50 Years of Cruising on Royal -- Share Your Memories!

[John&LaLa]

November 2nd on Symphony out of Miami

[CruisinCons]

My favorite memory is sailing on Majesty of the Seas, August 1992.  She was just over three months old.  Our first cruise, and we've been hooked ever since.  I still remember our headliner entertainment; The Fifth Dimension and Jerry Van Dyke (and his wife).  

 

Back then, you received a passenger list; I still have it! 

[Tobyhilda]

G

On 6/17/2019 at 8:46 AM, John&LaLa said:

 

Well, now you get to cruise with Laura

I am looking forward of meeting you,,Sept 1 2019 my next cruise on Allure,,then the excitement is building for our RCCL 50th Anniversary Bash, Keep well,  and keep posting,,Fondly The Godmother. aka Tobyhilda 

[phillbrett68]

well it is more of a nightmare LOL i was on the radiance of the seas  a few years ago think it would be 2018 and well a freak wave in the middle of the night sent me out of my head and i headbutted the Fridge 10 stitches later and a night in the first aid room and a bandage on my head all led too me having dinner with the captain of the ship and no i do not mean with lots of other people at the table the captain and myself ad 2 other staff members so what turned out to be a bad start ended up being dinner with the captain 

[fla gang]

I remember taking my sister and BIL to board the Regent Rainbow in Tampa many years ago for a cruise to nowhere. I was amazed at the size of the ship. Then did my first cruise two weeks after 911 on the old Carnival Fantasy. What a rough ride on the tail of a tropical depression. My first Royal cruise was on theSovereign on around 2005 and now we have done a total of around 30 cruises and still going strong. Favorite memory was first time boarding Oasis. The WOW Factor!

[m*u*g*]

 

Allure June 2012. Son's high school graduation trip. Also took my sister and her daughters. They had recently lost their father to a lifelong battle with illness and this trip was a good release for them. Probably the most fun they ever had and it was their first cruise ever. One of the daughters, far left, is really into photography, so I bought her the unlimited photo package. She had a blast just posing for photos and seeing what she could come up with. They must have ended up with over 300 photos and became good friends with one of the photographers. She even posed with him in one of the photo ops outside the ship at one of the ports. She also ended up on the ship video doing Karaoke. I have more photos on my laptop and can post some better ones later.

 

My wife and I are booked on the 50th birthday cruise on Nov. 2 on Symphony. Can't wait.

 

Point your toes....

 

Checking in. This IS my excited face. Sorry. It really is.

 

Son and Niece. He was headed to NYU as you can see. Now living in Denver CO.

[Twice_a_year]

We have enjoyed over forty cruise adventures of which twenty seven have been on RCI. The newer ships offer so much more to today’s younger customers including so much more geared towards the children. At our current age the more serene and classical cruise venue of yesteryear are missed. But, we are still cruising including our next one in January 2020

[Drock20J]

My favorite memory would probably be my first cruise.

 

My first ever cruise was a 7-day Southern Caribbean cruise on the Jewel for my Honeymoon. There is nothing too special about it, just that it was my first and for my honeymoon. It was the first time in YEARS that I got to disconnect from the world (this was 2012.) It was just a great experience just being with my wife. 7 Years later, we still cruise every chance we get! We are RCCL lifers! Our 2-year old daughter has now joined us and she is loving the times on the ship.

 

The whole time she is on the ship she likes to explain how she is on a boat and how that boat is in the water.

[ReneeFLL]

 

On 4/22/2019 at 9:31 PM, Tobyhilda said:

Biker19. I am impressed with your numbers of posts,,wow,,Let’s share some of your  experiences, let’s try to stimulate some interest on this cruise,,AKA The Godmother 

Are you looking for a roll call for a certain cruise? This is about sharing past memories of cruises. Are you the godmother of a ship? 😀

 

[ReneeFLL]

Had ship godmother on my mind after just reading Kelly Clarkson is the godmother of the Norwegian Encore.

