinner. I also usually bring a pair of decent-looking khakis in addition to the jeans, plus a couple of polos, button-up linen and other collared shirts.

Likewise I don't know where that "3/4/5k" more comes from. I have honestly not noticed that X is notably more expensive than the other 2 lines I've sailed. I comparison-shop every time I want to book, and typically look at 4 cruise lines -- in alphabetical order Carnival, Celebrity, Princess and Royal. Never managed a Princess cruise, although we had one booked that got covid-cancelled (Nov 2020). I almost never spend a "small fortune" on cruises because we enjoy other vacation venues (love our road trips). I would never have sailed X or any other line if it was over-priced, comparatively speaking.