LIVE! First Time Royal Cruiser In Wonder-land Oct 1-8th Let’s Cruise!

[TravelBluebird]

I’m thinking about buying a second device for Zoom (so I can have my iPhone and iPad connected at the same time) BUT when I go into my RC cruise planner online, I can’t find where or how to do it, Does anyone know if it is easy to do once you are on board and how much it might cost?

 

 

[OCSC Mike]

9 minutes ago, TravelBluebird said:

I’m thinking about buying a second device for Zoom (so I can have my iPhone and iPad connected at the same time) BUT when I go into my RC cruise planner online, I can’t find where or how to do it, Does anyone know if it is easy to do once you are on board and how much it might cost?

 

You'd likely have to cancel your existing internet purchase for a refund and re-purchase a 2-device plan but that's just an educated guess.

Edited September 28, 2023 by OCSC Mike

[TravelBluebird]

Just now, OCSC Mike said:

 

You'd likely have to cancel your existing internet purchase from a refund and re-purchase a 2-device plan but that's just an educated guess.

 

Thanks…that may explain why I couldn’t do it in the app just by adding the second device.

[ace1zoe2]

3 hours ago, TravelBluebird said:

Is it true that Royal charges a 5% convenience fee for charging casino funds to your room? Carnival doesn’t do that, and that’s like starting in a huge hole for gambling. 

 

 

If you use your Sea Pass card in the slot machines it just shows as a room charge. No fee. 

[TravelBluebird]

38 minutes ago, ace1zoe2 said:

If you use your Sea Pass card in the slot machines it just shows as a room charge. No fee. 

 

Thank you for clearing that up! I don’t like to carry lots of cash with me, so that is my preferred method of $$ for slots.

[TravelBluebird]

This evening I re-packed so that my purse would fit in my carry-on, and made a few last decisions on things I wasn’t sure I wanted to take. Ditched the light rain jacket but took the light weight Japanese umbrella in case it rains while I’m on the ship OR on an excursion, although the forecast continues to improve. If I’m in my bathing suit on a beach, do I really want to put a rain jacket on? No, no I don’t.

 

Also made sure I had my Delta record locator and itinerary—their app has been down a couple times this week, so it will be nice to have something at the airport, just in case. Decided not to pirnt a paper boarding pass for the cruise, since its in the app and haven’t heard of any problems with that.

 

Having to deal with some mixed emotions about visiting St Thomas…spent some time there with my mother when I was a teenager, and she passed early this year. Goodness, that woman could shop!

[JustUs275]

I'm looking forward to following your LIVE! trip report! My DH and I, along with our friends, are boarding Wonder for the first time on 10/15. We booked a guaranty interior and do have our cabin assignment now. This will be our first interior as well so we are hoping the location is without issue. I'll be interested in reading how you like your interior cabin! 

 

Here's to a great cruise! 🍹

 

Terri

[TravelBluebird]

1 hour ago, JustUs275 said:

m looking forward to following your LIVE! trip report! My DH and I, along with our friends, are boarding Wonder for the first time on 10/15. We booked a guaranty interior and do have our cabin assignment now. This will be our first interior as well so we are hoping the location is without issue. I'll be interested in reading how you like your interior cabin! 

 

Here's to a great cruise! 🍹

 

Terri

Thank you!  And  I think trying Interiors is a bit of a trend with people I know, because of cruise price inflation of late; we are part of a trend! 

[perfect match]

12 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

 

 

 

I'm not familiar with any of those concepts, lol. I eat healthy at home. On a cruise... anything goes. Glad it works for you though. My wife goes walking (she used to run) most mornings while I get cappuccino and "pre-breakfast." Of course, she doesn't eat like I do either so she maybe gains 2 lbs.

 

It doesn't take me long to lose what I gain and I'm actually a thin guy who just likes to eat so it's not really a big deal.

