Going by your signature you are either the 8 day Mar 7 (not school break in Ontario) or the 6 day on March 15th (this is spring break..very late this year)
There are no XB or XN guarantees for either sailing. There is a 4D GTY or a 2I Boardwalk GTY available for both sailing
This is the 15th
This is the 7th and based on the prices you mentioned it would be a Boardwalk balciny you are looking at
For North American bookings the deposits and payments go direct to Royal and never through a third party unless you are paying the travel agency with cash.
All on board accounts regardless of where in the world you book from, live in or sail from are in USD. You can exchange currency but the rates are worse than doing it at home
Okay, so you be the one to tell people it is absolutely fine to cancel at 24 hours and then have them not get a refund. I agree that sometimes exceptions are made but you should not be telling people with the absolute certainty that you are that 24 hours is fine because it is not.
You are correct, on board it is 48 hours prior. If they have a waitlist for the excursion they may waive the charge. They have also waived the charge when one of our party was sick
As long as it is not during time when the dining room is open I would suggest the entrance to the dining room on deck 3, 4 or 5 (avoid the one with the host. It is a large space, no one will be walking by.
How the program works is a mystery and no one will have a precise answer. People who have never sailed with Royal before have won bids that they bid less on than other who have sailed prior and bid more. People who were in a balcony won bids for a CL over people in a JS.
There are no guarantees or tricks. Be prepared to not have your bid accepted.
So I looked and there is one available on Oct 26
You could book for $90600
You could book the Icon loft 2 categories below it ar $21500. That would give you your best chance assuming that the Royal loft does not bit or another comparable suite does not bid more than you or Royal uses some criteria other than $ to award the bid..
Princess calls them mini suites. Royal calls them Junior Suites.
Extra space, double loyalty points and on Quantum and Oasis class you get access to Coastal Kitchen for dinner as space permits
Need to be at the airport 3 hours early for an international flight means 1:30 then transport from hotel to airport and packing up at the hotel. Not enough time to worry about for me. I'd just do the last disembark possible and hang out at the airport