Neeny12

Thanks for the review. Hopefully your Flow Rider skills translate to shredding (snowboarding) and if not, there's always Flow Rider in Windsor or better yet in Las Vegas. Have a safe trip home.

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Following. Great review and fabulous photos. Thanks for taking time to do this. Do you make a photo book with your pics after your trip? They would look great in a book.

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Anyone fly out on a SmartWings plane used by Air Transat?

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Did you prebook Emerald Bay Beach Club and Holland House online?

The Flow Rider is my husband's favourite part of the cruise [emoji305] [emoji475]. We missed it when they did a temporary installation in Toronto last summer. I don't ride due to bad knees but I get to do the videos, and it's fun to watch.

Thanks for taking time out of your trip to do the reviews and tips. They are very helpful.

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I made a calendar that actually has helped me pack less. It came in very handy on the Med cruises and taught me to pair down a lot on Caribbean cruises. I put in what is happening that day then coordinated and reused clothes as needed. Everyone's needs are different and although I like to tan I don't wear my bathing suits most of the day. On a longer cruise we will get underwear, socks and very casual or old tshirts done through the laundry service as they are tough on your clothes. I don't wear dresses except for formal nights and use a lot of tshirts on port excursions. We usually wear the moisture wicking pants/shorts on excursions and they can be hand washed and dry very quickly.

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As far as I know this is the normal room service menu. There is not a print menu in our cabin.

When we were on our last cruise kids were running down the halls pulling the card version of the menu off of the doors. [emoji50]

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Great review. Hoping we can sail Harmony soon. [emoji568]

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Couldn't find anything on this but does anyone know if they do anything special on the ships for Mardi Gras?

I have the strobe light cups! I luv them and will get more on the next cruise if they have them. We got them in the Solarium when it turns into a night club on some nights. I'll post a photo/video once I find them.😁

Sailing [emoji568] the end of Feb 2017. Agree, the viewing area on 14 (Sunshine Deck?) is a great spot. Wipe Out Bar btw the Flowriders was great and never had to wait long to get a drink. Get reservations for the Comedy show if planning to go. There is a lineup outside the venue for people that have reserved and another for non reservations but the venue is small and fills up quickly so only a very few with no resos get in

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Never had a complaint about MDR. They were exceedingly accommodating with my non-dairy requests on previous cruises on Allure and Oasis. Food was as lovely as any mid to high end priced restaurant.

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Be sure to check your Cruise Compass for times as Flow Rider is not always open. Sometimes it's open evenings but the best timing is if it's open on a port day and you don't go off ship. If she's never done it beware that bikinis do dislodge or come off. If she can buy a surf shirt and board shorts that will help. Watch some videos and have fun. Most importantly get your waivers signed and they will give you a wristband :)

We had room 8596 which was an OV on the hump. No lounger.

Just off Oasis. The Comedy venue had a line started 30 minutes prior. It's a small venue and if you have a reservation (there are no tickets for the shows) you just check in at the podium when it opens. The line to the left was for reservations and the line on the right was no reservations which gets in about 15 minutes before the show starts. It was the third show of the cruise and the couple at the front of the no reservations line said it was their third attempt to get in. They and some others did get in. There is staff inside making sure any empty seats will be used. One group inside, near our seats was 'holding' three seats and when asked they were not honest and said their friends were in the washroom. They never did show up and those seats were eventually given to two guys who got them after the comic made them targets of his joke for standing by the door. They took it with very good humour. There are some small tables for drinks between some chairs and there are bar staff to take your orders. Very funny comedians: one host and two other comedians. Definitely mature humour (swearing and sexual references) but IMO very funny.

When we sailed from Rome last year, we had to purchase the drink package for my son on board after we already received his sea pass card. We were not allowed to purchase the package ahead of time online.

My son had trouble getting drinks at the bars - he didn't get any on his first few tries. When we went to customer service we found out that they issued him a juvenile sea pass card because he was 19. The bars would refuse to serve just by seeing that type of card. They gave him an adult sea pass card and the drink package finally worked.

The drinking age is 21 in the US, but RC policy is that if the ship starts and ends the voyage in a European country then 18 is the drinking age. A relief to my son as our drinking age in Ontario Canada is 19.

Just ensure they get the correct card. :D

Are there usually Oscar night themes/events planned?