That is so not fair! I could gain weight just watching you eat, and once I gain the weight it never wants to leave! My DH is like you, he can eat whatever he wants and stays slim. Drives me crazy! 🤪
 

 

4 hours ago, TravelBluebird said:

Thank you!  And  I think trying Interiors is a bit of a trend with people I know, because of cruise price inflation of late; we are part of a trend! 

 

I did a bit of downsizing for our room on Wonder, too. We usually sail in a JS but on our upcoming Wonder cruise we’re in a Boardwalk Balcony. At least we in the very last Boardwalk Balcony on the starboard side so I won’t completely lose sight of the ocean. We’ll also be able to see the AquaTheater from our balcony, and DH will enjoy people watching. 
 

I am glad that the room layout on Wonder is different than the one we had on Oasis. We felt really cramped in that room. DH had broken his collarbone two weeks before we sailed and had surgery to repair it 5 days later. His doctor dis clear him to sail, so sail we did. His injury made the lack of space and awkward layout of that room even more uncomfortable than it might have been otherwise. That was the cruise that convinced us to sail Junior Suites. Unfortunately we will now be sailing in our Boardwalk Balcony for the price we’ve been paying for our Junior Suites.

[clochette]

looking forward to following you.  It should be a great trip, I love the UDP so fun to try all of the specialty restaurants

[TravelBluebird]

8 hours ago, perfect match said:

I did a bit of downsizing for our room on Wonder, too. We usually sail in a JS but on our upcoming Wonder cruise we’re in a Boardwalk Balcony. At least we in the very last Boardwalk Balcony on the starboard side so I won’t completely lose sight of the ocean. We’ll also be able to see the AquaTheater from our balcony, and DH will enjoy people watching. 

 

Boardwalk Balcony (with a bit of ocean) sounds like a nice choice!

8 hours ago, perfect match said:

am glad that the room layout on Wonder is different than the one we had on Oasis. We felt really cramped in that room. DH had broken his collarbone two weeks before we sailed and had surgery to repair it 5 days later. His doctor dis clear him to sail, so sail we did. His injury made the lack of space and awkward layout of that room even more uncomfortable than it might have been otherwise. That was the cruise that convinced us to sail Junior Suites. Unfortunately we will now be sailing in our Boardwalk Balcony for the price we’ve been paying for our Junior Suites.

 

Broken collarbone in smaller room! Ouch, and awkward indeed.  

 

Room layout is so important. Really the reason I did a Royal Up for a Neighborhood View interior. It looked to me like the regular interiors had the bed and nightstands straight when you walked in with little room around either side. That looked cramped; the Neighborhood View Interior has a little couch by the “view” window like a little reading room with the layout more like a traditional balcony.

 

For our HAL Antartica trip, unfortunately the room is an ocean view with that layout we don’t like, with the window ABOVE the bed. Not a fan. We are seriously considering “twining” the beds on either side of the window, so we can look out! But hey, that cruise was a free interior for us with a small fee for the ocean view, so I’ll survive!

 

As for the price of the Boardwalk. Balcony being the price you’ve been paying for a Junior Suite UGH its so disheartening isn’t it? We are seeing the same on the cruise lines we take frequently, and its so hard when you are used to Balconies and Suites. Plus I looked at booking ICON because I really wanted to travel on her early for my channel and blogging, and it is SO expensive, I gave up that idea pretty fast!

[OCSC Mike]

9 minutes ago, TravelBluebird said:

Room layout is so important. Really the reason I did a Royal Up for a Neighborhood View interior. It looked to me like the regular interiors had the bed and nightstands straight when you walked in with little room around either side. That looked cramped; the Neighborhood View Interior has a little couch by the “view” window like a little reading room with the layout more like a traditional balcony.

 

For future reference, since I have 4 future regular interiors booked on Wonder, there are at least 3 different layouts. The only one I wouldn't want is an odd one that only has a chair, no couch at all. Some have the bed along the back wall as you described, others have the bed along the side wall like a balcony layout. There are examples on YouTube.