[John&LaLa]

On 9/13/2019 at 8:51 PM, ReneeFLL said:

Had ship godmother on my mind after just reading Kelly Clarkson is the godmother of the Norwegian Encore.

 

I believe actual Godmothers are entitled to one free cruise a year.

I wonder if Fiona got to keep her title?

And does Gloria Estefan get to go twice?

Edited September 19, 2019 by John&LaLa

[2flacruisers]

Our first cruise ever was in 1995 on the Sovereign of the Seas....What a beautiful ship she was...just over a year old.  As we got to the dock, we were in awe of how massive she was...breathtaking!  We had no expectations of how we would enjoy her.  

 

As the years went by, and we got hooked on sailing, we were fortunate enough to be on her for the 20th "Birthday" party.   What a treat! She was still the grand lady she was earlier.  I was sad to see her go to another line, but very grateful that she still cruises to this day!

[ReneeFLL]

On 9/19/2019 at 4:46 PM, John&LaLa said:

 

I believe actual Godmothers are entitled to one free cruise a year.

I wonder if Fiona got to keep her title?

And does Gloria Estefan get to go twice?

They probably have a blow up Fiona doll and keep her on the bridge for a cruise. 🛳️

[VTSteerage]

Our first cruise on Royal Caribbean was our honeymoon in 1983.  We sailed on the Song of Norway to the western Caribbean - Grand Cayman, Montego Bay Jamaica, and Cozumel.  I remember waking up in Grand Cayman to read the "newspaper" that the cruise line slid under the cabin door back then, and finding out that there had been 16" of snow back home (Burlington, VT) the day after we left.  We felt so pampered.  In 1983, there were only four ships in the RCCL fleet.   Take a walk down memory lane with the attached pic. 

[AnyShip4Me]

My first was Monarch of the Seas back in the '90's. Our family group of 10. My uncle was an avid cruiser so I followed his lead. I remember having the same waiter and we sat at the same table breakfast, lunch and dinner. I thought that was pretty amazing. I never knew the ship had a buffet until my second cruise! I also remember they had ashtrays down the hallways and you could smoke pretty much anywhere. That inside room was my most expensive cabin to date.

 

Edited October 1, 2019 by AnyShip4Me
spelling

[agingpartygirl]

About 15 years ago we booked Nordic Empress right before it went into drydock. It was hurricane season, we booked an inside room which was a first for us and we knew the ship was not much to talk about. But the price for a week long cruise was incredible plus we were already flying to Tampa for a wedding. It was one of my favorite cruises. We were at a dinner table with another couple and 3 fun, crazy, sexy women. We still don't know why but the ladies loved my husband and I and we spent a lot of time with them. Had a wild time at Carlos and Charlie's and lots of extras on the ship because we had 3 single women at our table. There was also a large contingent of gay men on-board who were so fun to hang out with as well. I am now best friends with one of the women and have been on a few cruises with her. It just goes to show that it is often the people that make a cruise not the ship or the itinerary. 

[Kellybc]

I knew my first RCI Cruise was April 1985 on a ship with Norway in the name, but until discovering this thread, I didn’t remember it was Song of Norway. We lived in Michigan and were sailing the Western Caribbean out of Miami with two other couples. My family lived in Boca Raton and some of them drove down to give us a Bon Voyage party. Yes, they were allowed on board along with adult beverages and our room seward brought ice and glasses. All six of us “earned” the yellow Ship Shape shirts and wore them proudly when back home. 

[lhnan]

We sailed on one of the largest cruise ships of the day...Sovereign of the Seas. It was a beautiful state of the art and length of three football fields amazing ship. Today, it is still in service and one of Royal Caribbean's smaller ships. At the time we lived in McAllen, TX and sailed out of Miami. We traveled with our lifelong best friends to celebrate their 20th and our 25th anniversaries.🥂 We chose to dine with four other people - strangers who quickly became friends. We had great entertainment - Jerry Louis and also Captain and Tennille. At that time it was pretty much an "all inclusive" cruise...no specialty restaurants, no extra charges at dinner, room service whenever. 🍽️ Of course  we paid over $2000 for an inside cabin in 1990 dollars! The shopping in St Thomas was awesome. I came home with the most beautiful linens. The day on Labadee I can still remember clearly - the turquoise waters, fruity drinks 🥤 and napping on the beach.  It was heaven.