Usually bars like Cliff, Kind, etc when on excursions. We've also ordered fruit and cheese baskets or brought apples, bananas, etc from one of the buffets and of course chocolate or candy....

Tetra paks of almond milk sold on non refrigerated store shelves do not need to be refridgerated until opened. Almond milk sold in milk carton type containers in the refridgerated sections must be stored in the fridge right away. Either one goes bad if you don't put it in a fridge once opened.

I sent in a special needs request for a specific brand of almond milk that does not use carageenan (very bad IF you have gastro issues) so I am hoping they can get it. If not it's black coffee or tea for me.

I'm highly sensitive to lactose so even the so called lactose free milks and cheeses which are very low in lactose cause gastro problems.

Just have an alternate plan if they can't get you the almond milk you need.

Also even if you state on the special needs form that you are lactose intolerant, you still need to get your waiter to get the head waiter to get you the next days' menu so you can pick items to be made lactose free. The milk carton on RC menus only indicates that the item CAN be made dairy free not that it is actually dairy free. The first night in the mdr is a challenge but they seem to be very accommodating and make substitutions where possible. You then choose the next night's dairy free meal with the head waiter before you leave. When you go the next night and subsequent nights, just tell your waiter that you ordered a dairy free meal through the head waiter the previous night and everything should go smoothly from there on.

Although it is not near the Vatican, Hotel Cosmopolita is in the heart of Rome and walking distance to many sites, restaurants and shopping. We have stayed there twice. You can get a bus just outside or in the Piazza Venezia which will take you on a 15 minute bus ride to Vatican City terminal which is a 5-10 minute walk to St. Peter's Basilica and the Vatican Museum & Sistine Chapel. From Piazza Venezia its a 10-20 minute walk to Trevi Fountain or the Forum or the Colosseum. Via del Corso (shopping) is right at this piazza too.

Just in case: carry on has my meds, brush, toothpaste, toothbrush, 1 extra undergarment, bathing suit and beaded coverup which can also double as a dress for dining room (bought it on a cruise - it's very nice) and wear one smart casual outfit for embarkation with waterproof sandals. If I have to buy anything on board, if available, then so be it. Hopefully RCI can help a bit while on board. Just ask. Try to enjoy the holiday. Claim later. :)

On a Med cruise last year we took our son 19 and our daughter 22 on Allure. We didn't see them except for dinner and photos and on our port intensive shore excursions. We also had 4 days in Rome with them prior to the cruise. They are night owls and met others on their own at the bars (the 19 yo could drink on the ship in the Med) or casino and had a great time with their new friends. We knew we would never see them for breakfast and occasionally ran into them on deck during the sea days. We signed DH and DS for Flow Rider lessons and when they were on ship, that's mostly what they wanted to do - my DD doesn't like to get her hair wet. DS did both stand up and kneel board. Two Flow Riders so not too much of a wait. DH and DS loved doing Flowrider. When DD first got on the ship, she wanted to make sure she could get a life vest and her room steward said he would get her one if she really wanted it. By the third day she was no longer afraid of being on a ship AND trying to figure out how she could convince her friends to take a cruise with her! We did get them a balcony but two rooms down from us as I didn't want to hear them late at night. They shared a room and seemed to work it out well. :D

Definitely report the smoking. When we cruised on Celebrity Reflection a couple of years ago, it was only allowed in designated areas. What alarmed me is that we found a cigarette butt on our balcony. I took a photo, informed our steward and customer service. You see we had breakfasted on our balcony a couple of times and throwing a cigarette can cause a fire on another balcony especially if people put garments out to dry (also not supposed to do) or as in our case we had breakfast and the napkins could have caught. We were on Allure this past spring and smoking is not allowed on balconies. My daughter, a smoker, usually went down to the smoking area of the casino or went to the designated smoking areas. We hung our bathing suits and any hand washables to dry inside the cabin.

Thank you both! Good to know.

I wasn't able to attach my DH to credit card for the onboard account when doing RCI online check-in. RCI said I can do this at the pier. Anyone else have this problem? Did not have a problem doing this for our last cruise.

Just after dinner on May 31, 2013, the Captain announced they were closing access to the port side of the ship and to keep the balconies closed due to tear gas coming down the hill. We were in Istanbul the evening the riots began. We were taken off guard as our tour guide said earlier that day that the traffic issues were due to a small protest. The protests continued the next day but people still went on their tours.