 

I don't care about my cabin (hence the interiors) but I did pay a tiny bit extra for a Central Park view interior (like you have) on the last minute Allure cruise I just booked for next month. I don't really care about the window or bench (lots of people like those features though) but our interior was a GTY (which we've also had many times) and the upgrade amount was so small my wife decided it was worth it to lock in a location we like and get a slightly bigger room. Who knows, maybe I'll actually sit on the bench and look out that window from time to time.

[TravelBluebird]

24 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

For future reference, since I have 4 future regular interiors booked on Wonder, there are at least 3 different layouts. The only one I wouldn't want is an odd one that only has a chair, no couch at all. Some have the bed along the back wall as you described, others have the bed along the side wall like a balcony layout. There are examples on YouTube.

 

I don't care about my cabin (hence the interiors) but I did pay a tiny bit extra for a Central Park view interior (like you have) on the last minute Allure cruise I just booked for next month. I don't really care about the window or bench (lots of people like those features though) but our interior was a GTY (which we've also had many times) and the upgrade amount was so small my wife decided it was worth it to lock in a location we like and get a slightly bigger room. Who knows, maybe I'll actually sit on the bench and look out that window from time to time.

 

@OCSC Mike Thank you for the info!  I would hate the odd one with only a chair and no couch. Have to have a couch to put my legs out when the RA makes ‘em a little cranky.

 

I thought the slightly bigger amount for the Interior View Room was worth it too—I will do a “room tour” video so people who are curious about that room type can see what it looks like.

 

And yes, I intend to sit on the bench by the window while I’m writing or editing videos.

[TravelBluebird]

It’s done! I am checked into my flight and my hotel for tomorrow.

 

TOMORROW! My cruise is practically here! 🎉. 

 

I am traveling tomorrow Delta Comfort Plus with a 1 hour 20 minute layover in Atlanta; should be in Port Canaveral, where I’m staying relatively near the port (more on that tomorrow) by mid to late afternoon.

 

Behind for work so I’ll probably be working late tonight, but I’m totally ready for the trip now, other than waking up on time in the morning and driving to the airport!

[OCSC Mike]

1 minute ago, TravelBluebird said:

And yes, I intend to sit on the bench by the window while I’m writing or editing videos.

 

Sounds perfect for you then.

 

If I semi-live blog again maybe some of it will come from there but I don't put a ton of effort into mine (kinda surprised people even like them, lol). The only editing I do is spell checking and trying not to be extremely long-winded (which I usually fail at).

 

My wife doesn't really use the couch, I do, so I was seeing the bench as a bit redundant...and if it is, oh well, we already knew we didn't care about it when we booked the tiny upgrade.

[princess76021]

Not bad for me!  Got here on page 2!!

Again thanks for inviting us on your cruise!

Hugs from Texas!

[Teeara]

On 9/28/2023 at 1:13 PM, TravelBluebird said:

 

Thank you so much! I’ve subscribed to your channel and I am going to enjoy all your Wonder videos after work today!!

 

I think 150 Central is my TOP restaurant to book. In order of what I’m looking forward to on the specialty restaurants, for me (for dinner) it is 150 Central, Wonder, Chops, Izumi Sushi, Hooked .Mason Jar, Giovanni’s in that order. 

 

I’m definitely not a big breakfast person, the reason being that I’m kinda a 2 meal a day person, although on a cruise I’ll get something small to go with my morning espresso (I’m a BIG need a good espresso person in the morning though), then do a medium lunch with my big meal of the day dinner, and usually a late dinner as I’m a night owl.

 

Oh my gosh, the Izumi Hibachi was fantastic. So much yummy food.  Hopefully you'll be with a fun group.  My group was very interactive with our chef whereas the other two tables were pretty quiet.

