perfect match

I take a lot of pictures so I thought I had a lot of tender boat pictures I could share. Unfortunately, most of my tender boat pictures are not OF the tender boats, they’re pictures taken FROM the tender boats! 😂 However, I do have a few of the tender boats.

Laurie, I’m sorry to hear about your grandfather‘s passing. It’s never easy to lose someone you love. My thoughts Ndebele prayers go out to you and your family. I noticed that you have a Wonder review in your signature. I’ve enjoyed the past reviews of yours that I’ve read, but I can’t remember if I’ve read that one. We recently booked Wonder for next year so I’ll be heading over to that review most likely after I finish with this one. I’m enjoying following along with you during your stay in Vancouver and I don’t want to mix the two reviews up by jumping back and forth between them. update: I just checked and I have read your wonder review. However, at that time I had no plans to book Wonder anytime soon. I’m still going to go back and re-read it from a different point of view now that we have Wonder booked.

we just booked Wonder for next year. @OCSC Mike, RCCL should be paying you a commission on our booking because hearing from you everything you love about Wonder has a lot to do with why we decided to book her. We started cruising on other cruise lines so we’re relative newcomers to the Royal fleet as compared to some of you. Oldest: Freedom Newest: Odyssey Favorite: Allure

I really wish they would just let us do our bookings in advance so we could actually enjoy day one instead of worrying about getting our bookings set up or if the internet and app are going to work on my phone and tablet. Just a little pet peeve of mine - or is it the OCD planner in me? 😂🤪😂

I needed a lot of internet help on Odyssey. Apparently the security on my iPhone didn’t want to play nice with Starlink and I kept getting kicked off line. I had no problem finding internet assist people throughout the cruise or someone at GS who could help.

Our muster station was in 270 so we were definitely in there. There was no one that I saw there who would be able to help with bookings. I think I saw a box office near the theater and Shore Excursions was open and not crowded. They would have been able to help with iFly and North Star as well as any other excursions you might want to book. When we first started cruising on Oasis class ships I didn’t think I would like booking shows and other such things in advance. I really shouldn’t be surprised to find out that I really like having the ability to get everything booked in advance. It lets me prioritize the things we really want to do so we don’t miss out on things that are important to us due to a conflict with another high priority that could have easily been avoided if we had seen the schedule in advance and planned accordingly. I do not do hour by hour spreadsheets like I’ve seen some people do, just a rough framework so we won’t be disappointed by missing out on activities we were really looking forward to doing. In full disclosure, I don’t do spreadsheets because I’m not very proficient at doing spreadsheets! I do make a chart using a pencil ✏️ and paper though! 😂

For us the paid reservations for the North Star and iFly showed up on the planner before we boarded but we’re usually unavailable to book. I was able to book “The Book” in the planner but that reservation vanished a day or so before we boarded. I was able to book all three of these on the app for whatever day I wanted as well as the free reservations for North Star and iFly on boarding day. No running around was required as ice it was easy to do through the app. Our cabin steward was able to get us paper copies of all of the compasses for the duration of the cruise including the one for day 1. I do not know if they had compasses at GS on day 1 as we did not go near the place! I’m not sure how helpful my answers in red inserted into your quoted post will be but it helped me keep track of the bullet points you were asking about. I’m furling old today! I also see that @FionaMG and @h20skibum have already addressed most of your questions very well ahead of my somewhat messy replies. We we’re able to board Odyssey fairly early so we found a quiet place to sit down and do all of the bookings I needed in the app. I sent DH to pick up our soda package cups and get them filled while I made our bookings. After that I went to Shore Excursions to get an excursion booking that I had a problem with in the app straightened out, then checked in at our muster station, followed by lunch in the Windjammer. As we were finishing lunch the rooms were opened up so we went to our room. We found luggage in the hall, so we grabbed it, unpacked and relaxed on our balcony until sailaway. It was a great start to our cruise. 😎