 

Fast forward 29 years and we're readying for a late October cruise. Blessed to be sailing with those same best friends who will soon be celebrating their 50th anniversary and our 55th! We'll be meeting up with a high school reunion group sailing on one of RC's older ships Enchantment of the Seas yet newer and bigger than the SOS - I hope it can live up to the memory filled Sovereign of the Seas!

[dogsambam]

Our first family cruise on the Nordic Prince.  Were told by the other family We were traveling with the cheapest smallest inside cabin would be just fine for two adults and two teen aged boys. Passion for cruising started With that first cruise, but also did booking 2 cabins....

[John&LaLa]

April 2015 Oasis of the Seas

The first time I saw CATS

 

I would end up seeing it 25+ more times over the next 4 years, many times more than once a sailing

It's not for everyone, but I enjoyed it.

 

I fully expected it to be replaced during the current drydock

But it's been extended for another contract. 

Now the production will be shorter by about an hour, but I'm excited to see the revised version in January

87 days to go

 

Thank you @LauraS

[Dori Saltzman]

Thanks for all the memories everyone (and please keep 'em coming)!

 

We put together a feature about some of people's first-ever Royal Caribbean cruises -- 50 Years of First Royal Caribbean Cruises.

 

 

[kalobi]

This is a hard one!! I think my favorite was the transatlantic out of New Orleans on the Navigator of the Seas in April 2013. The fellow passengers were delightful to cruise with and the stops were wonderful. We stayed on and sailed the Mediterranean for a week before heading back to Rome. 

Anthem of the Seas      Jan 7 — Jan 19, 2018

Grandeur of the Seas   Jan 3 — Jan 14, 2017

Grandeur of the Seas    Jan 31 — Feb 8, 2014

Navigator of the Seas    Apr 21 — Apr 28, 2013

Navigator of the Seas     Apr 6 — Apr 21, 2013

Voyager of the Seas       Jan 13 — Jan 20, 2008

Vision of the Seas         Aug 10 — Aug 17, 2007

Adventure of the Seas    Jan 7 — Jan 14, 2007

Princess Cruise  ?

Carnival                September 1998

Carnival                August 2019

[sj25]

Our first one was a b2b and everyone said we was brave to do that long!  We still was not ready to get off and it was on the Mariner of the Sea with Capt. Johnny!  We even had to fight with a hurricane Wilma and still never stopped us now on #33 booked with Royal.  We just can't wait and count down for each one.

[dagunny]

Since they are all favorites, the most interesting one was the "Evacuation Cruise" for Hurricane Irma.  Royal cancelled our B2B and let us stay on as we had no power. They evacuated all their employees from Miami.  Mass load onto the ship where they stayed in the lounges and theater until being assigned rooms.  They had from 9-11:30 am to board and we beat feet to hide below Cuba until it passed.  Tales told here http://www.cimorelli.com/cruises/2017-evacuation-cruise/2017-evacuation-cruise.html

 

Cuba on the Empress would be our second most interesting cruise.

[bobkins40]

My first cruise was my honeymoon on Majesty June 1999

interior stateroom !!! Labadee has changed so much from then- it was just a beach and a small marketplace

next was Serenade 2004  one of my favorite ships- and a Balcony! always have a balcony now

Explorer in 2005 

would always get dressed up in gowns and rent a tuxedo for my husband for formal nights

 

 

also cruised carnival and Norwegian along the way

 

cant wait to go back on Oasis in March 2020 ( our crane incident replacement cruise !)