[Teeara]

On 9/28/2023 at 1:36 PM, TravelBluebird said:

The second one was the DON”T ARRIVE BEFORE your pre-cruise Arrival time, plus other info on boarding.  Everyone here says I don’t have to worry about it if I don’t arrive super early. I’m thinking of arriving at about noon (although I have a 1:30 check in time) because I want to have lunch at a Specialty restaurant with my UDP AND I desperately need to book my UDP dining reservations. Plus, I need to check out of my hotel earlier than that. If I end up waiting at the port, so be it; that’s on my head. 

 

Do yourself a favor.  As soon as you board the ship immediately head down to Izumi and book your UDP reservations there.  The Central Park restaurants will be zoos and a lot of people don't think about going to Izumi to do it there.

[TravelBluebird]

10 minutes ago, Teeara said:

Do yourself a favor.  As soon as you board the ship immediately head down to Izumi and book your UDP reservations there.  The Central Park restaurants will be zoos and a lot of people don't think about going to Izumi to do it there.

 

That is great advice; I will do this!  Oh wait, and I just read your other post!! Now I want to do Izumi Hibachi.   Worried it may be filled up by the time I get on board, but since I’m traveling solo, maybe I can snag a seat!

Edited September 29, 2023 by TravelBluebird

[TravelBluebird]

21 minutes ago, princess76021 said:

Not bad for me!  Got here on page 2!!

Again thanks for inviting us on your cruise!

Hugs from Texas!

 

Thanks @princess76021 for coming along! 💕

[TravelBluebird]

20 minutes ago, Teeara said:

Oh my gosh, the Izumi Hibachi was fantastic. So much yummy food.  Hopefully you'll be with a fun group.  My group was very interactive with our chef whereas the other two tables were pretty quiet.

 

I did Hibachi on Carnival Mardi Gras recently, and my group of 4 was whooping it up with our Chef, and the rest of the more reserved people at our table I think thought we were a bit insane, but we had so much fun!   So, like you, I like an interactie group for Hibachi!

[Hogladyrider]

@TravelBluebird.....came over from The Tribe page to follow along!  We have never cruised with RC so this will be interesting.

 

We are not particular fans of the bigger ships, we prefer smaller to mid size ships.

 

Curious how you got a "free" cruise on HAL for such a outstanding sailing!

[TravelBluebird]

1 minute ago, Hogladyrider said:

@TravelBluebird.....came over from The Tribe page to follow along!  We have never cruised with RC so this will be interesting.

 

We are not particular fans of the bigger ships, we prefer smaller to mid size ships.

 

Curious how you got a "free" cruise on HAL for such a outstanding sailing!

 

Hello @Hogladyrider! Glad you’re coming along for the cruise!  I wasn’t a fan of big ships till I took Mardi Gras, so I’ve reconsidered them. Until that ship, I was firmly a small-to-mid size ship person myself.

 

The free cruise on HAL is a complete mystery to me. My vlog isn’t big enough for free offers, so my guess is they were trying to get us back as customers after not returning to them for nearly 10 years. 

[Hogladyrider]

@TravelBluebird...wow congrats on the free cruise, HAL is our preferred cruise line.....but we know it is not for everyone.

 

We love the live music, we don't do trivia, but we do love the great food and the fresh bread is dangerous!

Susan

 

PS - I followed your Venezia live and subscribe to your channel as well.

[TravelBluebird]

8 minutes ago, Hogladyrider said:

@TravelBluebird...wow congrats on the free cruise, HAL is our preferred cruise line.....but we know it is not for everyone.

 

We love the live music, we don't do trivia, but we do love the great food and the fresh bread is dangerous!

Susan

 

PS - I followed your Venezia live and subscribe to your channel as well.

 

I think HAL has come a long way since my last cruise, so we shall see! I do love live music.  And I remember you from the Venezia Live!  Thanks for the subscribe too—I’m SO close to 1,000 subscribers and can’t believe it!