I’m back now after our venture out into the land of Cirque du Soleil at Disney Springs over the weekend. We really enjoyed the show as I knew we would, but I’m here to read about cruising! Our most recent cruise was on Odyssey. We loved the ship! Be sure you sign up for the free versions iFly and North Star ASAP before those slots are gone! Also reserve the show The Book in 270. That was the only show that took reservations. We also loved The Effectors and Showgirls so plan th fit them into your schedule. I expect that the other entertainment, headliners, comedians and such will be different from the ones we saw last October, but the ones we saw were very good. I’ve heard of people getting off menu items in the MDE, but never because they had a certain number of C & A points. They just asked if something they wanted might be available. We got to our Diamond status thanks to the double points offer that was available when cruising reopened after the shut down. 😎 We only sail once, occasionally twice a year and do cruise on different cruise lines although RCCL seems to be our cruise line of choice lately. I enjoyed seeing the CA sea lions at the pier. Not enough to get me to fly 😱 from FL to CA to see them, but it was pretty cool to see them there at the pier and, yes, I’d probably be like Patti breaking through the barrier to take pictures! 😂 The water slides on Navigator look like fun! I haven’t been doing the water slides on any of our cruises lately because 1) I’m not as young as I used to be 2) my old legs have been surgically repaired and don’t like stairs much on a good day and 3) with all of the walking I make my surgically repaired legs do on our walks to and fro our aft cabin, my old, surgically repaired legs really protest about doing extra stairs just so I can pretend I’m a kid again and go on water slides! That said, I may have to consider a water slide or two when we’re on Allure in April.

We’re doing a B2B on Allure out of PC in April 2024. I’m glad we’re getting one more chance to sail on her before any “amplifications” take place.

II’m looking forward to following along with you on this sailing. Hope that Lee stays away from you.

Thanks for reminding me that the GS on Wonder are on deck 17! I knew that, but it had slipped my mind. We just booked Wonder in a balcony but for the right price I’d be very happy to upgrade or even Royal Up into a GS! I am ok going up stairs, but carrying heavy or bulky things would not be such a good idea. Going down those stairs, not a very good idea, especially if I’m half asleep! I do like the idea of throwing things over the rail to get them downstairs when packing for disembarkation!

I’m a night owl and getting worse the older I get. 7:30 AM is way too early for me, too! I have found on our recent cruises that some excursions with really early start times have added later start times closer to our sail date, or even after we were on board. I have been able to switch my early excursion times to later ones or book excursions I Han not booked previously when these later start times opened up.

@harryfat1, you’re keeping me in suspense! We’re you able to get your ship model Christmas ornament while you were visiting the uncle in prison (aka shopping)? 😂

We hit 140 points on our next cruise so we’ll get out first crystal block. I’m hoping for the old style but expecting the new colorized one. I’ll be happy to get either but I think the old style would match up better in my china cabinet. Thank you very much for a great review. I really enjoyed following along with you, both the story and the pictures.

Harry, I loved your cost comparison of RCCL food costs. Unlike you, I do not particularly like working with numbers so I would be highly unlikely to do it myself. However I did appreciate seeing your results. We collect ship related Christmas ornaments for our tree, too. We have a few ship model ones but have frequently looked at keychains as acceptable substitutes. I either detach the key ring portion and replace it with an ornament hanger or if I’m in a hurry I’ve been known to slip the ring over the tree branch and hang it that way. I have the same Freedom model ornament as you do and can only use it on my heavier tree because the branches on the other tree aren’t strong enough to hold it. The keychains are smaller and lighter so I can use those on either tree. We sailed on Odyssey in April and I know I came home from that cruise with a keychain I’ll be using as an ornament. I’m sorry but I don’t remember if they had the ship model ornaments available. I like a sea day as the last day on our cruises too. It doesn’t take me long to pack for departures but I always seem to have piles of wet beach and dive gear that do not want to get dry so I can get everything packed. So if you ask me how many of my most recent cruises have had the last day as a sea day the answer would be zero. Finally on the next couple cruises we have booked the last days are sea days! Those sofas in your room look more like beds than sofas to me. I’m a bit on the short side so I’d either be sitting on the edge of the sofa and no contact with the back rest, or sitting way back in order to use the backrest with my legs sticking straight out in front of me unable to bend my knees or put my feet on the floor. Neither position would be comfortable.

I’m enjoying your review and pictures. Sorry it’s not the Bermuda cruise you were planning on, but it sounds like you’re making the best of it and having a good time regardless of your itinerary change.

@Lionesss sounds like that flight was quite the adventure! Glad you made it home safely! I loved seeing and hearing about your bridge tour. Thank you very much for doing this review. I’ve enjoyed sailing along with you. @Husky1987 and @techteach thank you for your contributions to this thread. I’ve enjoyed sailing along with both of you too.

Great drone show video! Thanks for sharing it!

I love the police escort boat doing donuts while escorting you out of the harbor and the Carnival ship hiding behind the cranes! We we’re lucky enough to stay first east, then south of Idalia 🌀. We did lose power for 2 hours early Wednesday morning right after I signed off Cruise Critic. After the power went out I headed to bed and woke up 2 hours later when the lights and TV came back on. I’m not even sure the blackout was storm related because we had very light rain and almost no wind at the time. A lot of the time I wish we had chosen to live closer to the beach when we moved to Florida. This week was not one of those times!

Following along. Loved the bridge pictures!

Well, now I’m disappointed! I loved that show. Do you know if it was a casualty of the pandemic, or just Vegas constantly feeling the need to reinvent itself? I do agree with you about O, Ka, and Mystere. If we decide to head back to Vegas, I’d see any of them again.

No hurricane here yet even though the current TV reports show one of the outer bands directly over us. We did get some wind this afternoon so we had to move from the lakefront edge of the outdoor patio where we were having dinner with friends to the back of the patio so our food wouldn’t blow away. We did get some very light rain 🌧️ on our way home for about 5 minutes but it barely got the windshield clean! Seems like Idalia will stay to the west until she passes us by and then will make her turn to the east. That’s fine with me but I feel for the people in the Big Bend area who hay get hit with a cat 3 or 4 storm 🌀. Since we like the Oasis class ships so much, and there’s so much to see and do on them we’re going back on Allure for a second time in April. We wanted to try Wonder but couldn’t justify paying almost double for what our 3/4 day B2B on Allure will cost us. Besides, I like the fact that Allure hasn’t been amped yet. Our first leg is the 3 day to Coco Cay and Nassau, then back to PC for turnaround. Our second leg is Cozumel with two sea days to play on Allure. Our first cruise on Allure was shortly after cruising resumes post shutdown and there were just over 2,200 pax on board. We felt like we were sailing on our own private yacht. 😎 I’m well aware that this sailing will be totally different! We’re still looking forward to it. Our last cruise was on Odyssey. Lots of fun things to do on that ship too. We loved the views and the photo ops from the North Star, and I liked iFly so much I’ll be visiting the one in the FLL area when we’re in that area next month. There’s one in Orlando, too, and I may find my way to that one as well. Since your taste in shows seems to be similar to ours,be sure you see the shows on Odyssey, too.

So sorry for your loss. 💐

Congratulations on your winnings, Sue! Your luck in the casino is exactly opposite of mine. That’s why I stay out of the casino! 🎰 Is the Canadian customs declaration form everyone has to fill out a new thing? I’ve never seen it mentioned in any of the reviews I’ve read.

If O is dark when you’re in Vegas, go see Le Reve at the Winn. We have seen both shows twice an while we love both, Le Reve is in my top 5 live shows ever. What sets it apart is the water theater in the round with numerous access points for the actors to enter and exit the theater ranging from 90 feet above the water in the top of the dome to below the water to various points all around the theater. Now, let’s talk about your Mexico cruise. It will take my mind off of our 🌀 Idalia watch. Hopefully her path will stay west and north of us. Might catch @bobmacliberty more than us. My DH would definitely love people watching from the sofa in your room. My surgically repaired knees would need a lot of well placed pillows for me to have any chance of being comfortable there. I’d rather have chairs. I’m trying to remember if we’ve ever sailed on a ship with a Viking Crown Lounge? We’re not drinkers so not surprising that we haven’t been there, but I see that the views would be awesome! I know they’re not on Oasis class but how about Freedom or Quantum class? That water slide in your pictures looks and sounds a lot like the Aqua Duck on the Disney ships. We enjoyed the Aqua Duck slides on Disney Dream and Fantasy so I’d try the one on Navigator.